Three days after discovering the truth about her grandfather, Selina found herself standing in front of a building she had not visited in years.
The old Vale Foundation Educational Center.
The structure was modest compared to the corporate towers owned by the Vale Group.
No glass skyscrapers.
No executive offices.
No luxury.
Just classrooms.
Libraries.
Computer labs.
And hundreds of students.
Selina stared at the sign above the entrance for a long moment.
A memory surfaced unexpectedly.
She was sixteen years old again.
Sitting in one of these classrooms.
Tutoring younger students after school.
Helping them prepare for scholarship examinations.
At the time, she had done it simply because she enjoyed it.
No one in the Vale family had paid much attention.
No one except her grandfather.
He had been the one who encouraged her.
The one who told her that intelligence meant very little if it wasn't used to help others.
The memory brought a small smile to her face.
"You're thinking too much."
Lucian's voice came from beside her.
Selina glanced at him.
"When did you get here?"
"I've been here for ten minutes."
"You have a disturbing habit of appearing without warning."
Lucian ignored that.
As usual.
His attention shifted toward the building.
"You've been staring at it."
Selina nodded.
"I used to spend a lot of time here."
Lucian looked mildly surprised.
"You never mentioned it."
"You never asked."
That actually made him pause.
A rare victory.
Selina enjoyed it immensely.
Together they walked inside.
The center was bustling with activity.
Students moved between classrooms.
Teachers carried stacks of papers.
Volunteers organized educational materials.
The atmosphere felt completely different from the corporate world.
Lighter.
Warmer.
Real.
As they entered, an elderly woman behind the reception desk suddenly froze.
Then her eyes widened.
"Selina?"
The familiar voice immediately brought back memories.
"Mrs. Hart."
The woman hurried around the desk.
Despite her age, she moved surprisingly quickly.
Before Selina could react, she found herself pulled into a tight hug.
"You disappeared."
Selina laughed softly.
"I've been busy."
"Busy for years?"
"Fair point."
Mrs. Hart finally released her and stepped back.
Her eyes immediately became suspicious.
Then she looked toward Lucian.
Then back toward Selina.
Then toward Lucian again.
The woman smiled.
A dangerous smile.
"Oh."
Selina immediately recognized that expression.
"No."
Mrs. Hart ignored her.
"Is this the young man?"
Lucian looked confused.
"The young man?"
Selina covered her face.
This was a disaster.
Mrs. Hart appeared delighted.
"When she was sixteen, she used to complain about a boy with silver eyes."
Lucian slowly turned toward Selina.
Selina wished the floor would open and swallow her.
"Mrs. Hart."
"Yes?"
"Please stop talking."
The older woman laughed.
Lucian's expression remained calm.
Which somehow made everything worse.
Because it meant he was enjoying this.
Traitor.
Eventually the conversation moved on.
Thankfully.
But not before Mrs. Hart promised to reveal additional embarrassing stories later.
Selina fully intended to prevent that.
Several hours later, she sat in one of the center's classrooms.
A group of students occupied the desks around her.
The youngest couldn't have been older than twelve.
The oldest perhaps seventeen.
A mathematics workshop had somehow become an impromptu mentoring session.
Selina didn't mind.
In fact—
she found herself enjoying it.
One girl raised her hand.
"What did you study?"
Selina smiled.
"Business and finance."
The students immediately looked impressed.
Another hand went up.
"Were you always good at it?"
Selina considered the question.
Then shook her head.
"No."
Several students looked surprised.
"I worked very hard."
That answer seemed to reassure them.
The girl nodded thoughtfully.
Then asked,
"Were you rich?"
The classroom immediately became awkwardly silent.
Several teachers looked horrified.
The student herself appeared unaware.
Selina laughed softly.
The honesty was refreshing.
"A little."
The classroom erupted into laughter.
Even the student grinned.
After another hour, the session finally ended.
The students gradually left.
But one boy lingered behind.
Quiet.
Nervous.
Selina noticed immediately.
"Something wrong?"
The boy hesitated.
Then held out a notebook.
His hands trembled slightly.
"Can you sign this?"
The request caught her off guard.
"A signature?"
The boy nodded quickly.
"My sister said you're famous."
Selina nearly laughed.
She wasn't.
Not really.
Still—
she accepted the notebook.
Before signing it, however, she asked,
"What's your name?"
"Arjun."
Selina smiled.
Then wrote a short message.
To Arjun.
Never let anyone convince you that your future is already decided.
Work hard.
Keep learning.
And don't be afraid to dream bigger than other people expect.
— Selina
The boy stared at the note.
Then smiled.
A genuine smile.
The kind that made everything worthwhile.
"Thank you."
After he left, Selina remained seated for a moment.
Quiet.
Thoughtful.
Because she had spent so much of her life fighting for survival that she had forgotten something important.
She actually enjoyed helping people.
Teaching.
Guiding.
Building something meaningful.
Not because she had to.
Because she wanted to.
The realization felt strangely significant.
That evening.
Back at Blackthorn Estate.
Selina sat on the balcony outside the library.
The sky above was painted in shades of orange and gold.
Sunset.
One of her favorite times of day.
She heard footsteps behind her.
Predictable footsteps.
Lucian.
He took the chair opposite hers.
A cup of coffee already in hand.
Of course.
"What are you thinking about?" he asked.
Selina leaned back.
"The future."
Lucian raised an eyebrow.
"That sounds dangerous."
She laughed.
"It probably is."
For several moments neither spoke.
Then she said something unexpected.
"I don't think I want to spend my entire life in boardrooms."
Lucian nearly dropped his coffee.
A remarkable achievement.
"You just shocked me."
"I'm serious."
"I know."
Selina looked toward the horizon.
"I enjoy business."
A pause.
"But I want more than that."
Lucian remained silent.
Listening.
As always.
"I want to expand the educational programs."
She smiled slightly.
"Scholarships. Research initiatives. Technology access. Opportunities for students who normally wouldn't get them."
The more she spoke, the clearer the vision became.
Not just an idea.
A purpose.
A future.
Lucian studied her quietly.
Then said simply,
"You'd be good at it."
Selina looked at him.
No teasing.
No jokes.
No hesitation.
Just certainty.
For some reason, that meant more than any praise from a boardroom full of executives.
The sun slowly dipped below the horizon.
And as darkness settled over the estate, Selina realized something important.
The story of the girl who survived endless timelines was ending.
But the story of the woman she wanted to become—
was only beginning.