Chapter 280: Tracking
During the special training, Yancy was a total wreck. He was freaked out that Mia would be pissed and never forgive him for ghosting her, and even more freaked out that Benjamin would swoop in and get back with Mia while he was MIA.
So, during those days, he trained like a man possessed. He knocked out the assessment projects way ahead of schedule with some insane determination and even scored the first-ever bonus points for finishing early.
This made him the star among his peers in the family, and Yancy's grandpa, who had been grooming him to take over the Bailey family since he was a kid, was over the moon. He put Yancy's name right at the top of the heir list.
For a while, Yancy was the guy everyone envied.
But no matter how much he rocked it in the Bailey family, he had to swallow his pride when it came to Mia.
Mia was from a regular family and didn't get this whole training thing at all. She just didn't buy his story.
Luckily, Yancy was stubborn as hell. He kept explaining over and over, hinting that Mia wasn't getting out of the car until she believed him. This relentless effort not only convinced Mia but also got him back the right to hang around her place.
Plus, Yancy scored a new perk: he swapped out the old sofa for a bigger one that was comfy enough for him to crash on.
Brad had just walked in when his phone rang. He grabbed it and went into the bedroom to chat. Mia and I were chilling at the dining table, sipping the sweet soup Yancy had whipped up, and talking about going shopping over the weekend to pick out a wedding gift for Isabella.
My phone buzzed; it was a Facebook message. The message was short and sweet: [Jane, stay away from Daniel.]
I knew exactly who sent that threatening message.
I just couldn't figure out what I did or said to make her think I was still in touch with Daniel!
"Who is it? Sending messages so late, could it be Adam?" Yancy plopped down next to Mia and asked me.
Even though Yancy had muscled his way into staying here, Mia wasn't giving him any love. She'd eat what he cooked and drink what he made, but that was it—she didn't say a word to him.
Mia's cold shoulder left Yancy no choice but to jump into my conversation to prove he was still around.
"Nothing, just spam." I deleted the message and blocked the sender.
Zoe's message was like a tiny pebble tossed into a pond, causing a small ripple that quickly disappeared from my mind.
The next day was Thursday. Brad had kicked off a new project group at school, which meant he had to be hands-on with a lot of stuff. He was so swamped every day that he didn't even have time for breakfast. My plan to have a serious talk with him about Jenny had to be put on hold.
When I left the house, it started to rain.
I had two classes in the morning and nothing much in the afternoon, so I planned to focus on painting at Crystal House.
At ten o'clock, Brad messaged me saying he had ordered lunch for me, which would be delivered to Crystal House at noon. He also told me to steer clear of Adam.
Brad seemed super obsessed with keeping a distance, always telling me to stay away from this person or that person—Rafael, Adam, and definitely Daniel.
Sometimes I wanted to tell him straight up: if he wanted me to be his girl without any drama, he needed to give me enough security and shower me with love, so I'd want to stick around.
The distance between two people isn't about physical space but how close their hearts are.
Take Adam, for example. No matter how much I tried to avoid him, we were still on the same campus, and we'd bump into each other. Plus, we were both art students, practically living at Crystal House, and working on a project together. Staying apart was just not gonna happen.
Just because Adam and I saw each other every day and sometimes bickered, did that mean there was something between us? Nah, it was just normal social interaction.
So, Brad's whole "keep your distance" thing was kinda over the top.
But he was my Brad, the guy I wanted to love forever. If he said so, I'd just go along with it. It was a small thing, not worth making a fuss over.
After class, Larry called me to the office to check on my competition prep and see if I had any issues. He listened to my detailed explanation of my creative direction for the competition.
When I left the teaching building, it was already 11:53.
The rain outside had gotten heavier, with puddles everywhere. The clouds were super low, and it was really dark. Didn't look like it was gonna stop anytime soon.
Ever since I got caught in a trap during a heavy rainstorm that year, I've been scared of rain. Especially when the clouds are low, and it's pouring. It always freaks me out.
Maybe I didn't dress warmly enough this morning, 'cause that fear was hitting me hard, and I felt cold, shivering all over.
Because of the rain, the campus was deserted.
I lowered my umbrella and ran towards the old campus.
Halfway there, I heard footsteps behind me—not too close, not too far, not too fast, not too slow—just following me.
But when I turned around, there was nothing. Maybe I was just imagining things.
As I turned back and kept walking, the footsteps came back, right in my ear. The fear of being followed grew stronger with each step. My scalp tingled, and my legs felt like jelly, making it hard to run.
Suddenly, I remembered Zoe's message. Was this her revenge?
I instinctively picked up the pace, running and anxiously looking back.
Finally, I saw the eaves of Crystal House. I ditched my umbrella and rushed inside. The last time I looked back, I vaguely saw a piece of black clothing disappearing behind a big tree.
Even after getting into Crystal House, my heart was still racing.
Adam saw me standing by the door, clutching my chest and staring outside in a daze. He walked over and asked what was wrong.
"Someone's following me."
His face changed immediately. His eyes widened, and without caring about the heavy rain, he bolted outside.
About ten minutes later, he came back. His hair was dripping, and his clothes were soaked, clinging to his body.
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
