Within minutes, the video went viral in the alumni group, sparking discussion and countless shares. Denise immediately left all school-related groups and deleted her former classmates from her contacts.
People clamored for details, desperate to know what had happened that night-but the attendees seemed to have an unspoken agreement: no one said a word. Even the most inquisitive couldn’t glean anything.
The only information known: some finance major former classmates had gathered for a reunion. Based on Denise’s video, the speculation was that a conflict had erupted between her and Khloe.
Word spread quickly. Later that evening, Angela, who had stayed up reviewing a project proposal for Trey, noticed the alumni group chatter. Interested, she handed her phone to Trey, who had been working alongside her.
“Trey, Khloe went to a reunion tonight.”
Trey froze for a moment. He rarely checked group chats, and all the old class and alumni groups were muted. Yet now, even before he finished scrolling through the messages, his phone buzzed with several pings from old classmates.
[Has something happened to Khloe?]
[Is she okay?]
[Does anyone know what’s going on with her?]
His chest tightened. Panic rose, and all other thoughts vanished. He grabbed his phone, ready to call Khloe immediately.
“Khloe won’t be hurt,” Angela said casually, her voice laced with a teasing note. “She had the time to attend a reunion but ignored you. She’s just messing with you-maybe this whole thing was deliberate, waiting for you to come find her.”
Angela’s words hit harder than she realized.
Trey paused, the tension in his chest easing slightly. So she wasn’t in danger-she was deliberately holding back, controlling the situation, testing him.
It made sense. It was late, and calling her now might just make him look desperate.
Their chat window had been silent this whole time, save for Trey’s messages. He’d already risked his mother’s and sister’s anger for her sake, even offered Fox Group’s shares. Yet she refused to give in, refusing to let him step forward.
He clenched his jaw, frustrated.
“Then what the hell happened?” he muttered, putting his phone away.
Seeing he wasn’t going to call Khloe, Angela spoke up again.
“Seems like Khloe had a conflict with Denise at the reunion. Afterward, Denise posted a video of herself apologizing to Khloe and then left the alumni groups.”
Earlier, Angela had tried messaging Denise. Denise had deleted everyone except Angela, but she hadn’t responded to any messages.
“Denise?” Trey asked, brow furrowed.
“You don’t remember? She was in your class. I taught her. Smart, pretty, but… often compared to Khloe. Maybe that’s why she got singled out at the reunion again,” Angela explained, her tone soft, yet filled with sympathy for Denise and a subtle jab at Khloe.
Trey watched the video. Denise looked miserable-head down, voice barely audible. Fear and panic eclipsed any sense of injustice. It was uncharacteristic.
He remembered Denise as someone bold, headstrong, not the type to bend so easily. She had even pursued him once, and after he rejected her, confronted him angrily in person.
“Did she do something to wrong Khloe, get caught, and now she’s self-destructing with this video?” Trey murmured, frowning thoughtfully.
Angela snatched the phone back immediately.
“She hasn’t contacted Khloe in two years-what could she have done? Nobody would post a video like that without being pushed. You’ve been completely brainwashed by Khloe!”
Hearing Trey defending Khloe, Angela nearly snapped.
“Khloe wouldn’t bully anyone,” he insisted.
Trey’s mind wandered to Khloe’s image. She had been the campus goddess, but he hadn’t kept her close simply for her looks.
He recalled the first time he saw her. On a rainy day during enrollment, the registration hall swarmed with students who had no umbrellas. A fragile-looking girl was carrying a pile of thick documents when a beggar in tattered clothes accidentally bumped into her, scattering the papers into the rain.
People rushed past, indifferent-or worse, amused by the commotion. Some even shoved the beggar to the ground, shouting at him.
Trey, then a member of the student council, hurried to intervene. But the first person to dash into the downpour wasn’t him-it was Khloe.
Khloe had rushed into the rain and helped the girl collect the scattered, soggy papers.
Trey remembered how Khloe had shouted at the students who were hitting the beggar, even stepping in front of the beggar to protect him.
The attackers were bigger, stronger, angry, and they hadn’t spared her either-hurling insults, raising hands- but she didn’t back down. She stood her ground, insisted on doing what was right, and even called the police.
At that moment, Trey had been captivated. She was completely unlike anyone he had ever known. He had always measured everything in terms of gain and self-preservation, never helping anyone without reason.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.