No More Waiting, She Chooses Love

"Dustin." I took the phone and called out his name.

"Rad told me everything. You're okay, right?" His concern was evident through the phone.

"I'm fine, just gonna be a hassle for you, Dustin," I always made sure to be polite with him.

There was a pause on his end for a couple of seconds, "Just make yourself at home, alright? You're safe at my place, guaranteed." "Alright!" I didn't say much else.

Normally, that would have been the end of our conversation, but Dustin lingered, adding, "Don't worry, you won't be in any trouble."

That was hard to guarantee. As long as Henrik had me in his sights, unless Ernest and his team could completely take him down, my safety was up in the air. But I didn't voice these thoughts, just hummed in acknowledgment.

"If you need anything, give me a call. And... there'll be a cleaning lady coming over to cook and tidy up," Dustin finished before hanging up.

I handed the phone back to Conrad, who took it, saying, "Dustin's place should have some spare phones. You can use one for now."

Being without a phone was indeed inconvenient, and being out of touch had probably made Fanny worried sick.

"I'll grab one for you," he said, moving to a cabinet and pulling out two phones from a drawer, "Pick one."

"Sure!"

"Got your SIM card?" he asked next.

"Yeah, it's here."

"Need help setting it up?"

"No, thanks."

My responses were short, and Conrad seemed to pick up on my mood, offering a strained smile, "Want me to show you around?" "You seemed busy, go ahead with your stuff," I declined again.

Conrad looked at me, "Alright then, feel free to explore on your own. To be honest, I've only been here

couple of times myself... hah

really seen the whole place

I didn't continue the conversation, and Conrad, feeling the chill, said, "I'll head out then. If the cleaning lady shows up, she'll let herself in. Don't

be scared or anything. If anything

comes up, just call me... or Ernest."

I didn't even open my mouth this time, just nodded slightly.

Conrad left without another word, leaving me alone in the vast villa, feeling oddly abandoned.

I took a moment to look around, appreciating Dustin's taste in home decor.

I had to admit, I really liked the style. It even reminded me of the dream house I had always imagined.

After looking around the house, I grabbed a new phone, unboxed it, popped in the SIM, and logged into WhatsApp.

As soon as I did, messages flooded in. There were texts from Susie, Conrad, Dustin, and of course, Fanny, even one from Deborah. The only person missing was Ernest. Susie's messages were all about her sweet moments with Mack, mostly places they'd been and foods they'd tried.

The others were all checking in on me, asking about my safety. Fanny was inquiring about my day-to-day life, wondering why I wasn't responding or why my phone was off. Her last message was from two hours ago, reminding me of today's competition and warning that if I didn't reply post-event, she'd call the police.

Knowing she was worried, I quickly replied: Phone broke, but I'm safe. No need to trouble the cops.Copyright Nôv/el/Dra/ma.Org.

She instantly responded: Couldn't

you just buy a new phone? I've been freaking out not being able to reach you. Thank God for Conrad telling me you're fine, or I would've called the police already. FindNovel

Conrad had clearly only shared the good news with Fanny, probably to keep her from worrying and possibly causing a stir by involving the police.