in the pasted

Lisa had been thinking about Felix's

relentless determination ever since

she shared her worries with her

friends. One afternoon, as Felix

returned home from another

grueling day, she decided to

confront him.

"Felix" Lisa said, standing in the

doorway as he kicked off his shoes.

He paused, turning his cold gaze to

her. "What?"

Lisa swallowed, trying to steady her

nerves. "T love what you're doing for

your family. It's admirable, but the

weight on your shoulders is too

much. You can't keep this up. l'll talk

to my parents about sending money

to help you and your family."The room fell silent. Grace, Juan,

and Joseph, who were in the living

room, exchanged knowing looks.

They already anticipated what Felix

would say, and they understood why.

Felix's expression hardened. His

voice was sharp and harsh when he

finally spoke. "No. I don't need it."

His tone stung, and Lisa stepped

back slightly, caught off guard. "But

Felix-"

"I said no," he repeated, cutting her

off. Without another word, he

disappeared into his room and

slammed the door.

Lisa stood there, stunned and hurt.

She turned to Grace, who was watching her with a mix of sympathy

and resignation.

"Why is your brother refusing any

help? He's clearly killing himself

slowly," Lisa said, frustration evident

in her voice.

Grace sighed. "No, Lisa. Sometimes

he wishes he had help. But... it's

complicated."

Lisa frowned. "l just offered him

help. Why won't he take it?"Grace motioned for Lisa to sit

beside her. She hesitated, then

spoke softly. "Let me explain why he

refuses help. It's not that he doesn't

need it, but because of what

happened to us before, Felix has

trouble trusting people."

Lisa tilted her head. "What do you

mean? If you don't mind, tell me

what happened."

Grace's face darkened, and she took

a deep breath before beginning. "It

all started when my dad fell into a

Coma. One night, my parents were

arguing about what, I don't even

remember. Mom stormed out of the

room in anger, and we heard a loud

bang upstairs. We rushed up to find

Dad on the floọr unconscious.

Lisa's eyes widened. "What

happened next?"

"We took him to the hospital" Grace

continued, her voice trembling

slightly. "But he never woke up.

When my uncle heard about it,

instead of helping, he was happy. He

didn't waste any time kicking us out

of the house. He barred us from

going near the company my parents

had spent years building together."

"That's horrible" Lisa murmured.

Grace nodded, her expression bitter.

"Mom used what little money she

had left to rent an apartment and

buy food and clothes for us. Things

were hard, but we managed. Mom found a job at a small company,

earning 350,000 yuan a month. It

wasn't much, but it kept us afloat."

Lisa leaned in, sensing there was

more to the story.

"One day, Mom's boss, Mr. Zhang,

came to us and said he could help

us restore our lives. He gave us 2.1

million yuan, saying it was a gift to

help us rebuild. But three months

later, he came back, demanding the

money back. At first, we thought it

was a joke, so we ignored him. But

he wasn't joking."

Grace's hands clenched into fists as

she continued. "By that time, Felix

was only 14. Mr. Zhang brought four

men with him to our apartment. Two of them grabbed Felix and Joseph,

another two held my mother back.

And then.." Her voice faltered, and

she tooka moment to compose

herself.

Lisa felt her stomach churn. "What

happened?" she asked softly.

Grace's eyes filled with tears. "Mr.

Zhang... he raped me. Right there in

front of my family."

Lisa gasped, her heart sinking.

"My screams and Felix's shouting

only made him angrier," Grace said,

her voice breaking. "But somehow,

Felix managed to break free. He

grabbed a stick and fought back. He

beat those men until the floor was bloody, and he made sure Mr. Zhang

was left wounded."

Lisa's heart raced as she imagined

the scene. "What happened after

that?"

"Mr. Zhang fired my mom and

demanded she pay back the 2.1

million yuan. We didn't have the full

amount. Mom scraped together 2

million yuan, but Felix had to start

working to cover the rest. That's

when everything changed for him."

Grace wiped her eyes and forced a

bitter smile. "So now you

understand. When someone offers

help, Felix can't trust them. He

believes that help always comes

with strings attached-or worse."

Lisa was silent for a moment, trying

to process everything she had just

heard. "Why didn't you report it? File

for justice?"

Grace gave a hollow laugh. "We

tried. But Mr. Zhang bribed the

judge. Nothing came of it." She

stood up, brushing off her dress. "I

need to help Mom in the kitchen.

Think about what I told you."

Lisa nodded, her heart heavy. As

Grace walked away, Lisa couldn't shake the weight of the story. She

now understood Felix's coldness

and why he carried so much on his

shoulders.

But she also felt something else--a

growing determination to show Felix

that not everyone in the world was

out to hurt him.