Ayla's high fever never dropped for once, which made Maria worried. Although Mr. Clark didn't give her any order, she had no choice but to call the doctor. "She needs to have an injection to bring down her fever. Otherwise, she might catch pneumonia," the doctor said while preparing. the injection. "Is Mrs. Clark's fever too bad?". Maria was anxious because she knew Mr. Clark was short-tempered. If anything happened to his newly wedded wife, he might get furious. "Well, it's somewhat serious. She is too weak right now. She needs to have a good rest. The doctor gave Ayla the injection then wrote the prescription. Although, her temperature dropped after taking the injection, she was still unconscious. When Brian came back, it was almost dawn. As he entered the hall, he found no one there. "Maria!" he called out. "Sir, you are back,". Maria answered from his room. Brian grumbled and went upstairs just to find out Ayla was still unconscious. He quickly ordered, "Send her downstairs! And clean up my room!". He hated when others touched his belongings. Maria and Ruben took Ayla to the first floor in her room. Next day when finally she got her senses back, it was almost noon. She eyed the familiar room and slowly recalled what happened last night. But how did she return to her room? She clutched her aching head. She felt extremely weak. Maria pushed open the door and came in. "Oh! Mrs. Clark, you're awake. !'ll get you some porridge then. Awhile later, she brought a bowl of porridge. "Thank you, Maria. Thank you for taking care of me last night. Ayla was more concerned about her school than her health. If she didn't regain her strength, she couldn't go to school

"Never mind. But be careful in the future. How can you take a cold shower so carelessly?" . Maria was so scared w hen she was suffering from the high fever. Ayla sm iled hel plessly. "Okay, I'll remember tha t in future. Ayla somehow managed to go to school eve n with the weakness. Lyle dr opped he r there. She always preferred to si t in the front row, but tod ay, she chose the back row. She was afraid that if s he kept coughing, it wou ld affect other students. However, the whispers o f her classmates’ gossip didn't escape her ears. "I saw Ayla came here in a luxury car thi s morning. I heard that she got herself a rich old man," one of her classmates said. “Really? How can she be so shameless as to sleep with an old rich man? She is so beau tiful. But it turns out, she’s a gold digger . too," a nother o ne said. "What's the use of b eing beautiful?" som eone asked mockingly. "If you don't have money, yo ur beautiful face is your as set!" someone else answered. Ayla was surprised to se e that her classmates th ought such lowly of her. It was only the second day, she had been dro pped by the luxury car. But so many students had seen that and giv en her strange looks. It was evident th at her future hel d a lot of rumors. During the lunch break , Ayla felt uncomfortab le and had no appetite. So she went back to her dormitor y to have a rest. One of her roommates, Veron ica Keating, saw her lying on the bed with a pale face. She worriedly asked, "Ayla, are you okay?" . "I'm fine. was just feeling sli ghtly queasy. So I came to take some rest. " Ayla smiled weakly. Veronica poured a glass of water an d gave it to Ayla. "Drink some water. "Tha nk y ou. Veronica had a lways been ver y kind to her. "Veronica, you don't have to worry about h er. She might have had a rough night yester day. That is probably the reason why she is . feeling tired," Lisa Williams sa id with disdain

She hated women who use d their beauty to take things, just like Ayla. "Lisa, how can you say that? Ayla is sick. " V eronica glared at Lisa. Lisa scoffed, "Of course. Who knows what kind of disease she has received from tha t man. She is indiscreet about her private . life. You'd b etter stay aw ay from her. Lisa let out a snort after saying that an d left the dormitory. Seeing that Ayla's face turned paler, Vero nica walked up to her and comforted her, " I believe in you. You are not that kind of . pe rso n. "Thank you for believ ing in me. Ayla was int roverted and unsociable. She never had many good frie nds at school. Veronica was t he only one who talked to her. It was already noon when Brian went downstairs. "Where is she, Maria?" . "She went to sc hool," Maria an swered honestly. "Oh?" Bri an's jaws clenched. That meant she wa s just playing wi th him last night. She had enough strength to day to go to school? Did sh e go to see that boy? Toby? . "Sir, Mrs. Clark left this morning in a hur ry and forgot to take the medicine. Should I send it to her?" Maria asked cautiously. She was afraid that Mr. Clark would be angry. But if Mrs. Clark didn 't take the medicine, she'd fall ill again. "No," said Brian , with a dismiss ive hand gesture. She already had a man to care for her. No need to pay her extr a attention. This woman dared to break his rule s again and again. So far he had been g ood to her. But now, he had ha d enough. "But, si r, Mrs. C lark. Maria wanted to say somethin g more, but gulped down the r est when Brian glared at her