Seduced by My Childhood Sweetheart’s Brother

When it was Felix’s tum, he took out a red velvet box from his bag. It felt heavy. Thinking that it was jewelry, I wanted to say no. But my speculation was proven wrong when I openal it. It was a portrait of me.

In the drawing, I was sitting on a bench, hugging the school bag on my lap. I was looking at something gleefully, and there were sparkles in my eyes.

Felix must have drawn a younger version of me watching him play basketball. Those who didn’t know began chattering. They complimented Felix’s drawing and said it looked exactly like a younger me.

But I was confused. What was Felix doing? He wasn’t himself lately. Had he gone crazy from missing Lilac too much? I wanted us to go our separate ways, yet he kept doing things that sent me the wrong signals. Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!

I would have been flattered to receive a portrait someone drew for me. But if it came from Felix, I found it repulsive. I used to look up to him, but he trampled on my feelings. Now that I had given up on him, he brought up our past.

He was doing all these things that disoriented me. What did he want? Not having an answer was frustrating.

Just when I wondered if I should return the portrait, Colin grabbed it and put it back into the red velvet box. He then chucked it into the pocket of his coat. “What a beautiful drawing. I’ll keep it for Luna. This is my present for you. Open it.”

Colin gave me another square, magenta velvet box with a small pink bow

“Wow! What a beautiful box. An artist sure has a better taste. What’s in it? Show us.” Other than Felix, everyone urged me to open the present impatiently.

I glanced at Colin. He smiled, encouraging me to check the contents of the box. I unboxed the present and found a pink diamond bracelet in the middle. Violet daisies were strung together by a thin chain. Its craftsmanship was delicate and elegant. I loved it.

5

“Do you like it?” Colin’s sultry voice appeared next to my ears

1

“I love it. But I can’t possibly accept this expensive gift.” I had always fancied simple yet feminine accessories. The bracelet ticked all my boxes. Among all the presents I had received, it was my favorite one.

“It’s not that expensive. The diamonds are fake. But I did design the bracelet myself. I’m

glad you like it.”

Colin designed a bracelet for me!

Zara put the bracelet on top of my wrist and brandished it around. “It looks so good on you,

Lulu.”

My fair skin somehow highlighted the color of the bracelet. I shook my wrist, and those fake diamonds glimmered under the light.

“But…”

“But what? Do you want me to put it on for you?” asked Colin gently.

“Okay.”

His warm fingertips brushed against my skin, eliciting a tingly sensation. I could feel something leaping in my heart. Zara was sitting next to me. She had a look of amusement when she saw the bracelet. And instead of eating, her eyes went back and forth between Colin and me. It was giving me the creeps.

“Eat. Aren’t you hungry?” I nudged Zara.

She wrapped her arms around my shoulder and asked, “Do you know what giving out a bracelet as a present means?” 1

It had another meaning? I shook my head. “No.”