Heartstrings on Fire novel Chapter 298

"It was one heck of a hot summer. That day, my parents went to an orphanage to sort out adoption procedures. I deliberately took her out for a spin. I brought her to the Pearl Tower, told her I was off to buy some ice cream and I'd be right back, asked her to wait for me there. In reality, I sneaked back home all by myself. I was actually hoping she'd get lost, or even worse, get snatched up by some human traffickers. When night fell, my parents came home and asked where my sister was, I told them I'd ditched her. My mom was going crazy at that time, and my dad also beat me severely. I finally told about leaving her at the Pearl Tower. My parents quickly drove over to find her, and I tagged along. To this day, I can't forget how she was still waiting at the Pearl Tower, asking every passerby, 'Could you buy me an ice cream? Once I get the ice cream, my brother will come back.'"

Tears began welling up in Ivan's eyes, "She was so clearly terrified. She was out under the sun all day, her face was even starting to peel, but she was still smiling while asking strangers for help. Lots of people, seeing this poor kid, would buy her an ice cream. Then, she'd just stand there with her ice cream, waiting. Every time her ice cream melted, she'd ask another stranger to buy her one. With the weather being so hot, she couldn't bring herself to eat the ice cream, she just kept waiting and waiting. When my parents found her, someone had just bought her an ice cream. When she saw us, she immediately ran to me with her ice cream in hand, offering it to me like it was some kind of treasure, 'Brother, here's your ice cream! Can we go home now?'

I stood there bawling my eyes out, because of my selfishness, because of her innocence. I can never forget those eyes of hers, those careful, humble, eager to please eyes. She was only four. In reality, she knew I was trying to abandon her, didn't she?

When we got home, I got another whipping from my parents, then was locked up in the basement for some reflection time, with no dinner. Sometime after midnight, she sneaked in through the small basement window, and took out an apple from her clothes for me, saying, 'Brother, I hid this, you should eat it.'

From then on, I swore to myself, I'd never abandon her again. She was my sister, and I was going to protect her for life."

Ivan went on to share a lot more, including how they were bullied by their family after their parents died unexpectedly, and how they depended on each other to survive.

By the time he finished, Agnes couldn't help but let her tears flow.

She'd always thought she was the unfortunate one, having lost her mom at a young age.

But she had no idea, there were so many others in this world who'd had it worse than her.

She could hardly imagine the pain that Ivan and Mamie had to endure.

Ivan talked for two whole hours, right up till noon.

Finally, he offered a bitter smile and said, "I'm really sorry for dumping all this on you."

But Agnes responded, "If you're not comfortable entrusting her to someone else, why not keep your promise and protect her always? Does society's opinion really matter that much?"

"It doesn't matter to me, but it means a lot to her. She's a superstar in the public eye, and every star has its shadows. My overprotectiveness has made her arrogant and willful, made a lot of enemies who are just waiting to see her fall from grace. I can't let them find her weak spot."

Agnes let out a deep sigh.

She understood that Ivan was afraid of Mamie finding out about his true feelings. If Mamie only saw him as a brother, this whole thing could completely ruin their sibling relationship.

"Agnes, I have a favor to ask."

"Don't worry, I won't tell Mamie about your feelings. If anyone should tell her, it should be you."

Gratitude filled Ivan's eyes.