Chapter 2 · When the Comments Lied

James met my eyes, then looked down at himself. His face went pale in an instant.

He didn't bother drying off properly, yanked his T-shirt on, not even noticing he'd put it on backwards.

"I-I'll go make you some juice," he stammered.

I watched him turn around, so flustered that he almost tripped over his own feet.

My heart twisted with a bitter ache.

[Why is the supporting character making that face? James is a young, hot-blooded guy. But he can't do anything for him, so why is she acting jealous?]

[Well, you can't really say that. At least the supporting character and James are still together. She's still his actual girlfriend.]

[Oh, Bella even invited James to the movies today.]

[The supporting character only drinks orange juice if you peel off every bit of skin and fiber first. That takes ages, so James will be late and Bella will be left waiting by herself.]

Suddenly, I called out:

"James."

He stopped in his tracks and turned to look at me.

I forced a smile.

I said, "If you've got something else to do, go ahead. Don't worry about me.

"There's bottled juice in the fridge. I'm fine with that."

I couldn't see James's face clearly in the shadows.

The silence hung heavy in the air.

[Why is the supporting character acting so differently?]

[She's probably playing hard to get. She's done this before.]

[It's the calm before the storm. If James really dares to leave, she'll start crying, then throw a tantrum, and maybe even threaten to do something drastic.]

My fingers curled up without me even realizing it.

Sigh.

I thought, 'I've been far too reckless and demanding.'

'No wonder James is always walking on eggshells around me.

'Staying beside a walking disaster like me must have been hell for him.'

I forced a smile at him, wiggling my fingers that had finally warmed up from the hot water, and gave him a lazy peace sign.

I said, "Seriously, go ahead.

"I'm in a good mood today. I just want to be alone at home."

James stared at me for a long moment.

Finally, he mumbled a soft "mm," got dressed, and walked out.

The moment the door clicked shut, my smile fell apart.

I was the one who told him to leave, but now all I wanted was to throw something across the room.

I grabbed my wrists, trying to steady myself.

'Hold it together,' I told myself.

I warned myself, 'If James sends me to an awful facility, I can't lose control.'

'If I throw things, the staff might throw me around too.

'I have no parents and no one to defend me.

'I've been alone all my life, so why is James the only person I dare act out with?'

I shook my head.

I thought, 'I've let my guard down too much.'

I slowly wheeled myself over to the computer.

I started looking up decent long-term care facilities in nearby cities.

If the chat was right and James really had his fated heroine, then at the very least, I didn't want to bump into them when I was out enjoying the scenery at the long-term care facility.

At the very least, I didn't want to run into them when I was out for some fresh air, surrounded by beautiful scenery.

This was the only thing I could hold onto.

I sorted them into three price tiers, printed them out, and planned to start with the middle-priced ones when I talked to James tonight.

Then I'd check his mood and play it by ear from there.

I told myself, 'It's okay, Lily Wynn.'

'You may act hysterical around James,

'but when you're on your own, you're always strong.

'You'll find a way.'

As I was sorting through the printed papers, I finally noticed my phone was dead.

Before I could even take it to charge, the front door crashed open with a loud bang.

James stormed into the room.

I scrambled to hide the papers under my wheelchair.

When he saw me, his breathing slowed down and he let out a sigh of relief.

"Why is your phone off?" James asked.

"It's dead. I forgot to charge it," I mumbled.

James let out a quiet "mm," walked over, and put my phone on the wireless charger for me.

[Is Lily nuts or what? James probably thought she'd keeled over at home.]

[James is so morally upright. If he really left Lily to die at home while he was out with Bella, how could he ever live with himself dating her after that?]

[She's the one who made James call her every thirty minutes when he's not around. Now she's turned her phone off on purpose: she wants to freak him out, right?]

[James had to rush out of the movie halfway, stepping all over people's feet, and Bella got yelled at too for following him.]

I genuinely felt guilty.

Before I could even get out a "sorry," James let out a puzzled noise.

With his shoes still on, he grabbed a printout that had a dirty footprint on it.

"What's this?" he asked.

My heart was in my throat.

James picked up the priciest option from the stack of high-end long-term care facilities I'd printed out.

I watched him closely, nervous but secretly hoping for something.

He went over the details line by line, his fingers clenching the paper tighter with every word.

With a sharp rip, James tore a corner off the paper.

A jagged edge was left where he'd ripped it.

The sharp paper sliced his hand, and blood immediately started to bead up.

I gasped and reached for his hand, but he pushed me away.

[LOL, James is so done with her. He won't even let her touch him.]

[400,000 dollars a year? Does Lily think she's royalty or something?]

[James isn't broke, but why should he spend all that money on her?]

[Bella only ever got James to buy her a 167,000-dollar bracelet.]

[Did you guys actually read the details? Is it really just about the price, or is it because this long-term care facility has male model shows every month and all the staff are insanely hot?]

The last comment blinked a couple of times, then got quickly drowned out by the rest.

