Return of The Alpha Heiress-Chapter 45: Clarissa – Place to Cry

Mr. Woods kept scolding without pause.

The entire class turned their attention to me. They whispered to each other, wearing mocking smiles.

I couldn’t hear a single sharp word coming from Mr. Woods anymore. My ears were ringing.

I shook my head and turned around, walking away without caring about the old man’s shouting.

I would talk to Shannon later. Right now, I needed to calm myself down first.

After enduring the insults at this academy all this years, I had frozen my heart. Since then, I had never felt anxious or afraid of the insults thrown at me.

Oscar’s betrayal back then had hurt and disappointed me, but I managed to recover and open my eyes.

This time was different.

I felt like I couldn’t get back up. There was no way out. All because anxiety and fear suddenly crept in.

I didn’t know where I was going. I just let my feet carry me. Until I stopped in front of the workshop.

Ever since I entered the best class, Richard’s workshop had been the only quiet place where no one judged me.

I walked in, not caring if the staff would stop me. But the staff member only frowned and said nothing.

Turning into the corridor lined with workshop doors on both sides, I felt how long and empty it was.

My chest tightened. My eyes started to sting before I realized it. It felt like I was about to burst, and the silence of the corridor pressed down on me.

Even walking a few steps toward Richard’s room felt like stepping on nails along a long road.

The tears finally fell when I stood in front of the door. I didn’t care about the rules anymore. I reached for the spare key Richard had given me before and opened the door.

I slipped inside and closed it in a hurry, not wanting anyone to see how miserable I looked.

My tear-filled eyes blurred my vision. I walked forward toward the sofa, its position already familiar even through the haze.

Thud.

My body hit the armchair, and because I wasn’t prepared, I fell forward.

I didn’t care whether I would fall or get hurt anymore.

But...

"Clarissa!"

Richard’s voice suddenly appeared. Not from the door, but from beneath me.

I quickly wiped my tears and finally saw Richard clearly below me.

I had fallen on top of him as he lay on the sofa. His eyes were wide in shock. His lips were slightly parted. And my tears had fallen onto his face.

"I’m sorry!" I tried to get up, feeling awkward. Especially because my heart was racing, and my mind never worked properly when I was near him.

But I bounced back toward him.

Our lips met... again.

My face burned in embarrassment. His did too.

"Let me go," I whispered, not daring to look into his dark crimson eyes.

That was when I realized why I couldn’t move. He was holding my waist.

"I’m sorry. I grabbed you because I was afraid you’d fall to the floor," he said awkwardly.

I didn’t answer, waiting for him to let go. But he didn’t release his grip.

My gaze shifted from his lips to his eyes. He was staring straight at mine. I cleared my throat.

Only then did he let go.

I sat down on the chair in front of his worktable. The sofa was wide, but I didn’t want to be close to him right now.

Being near him made it impossible for me to think clearly.

Alone, my tears were starting to well up again.

Speaking of tears... some of them seemed to have gotten into his eyes. He was rubbing them hard.

He rubbed them so forcefully that I got worried.

"What’s wrong with your eyes?" I asked.

He stopped and looked at me. "It’s nothing. My vision just feels brighter."

Looking at his eyes, I felt like his red pupils did look brighter. But maybe it was just the lighting.

He seemed to think the same. The sunlight outside was stronger, so more light was coming in.

"If you want to cry, you don’t have to hold it in," he suddenly said, making me feel embarrassed for being caught crying.

I didn’t reply, only pouted at him.

He gave a small smile. "If you need a place to cry, just come here."

"Then I want to connect our com-orbs, so I know when you’re here. I can’t enter this room without you, after all."

He quickly held out his com-orb to me. The smile on his face widened, and for some reason, it annoyed me.

"You can enter this room even without me," he said as he pulled his com-orb back after it connected with mine.

I tilted my head in confusion.

"You already have the key, right? Just come in. Whether I’m here or not. But if you prefer company, I’m ready to sta—"

"No!" I cut him off quickly. A teasing grin had appeared on his face.

The longer I stayed with him, the image of Alpha Black’s first son as quiet and untouchable slowly faded away.

Honestly, I preferred him like this. He felt easier to approach.

As for why I could enter even without him, it was probably because he was the Black. He had influence among the staff.

Not wanting things to get more awkward, I turned my back to him. In front of me, the worktable reminded me of my device and Edwin’s necklace.

’If I can fix Edwin’s necklace, will he stop being angry?’

The idea gave me strength.

I didn’t need Shannon to prove my innocence.

I actually didn’t want to involve Shannon. Even though we were the same age, I already thought of her as a little sister.

I couldn’t bear to see her sad face when she found out what I was going through. I only wanted to see her smile.

With renewed determination, I took the handkerchief containing the necklace out of my pocket.

The necklace was badly damaged. The internal structure was beyond saving.

When I talked to Edwin before, he had explained the principles he used. Reassembling it wouldn’t be difficult.

The difficult part was the materials.

They were expensive and hard to find. They had to be bought from another region, which meant the price would rise even higher.

And the crystal pendant was high-grade. Even if I used all the prize money from the last competition, it still wouldn’t be enough.

The only option was to mass-produce the shifter’s aide and earn money from its sales.

Later, when I back home and couldn’t find Darren, I went straight to his workplace, AeRey.

But Darren greeted me with a fed up gaze.

"Clarissa, plagiarized device cannot be commercialized."

...