Chapter 6

Jade's expression hardened when she heard her mom. She had never before felt so disappointed and upset before. After wiping her tears and taking a deep breath to control her emotions, she stared directly into the other's eyes and shakily declared,

"If I had known of your heartlessness earlier, I would've disowned you ages ago," before swiftly exiting the room without bothering to see the expression on Gemma's face.

After Jade left behind the giant mansion she used to consider her home, she sat down on a bench in a nearby park and stared blankly at her phone, trying to figure out how she could survive in a world with no one to rely on. In the end, as she scrolled through her contacts, her eyes spotted the name of a friend of hers that she hadn't talked to in over 3 years, ever since high school ended and they both went their own ways. With a sliver of hope bubbling up within her, she hesitantly pressed on the call button and waited as the phone rang once... twice... three times...

"Hello? Jade?" The shocked, familiar voice resounded in Jade's ear, filling her heart with nostalgia and guilt. When she couldn't bear it anymore, Jade began quietly sobbing, unsure of what to say. Instead, the other side spoke again, her voice filled with worry.

"Jade are you okay? What's wrong? Who hurt you? Please respond."

Hearing the unexpectedly warm response from the friend that she had once wronged so terribly, Jade felt overwhelmed and released the emotions that had been flooding her mind for the longest time.

"Helen I'm so sorry," she said, "I'm so sorry for everything."

Helen was quiet for a while before she spoke again.

"Jade, I've already forgiven you a long time ago. I was just hoping you would contact me first and you finally did. I'm just wondering.." Helen paused, unsure of whether to continue, before she quietly finished her sentence.

"Do you still consider me as a friend?"