Chapter 1515 She Also Wants to Help Him
It was early morning, and Laura woke up earlier than usual, catching snippets of a hushed conversation between two cleaning maids.
"Do you think it's true?" one maid whispered.
"Not sure, but it could be. Derek's never been seen with anyone before," the other replied.
"What are you talking about?" Laura suddenly interrupted, startling the maids so much they dropped their brooms.
"Sorry," they stammered, looking flustered.
Seeing their nervous faces, Laura put on a serious face. "Spill it. I heard you mention Derek. Did something happen to him?"
"Laura, please don't get the wrong idea," one maid said, trembling. "We didn't mean any harm. We were just curious after seeing the news and talked about it a bit. We won't do it again."
"What news?" Laura asked, still groggy and not having checked her phone yet.
"It's about Derek," the other maid whispered.
Laura didn't waste any more time with them. She rushed upstairs, grabbed her phone, and searched for Derek. To her shock, there were tons of news articles about Derek's private life. Reporters had snapped photos of Derek at a bar with his arm around a guy, and another of him holding hands with a man after dinner, looking pretty cozy. Even though the photos were taken in dim light and from behind, they were pretty suggestive.
Some reporters even dug up the identity of the guy with Derek, revealing him to be a well-known gay man.
She glanced at the comments below the news, which were in the thousands.
Unknown: [Whoa, I'm shocked. Derek is gay?]
Unknown: [OK, being gay is one thing, but the President's son? That's not right.]
Unknown: [Let's not jump to conclusions. It might be a misunderstanding.]
Unknown: [The Presidential Palace will definitely deny it.]
Laura couldn't bear to read the comments any longer. Some were okay, but others were extremely harsh, with people even hurling insults at Derek.
Laura felt uneasy, but seeing those photos made her heart ache.
Just a few days ago, Laura had been wondering if Derek liked her.
Well, she had really overthought it.
Derek was kind to her because he saw her as family.
Derek liked men, but this scandal could seriously mess up his future career.
Laura quickly freshened up and went to find Derek, only to hear that Carl had called him.
She hurried to the front hall.
As soon as she entered, she heard the sound of things being smashed and Carl's angry voice thundering through the closed door and floor from the upstairs study.
She had never seen Carl so angry, and it made her feel anxious.
After waiting for a while, she saw Derek coming downstairs, looking disheveled. His face was pale, and there was a wound on his forehead, likely from being hit by something.
"Are you okay?" Laura asked nervously.
"I'm fine," Derek said, stumping down with his head down.
"Hold up," Carl's stern voice boomed from behind. "I don't care how you do it, but you need to clear this mess up. And within two weeks, get yourself a girlfriend. I can't stand this humiliation."
"Humiliation?" Derek turned back with a mocking laugh. "As your son, I don't even have the right to love who I want."
"Shut up. You need to understand that even though being gay is legal in many places, you are my son, Derek. Don't ruin your life," Carl said, glaring at him. "Cut ties with that man immediately."
Derek pressed his lips together and walked away.
The entire hall fell into an eerie silence.
Carl's reactions frightened Laura.
"Laura, you have a good relationship with him. Please help me convince him," Carl said helplessly, "There are too many people eyeing the Presidential Palace. Derek is young and holds a high position, which makes many people jealous. If he continues like this, it will ruin his life. I don't care if I get re-elected, but he's still young."
After speaking, Carl walked away.
Magnolia also came down, looking worried.
"Magnolia, would you like some breakfast?" Laura asked, supporting Magnolia.
"No appetite," Magnolia sighed, "No wonder Derek showed no interest in the girls I introduced to him. It's my fault for not noticing. I just can't understand how this happened."
Laura couldn't understand either.
But she said, "Magnolia, who took those photos and dared to publish them? Aren't they challenging the Presidential Palace?"
"There are plenty of people who want to challenge the Presidential Palace," Magnolia said with a bitter smile. "They've been quiet for a while, but the world is never short of ambitious people. Even if we clarify that Derek and that man are just friends, people might not believe it. He needs to find a girlfriend quickly, even if it's just an engagement."
"Laura, please talk some senses into Derek," Magnolia said.
Laura remained silent, because she tried before.
But Derek didn't listen to her.
Less than an hour later, the news about Derek was quickly suppressed. The Presidential Palace issued a statement clarifying that Derek and the man were just friends. On the day the photos were taken, Derek had drunk too much to walk by himself, so his friend helped him.
But many people didn't believe it.
However, after the PR effort, all the comments from non-believers were deleted, and within a day, the matter was gradually suppressed.
After relaxing, Laura called Derek, but he didn't answer. He didn't reply to her messages either.
She thought Derek must be in a lot of pain right now.
She had liked someone before, and the feeling of liking someone but not being able to be with them was very painful.
But how could she help Derek? Derek had helped her so many times, and she wanted to help him too.
When she returned to the Presidential Palace after work, Derek still hadn't come back. After putting Maeve to bed, she called Derek again. This time, the call was finally answered, but it was a stranger's voice.
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