Chapter 3

The moment I answered, Rafael's voice came through with an accusation:

"Claudia, did you go home and tell your parents something?"

"It rained so hard today. I was just walking Giuliana home. Did you really have to complain to my father about it?"

His breathing came through the receiver—rapid and irregular.

I rarely saw him lose his composure like this.

"Rafael," my voice was calm, "did you call just to blame me?"

"Or do you think that as long as my family doesn't ask, your father won't find out what happened today?"

Rafael fell silent for a moment.

Over the phone, my ability to hear his thoughts seemed to fail, but I could imagine his annoyed expression.

After a long pause, he finally spoke coldly:

"Couldn't you just explain things for me?"

"In the end, you're just throwing a tantrum, deliberately..."

I took a deep breath and cut him off abruptly:

"Rafael, why should I cover for what you did?"

The voice on the other end stopped dead.

I laughed coldly:

"You think your father heard about this from me?"

"Rafael, don't you have any idea how many people your father has stationed around us to keep watch?"

"After all, he knows better than anyone how many projects my family has handed over to..."

A dull thud suddenly came from the other end of the line.

Rafael spoke through gritted teeth:

"Are you done yet?!"

"What?" I continued. "If I don't say it, does that mean it doesn't exist?"

All these years, there were things I never mentioned, but that didn't mean I was unaware.

Rafael's family had many children and was a sprawling clan. Initially, Rafael was just the quietest, most unremarkable one.

The Walker family had been established in San Francisco for three generations, and I was their only daughter—the sole heir to Walker Corporation.

My parents doted on me and, by extension, looked after Rafael, my childhood companion.

Because of this, the Harrington family business, which had teetered on the brink of bankruptcy multiple times, not only paid off its debts but also secured countless resources and projects.

With the Walker family's support, Rafael gradually earned recognition within his own family.

The other end of the line went quiet for a long time, as if weighing pros and cons.

After a while, Rafael finally spoke in a low voice:

"Claudia, I won't contact you for a while."

"Reflect on yourself properly."

His tone carried an air of fearless indifference.

Before I could respond, he hung up.

After that phone call, Rafael and I entered a cold war.

I knew he was waiting for me to cave first, just like every other argument we'd had before.

The cold war lasted three days. On my way back to the classroom, Giuliana came running straight into me.

By the time I registered what happened, she was already sitting on the ground, clutching her ankle in pain.

Students in the hallway stopped in their tracks, their gazes converging on us.

From the crowd, a low male voice suddenly rang out.

"Claudia, what are you doing?!"

I looked toward the voice and met Rafael's disgusted stare.

Giuliana bit her lower lip, her voice weak:

"It's not Claudia's fault. I was walking too fast."

[And she's still making excuses for Claudia even now. Giuliana is just too kind.]

[I only ignored Claudia for a few days, and she's already taking it out on Giuliana. Still as spoiled as ever.]

[Once I take over my father's company, I definitely won't let Claudia off easy.]

Rafael's face remained impassive, but his inner thoughts exploded like rapid fire in my mind.