‎He's my uncle: a secret that was never meant to exist 🫣‎

FLASHBACK At a children’s party, chaos erupted beneath a sky had once promised laughter. What was meant to be a day of balloons, music, and innocent joy had shattered into something unrecognizable. A search party was hastily formed, voices trembling as they called out names from a missing attendance list. One by one, it became clear—several children had vanished as though the earth itself had swallowed them whole. Parents—especially the mothers—were breaking apart at the seams, crying, wailing, and screaming their children’s names into the air, as if love alone could pull them back. “Daniel!” “Emily!” “Where are you?” “Please… answer Mommy!” Their voices rose and fell like broken hymns, echoing through the compound, heavy with grief and disbelief. Someone, hands shaking, eventually suggested calling the police. Among the devastated parents stood one of the most powerful couples in the business world—Kylie and Mill Leap. Their names carried weight across cities, their influence stretching far beyond boardrooms and borders. Yet in that moment, none of it mattered. Not their wealth. Not their power. Not their connections. Because their only child—their precious heiress—was gone. And the world had no answers for them. Not far from the party grounds, where the road curved into silence, an elderly woman was making her way home when something made her stop. A little girl lay by the roadside. The old woman froze, her breath catching in her throat. The child was covered in blood and dirt. Her clothes were torn, her small body bruised and fragile, as though it had been abandoned by hope itself. She was barely breathing. “Oh, dear God…” The words slipped out like a prayer as the woman rushed forward and knelt beside her. The little girl looked so small, so broken, that something deep within the woman stirred—an ache that reminded her of her own granddaughter. Without a second thought, the kind old woman gathered the child into her arms and carried her home, cradling her as though she were made of starlight and glass. She cared for her through the long, trembling hours, refusing to let her slip away. SIX YEARS LATER Six years of searching had carved deep wounds into Kylie and Mill. They had searched everywhere the world could offer—cities, hospitals, orphanages, forgotten corners of hope. They followed every lead, questioned every whisper, hired investigators who promised miracles and delivered only silence. But their daughter never came home. And slowly, painfully, the search turned into something heavier than grief. Eventually, the emptiness became unbearable. In an attempt to fill the hollow space their missing child had left behind, they made a decision they never thought they would. They adopted a little girl. They named her Serena. Serena was cared for, provided for, and surrounded by comfort. She had everything a child could need—but there was always a quiet distance between her and her adoptive parents, like an invisible wall made of memory and loss. They were kind to her. They gave her everything. But Serena could feel it, even without words—she was not the child they had lost. She was only the echo of a love that had never healed. And even after six years, the Leap household never truly learned how to breathe again. PRESENT DAY Mirae had finally been accepted into college. Saymore College stood like a dream carved into reality—one of the most prestigious institutions in the country. It was known for brilliance, legacy, and students who carried the weight of powerful names. But admission was never simple. The school was almost entirely reserved for those born into privilege, wealth, or influence that opened doors before they even knocked. Mirae had none of that. Only determination. And her grandmother. After countless pleas and desperate attempts that wore down both pride and hope, her grandmother finally managed to persuade one of the lecturers to quietly help secure Mirae a place. It was the only reason she had made it through the gates of Saymore College. Now, standing before the towering entrance, Mirae looked up at the grand buildings, their glass and stone gleaming like a promise she wasn’t sure she deserved. She tightened her grip on her bag, her heart beating with quiet resolve. This was the beginning of a new chapter. What she didn’t know was that Saymore College was not just a place of learning. It was a place where forgotten pasts waited patiently… and where hers was about to find her again.