You Can’t Catch Me

For three years, I worked three jobs a day to send Wendy Stallone to university. In the end, I ended up doing all the chores at home as well. On the day Wendy graduated, the Stallone family came to bring her back to the family, and she turned into a socialite overnight. Everyone said my years of hardship had ended, and I was about to become rich. During the celebration party, Clark Quinn, Wendy’s childhood friend, sat beside her like he was born to orbit around her and asked me whether it was time for me to step aside. Wendy said nothing and just toyed with Clark’s fingers. Under the dazzling lights, I stared at her and asked calmly, “Are we going to break up?” She was stunned for a moment before she gave an awkward smile. “What on earth are you saying? Stop throwing a tantrum.” I could see that she was hesitating, and I just smiled faintly. “It’s fine. You don’t have to feel troubled about it. I’ll leave.” That night, I packed up my bags and left the rental house that had carried three years’ worth of memories of my life with Wendy. Behind me, I heard Wendy’s friends snickering. “Wendy, want to make a bet? In less than three days, that guy’s going to come back begging to get together with you again.” Wendy sipped some wine and said firmly, “Three days? He’s a poor idiot who can’t survive without me. He’ll be back tomorrow to make me breakfast.” Chapter 1 The door shut behind me, shutting out the deafening music and the laughter of the rich heirs. The sound-activated light at the stairwell had broken down because it kept flickering. I held a torn canvas bag, and in it were all my belongings over the last three years. It contained a few washed-out T-shirts, a cheap razor, and a photo of me with Wendy. My phone vibrated. It was a message from Wendy. [Stop throwing a tantrum. Clark was just joking around. Buy a pack of cigarettes in the convenience store downstairs and clear your head while you’re at it. When you’re back, apologize to each other, and we’ll put this behind us.] It was followed by a money transfer message. [You have received two hundred dollars. Will you accept it?] [Use the extra cash to grab a ride. Don’t embarrass yourself.] As I stared at the screen, I wanted to laugh, but I could not even find it in myself to smile. Two hundred dollars. In her eyes, the three years I invested in the relationship, along with my dignity, was only worth two hundred dollars. She even spoke to me like she was humoring a beggar. I did not take the money, nor did I reply to the message. I just blocked her. Once I was out of the area, I felt the night breeze of autumn blow into my face like blades. I tightened the thin jacket around me. I had bought this jacket three years ago, and the sleeves were torn. In order to buy the heels Wendy liked so that she could have some dignity in front of her coursemates, I could not even find it in myself to buy some proper clothes. Honestly, in hindsight, I was seriously cheap. A black Maybach was parked by the road, and the car window was partially rolled down. A few men and women dressed in fancy clothes were smoking while chatting with each other. “Hey, isn’t that Ms. Stallone’s… you know?” “That dishwasher? Why is he carrying that old bag? Has he been chased out?” “Haha! He must have failed to force Ms. Stallone to marry him and has been chased out.” “How pitiful. But he deserves it. Only he would dare dream of climbing up the social ladder, even though he’s so poor.” The mocking words drifted into my ears, but I did not turn around. I just straightened my back and hurried away. Loud jeers sounded behind me. “Hey, Dishwasher! Ms. Stallone said that if you apologize right now, she’ll let you go back and be her housekeeper!” “Hahaha! You’d still be flattering him by offering him a housekeeper position. At most, he’s a bedwarmer!” I bit down so hard on my lip that I tasted blood. ‘Don’t cry, Zidane. It’s not worth crying over trash like her,’ I thought. Then, I hailed a cab. “To the train station, sir.” The driver cast a glance at me through the rearview mirror. Perhaps he thought that I looked too pathetic because he asked, “Why are you going to the train station so late at night? Are you running away from home?” I looked at the retreating scenery outside the window. The neon lights cast a strange, dazzling glow, and they pierced my eyes. “I’m not running from home. I’m going back,” I whispered. My voice was incredibly hoarse. I was going home to the place I had forgotten for three years, but where they would always keep a light on for me. My phone vibrated again. It was from an unknown number. When I answered it, I heard Clark’s voice through the phone, and he sounded proud, like he had already won. “Why did you leave, Zidane? Wendy is still waiting for you to come back and cut the cake.” Laughter rose in the background, and it was interspersed with Wendy’s impatient voice. “Why are you calling him? If he wants to leave, let him. Who does he think he is?” Clark laughed. “Don’t get mad, Wendy. No matter what, Zidane has taken care of you for three years. Even if it’s nothing remarkable, he did work hard.” “Work hard, my foot. He did it voluntarily. I never asked for it!” Wendy was so loud, and every word struck my heart like needles. I clenched the phone so tightly that my knuckles turned white, and my nails dug into my flesh. So, I interrupted him, saying, “Clark, tell Wendy to buy a coffin for herself with that two hundred dollars.” With that said, I hung up, took out my SIM card, rolled down the window, and threw it outside. The small