Chapter 12 Sparkle After wrapping up a round of movie promotions , Hannah finally had some downtime . She went out and shot a set of casual photos to keep her Twitter presence alive . Back in the nanny van , she unlocked her phone . There were a few WhatsApp messages - but not a single one from Ethan . He'd left like that last night , without saying a word . She was furious , but she hadn't messaged him to ask why . She was waiting for him to apologize first . But he didn't . It was like he'd vanished off the face of the earth . What the hell was going on ? Why did it feel like Ethan's attention wasn't on her anymore ? What had he even been so busy with these past few days ? As the head of a large corporation , Hannah knew Ethan's schedule was packed . But no matter how busy he used to be , he would still send her a dozen messages a day . And the moment she needed anything , he'd drop everything to show up or handle it for her . Hannah's slender fingers gripped the phone . She took a deep breath and opened Ethan's chat . She typed : " Ethan , are you free tonight ? Dinner's on me . It was the first time she'd ever asked him out . He'd definitely say yes . Right then , a new message popped up . Hannah focused in . It was from Lucas . ' Baby , how about dinner tonight ? I got us a table at your favorite place . Hannah smiled , but didn't reply . Let him stew a little . She wasn't over it yet . Her phone's familiar ringtone started up . Ethan had just parked and stepped out of the car . He glanced at his screen . His brows furrowed . He typed back : " Can't tonight . Having dinner with my sister . " Hannah replied almost immediately . " That's fine ! I can join you both . " Elan glanced toward his sister , who was just stepping out of the passenger seat . He hesitated , wondering if he should ask Hannah to come . His sister seemed to have a misunderstanding about her . But if she got to know Hannah , she'd see that she was actually a great girl . +5 Free Coins 1/4 7.STAM PP . Chapter 12 Sparkle They were at a high - end mall , and the car was parked in the underground garage . Just as he was about to speak , he noticed his sister staring at a billboard . The man in the ad was ridiculously handsome , Hair slicked back , one hand in his pocket , flashing a devil - may - care grin . Ethan's stomach dropped .. Wasn't that Lucas ? He was the face of this fashion brand . Even the garage had his pos Ethan watched as his sister frowned , her expression darkening . posters . His fingers instinctively fiddled with the bracelet on his right wrist . Forget it . She just got out of a breakup . Inviting Hannah would only make things worse . Especially since Hannah used to be in a fake PR relationship with Lucas . Even if it was fake , it still wasn't ideal . Without saying anything to Stella , he lowered his head and typed : " Maybe next time . I'll take you out ." Hannah's face changed color like a spinning wheel - red , orange , yellow , green , blue , indigo , violet . Ethan actually turned her down . She gritted her teeth . Was this sister even real ? Why couldn't she meet her ? She was dying to see this woman in person . " The restaurant's elevator is over there ." Ethan tugged on Stella's sleeve , steering her away from the ad . Stella's eyes left the billboard . " Okay ." Lucas had changed a lot in the last eleven years . Go years . Gotten greasy , lost some hair . +5 Free Coins God . She was starting to regret ever dating him Didn't even get one day of romance out of it - just ended up with emotional baggage . Sitting in the BBQ restaurant , Stella was feeling pretty sulky . She hoped no one besides her brother remembered that relationship . Ethan was busy grilling neat for her , face tense . So she really did still like Lucas … To shift her focus , Ethan asked , " Did you ask Mr. Nathan about his orientation ? " That was so Stella . Ethan was sure there were only a handful of people in the whole city who would dare ask Nathan that to his face . He sure didn't have the guts . Stella shoved a lettuce wrap into her mouth , packed with thick slices of pork belly , chewed it down , and finally said , " I asked . He said he's into women . " 2/4 +5 Free Coins Chapter 12 Sparkle Ethan looked stunned . " Women : Tons of heiresses have chased after him , and he's never reacted " Stella wrapped some grilled beef in lettuce . " He said he hasn't met the right one . " Ethan flipped the beef tongue , nodding . " Makes sense . A guy like him must have insanely high standards . Not many people are good enough . " " What do you think of him ? " Stella frowned and smacked Ethan lightly on the head . " What are you trying to say ? You want me to go after him ? Stop talking nonsense ." Ethan definitely didn't want his sister dating anyone - but Lucas was a dead end . The best way to get over someone was to start something new . Nathan was better than Lucas in every way - at least he was a decent man . I'm not saying you should chase him . Just maybe try to notice some of his good points ." Basically , anything to get her to stop thinking about Lucas. " I don't have time . I've got too much going on . I need to find Louis , and I'm planning to repeat senior year and retake the college entrance exam . Gotta get back on track . " Her old scores from eleven years ago definitely wouldn't count anymore . No big deal . She'd just redo the year . Once she found Louis , she'd get him on the right path too . Ethan's expression turned solemn . She wasn't ready to fall for someone new - she just wanted to stay busy and numb herself . " Retaking senior year's gonna be brutal . We've got everything we need at home now . No reason to go back to school . " As he spoke , he dropped a perfectly grilled piece of beef tongue into her bowl . Stella shook her head . No , I'm doing it . I've got my own plan . " Even if this world was just a novel , to those living in it , it was real life . Nathan was so strong already - could she really just coast through and do nothing ? Back then , she'd applied to the finance department at Qingda University . Now , she was thinking of reassessing People were products of their time . Things had changed , So her plans had to adapt too . No rush . She'd take her time figuring it out . Top priority now was finding Louis and seeing what school he was in The male lead's younger brother went to No. 1 High , but that didn't mean Louis did too . Gang fights weren't always limited to students from the same school . She'd head to No. 1 High tomorrow and check things out . " Just let me know which school you want . I'll handle it . " Ethan didn't argue . Once his sister made up her mind , no one c could change it . Maybe staying busy wasn't just a way to avoid heartbreak - maybe it was her way of taking back control of her life . She was only eighteen . Life was still long . 3/4 P P · Chapter 12 Sparkle " I let you know . " Stella chewed the tender beef tongue and squinted in satisfaction . So good … " Get some rest tonight . I'll have Tina pick you up in the morning . Ethan parked the car in front of the villa . " Got it . " Stella got out , lugging a huge bag of snacks . Ethan had taken her shopping for them " Oh , and think about what I said . Try noticing some of Nathan's good traits ," Ethan added . Staying busy and shifting focus - two birds , one stone . Stella rolled her eyes . " Ethan , you are so annoying . " She pulled out her phone and messaged Nathan on WhatsApp . I'm back . Can you open the door ? It was already II p.m. Stella wasn't sure if he was still awake . She waited a minute . No reply . She had no choice but to make a voice call . It rang for a while before he finally picked up . His voice was low and husky . " Sparkle . " His voice was dangerously smooth - magnetic . But Stella wasn't paying attention to that . She was shocked . " How do you know my nickname ? " +5 Free Comm