The car stopped in front of a two-story luxurious house. A middle-aged couple who had been sitting on wooden chairs stood up as Phoebe opened the iron gate. dwin, following Phoebe, entered the front yard and greeted them while kissing the back of their hands as a gesture of courtesy.


    “Doctor dwin,” Phoebe’s mother greeted. dwin nodded politely. “Darling, this is Doctor dwin, Julie’s son.” Phoebe’s mother informed her husband with enthusiasm that dwin found a bit excessive.


    “Does Dr. dwin also work at the same hospital as Phoebe?” Phoebe’s father asked, and dwin shook his head in response.


    “Phoebe will move to the hospital where dwin works after finishing her current contract, Pi,” Phoebe exined with her sweet smile. dwin felt a sense of difort when the woman beside him spoke. He knew Phoebe was making her move, and he was aware of it because he was an adult, not an inexperienced young boy.


    “Come inside. I’ve prepared some snacks,” Phoebe’s mother offered while opening the door wide. However, dwin shook his head; he didn’t want to give any false hope to the three people standing in front of him. As much as possible, he had to maintain a distance from them.


    “Maybe next time. Today, I have to leave,” dwin politely declined.


    “Why in such a hurry? It’s still daytime,” Phoebe’s mother tried to detain him. Phoebe herself aggressively held onto his arm. dwin tried to gently lower her hand.


    “I have to go to my sister’s house and take my niece. Excuse me,” he excused himself politely and nodded courteously.


    dwin got back into the car and saw via still engrossed in her phone. “Via, move to the front,” he requested quietly. via looked up.


    “Uncle, just go ahead. I’ll move to the front in fifty meters,” via replied quietly.


    “Why does it have to be in the front?”


    “It’s awkward;ter, Auntie Phoebe’s parents will see,” she replied, giving her reasons. dwin furrowed his brow. What did via mean?


    “I’m not a chauffeur, Via. Come on, move quickly now; why wait for me to advance first.” dwin didn’t want to be argued with. He wouldn’t start the car engine if via hadn’t moved yet. via looked hesitant but then got out and followed her uncle’s request.


    “Later, if Aunt Phoebe’s family starts thinking negatively, uncle should exin that I am his niece,” she said just before fastening her seatbelt.


    “Why should I bother exining? Are they census takers?” dwin replied casually while starting the car engine.


    Meanwhile, on Phoebe’s porch,


    “Who is that? Why didn’t you bothe home together?” Phoebe’s mother asked, looking at Phoebe with confusion. Meanwhile, her husband had already walked into the house, and she wasn’t sure when.


    Before leaving Julie Hampton’s residence, Phoebe deliberately contacted her mother and informed her that dwin was apanying her home, hoping that dwin would stop by and chat at their house so she could advance her approach. However, somehow, dwin ended up forcing via to join them, even though the girl had clearly refused to be escorted. Phoebe was irritated, both with dwin and via. Moreover, throughout the journey, he tantly ignored her.


    “He is ire’s stepson, dwin’s younger sister,” Phoebe answered curtly as she walked into the house.


    “Julie’s step-granddaughter?” Phoebe’s mother asked, to which Phoebe nodded. “What’s wrong with your mind? How could you let them be together? Remember, they’re not blood-rted. If there’s any connection between them, how?” Phoebe’s mother asked in panic.


    “That’s impossible,” Phoebe said skeptically. “Whether dwin or his mother, they’re the kind of people who care about others’ opinions. So it’s impossible for dwin to date his own step-niece.” Phoebe was confident. “Besides, can’t Mom see how much Julie likes me? My chance to get dwin is very significant.” She replied confidently, but her heart felt uneasy, especially after the way dwin kept ncing at via throughout the journey.


    “Are you sure?” Phoebe’s mother asked again. Phoebe nodded firmly. “Anyway, I don’t care. However you do it, you must be able to get dwin. I don’t want to be embarrassed again for the second time.” Phoebe’s mother looked at her daughter sharply.


    “Yes, I know. Mom, just rx. This time, we will seed.” Phoebe replied, equally sharp. “Enough, I’m tired and want to rest.” Phoebe then walked towards her room, with no intention of checking other rooms to show her concern.


    In dwin’s car,


    “What time are you leaving for the orphanage tomorrow?” dwin started the conversation.


