Bound by the Boy I Ruined

Parallel Worlds

The walk out of the hospital lobby was a masterclass in tension, but the real shockwave hit the moment they stepped through the glass doors into the parking lot. Sitting right at the curb was Xavier’s sleek, ultra-luxurious black Maybach, its polished rims gleaming brilliantly under the afternoon sun.

Abigail’s jaw dropped so low it practically hit the asphalt. Even Eleanor, despite her lingering weakness, let out a soft, stunned gasp at the sight of the vehicle.

"Oh my god... are you kidding me?" Abigail rushed forward with pure, unfiltered excitement, her hands hovering eagerly near the glossy door handles. "We’re riding in this?! This looks like something straight out of a celebrity music video!"

"Abigail!" Kate hissed under her breath, her cheeks instantly burning with embarrassment. She grabbed her sister's arm, trying to pull her back. "Get away from the car, stop acting so embarrassing!"

Completely ignoring Abigail’s frantic excitement, Xavier walked around to the passenger side. With smooth, practiced care, he and Kate gently helped Eleanor transition from the wheelchair into the plush, heated leather seats of the interior. Once Eleanor was safely settled, Xavier closed the heavy door with a soft, solid thud. He slipped into the driver's seat, and the powerful engine brought the car to life with a low, predatory purr.

As the car glided effortlessly onto the main road, Abigail couldn't keep her mouth shut. She leaned forward from the backseat, her eyes darting across the high-tech dashboard.

"Okay, 'childhood friend,'" Abigail said, squinting at Xavier’s reflection in the rearview mirror. "You’ve got to tell me the truth. How on earth can a school friend of Kate's afford a car that costs more than our entire lives?"

Kate froze in the front seat, clutching her purse tightly against her chest. She was utterly terrified of what he might say.

Xavier glanced sideways at Kate. His expression remained perfectly calm, but a subtle, sharp smirk played on his lips as he answered indirectly. "It’s simple, Abigail. Hard work. And above all... humility. When you know how to treat people right, opportunities tend to find you."

Kate gulped nervously, her chest tightening. She knew exactly what he was doing—he was throwing shade at how arrogant and detached she used to be back in high school.

From the back, Eleanor didn't say a word. Her sharp eyes bounced from Xavier’s smirking profile to Kate’s tense, fidgeting hands. The older woman smiled faintly to herself, keeping her observations strictly to herself.

Thirty minutes later, the luxury vehicle slowed to a crawl as it entered Kate’s neighborhood. The contrast was devastating. The roads were cracked and uneven, trash lined the gutters, and the apartment buildings looked ancient, marred by peeling paint and rusty balconies.

Xavier’s hands tightened visually on the leather steering wheel. A flash of pure disgust crossed his sharp features as he looked out the window. He put the car in park outside their rundown building and turned around in his seat.

"You live here?" His voice was laced with genuine disbelief and a hint of anger. "Why on earth are you staying in a neighborhood like this? It’s completely unsafe."

Eleanor let out a soft, tired sigh, her voice retaining a quiet dignity. "It’s all we can afford, Xavier. In this world, we don't always get to choose where we lay our heads. We just make do with what we have."

Xavier opened his mouth to say something—likely an immediate offer to move them out of the slums—but before a single word could escape his lips, his smartphone buzzed loudly in his suit pocket. He pulled it out, glancing at the caller ID, and his expression hardened. It was an urgent notification from his secretary. The mandatory family board meeting. He had completely erased it from his mind.

"i***t," Xavier scoffed, turning the phone face down on the center console. "I'm ignoring it."

Kate noticed the tense line of his jaw and read the room immediately. "Is it important? Look, Xavier... you've helped us enough today. You got my mom out of the hospital early, you drove us home... you don't need to abandon your important meetings for us. Go."

Eleanor nodded in firm agreement. "She’s right, son. Business shouldn't wait. We are safely home now."

"Aw, already?" Abigail slumped back against the leather seats, her face falling into a disappointed pout. "I wanted to see if he'd carry our bags up."

