I am the Entertainment Tycoon

Chapter 772: Broken Hearts Uniting Under the Moonlight II



At that moment, Andrew couldn't help but remember the time that he managed to gather the courage to ask Hana to go out with him.

It was a few weeks ago.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

The soft sound of sandpaper brushing against wood filled Andrew's garage, the quiet rhythm offering a peaceful backdrop to the otherwise still night. The space smelled of freshly cut timber and sawdust, the scent earthy and familiar. Over the months, this small, cluttered garage had become Andrew's sanctuary-a place where the chaos of the outside world disappeared, where he could lose himself in the steady, methodical work of crafting furniture.

But tonight, he wasn't alone.

Hana stood across from him, sleeves rolled up, gently sanding the edge of a table they were working on together. Her brow was furrowed in concentration, but there was an easy smile tugging at the corners of her lips. Despite the late hour, she seemed full of energy, her presence a stark contrast to the silence that usually enveloped Andrew as he worked through the night.

Andrew watched her from the corner of his eye, his hands still busy with the wood. He had never expected this-working alongside someone, especially someone like Hana. She had wandered into his life unexpectedly, breaking down the barriers he had spent years building, and now here they were, in his garage, making a piece of furniture as if they had done this a thousand times before.

It was comforting, in a way he hadn't realized he needed.

"This is kind of relaxing," Hana said, her voice breaking the comfortable silence. She wiped a bit of dust from her cheek with the back of her hand, her eyes still focused on the piece in front of her. "I can see why you spend so much time in here."

Andrew chuckled softly, nodding. "Yeah. It helps clear my mind."

The gentle scratching of the sandpaper continued, but the atmosphere between them shifted slightly. There was a sense that something deeper was lingering beneath the surface, waiting to be said. They had worked together like this a few times before, but tonight felt different- like the quiet between them was asking to be filled with something more.

"You're really good at this," Hana added, glancing up at him. "I've seen some of your finished pieces in the house. They're beautiful. You have a real gift, you know?"

Andrew shrugged, his eyes staying on the wood as he spoke. "I don't know about that. It's just something I do to keep busy."

Hana paused for a moment, her hands resting on the table's edge. "You've got more than just talent, Andrew. You have a way of making things feel... meaningful. Like this table-it's not just a piece of furniture. There's something personal in it."

Andrew stopped sanding for a moment, looking down at the table they were working on. He traced his fingers over the grain of the wood, feeling the rough spots they had yet to smooth out. It wasn't finished yet, but he could already see the final product in his mind.

"It's funny," he said quietly. "I think that's why I like it. Woodworking, I mean. There's something about shaping something out of nothing. It's like... I can create something solid, something real, when everything else in my life feels like it's slipping away."

Hana's smile faded, replaced by a look of quiet understanding. She didn't press him, didn't rush to fill the silence. She just waited, giving him the space he needed to let the words out.

Andrew sighed, his fingers lingering on the edge of the table. "I guess that's part of why I started. After my sister passed away, it was the only thing that made sense. It gave me something to focus on."

Hana stayed quiet, her eyes softening as she listened.

Andrew's voice grew quieter, more reflective. "She was only sixteen when she got sick. I was ten. And then... a couple of years later, my parents died in a car accident. After that, it felt like everything was falling apart."

Hana nodded slowly, her heart aching for him. She had known there was pain behind Andrew's quiet demeanor, but hearing him talk about it, letting pieces of his past slip through the cracks, made it all the more real. She wanted to reach out to him, to tell him that she understood more than he knew, but she waited, giving him the space to continue.

"I went to live with my grandparents after that," Andrew continued, his voice steady but tinged with emotion. "They were great. But then... it was like the universe wasn't done with me yet. My grandmother died when I was finishing high school, and my grandfather-he passed away two years ago. That's when it really hit me. There's no one left."

The garage fell silent except for the soft sound of their breathing. Hana didn't say anything right away, but she took a step closer to him, her hand resting lightly on the edge of the table. "Andrew..." she began, her voice gentle. "I'm sorry. I can't imagine how hard that must've been."

Andrew shook his head slightly, a small, bitter smile playing on his lips. "I guess I just stopped expecting things to go well after a while. It's easier to deal with life when you stop hoping for anything good."

The words hung in the air between them, heavy and raw. Hana felt a pang of sadness for him, knowing that kind of hopelessness all too well. But at the same time, she felt a flicker of warmth-because here they were, standing together, working on something beautiful despite the broken pieces of their pasts.

She glanced down at the table, running her fingers over the wood grain. "You know, I get it," she said softly. "I spent most of my life thinking that happiness wasn't for me, either."

Andrew's eyes flicked up to meet hers, curiosity and understanding in his gaze.

Hana took a deep breath before continuing. "My mom... she wasn't a good person. She never hit me or anything like that, but the way she treated me... it was like I wasn't enough. She made me feel like I was always doing something wrong, like nothing I did could ever be good enough for her. Every mistake I made, every little thing, she'd twist it until it felt like I was failing on purpose."

Andrew's hand stilled on the wood as he listened, his heart heavy with the weight of her words. He had sensed there was something beneath Hana's bright, bubbly exterior, but he hadn't known it ran this deep.

"I tried so hard to make her happy, to be the daughter she wanted me to be, but no matter what I did, it wasn't enough. She'd praise me one minute and then tear me down the next. It messed with my head for a long time."