"It''s been ages,dies! How have you all been?"
Katrina and Abby had always been the outgoing ones of their group, quick to hit it off back during their days at Neo-Vespera University.
The moment Katrina spotted Abby, her eyes lit up. She rushed over and wrapped Abby in a huge, exuberant hug.
"Abby! I''ve missed you so much!"
Even though it had been years since they''dst seen each other, there wasn''t a hint of awkwardness between them-just easy familiarity, as if no time had passed.
Lauretta, who''d been quiet for most of the reunion, hesitated before speaking, her voice barely above a whisper. "Star, has the Williams family reached out to you?"
Of all of them, Lauretta came from the most prestigious background. The Chapman family, her own, was on equal footing with the Williams family; the two had been close for generations. Recently, there''d been talk of an arranged marriage between the families-Lauretta was being considered as a match for Ste''s eldest brother, Jonathan Williams. She''d even met Jonathan a few times over dinner recently.
Ste paused, her hand on the car door, and nced back at Lauretta. “No, I haven''t heard from them. Why do you ask?"
Lauretta lowered her voice. "I heard from your brother that the Williams family is nning to bring you back soon."
The mention of the Williams family didn''t stir anything in Ste. It felt no different than hearing gossip about strangers.
"Bring me back?" Ste looked genuinely surprised. "After all these years of silence, why the sudden interest?"
Lauretta exined, "You''ve made the news a few timestely. Someone in the Williams family caught wind of it, and Skyler found out you weren''t doing so well on your own. He started to feel sorry for you and decided it was time to bring you home."
Ste slipped into the car, her tone cool and distant. "We''re just too different. I don''t think we''ll ever see eye to eye."
Lauretta understood the deeper meaning behind her words. "Star, do you not want to go back?"
Ste shrugged. "Whether I go back or not... does it even matter?"
Ret
Lauretta almost protested, but after a second''s thought, she realized Ste was right. Ste had gotten into Neo-Vespera University all. her own, with no help from the Williams family. She paid he tuition and living expenses with schrships and money earned from performances. And even if she hadn''t, it''s not like she was ever short on cash. Before Ste had anything to do with the Williams family, her mother had already given her a substantial sum-enough to cover years of living and studying.
The truth was, the Williams family had never lifted a finger to support her.
After Ste moved in with the Williams family, Skyler Williams did treat her generously. She received a monthly allowance of a hundred thousand, not to mention additional funds for clothes, bags, cars and other luxuries. But Ste never touched a penny of it.
The day after she received her first allowance, her third brother, Coleman Williams, had pulled her aside.
"In the Williams family, we don''t live off our parents," Coleman told her. "My brothers and I have all been working for years now-we have no use for handouts. As for Aurora Williams..."
He paused, pride shining in his eyes.
"Aurora''s a prodigy in physics. She filed for several patents before she was even an adult, and she''s racked up prize money from all sorts ofpetitions. She might be a trust fund kid, but she hasn''t needed family money for a long time."
It didn''t take a genius for Ste to understand what Coleman was getting at.
She looked at him and asked, "So, you think I came back to the Williams family just to leech off you?"
Coleman replied, "Do you know why Dad didn''t immediately announce your identity? Everyone in the Williams family is exceptional-from Jonathan to Aurora, every one of us is at the top of our field. Right now, you''re not there yet. That''s why we''re giving you three years to learn the ropes and adjust to our way of life. After three years, once you''ve be a proper Williams, we''ll introduce you to the world."