Wilted Petals of Love

I struggled to speak. "Scouttie…"

Scout's cold gaze swept toward me. "Nora, mind your place. You should address me as Mr. Scout!"

Maya gently patted his shoulder, soothing him. "Alright, don't bother arguing with Nora. After all, she's just a kid."

She then wrapped her arm around Scout before leaning against him. The icy expression on Scout's face instantly softened into warmth.

That gaze had once followed me so tenderly. But after that night, I never saw it again.

Scout left the study with Maya in his arms, but their intimate figures lingered painfully in my mind.

As we were heading downstairs, Maya suddenly stopped. "Nora, I have an appointment with the bridal shop in a bit. Get ready to join us, okay?"

I nodded blankly again. As an orphan, I had no right to refuse the future lady of the household's request.

I waited with the driver, Hank Smith, at the entrance while Scout and Maya arrived fashionably late. They were chatting and laughing, and the sight of it stung me all over again.

In the past, Scout would always drive me himself, letting me sit beside him. But now, the person sitting next to him was Maya.

Using the excuse of wanting privacy, Maya had Hank and me move to the back car.

As they opened the car door, I noticed that my favorite cushion was gone, along with the photo I had secretly stuck to the front drawer near the passenger seat. It had been replaced with a couple's picture of Scout and Maya.

Scout immediately noticed the photo.

"Scouttie, is this okay?" Maya asked.

He looked at her with gentle eyes. "You can do whatever you want."

When I placed that photo there or acted out in mischief before, he'd also always smile and say, "You can do whatever you want."

No matter how I fussed, he'd go along with it, and he'd always smile indulgently. Hearing him say it to another person now felt like my mouth was stuffed with bitter herbs—spicy, acrid, and unbearably bitter.

The car started moving, but I couldn't focus on the passing scenery. All of a sudden, the car collided with something. The impact threw me forward into the airbag, leaving me dizzy and disoriented.

I tried to crawl out for help, but I saw that Scout and Maya were already outside through the window. He was inspecting a scrape on her forehead, and his eyes were filled with worry and tenderness.

Blood blurred my vision, but I could still make out their figures preparing to leave while I was actively losing consciousness.

A passerby then shouted, "Someone's injured! Help them!"

That was when Scout seemed to remember I was there.

I called out weakly, "Help me… My head… hurts so much…"

I struggled while extending a trembling hand.

Before Scout could respond, Maya angrily questioned, "You know Scout and I are about to get married. Are you doing this on purpose to bring us bad luck?"

Scout frowned slightly as soon as he heard her say this. He opened his mouth, and the words he spoke cut like knives. "Nora, I'm sick and tired of your little tricks."

After saying that, he turned back to comfort Maya. I supposed things were truly no longer the same as they used to be.

When I was mischievous and accidentally scratched my forehead in the past, Scout would make a big fuss over it. He even invited multiple family doctors to the house. He even had the kitchen prepare nourishing soup for an entire month.

Now, even after I hit my head hard enough to leave a deep wound, he simply stood there. He looked at me coldly without moving an inch.

After that, he swiftly left with Maya. I could no longer hold myself together and passed out in the car. By the time the paramedics loaded me into the ambulance, Scout and Maya were nowhere to be seen.

The doctors examined my injuries at the hospital, focusing on the wound on my head. They then stitched it up carefully.

Before I fully lost consciousness again, I thought I saw Scout. But how could he have been there? It must have been my imagination.

Once the stitches were done, I fell into an exhausted sleep. When I woke up, the doctor's expression was serious as he spoke. "It's a good thing the airbag protected your belly."

I stared at him in confusion.

"You're pregnant—about a month along. Be extra careful from now on."

I froze, and a wave of bitterness washed over me. Why… Why did it have to be now?

I didn't stay at the hospital overnight and insisted on returning to the Saccone family mansion. But as soon as I stepped through the door, I was met with an irate Scout.

"Why'd you come back so late?"

Before I could answer, his impatient voice interrupted again. "Forget it. The kitchen made some mushroom soup—eat it while it's hot."

His tone wasn't harsh, and his words felt warmer than the soup itself. I stared at him, overwhelmed with emotion.

However, just as I was about to tell him about the pregnancy, my heart plummeted.

"After you finish, go and apologize to her," Scout said.

By the time I snapped out of it, he was already walking away. Of course, he wanted me to apologize to Maya. My heart felt as good as dead at that point.

I then lowered my gaze to my stomach. It couldn't have come at a worse time. If all that awaited this child was suffering, it would've been better if it had never come into this world.

Swallowing my bitterness, I forced down half a bowl of mushroom soup—something that hadn't appeared on the table in eight years.

The soup was as cold as my body, but it didn't stop its effects from taking hold. My face was covered in a rash half an hour later.

I guess Scout had long forgotten that I couldn't drink mushroom soup.

Still, I had promised to apologize to Maya. So I dragged my battered, rash-covered body upstairs, step by step.

Scout froze when he saw me, and then his icy gaze locked onto mine. "Did you make yourself look like this on purpose to cause trouble? Are you trying to ruin my big day and make me the laughingstock of all of Hare City?"

Before I could respond, he ordered the staff to throw me back downstairs.

I stumbled down the stairs, nearly missing a step and falling. Thankfully, Evelyn caught me just in time. She helped me back to the storage room where I stayed.

Evelyn sighed and said, "Ms. Graham, you should stop provoking Mr. Scout. After all these years, you should know his temper by now."

I gave Evelyn a grateful look. She was probably the only one in the entire Saccone family who dared to stand up for me.

Years ago, it was Evelyn who had gone with Scout to the Graham family and witnessed how my relatives had bullied me.

After offering me a few comforting words, Evelyn left the room. I lay on the small, cramped bed, readying myself to pack and leave.

When I thought about it carefully, I realized there wasn't much I could take with me. After all, everything I used at the Saccone family had been provided by him.

The only thing I could take was the photo of me with my parents, and it was the only memory they had left me.

After bringing me into his home back then, Scout had even ordered a custom necklace to encase the photo inside. But after Maya arrived, that necklace, along with my belongings, had been tossed into the storage room.

The necklace was now broken—just like my heart. It was beyond repair.

I clenched the pendant tightly in my palm. As I reflected on the past eight years, on all the favoritism Scout had shown me, I couldn't deny that everything I had came from him.

His kindness to me was immeasurable, so I couldn't be an ungrateful person. If my existence made his life harder, then it was better for me to leave sooner rather than later.