chip flew in an arc and disappeared in the night. It left no sound behind, just like how I had wasted three years of my youth. Chapter 2 When I reached the train station, I bought the earliest high-speed train ticket to go back home. There were only a handful of people waiting in the waiting area. As I sat on the cold, metal bench, I watched the train number and schedule rolling on the screen. Suddenly, I felt an intense pain in my stomach. I curled up, and a sheen of cold sweat broke out on my forehead. This was a chronic illness of mine. In order to earn more money to pay for Wendy’s tuition fees, I often only ate one meal a day, and those meals were just buns and pickles. I ruined my stomach because of that, but I did not dare go to the hospital, since I was worried about spending money. What did Wendy say back then? “Once I’m rich, I’ll bring you to the best hospital and hire the best doctor to treat you. I’ll get you your health back.” She had already become rich. After becoming the heiress of the mighty Stallone family, one single meal of hers was worth one year of my wages. However, she had already forgotten about her promise. She even thought that my illness and aging appearance were an embarrassment to her. I was her burden. The broadcast stated that it was time for the ticket inspection. As I endured the pain, I stood up while holding my bag. Just then, a news report suddenly showed up on the screen. Wendy was in it. She wore an haute couture gown and held Clark’s hand. While she faced the countless cameras, she smiled like a winner in life. This was the caption. [Stallone Heiress returns. Marriage Alliance Impending?] A reporter asked, “Ms. Stallone, I heard that you had a boyfriend who went through hardship with you. Where is he now?” The smile on Wendy’s face faded a bit, and she nonchalantly smoothed out her sleeves. “He’s just my housekeeper, and he didn’t know his place. I already sent him away with some money.” A housekeeper she sent away with some money? As I stared at the familiar yet strange woman on the screen, I suddenly felt disgusted. My stomach churned. I rushed into the washroom and started dry heaving into the basin. All that came out was stomach acid and bile. The man in the mirror had yellow skin, dry hair, and sunken eyes. Was that really me? I was once the most handsome guy at school, and I was full of confidence. How did I end up like this? I washed my face. As I stared at my reflection, I said, “Remember this, Zidane. You have nothing to do with Wendy from now on, and you have to make her pay back for all that she owes you in the future, severalfold.” Once I patted my face dry, I left the washroom. At the ticket gate, I tore my photo with Wendy to shreds and threw it into the trash can. ‘I’ll see you again, Wendy, and goodbye to the three years I wasted,’ I thought. When I was on the high-speed train, it started moving. I leaned back against my seat and shut my eyes. I was not hoping to see her again because I missed her, but because I could not accept this. Why did I give up everything and end up with nothing? How could she use me as her stepping stone and enjoy a life of luxury with a guilt-free conscience? I could not accept it. I might have removed my SIM card, but I could still connect to the internet. So, I checked X and found that the top trending hashtag was about Wendy and Clark’s engagement. The comments were all congratulatory remarks for them. [You’re a match made in heaven!] [Wendy Stallone is so pretty, and Clark Quinn is so handsome!] [I heard that Wendy Stallone’s ex was a poor idiot who wanted to marry rich. What a joke.] [I’ve seen plenty of gold diggers like him. He must have wanted to stay with Wendy Stallone because she has become rich. Thank goodness she’s a good judge of character.] A gold digger? I laughed in exasperation. Over the past three years, I was the one who worked hard to buy all of Wendy’s clothes, her food, and all the money she needed to use. She was the gold digger here! I went to the account of the person who called me a gold digger, and I saw that it was an alternate account with only hundreds of followers. My instincts told me that this was a troll Clark hired. Not only did he steal Wendy from me, but he also wanted to crush me so that I could never make a comeback. How vicious and cruel. Just then, I received an email. It was from a famous law firm. [Regarding Mr. Zidane Rivers’ inheritance.] I was stunned. Inheritance? What inheritance? With trembling hands, I opened the email. [Dear Zidane Rivers,] [Greetings. Your father, Henry Larke, passed away yesterday, and according to his will, you will inherit 51% of Larke Corporation, along with all of his personal property and real estate.] Henry Larke? Was he not the enigmatic richest man in the country, and also the man who cast his wife and son aside many years ago? I was his son? That was impossible. Before I could wrap my head around this shocking news, the train came to a screeching stop. The inertia almost made me fly off my seat. Shocked cries filled the carriage. The train attendant’s anxious voice came through the speaker. “Dear passengers, there is a mudslide ahead, and we won’t be able to move forward for the time being.” It was pouring outside, and mud flowed about. Subconsciously, I tightened my grip around the phone. As I stared at the email, I started laughing. ‘Wendy, Clark, do you really think that this is the end? No. This is just the beginning,’ I thought. Chapter 3 Three years ago, Wendy was a poor student. Lewis Stallone, her father, ran away