Love Began with the First Meeting novel Chapter 152

Steven watched as she walked away from him and his eyes filled with tears. She was his daughter and yet when she got into trouble, he wasn't strong enough to safeguard her, like a father should have.

Steven was frustrated and angry at himself for being so helpless. He rummaged his hair with his hands fretfully. Pain and regret were written all over his face.

As he sat there alone, the phone in his pocket started ringing. Steven took it out and stared at the screen with the number on it. He answered it and asked in a sad voice,"Are you satisfied now?"

The man on the other end replied in his calm and arrogant voice,"Uncle Steven, this isn't a matter of my satisfaction. After all, this was a decision made by nobody other than yourself. There is no one who could force the 'Mr. Blade' from the past to do anything that he didn't wish to do."

When Steven heard the name Mr. Blade, the expression on his face changed dramatically. His chest rose in anger and his breathing became shallow.

"Anyway, thank you for all that you've done for me today," the man continued plainly, regardless of Steven's fierce emotions. "And once I get what I need, I will return you the favor some day."

Steven grasped his phone firmly and it creaked because of his strong hold on it. After a few seconds, he eventually murmured into the phone,"I am grateful."

Saying that, he hung up the call. He didn't leave the bench where he was sitting and couldn't calm down for a long time. He thought, 'If I had known that things would end up like this, I would have never left that place. Even if I would have been punished because of that, and my family would have gotten involved, it would still have been much better than this.'

Richie and Shirley had witnessed everything that had happened outside. Shirley was sorry that Molly's father was so addicted to gambling. Richie empathized with Steven and understood how helpless a father could be sometimes.

"It's getting really late,"

Richie said plainly, but a shade of concern could be seen in his eyes. He put his arm around Shirley's waist and they stepped out of the cafe together. After they got into the car, Shirley remembered about their quarrel.

"Hey, are you pretending that you've forgotten about what happened earlier today?" asked Shirley, with an angry glare.

Richie's lips curled up into a smile as he focused his black eyes on Shirley. Then he stretched out his arms, pulling her against his chest, and said in a low voice,"Shirley, I have been thinking about how I could compensate for the missing parts that we should have experienced during the years of developing our relationship. But after today, I found out that I have been thinking in the wrong direction. Even after all these years, I still couldn't understand what would make you the happiest. I've been searching for the answer, and now I have realized that nothing could make you happier than us spending our time together in each other's arms."

Richie seldom said things like these. Although his love towards Shirley was more important than everything else in this world for him, he was never able to express it in words due to his closed personality.