I was overjoyed. From now on, Colin would take care of me, and I no longer needed to worry about food. Oh, c'est la vie!But life, as usual, was fond of cracking tasteless jokes. I often ran into those who I absolutely abhorred.I woke up early the next morning. For the first time in forever, I was motivated enough to go for a jog. Unfortunately for me, I bumped into Felix and Lilac.I was jogging on the running track and they were walking in the opposite direction. There was no way to avoid them.I thought I could pretend they were not there and jog past them. But Lilac approached me with a bright smile and clung to my arm.I shuddered, not liking the sudden physical contact. I took a few steps back to create some distance between us. Warily, I eyed her and said, "You can speak to me from that distance. We're not close enough for any physical contact."Lilac, as shameless as she was, paid my aloofness no mind. She approached me, forcing me to retreat a few more steps. "Today is
I sniggered internally.So this was why they invited me out for lunch!They wanted to find me a boyfriend. Why? Did my being single somehow bother them? Felix had told me yesterday that Colin wasn't the right guy for me. And today, he wanted me to date someone as soon as possible.Was he somehow afraid that I'd date Colin for real, so he wanted to hook me up with someone else instead?Regardless, after the weird speech Felix gave me last night, he wanted to set me up on dates tonight. His back-and-forth decision was perplexing, to say the least."What is wrong with the two of you? My love life doesn't have anything to do with you, so mind your own business. Also, I don't need to go through you before I date someone now, do I? Who do you think you are? Stop flattering yourself."Furious, I toppled the glass of water on the table, spilling its contents on the surface."Calm down, Lulu. Lili just wants some reassurance because we used to… I'm not forcing you to find a boyfriend rig
I was mad. Why was Colin taking their side? It must be because Felix was his younger brother, while I was just an outsider. Infuriated, I tried to pry Colin's hands off my shoulder in an attempt to struggle free.But Colin's hands were glued to my body. No matter how hard I fought, they wouldn't budge. Instead, they held me even tighter. My face was inches away from his chest."Let go of me. You're one of them! Stay away from me!""I'm taking nobody's side, Lulu. I'm just trying to reason with you. Girls your age should look for a boyfriend. It has nothing to do with whether I agree with Felix and Lilac's demand or not. You're single by choice. But others might think that you're single because you still have feelings for Felix, no?"People would interpret it that way? That was news to me.But if that was true, I should start looking for a boyfriend. Queenie and Jade had moved in with their boyfriends. Some of my friends were taken as well. I was the only single woman. That made me
Colin liked me. And all this time, I wasn't aware of it.I was shocked. I found it hard to believe.But now that I thought about it, he pampered and spoiled me. He cared for and protected me. He even risked his life to fight Shawn. He did everything he could for me. All of this was hinting at me that he liked me.Yet in the past three years, I simply thought that he was being a good friend, that I was just his sister from another mother.I recalled what Helen told me two days ago. I recalled the moment when Queenie and Julia rolled their eyes on me. Everyone knew that Colin liked me, except for me.Was I that oblivious?My brain had trouble processing the shocking revelation.While Colin was right, I found it rather awkward to regard one of my best friends as a boyfriend.I panicked. The hands on my sides fumbled for reassurance."Lulu, do you think I'm not as good as Felix? Is that why you want to reject me now?" Colin lamented."No, not at all." This was too much for me to
No! They were brothers!I had a sudden realization and quickly pushed him away with my hands. "Colin, give me some time to think this through."Disappointment briefly flashed on his face, but a smile quickly took its place. "Okay, you have five seconds to think this through. If you don't say no, I'll take it as a yes. One, two, three, four, five. Time's up! You didn't say no, so from now on, I'm your boyfriend!"Congratulations, Luna. You're no longer single."Before I could react, Colin leaned in once again. I could smell his warm breath on me, and I panicked.My mind was messy. My limbs acted on their own as I began to thrash about.At first, Colin tried to contain me. But as my movements became more and more violent, he let go. He was afraid that I might get hurt.Colin, standing there like a Prince Charming, slowly put down his arms. His straight back was slightly hunched, as if he was in pain. The glimmer in his eyes dimmed until there was nothing. The corners of his lips
Colin staggered backward and leaned beside the cement railing. He took out a cigarette box from his pocket and lit one. Taking a deep puff, he slowly exhaled it. "It may seem sudden to you. But I've been waiting for this opportunity for 20 years. You don't know how painful it is for me to love you," he said bitterly."When I first met you, you weren't one year old yet. You were small, sweet-smelling, and soft. Your eyes were also big and round. I was scared to break you, so I only reached out a finger to brush your face. You actually smiled at me. "I was only seven at that time and knew nothing. But your smile made me melt. At that time, I wanted you because I thought you were cute."Your smile was like a seed that was planted in my heart. It took root, sprouted, and became a little tree. I carefully nurtured it, fearing to hurt you in any way. "When I was ten, I told my mom I wanted to marry you. But she told me that you were engaged to Felix before you were even born and lect
In the end, Colin almost burst out in tears. He turned his head to not let me see his reddened eyes.My heart started to tear in pain.Love should be built from genuine feelings. I wasn't sure if I could turn the sibling love I had for Colin into romantic love. Plus, I didn't know if I still had the guts to love someone after Felix.Although I did want to try dating Colin before, I didn't anymore because I had already regarded Colin as my brother. I was scared I would lose my brother if we broke up one day.However, there was a voice telling me that I wouldn't know if I didn't try. The voice urged me to be brave and give it a try.Even after pondering for a while, I couldn't make up my mind.Colin patted my head and said affectionately, "You must be hungry. Let's go and eat. Just forget about what I just said, okay? Pretend that it didn't even happen. I'm still your brother, and you're still my sister who I witnessed growing up. I'll still take care of you in the future in the
We ate lunch at my favorite stew restaurant.I sat face-to-face with Colin while waiting for my food. Whenever I looked up, I would meet with his passionate eyes. Then, I would blush and lower my eyes to scroll on my phone. However, I didn't manage to catch a single word on the screen.It was already half past 12. The food came quickly as there weren't many customers.The stew here was known for being hot and spicy. Fearing I would get scalded, Colin scooped out some stew into a small bowl and placed it before me. "Be careful. It's hot."I dug into my food. Although the stew was still as delicious as before, I couldn't eat it happily as I felt weird around Colin. Thus, I ate with small bites.Colin looked at me teasingly for a while. It was obvious he wasn't used to seeing me acting prim and proper. Thus, he clinked the bowl with his fork. "Be natural. You don't need to act in front of me. I love and want the side of you that's fearless and free."I tilted my head and thought for