Rich Radiant and Over Him (Alicia and Vincent) novel Chapter 567

A suffocating wave of despair washed over her, her fists clenching tightly as the realization set in.

She still remembered her first hypoglycemic crash after returning to the White family. The first person to find her was Clayton...

She was so young back then, terribly malnourished and fragile. Brandon and her mother constantly pressured her, using guilt to enforce excellence, insisting her grades had to be flawless and she had to be first in everything. She threw herself into studying, obsessively taking etiquette, piano, and dance lessons—things she despised, but were mandatory for high-society heiresses—all just to fit in and win a little more of her grandfather's affection.

So, when she pushed herself past her physical limits on an empty stomach, she collapsed in the estate's garden.

It was Clayton who had rushed to her side, calling her name in a panic, carrying her on his back to find a doctor.

That was her first real encounter with Clayton...

People usually met without prejudice. Back then, Clayton had genuinely treated her as a sister, protecting her as the granddaughter of his benefactor. After that incident, he had even formed a habit of keeping a piece of candy in his pocket, just to hand it to her whenever she felt faint.

But Brandon repeatedly drilled it into her head that Clayton was just an adopted orphan, and if she didn't work hard, Clayton would steal everything that belonged to them. She was told Clayton was the enemy.

She began to view him as an enemy. She found a twisted sense of superiority in attacking his status as an orphan, using it to compensate for her own deep-seated insecurities about being a slum-born illegitimate child.

She started lashing out at him, hurting him, using him as a stepping stone to ingratiate herself with the snobbish elite circles and wealthy heirs.

She knew his cold demeanor and striking looks had offended many trust-fund kids, so she mercilessly trampled on him just to blend in with their crowd.

Her heart hammered violently against her ribs. Jade had never hated herself more than she did in this exact moment, despising the person she used to be.

She and Clayton could have been childhood allies, protecting and supporting each other as they grew up, but she had single-handedly destroyed that bond with her own toxic vanity.

How did they end up here?

How did they become this broken?

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