My Stepbrother, My Enemy {BL}-Chapter 23: The Bane Of His Existence

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By the time I got home, I couldn’t shake this huge smile off my face—it felt like it was there to stay. Honestly, I didn’t even try to wipe it away. My cheeks hurt, my chest felt light, and it was totally ridiculous. But I didn’t care at all. Ethan Seymour had actually asked me out. On a date.

Carlby opened the door before I even got the chance to reach for the knob, as efficient as ever with his straight posture and unreadable expression. "Good evening, Mr Noah," he greeted me in his usual calm, polite way.

"Evening, Carlby," I replied, working hard not to sound like I was ready to burst into song.

I noticed his silver brows lift slightly, maybe at the unusual cheerfulness in my voice. "You seem... well today."

"Mm-hm," I hummed back, grinning as I walked past him. "Just a good day, that’s all."

He nodded, but I thought I caught a glimpse of curiosity in his eyes before he closed the door behind me.

I made my way through the hall, practically skipping along and barely noticing the faint smell of dinner cooking in the kitchen. My mom was near the staircase, holding a glass of wine and watching me as I practically floated by.

"Someone’s in a good mood," she said, her voice sounding intrigued.

"Maybe," I said, doing my best to hide my grin, which wasn’t going so well. "Just a normal day."

"Normal day, huh?" she replied, eyebrow raised, but I was already halfway up the stairs before she could dig deeper.

Once I got to my room, I flopped onto my bed, kicked off my shoes, and buried my face in a pillow, letting out a tiny, undignified squeal. My mind was replaying Ethan’s words over and over like a stuck record. "Maybe we could go together?" His voice and that smile—too much to handle.

When dinner time came, I walked downstairs still wearing that silly grin. Usually, getting to the dining table felt like a chore, like I was being led to my execution, but not tonight. Tonight, everything felt soft around the edges.

Keith looked up first, putting down his glass of water as I took my seat. "Well, look at that," he chuckled. "You’re actually smiling. Should we call a doctor?" 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

"Ha-ha," I muttered, though I couldn’t stop the corners of my mouth from twitching.

Had I really been that gloomy lately that my one happy day got everyone’s attention?

Mom leaned in, her eyes sparkling. "He’s right. You look... happy. Did something exciting happen at school?"

I froze mid-bite, my fork stuck in the air. "Uh, no. Nothing like that," I rushed to say, probably too quickly. "Just... a normal day."

Across the table, Adrien slouched in his chair, looking dark and unreadable. His fork scraped lightly against his plate, his green eyes glancing at me just once before darting away again.

"Normal day," he repeated quietly, his tone flat but jaw tense.

I stayed silent, just focusing on my food and pretending I didn’t feel the weight of his gaze or how my heart raced under it.

Mom shared a glance with Keith, her voice warm. "Whatever it is, it’s nice to see you smile for once."

I nodded, swallowing hard. "Yeah," I said softly. "Me too."

But as dinner dragged on, I couldn’t shake the feeling that Adrien was still watching me a little too closely, like he had some sort of heavy thoughts that I had no desire to figure out.

Later, I was sitting cross-legged on my bed, phone in hand and a grin plastered on my face, ready to text Gigi about Ethan asking me to the carnival. I could already picture her response in all caps and the flood of heart emojis that would follow. Suddenly, my bedroom door swung open out of nowhere.

I jumped, almost dropping my phone.

Adrien stepped in with an air of ownership, his tall figure filling the doorway, eyes cold and unreadable—and he didn’t even bother to knock. He hadn’t entered my room since that awkward moment a couple of weeks ago when I caught him sitting on my bed after my shower.

"What the hell?" I blurted, clutching my phone tight. "Do you even know how to knock?"

He ignored my question, his expression hard to read, but there was a sharp, mocking light in his eyes. Leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed, his lips curled into that familiar smirk that twisted my stomach in annoyance.

"You’ve been pretty cheerful today," he noted, his voice low and deliberate. "What’s up with that?"

I blinked, unsure of where he was going with this. "Why do you care?" I shot back, forcing out a laugh even though my voice wavered a bit. "You made it pretty clear that I could drop dead and you wouldn’t care, remember?"

His smirk faded, shifting into something darker. He stepped closer, and my heart raced against my will. "Don’t test me," he said quietly, his voice smooth but carrying an edge. "I’m asking you a question."

I stood up, gripping my phone tighter. "And I already answered. I’m just... having a good day. Is that a crime in your book?"

He tilted his head slightly, narrowing his eyes like he was trying to read me. "What’s going on between you and Ethan Seymour?"

My breath caught. "W-What?"

He didn’t budge. "Stop playing dumb, Noah. I saw how he looked at you today." His lips twitched, but it wasn’t a smile. "And the way you were looking at him."

My face went hot, but anger quickly kicked in. "That’s none of your business."

"It is when you’re foolish enough to think someone like him actually likes you," he replied, his tone sharp. "He’s popular and charming—and knows exactly how to get what he wants. Do you really think you’re different from the girls who throw themselves at him?"

I froze, feeling the weight of his words hit me more than I wanted.

"He’s not like that," I said finally, though my voice came out much smaller than I hoped.

Adrien let out a low, humorless laugh. "Sure he’s not. Keep telling yourself that." He took another step closer, lowering his voice. "Do yourself a favor, Noah. Get your head out of the clouds before you embarrass yourself. Ethan Seymour would never go for someone like you."

For a moment, I was speechless. His words echoed in my mind, each one digging in deeper than I wanted to recognize. A part of me—the insecure part that always questioned if I was enough...started to believe him.

"Are you done?" I finally asked, my throat tight. "Because if you came here just to tear me down, congrats. You’ve done it. N–now please get out of my room."

He stared at me for a second, his face unreadable again. Then just as he turned to leave, that infuriating smirk returned like he had accomplished his mission... a job well done. "Pathetic," he muttered, walking out and slamming the door behind him.

The sound echoed in the room like a slap. I stood there for a moment, my chest aching, then sank onto the bed. My phone buzzed, Gigi texting me—but I just couldn’t bring myself to look at it.

I pressed a hand to my chest and stared at the door, whispering to no one, "Why does he always have to ruin everything?"