That was when the cutting begun

Kai Xin was so drunk that she did not realized it when DX carried her back to her house. DX rang the door at 11.58pm, and within 2 seconds, the door was opened.

He smiled as he thought how An Qi Yan probably waited by the door the entire time.

"What happened?"

"She had a bit too much to drink."

Narrowing her eyes at him as she allowed him to enter, she questioned him, "Did you do anything to my baby?"

"No." He went into her room and placed her down on the bed. He even took off her shoes before tucking her into the bed, all the while making sure that she was comfortable.

"I will take it from here." An Qi Yan said.

DX nodded. He bent down and kissed Kai Xin on the forehead before wishing her "Sweet dreams". He then turned to leave. An Qi Yan sent him out. Before he left, she asked, "How long have you known each other?"

DX thought for a while before saying, "I have known her for 6 years."

"Has she…" An Qi Yan stopped for a moment as she gathered her thoughts.

Her action of rubbing back of her neck whenever she was nervous was a reflection of Kai Xin's, "Has she ever told you anything about her time in high school?"

DX looked at the woman before him and she was looking at him, her expression doleful, as if she was afraid of his answer.

"I know about the scars on her arms."

"Did she tell you about anything else?"

DX shook his head, "What happened?"

Feeling defeated, the woman merely sighed and shrugged. She had hoped that he would have an inkling of what had happened to her baby daughter back then.

Except for James who Kai Xin had brought back before when she babysat him, and Mo Shaoyun who always visited with Jane, the man in front of her would be the third guy that she had ever brought back.

"It's getting late now, you should head back before your parents start getting worried."

DX nodded. Before he left, he added, "You are a good mother."

--------------------------

As she watched over her sleeping daughter, her mind went back to 12 years ago.

She had divorced her husband and moved to a new city with her kids. Even though it was hard, they were happy and all of them managed to adjust to their new life.

Everything was fine...until the day her daughter came home with bruises all over her body.

She had been working overtime the day before and had not seen her children until the next day. When she saw her daughter's swollen face the next morning, she was shocked.

Angered, she had demanded to know what had happened to her but she was rebuffed by the kid with a downcast expression, as if she was ashamed of something.

When she asked her son, he merely shrugged and said that she probably fell down again. An Qi Yan thought that maybe he was right.

At such an age, to get such an injury from a fall would be somewhat embarrassing and Kai Xin had a record of falling down the stairs. That day, she had decided not to pursue the matter.

However, Kai Xin seemed to turn into a different person after that. She used to be quite an expressionless kid, but after that day, she had one expression that she wore everywhere for the next few years : Fear.

She would often sleep with the lights on, and she would jumped at her own shadows. Whenever An Qi Yan had to work overtime, Kai Xin would beg her to come home earlier.

Her actions had left An Qi Yan baffled. Was this the same kid who used to run around until late at night to the point that she had to threaten to take her allowance away?

Roughly two months later, Kai Xin asked to change school. When An Qi Yan asked her for the reason, she merely said that she wanted to try out a new environment.

As a mother, she was not willing to let her daughter give up so easily.

Kai Xin's high school then was the prestigious Elite High School, the top high school in the province, and one which Kai Xin spent many nights burning the midnight oil to get into. She did so well in the entrance exams that she was admitted under merit scholarship.

"What makes her want to give it up so suddenly?"

For the longest period of time, that was the question in An Qi Yan's mind.

At first, she had refused despite Kai Xin's persistent pleadings.

That was when the cutting begun.