My Husband Is An International Idol

Chapter 42: The One Who Left

The room fell silent once again.

Everyone tried to absorb everything they had learned.

The death of Liliana’s parents and the sudden fall of Sterling Corporation. The arranged marriage and sacrificing Liliana’s dream to be an actress.

It was almost too much to process.

After several quiet minutes, Leo finally broke the silence.

"When you said some of your relatives left..." He looked at Liliana. "Where are they now? I’m sure they already know about your success."

Nathan let out a quiet sigh. "Oh, they definitely know." He glanced at Emily. "Right, Emily?"

Emily nodded slowly. "I’m sure they do."

River frowned. "What do you mean?"

Nathan leaned back in his chair. "There weren’t many relatives who stayed after Sterling Corporation went bankrupt. But, there were quite a few who disappeared."

He looked toward his sister. "One of them was our mother."

The members of Pulse immediately looked surprised.

Aaron blinked. "Your mother?"

Nathan nodded. "She left us a year after the company went bankrupt."

The room became quiet again.

Nathan folded his arms. "I barely remember her. I was still little."

Then Emily smiled bitterly. "I remember enough for both of us."

Chris remained silent. He had never heard this story before either.

Nathan continued calmly. "Our father worked nonstop. He always has. Even back then." Nathan smiled faintly. "Although Uncle Edward never let us struggle, dad was still working."

He looked toward Liliana. "Uncle Edward supported everyone. He paid for our education. He helped with household expenses. He even made sure every family had enough to live comfortably."

Mary quietly nodded. "That sounds like Uncle Edward."

Nathan smiled sadly. "It was. He never made anyone feel like they were receiving charity. He simply treated us like family."

Emily’s eyes slowly became red. "He always told dad, ’You’re my brother. If I eat, you eat too.’"

The room became emotional.

Nathan continued. "But all the financial support Uncle Edward gave us was managed by our mother."

Emily quietly lowered her eyes. "She handled everything. Our savings. The household budget. School expenses. Everything."

Nathan nodded. "Dad trusted her completely. He loved her."

Silence.

Nathan looked toward River and the others.

"When Sterling Corporation collapsed, the support stopped."

Everyone understood. The entire family had been struggling.

Nathan continued. "Our mother couldn’t accept it. She kept saying things would never be the same. She hated living in Sterling Village. She hated having to budget Dad’s salary. And she hated that he worked day and night just to provide for us. For her, the money wasn’t enough."

Nathan’s voice remained calm, though his eyes had grown slightly red.

"One morning, she packed her bags. Dad begged her to stay. She said she’s tired of being poor."

Emily gritted her teeth. "Dad asked her to think about her children. About me and Nathan."

Nathan smiled bitterly. "She didn’t. She walked away. And never came back."

Silence. No one knew what to say.

River finally spoke. "Did she ever contact you?"

Nathan shook his head. "Not once. No letters or phone calls."

Silence filled the room longer. Then Emily suddenly spoke.

For once, there was no teasing in her voice.

No jokes. Nothing. Only sadness.

"I’m sorry." Everyone looked at her.

Tears had finally appeared in her eyes.

"I’m sorry I wasn’t there when Uncle Edward and Aunt Vanessa died."

The room became quiet.

Emily wiped her eyes. "I know I was little, but..." Her voice broke slightly. "I wish I could’ve helped somehow."

Liliana immediately shook her head. "Emily. It wasn’t your fault."

"It feels like it."

Liliana smiled softly. "You were almost the same age as me. Mary was two."

Mary lowered her head.

"Nathan and the others were still babies."

The cousins became quiet.

"I remember Grandma telling your parents not to come."

Liliana continued gently. "The company was in chaos."

The room fell silent again. Because suddenly everyone realized something. Liliana was four years old, and had become the oldest child carrying everyone’s grief.

The realization hurt. Especially for the cousins.

To break the heavy atmosphere, Leo cleared his throat.

Then immediately asked the question everyone secretly wanted answered.

"I’m confused."

Chris instantly became suspicious. "That’s never a good start."

Leo ignored him. "When exactly did you get married?"

Liliana answered. "April tenth."

The leader of Pulse froze. Then his eyes widened. "Wait."

