Chapter 8

Madelyn sat at her desk, staring at Jadie's unopened gift. She already knew what it was—a Swarovski crystal hair clip. She never cared for jewelry, feeling like each piece was a burden. With a sigh, she put the gift in her desk drawer. Then, she took out her senior math review booklet. The problems weren't too challenging for her, and the pages were still crisp, hardly ever used. In her previous life, Madelyn had struggled in class, but everything changed when she asked Zach for help. He tutored her outside of regular school hours, even though he had only completed middle school-level education. What amazed Madelyn was that Zach could fluently speak five foreign languages. He taught himself all of them with relentless dedication, which made him seem incredibly intelligent. He even outperformed the top student in Ventropolis. No wonder Hayson liked Zach so much. In contrary, Hayson never showed interest in Madelyn's academic performance. Instead, he focused on her extracurricular activities, treating her like a budding socialite. He enrolled her in dance classes, piano lessons, golf, cooking, and embroidery, wanting her to master these skills. Hayson plan to marry Madelyn off to a wealthy business partner. To him, a woman's worth did not lay in her intellect. He expected her to become a wife and mother, confined to the home, serving her husband. Looking out the window, Madelyn watched a black sedan exit the front gate. It seemed to her that Hayson and Jasmine had finally left. Hayson would not be back for three days, leaving Madelyn with a rare period of freedom. Tossing her book aside, she resolved to do what she wanted. Hurrying into the backyard, she looked for the jujube tree, said to be planted by her mother while pregnant with her. The tree now stood tall, its thick branch stretching into the neighboring mansion. She wanted to climb up and enjoy the view while relishing the sweet fruits. However, her climbing skills fell short, and she had to fetch a ladder. Sitting on the wall under the tree, she picked a ripe fruit, cleaned it, and savored it with joy. Suddenly, there was a loud crash of breaking porcelain and a boy's angry voice coming from the mansion next door's second floor. Madelyn could hear it clearly because the mansions in this neighborhood were connected, separated only by a few trees. "Get out, all of you. Get out!" Madelyn looked up just in time to see a cane being thrown out the window. "Ethan, I'm just worried about you. Let's go for a walk, okay? You're always cooped up in the house, and it's really worrying." "Worried about me? You all think I'm just a burden, don't you? Wouldn't it be better if I were dead? I'm just a useless cripple. You wouldn't have to waste your time on me. Get out! Everyone get out!" "Ethan..." "Didn't you hear me? I said get out!" Ethan Arnold roared. The woman finally yielded. "Alright... I'll leave, Ethan. Just don't hurt yourself." 'Who lives here? What a temper,' Madelyn thought to herself. She recalled that about half a month after her own suicide attempt, Zach had taken her to the hospital for a checkup. When they returned, she saw an ambulance parked outside the neighboring mansion. Medical personnel were carrying out a body draped in a white sheet. The person had died the same way she had tried to—suicide by wrist-cutting. His fate was even more tragic; his body was not discovered until two days later in the bathroom. Rosario had told her that the deceased was Ethan Arnold, the future heir of the renowned Arnold family of Ventropolis. But when he was a child, he got hurt in a car accident and couldn't walk anymore. This made him really sad, and he began avoiding people and dealing with mental health issues. He had always displayed suicidal tendencies, but he had been rescued several times. 'Such a shame to die so young, at only eighteen,' Madelyn lamented. Madelyn plucked a jujube from the tree and tossed it through the broken window.