AUTHOR'S POV

New York,
07:43 pm

The man with the guitar was facing the sky. The continuously changing colorful lights were highlighting his tough facial features. His neck veins were popping out as he was passionately singing high notes.

He was looking sleek in wolf hair cut as they were all messy and framing his elfin face. Some strands were stuck on his face because of sweat. A shiny stone of his earring was peeking from his hair. He has gotten tattoos all over his left arm to his neck that disappeared behind his left ear. Different types of bracelets were covering his thick wrist. Almost every finger had a ring on them.

His jeans was ripped elsewhere and the sleeveless black t-shirt was revealing his arms which now looked bulky.

He was unrecognizable.

Hazel glanced back at his face to see him adjusting his mic and continuing to play his old electric guitar.

His chest was moving back and forth, sweat was dropping from his sharp jaw. The beat dropped and the man showering in sweat moved his head down to glance at his fans.

Denny.

The stage name he selected for himself to hide his identity was echoing all around and his face was displayed on the huge screen behind him. He took his earpiece off as the audience was crazily chanting his name.

His eyes had the satisfaction that was visible from afar. He indeed was living his dream. The self-made artist he always wanted to be was no more just a desire.

"I made it" was written all over his face.

He felt like he won everything until his gaze fell on the only non-moving person in the crowd.

He froze the moment his eyes got locked with Hazel. Suddenly he felt like getting stabbed, he felt weird sparkles exploding in his chest.

He wasn't able to hear the whistles and applause anymore. Everything felt silent except for his loud heartbeats.

His Adam's apple moved up to down as he swallowed his saliva down his dry throat. He started to step back just like he did last time as soon as he saw Ian beside her.

"Don't." Hazel mouthed slowly shaking her head telling him to don't go but he rushed backstage. Fortunately, he was done with his part in the show but it wasn't a sudden goodbye to the audience. The next artist got announced to perform quickly to handle the situation.

The staff ran after him as he disconnected his microphone and hand it along with the voice amplifier to them while another lady took his guitar.

" Xaden." He stopped hearing Hazel's voice from behind. He turned to see her getting stopped by the guards. " let me go. " She tried to push them but they weren't budging a bit.

Xaden blankly stared at her struggling then turned back to go to his artist room which was a couple of minutes' walk from the stage.

" XADEN." She shouted as he got into an elevator of a hotel which was present just behind the venue of his show.

" Please, I need to talk to him." Hazel tried to convince the guards but for them, she was another crazy fan to shove so they were only doing their job. She gave up when the elevator door closed.

" Let her in." A feminine voice made all the guards release Hazel's arms. She turned her gaze to see Sen standing there with Xaden's belongings.

Hazel stepped ahead but non of the men tried to stop her anymore." Come." She said taking Hazel with her to another elevator.

" What was that?" Hazel asked.

" I'm Xaden's schedule manager." She replied.

Hazel now noticed her wearing a black full-sleeved t-shirt just like other staff members.

The elevator door opened and they both stepped in. Sen pressed the eighth-floor button and moved back.

" You were with Xaden all this time?" Hazel inquired.

Sen nodded. " I was only supposed to drop him to the metro station that night but I had enough idea that he can't be left alone," Sen replied politely.

" You were hiding him from us all this time, then why are you helping me meet him?" Hazel questioned.

" I never hid him from anyone. It was his choice. I was just obeying him. That's it." She explained herself.

" Now it's his choice to avoid me. Aren't you supposed to obey him this time as well?" Hazel's voice came out a little bitter.

" As long as I know him, he needs to meet you," Sen answered.

The elevator door opened breaking the silence with its ding voice.

After passing by some rooms Sen stopped in front of a door. She took her keys out and twisted it in the keyhole.

Hazel glanced at Sen and then at the slightly open door. " He's inside." With that Sen left.

Hazel pushed the door only to see topless Xaden facing the crowd from a huge window. A cigarette was between his fingers and smoke was in the air around him.

" Sen, please leave me alone for a while." He mumbled taking another drag from his cigarette.

Hazel silently walked to him and stood beside him. Still getting unnoticed she glanced at the crowd down there.

"You left us for this right?"

