Two Years Ago (2/2)

In a private reading room within Ivla's outstanding library, Lynne and Keith were having their first meeting together.

Contrary to expectation, the library wasn't a bad place for a date. It had an awesome cafe nearby, beautiful meeting spaces, and lots of new games available.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Lynne." Keith smiled, taking in all of her features. From her perfect skin to exquisite features, she was indeed the ideal candidate to be his bride in the future. Placed next to him, the entire world would be jealous of them.

"Hi, Keith." Lynne fidgeted, her voice mellow. It hadn't been long, but she was quickly becoming uncomfortable. The way Keith stared at her was discomforting; she felt like some sort of item under his objective gaze.

Nevertheless, she remained. It would be rude to leave in the first few seconds after all the trouble to set up this meeting.

"Beautiful..." Keith's smile widened even more after hearing Lynne's voice, his heartstrings were being pulled.

In this world, a single fleeting encounter was all that was needed to change someone's life forever, especially for those who belonged in the high social circle surrounded by influential people.

Lynne had caught Keith's eye. It wasn't Ava's fault either. This meeting was inevitable—either forced or unforced.

Something he laid his eyes on and admired... Keith, with his astonishing memory, would never forget it for a lifetime. The reason all those domineering romance CEO novels existed in the world was because of such infatuation and obsession, even after hearing that the woman was in a relationship already.

Not all stories had a happy ending.

People became irrational in the heat of emotion. Living in high society, where there was no need to worry about their future place to sleep and whether there was enough to eat, the children were free to dream and thus able to focus their entire heart on things like love and relationships.

"You're an angel, Lynne." Keith smiled. "Please go out with me, and we can take on the world together. I promise that I will protect you from all hardship. I have the power to do so. You can be the special one to stand at my side."

It was their first meeting together, but the boy had his head in the clouds. Keith looked at nothing but her bright surface. The two of them didn't even know each other and were unaware of the other's imperfections and flaws. It was moving far too quickly.

"..." Lynne's face stiffened. "I'm sorry, Keith... but I have to go."

Getting up from the chair, Lynne was about to exit the room, but Keith stopped her with a firm hand.

"Let go." Lynne was becoming fearful, the grip on her wrist tightened. It was very painful.

On the surface, Keith had a slim appearance, but his strength was well beyond that of an average fifth grader. Lynne couldn't even budge under his power.

"What are you leaving for, Lynne?" Raising both brows, Keith tilted his head. "I'm not finished with what I have to say."

"I don't want to go out with you..." Lynne tried her best to shake the boy's hand off, but it was to no avail. "Please stay away from me."

"... What are you saying, Lynne?" Keith probed. From his tranquil voice, it was difficult to understand how he was feeling right now.

"I mean exactly what I'm saying. Now, let go!" Using her free hand, Lynne shoved Keith backward.

Being caught off guard, Keith's eyes widened as he touched his chest. The feeling of the beautiful girl's hand was still clear.

"Lynne, you know you can't do that." Slowly, Keith's gaze was turning nasty. "I get what I want, and that is final.'

At that moment, Ava barged in. Seemingly, she had been eavesdropping on their conversation from the outside.

It was likely done because she didn't wish to leave her best friend alone with a boy that the two of them weren't that familiar with.

"F*ck, this is some real crazy bastard." Ava cursed in her mind. Keith was so much different from his kind, gentleman-like reputation. It was like finding El Diablo hidden in sheep's clothing. Lynne rejecting him had set the 'perfect' boy off and awakened the inner sleeping demon.

"Leave us alone, Keith!" Backing off with Lynne, Ava hissed like a feral cat.

"Ava... you were eavesdropping on me?" By now, Keith's kind facade had shattered. "Am I some sort of joke to you two?"

"You think you can mess with me and get away with it?" Keith loosened his collar, exposing a toned neckline. "Was this your plan from the beginning—to embarrass me and spread the word?"

"I can see it very clearly now..." Keith growled. "You two want to earn fame off my name.'

"What are you even saying right now, Keith." Ava shouted. "Listen to yourself! Have you gone mad?"

"Hah... you're asking me if I've gone mad?" Keith stared at the two girls, his narrowed eyes unbelievably sharp. "Maybe I have.'

"Lynne, go find help." Ava whispered. "I'll hold him off. I don't think he'll go too far."

"Okay... but what about you, Ava?" Lynne's mind was blank right now from fear.

"I'll be fine." Lying through her teeth, Ava grinned. "You know how strong I am."

Trusting Ava, Lynne bit her lips and ran out of the room to search for help.

"What are you two bitches scheming now?" Keith lifted his chin, eying Ava down.

"Ava, you would dare go against me, Keith Lin?"

"Even if your father was here right now, he wouldn't dare to disrespect my wishes." Walking closer, Keith was directly in the face of Ava.

"Since you two both think of me as a joke and want to lead me around..." Keith whispered. "Very well, I'll play this game then."

For his entire life, Keith had never faced rejection, even with his extremely judgmental family.

Growing up, he was the genius son of heaven, pampered and adored. In his perfect life, there had never been a single bump... until now.

It was a massive blow to his mind and heart. Keith Lin's heart was even trembling in anger.

Since birth, this was the sole stain in Keith Lin's perfect, glorious life. Furthermore, he truly did like Lynne; she was likely the first girl he had ever felt such a fond and deep attraction toward.

