He raised his slender fingers, akin to a leader or elder, and with intimacy, he tidied Landon''s cor, saying in a soft tone, "You truly give your all for thepany. You''ve worked hard." Landon replied humbly, "You tter me, Alexander. It''s just the tasks at hand."


    Alexander smiled without words, released Landon''s cor, and walked out.


    As he left, Landon followed suit, pausing by Xavier''s side.


    His steps hesitated briefly as he turned his head, his calm gaze piercing through his sses to meet Xavier''s eyes.


    Xavier looked up, and in that moment of silent exchange, it seemed as though a myriad of unspoken words had passed between them.


    Two secondster, Landon stepped out of the office, leaving Xavier''s hand clenched at his side.


    They were all pressuring him now, including his mother. But the one certainty was that the Xavier family was on the brink of copse. Everyone was doomed.


    Snow fell heavily once more.


    Quinn''s spot was buried under a thickyer of snow, and Orion retrieved an umbre from the car, shielding her from the falling snowkes above. The melting snow dripped down the umbre''s edge like scattered beads of water. Orion sat with Quinn quietly, watching as darkness enveloped the sky. The person she was waited had yet to appear. Orion spoke softly, "Quinn, did your friend have sses today?"Content rights belong to N?velDrama.Org.


    Quinn, mirroring his confusion, bit her lip and nced sideways at Orion, feeling a sense of guilt for keeping him there.


    She gestured that she might have been mistaken and that her friend likely hadn''t had sses that day.


    Orion was momentarily puzzled but not upset, and he chuckled, "No worries. I find this quite romantic, even though it''s a bit chilly."


    His words finally brought a faint smile to Quinn''s face. She stood up, gesturing her thanks and then motioning for him to go back.


    "And what about you?"


    Quinn''s eyes flickered with uncertainty. She... she needed to figure out where to go from here. She didn''t know where else to go besides this ce anymore.


    Quinn didn''t want to dy Orion any longer, gesturing again. "You don''t need to worry about me, just go back quickly."


    Orion, in fact, didn''t want to go back. He hadn''t returned home since the argument with his father.


    He had quit his job and now spent his days idle, either sleeping or visiting the welfare center. He didn''t know where to go now.


    With work resigned from and each day aimless, he found himself at loose ends, uncertain of his next move.


    "All right then, take this umbre," Orion offered, handing it to her. "I''ll leave now. Text me if you need anything."


    Quinn nodded as Orion got into his car, soon disappearing from her view.


    Holding the umbre, she continued gazing toward the school gates. Perhaps she wasn''t truly waiting for someone specific to show up; rather, being here gave her a sense of peace, as if he were beside her.


    But as time passed, Quinn began to forget the purpose of her wait. The dark gates and night sky grew unfamiliar, the howling winds unsettling her. She was gripped with fear. Discarding the umbre, she turned around and ran towards a brighter spot.


    Amidst the heavy snow, she ran, feeling the biting cold windshing against her, her breath mingling with the falling snowkes. The horizon seemed endless before her as she ran, unable to reach its end.


    Suddenly, a piercing horn red in her ears. Quinn halted, turned around, and saw a car hurtling towards her, its brilliant headlights blinding her.