"I'm really glad you could make it." a spoiled and willful voice came from upstairs.
The recently rescued Luna, who was rumored to have attempted suicide, was standing all high and mighty on the second-floor stairs. Her wrists were wrapped in bandages with a hint of pink showing through, and she looked pretty rough.
Seeing us looking at her, she raised her eyebrows proudly and walked downstairs with a cheerful step. "If you had figured this out sooner, you wouldn't have put your parents through all this trouble."
Seeing her act all high and mighty, I couldn't muster any goodwill towards her. Luna was truly domineering; even though Howard said he didn't like her, she still brought up his parents to force him.
"Your parents are really unlucky to have a daughter like you. If you leave Howard, I can give you a large sum of money. Take the money and stay away from him as soon as possible." Luna spoke so confidently, as if Howard was already hers.
I couldn't help but wonder if her so-called love was worth anything at all. After all, treating her supposed beloved as a bargaining chip and secretly vying for him—could that really be called love?
"Alright, Luna, Mr. Smith is still here. How can you speak so rudely?" John lightly reprimanded, but there wasn't much blame in his voice. With that, he turned his gaze to me. "Since Ms. Johnson has already made her choice, please withdraw voluntarily. I will transfer the compensation to your father's bank account as soon as possible."
They both seemed to assume that I would give up on Howard. I took a step back and pointed at Howard. "Aren't you going to show me your performance? Go ahead." I wanted to see how he would reject his pursuer.
Howard's cold gaze fell on John. "Come out, I want to see who gave you the courage to scheme against me."
"What?" John seemed stunned.
"You dare provoke me, isn't it because you have someone backing you? Bring out your backer." Howard said directly.
John finally came to his senses. "Right. Wait a moment, they should be here soon."
As he spoke, the sound of a car horn blared outside, and an elderly man with white hair walked in.
Seeing him, I exclaimed in surprise, "Mr. Martinez, Amelia, why are you here?"
Aiden was also a bit surprised. He glanced at me and frowned. "Why are you here, Karena? I wondered why I couldn't reach you this morning. Turns out you were already here."
"What's going on? I'm here to resolve some issues." I couldn't help but look at Amelia.
Amelia glanced at John and Luna and said to me, "My grandpa was invited by them to perform some kind of ceremony."
Seeing how familiar we were with each other, John couldn't help but furrow his brow and ask. "You know each other?"
Aiden smiled slightly and pointed at me. "Mr. Bailey, this is my student."
"Mr. Smith is also here," Aiden said with a respectful tone, smiling at Howard.
I finally understood that the person backing John was Aiden. In that case, I didn't seem to fear him as much.
John didn't expect our relationship Seeing Aiden's attitude towards Howard, he knew Aiden wouldn't side with him, feeling a bit awkward.
Sensing the subtle atmosphere, Aiden glanced at Howard and spoke slowly, "Mr. Bailey, what do you need from me?"
Howard snorted coldly, "He just wants you to break the contract between me and Karena."
Aiden was taken aback and quickly said, "That’s beyond my abilities." Not to mention that he really couldn't do it, even if he could, he wouldn't help John bully me.
"There seems to be some misunderstanding," John coughed lightly, looking embarrassed. He didn't expect that I was Aiden's student. Knowing Aiden wouldn't help him, he worried about Howard's retaliation. Thinking of this, he shivered and quickly apologized to Howard, "I'm really sorry, Mr. Smith. I didn't know before, so there might have been some misunderstandings."
Seeing his quick change of attitude, I couldn't help but snort coldly and said deliberately, "A misunderstanding? I didn't see it that way. Mr. Bailey was quite fierce in asking me to give up my boyfriend."
John forced a smile, looking tense. "It really was a misunderstanding."
"Dad, why are you afraid of him? You promised Howard would marry me. You can't go back on your word," Luna said anxiously, stomping her foot as things didn't go her way.
For the first time, John didn't indulge Luna and sternly warned, "Enough!"
Seeing John not siding with her, Luna became even more upset and rushed towards Howard.
Howard quickly dodged her, looking at her with disdain. "Stay away from me.."
Luna's gaze was intense, her eyes burning with a fierce passion. "Howard, I really like you."
Seeing this scene, I couldn't help but wonder, 'Why she has such deep feelings for Howard. Is it just because he is handsome? But Luna has seen plenty of handsome men like him.'
"I don't like you, and your pestering is very troublesome," Howard said coldly, his face devoid of any emotion.
Luna's lips trembled, and she said pitifully, "In every way, I am superior to her. Why, then, do you love her and not me?"
"Some things just won't make sense to you even if I explain. I'm done trying. Just remember to stay the hell away from me from now on. Also," Howard turned his gaze to John. "I'll resign from the school. As for Karena's parents..."
He didn't finish, but John immediately understood and nodded. "I'll handle it right away and provide the Johnson family with compensation."
With everything resolved, I felt relieved.
"It's all your fault, you bitch." A sharp voice came, and I was suddenly tackled to the ground. Luna looked at me with hatred, her eyes filled with intense emotion. She had somehow gotten hold of a small knife and was aiming it at my face.