"Take it!" Gabrielle said while forcing the money into my hand.


    I returned it to her. "I really don''t need it."


    "Take it!"


    "I really don''t need it."


    As we pushed the money back and forth, a middle-aged woman suddenly interrupted, "What are you two doing?"


    I turned around and saw a well-dressed, elegant-looking middle-aged woman approaching quickly, her gaze harsh and critical.


    Upon seeing her, Gabrielle gasped in surprise. "Mom?"


    Mom? This woman was her mother?


    I looked carefully and could see some resemnce between them. Both had oval faces, delicate eyebrows, and small mouths.


    "Mom, what are you doing here? I told you I want to be independent. I don''t need you to take care of me, and I don''t want you to find me. Why did youe?"


    The woman immediately had an angry and fierce expression. "How can I not care about you? If I don''t care, you''ll end up living in this filthy building, associating with these unsavory men."


    Her usage of the words "filthy building" left me with no room to argue.


    This building truly had be a mess thanks to the gang of lowlifes hanging around downstairs, making it particrly unsuitable for a young woman to live in.


    But when she mentioned unsavory men, surely she wasn''t referring to me, right?


    Honestly, I wasn''t dressed poorly. I wore a clean white T-shirt worth over 3,000 dors, khaki cargo pants worth over 2,000 dors, white sneakers, and a crossbody bag My


    hair was neat, and my skin was fair. I looked like an upright college


    student.


    I wondered why she would call me unsavory. I didn''t agree with what she said.


    Gabrielle seemed to sense my frustration and immediately defended me. "Don''t drag innocent people into this. He''s a good person, not some unsavory man."


    "A good person? A good person would let you live in a ce like this? If he had any responsibility, he would have ensured that you lived


    somewhere better! He''s just fooling you because you''re young.


    "I''ll tell you, he''s probably made some shady deal with the local thugs in this building and is nning to sell your photos, maybe even videos!"


    She lit a cigarette, sizing me up.


    "You''re young and already thinking of such bad things! Fortunately, I arrived early.


    If I hadn''t, your videos would be all over the inte within a few days!"


    I had to agree. The woman''s reasoning made sense.


    If I were Gabrielle''s boyfriend and let her stay in this building, especially after


    seeing it myself, ulterior motives would definitely be involved.


    Kaelyn Tate''s suspicion wasn''tpletely wrong. But the problem was that I wasn''t her boyfriend.


    Her staying here had nothing to do with me.


    I was about to exin when


    Gabrielle suddenly seemed to think of something and threw her arms around my arm. "No matter what you say about him, I''mpletely devoted to him! Mom, please just let me be.


    "Why can''t I marry the man I want to? What''s the point of living if I can''t? If you


    keep pushing me, I''ll have no choice but to end it all!"


    "You''d die for such a man? Do you have no shame?"


    "I don''t! I just like him!"