Xaden's head snapped recognising the voice but Hazel's gaze was fixed at the same spot.

"Tattoos, cigarettes, alcohol, fame, girls, this is all you have always chased." She lifted her gaze and looked dead into his eyes. "Got them? Happy now?" She asked turning to face him properly. " You left those people who love you because of these unknown people who you thought would love you more than us-"

"Just leave." He cut her off and gave a slight push on her shoulder.

" I WON'T UNTIL I FINISH." She yanked his hand so that he dropped his cigarette.

She sighed exactly after raising her voice because she wanted to convince him calmly. " Xaden, It's not your home. You'll soon realise it. Fame blinds but when you'll look deep into their eyes you'll realise it's not peace but an empty promise. They'll say they are beside you but at the end of the day, you'll always be alone. They won't know how you feel inside. All they do is demand. They do care, I agree but even if they are in millions, not a single person can reach out to you when you need to rely on someone."

Xaden quietly listened to her. She wasn't wrong and he knew that that's what made him drop his gaze.

"Family is important, Xaden."

" So are my dreams, Hazel." He muttered.

" More than your family?" Hazel questioned.

" I left because I felt unwanted." He said lowly not clearly answering her question and turned to walk away but Hazel stood in front of him blocking his way.

" Unwanted? Unwanted by whom?Aunt Anna? Who is depressed since after the night you left? You should have seen her condition. She has been admitted for a week last month. Or unwanted by Uncle Tan who doesn't show it but I've seen him sitting in your room at night. Reed's searching for you like some mad person. And Edwin... I've never seen him this lonely before. Mom and Dad who have raised you like their own son misses you. Everyone's blaming themselves for your disappearance and you say you felt unwanted."

" What about you, Hazel?" He asked finally lifting his gaze, wanting to know how she felt without him.

" I love you." His heart skipped a beat and his dry lips parted at her words. " We all do." She added making him close his eyes. " Please, Xaden. At least for the sake of Aunt Anna. She'll die without you."

" I can't go back." He shook his head. "Because when I stay I destroy things. I hurt people and I can't see it." He broke the eye-contact again.

" Your absence causing more damage, Xaden." Hazel tilted her head. " Don't be selfish."

Xaden chuckled at her last words and looked straight into her eyes. Hazel noticed his orbs getting darker and larger. " I left everything for you all. Still I'm selfish. You know what? You have painted me as a bad person in your mind I can't erase that. I can never be good enough for you. I tried and tried. I was like come on be proud of me like f*ck I'm trying but you didn't care. WHAT THE F*CK ELSE DO YOU ALL WANT FROM ME?" He growled frustratingly.

Hazel took a step closer and cupped his face. She was mad at him but she knew yelling back is only gonna worsen the situation. "Your presence. That's enough, Xaden." She tried to keep her voice stable as she was in an urge to cry.

"My presence ruled by you all." He scoffed removing her hands from his face. " You say everyone's there for me but when I needed one person. To never give up on me. Just one. There was non."

Only if he was as cold and he pretended to be at the moment then his heart wouldn't be crying to forget everything and rush back home with her.

" I'm not going to argue any further. Just a question." She took a deep breath. "Are you happy?" She asked. "Without us." She added in a broken voice.

"Never once I regretted leaving."

The tears she was holding finally escaped her eyes. " You've changed a lot." She cried hitting her weak fist on his chest. " Xaden." She wrapped her hands around him and rested her head on his chest being able to hear his loud heartbeats.

Xaden's hand unknowingly lifted as he felt her shivering. He wanted to give her bone crashing hug but he curled his fingers back holding his emotions back.

"I missed you. A lot. We all do. Come back when you feel right. I'll be waiting."

She pulled out of the hug and rushed outside wiping her tears.

" You didn't wait." He said staring at the half-opened door.

WILLIAMS' MANSION

" Why is my bank account blocked?" Reed asked Edwin looking at his mobile screen before turning his gaze towards him who was staring at his laptop screen. " Is this a kind of punishment from Dad? You did do something wrong? Edwin?" Reed called again but he seemed lost.

" Someone bank corrupted us," Edwin mumbled lifting his head.

