The moment I found out my brother was the tragic, manipulative ex in some real-life romance drama, he was in the bathroom trying to kill himself. I kicked the door open. "Get downstairs and buy me a bag of Flamin' Hot Cheetos," I ordered. "And some Cool Ranch Doritos. And a Coke." My brother, Leo, froze. "But—" "I'll count to three!" He shot up from the water. "Okay, okay! The Cheetos—you want the regular kind or the lime-flavored ones?" Just then, a stream of text scrolled across my vision. [LMAO, I thought the tragic ex was supposed to be some dark, brooding, manipulative genius. Turns out he’s just terrified of his big sister!] [That’s the terrifying power of a big sister right there!] [Hahaha, this supposed supervillain knows his sister’s snack preferences by heart. He’s definitely done this run a thousand times!] 1 The bathroom door hung crookedly on its hinges from the force of my kick. My brother scrambled to hide the fruit knife behind his back. I shot him a withering look, pulled a twenty-dollar bill from my pocket, and slapped it into his hand. "Five bucks for your trouble. Not a penny more." "Can't you just order delivery?" he mumbled, his lower lip trembling. "Delivery is unhealthy!" He blinked, clearly bewildered by my logic, then grabbed a towel from the rack and headed out, muttering under his breath, "And I suppose spicy Cheetos are the pinnacle of nutrition." After he left, I glanced at the fruit knife he’d hidden by the tub. It was clean. I flashed back to a few minutes ago, when I was lounging on the sofa, binge-watching a show. Suddenly, lines of text had materialized in front of my eyes. [Your sister’s just chilling here, completely clueless. You better get a move on, your brother is about to do something stupid again!] [She probably doesn't even know. Her brother is the 'tragic villain' in a romance novel. He goes completely off the rails because he can't accept that the female lead started dating the male lead as his replacement.] [But I heard the sister always resented her ungrateful little brother...] [Forget it, Kristen, you should just run. In a little while, your villainous brother is going to destroy himself, and he’s going to take you down with him!] I blinked. Excuse me? This sounded suspiciously like one of those trashy web novels I’d been seeing online. But wait. My brother was going to die soon, and I was going to die with him? No way. A fortune-teller once told me I was destined for a long and prosperous life. I exercise daily, drink milk tea from a thermos for my health, and even mutter a little eulogy for the souls of the rice grains I’m about to consume. How could I possibly end up with an early grave? Unacceptable. Leo returned with my Doritos, Cheetos, and a yogurt drink, placing them by my side. "They were out of Coke, so I got you a yogurt instead." With that, he started tiptoeing back toward the bathroom. "Make dinner," I said without looking up from my bag of chips. "I want orange chicken and sweet and sour ribs." Leo’s shoulders slumped. He let out a long-suffering sigh and obediently shuffled toward the kitchen. 2 Half an hour later, the table was laden with all my favorite dishes. Leo watched me nervously. "Dinner's ready." "Coming," I nodded, putting away my snacks. He seemed to be in a hurry, taking only a few bites before putting down his chopsticks. He sat across from me, lips pressed together, watching as I devoured a rib while my eyes were already locked on the orange chicken. A rule in our house since we were kids: the younger one can't leave the table until the older one is finished. So, I ate. Slowly. My mind, however, was racing, trying to figure out how to stop my brother from framing the main characters of this story. The pop-up comments seemed confused by my behavior. [Kristen’s got a crazy appetite today. She’s eaten five whole dishes by herself!] [Yeah, didn't she always complain that her brother's cooking was disgusting? Why is she eating for so long this time?] [Is it just me, or is Kristen acting really weird...] I frowned, the words slipping out before I could stop them. "Who said my brother's cooking is disgusting? It's delicious!" The moment I said it, I felt a burning gaze on me. When I looked up, he quickly averted his eyes. Leo pushed a plate of food closer to me, his voice a little hoarse. "I'm glad you like it." I stared at his downcast eyes and the tips of his ears, which were flushed a bright red. A lump formed in my throat. I was always so busy with work. When was the last time I’d actually taken a good look at the little brother who’d been by my side through thick and thin? 3 I blinked away the sudden sting in my eyes and shoveled a few more bites of rice into my mouth. When I was finally done, Leo cleared the table with practiced efficiency. After everything was clean, he headed back to the bathroom. And locked the door. I walked over and knocked. "Leo, hey. Can you take Bear for a walk? It's late and I'm a little scared to go out by myself. Hurry up." Silence. I turned, walked to the balcony, and nudged the sleeping Samoyed with my foot. Leo had found him in a dumpster when he was twelve. He was too scared to bring him home, afraid I’d be angry, so he used his own lunch money to feed the little stray. He’d raised him from a tiny fluffball into the big, dopey creature he was today. Bear, rudely awakened, grumbled and let out a couple of grumpy barks. The bathroom door creaked open. Leo’s face was blank as he wordlessly began searching for the leash. "Bear, come!" The comments exploded. [What villain? This is clearly his sister's most loyal golden retriever!] [Framing the male lead can wait. If big sister wants orange chicken, she gets orange chicken. Walking Bear is more important than framing the male lead...] [Wait a second... I'm getting the feeling Kristen is actively trying to stop him from framing the male lead.] [Agree. In the book, today was the day he was supposed to do it. If she can just get him past midnight, maybe the male lead will be safe?] Whether it was true or not, I had to try. 4 Outside, Leo walked Bear while I trailed behind, sipping on a freshly squeezed orange juice