    “I don’t know, maybe I’ll leave early in the morning,” via replied tly. Her eyes felt so heavy. She was truly exhausted and incredibly sleepy. She kept rubbing her eyes, but the drowsiness didn’t seem to go away and even intensified.


    “Are you sleepy? Just sleep; I’ll wake you up when we get home,” dwin suggested. via turned to him and shook her head.


    “It’s okay. Besides, we’ll arrive shortly.” via declined.


    dwin nced at via from the side mirror. The girl opened a third of the window and stretched out her hand, as if trying to catch some air. There was something different about via. dwin couldn’t deny that five years is not a short time to change someone, especially the transformation from a teenager to an adult. However, he didn’t expect the change in via to be this drastic.


    dwin knew via much like he knew Abigail, though not as intimately as he knew Abigail. Abigail, in these five years, didn’t change much. Physically, yes. She matured and looked more sophisticated. In terms of thinking, Abigail was already mature beyond her years since she was a teenager, even though via was far more mature than Abigail. But regarding character, behavior, not much had changed.


    Abigail still liked to speak candidly and be yful. She wasn’t arrogant, even though professionally, she really maintained her image. But when with family, she was still the same old Abigail.


    Meanwhile, via?


    Too much had changed in these five years. Physically, she grew into a more mature woman. She looked very beautiful with her subtle makeup. Her long hair looked so lovely and tempting to touch. But it wasn’t just that. The via he knew, even though not as talkative as Abigail, was a girl who smiled a lot and enjoyedughter. But now? It seemed very difficult to see herugh. Even to get a smile from her, the girl seemed very reserved.


    Was it just his perception, or did she really be quieter? And even seemed to keep her distance from him?


    dwin looked at via again. The girl now had her eyes closed, seemingly really asleep. And that was also one of the differences dwin could see. Because in the past, the via he knew was an energetic girl. But now?


    Should dwin contact ire personally to discuss via’s issues? But if ire asks why he wants to know, what should he say? dwin wrestled with his own thoughts. And fifteen minutester, he had arrived at his twin sister’s residence.


    The security opened the gate for him. dwin entered and chose to park in front of the main door. He unbuckled his seatbelt and via’s belt slowly, not wanting to wake her up. Very carefully and almost soundlessly, dwin opened the driver’s door, walked around, opened the passenger door in the same manner, and tried to carry via as gently as possible so she wouldn’t wake up.


    He pushed the front door with his hip and walked in. The sound of the television in the living room was still audible, indicating that the homeowners were still awake.


    “dwin? Is via asleep?” ire’s greeting weed him. His heavily pregnant twin sister looked at dwin with a bowl of food in her hands. The fact that his sister became more voracious during pregnancy always made dwin shake his head.


    dwin walked towards the stairs that would lead him to via’s room. Yes, he knew theyout of this house, including via’s and his siblings’ rooms, but he had never entered via’s room before.


    ire, seeing him enter with via, followed him, helping him open via’s bedroom door and lifting the bedspread. dwinid her down gently, then stepped back and left when ire arranged the nket for her daughter and adjusted the room temperature.Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    dwin descended and returned to the car, carrying via’s shopping bags and cing them on the sofa. “Did you escort via home, bro?” This time the question came from his fifteen years older brother-inw. Somehow, whenever Antony called him ‘Bro,’ he felt like his brother-inw was teasing him.


    “Yeah. Why did you guyse home without saying anything? Aren’t you worried if via takes a taxi and ends up with an unlucky, nasty driver?” dwin scolded. He acted as if he were via’s father, not Antony’s brother-inw.


    “If you talk, be careful with your words,” ire scolded, returning to the ground floor.


    “I’m not talking carelessly, just feeling annoyed. The fact is that crime is rampant nowadays. It can happen anytime, anywhere, to anyone, as long as there’s an opportunity,” dwin replied, still in a curt tone.


    “Yes, we apologize. I asked to leave early because I thought via would stay over since Abigail was there,” ire replied with a guilty expression that made dwin stop any lecture that was about toe out of his mouth.


    “Alright, I’ll head home now.” dwin said, tousling ire’s hair as he usually did before bowing down and briefly rubbing his sister’s stomach. “Uncle is going home, sweetheart. Say hi to your siblings for me.” He said right in front of ire’s belly. He straightened up, kissed the side of ire’s head, and headed home.