Chapter 151 The Boy in Her Gray World
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From the day she felt her mother’s absence, Caroline became unusually quiet.
Or maybe that was not the right word. She wasn’t exactly obedient. Nor was she lifeless, not exactly.
It was more like she had turned into a shell, a body without feeling.
The world had gone gray.
And in that dull, silent world, the boy who had unexpectedly wandered into her line of sight–smiling so brightly from the garden outside the window–became the only spot of color in her
entire year.
She had no idea how much time passed after that.
Then one day, as usual, she sat quietly by the window, peering out like an obsessed voyeur, hoping for a glimpse of that boy.
And he looked up. He actually looked up and smiled right at her.
Even though she had been careful to stay out of view, convinced he couldn’t possibly see her, her heart still started pounding uncontrollably.
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The boy… she actually knew his name. She had heard his grandfather and the neighbors call him Alistair.
That day, Alistair waved at her through the window, like he was saying goodbye.
And from that moment on, he never appeared again.
One day passed. Then two… and then three.
Days turned into weeks, and still, there was no sign of him.
The girl who had once been silent and numb suddenly became irritable and impossible to manage.
Paige heard about it and came storming in to put her back in line. They ended up fighting again. Paige pushed her, and Caroline’s head slammed hard against the wall. After that, she forgot everything from that year, including Alistair.
Now, with her face buried in Alistair’s chest, Caroline rubbed her head against him, inching even closer, even though there was barely any space left between them. It was as if she wanted to melt into him completely.
Maybe that was the only way she could feel safe.
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She hadn’t told Alistair anything about that year.
He would have felt heartbroken if he knew.
But it was all in the past. She didn’t want to bring him pain over something that couldn’t be undone.
Alistair held her tightly, both protective and exasperated. “How could your dad believe everything Paige told him?” he asked.
Caroline corrected him, “He’s not my dad. I don’t have a father.”
That hit Alistair even harder.
And maybe she’s right. A man like that… he might as well not
exist.
Maybe it was because his relationship with her mom had fallen apart. Or maybe, as Caroline often joked, she had always been the kind of person people found hard to love. Whatever the reason, Gordon had never shown much affection for her.
He was always traveling, always somewhere far, either overseas or on business. He hardly visited.
There had never been much of a father–daughter bond between
them.
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And since he had grown up with Paige, their relationship ran
deeper. Of course he would take her side.
Which meant, whatever Paige said became gospel.
Alistair felt a tightness in his chest from the frustration.
And to think I actually used to worry about how to get on her dad’s good side. But now? No need.
So what if he was the richest man in the country? He was still just a fool who couldn’t tell right from wrong.
Caroline and Leo hadn’t always been at each other’s throats.
They had once gotten along fine, or at least tolerated each other.
It was after she nearly killed Paige that everything between them
fell apart.
From Leo’s point of view, maybe he wasn’t entirely wrong. But from Alistair’s perspective, his wife was never the one at fault.
No matter when or where, no matter what happened, he would always stand by Caroline.
Still, if he took a step back and looked at the situation objectively, he could admit that Leo had, in his own way, still shown some
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lingering affection for Caroline as family.
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The next day, Alistair checked the news online. As expected, it had blown up. Freya’s scandal had gone viral–every platform was flooded with reports about her arrest and the criminal charges.
Because she was a public figure, the fallout was even worse than the “two men, one woman” scandal from New York. That one had been wild, but this? Freya’s case had set the entire internet on fire.
Some fans turned on her. Some insisted she was innocent. Others didn’t care about the truth at all and kept obsessing over her looks. It was complete chaos.
Regardless of who still believed in her, Freya’s career was done. With a criminal record hanging over her, there was no way she could make a comeback.
Alistair checked Yves‘ Twitter page and saw that Freya’s name had already been removed from the cast list of If There’s a Next Second.
Production was about to start. Losing an actress in such a major role at the last minute had left Yves furious and scrambling to find a replacement. But it wasn’t easy to find someone who matched the character’s look and feel.
To be honest, Alistair never thought Freya had truly fit the role he
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had written in the first place.
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While Yves was ranting about unreliable producers, a face came to Alistair’s mind. Someone who, in both image and presence, matched the role far better than Freya ever did.
The moment Yves heard the suggestion, he told Alistair to reach out to her for a screen test.
“Who cares if she’s new? Technically, Freya was a newcomer too. Every award–winning actor starts somewhere. Alistair, just have her come in and try.”
Alistair pulled up Aaron’s number and gave him a call.
If someone was going to get this chance, why not Janice?
For him, it was just lending a hand.
Whether she could make something of it, that was up to her.
He trusted Yves‘ character. If Janice made it into the cast, she’d have a real shot at fulfilling her dream of becoming an actress.
At least with Yves, there would be no shady dealings behind the
scenes.
“Does Janice still want to act?” he asked when Aaron picked up.
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“Director Yves Robinson is about to start filming a new project,
and there’s an opening. I recommended her. If she’s free, she can come in for a screen test today. I’ll text you the address.”
While Alistair was on the phone, Caroline was taking a nap.
Her method of napping was a little unusual.
She’d curl up behind him, arms wrapped around his waist, cheek pressed against his back. Eyes closed, just like that, she’d fall
asleep.
At first, Alistair had tried to convince her to lie down properly, telling her she’d sleep more comfortably.
But over time, he realized something. Caroline wasn’t just trying to
rest. She was using every excuse to stay close to him.
Right after Alistair hung up, Caroline’s phone rang.
It was Julian.
Leo might have been great at being a celebrity, but as a cousin, he was basically invisible.
He didn’t even have Caroline’s number.
So if he wanted to reach her, he either had to go through Mabel or
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Julian.
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Leo and Julian didn’t get along, for reasons that weren’t hard to guess. Julian had always been on Caroline’s side. And frankly, Julian looked and acted more like her family than Leo ever did.
Caroline didn’t even hesitate. “Not seeing her,” she said coldly.
A few minutes later, Julian called again. “Ms. Ashbourne, Mrs. Reed is here. She asked to meet with you at two this afternoon.”
Caroline answered the call on speaker.
Alistair noticed the change in her expression immediately. Her face went cold, and her answer was as firm as before. “Not seeing
her.”
Mrs. Reed?
If Caroline was that dismissive, it had to be Leo’s mother–Paige.
Alistair looked at her, silently asking if she was okay. Caroline gave a small shake of her head and then replied to Julian in a clipped, professional tone, “Tell Leo I’ll meet with him this morning.”
