She Becomes A Hot Sensation After A Scandalous Affair
Chapter 154

Chapter 154: Chapter 154

"Oh, this one, haha!" Nathan looked at a small framed picture of them, aged five and thirteen, covered in flour and butter. "I remember this. It was my birthday, and you wanted to bake a birthday cake, and I wanted to help. I ended up slipping and poured a bowl of flour. I cried, but you told me we are the birthday cake today! Then Mom ordered us a real birthday cake and pizza."

Nathan stared at the picture fondly, as if such a menial memory that Madeline had totally forgotten about was very important to him.

Madeline felt that she had been stabbed in the heart. She didn’t realize how Nathan remembered many small things that never crossed her mind because she had always focused on the bigger picture.

Nathan didn’t want to lose any of his memories with his family. Though he didn’t have much, he remembered every one of them and could recall them perfectly, especially his memories with his big sister.

As he took out all of their albums, a picture from inside the album dropped on the floor.

Nathan picked it up and curled his lips as he tried to suppress his joy.

He glanced at Madeline and stared back at him. "What is it, Nathan?" she asked. "Did you find something interesting?"

"Well, not really interesting," Nathan said, but he walked towards Madeline and handed her the picture of baby Nathan, who slept peacefully in the arms of eight-year-old Madeline.

Madeline had a big, innocent smile at the camera.

Unfortunately, that smile was gone long ago when Madeline realized that the entertainment industry was not the sunshine and rainbow she expected.

She was forced to grow up prematurely, knowing she had to survive in showbiz without backing.

"This takes me back..." Madeline murmured. "I remember how small you were when you were just born. I was so happy because I got a baby brother."

"Look at the back of that picture," Nathan instructed.

Madeline flipped the picture and saw the eight-year-old handwriting she wrote with colorful pens.

-*

Nathan, baby brother.

I hope you grow up fast. We can play house together!

Love, Maddy.

-*

Madeline decorated it with many cute stickers that a regular eight-year-old loved to collect.

Madeline bit her lower lip, trying her best not to shed some tears.

This picture and her handwriting... she recalled the good days when she didn’t know any better. That time, the only worry she had was the trending pink shoes that every cool girl in elementary school had.

Now, she was just one of the cogs in the entertainment industry. She was just as vicious and cruel, if necessary.

After all, this line of work was very competitive and demanding.

Madeline returned the photo to Nathan and said, "I’m sorry that I didn’t spend that much time with you, Nathan."

"I told you, it’s fine."

"It’s not fine," Madeline said, shaking her head. "I could’ve done better as your older sister. I was so busy with work that I neglected you and hogged our parents’ attention."

"When that scandal broke out, I locked myself inside my room for half a year, and you are the one who took care of everything," Madeline said. "I don’t understand either. Why was I so cruel and neglectful to you?"

Nathan saw that his sister’s shoulder was shaking.

He felt awkward as his body wanted to instinctively hug her, but he was never close to anyone, not even his family, so hugging Madeline was just too uncomfortable for him.

But when he saw his sister, who dwelled in self-blame again, he mustered his courage and hugged Madeline awkwardly.

"Y—You are not cruel or neglectful, Maddy. I know you went through a lot, and I’m also sorry because I also yelled at you a lot," Nathan admitted. "Don’t blame yourself. I never blame you for anything."

The pair of siblings hugged for a while. It was their first hug after so long.

They grew apart because of Madeline’s busy schedule and also because of the affair that plunged her into depression and self-isolation.

Now that she finally came out of her shell, she wished they could reconnect again.

Madeline helped Nathan pack up the important stuff for the whole night, such as the photos, albums, important items, etc.

It was almost midnight by the time they finished packing up.

"Well, it’s getting late. You should sleep now, Nathan," Madeline said.

"Let me sort them out first. I want to make sure we didn’t miss anything."

"No, I will do that myself. You need to go to school tomorrow morning," Madeline insisted. "Besides, my schedule isn’t as early as before. I can wake up a bit later."

"Alright then, I’m going to sleep first," Nathan said.

He stared at his sister, who was still busy sorting out a few things, and he had an urge that he had never felt before.

’Well, I guess if I really want to reconnect with my sister...’

Nathan summoned his courage again and hugged his sister for the second time, saying, "Thank you so much for being an awesome sister, Maddy."

Madeline froze for a moment before she hugged him and patted his back a few times. "I should be the one who thanked you. We’re in this together, Nathan. We only have each other to rely on, at least until Mom has recovered."

Thus, Nathan finally rushed to his bedroom after hugging his sister.

Madeline chuckled, seeing how embarrassed Nathan was after hugging her.

Nathan was always the awkward boy when it came to emotional stuff. He was stoic most of the time, and Madeline realized it when she watched one of Nathan’s basketball games, of course with enough disguise not to get recognized.

He was always serious, cold, and somewhat aloof to his teammates. He didn’t seem interested in girls or boys, as he ignored his teammates and every girl who came to him after he won the match.

’I’m sorry for being so neglectful, Nathan. I promise I will do better as your older sister,’ Madeline thought. She looked at the family picture in her hand, and her gaze cooled at her dad’s face. ’Good thing Nathan and I looked more like Mom.’