"Okay," I said softly.

"When you wake up, I’ll take you home."

At some point, I had already made my decision.

I continued patting her back gently.

Perhaps sensing the comfort, Alicia slowly calmed down.

Her breathing gradually steadied.

Eventually, she drifted back into a deeper sleep.

I sat there quietly, looking at her sleeping face.

My mind drifted back to the last time she had been like this.

So this was how she had been enduring everything.

Calm on the surface.

But hurting alone where no one could see.

Aiden was right.

She shouldn’t have been carrying all of this by herself.

My gaze fell to the faint tear stain near her eye.

A dull ache spread slowly through my chest.

Not sharp.

Not violent.

Just unbearably heavy.

Suffocating.

Aiden had said he cared about Alicia.

Was this what it felt like?

To truly care about someone?

I carefully tucked the blanket around her before quietly standing up and leaving the room.

After closing the door softly behind me, I stopped midway down the stairs.

The ache in my chest still remained.

It felt like an old hidden wound buried deep inside the body—

Normally unnoticed.

Until rainy days came and the pain returned without warning.

You couldn’t touch it.

Couldn’t see it.

Couldn’t even explain it properly.

You could only endure it silently.

I had never experienced something like this before.

Not even when Lilian was hurt.

Back then, what I felt had mostly been guilt.

Responsibility.

A need to make amends.

But this...

This was completely different.

For the first time, I finally understood—

Pain and guilt were not the same thing.

I stood there silently for a long moment before pulling out my phone and calling Jane.

The call connected quickly.

"CEO Blackwood?"

"The city news station that requested an interview before," I said calmly. "Tell them I’ve agreed."

Jane fell silent for a second.

"...Sir?"

Her surprise was understandable.

I had always hated media interviews.

Aside from necessary public appearances for the company, I rarely allowed the media near my private life.

"No need to sound so shocked," I said quietly.

"Contact them. Arrange a time. And send me the list of questions beforehand."

Jane seemed to understand something from my tone because her voice became noticeably quieter.

"...Understood, sir."

After hanging up, I lowered the phone slowly.

The villa remained silent.

But for the first time in a long while,

my mind had never felt clearer.

Alicia’s POV

The next morning, I woke up feeling weaker than usual.

Thankfully, it was Saturday.

After taking a shower and my vitamins, I finally felt a little better.

Today was also the anniversary of Alexander’s parent’s passing.

After breakfast, we headed to the Blackwood mansion together.

Uncle Steve had returned as well. However, after the anniversary gathering, he would be leaving again with Aunt Rose and Grace.

The moment we entered the living room, I saw Aunt Rose, Uncle Steve, Grace, and Nana sitting together chatting casually.

Alexander and I greeted everyone before taking our seats.

"Uncle, when did you return?" Alexander asked.

"A few days ago," Uncle Steve replied warmly. "I came back immediately after settling the issue there."

"Hopefully everything’s alright now?" I asked.

He nodded reassuringly.

"It was only a minor problem. I’ve already handled it."

Before I could say anything else, Grace suddenly leaned toward me dramatically.

"Sister Alicia, you still haven’t taken me around Velaridge City yet."

I couldn’t help laughing softly.

But before I could answer, Aunt Rose spoke first.

"Can’t you see your sister Alicia is busy with work?" she scolded lightly. "Do you think everyone is as idle as you?"

Grace instantly pouted.

The entire room burst into laughter.

"Don’t worry," I said with a smile. "Next time, I’ll personally take you around the city."

"But we rarely come to Velaridge," Grace complained unhappily.

I glanced toward Uncle Steve teasingly.

"I’m sure Uncle will bring you more often from now on, right?"

Before Uncle Steve could respond, Nana suddenly snorted.

"She hasn’t even left yet, and she’s already talking about coming back again. Hmph. My ears can’t survive all your nonstop chatter."

Another wave of laughter filled the room.

For a brief moment, the atmosphere felt unusually lively.

Warm.

Comfortable.

Different from the heavy silence this mansion usually carried.

Perhaps it was because Uncle Steve’s family was here.

Or perhaps everyone was trying their best to avoid remembering what day it was.

But while everyone laughed, my gaze unconsciously drifted toward Nana.

Something felt wrong.

She looked much weaker than the last time I had seen her.

Even her complexion seemed paler.

A faint uneasiness settled in my chest.

And although she still responded to everyone occasionally, I noticed she barely spoke to Alexander directly.

Whenever he addressed her, her replies were short and distant.

As though she was deliberately avoiding long conversations with him.

I figured it must be because of the scandals lately.

Usually, the mansion felt quiet on this particular day.

Too quiet.

But today, Grace’s constant chatter and Uncle Steve’s presence temporarily filled the emptiness.

Still...

Once they left again, the mansion would probably return to its usual silence.

And somehow, that thought made the atmosphere feel even heavier.

I noticed Nana and Aunt Rose staring at me strangely while we were in the living room.

Unable to help myself, I quickly opened my phone camera and checked my face.

"Aunt Rose, Nana... is there something on my face?" I asked in confusion.

Aunt Rose only smiled faintly.

Then Nana suddenly asked weakly,

"Alicia, have you gone for a checkup recently? You seem a little different lately."

I froze for a second before quickly recovering.

"If you haven’t," Aunt Rose added teasingly, "then maybe you should. Who knows? Perhaps by the next time we visit, I’ll already have a grandchild."

My cheeks instantly burned.

"Mom, Nana, stop teasing her," Grace laughed from the side. "Look, sister Alicia’s blushing already."

Instinctively, I looked up—

—and met Alexander’s gaze.

He was already looking at me.

There was a softness in his eyes I rarely saw.

And something else beneath it.

Something I have been noticing lately but still couldn’t understand it....