after racking up a huge debt, and Margaret, her mother, married someone else while abandoning her. She could not even pay her tuition fees and nearly had to quit school. I was the one who had foolishly taken out my entire savings and paid her tuition fees. In order to continue letting her study, I worked three jobs a day. I woke up at 5 a.m. to deliver milk. During the day, I washed dishes in a restaurant. At night, I went to the market to sell clothes. I had chilblains on my hands during the winter, and when it was summer, it was so hot that I fainted from heatstroke. However, I never complained about the hardship, because Wendy had said, “You treat me the best in the world, Zidane. Once I make it, I’ll definitely make sure you live a good life.” Back then, she would fill a bucket full of water to help me wash my feet after I came back from work. When I was sick, she carried me and walked for miles to go to a hospital. For my birthday, she made a ring using grass and seriously slid it on my ring finger. “This ring might not be worth any money, but it represents my heart. Next time, I’ll buy a diamond ring for you,” she promised. I actually believed her. I thought that as long as we worked hard together, life would become better for us. However, reality gave me a brutal wake-up call. People could change, especially when they received sudden wealth and got a major boost in status. Wendy changed into someone I could not recognize. She started saying that my clothes were tacky, looked down on my coarse hands, and said that I would embarrass her if she brought me out. She began mingling with the rich heirs and stayed out overnight. Also, she started listening to everything Clark said and mocked me. “Zidane, could you stop being so petty? Clark just asked me to go out on a stroll with him. “Look at you. You look like a househusband. Could you clean up a bit? “Could you stop talking about the past all the time? It’s annoying.” Her words cut into my heart like knives. I thought that as long as I endured it a little longer, she would become the Wendy I knew back then, but I was wrong. Trash would always stay trash, just as a turd always stayed a turd. My phone rang. When I checked the caller ID, I found that it was an unknown number. After some hesitation, I answered. “Where are you, Zidane?” Wendy’s furious roar came through. “Where’s that deep blue dress of mine? Where did you put it? I have to meet a client today, and I can’t find it!” I was momentarily stunned before I let out a cold chuckle. “Have you lost your mind, Wendy? We’ve broken up. Why is it my business where your dress is?” Wendy was silent for a few seconds, as if she was not expecting me to be so assertive all of a sudden. Then, she became even more frustrated. “Broke up? You actually went through with it? Zidane, don’t push your luck! I’m going to count to three, and you’re coming back to look for my dress for me, or else—” “Or else what?” I interrupted her. “Or you’re going to make me leave? Make me homeless? Make me starve to death? Get a grip, Wendy. I left. You’re the one who asked me to leave. Now, you got your wish. I’m gone. Stop bothering me again!” I hung up and blocked that number too. The world finally turned silent. I sucked in a deep breath and felt as if the weight on my shoulders had become slightly lighter. It was not as hard as I thought to say no to her, and after leaving her, the air smelled much fresher. Chapter 4 Once I was back in my family home, I turned on my laptop to check for information about Henry Larke. He was the founder of Larke Corporation, and he was a multi-billionaire. He never married and did not have any children. It was only before he passed that he revealed that he had an illegitimate son. That was me. As I stared at the awe-inspiring old man on the screen, I felt a surge of complicated emotions. Just then, I heard knocking outside. “Who is it?” I asked warily. “Mr. Zidane, I’m Frank Clement, Mr. Larke’s assistant.” A steady voice came through the door. I opened the door and found a middle-aged man in a suit standing outside. Behind him were two bodyguards. Frank bowed respectfully to me. “Mr. Zidane, I finally found you. Please come back with us. Larke Corporation needs you.” I stared at him for a bit before glancing at the limousine at the entrance of the alley. Then, I laughed. The moment I got into the limousine, Frank handed me a document. “This is a letter Mr. Larke left behind for you.” I opened it. It was short and only had a few words. [Zidane, I finally found you. I’ve let you down over the years and made you suffer. After I die, you’ll be the sole heir of the Larke family. Remember not to let anyone bully you. I’ll always be supporting you.] The handwriting was a mess. Clearly, he wrote it before he died. Subconsciously, I tightened my grip around the letter. The father I had not met had loved me in his own way for his entire life. The limousine got on the highway and headed to the capital. My phone screen lit up, and I received another news report. [Wendy Stallone’s Public Love Declaration for Clark Quinn. Heiress Books Out a Theme Park.] The photo was of Wendy and Clark kissing under a Ferris wheel. When he saw that I was in a daze, Frank turned to me. “Should we go back to Larke Corporation now, Mr. Zidane?” I shook my head and rapped my fingers against my knees. “No.” As I stared at Stallone Corporation’s office building, my voice was flat. “We’re going to the Stallone family’s villa. I’m going back to take back what I left there.” I was also going to give them a huge gift.