"Get over it, Keith!" Ava pushed the black-haired boy away. "You're crazy!"

"It's not even a big deal. You were only rejected. I promise we won't talk about this matter at all." Ava swore.

"Rejected? Me, Keith Lin?"

Keith's heart was a violent storm. No, that was impossible; he was not in the wrong here. There must be something wrong with their brains.

His mind had been filled with countless thoughts and varying emotions until all that remained was his unbridled hatred toward Lynne for tarnishing his perfect life.

[You think you can reject me, Keith Lin, and get away with it? Lynne, I'll make you the most miserable person in the world. I'll take everything away from you, starting from your 'dear' best friend.] Keith's appearance was like a malevolent ghost, frightening Ava. [I won't do it all at once though. Compared to how I'm feeling right now, you'd be getting off far too easy, my dear Lynne.]

"I want you to slowly sink into loneliness, and near the end, you, Lynne, will be the one considering whether to take your own life."

"Lynne... then once you feel like you have nothing left to live for, I'll be the one to pull you up from hell. The sole reason and purpose for your life." Keith muttered under his breath.

* * *

* * *

* * *

Time flowed like water.

Weeks flew by, and Lynne had gradually forgotten about the weird incident with Keith. Back then, Ava had assured her that everything would be fine.

Nevertheless, that was a lie. Right now, Ava's family was on the verge of losing everything, but that fierce little girl was doing her best to hold on.

Keith and Ava were meeting beneath a lamplight. Their two families were inside a restaurant discussing the recent matters.

"You should know my power by now." Keith's eyes were colder than the night. "If you don't follow my orders, I will ruin your life."

"Keith, you think that by pressuring my family, you will be able to force me to follow your narrow-minded orders? Fucker, you are sorely mistaken then." Ava cursed. "I'm sorry that Lynne broke your fragile ego, but I won't betray and hurt her feelings no matter what."

"Furthermore, you think my family would go down without a fight?" Ava warned. "If you push us too far, we'll bite back with all our built-up power. I don't think your Lin Family would be willing to go to that drastic length for just you. The costs are unimaginable, after all. It wouldn't be worth it in the long run."

"Hahah..." Keith madly laughed. "Ava, you are quite the worthy adversary. Fine, I'll admit that you're more persistent than I had expected, but you should think very carefully right now before making your next decision."

"Sure, let's assume that I'm unable to get rid of your entire Yan Family at this time... but what about Lynne?" Keith grinned.

"You... what are you trying to say right now?" Clenching her fists, Ava stared at Keith's self-important appearance.

"Ava, I know you don't need me to spell it out for you." Keith closed in on Ava. "If you don't follow my wishes, I'll have to kill Lynne alongside her entire family."

Keith grinned, "From what I know, her family is nothing much. I can get rid of her with a snap of my fingers..."

"Once I'm done with Lynne and her family, there wouldn't even be a single trace left of them in this entire world."

"By now, you should know best that I can do such a thing without batting an eyelid." Keith smiled. "We both know these are not empty words. Ava, this is my final warning to you. Follow my simple plans, and I will also repay you with unimaginable wealth and status at the same time."

"If you weren't her precious best friend who she cared so much about, I wouldn't even bother dealing with you, Ava." Keith laughed.

This wasn't a bluff... Keith, this powerful madman, would really end Lynne's entire bloodline if she did not follow his disgusting orders.

Ava knew it would be much harder for Keith to get rid of her Yan Family, but it was much different for her best friend, Lynne, who had a very normal status.

Seeing Ava's silence, Keith continued with a sinister smile. "Listen closely, Ava."

"You will make Lynne avoid you like the plague." Keith Lin grinned. "You, as her sole friend, will be the one to take everything away from her—right in front of her very own eyes."

"But, at the same time, you will also make Lynne feel indescribable guilt so that she doesn't ever move on. This should be easy for you. You two are such great friends, after all."

Keith continued, "Ava, you will give yourself a very good reason to hate this best friend of yours. Lynne must also understand the reason behind your hate and sympathize while feeling incredible remorse and regret. She must blame herself every day. This is the most important part."

"You will also hide everything we've discussed tonight from Lynne."

"I want this to last a lifetime until I'm satisfied."

"Or else... if I don't see her depressed enough and all the conditions followed, I will take Lynne's life myself, including both of your families." Keith smiled.

Keith wanted Lynne to have the aching feeling of losing everything in the world. He felt that death would be too painless compared to all the anger and disgrace he had felt upon being rejected.

"You... monster." Ava was shivering in fury, and she felt so helpless in front of this influential young master.

"Take the time to think it over, Ava." Keith started to walk back inside. "You're a smart girl, and I know you will make the correct choice."

"You wouldn't want to have the blood of your dear best friend on your shoulders, right?" Keith laughed as his figure faded into the depths of the bright fragrant restaurant. "I wouldn't think so. You care about her too much. If you were to be the reason for her death, you would not be able to handle it."

The moment Keith left, Ava dropped to her knees in tears, her broken, weeping appearance a downright mess. "I'm so sorry, Lynne. I tried everything..."

Most of the time, living was far better than death. Upon returning to the soil, all hope and the chance for a change, however slim that percentage was, would be lost.