Her Hidden Hero from the Unwritten Page novel Chapter 30

Seth clearly hadn't expected those to be her first words, and he stood frozen for a long moment.

Seeing him remain silent, Winona waved her hand in front of his face. "Did someone knock your brains out in that fight?"

"Why..." Seth licked his teeth. "Why are you the one who came?"

"Aren't you happy I came?" Winona raised an eyebrow.

Seth kicked a piece of gravel by his foot. "I'm just not used to it."

Winona opened her mouth, then closed it.

He hadn't said he wasn't happy; he said he wasn't used to it.

Breaking free from her past life's obsession with Herbert, Winona looked back on her old self and realized just how absurdly she had lived.

It was like she had been under some kind of hex, shamelessly orbiting Herbert day in and day out.

When Seth was younger, he used to always look for her to play, asking her to go to the grocery store, to play video games with him, or to go out and eat good food.

At first, Winona was happy to do all those things, but as they grew older, she only ever wanted to see Herbert.

It was around seventh grade when Herbert invited their classmates to an early birthday party in a private restaurant room.

Winona had hesitated for a long time before just dropping off a gift and leaving without even taking a sip of water.

That day was Seth's midterm exam, and she had promised to take him out for fried chicken.

Feeling guilty, she brought Seth along to Herbert's second birthday party that evening.

This party was a massive event with countless guests, mostly business partners of the Xavier family.

Winona had fully intended to apologize to Herbert in person, but he completely ignored her the entire time.

As the party was winding down, she gathered the courage to find him.

That day, Winona had worn a beautiful princess dress, and the nanny at home had intricately braided her hair.

When Seth asked her to go to the store, she'd say she had no interest.

When Seth brought back a pile of plushies for her, she rejected them, calling them ugly.

After being shut down time and time again, Seth eventually stopped seeking her out.

By the time Seth started middle school, he opted to live on campus, only coming home on weekends. They barely spoke anymore, and their relationship only continued to grow distant.

To the point where, now, even talking to each other felt incredibly awkward.

Winona's eyes stung with unshed tears. Looking up at Seth, who was now much taller than her, she said, "Then you'd better start getting used to it."

Seth's Adam's apple bobbed. "Do you really not like Herbert anymore?"

Winona was about to answer when she noticed someone approaching from a distance.

He was tall and lean, his black T-shirt billowing in the wind. Holding a phone in his hand, his face was completely devoid of any expression.