Chapter 4 Why Was the Old House Sold ? Chapter 4 Why Was the Old House Sold ? +5 Free Coins After almost finishing all their money and grabbing dinner , Stella headed back to Ethan's place with Tina and Ethan . On the way , Tina seized the chance to discuss a few work matters with Ethan . Stella , meanwhile , was glued to the car window , staring in wonder at the brand - new Ashford . Eleven years had passed , and everything had changed so much that she barely recognized anything . She'd never been good with directions , so when the car finally stopped and she stood in front of the villa , she frowned . " Did you completely renovate the house ? " The old villa had a garden and a massive fountain out front . But now , a lone villa stood like a silent giant , Ethan unloaded the car , his voice low . " No. I bought this one . " That made sense . Ethan was a big - shot CEO now . " So what about the old place ? You gave it to Xavier ? " " No. It was sold . " His expression darkened , and he changed the subject . " I'll call Xavier later . Let him know you're back . " The moment they stepped inside , it was exactly what Stella expected - cold and minimalist . There was barely any furniture . The space felt vast and sterile . " Is Xavier in Ashford right now ? " Stella asked . Ethan set the bags down in the living room . " No. He's overseas on tour Stella blinked . " Then don't tell him I'm back . He'll cancel the whole thing and fly straight home . Let's wait till he's back . " He was already a controversial celebrity . Pulling a stunt like that would just lose him even more fans . Ethan didn't argue . When they were kids , all three little brothers were always fighting to get Stella's attention . Xavier was the liveliest . He always knew how to make her laugh . Now that Stella had only him around , it was finally his chance to shine . " Okay . Got it ." " Why was the old house sold ? " Stella flopped onto the couch and circled back to the topic . She only had a vague memory from the dream and didn't know much about the novel's details . Ta took the cue and answered a call . " Mr. Ethan , I'll step out for a moment . " Ethan nodded , then sat down and fidgeted with his bracelet . " Uncle took over the company after you left . He ran it into the ground . When it was about to go bankrupt , he came to me for help . There wasn't a cent in the company's account , and it was drowning in debt . I didn't have a choice … Stella , I'm sorry ." He looked up , guilt etched in his face , heart aching . " I didn't protect our home . " Their parents died in an accident when Stella was just fourteen . 1/5 TSLAM Chapter 4 Why Was the Old House Sold ? Uncle had stormed in with a group , trying to kick them out of the house . It was Stella who'd grabbed a mop - covered in the poop Xavier had just made - and chased them off . +5 Free Coins Uncle kept coming back with people , but Stella always had a way to deal with them until they finally stopped showing up . Same with the company . He wanted to take it over . Stella , just a teenager , went toe - to - toe with shareholders all twice her age . No one knew what she said , but they trusted her - and chose a CEO to take over . Business wasn't what it had been , but it still outperformed similar companies . Then Stella's car accident happened , and everything fell apart . He hadn't protected a damn thing . Stella smiled and patted Ethan's shoulder . " You're talking nonsense . You've done great . Sure , you sold the old place, but this new one's huge ! " For her , it was just a blink - eleven years had passed in a second . But for Ethan , he'd lived through every grueling moment . Feeling the weight of her hand on his shoulder , seeing that familiar twinkle in her eyes , Ethan lowered his head . He hadn't done great . He'd failed . Completely . A warm sting pricked his eyes . One tear slipped onto the leather couch under the soft glow of the chandelier . He quietly wiped it away with his finger . " Get some rest . If you need anything , have Tina buy it . Tomorrow , she'll take you to get your ID sorted . Use my card - spend whatever you want He handed her a sleek black card . Stella's eyes lit up . " Jackpot ! " This CEO little brother really was something else . With With money , anything was possible . She didn't know everything that had happened over the years , but she did know from the dream that Louis had gone missing as a kid . He was now in his final year of high school , getting into fights , refusing to study , and had even injured the male lead's genius brother , landing himself in jail . The details were fuzzy , but Stella figured she could start by tracking down the male lead's genius brother . She'd find Louis eventually . She'd seen all of Ethan's little gestures - knew what he was guilty about . She got up and ruffled his hair . Didn't budge . He'd sprayed it still with gel Ethan looked up , a flash of awkwardness in his eyes . He'd styled it for his meeting with Hannah . Stella pretended nothing happened and casually folded her hands behind her back . " Come on , don't mope . On the way back , I looked up that accident and accidentally saw the news about Louis going missing . It's not your fault . Big Sis is back now . I'l find him . Don't