Chapter 93
OLIVIA’S POV
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20
He hadn’t told me exactly what it was yet, but I already had a terrible feeling growing in the pit of my stomach. It wasn’t good. I could feel it in the way Julian’s hands trembled slightly, the way his voice cracked when he spoke. And just like that, my heart, which had been soaring moments ago, started to sink rapidly, weighed down by fear of the unknown.
“Why are you getting so emotional? What is it you want to tell me?” I asked, trying to keep my voice calm even though confusion and anxiety twisted inside me. I hated how he was dragging this out, each second making me more nervous.
Julian hesitated, inhaling deeply before speaking. “Before I say anything, Olivia, I just want to say that I’m sorry. I’m sorry if you can’t handle what I’m about to tell you. And honestly, I would completely understand. Even I was shocked when I found out,” he said, his voice tight and shaky.
I frowned, my mind racing with possibilities. “Wait, hold on,” I interrupted, feeling the panic rise higher in my chest. “Is it about my real parents? Are they… are they dead?”
I couldn’t help the way my hands instinctively squeezed at my sides, my fingers curling into the fabric of my jeans. I silently prayed he would shake his head and tell me no. I had waited too long, to have it all end like this.
“No,” Julian said quickly, shaking his head. “No, they’re fine. They’re probably the healthiest people I know.” He even let out a small, nervous laugh, though it didn’t case the tension between us. His voice still wobbled like he was holding something back, something huge.
“You know them?” I asked, picking up immediately on the word he’d used. “What do you mean you know them?”
The suspense was killing me. It felt like I was trapped in the middle of a Marvel movie cliffhanger where they leave you hanging for the next installment. I just needed him to spit it out already so I could know my fate.
“That’s the funny thing,” Julian said, giving a humorless chuckle while wiping at his teary eyes. “I only just found out that I did.”
I stared at him, my mind blank for a second. Julian? Knowing my real parents? How was that even possible? Out of all the twists my life could have taken, this was the one thing I had never even thought to imagine.
“Who are they? Where are they? Do I know them too?” The questions rushed out of me all at once, tumbling over each other, my voice rising with each word. I needed answers, and I needed them now.
Julian took another deep breath, this time straightening his posture, the shaky boy I had seen a moment ago was replaced by someone who looked like he was about to tell me something that would change everything.
“I’ll tell you,” he said, his voice firm now. “It’s all connected to what I was trying to say a few minutes ago.”
I nodded slowly, trying to brace myself. How bad could it really be? I mean, I had survived worse, right?
And then he dropped the bomb.
“I know them very well,” he said quietly. “Because they’re my parents.”
For a second, I thought I hadn’t heard him right. Maybe I had imagined it. My brain froze, refusing to process the words. And when they finally sank in, the only reaction I could muster was a small, disbelieving laugh.
“What?” I said, the laugh escaping before I could stop it. It sounded ridiculous, impossible. “That’s impossible.”
But Julian wasn’t laughing with me. He didn’t even crack a smile. His face stayed serious, almost pained, and when I glanced around, I realized no one else was laughing either. The room was dead silent, every eye locked onto us, heavy with tension.
I felt the ground tilt beneath me like my world was shifting on its axis.
“No,” I whispered, my voice cracking. “No, it can’t be.”
My hands trembled at my sides as the truth began to settle in, heavy and suffocating.
“I know it’s hard to believe,” Julian said, his voice low and careful as he took a step closer to me. His eyes held an emotion I couldn’t quite place- something between guilt and helplessness, “I couldn’t believe it myself when I found out yesterday. But… there’s nothing we can do. It’s the truth.”
“No,” I said sharply, shaking my head. “You’re lying. This has to be some kind of joke, and if it is, I’d like you to stop it now.” My voice trembled slightly despite how hard I tried to sound strong.
Julian didn’t back down or try to laugh it off like a prank. Instead, he turned the computer screen towards where I stood, the screen still paused on a video. He pressed play, and the room was filled with a shaky recording. In the footage, a small girl was being led through the doors of this very same orphanage. Her face was a little blurry, but my heart skipped a beat when I recognized the dress she was wearing.
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11:35 AM
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Chapter 93
That was my favorite dress as a kid. The little blue one with the tiny white flowers that I refused to take off even when it was way too small for me.
My breath caught in my throat.
Am guessing that’s me?
Julian clicked the keyboard again and paused the video. The room felt silent like the air itself was holding its breath. Without saying a word, he pulled out his phone and swiped through a few photos before holding one out to me.
I hesitated for a second before leaning closer to look at it.
The photo was old and a little faded, but I could clearly see two older people standing proudly behind two children–a much younger Julian… and
- me.
Wearing that same favorite dress.
The same chubby cheeks. The same wild hair.
It was unmistakable.
My eyes widened as I stared harder, my heart racing so loudly that it echoed in my ears. I stumbled a step back, feeling like the ground beneath me had shifted.
The walls of the office felt like they were closing in, and I could feel everyone’s stares boring into me, making it harder to breathe with each passing second.
“I’m sorry, Olivia,” Julian said softly, his voice cracking. “I’m just as shocked and confused as you are. Before you came, I tried everything to prove that it wasn’t you. I wanted so badly for it not to be true. But every single clue pointed straight at you.”
I felt a lump form in my throat, but I swallowed it down,
“I’m sorry for leaving you alone at the amusement park that day,” he added, guilt dripping from every word.
Wait.
Hold on.
That didn’t make sense.
“What do you mean leaving me alone?” I asked, my brows furrowing. “I thought you said your little sister ran away? That she got lost?”
Julian looked down at his shoes, ashamed. “That’s what they told me to say. I was too young to really understand back then. All I knew was that you were gone… and I never saw you again after that day.”
I shook my head, trying to make sense of everything swirling around me.
It was too much, too fast.
“I think you’re taking everything way too fast,” I snapped, my voice rising. “That photo could easily be photoshopped, and that video could be faked. You don’t honestly expect me to believe we’re siblings just from a few pictures and some shaky memories, do you?”
Julian sighed and tucked his phone away, his face becoming more serious.
“You’re right,” he said, surprising me. “You have every right not to believe me. Honestly… even I want to be wrong. I wish there was some way to prove this is all a mistake.”
He looked me dead in the eyes, his voice steady now.
“There are two things that could prove me wrong,” he said. “And if even one of them doesn’t match up, I’ll never bring this up again. I promise you
that.”
I stared at him, my heart pounding, my mind racing.
What were those two things?
And more importantly… did I even want to find out?
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