Chapter 2

James met my eyes, then looked down at himself. His face went pale in an instant.

He didn't bother drying off properly, yanked his T-shirt on, not even noticing he'd put it on backwards.

"I-I'll go make you some juice," he stammered.

I watched him turn around, so flustered that he almost tripped over his own feet.

My heart twisted with a bitter ache.

[Why is the supporting character making that face? James is a young, hot-blooded guy. But he can't do anything for him, so why is she acting jealous?]

[Well, you can't really say that. At least the supporting character and James are still together. She's still his actual girlfriend.]

[Oh, Bella even invited James to the movies today.]

[The supporting character only drinks orange juice if you peel off every bit of skin and fiber first. That takes ages, so James will be late and Bella will be left waiting by herself.]

Suddenly, I called out:

"James."

He stopped in his tracks and turned to look at me.

I forced a smile.

I said, "If you've got something else to do, go ahead. Don't worry about me.

"There's bottled juice in the fridge. I'm fine with that."

I couldn't see James's face clearly in the shadows.

The silence hung heavy in the air.

[Why is the supporting character acting so differently?]

[She's probably playing hard to get. She's done this before.]

[It's the calm before the storm. If James really dares to leave, she'll start crying, then throw a tantrum, and maybe even threaten to do something drastic.]

My fingers curled up without me even realizing it.

Sigh.

I thought, 'I've been far too reckless and demanding.'

'No wonder James is always walking on eggshells around me.

'Staying beside a walking disaster like me must have been hell for him.'

I forced a smile at him, wiggling my fingers that had finally warmed up from the hot water, and gave him a lazy peace sign.

I said, "Seriously, go ahead.

"I'm in a good mood today. I just want to be alone at home."

James stared at me for a long moment.

Finally, he mumbled a soft "mm," got dressed, and walked out.

The moment the door clicked shut, my smile fell apart.

I was the one who told him to leave, but now all I wanted was to throw something across the room.

I grabbed my wrists, trying to steady myself.

'Hold it together,' I told myself.

I warned myself, 'If James sends me to an awful facility, I can't lose control.'

'If I throw things, the staff might throw me around too.

'I have no parents and no one to defend me.

'I've been alone all my life, so why is James the only person I dare act out with?'

I shook my head.

I thought, 'I've let my guard down too much.'

I slowly wheeled myself over to the computer.

I started looking up decent long-term care facilities in nearby cities.

If the chat was right and James really had his fated heroine, then at the very least, I didn't want to bump into them when I was out enjoying the scenery at the long-term care facility.

At the very least, I didn't want to run into them when I was out for some fresh air, surrounded by beautiful scenery.

This was the only thing I could hold onto.

I sorted them into three price tiers, printed them out, and planned to start with the middle-priced ones when I talked to James tonight.

Then I'd check his mood and play it by ear from there.

I told myself, 'It's okay, Lily Wynn.'

'You may act hysterical around James,

'but when you're on your own, you're always strong.

'You'll find a way.'

As I was sorting through the printed papers, I finally noticed my phone was dead.

Before I could even take it to charge, the front door crashed open with a loud bang.

James stormed into the room.

I scrambled to hide the papers under my wheelchair.

When he saw me, his breathing slowed down and he let out a sigh of relief.

"Why is your phone off?" James asked.

"It's dead. I forgot to charge it," I mumbled.

James let out a quiet "mm," walked over, and put my phone on the wireless charger for me.

[Is Lily nuts or what? James probably thought she'd keeled over at home.]

[James is so morally upright. If he really left Lily to die at home while he was out with Bella, how could he ever live with himself dating her after that?]

[She's the one who made James call her every thirty minutes when he's not around. Now she's turned her phone off on purpose: she wants to freak him out, right?]

[James had to rush out of the movie halfway, stepping all over people's feet, and Bella got yelled at too for following him.]

I genuinely felt guilty.

Before I could even get out a "sorry," James let out a puzzled noise.

With his shoes still on, he grabbed a printout that had a dirty footprint on it.

"What's this?" he asked.

My heart was in my throat.

James picked up the priciest option from the stack of high-end long-term care facilities I'd printed out.

I watched him closely, nervous but secretly hoping for something.

He went over the details line by line, his fingers clenching the paper tighter with every word.

With a sharp rip, James tore a corner off the paper.

A jagged edge was left where he'd ripped it.

The sharp paper sliced his hand, and blood immediately started to bead up.

I gasped and reached for his hand, but he pushed me away.

[LOL, James is so done with her. He won't even let her touch him.]

[400,000 dollars a year? Does Lily think she's royalty or something?]

[James isn't broke, but why should he spend all that money on her?]

[Bella only ever got James to buy her a 167,000-dollar bracelet.]

[Did you guys actually read the details? Is it really just about the price, or is it because this long-term care facility has male model shows every month and all the staff are insanely hot?]

The last comment blinked a couple of times, then got quickly drowned out by the rest.