Chapter 7 He Forgot Where He Came From
“Shane, eat your food.”
The old patriarch finally spoke again, placing a shrimp on Stella’s plate.
Even with his authority tempering the atmosphere, dinner ended on a sour note.
When they left, Shane dropped Stella at a bus stop without a word and drove off without looking back.
Stella had no reaction. She quietly returned to the hotel and never reached out again.
She threw herself into tying up every loose end–cutting off every connection she had left in Cloudtopia.
Sometimes she opened Wendy’s messages.
Everything they did together, Wendy reported in nauseating detail.
After feeling nothing but numbness, Stella found it almost funny.
This girl hopping up and down on the other end of the line seemed more like a clown than a threat.
She never replied. She just quietly took screenshots and saved them all–just in case.
Monday still came.
Her flight was booked for 11:30 a.m.
She got up early, packed her bags, and was about to head down for breakfast when Shane walked in using the spare key card.
He was dressed sharply, but his expression was tense.
Stella instinctively moved her suitcase behind her, a brief wave of panic hitting her.
She had almost never left Shane’s side.
She remembered once, after a fight, Shane got drunk and clung to her hand, growling that if she dared to leave, he’d lock her in the house for life and never let her see anyone again..
Back then, no matter how twisted the words, she thought they were sweet.
Because they came from love.
But now, all she felt was resistance.
Shane stared at her for a while.
He’d been fuming these past few days.
B
But Stella hadn’t contacted him, and it made him panic deep down.
Now, seeing her obediently in the room again, his chest finally eased.
“Leave your luggage. I’ll have Simon pick it up later. Let’s go get the marriage certificate.”
Something she once longed for with all her heart now didn’t stir even a ripple inside her.
She adjusted her backpack and stared at the long, elegant hand reaching out.
¡No rush. Come with me somewhere first.”
1/4
Pearls
Shane checked the time on his watch, his tone uncharacteristically patient.
“Alright. Don’t take too long–1 have a meeting at ten.”
How generous of him, squeezing in time for marriage.
The car soon arrived at the old district.
On either side of the worn cobblestone streets were rows of weathered buildings.
After redevelopment into a tourist area, they hadn’t returned since.
“Why here all of a sudden?”
Shane parked the car, brow furrowed. That anxious, hollow feeling churned in his chest again.
He instinctively reached out and clasped Stella’s hand in his.
Only then did he feel grounded.
Stella
Stella didn’t pull away. She simply raised her other hand and pointed into the distance.
There used to be a basketball court there. It had long since been demolished.
“Junior year of high school, someone from another school had a crush on me. You got jealous and challenged them to a three–on–three. You won, but sprained your leg. You cried like a baby, hugged me, and made me promise to take responsibility.
Later, after we made things official in college, you dragged me here in the middle of the night to light fireworks and propose. I was only seventeen. You were so anxious to lock it in.”
“Star, what’s really going on?”
Shane’s voice cut through the memory.
Stella turned to him.
“Our first fight over Wendy happened here too. You left me in the half–demolished court. I didn’t know the way–I wandered for two hours before I got home. My feet were torn up.”
She’d never come back here since.
Something clutched Shane’s heart like a steel claw.
He pulled her into his arms.
“Star, those things are in the past. I only took care of Wendy because-”
Stella gently broke free,
“Come on. Let’s see how the new park turned out. I heard they kept some of the old diners. Been a while since we’ve eaten
them.”
She pulled her hand from his and walked ahead on her own.
Shane swallowed the ache in his chest and followed.
There weren’t many tourists at this hour, but the breakfast stalls were already bustling with locals.
A wash basin of greasy dishwater was dumped right onto the pavement, sending oil slicks everywhere.
Shane frowned, dodging it and instinctively pulling Stella to his side.
2/4
“Today’s special. After we register, I’ll take you to a lobster feast. Do we really need to eat this?”
Every stall on this street–he’d taken her to all of them.
Back then, he rode a bicycle with a fresh bun in his mouth, weaving through laughter and sunshine.
That Shane had no status, no money, no one to lean on.
Unity Corp made him what he was now–the Boston family’s uncontested heir.
He stood just beneath the pinnacle.
But he forgot the road he came from.
And he forgot the promises he made to her.
“This is what I want today.”
Stella’s sudden stubbornness threw him off.
The girl he’d raised for over a decade had always been spoiled and vibrant.
But everything revolved around him.
Now… something had changed.
His mind went back to that night at the family estate. The old Stella would never have embarrassed him in front of his family.
She knew better than anyone how much his pride mattered.
Sitting on a weathered bench, Stella ordered some buns and two bowls of shaved ice.
Shane took the spoon she passed him, an emptiness growing in his chest.
“Star, I’ll have Simon take Wendy away today. From now on, it’ll be just us in that house. Like before.”
In his world, she had always belonged to him.
And always would.
Nothing would change.
Nothing could change.
“Eat up. We’ll register right after.”
He sounded eager.
Stella’s heart clenched.
Like before?
Suddenly, a ringtone cut through the air.
It was the one Shane had set just for Wendy.
Once, she had called while he was in silent mode. He missed it. When he found out, he sat outside the hospital pulling at his hair in frustration.
That day, Stella had watched with her own eyes as Shane showed a different kind of tenderness–for someone other than her.
“Answer it.”
Stella looked down and kept eating.
3/4
Shane stared at her face, irritation mounting with the sound of the ringing. He finally answered.
“Wendy, I’m busy today. Call Simon if you need anything-
A different voice cut in.
“Sir, Ms. Wendy was trying to tidy up the greenhouse to make Ms. Stella happy. She had an asthma attack and refused to rest. She passed out. She’s in the ER now. She told me not to call you, but her condition doesn’t look good.”
Shane’s face changed instantly.
“I’m on my way.”
He hung up and stared at Stella, his gaze cooling.
“I’ll restore the garden just the way it was. Why make such a fuss and push Wendy like this? We’ll register another day.”
With that, he turned and walked away.
Leaving Stella once again in the same place.
On the very day they were supposed to get married.
Watching him walk away, Stella didn’t even feel much anymore.
She used to wonder–if she had a chronic illness too, would Shane treat her equally?
But why should she have to suffer just to earn basic respect?
Her eyes ached because she wanted to cry. And she quietly finished eating while holding back tears.
Walked the path she came for in silence. Returned to the hotel, picked up her luggage–and went straight to the airport.
