Chapter 85
Late at night, at the Encounter Bar in the Old Alley.
During the intermission, Ellie went to the dressing room to touch up her makeup but was stopped by Haley in the hallway. The air between them crackled with tension, and Ellie could practically feel the hostility radiating off her.
“Ellie, I’m giving you a serious warning again. You need to keep your distance from my boyfriend,” Haley said, looking Ellie up and down with an arrogant sneer.
As Ellie stayed silent, Haley continued, “I was worried about you after that last incident. But you had my boyfriend staying over at your place for an entire week! Don’t you think that’s a bit much?”
Listening to Haley’s accusations, Ellie lowered her eyes. She had been bullied by two jerks, and Alex had rescued her and taken her back to her apartment. She had tried to get Alex to leave almost every day, but he had insisted on staying and even chose to sleep on the couch.
She knew this wasn’t right, but what could she say? Alex had a mind of his own, and if she could have convinced him otherwise, she wouldn’t feel so trapped. Still, she had no intention of standing here and letting Haley point fingers at her.
Ellie raised her eyes to meet Haley’s angry stare and calmly said, “I’ve been living and eating with Alex for over a decade. If you have a problem with it, maybe you should talk to him instead of confronting me.”
Haley was momentarily speechless at Ellie’s retort. As Ellie pushed open the door to the makeup room, Haley walked over and stood in the doorway.
“Ellie, Alex almost ended up in serious trouble because of you. He still refuses to let Trevor go, and it’s already worrying both families. If you care about Alex, you need to tell him to back off,” Haley said.
Ellie sat down at her vanity, removing her earrings. “He might listen to anyone else, but he would never listen to me. If you have time to lecture me, why not go talk to him instead?”
Haley shot back, “Ellie, do you think it’s worth it to have the two top families in Jaslands become enemies because of you?”
Ellie shrugged. “It’s not up to you to decide if it’s worth it or not.”
Haley suddenly asked, “Ellie, do you like Alex?”
Ellie’s hands froze.
Haley noticed her unusual reaction, her eyes narrowing sharply. “I’m warning you, Alex is my boyfriend. Whatever you think you feel, you better bury it now, or we can’t even be friends.”
Ellie set down her earrings and slowly stood up, her expression a mix of seriousness and distance. “Haley, you don’t have a shred of sincerity toward me or Aaron. What kind of friends are we, really?”
Mentioning Aaron struck a nerve with Haley. She stared at Ellie for a long moment before turning and leaving.
Watching Haley storm off, Ellie quietly sat back down to continue fixing her makeup. She had decided long ago to treat those who were good to her with kindness, but she wouldn’t tolerate any more unfair accusations.
A few days later, Ellie was working at the hospital when Layton suddenly approached her.
“Every time Trevor gets saved, Alex ends up putting him in the ICU. Now Trevor’s family wants my dad to step in and sort this out. Ellie, you need to talk to Alex and get him to stop causing trouble,” Layton said.
Before leaving, he pulled Ellie aside and added, “By the way, I’ve noticed Alex has been drinking a lot of cold water lately. I suspect there’s something wrong with his health. Can you prescribe some medicine for him?”