" What?" Reed didn't believe his ears.

Edwin nodded. " Hazel called me a few hours ago. Her account is blocked as well. I investigated a bit. No outsider could get the password that easily. It's someone who is between us." Edwin said thinking deeply. Doubting each of his employees.

" Who could it be?" Reed mumbled scratching his head.

"I doubt Maxwell," Edwin replied as Maxwell is the only one who's one of the richest people in their country and now has a reason to do this.

" What are you even saying?" Reed asked with crashed eyebrows.

" Let's go. I'll explain." Edwin hurriedly went to his car.

" Where?" Reed asked.

" To the penthouse. I don't want anyone besides us to know this." Edwin said sitting on the driving seat while Reed sat beside him in passenger one.

The car started and Reed called Stella. " To the penthouse. In 30. Bring Jane with you." He dismissed.

" Now explain," Reed said facing Edwin.

" Maxwell is Jane's ex-boyfriend. We have got into an argument multiple times because of him disrespecting her." Edwin clinched his jaw speeding up his car.

Soon they reached their penthouse and within a short while Jane and Stella arrived.

" Where could Maxwell be right now?" Reed asked Jane.

" I don't know." She shook her head gazing at Edwin for a second then lastly looking at Stella who was busy typing something with the speed of light. " I can't understand anything." She said lowly to her.

"EXR can get shut down if we won't sort this out. There are chances that the same happens with Miss. Hazel because her account is hacked as well. If the hacker deletes the data it's all over." She explained.

" Ian may know where Maxwell is," Reed called Ian but he didn't receive it.

" He's with Hazel. Call her." Edwin spoke.

After a few seconds of ringing, Hazel picked up Reed's call. " Where are you?" Reed asked even before she said anything.

" I'll be home within an hour." She kept her tone stable even though she was crying over Xaden. She was sitting on passenger's seat while Ian was driving.

" Hazel." Reed paused for a moment. " Someone has bank corrupted us." He informed.

" What?" Hazel sat up properly.

"We've already called cops-"

" But how this happened?" She asked.

" We doubt Maxwell. Does Ian know where he could be right now?" He asked.

Ian shook his head as soon as Hazel turned to ask him about Maxwell because he was able to hear their conversation the reason was silence in the packed car.

" He doesn't know," Hazel replied.

" Come directly to the penthouse with Ian. Don't let our parents know about it."

"Okay, I'm coming." She ended the call and groaned tiredly. " How could Maxwell go this low?" She mumbled resting her head in her palm.

Where it all started? She thought to herself.

The day when the triplets decided to collaborate? Edwin and Xaden didn't care who was going to be their business partners as they always left these things to Reed who had no idea about who Maxwell is nor Hazel paid attention to whom it will be because one of her partners were her cousins.

But Ian-

Hazel turned her head in Ian's direction who was carefully driving the car on the dark street.

" You knew," Hazel questioned.

" Huh?" Ian looked at her for a second before facing the road ahead again.

" How's your account active when ours are blocked?"

Ian's mobile started to buzz and the screen lit up showing the caller's ID. It was Maxwell.

They both glance at his mobile then at each other simultaneously.

" Stop the car," Hazel said in a stern tone. " STOP THE CAR I SAID." She yelled trying to unlock the door but he speed up. She smartly grabbed the handbrake but before she could pull it Ian grabbed a fistful of her hair and smashed her forehead on the car console ahead. She lost her consciousness within a hit.

" You shouldn't have to go that deep." Ian turned his car towards an unknown dark street watching her bleeding without any mercy.

• Everything we see is a perspective, Not the truth.

Chapter Published On: 21 May 2023

The urge I had to add that gif of Yeonjun🤌🏻
Might remove it later.

⚠️Do not delay quickly go to the DISCLAIMER of this book and check each chapter one by one, do vote if you forgot to do so. Every vote is precious to me. Please, I want this book to reach 1K before it ends. I want to break my previous books' records. Pretties pleeezeeeeeee...

I'm Tae biased feel my pain. Make me smile. I beg 😭

Not to be unthankful... The amount of comments I got on the last chapter was so satisfying. 🔍⍤⃝🔎