Female Novel
Chapter 57
Chapter 57
When Madelyn slipped her feet into her slippers and hopped out of bed, she discovered her ankle hadfully healed. She hadn’t even noticed when Zach had left the previous night, as she had been fastasleep. By the time she woke up, it was already the next day.
The memory of Jasmine stumbling out of Zach’s room, clearly drunk, gnawed at Madelyn’s nerves.Grabbing her backpack, she deliberately took her time descending the stairs.
Stepping lightly, Madelyn scanned the vacant living room. Surprisingly, there wasn’t a soul in sighttoday. She quickly snatched a few slices of toast from the dining table, planning to make a quickescape. Just then, Rosario emerged from the kitchen, declaring, “Silly child, you’re in your own home.Why are you sneaking around? Sit down and have breakfast. I’ll go upstairs to call Mr. Jardin.”
Madelyn hastily responded, “I’ll just have something light for breakfast today. I have an unfinishedpractice test, and I need to go to school to complete it. Rosario… I’ll eat this and then be on my way!”
“Madelyn, that won’t give you proper nutrition,” Rosario protested.
Madelyn remained silent.
Anticipating Madelyn’s stubbornness, Rosario added, “Don’t forget to take the milk with you. In a rush,she fetched a fresh carton of milk from the refrigerator. However, upon returning, she realized thatMadelyn had already vanished.
Just then, a voice came from upstairs. “What’s going on?” Zach was fastening his tie, his arm. drapedin a black suit as he descended the staircase.
Rosario replied, “Madelyn had only a couple of toast slices for breakfast and left. She even forgot totake the milk. She’s growing up, and such meager meals won’t keep her healthy.”
Zach’s gaze deepened as he caught a glimpse of the departing car through the floor-to-ceilingwindows.
After having a light breakfast, Zach quickly returned to the office.
By nine o’clock, Rosario grew concerned when Jasmine hadn’t appeared for breakfast. Worried thatsomething might be wrong, she headed upstairs with a breakfast tray in hand, making her way toJasmine’s room on the third floor. Pushing open the door, she was startled by the scene before her.
Jasmine lay unconscious on the floor, her nightgown and hair soaked. Gently touching Jasmine’sforehead, Rosario realized it was burning with fever. It was evident that Jasmine was suffering from ahigh temperature. Acting swiftly, she dialed the family doctor and urgently requested his presence.novelbin
After Rosario changed Jasmine’s clothes, she lay in bed as the family doctor, who arrived in haste,conducted an examination. Removing the stethoscope, the doctor reassured, “It’s nothing serious, justa common cold accompanied by a fever. I’ll prescribe some medication for her to take over the next fewdays, and she’ll be back to normal soon.”
Jasmine regained consciousness after some time, cradling her forehead and experiencing body aches.Fragments of memories from the previous night began to assemble, and she inwardly cursed, ‘Zachnearly did me in. He’s really crazy!’ Throughout the years she had spent with Zach, she had alwaysheld the belief that, even if she couldn’t surpass Jadie in his heart, she still held some significance tohim. That’s why she had recklessly tested Zach’s limits, wanting to uncover the depths of hisboundaries.
However, yesterday, Jasmine appeared to have stumbled upon something entirely unexpected.
Gurgle…
During the last class of the morning, Madelyn’s stomach rumbled, drawing unwanted attention. Themeager breakfast she had eaten was no longer enough, and her hunger was catching up with herrapidly.
Seated in front of her, Serena discreetly pulled out a small snack from her drawer and swiftly placed iton Madelyn’s desk. Shielding her face with a book to avoid attracting the teacher’s notice, Serenawhispered, “Take some, at least to satisfy your hunger for now! Later… would you like to go to thecafeteria together?”
Madelyn wondered, ‘Is she talking to me?’ Uncertainty filled her, as she had been ostracized in thisclass, with no one willing to engage with her.
Just as Serena finished speaking, the recess bell rang.
Ventrocloud High School had a two-and-a-half-hour lunch break, during which students were free topursue their own activities, even leaving the school premises without objection.
It was only today that Serena had been assigned the seat in front of Madelyn. Many classmates hadalready trickled out of the classroom, one by one, and Serena turned around, asking, ” Madelyn, let’sgo to the cafeteria together!”
Madelyn retrieved her lunchbox from her backpack and responded, “Sorry, I bring my own lunch everyday.”