Chapter 3

Ding.  

The door of the shabby countryside general store opened and a customer entered.  

“Oh my, Hailey. It’s been a while!”  

Hailey greeted the Bernstein couple at the general store with a smile.  

“What do you mean ‘a while’? I saw you just a week ago.”  

“But it’s been a whole week! Have you met up with your friends often?”  

“We’ve been meeting twice a week at my house to make wedding gifts for Phoebe and Liam.”  

“It’s only natural for classmates to gather when the class president returns.”  

“Oh, come on. I wasn’t always class president. Everyone took turns.”  

“But you were class president more often than most.”  

“That’s just because my classmates were kind and helped me out. Clever helped a lot, too.”  

“Oh my, you always say such sweet things.”  

The township general store was the place where most of the rumors in Plojesville passed through, so Hailey always showed perfect manners there.  

“It’s admirable that you came home to nurse your grandmother, but thinking of your bright future, I wonder if you really had to.”  

Before she could hear any unnecessary meddling, Hailey brought up a topic that would work well.  

“You must have defied age, ma’am. You look even brighter and younger than before. Is it because you never lose your smile?”  

At those words, Mrs. Bernstein couldn’t hide her wide smile.  

“Oh my, I’ve gotten old. Just look at these wrinkles under my eyes. Aren’t they all crinkled?”  

“Smile lines from laughter are actually charming.”  

“When others compliment me, it sounds like flattery, but when you say it, it feels sincere and makes me happy. Hohoho.”  

Mrs. Bernstein looked at Hailey with eyes full of affection.  

“Everyone’s desperate to go to the city, but don’t you feel stifled living in the countryside? Weren’t you going to be a teacher?”  

“I graduated, but I didn’t finish my student teaching, so I postponed it.”  

“Don’t put off getting your certificate. You’ll lose your touch. Your grandmother was so proud.”  

“I wanted to bring her to the city, but she insisted on staying. If I want to be by her side, I have to come here.”  

“You’re an angel, an angel.”  

Not an angel, though.  

Trying to talk to people while mixing in unnecessary compliments was exhausting. So, Hailey preferred listening quietly rather than speaking. The less she spoke, the fewer mistakes she’d make.  

Hailey’s real hometown was Beryonyx, famous for its industrial district, but after losing her mother and younger brother to an epidemic, she was sent to live with her grandmother. After her father remarried, she returned to Beryonyx city.  

But did they know?  

She considered this place her true home and always missed it.  

Here, people accepted her kindly even if she only listened, but in the city, people disliked her just for talking, and even if she only listened, they’d suspect her of plotting, making it hard to know what to do.  

She always thought of the leisurely life here, taking quiet walks. She even considered continuing her grandmother’s work and farming after her caregiving was done.  

“Now Plojesville will get lively again.”  

“Clever had quite a few dinners at our house, right? By the way, is Clever doing well?”  

“Of course, your first love Clever is doing well. Hohoho.”  

“What do you mean first love! Absolutely not! Kids don’t know anything.”  

If anything, she’d be Clever’s first love. But did it really matter?  

If she tried to clarify that, she’d have to talk with Mrs. Bernstein for ages.  

“I guess you came to see Clever, but since you say you didn’t, I’ll believe you.”  

Mrs. Bernstein laughed, as if it was all a joke, and continued,  

“He got a job at the town hall right after graduation. So many people are trying to arrange a match for him, it’s a headache. That’s the trouble of having a successful son.”  

Mrs. Bernstein’s bragging about her son went on endlessly, including stories about Amber, who followed her around calling her ‘Mother’ and asking to marry Clever.  

“I couldn’t possibly tell my son to lower his standards, could I?”  

It was as if she was saying, ‘My amazing son likes you, so you know how I feel, right?’ Mrs. Bernstein winked.  

Ugh, it was overwhelming.  

“By the way, is your younger sister Ella doing well? Why hasn’t she come? She must have grown a lot.”  

Hailey felt a bit uncomfortable at the sudden mention of her half-sister, but didn’t show it.  

“Haha… She’s doing well, so don’t worry.”  

“So, how about trying for the spot as my daughter-in-law? I’d really support you.”  

First love, what first love? Hailey remembered Clever, who used to blush and cry when his mother teased him to hurry up and win her over because she liked him too.  

She wondered why Mrs. Bernstein still teased her son. Mrs. Bernstein thought Hailey enjoyed it, so she’d brag about Clever’s awkward moments, even though it actually made him less likable.  

Before Mrs. Bernstein could reveal all of Clever’s embarrassing stories, Hailey needed to change the subject. She glanced around quickly.  

It was as if time had stopped—cheap, faded toys still sat in one corner of the shop.  

“These are still here.”  

Nostalgia turned into curiosity and drew Hailey’s gaze.  

There was a toy lottery board where you put in a coin and drew a prize, a toy horse that bent and straightened as you pumped it, a whistle that extended like an elephant’s trunk when you blew it, and a case of toy rings.  

Among them, the biggest ring caught her eye. The bottom of the ring was open so it could fit any finger, but when Hailey, now grown, tried it on, it squeezed tightly. Seeing the ring reminded her of Dean, who used to live next door.  

He was a ‘kid’.  

Smaller than his peers, always crying, yet so sharp-tongued that he’d challenge anyone who spoke to him, whether their intentions were good or bad.  

Yet Dean, who used to trail after Hailey like a puppy, was adorable.  

[I hate you! I really hate you!]  

After all that fuss, he’d still sit by the fence and listen to her play.  

Like a chihuahua that thinks it’s a doberman.  

If anyone approached, he’d make a fuss as if he’d bite, but if you put a finger in his mouth, he’d just stare in surprise and couldn’t bite—a cute sight.  

[How is that cute? Where?]  

Her friends couldn’t understand.  

She’d seen him run away from the dorm once, but that was before his voice changed, so now that he had grown up, he must have changed a lot.  

Bad kid. He could have sent at least a letter. She’d looked after him so much, and he just disappeared.  

She wanted to see how Dean had grown up.  

She wondered if he was still fighting and cursing at people who bothered him or if he’d mellowed a bit… but most of all, she was curious about how his looks had changed.  

Because his looks were always her type.