Chapter 26 None of Your Business
Kenneth smiled calmly despite Marianne’s obvious indignation.
He took her cool hand in his and gave it a gentle squeeze. “I don’t know what he’s planning, but I promise I won’t let him disrupt my life or yours. That’s a guarantee.”
“I believe you,” Marianne replied with a warm smile.
Just then, Kenneth’s phone rang.
2
He answered to hear his classmate’s urgent voice. “Kenneth, you need to check the school forum right now! It’s filled with posts attacking you. What’s going on?”
Posts attacking me?
Kenneth’s expression turned serious. “I’ll take a look.”
He quickly opened his laptop and navigated to the school forum. There, he found that someone had recorded his conversation with Lucas from earlier that day and posted it online.
Some students who understood English had even translated the dialogue, twisting the context to make Kenneth look bad.
[I can’t believe our school’s golden boy is secretly a bully!]
Aman doesn’t cry easily. What did Kenneth do to mak_hat põB
Chapter 26 None of Your Business
[You never really know someone, do you? Kenneth seems
so perfect at our school, but apparently he was a completely different person back home. I wonder if he came here because he couldn’t make it in the States anymore?]
[I actually feel sorry for his girlfriend. Was she tricked too?]
[Aren’t you all being naive? If they’re together, they’re probably cut
from the same cloth!]
Their faces fell as they read these comments.
Marianne’s cheeks flushed with anger. “This school is full of people who love stirring up drama! They don’t even know what really happened, but they’re just running their mouths!”
She looked at Kenneth with concern, wanting to comfort him, but to her surprise, a cold smile appeared on his face.
After everything he’d been through back home, this kind of gossip felt like nothing more than a light drizzle, barely worth noticing.
Instead of getting upset, he calmly guided Marianne to sit down beside him and popped a piece of dessert into her mouth.
“Don’t worry. I can handle something this small,” he said.
Under Marianne’s confused gaze, Kenneth stretched his neck and his fingers flew across the keyboard. He posted his own response on the forum.
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Chapter 26 None of Your Business
20 min left
Kenneth: [I believe wise people don’t spread rumors. I hope my fellow students will think carefully before jumping to conclusions when you don’t know the whole story. Don’t just follow the crowd!]
Kenneth: [I’m your classmate, and though we haven’t known each
other long, as fellow students, I think you all know what kind of
person I am!]
Kenneth: [As for Lucas, if he claims I bullied him, he’s welcome to tell everyone exactly what I did! But he can’t even bring himself to say how I supposedly bullied him! I ask you, can someone like that be trusted?]
Kenneth: [Finally, I swear to God, I’ve always conducted myself with integrity and have never done anything immoral! If I have, then may I lose everything I’ve gained today. That’s all I have to say!]
After Kenneth posted this message, his classmates who had been insulting him seemed to regain their senses. The mocking comments immediately decreased.
Kenneth didn’t really care about the outcome. He simply closed his laptop, stood up, and pulled Marianne into his arms, planting a gentle kiss on her forehead.
“Trust me, this will all blow over soon,” he said.
“Okay,” Marianne whispered, her cheeks turning pink.
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Chapter 26 None of Your Business
– 20 min left
The next day, when Kenneth and Marianne walked into school holding hands, their classmates still watched them, but now with admiration and respect in their eyes.
Most people panicked when facing rumors, trying to explain themselves only to make things worse.
Kenneth’s confident and straightforward approach made people naturally inclined to believe him.
Just like that, the forum controversy died down.
As a result of the backlash, news of their victory in the competition also made its way online.
It was already late night back in the States. Eleanor and Victoria were at the Blackwood Villa, discussing Kenneth’s situation while browsing educational websites. They both jumped when they spotted Kenneth’s familiar face on one of the pages.
“Isn’t that Kenneth? I can’t believe it! We spent all that time looking for him, and he’s been abroad this whole time?” Victoria wrinkled her nose, looking thoroughly irritated.
Eleanor enlarged the photo, staring at Kenneth whom she hadn’t seen in so long. Her heart felt like it had been pricked by a needle.
The two quickly made up their minds. “I’ll book flights right now,” said Victoria. “You ask for time off from our professor. We’re going to find him.”
49 tind
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Chapter 26 None of Your Business
19 min left
That night, Eleanor and Victoria lay in bed, unable to fall asleep despite their best efforts.
The next morning, they grabbed their hastily packed bags and headed for the airport, dark circles clearly visible under their eyes.
But when they opened the front door, they ran straight into Harriet, who had just returned from her business trip.
“Mom…” Eleanor lowered her head guiltily while Victoria looked away, her face clearly showing her discomfort.
“Where are you two off to so early?” Harriet asked, her face showing signs of exhaustion. When she glanced down at their luggage, her eyes widened instantly.
“Tell me the truth! What are you planning to do with those suitcases?” she demanded sharply, causing Eleanor to nervously
swallow.
Victoria, however, stood her ground. “Harriet! We know where Kenneth is, and we’re going to find him and get some answers. We need to know what he really wants.”
Harriet had been keeping tabs on Kenneth since he’d landed overseas. She and Helena talked almost daily.
Byt hearing that the girls wanted to confront him made her 5/7 expression darken even further.
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“You’re not going to find Kenneth,” she firmly rejected their plan. “He’s doing just fine where he is.
“He’s already started college and has his parents with him. You’re both students too. Your job is to focus on school, not get caught
up in all this drama!”
But Eleanor wouldn’t listen. She grabbed Victoria’s hand firmly and spoke with absolute determination.
“I don’t care, Mom. I’m definitely going abroad! You know exactly what’s going on between the three of us! Do you really think we’d just let Kenneth leave like this?
“If he’s deliberately avoiding us, then we’ll go to him and sort this out face–to–face! I can’t believe it. How could he live well without
us by his side?”
With that, Eleanor pulled Victoria away, marching off despite Harriet’s protests from behind.
That same day, they caught a direct flight abroad, planning to give Kenneth an earful once they found him.
But they’d seriously underestimated what traveling to another country involved.
After landing, the language barrier made even getting a taxi a struggle that took forever, let alone finding a hotel.
6/7
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Chapter 26 None of Your Business
By the time they finally checked in, night had fallen. They collapsed onto the sofa, completely exhausted.
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Victoria massaged her throbbing temples and mumbled, “God, I wish Lucas were here today. Everything just seems easier when
he’s around.”
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