Chapter 8
658words
My schedule was relatively light. While preparing for my master's thesis, I also started laying the groundwork for a business I planned to launch.
When I went home during the break, I never expected to run into Maverick downstairs in my neighborhood. It looked like he had been waiting there for some time.
The moment he saw me, his face lit up with surprise.
He walked to me, rubbing his hands together, hesitating before speaking. "Amelia, it's been a while. How's life in Prestonia?"
I nodded and said calmly, "Pretty good."
He let out an awkward laugh. "Oh, are you planning to take the postgraduate entrance exam? I heard it's really competitive now. It's not something you can easily pass."
I casually replied, "I was recommended directly."
He froze for a moment, shock flickering in his eyes. "R-Recommended? Well, that makes sense. You're from a top university, so you have that option.
"But I've heard postgraduate degrees aren't that useful these days, especially for niche majors like yours. Having a Master's doesn't even guarantee a job.
"I'm planning to start working right after my undergraduate degree. Ginger's dad has tons of connections. He can introduce me to someone, and I'll make tens of thousands a month easily."
He continued, "By the way, do you know anyone in Prestonia? I might head there in the future. I can't possibly stay in one place forever."
"No," I said flatly. "Is there anything else? Otherwise, I'm heading home."
He nodded awkwardly. "Okay, sure. See you around."
I ignored him and returned home.
When Lucy heard I was back, she immediately came over. "Maverick came to see you today, and he even asked if you had connections?"
I nodded.
Lucy launched into an animated rundown of his recent whereabouts, and only then did I understand why he was acting so strangely.
It turned out that after Ginger gave birth, she completely dropped out of school and stayed home to raise the baby.
This arrangement deeply affected Maverick as he repeated a year to retake the college entrance exam. He barely studied. In the end, he failed badly and ended up at a bottom-tier college.
He was considered a top student and had reasonably good looks. Several ladies from his course confessed their feelings to him.
As an arrogant man, Maverick never initiated, never rejected, and never took responsibility, merely stringing them along. One of the ladies eventually followed him home.
That was when she ran into Ginger. Ginger showed up with her child and beat the lady up badly.
The lady went back to school and told everyone that Maverick was already married with a kid.
The backlash was immediate. Everyone turned on him, and he was completely ostracized.
Yet, Maverick was still clinging to his former glory of being the top student and refused to seriously learn any practical skills. He kept fantasizing that after graduation, he would make a fortune through the Livingstons.
To his surprise, the region launched a major crackdown on organized crime, and the Livingston family's illegal operations were put under strict investigation.
Then, Ginger had another child, and their finances took a huge hit.
Rumor had it that Mrs. Livingston had started selling off her jewelry.
"Amelia, don't you think Maverick brought this upon himself? He's already with Ginger, but still goes around leading other ladies on.
"I also heard that after he publicly cut ties with his parents, they went ahead and had another child. Now, the three of them are living happily together and don't even care about Maverick anymore, as if they never had him."
That surprised me. I hadn't seen that coming, but their choice made sense. Why keep holding on to a son who turned out to be an ungrateful bastard?
