Echoes of Unrequited Love (Xaviera and Hogan) novel Chapter 1

By the time I made it to the alumni gathering, everyone was already having a blast.

Among the crowd, Hogan Zade sat solemnly at a round table, bathed in the halo of light refracted from the chandelier above. His prominent nose and sharp features looked as if chiseled from fine jade – cool, aloof, and impeccable.

Next to him was a girl with a pretty face.

His hand rested casually behind her, every move he made was filled with tenderness.

The bottle for truth or dare just happened to point at the girl.

A busybody, eager to stir the pot, said in a pleasing tone, "Pick someone of the opposite sex here and kiss for two minutes."

After hearing this, the girl shyly bowed her head and gave Hogan a look that practically screamed 'rescue me', and no one's heart would not go out to her.

Hogan shot the crowd a look, and in a soft voice said, "Cut it out, she's shy."

When he said 'cut it out', nobody dared to push her further. But out of respect for the game rules, Hogan still downed his drink.

It was pretty clear he was looking out for her.

The teasing and jeering continued, but nobody noticed me standing in the corner.

I touched the scar on my wrist, turning away quietly.

"Xaviera, did you just get here?" Darren Yearwood, the class rep, asked, drawing everyone's attention.

"It's Hogan's wife."

The title I once wore with pride now felt like a joke.

In an instant, all eyes were on me. I forced a smile and said calmly, "Long time no see."

No response.

The room fell into an awkward silence.

You could hear a pin drop.

After all, Hogan seemed to have found his match now. Who would bother with me, someone who's been fawning over him for six years?

My appearance was indeed ill-timed.

But then, the girl by Hogan's side broke the ice, "I know you, Xaviera March, the famous top student belle from our department's previous years!"

She was sweet-looking and spoke so softly, it was impossible to dislike her.

"Hi Xaviera, I'm Cecilia Irwin, also from the computer science department," she introduced herself. Then, turning to Hogan, she whispered, "Hogan, why didn't you tell me Xaviera was coming tonight?"

Hogan glanced at me indifferently and said with a nonchalant tone, "An insignificant person, why bring her up?"