He started counting dates in his head. Then suddenly looked horrified. "That was one month after our debut."

Chris nodded.

"And the day before we started promoting our first album."

Chris nodded again.

The room slowly became silent. Because everyone understood what Leo was calculating.

Leo pointed dramatically. "You were working nonstop."

"Yes."

"You barely slept."

"Yes."

"You lived separately."

"Yes."

A very suspicious pause followed.

Then Leo finished the sentence. "Does that mean—"

He stopped.

Everyone understood. Including Liliana whose face immediately turned bright red.

Chris glared.

"Leo."

"What?"

"You know what."

"I was curious."

The room exploded with laughter.

River immediately joined. "We’re curious too."

Aaron nodded. "For research purposes."

"That’s not research," Chris said.

"It absolutely is."

Then, to Chris’s horror, the Sterling cousins joined the conversation.

"Actually..."

Emily began.

"Emily."

"They haven’t, you know."

"EMILY!"

The room erupted.

Liliana covered her face.

Nicole nearly fell off the sofa laughing.

Rose buried her face in a pillow.

Nathan looked traumatized.

Mary looked embarrassed on behalf of everyone.

"What?" Emily defended herself. "I’m telling the truth."

"No one asked." Liliana exclaimed.

"Besides, we’re all adults."

"That’s not helping."

Emily pointed dramatically.

"You’ve been married for five years!"

"Emily."

"You live separately!"

"Emily."

"And you’re both ridiculously awkward."

"EMILY."

Liliana suddenly stood up. "I’m making dinner."

Then immediately escaped toward the kitchen.

Everyone laughed. Except Chris who looked like he was considering moving back to Sterling Village alone.

Aaron watched Liliana disappear into the kitchen.

Then looked toward Chris. "You have incredible self-control."

The room exploded again. Even Robin laughed. Chris looked betrayed by everyone.

Eventually dinner was served.

And somehow, despite the emotional evening and endless teasing, the atmosphere became warm. Comfortable. Family-like.

Everyone gathered around the large dining table. Talking. Laughing. Sharing stories.

For the first time, Pulse finally understood everything.

The phone calls.

The late-night messages.

The souvenirs Chris always bought during tours.

The vacations he secretly took between schedules.

The reason he constantly checked his phone.

The reason he disappeared whenever they had free time.

The reason he always visited Sterling Village.

Everything finally made sense.

It wasn’t because he wanted solitude or disliked socializing.

It was because his wife was waiting for him.

River looked emotional again. "That’s actually romantic."

Aaron nodded. "It is."

Leo pointed at Chris. "You were secretly living a romance drama."

"I wasn’t."

"You absolutely were."

After dinner, the teasing resumed naturally.

"Now that we know the truth..." Nathan began.

Chris immediately looked concerned.

"Can you finally share a bedroom?"

The room erupted.

Chris almost choked on his drink.

Robin immediately intervened.

"No."

Everyone looked at him. The manager pointed around the penthouse.

"Absolutely not."

"But—"

"No."

"Robin—"

"No."

"Why?"

Robin looked horrified. "Because people come and go in this building." He started counting. "Staff, security, stylists, makeup artists, cleaning personnel."

He pointed toward Chris and Liliana.

"One mistake and your secret marriage becomes tomorrow’s headline."

The room immediately understood.

Unfortunately, Robin was right.

Eventually everyone retired to their respective floors.

The penthouse gradually became quiet. The lights dimmed. The conversations disappeared.

And one by one, everyone fell asleep.

Or at least...

Most of them did.

Chris stared at the ceiling again.

For the third time that week, sleep refused to cooperate.

He sighed. Turned over. Closed his eyes, opened them again. Then sighed once more.

Finally, he sat up. There was no point pretending anymore.

Quietly, he left his room..The hallway was silent. The city lights glowed beyond the windows..And before long, his feet carried him somewhere familiar.

Somewhere dangerous..Somewhere he definitely shouldn’t be visiting at midnight.

Liliana’s bedroom.

Chris stared at the door. Then gently knocked.

Once. Twice. And waited.

A small smile already forming on his face.

Because somehow, she had a feeling she wasn’t asleep either.