Alice walked out, arms crossed, her posture protective as she stood beside Dawn. "Ms. Peay," she said, her voice dripping with disdain, "you're almost 30, aren't you? And yet here you are, bullying a young girl. Aren't you ashamed of yourself?" Sydney's face flushed with fury. "Ms. Alice, this has nothing to do with you." Alice's smirk deepened as she raised an eyebrow. "Oh, it does now." She looked at Sydney with a mocking grin. "Dawn's like my sister. If you're making her life miserable, you're making mine miserable too." Then, turning to Dawn, she winked meaningfully. "If things get ugly for her here, you know certain people might come for me, right?" Sydney's anger clouded her mind, and she didn't immediately catch the hidden meaning behind Alice's words. Instead, she snapped, "I'm just speaking the truth. Dawn and Austin aren't blood-related. If they get too close, people are going to start talking, don't you think?" Alice raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. "If that's an issue, let Austin deal with it. Who are you to interfere?" Sydney opened her mouth to retort but quickly realized she was no match for Alice's sharp tongue. Gritting her teeth, she snarled, "I don't have time for this," and stormed off. Alice rolled her eyes at Sydney's retreating figure, her annoyance lingering. She turned to Dawn with a satisfied smirk. "Next time you run into someone like that, just curse them out. Don't worry about how they feel—if she had any self-respect, she wouldn't have said all that to your face." Dawn had been hesitating, thinking about Sydney's position as Austin's girlfriend. After all, if they married, she'd be her aunt. Things might get uncomfortable with Harry, Sandra, and Jessica if things turned ugly. But Alice had a point—Sydney clearly didn't care, so why should she? Seeing that Dawn had taken her words to heart, Alice beamed, linking arms with her. "Come on, let's go. Ethan wants me to give you a full check-up. If anything's wrong, he's coming after me." Dawn felt a bit embarrassed but also strangely touched. For the first time in a long while, she realized someone actually cared enough about her to make sure she was okay, even from far away. She and Ethan had known each other since childhood, but their relationship hadn't always been smooth. Back then, they were more like rivals than friends. It all started when Dawn was eight, having just moved into the Osborne Estate. Seventeen-year-old Austin was busy with school, so Dawn stayed at the family estate temporarily. After a huge upheaval in her life, she barely spoke, no matter how hard her family tried to cheer her up. Sandra even considered hiring a psychologist to help her when she noticed something—little Dawn had taken an interest in the neighbor's dog. It was a golden retriever, a playful dog that chased a ball around in the yard every day. Dawn would stand by the fence, watching it with a faint smile. Sandra, seeing how Dawn brightened up, decided to watch a little longer before stepping in. One day, as Dawn crouched by the fence, she met the dog's gaze. Her heart skipped—not from fear, but from curiosity. She stayed still, tilting her head, watching the dog intently. That was when a slender hand yanked the dog away. And in its place was a ridiculously handsome face. The boy's eyes glinted with amusement. "Hey, you! Are you trying to steal my dog?" Dawn scrambled to explain, frantic. "I—I'm not!" "Then why are you staring at it like that? You're making it shy." Dawn blinked, confused. Could dogs even get shy? Ethan found her confusion amusing, and his playful side kicked in. He raised an eyebrow, motioning to the dog. "Want to pet it?" Dawn hesitated, then nodded. "Come on." He opened the gate and, without warning, let the dog loose. The retriever lunged at Dawn, knocking her off balance. Startled, she stumbled backward and fell. Panicking, she burst into tears. Sandra rushed over, but when she saw Dawn sobbing uncontrollably, she actually sighed in relief. "This child never cries. It's a good thing she finally let it out! Thank you, Ethan." From that day on, Sandra invited Ethan to bring his dog over more often to keep Dawn company. But Dawn? She had decided that Ethan was her mortal enemy. Years passed, and somehow, they made peace. Then, when Ethan left to study abroad, Dawn went to see him off. By then, he had grown taller than her by a head. Before leaving, Ethan looked at her face one last time, his hand reaching up to ruffle her hair. His voice was low, soft. "Grow up quickly, Dawn." She didn't want it to get too sentimental, so she swatted his hand away. "Hurry up and go, or your plane's gonna leave without you!" Ethan sighed, almost imperceptibly. "I wish it would." Dawn frowned. "What do you mean by that?" Ethan shook his head, murmuring, "Forget it. Dawn... miss me when I'm gone." With that, he turned and walked toward the departure gate, not looking back. Dawn, though, stood there for a long time, watching him leave, her heart a little heavy. ... After finishing the check-up, Alice came out, rubbing her hands together. "That bruise looks awful. Does Austin have rocks for brains? You're hurt this badly, and he doesn't care, but the second that woman gets a tiny scratch on her ass, he's freaking out?" Dawn shrugged. "Maybe. But I guess it makes sense—He's got Sydney." Alice raised an eyebrow, sizing Dawn up carefully before saying, "Whatever. He doesn't care, but hey, we've still got Mr. Jackson, right?" She winked. "Come on, what do you want to eat? My treat." Dawn, who had been planning to treat Alice, smiled. "Let me pay, Alice. Thanks for the treatment." Alice's eyes sparkled mischievously. "Let Ethan pay." Dawn laughed. "Sure!" They headed to the mall, chatting and laughing. After their meal, Alice—true to her word—had Ethan pay the bill. Dawn felt a bit guilty about it, considering it had been two years since they last saw each other. She felt she should at least buy Ethan a little gift. Alice raised an eyebrow, noticing Dawn's radiant face. "You don't have to buy anything. You're the best gift he could get."Dawn shot her a glare. "Alice, it's not like that between Ethan and me." "Aren't you two getting married?" "Yeah, but..." She didn't know how to explain it, so she just shrugged. "Either way, I still need to get him something." Seeing Dawn's determination, Alice texted Ethan in secret: "The road ahead is long, my friend. You've got a lot to do to win her over." Ethan replied with a single question mark. Alice smirked and didn't answer. After wandering the mall for a while, Dawn chose a tie from an independent designer brand. It wasn't too expensive, but it cost her half of her savings. Later, Alice dropped her off at the villa. At the entrance, she blew Dawn a kiss. "Dawn, we're friends now. If anything happens, you better call me.""Got it, Alice. Drive safe." Dawn felt lighter as she watched Alice leave, stepping inside with a smile. The moment she walked in, Austin, who was grabbing a glass of water from the kitchen, frowned. "What took you so long?" Before she could answer, his eyes landed on the bag in her hand. "You went shopping?" Dawn instinctively hid the bag behind her back. "Yeah." Austin narrowed his gaze. "With who?"