Chapter 25

Thinking of her diary, Melody bit her lip, angry at herself for not destroying it beforehand. Remembering it was locked in a drawer, however, she reassured herself Omaha wouldn't be able to open it.

Calming down, she was about to turn off her phone when a push notification appeared. The headline read: "Heir of the Prestigious Fuller Family Secretly Attends Fashion Show, Takes to the Runway for His Muse."

Melody's breath caught. The "Heir of the Prestigious Fuller Family"—who else could it be but Christopher? Her eyes shifted to the words "his muse." Before she realized it, she had clicked on the article.

The first image showed Christopher carrying a woman, her face partially visible. Even from the side, Melody instantly recognized her as Cynthia. Swiping through the photos, she saw close-ups—Christopher's protective expression and furious glare at the paparazzi. He shielded Cynthia in his arms as though she were a treasure. The article had accompanying text, but Melody didn't bother reading it. Her expression remained calm as she exited the page. She wasn't angry or sad; even the tears she might have shed had long dried up. All she did was purse her lips in self-mockery. So that was why he was so irritable. She had actually called him to bring her the bar—he had been on his way to see Cynthia.

He was such a hypocrite—he scolded Sheldon for entering the house without permission, but Cynthia could come and go as she pleased, even staying overnight. Melody shook off her thoughts and struggled to get out of bed, intending to wash up. Just then, her phone chimed with a new message. It was from Sheldon. Christopher hadn't said anything, but Sheldon had already sent an explanation, claiming it was all a misunderstanding and adding she shouldn't take it to heart.

Melody sneered. A misunderstanding? Last night, Christopher and Cynthia were already intimate. She didn't care and didn't reply, tossing her phone aside.

At Fuller Group's headquarters, Sheldon, having just finished his shift, was abruptly summoned back to the office. He rushed to the PR department to assist with an emergency, making sure to notify Melody about the situation. She hadn't responded to any of his messages. "Alas, she's probably heartbroken. Mr. Fuller is such a scumbag," Sheldon thought.

Christopher left work early to attend Cynthia's fashion show, yet he couldn't even find the time to deliver Melody's medical insurance card. Instead, he dumped that task on Sheldon and even docked his perfect attendance award. Now, this scandal topped the trending topics. Frustrated, he sighed and updated Christopher on the progress.

At home, Christopher emerged from his shower and finally checked his phone. By then, the trending topics had been taken down. His brows furrowed. The scandal had climbed to the top of trending news in just half an hour. Could someone have deliberately bought traffic to fan the flames? He instructed Sheldon to investigate further and messaged Cynthia to inform her the issue had been resolved.

While blow-drying his hair, a thought crossed his mind—if the news had gone viral, Melody might have seen it too. A faint sense of guilt and unease crept into his chest for reasons he couldn't explain. Distracted, he put down the hairdryer and picked up his phone, opening his chat with Melody. He typed a message and then deleted it. The chat history, however, still showed an unanswered message from two hours ago.

"Why should I explain? It's not like there's anything to explain," Christopher muttered, pursing his lips. He almost threw his phone down but hesitated. After a few moments of internal struggle, he began typing again.

Just as he was about to hit send, a startled cry came from outside. Without thinking, he tossed his phone aside and rushed to the source of the sound. "Cynthia! Are you okay?" he called, reaching the bathroom and helping Cynthia up.

"I'm fine, Christopher. It's my fault—I just wanted to wash up but couldn't keep my balance," Cynthia said, leaning weakly against him. He steadied her, but her shoulder strap slipped down at that moment.