Chapter 174

Jack Brooks quietly cracked open the stairwell door, leaning against the frame, straining to catch any noise outside. The moment Serena saw Oliver’s still-handsome face and those ever-shifting eyes, her whole body started trembling. She couldn’t even explain why she’d opened that door—truth be told, she really didn’t want to see him. Something about him just made her instinctively uneasy. “You’ve lost weight,” Oliver said with a faint smile, like he was greeting someone he used to be close with. It was the kind of tone that could’ve felt warm and comforting, like a gentle breeze—if only everything that’d happened on Mist Island hadn’t destroyed that possibility. Serena might’ve once wanted to be real friends with him. But life isn’t filled with what-ifs. It’s only filled with choices—and the consequences. Serena let out a cold snort. “Cut the act. If you’ve got something to say, just get to the point.” “Fine,” Oliver rasped after a pause. “A few days ago, did you go to a private clinic