worry ! " 2/5 # 5 Free Coins Chapter 4 Why Was the Old House Sold ? And somehow , looking into Stella's dazzling eyes , Ethan just believed her . She would find Louis Just like she'd once told them : " With Stella arvand , no one can push us around " That was Stella - strong to her core , like the sun in the sky . Some of the gloom in Ethan's eyes faded .. He nodded obediently . " Okay " Stella grabbed the five - thousand - dollar pajamas and the new underwear Tina had bought her and headed for a shower . It had technically been eleven years since she last showered - she was sweaty as hell . Tina , keeping tabs on everything in the villa , finally stepped back inside . She hadn't made the connection before , but once she heard Stella's name , it all came back . In 2014 , Tina had been 14 , just starting eighth grade . She'd aimed to get into Ashford High , so she kept a close eye on it . That year , Ashford's top SAT scorer came from Ashford High . Her name was Stella , accepted into Roosevelt College . Stella was already a local legend - school beauty and top student . She'd even turned down a guaranteed spot at Roosevelt to let someone else have it . The story spread like wildfire . But what really made headlines was her rivalry with the school's heartthrob . Every test , the two fought for the top rank . At most schools , people shipped the pretty pair . But not at Ashford . There , no one dared speak - they just placed bets on who'd come out on top this time : the beauty or the heartthrob . Whenever they crossed paths , there was no spark - just the intense desire to crush the other . For the SAT the final showdown , the entire city seemed to bet on it . Even sole teachers secretly joined in . In the end , the school beauty edged him out by one point . He came in second citywide - also accepted to Roosevelt . Everyone expected them to continue their rivalry in college . But then the unthinkable happened . That summer , Stella drove off a bridge into the river . Police dragged the water for a month and found only the car . With no body and such violent currents , there was no hope she'd survived . The Ashford police declared her dead a month later . Roosevelt College even published an obituary expressing their grief . Tina had been devastated . Such a brilliant life , snuffed OUL The day her death was declared , the bridge was covered in chrysanthemums . People came from everywhere to mourn . 3/5 PP Chapter 4 Why Was the Old House Sold ? And now ? Stella wasn't dead . Tina was dying to know what happened . Stella still looked and acted exactly like she had back then . She appeared out of nowhere with nothing on her . But Tina knew she wasn't close enough to Stella to ask . Asking the boss would also be out of line . Whatever the case , she was back - and that was enough . " Mr. Ethan . I'll go make Stella's bed . " +5 Free Coins There were part - time cleaners who came regularly , but since Ethan rarely stayed here , there wasn't a full - time maid . Ethan looked up , twirling his bracelet . " No need . You head home . I'll take care of it . " Tina blinked . "You know how to make a bed ? " Ethan shot her a look . " I'm a pro , I always made Stella's bed back then ." There was even a flicker of pride in his eyes Tina chuckled . " That's impressive ." There were plenty of guest rooms in the villa . But Ethan gave Stella the master bedroom , changed the bedding himself , and took a guest room for the night . Stella didn't stand on ceremony . After showering , she lay in bed and started browsing . She mostly wanted to catch up on what had changed over the last eleven years . Turns out , not much . Just more digitization - short videos and livestreams were trending now . After some research , she scrolled through Twitter . She spotted a trending topic about herself and Ethan .. CEO usually didn't keep up with celebrity gossip . Those things were usually caught by assistants and secretaries . Stella narrowed her eyes and shot Tina a message on WhatsApp . Her Facebook account was logged into Ethan's burner . She didn't have an ID yet , so she couldn't register her own . At eleven , she still wasn't sleepy - just kept scrolling , Before she knew it , it was one am . She finally felt drowsy and closed her eyes. Thirty minutes later , she opened them again and flipped over . An hour later , she switched to the other end of the bed . Two hours in , she'd rolled onto the floor . Three hours later , she stared at the ceiling wide awake . Crap . Her sleep issues were back . This wasn't the same house . She couldn't fall asleep . It'd been a problem for years . That's why she'd always commuted during high school - only slept at home . By four a.m. , she gave up and started watching short videos again . 4/5 7.56 AM P P . Chapter 4 Why Was the Old House Sold ? Somehow , her feed was full of videos about Ethan being always calm , composed , and effortlessly charming . She got thirsty and went out for water - just in time to hear a ringtone coming from the guest room . She froze . No way . Ethan wakes up at four am ? But it didn't sound like an alarm . Then she heard a raspy voice from the room : " Hello ? " Stella's curiosity peaked . Who on earth was calling him at four in the morning ?