Xiao Zhan's POV

The loud rings of alarm wake me up. I switched it off and slowly got out of my bed. Every day, I have to wake up at 5 am even though the school starts at 7:30 am. Why? Because I have to deliver the newspapers all over the residential areas. This is one of the three jobs I did to support my everyday life. My parents died when I was 13. They were involved in a plane crash, on a flight returning from their outstation. During that time, I was staying at Uncle Feng Mian's house, my father's best friend. When I was playing with my best friend Zhuo Cheng, Uncle Feng Mian suddenly entered the room and held me tight. I didn't understand why he suddenly did like that. "Zhan Zhan.... no matter what, you still got us, okay? We all will be with you just like your family." I still couldn't catch up with what he was trying to say. "Uncle...what's wrong?" I asked.

"Zhan Zhan.....the plane that your parents took..... crashed... and.... no one survived." I felt like my world crumbled and crashed down. I didn't know how to continue this life anymore and felt like I wanted to follow them to the other world, but Uncle Feng Mian, Zhuo Cheng, and their whole family kept giving me support and motivation to continue my life. Slowly but continuously, I started to find the will to live. It took me almost a year to do so. 

My parents left me some money, but I still have to work because I have to pay for school fees and my daily living expenses. Lucky me I didn't have to pay the rent because the house already been bought by my father so at least I'm free from debt and rental. Uncle Feng Mian insists that I stay with them because he was worried I'm living alone but I rejected the idea politely. It is good enough that Uncle Fengmian cared for me when I was in a slump. I didn't want to add to the burden. 

It is lonely living alone in a house, so Zhuo Cheng and his sister Xuan Lu always come to visit me during the weekend. We studied and played together. I taught Zhuo Cheng about studying, and Xuan Jie taught me how to cook. Thanks to her, I managed to eat proper meals and live a proper life. I'm really happy I got them with me. Our bond is no longer a friendship but a family. I consider them my brother and sister. 

At school, I never had a problem since everyone was nice to me, so my school life went on smoothly. I'm not an athletic student. I'm more into the arts. I really love drawing. If there is any competition about the arts, I'm the first to volunteer. Besides from it is my hobby, the competition will provide money as the prizes and that's what I'm after. Getting so much money while doing something I love is like killing two birds with one stone.

I always dreamed of becoming a graphic designer. However, getting into college required lots of money, which I didn't have. So, I thought of getting a job and saving some money first. Once I had some savings, I'd further my studies.

• • •

Yibo's POV

I was only 14 when I suddenly lost my world, my backbone and a shoulder to cry on. When I returned from a dancing competition in school, I was excited to show my gold medal to my mom. I was thinking she must be so proud of me. However, I could only meet with her cold body, lying silently on the hospital bed. I kept calling and shaking her body, but she didn't answer me.

My mom was diagnosed with hepatic cancer (cancer in the liver), stage 4. It was so sudden, but all of us didn't give up. I'm not trying to boast, but our family is quite rich, so my dad sent my mom to the best hospital in the city to receive the best treatment, but as I mentioned before, it was already at the 4th stage, meaning it was a bit late. We all tried to prepare ourselves to live without her, but I didn't expect it would be too soon.

Me and my younger brother and I were having a hard time accepting the reality that our mom had gone forever. It took almost a year for me to snap to reality. The reality where my mom was no longer around. Neither of us was really close to our dad since he was too busy with his work, but after our mom died, the distance grew even further. He rarely came home and only return for a change of clothes. He hired a maid who will come daily to clean the house and cook for us. However, all of the maids will only work for 3 months, the longest.

Why? Because of my brother and me. My 3 years younger brother, Wang Yuan, was a messy kid and the maid were having a hard time to clean up his room and our house. He also likes to tease and toy with the maid. As for me, I kinda hate their cook. It tastes so-so and some of it tastes bad. I didn't know how they can be a maid by making such disgusting meals. Another reason is that some of them were clearly trying to flirt and seduce our dad, which we really hate. We hate the fact that someone tried to take our mom's place and we hate it even more the one that want to replace our mom was such a whore. Thank God our dad won't even spare a glance to them.

Our dad didn't care why all the maids wanted to quit. All he knew was that once the previous maid quit, he'd find a new one. But our lives changed when one day, our dad brought home a guy to become our 'nanny'. 

• • •

Wang Yong Cheng's POV

Waking up at 6:45 am and going straight to the office at 8 am, then returning home at 9 pm. That's my everyday routine since I started my own company after my wife died. I got married at the age of 24 and became a father at 25, a pretty young age for a well-known actor and model like me. It was an arranged marriage. My parents and in-laws always wanted to become a family, and their wish was fulfilled through my wife and me. My late wife was a good lady. She's kind, caring, and has the complete package of a perfect wife. I didn't love her at first but slowly I started to develop feelings towards her. 

When she died, my life felt empty. It felt like there was a hole inside my heart. I quit being an actor and model, and I started my own business. I created my own brand, my own fashion design company. I drowned myself in work to forget about my late wife. It's not that I forget entirely about her, but I'm still alive and I need to continue my life as usual, plus I have two sons that need to be supported. 

Honestly, I'm not close to them; in fact, I didn't know how to be close. Before this, my wife was always with them, and I just followed whatever she asked me to do. And now, when she's gone, our relationship has grown even further. I know my sons resent me, but I don't mind. I will make sure they get the proper education and a better lifestyle. 

I always thought, after my wife died I won't involve myself in love anymore, not because I've closed my heart but I think no one could move my heart just like how my late wife did. But, in an unexpected place and time, my heart slowly and gradually beat faster whenever I saw that person. I tried to ignore this feeling because it was impossible to fall for someone much younger than me, plus that person is........a guy. No matter how beautiful he is, I can't fall for him. That's what I thought. 

But the more time I spent with him, the more attractive he looked to me. His charming smile, his laugh, and everything else looked enchanting. I didn't want it to happen, but my heart said otherwise. It feels so wrong to fall in love with someone almost the same age as my first son, but since I met him, I told myself that age is just a number.

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