Xavier looked at Kate, his dark eyes searching hers for a brief, heavy second before he finally nodded. He got out, helped Eleanor into her wheelchair one last time, and watched from the curb as Kate and Abigail began guiding her into the dark, narrow hallway of the apartment building.

As they walked up the cramped stairs, Kate's mind spiraled into a toxic cloud of anxiety. Her mother was finally home, but the guilt was eating her alive. *How am I going to tell her the truth?* she thought miserably. *How do I explain that I sold myself into a one-year marriage contract to a ruthless billionaire just to pay for that hospital bed?*

The scene shifted aggressively in the heart of the city's financial district.

The Maybach pulled into the restricted underground garage of a massive, shimmering glass skyscraper—the global headquarters of Sterling Global. The moment Xavier stepped out of the car, his aura instantly shifted back into the cold, ruthless tyrant the corporate world feared.

He rode the private elevator all the way to the top penthouse boardroom. The doors slid open with a soft, melodic chime, revealing a massive table surrounded by floor-to-ceiling glass windows that overlooked the entire sprawling skyline.

Sitting inside were three prominent, intimidating figures, along with his personal assistant, Noah, who looked like he was currently sweating through his expensive suit.

There was his hot-tempered older brother, Julian Sterling; his sharp-tongued elder sister, Victoria Sterling; and sitting commandingly at the head of the table, their elegant but fiercely terrifying mother, Madam Beatrice Sterling.

"Where the hell have you been, Xavier?!" Julian slammed his hand onto the glass table, standing up angrily the moment Xavier walked in. "The entire board has been waiting for two hours! You completely ghosted the schedule!"

Xavier didn't even blink. He walked right past Julian as if his older brother were entirely invisible, stepping toward the head of the table.

"Good afternoon, Mother," Xavier said, bowing his head slightly in a disciplined manner.

"Are you ignoring me?!" Julian’s voice cracked, veins popping in his neck. "Mother, look at him! He thinks he runs this entire family!"

Xavier completely ignored the outburst, turning his sharp, freezing gaze toward his trembling assistant. "Noah. Give me the briefing on the Apex Holdings acquisition. Did the maritime shipping documents clear?"

Noah adjusted his glasses nervously, his hands shaking slightly over his tablet. "Y-Yes, Mr. Sterling. The legal team cleared the port authority paperwork an hour ago. But... we have a much bigger issue regarding the commercial district property."

Before Noah could finish, Madam Beatrice raised a single diamond-ringed hand. The entire room went dead silent. Julian reluctantly sat back down, scowling deeply.

"Sit down, Xavier," Beatrice commanded, staring at her youngest son with a piercing, elegant gaze. "Your assistant is right. We have a massive hurdle. Our rivals at Zenith Holdings are pushing hard for the commercial land contract in the downtown district. It’s the highest business attraction zone in the country. If they lock it down, Sterling Global loses billions in projected revenue."

"The landowners will sell to whoever pays the highest premium," Xavier replied smoothly, leaning against the edge of the table, his expression completely unreadable. "We have the capital."

Victoria scoffed from her seat, twirling a gold pen between her manicured fingers. "It’s not about the money this time, little brother. The old-money family that owns that land is incredibly traditional. Their clause states they will only lease the property to a stable, family-oriented leader. They want a family man. They explicitly stated they will not hand over the city's crown jewel to a reckless, unmarried bachelor."

Beatrice leaned forward, her eyes narrowing onto Xavier. "Zenith’s eldest son is already married with a curated family image. You are running out of time, Xavier. If you aren't married by the time the final bidding opens next month, the board will force me to hand the project contract over to Julian."

Julian smirked triumphantly from across the table.

Xavier’s face didn't betray a single emotion. He calmly adjusted the cuffs of his charcoal suit, turned his back to his family, and stared out the massive glass window at the city below. His mind instantly flashed back to Kate—her emerald dress, her desperate tears from last night, and the soft warmth of her hand pressing against his lips at the hospital.

"I’m working on it," Xavier said, his voice dropping into a dangerously low, chillingly cold register as he stared out into the distance.