From NYU Labs to Street Flyers The Price of Loving a Don Chapter 07
After that day, my life drifted back into a peaceful routine, and I didn’t cross paths with Luca for a long time.
The debt my mother had left behind was finally cleared down to the last penny, allowing me to let out a
genuine sigh of relief. Matteo used our remaining savings to help me set up a small flower shop, ensuring I wouldn’t have to break my back doing grueling part-time work anymore; I could just manage my own little
storefront.
On the grand opening day of the shop, an unwelcome guest walked through the door. It was Elena.
She was leading a little boy of about seven by the hand, whose features bore a clear, sixty-percent
resemblance to Luca.
Despite the years that had passed, she looked entirely unchanged. Though she was well into her thirties, her
face was maintained flawlessly like a young girl’s. Everything from her clothes to her accessories screamed
exorbitant wealth.
I had managed to keep my composure in front of Luca, but the exact second Elena materialized, the hatred I
had suppressed deep inside my chest flared up violently once more.
Every single tragedy had been set in motion by her. If she hadn’t existed, even if Luca and I had eventually
broken up, it would never have devolved into such a horrific nightmare.
I blamed myself too, for being so utterly blind back then, pouring my heart and soul out for a literal viper.
Since it was opening day, customers were constantly drifting in and out to take advantage of the promotions. I had no idea what Elena’s objective was today, but I had no intention of causing a massive
scene in front of a crowd.
But while I wanted peace, she clearly wanted a spectacle.
The child Elena brought along was obviously raised with immense indulgence. Despite his young age, he
already carried an incredibly arrogant, dismissive attitude.
The moment he stepped into the shop behind his mother, his gaze locked tightly onto me. He pointed a finger
directly at my face, his voice ringing out with pure venom.
“Mom, it’s her! I saw it on Dad’s phone-she’s the one texting Dad, trying to get him to divorce you!”
“I hate her! She wants to steal my dad away! Mom, hurry up and teach her a lesson!”
A child’s unfiltered accusations quickly drew a crowd of onlookers from the surrounding customers.
“No way… Isn’t the owner of this shop already married? Why is she still hooking up with someone else’s
husband?”
“Being married makes them play even dirtier. How else do you think she got the money for this place? Just last month, I saw her handing out flyers on the street, and this month she magically opens a brand new shop.
I wondered where the cash came from, turns out it’s like that…”
“How hilarious. Instead of taking the dirty money and hiding, she opens up a shop right out in the open Now the legal wife has tracked her down. Serves her right!”
The waves of mockery pierced through the air like sharp needles. Even though I had spent years cultivating a
I
humble, deferential persona, a surge of uncontrollable fury still erupted within my chest.
Forcing a veneer of absolute calm, I addressed the nosy customers inside the shop.
“Could everyone please step outside for a moment? An old acquaintance has dropped by, and we have a
slight misunderstanding that needs to be cleared up privately.”
With that, I handed out small opening-day gifts to each customer individually before ushering them out and
locking the shop door.
Throughout the entire sequence, Elena hadn’t uttered a single word. She simply stood there with an amused, superior look, watching my every move. It wasn’t until the three of us were the only ones left in the shop that she leisurely pulled over a chair and seated herself, her voice smooth.
“Long time no see, Serena. You look completely ruined.”
“But you’re still as scheming as ever, aren’t you? Managing to keep Luca utterly obsessed with you after just
a single encounter.”
After a brief silence, looking at her manufactured ease and the twisted, suffocating jealousy leaking from her
eyes, I let out a soft laugh.
“Is that so? No matter how scheming I am, I could never hold a candle to you-crawling into bed with the boyfriend of the very person who saved your life.”
“You must have lived a pretty luxurious life these past few years, right? I’m sure you’re incredibly grateful to
your past, ruthless self.”
“Too bad Luca seems to be drowning in regret now.”
I had always known exactly how to strike a person’s deepest insecurities.
Sure enough, Elena immediately reacted like a cat whose tail had been viciously stepped on.
“Serena, you absolute bitch! What kind of sick spell did you cast on Luca?!”
“Eight years! I have been by his side for eight whole years, and I even bore him a beautiful son, yet he still can’t erase you from his pathetic mind!”
“What is so damn special about you? Why does God always look out for you?! Why is it that even after I did everything in my power to stomp you into the literal mud, you still manage to crawl back up?!”
Elena bolted upright from her chair, her eyes boring into mine as a confession of absolute malice, delayed by eight long years, was finally laid bare before me.
“Do you want to know a secret? I never once considered you a friend. I hated the fact that you were born
luckier than me! I hated that you outshone me in absolutely everything! I hated how you could just stand
there, doing nothing, and Luca would fall madly in love with you, while I had to plot, scheme, and discard
every ounce of my dignity just to crawl into his bed!”
“Serena, why the hell are you still breathing? Why couldn’t you just die quietly like your miserable mother did?
In a moment of weakness back then, I only took that bank card from you instead of cutting you down at the root. That is truly the single greatest regret of my life!”
Staring at Elena’s venom-filled face, I felt a trace of hatred, but it was heavily eclipsed by a profound sense of
pity.
When she claimed she had never considered me a friend, I knew she was lying.
Before Luca entered the picture, Elena had acted more like an older sister to me than just a friend.
I was far too young when I started college, entirely lacking in emotional maturity, and Elena had guided me
through it time and time again.
When I felt discouraged, she cheered me on; when I ran a raging fever, she nursed me back to health.
We used to share such a deep, beautiful bond, such incredibly happy times together. How on earth had we spiraled down to this horrific dead end?
Letting out a quiet sigh, I averted my gaze, refusing to look at her any longer.
“Just leave. I know exactly why you came here today, but there is ‘absolutely nothing going on between Luca
and me, and there never will be.”
“I am married. I love my husband deeply, and I do not want a single soul disrupting our life ever again.”
