TimeNovelATHENA
"Will you pickup again, Mummy?" my little prince asks, his voice hopeful and sweet.
| turn to face him with a huge smile.
"Of course, baby. | will. | can even pick you up every day! Is that what you want?”
He nods eagerly, his curls bouncing as | lift him into my arms and start tickling his sides.
He bursts into laughter, wriggling with delight.
"Mummy, stop! You're makinglaugh!"
"That's the point!" | tease, kissing his cheeks again and again until he squeals.
The bell rings, and | walk him toward his class.
His little hand grips mine tightly. | crouch down and fix the collar of his shirt before brushing a kiss to his
forehead.
"Be good, okay?"
"I will. I love you, Mummy."
"| love you more, baby."
He lets go of my hand and runs into class, waving at the door before it shuts behind him.
| exhale slowly, letting the warmth of the moment soak in for a second before | turn and walk toward the parking
lot.
My steps halt as | notice a familiar face leaning against my car like he owns it.
My chest tightens, my smile instantly vanishing.
"I don't want to see you," | say, coldly.
He steps forward and tries to reach out,
"Athena-"
| jerk my arm back, but his fingers manage to graze my skin, catching my wrist.
"No," I snap, and without hesitation, my hand flies up....
SMACK!
The slap echoes through the parking lot, making his head snap to the side as his cheek redens instantly.
"Don't you ever touchagain," | hiss, my voice cold and furious. "You lost the right to say my nthe
moment you betrayed me."
Noah blinks, stunned, holding his jaw.
| don't give him a chance to speak.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt
I walk around him and open the car door.
"Athena, Alex had a heart attack." He announces, makinghalt my hold for a second before | quickly recover.
"He will be fine. He has the formula, after all." | spit.
His eyes widen in shock, "He does?"
| laugh. But there is no humor in it, "Why? Are you disappointed that you betrayed
"Athena. I..." He runs a hand through his hair. "I didn't tell my parents about the formula. | know you won't
believe me, but | didn't. | love you. | would never betray you."
I scoff.
Love.
"You King men are all the same. Get the fuck out of my way or else I'll run you over!" | open my car door and sit.
He must know I'm not bluffing because he moves out of the way as | drive off.
| grip the steering wheel so tight my knuckles turn white.
My breath is shaky and uneven. I'm so angry | can barely see straight.
Alex had a heart attack?
Good.
He has the formula now, doesn't he? He'll survive.
He always survives while I'm left picking up the shattered pieces of trust, over and over again.
Love?
What a joke!
Hot tears blur my vision as | swerve into the nearest empty parking lot and slam the brakes. The silence inside
the car screams louder than any words could.
| bang the steering wheel once, twice, then I let out a cry so raw, | surprise even myself.
They used me.
Again.
Every kiss.
Every whispered promise.
Every "trust me" and "you're safe with me."
Lies.
All of it.
"I should have known," | whisper as the angry tears begin to fall. "I should've known."
The ache insidespreads like wildfire, consuming every ounce of softness | once had.
| trusted Alex. | let him hold me. I slowly let him back in again.
Noah too.
He had been there pretending to be my friend, my backup, while he schemed behind my back.
Claiming love while he soldout and had the nerve to play innocent!
Never again.
| swipe my tears away roughly and stare at my reflection in the rearview mirror.
No more crying.
No more soft-hearted mistakes.
They wantcold?
They'll get it.
After taking in deep breaths, | start my ignition again and drive to work.
| won't let them ruin my day.
| pull into the hospital parking lot and smooth down my scrubs.
I'm ready to walk in and save lives. But the moment | step into the hospital lobby, |
know something is wrong.
The air feels different.
Everyone's heads are tilted down
toward their phones. They are whispering and when they glance up, their eyes dart straight to me. s
One nurse bumps into a cart and another resident stumbles on his steps.
My brows knit.
What the hell is going on?
| keep walking, ignoring the way conversations cut off as | pass.
The elevator dings open and I'm about to step in when | hear my nbeing
shouted behind me.
"Athena!"
| turn to see Isabelle rushing down the corridor toward me, her eyes wide and her
face pale.
She doesn't stop until she's right in front of me, nearly breathless.
"Is it true?" she demands, shoving her phone into my hands.
"Is what true?" | ask, already feeling my chest tighten.
"That bastard. Did he steal your formula?" her voice trembles with a mixture of
panic and fury.
"What?" | blink, confused. "What are you talking abou-"
"Look at the article!" she snaps, thrusting the screen closer.
| lower my eyes to the phone and a gasp leaves my lips.
[Breaking News: Billionaire Alexander King steals a Cardiac Drug from the Late Dr. Dawson's Unreleased
Research. News
vel
reaching us is that he has benet
suffering from a heart problem and that could be the motivation behind such a drastic move. But questions.....] s
| skip the heading and scroll down.
["... Says they had developed a breakthrough drug to prevent early-stage heart failure... projected to earn
billions... anonymous source claimet cfrom Dr Dawson's late parents' work, entrusted to her... insider theft
suspected..."] s
How did they get this?
| feel the walls closing in. The corridor is spinning. Everyone's staring.
Everyone knows.
"Please tellit's not true," Isabelle whispers beside me.
But | can't think of a response to give her. My mind is spinning as | feel my heart
crushing.
Surely Zayan wouldn't do this would he?
It had to be someone else.
Because if he was the one who leaked this information, I'm done for.
"Where is Zayan?" | ask Isabelle. Ignoring her question.
"Don't deflect, Athena!"
"WHERE IS HE?"
"I don't know! He hasn't been seen today. lan askedto take his shift but he
didn't explain why."
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