Chapter 132: Chapter 119: Treasured Collection

This special attention was how Shane Sterling discovered that Silas Lockwood’s “sister” was no ordinary person.

Back then, Shane was struggling with a great deal of internal turmoil over his family background. He was reluctant to interact with others and spent his days either perched in a tree or hiding on the villa’s rooftop terrace.

As it happened, the rooftop terrace of the Sterling family’s villa offered a perfect view of Isla’s dance studio.

It was a small room on the easternmost side of the Lockwood estate. Inside, there was nothing but a single mirror and a sound system. That was where Isla practiced.

She woke up early every morning to practice dancing before school. After returning and finishing her homework, she would go right back to the dance studio to practice more. Her days began and ended with dance, from the first rays of dawn to the silver light of the moon. Day after day, her sweat soaked the floorboards until they were like a briny lake. She would fall, again and again, only to pull a lighter, more graceful version of herself from her own shadow.

Ever since Shane discovered he could watch Isla dance from the rooftop terrace, he was up there almost every day. It was the first time he had ever seen such tangible resilience in a young girl. Especially after learning of her difficult circumstances in the Lockwood household, he understood just how precious her perseverance truly was.

He knew she was quietly building her strength, so that one day she could save herself and escape the fate that had been laid out for her.

Isla’s strength gave Shane immense courage.

’Compared to her, who had suffered since she was a child, I was at least raised in the Sterling family’s sheltered world for more than a decade,’ Shane thought. ’If she hadn’t given up, what right did I have to wallow in self-pity?’

From that moment on, Shane began to consciously pull himself out of his state of inner turmoil. And Isla’s significance to him grew ever more profound.

He started using “hanging out with Silas” as an excuse to go over to the Lockwood estate, just so he could see Isla more often. That continued until the day he discovered that Silas was also in love with Isla, and that the two of them were secretly engaged in a forbidden romance behind the Lockwoods’ backs.

Shane was devastated. To sever his own feelings for her, he moved out of Arcadia Heights that very day, hoping that what he couldn’t see wouldn’t hurt him.

Fortunately, after all the twists and turns, Isla had finally found her way back to his side.

“So, you’re saying you’ve had a crush on me for years?” Isla summarized.

“Yes.”

“Then why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

“My crush on you was my own business. I didn’t want to add to your burdens.”

Isla was touched.

Over the years, she’d never lacked for admirers, thanks to her beauty. But Shane was probably the only one who had liked her for so long.

But Shane… he was so flamboyant, with such a sharp tongue. He didn’t seem like the type to be so devoted for so long.

“You’re not pulling my leg, are you?” Isla asked with a smile.

“Go open the cabinet and see for yourself.”

“What’s in there?”

“Go and see.”

Isla walked to the cabinet and pulled open the doors. Inside was a collection of small objects. The first thing that caught her eye was a small umbrella with a floral pattern.

“That’s the umbrella you gave me when it suddenly started raining while we were playing tennis at the youth center,” Shane said.

Isla remembered. She had really liked that umbrella.

In the cabinet, she also found a hairclip she had lost. It was a small, lavender-purple clip. It had originally been part of a pair, but after she lost this one, she never wore the other again.

“I found that hairclip in the yard at the Lockwood estate.”

Shane had seen Isla wear it, so he knew it was hers. He picked it up and secretly kept it as a treasure.

Isla continued to look through the items. They were all inconspicuous little things. He had even carefully saved scrap paper she had used for rough drafts and random doodles.

The papers were tucked inside a notebook. When Isla opened it, she saw pages filled with girls’ names.

“Clara, Cynthia, Jasmine, Celia…”

Two full pages, all of them names with different meanings, but each one carrying a beautiful wish.

Next to the name “Isla Prescott,” Shane had drawn a checkmark.

Silas had told her before that Shane was the one who had given her the name “Isla Prescott,” but it had never felt quite real to her. Now, seeing this notebook, she could vividly picture Shane sitting at his desk, racking his brain to come up with a name for her.

’He really has loved me for so many years.’

“I always thought my brother gave me my name,” Isla said, her voice choked with emotion. “Why didn’t you tell me he stole the credit from you?”

“Because I didn’t want to ruin your fond memories of your first love.”

Isla walked over to Shane and cupped his face in her hands. “Are you an idiot?” she asked.

“I’m no idiot. Could an idiot manage to kiss you like this?” As the words left his lips, he slid a hand to the nape of her neck, gently pressing down. As she lowered her head, he tilted his own up and kissed her.

Isla couldn’t remember how long it had been since they had last kissed.

The kiss was like a spark igniting a wildfire. Everything that should burn, and everything that shouldn’t, went up in flames. In an instant, the situation became uncontrollable.

With her last shred of rationality, Isla pushed Shane away.

“The doctor said you can’t do any strenuous exercise yet,” she said, gasping for breath.

Shane rested his head against her chest, a wicked grin spreading across his face. “I don’t have to move. You can do all the work.”

Isla: “…”

’Psycho.’

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