Antonio carefully gathered Laura’s hair into a high ponytail and studied her reflection, “How about that? You

    like it?b” /b

    Laura’s eyes crinkled at the corners, her whole face pinched as she struggled to breathe, managing to bsay/b, “Mr. Smith, it’s pretty good, I feel like my eyes are about to pop up to my temples.”

    Antonio just stared nkly for a moment.

    The servants whispered, “What’s gotten into our boss today? Starting to cook, now doing his daughter’s hair?

    “He must be feeling like his daughter’s not that into him, so he’s trying to butter her up.

    “No wonder the three young masters bolted as soon as they saw Mr. Smith cooking. I was sure it wasn’t their turn to do chores. They must be scared of eating what he whipped up!

    “Poor Ms. Yale.”

    As Antonio’s face grew darker with each overheard whisper, he strode over to his phone. “No worries if bI /bcan’t do it. I’ll get a professional team to create a perfect look for you for school today.”

    Laura shocked. Wasn’t this a bit much?

    As soon as he made the call, a team of top stylists rushed to the scene! “The styling team from Hampton, where pop idols train, is at your service, Ms. Yale!”

    She turned to Antonio in shock. Sipping his coffee calmly, Antonio looked at her with a certain pride. “If bI /bcan’t cook, I’ll hire the best chefs and buy the finest ingredients. If I can’t do hair, I’ll get you a top–notch stylist from a team that works with idols. Rest assured; I won’t let you suffer any difort.”

    At a loss for words, Laura replied, “Mr. Smith, I’m just going to school.”

    Antonio nodded and snapped his fingers at the style team. “I want her to set the fashion trend for kids her age at school. No problem, right?

    Laura could only respond with a puzzle.

    The style team was quick to assure, “No problem at all!!!”

    They crafted an incredibly chic hairstyle for Laura. They even used her long hair to create two butterfly- shaped hair bunsb, /b/divplete with a fine twist braid cascading down, a unique spin on the ssic space buns.

    Antonio was pleased. “That’s it, let’s go.”

    The style team’s apuse was thunderous. “Ms. Smith looks stunning! Marvelous! Absolutely beautiful!

    “Ms. Smith, you’re like the cover star for Campus Fashion Weekly!”

    Laura stood there dumbfounded, watching Antonio. Dressed in a suit and tie, he picked up her Mickey Mouse

    backpack, “Let’s go. I’ll take you to school.”

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    She blinked and scurried after Antonio. Could this be the legendary fatherly love? The kind that was so overwhelming she could barely handle it?

    Meanwhile, outside the gates of Skyline Academy, a familiar family of three stood.

    Camden and Cassidy watched their daughter Janelle with intense gazes. “What’s our motto, Janelle?”

    Janelle clenched her fistb, /braised it above her head with resolve, and asserted confidently, “Strive to win Laura’s favor with earnest effort, make her my friend no matter what!”

    Camden was satisfied. “Right.”

    Camden had offended the Smith family, and although they hadn’t taken any action against him yet, he believed that their move against him was already on its way. The Sanchez family had arge business enterprise, and they wouldn’t be brought down easily, not immediately, anyway. But if things dragged on, with the Smith family, the Graham family, and the Yale family setting traps, The Sanchez family would be done for. So, it was crucial to turn the situation around! Persistence is key, and there’s nothing that can’t be achieved with it.

    After stating her intention, Janelle hesitated a bit. “But Dad, we just had a fight with them. Isn’t it a bit too undignified to start sucking up to her now?”

    Camden’s face hardened. “As long as you be good friends with Laura, I’ll buy you anything you want, including the limited–edition designer bag.”

    Janelle’s expression immediately turned solemn. “Dad! With your word, I’m ready to go through fire and water for our family’s cause!”

    Cassidy was on the verge of tears, covering her mouth, “Look at how understanding our daughter is! At such a young age, she already knows how to survive in this harsh world! Don’t worry, sweetheart, as long as you can meet the goals we set for you, you can have anything!”

    Janelle nodded firmly, muttering to herself, “Laura is always right, Laura is always right, Laura is always right…”

    As she chanted, a white Rolls–Royce pulled up in front of Skyline Academy. The family of three looked on curiously. Laura emerged from the car, carrying a backpack, only to be stopped by Janelle! “Laura!”

    Laura paused, a bit startled, “Janelle?”

    Janelle nodded energetically, grabbing her hand, “I’m so d you remember me! I transferred schools just to be friends with you! It’s so great to see you.”

    Camden and Cassidy also nodded with a smile, “Hey there, L!”

    Laura’s gaze swept over them, her wariness intensifying, “What are you doing here?”

    Janelle beamed, “After I went home yesterday, I did some serious thinking about my mistakes. I shouldn’t have treated you and Aunt Nancy that way, so don’t worry. Starting today, I’m gonna be like your personal

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    …

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    sidekick!” Before she could finish, Cassidy pped a hand over her mouth.

    Laura was perplexed.

    Cassidy looked pleasingly at Laura, “She’s not a sidekick, she wants to be your friend. My daughter came here to be friends with you!”

    Realizing her slip, Janelle quickly corrected herself, “Oh, right, right! Friends, friends!”

    Laura was more confused than ever, “No need, I’ve got friends, and there’s no vacancy in my circle.”

    Janelle, undeterred, snatched Laura’s backpack, her enthusiasm unstoppable, “No problem, I can handle rejection. I’ll just stick around as a little friend, pretend I’m not here!”

    Laura, taken aback, tried to grab her backpack back, “Don’t!”

    But Janelle was insistent, slinging the backpack over her shoulder, “I’ve got your back. Don’t overstrain yourself, you could hurt your neck or shoulders.”

    Cassidy exchanged a quick nce with Camden, pride swelling inside them. Their daughter was incredible, a true testament to their parenting.

    As they turned, they were met with the sight of Antonio in his sleek white Rolls–Royce, his face a stormy mask of displeasure.

    Their spirits soared at seeing him, and they rushed to the car window to greet him cheerily, “Mr. Smith, long time no see! How…b” /b

    Antonio slowly raised the car window andmanded, “Drive.”

    Annoying.

    But Camden seemed impervious to Antonio’s cold shoulder, his smile unwavering as he watched the luxury car drive away.

    Cassidy fretted, “Camden, I have this sinking feeling that Mr. Smith doesn’t want to have anything to do with us. Do you think our n has any chance of sessb?/bb” /b

    Camden remained the eternal optimist. “Don’t worry, he did nce over, didn’t he? At the very least, we caught his attention!”

    Cassidy clutching her mouth, she was moved to tears. “Camden, you’re a genius! That’s exactly it! At least we’ve made it into their line of sight, he can’t just forget us now!”

    Meanwhile, Janelle was sticking to Laura like glue, holding another bag, herughter reminiscent of an eager pup. “L, what did you have for breakfast? Need a mint? Want some yogurt? Or anything else, you name it, I’ll buy it for you.”

    Laura, overwhelmed by the chatter, came to a halt. “Janelle…”

    Janelle snapped to attention. “Present!”

    9:53 Monb, /bSep 15

    …

    Laura looked at her with a mix of resignation and frustration. “Is this because I’m Laura?”

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    Janelle’s eyes sparkled with honesty as she nodded, “Yes! Because your family is rich and influential, my parents want me to buddy up to you! But rest assured, I’m totally loyal to you now! As long as your family doesn’t go broke, I’m sticking with

    you forever!”

    Laura was dumbstruck. “Forever?”

    Janelle confirmed, “Forever!”

    Then, Janelle teased, “Feels good, doesn’t it?”

    Laura was left speechless… How was she supposed to be happy about that?!

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