The Echoes of Our Past Chapter 1

When the female lead appeared, I was already pregnant with Ethan's child.

Unable to fight fate, he had once desperately broken off his engagement with the female lead for me, but that only made her hate me to the bone, detesting the very sight of me.

Eventually, I grew tired. I threw away our tangled feelings, and even gave up the child.

Until a late afternoon, six years later.

A tender-faced child knocked on my door.

He kept a straight face, acting like a little adult:

"My dad doesn't want me anymore, can I come live with you?"

* * *

I froze for a moment, speechless.

Leo pursed his lips unhappily, tilting his pretty little face up, and said earnestly:

"My teacher said that parents have the responsibility and obligation to raise their children..."

The half-open door cut off the rest of his sentence.

I stepped aside slightly and said calmly:

"Come in."

The dim, yellow light inside illuminated his slightly widened eyes.

His eyes flickered inexplicably. He lifted his chin, let out a "hmph," and obediently walked in.

Closing the door, I turned around to see Leo curiously looking around.

Seeing me look over, he immediately retracted his gaze, nervously gripping his backpack straps, his little face tense:

"My name is Leo Vance."

It sounded like a self-introduction, yet also a reminder of his identity—the child Ethan and I had together.

I knew.

From the first glance, I confirmed who he was.

Because his features were almost an exact replica of Ethan's.

Seemingly disappointed by my calm reaction, he unhappily turned his head away, refusing to look at me.

I placed his small, bright yellow backpack by the entryway and led him to wash his hands.

"Let's eat first."

Leo obediently said "oh," and by the time I brought the food out, he had already climbed onto a chair by himself.

I asked him why he came looking for me so suddenly.

Leo kept his head down, poking at the small greens in his bowl. His little round, black head drooping, his voice muffled:

"I had a fight with him. He threw things and told me to get out, saying I should never come back."

So it was just a temper tantrum and running away from home.

Then Ethan should be coming to pick him up very soon.

Makes sense.

After all, the Vance family fought ruthlessly with me for Leo's custody six years ago.

Now, it was even more impossible that they didn't want him.

My chopsticks paused, unable to define the feeling in my heart at this moment.

I didn't know Leo was coming tonight, so I only had a simple meal of two dishes and one soup.

He was a picky eater, avoiding onions and carrots, until eventually, he had no vegetables left to eat.

Leo glared bitterly at the mashed vegetable leaves, stole a glance at me, and guiltily swallowed them.

When we first met, he had a touch of arrogance and haughtiness. Now, being a picky eater who didn't like greens, it was clear he was pampered and spoiled at the Vance house.

He shouldn't have suffered any real grievances.

I relaxed a bit. After washing the dishes, I waited for Ethan to send someone to pick him up.

I waited until nine-thirty.

Six-year-olds get sleepy early. He pulled his pajamas out of his backpack, looking around with his eyes, and pouted:

"There's only one room."

"Are we squeezing into one bed tonight?"

I glanced at the clock on the wall. For some reason, the Vance family still hadn't sent anyone.

I had to compromise.

"Yeah, you'll sleep with me tonight."

I originally thought Leo would throw a tantrum.

After all, a modest one-bedroom apartment was naturally nowhere near as comfortable as the Vance family's luxurious mansion.

But Leo just pursed his lips, his eyes flickering.

After wiping his face, he grunted as he changed into his pajamas, kicking his legs to climb onto the bed by himself.

Just like how, despite looking disgusted during dinner, he silently finished the greens I put in his bowl.

He wriggled under the covers, making a little mound, pulled out a fairy tale book from who-knows-where, and peeked out to look at me, urging:

"Aren't you going to coax me to sleep?"

He looked quite happy.