Zinnia gazed down at Yannis’s sleeping face, so stunning that it took her breath away. Yannis was unbelievably handsome, with long lashes resting against his cheeks and raven-black strands tousled across his forehead.

After confirming that Yannis was still asleep, Zinnia slowly reached out to his face, her soft fingertips lightly brushing against his smooth, delicate cheek.

Zinnia couldn’t resist giving his cheek a playful nudge. She felt that it was soft and bouncy. Her eyes sparkled like starlight as she muttered, “Not only does he look amazing, but even touching him feels wonderful.”

From the corner of her eye, Zinnia noticed the faint red mole on the bridge of Yannis’s nose. She slowly moved her finger upward until it traced the tiny mark along the prominent ridge of his nose.

Though barely visible from a distance, the mole became distinct when she leaned close.

Zinnia stared at his gorgeous face for a long while, completely mesmerized. She murmured, “What would it be like to take a bite? Would he taste as good as he looks?”

Her eyes remained fixed on his face as she lowered her head. She couldn’t help but swallow.

As Zinnia’s warm breath fanned across his face, Yannis unconsciously frowned.

Just as Zinnia was about to kiss Yannis’s face, a faint murmur escaped from Yannis’s lips.

Zinnia froze. She jerked upright, and only then did she notice Yannis’s eyelashes fluttering. It was a clear sign he was about to wake up.

Zinnia scrambled to her feet so fast she nearly tripped. In her flustered rush, she hastily threw the sofa blanket over Yannis.

Zinnia was so flustered that she tossed the blanket directly over his face. She didn’t have time to worry about it. She scampered away, fumbling with the door before dashing out of the apartment.

Little did Zinnia know that all her flustered movements were noticed by Yannis. His Adam’s apple bobbed slightly as a faint, helpless smile played at his lips. But soon a heavy wave of drowsiness overwhelmed him, and he drifted back to sleep.

Yannis was drowsy during the massage. But even half-asleep, he could still hear Zinnia whispering into his ear, let alone feel her poking him.

Had it been anyone else, he would have pushed them away without a second thought. But since it was Zinnia, he just let it slide.

This time, when Yannis closed his eyes, there were no more flashes of those bloody memories. Instead, his mind was filled with Zinnia’s beautiful, crystal-clear eyes and the gentle sound of her voice softly praising him.

Yannis thought, “It seems she does have a thing for my face. Hasn’t she eaten enough? Now she’s practically drooling over me.” Remembering the feel of her warm, gentle breath on his skin, he chuckled softly.

No sooner had Zinnia arrived at school than she heard Ethan say, “Hey, have you heard? Anne is transferring to our class!”

Zinnia chewed on her juice straw and asked, “Why on earth is Anne transferring to our class?”

Ethan shrugged and replied, “Not sure, just heard it from my dad this morning. He’s on the school board. School’s been in session for weeks, so why is Anne transferring to our class now?”

“Even if Anne has fallen out with Betty and doesn’t want to see her, she could’ve just had Betty switch classes instead. Why would she choose to come to ours? It just doesn’t make sense.”

“When is she transferring?” Lydia asked, handing the opened strawberry tart to Zinnia.

Ethan replied, “Not sure, but definitely by next week at the latest. After all, she’s a senior, she can’t stay in the hospital recovering forever.”

Zinnia remained silent, taking a bite of the strawberry tart. She couldn’t figure out why Anne would ask to transfer to their class.

Noticing that Zinnia seemed distracted, Lydia reached over and gave her hand a gentle, encouraging pat. She said, “Hey, don’t worry, we’re all here for you.”

Maisie hadn’t returned to her seat yet. At that moment, she gently ruffled Zinnia’s hair and comforted her, “Yeah, Zinnia, don’t be scared. We’ve got your back.”

“Anne was pretty normal when Betty wasn’t involved. Now that they’ve fallen out for good, she should be back to her usual self. And even if she isn’t, no big deal. We’ll just keep our distance.”

Maisie thought, “Given the bad blood between Zinnia and Betty, and how Anne used to side with Betty, it’s puzzling why she’d want to transfer here now.”

The bell soon rang, and everyone returned to their seats.

William walked into the classroom and said, “Alright, everyone, I have an announcement to make. As you may have heard, Anne will be joining our class next week.

“I know there’s been a bit of tension among you, but I really hope you can try to get along. Even if you can’t, please don’t ostracize her, alright?”

After school was over, Zinnia packed up her things and left. She had just reached her residential complex and was about to scan her face to enter when suddenly, the door of a car parked by the curb swung open.

A female voice called out, “Zinnia!”

Zinnia turned and was surprised to see several unexpected faces.

There was Maelis, whom Zinnia hadn’t seen in ages; in just a few days, Maelis looked much older. Then Yosef, Howard, and Timothy stepped out of the car. Barred from entering the gated community without a resident’s permission, they waited in the car for Zinnia.

Seeing them, Zinnia pressed her lips together and frowned. She thought, “Why won’t they just leave me alone?”

“Zinnia,” Howard called out, his eyes lighting up with hesitant joy. After being scolded by Yannis last time, Howard finally recognized his own mistakes. This time, he came prepared, his hands full of carefully selected gifts.

Hearing Howard’s voice, the other three snapped out of their stupor. They gazed at Zinnia with a mix of regret and guilt. The incident at school hit them like a sledgehammer. Only then did they come to realize how profoundly they had wronged Zinnia.

They thought, “Betty, whom we least expected to do such things, turned out to be the one who deceived us the most. No wonder Zinnia has kept her distance from us.

Zinnia, the one we trusted the most.

“So much had happened, yet we rushed to conclusions and blamed Zinnia, never bothering to find out the truth. If only we had investigated, none of this would have happened, and our family wouldn’t be in such a mess.”

“Zinnia,” Yosef called softly, supporting Maelis as he walked toward Zinnia. Yosef’s heart was heavy, especially as he recalled their last encounter, when Zinnia had said the Shaw family had never given her any allowance.

Only now did Yosef come to realize Zinnia had been telling the truth.

Maelis had meant to give Zinnia the allowance, but after the incident with the broken necklace, she got upset and decided to delay it for a couple of days, leaving the matter to Betty to handle.

Little did anyone know that Betty pocketed the money and never gave Zinnia a cent.

Watching the Shaw family approach slowly, Zinnia recalled what Yannis had taught her: better to wrong others than to be wronged by them. So she didn’t retreat. Instead, she glared at them and snapped, “Why can’t you just leave me alone?”

Zinnia didn’t bother mincing words this time. Her sharp, barbed remarks cut deep, each one stinging like needles in the heart.