Chapter One

  **The Hawthorne Family:**

  * Eliza Hawthorne: The daughter, a principal figure in the unfolding events.

  * Clara Hawthorne: The mother, whose childhood friendship with Priya Penhaligon holds significance.

  * Felix Hawthorne: The father.

  **The Bancroft Family:**

  * Ethan Bancroft: The son, who serves as the male protagonist and is betrothed to Eliza Hawthorne.

  * Beth Bancroft: The mother.

  * Howard Bancroft: The father.

  **The Penhaligon Family:**

  * Arthur Penhaligon: The son, recognized as a key protagonist within the narrative.

  * Brakely Penhaligon: His wife.

  * Maya Penhaligon: Their daughter.

  * Priya Penhaligon: His mother, who shares a childhood connection with Clara Hawthorne.

  * Matthew Penhaligon: The grandfather, the family patriarch.

  Ethan Bancroft pov :

  The afternoon sun cast long shadows as I walked towards Eliza's house. I was looking forward to seeing her, but her mom, Clara, always made me a little nervous.

  As I stepped into their living room, Clara was already there. Her eyes went right to me, and she didn't waste any time.

  Her words weren't exactly a warm welcome. "I've never seen either of you earn even a single rupee in a day. What are you doing in front of that screen all day?"

  It always felt like she thought our writing careers were a joke, and she wasn't shy about saying it. This was my first time really inside their house, and that was the first thing she said. It wasn't the last, either. Every time she made a comment like that, it just stuck with me. I really wanted her to see that I could take care of Eliza, give her a good life. But I never seemed to get through to her.

  "We're freelance," I explained, maybe a little too quickly. "We get paid when we finish a job."

  She didn't seem to understand, or maybe she just didn't believe me. Either way, it was clear I didn't have much money right then. Living with my parents felt a bit embarrassing, especially when I was trying to build something online without any income yet. It felt a bit like wanting something you couldn't afford – that actually gave me an idea for an article title. Going after something big when you don't even have the basics. I should remember that. Then I realized Clara was still talking.

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  "So you're saying you don't actually do any work," she said, her voice flat.

  "No," I corrected her. "We're trying to find and write the best articles we can."

  Clara just sighed. It was a heavy sound that told me exactly what she thought of that explanation. I knew I had a tough job ahead of me to change her mind.

  "I always regret that Eliza chose you as her boyfriend. She wasn't great at her own career, so I wanted her to marry Arthur, who is successful, but she refused. Now, look where she is after choosing you," she said.

  Just then, Eliza came into the living room. Her voice gave me a bit of hope that I could finally get out of this situation.

  "Mom, just leave him alone," Eliza said.

  "I'm not keeping him here," Clara replied.

  She looked at me like I was the one to blame for everything.

  "Come on, let's go to my room," Eliza said.

  I followed her, feeling like I was doing something wrong, and I could still feel Clara's eyes on my back.

  "I thought you were coming in the evening," Eliza asked.

  "Yeah, actually, I wanted to show you something," I said.

  Actually, I should have told her I was coming earlier. She looked like she hadn't fully woken up yet, avoiding my gaze and covering part of her face while yawning or rubbing her eyes.

  Her room always felt comfortable, like home. The olive green sheets were on the bed, and the only window was on the right, next to her desk and a small sofa. Her cupboard was filled with her favorite books and CDs.

  She closed her laptop on the bed and put it on the desk, making more space for me to sit. I sat down in front of her.

  "So, what is it that you wanted to show me so urgently?" she asked.

  I opened my laptop and showed her the article I had been reading. It was the best article I had read in a while; it was about a woman living alone and having an affair with a married man. It didn't have any specific details about the people, but it was well-written, showing the love and difficulties of love after marriage.

  "That's horrible but also sweet," she said.

  "So, it gave me some hope and some ideas."

  "Don't tell me you're going to wander around looking for sad stories now," she joked.

  "You have to feel the moment to write about it well. I didn't say I'd wander the streets; you have a neighbor, and that neighbor has stories," I said.

  "Why mine? What about yours?" she asked. She understood without me saying anything. My neighborhood was full of buildings for an orphanage. My dad was a doctor who worked for the government and treated people at the orphanage whenever they needed help. Because of that, we got a free place to live and a car for emergencies.

  "So, everyone has some kind of story," she said.

  "Come on, we have to ask for permission every time we want to talk to someone there. Why not someone close to us, someone we've heard about for a long time?"

  "I know where this is going. I'm not doing this," she said.

  I knew she wouldn't agree. She really didn't like him. She hated Arthur. I had asked her why many times. She just said he was a fake, nothing more, no specific situation or story. So, I was curious. Who was this guy that Mrs. Clara Hawthorne liked so much? Maybe I could figure out what made him so great and show my own talent.

  "Come on, he's right there, close to your family, please," I said.

  "His life is perfect. This is a waste of time," she said.

  "Maybe you don't know everything."

  "Why don't we just go with someone more complicated? Let's choose Mr. Jordan," she suggested.

  "What, the uncle from across the street? No way, he's a teacher. His problems are always about school, not that interesting. Look, Eliza, I'm tired of everything. I want a story that can change my life. I don't want to just write anything to get attention. I want something that's always interesting. My neighbor's dark secrets are kind of public and more interesting because he seems perfect but might not be, so trust me."

  She was thinking. She didn't really support this idea, but she felt bad for me, so she said:

  "Fine. But don't blame me. I told you he's good in every way. If you don't find anything in one week, let's just stop looking, okay?" she asked.

  "Fine."

  I didn't know. Even to me, he seemed really nice and good. Maybe this would be over in two days if he was truly perfect. At least something like him not being good at sports, so I could show off my basketball skills in front of Clara and Eliza and get some respect.

  "Okay, at least you picked a good time," she said.

  "Why?" I asked.

  "My mom told me today we have dinner with the Penhaligons," she told me.

  "Out of nowhere?"

  "No, today is Arthur's grandpa's 83rd birthday, so we're going there," she said.

  "So this is a great chance. Can I come if your mother doesn't mind?"

  "She always has a problem with us anyway. Don't worry, I'll handle it. Be ready at 8 sharp, we'll go together."

  "Let's try to find out something today so we can watch him properly."

  "What? You're taking this way too seriously. We're not detectives, just go with the flow. I'm sure he's a good guy; we won't find anything like your article. Even if he's having an affair, it would just make me laugh."

  "Seriously, let's see what happens."

  I didn't know what I was more worried about: a night with Clara Hawthorne or going into Arthur's house and finding nothing interesting.

  Continues......