Chapter 2

Since I was a kid, my parents always doted on my rebellious and reckless older sister.

Thus, all it took was Victor handing me a piece of candy when I was feeling faint from low blood sugar to have a secret crush on Victor for seven whole years.

I'd always sneak over to the university next door, just to follow Victor around and watch him from behind.

I'd seen him make a speech on the stage, standing tall and proud.

I'd blend into the crowd, hiding myself just to steal a glance at him.

I'd seen his photo in blue and white, posted right at the top of the science competition winners' board.

Then Layla got busted sneaking out with some troublemakers to hit up an internet cafe, and ended up being punished by having to stand on the stage.

After school, Victor showed up to take something from the stage.

I was cleaning up the courtyard, tucked away in a spot nobody would notice.

I caught sight of him standing right behind Layla, dazed, watching her long shadow stretch out across the ground.

Then, he reached out his hand, silent and hesitant, like he was afraid to disturb the air.

His fingers brushed against Layla's in the shadow.

But just as quickly, he pulled his hand back, almost as if he'd been burned.

Victor, the boy who always seemed out of reach, like he belonged to another world, looked flustered for a split second.

That piece of candy I ate years ago, turned bitter in that moment, burning its way up from my stomach to my throat.

Layla was always spoiled, always causing trouble, and never bothered with her studies.

Even if she was in trouble, Mom and Dad would be there to fix it for her.

I never expected even someone as perfect as Victor could fall for her too.

I got used to flipping through the campus magazine from Victor's university, just to see if there was anything about him.

He had an article in it.

He wrote: [I was locked in a cage, watching an unruly little bird.

[It squeezed through the bars, ripped through the dark curtains. Then it soared into the sky it had always longed for.

[Everyone always called me the obedient one, but deep down, I wished I could fly free like that bird.]

So, he liked Layla.

My parents must've caught on, so they went to the Brooks family to propose a marriage between him and Layla, hoping to move up in the world.

Victor's parents were just about to show them the door, when Victor, who almost never spoke up, said, "We could give it a shot, I guess."

It was the very first time he'd ever spoken his mind in front of his parents.

Victor's grandma, who loved Victor, said to his parents, "Victor's always done whatever you asked since he was a kid.

"Let him decide for himself, just this once, when it comes to something as important as his own marriage."

And just like that, the two families set up the engagement.

But Layla, who'd agreed to it at first, suddenly changed her mind. She said, "I thought he'd at least put up a fight.

"I didn't expect him to be so dull and well-behaved. What's the point of spending your whole life with someone like that?"

My parents didn't have the heart to blame Layla, and they couldn't afford to offend the Brooks family.

So, without a second thought, they pushed me out there to clean up the mess. It didn't matter that I hadn't even finished university yet.

All my life, I was the one cleaning up after Layla, taking whatever she left behind.

But this time, what got dumped on me was something I never even dared to wish for.

Something I'd spent ten years secretly longing for, but never once let myself dream I could actually have.

The Brooks family's elders never noticed anything was off. After all, my parents had only ever said it was their daughter.

But Victor knew the truth. He knew my parents hadn't meant me at first.

At the dinner with both families, he barely said a word, and I was on pins and needles the whole time.

I couldn't shake the guilt after dinner.

So, I finally gathered my courage and pulled Victor aside in the backyard to talk.

Even if I really did like Victor, I couldn't imagine spending my whole life with someone who didn't love me back,

If he was miserable, I'd be miserable too.

Under the moonlight, Victor spoke softly to me, "I'll be responsible for you, and for our marriage."

My heart thundered in my chest, beating so loud I could barely breathe.

After all these years, it was the first time we ever became "our".

Marriage. That word alone felt like a temptation I couldn't fight.

I wanted to ask if he'd ever love me, but the words just wouldn't come.

Victor reached out. Under the night sky, he gently adjusted the scarf around my neck.

Being this close to him brought me right back to that moment years ago when he fed me that piece of candy when I was nearly fainting from low blood sugar.

I watched his fingers as he adjusted my gray scarf.

Suddenly, I couldn't help but think maybe he did care about me, even if just a little. That would be enough.

At least, with everything I thought I knew about him, I believed he'd never turn his back on me.

But I forgot all I ever really knew were fleeting glimpses of his back, never the real person behind it.

Just as Victor and I started planning our wedding, Layla, who'd bailed on the engagement, came back suddenly.

She'd been dumped by a troublemaker and returned home all battered and bruised.

She flipped through my wedding dress sketches. Then she stared at the bracelet Victor's grandma had given me.

With a look of pure annoyance, Layla shot me a glare and said, "Aria, why do you always have to pick up what other people throw away?"