I'd just bought. The smell of barbecue from a nearby stall was too tempting to resist... By the time I'd bought my skewers, the dog was gone. And so was my brother. A jolt of panic shot through me. I imagined him holding up a bleeding wrist, crying to the female lead about what the hero had supposedly done to him. I was about to call him when a voice cut through the darkness. "Kristen." A streetlight in the park had flickered out, and standing in the dim light was a boy and his dog. Leo held up his phone, its flashlight beam cutting through the gloom. "I've been waiting for you. Let's go home." A warmth spread through my chest, but on the surface, I just huffed. "What's the rush? Can't you walk any slower?" "Okay," he said, shortening the leash, his tone cautious. "Sorry, Kristen. Bear was running too fast." He slowed his pace. The beam of his phone, however, was now aimed entirely at my feet, silently lighting the path ahead. By the time we passed through the dark stretch of the park, I could tell his arm was stiff from holding the phone at that angle. He seemed terrified of me. Under the warm yellow streetlights, Leo held the leash in one hand and my half-finished orange juice and uneaten skewers in the other. I, on the other hand, walked with a serene expression, lightly tugging on his sleeve. For the next two hours, I dragged him around the park, loop after loop, until even Bear couldn't take it anymore and collapsed on the path, playing dead. Only then did I finally relent. The second we got home, I pointed at Bear. "He stinks. Give him a bath." 5 Leo's dark eyes stared at me, unblinking. I, however, was yawning so hard my jaw ached. I flopped onto the sofa and pretended to pass out. Finally, he took a deep breath, put the leash back, and dragged Bear by his hind legs into the bathroom. Just as he finished washing and blow-drying the dog, I pointed to a grease stain on the carpet from my chips. "Leo," I said, my voice full of righteous indignation, "that rug was expensive. It has to be hand-washed. Don't you dare put it in the machine." He just nodded. He deftly rolled up the dirty rug and replaced it with a clean one. A moment later, I heard the sound of him scrubbing in the bathroom. And so it went. Under my "supervision," Leo mopped the floors, washed the windows, and took down the curtains to be laundered. Finally, when there was absolutely nothing left to do, he walked over to where I was dozing on the sofa. "Kristen," he said softly. "I'm done." It was an hour before midnight. I couldn't let him sleep. With a jolt, I sat bolt upright. "I want some dragon fruit," I said, my voice raspy. "It's in the fridge!" A smile lit up his face, his eyes sparkling. "Wait right there, sis. I'll get it for you." Watching his retreating back, I frowned so hard I could have crushed a fly between my eyebrows. For some reason, I could have sworn I heard a note of pure, unadulterated joy in his voice. 6 He returned with a plate of perfectly cubed dragon fruit, looking refreshed and cheerful. I, on the other hand, felt like the one who'd just done a full day of chores. Seeing my silence, his smile faltered. He ducked his head, looking wounded. "Kristen, the dragon fruit is ready. I changed the sheets on your bed and lit the aromatherapy candle for you... If there's nothing else, I'm going to go get ready for bed." The comments started buzzing again. [Damn, it's after eleven and this dude is still determined to frame the male lead!] [Well, his sister already treats him like dirt. Now she’s worked him like a slave all day. Of course he's resentful.] [This is probably when he decides the female lead is his only salvation!] [Kristen, think of something, quick!] 7 "Pick out the seeds for me," I blurted out. Leo’s eyes widened in disbelief. "The... the seeds from the dragon fruit?" he asked in a small voice. I cleared my throat and, under his incredulous gaze, nodded. And so I watched him sit on a small stool, painstakingly picking out the tiny black seeds from each cube of fruit. His features were becoming more and more like our mother's. Ten years ago, Mom died of cancer, and Dad remarried. People always say that a new mom means a new dad, and in our case, it was brutally true. Less than six months after Mom's death, we were homeless. Lost in thought, I didn't notice he was done until he pushed the plate in front of me. He was smiling, looking at me like a puppy waiting for praise. "All done, Kristen. Eat up!" I took a bite. "It's so sweet!" After I’d eaten half the fruit, Leo again said he was going to bed. But then his phone rang. I glanced at the caller ID. Lana. [Why is the female lead calling him?] [I remember! In the book, after the villain cuts his wrist, he calls the FL and tearfully tells her he's 'setting her free' to be with the ML. That's what makes her think the ML hurt her precious 'white moonlight' and she starts to hate him!] [But he didn't do it this time... so my baby Julian won't be framed, right?!] Julian? So that was the male lead's name? It sounded familiar... Leo stared at the screen for a long time. My own heart started to pound. But then he answered, and in front of me, he made a few minutes of idle, meaningless small talk. I watched the clock on the wall tick past midnight and let out a breath I didn't realize I'd been holding. A wave of exhaustion washed over me. After Leo hung up, his gaze on me darkened. "We'll always be together, right?" The question came out of nowhere. I opened my mouth to answer, but he quickly looked away. "I'm... I'm going to bed, Kristen. Good night." And he fled. I didn't think much of it. I peeked through the crack in his door and saw the light go out. Silence. He must have been exhausted and fallen straight to sleep. But I couldn't shake the feeling of unease. I grabbed my comforter, made a makeshift bed on the floor outside his room, and lay down. This way, if he tried to leave, I'd wake up immediately. 8 In a state between waking and sleeping, my mind drifted back ten years. I had just been accepted into a top junior high school. I came home, acceptance letter in hand, only to find my mother's cold body. And my brother, kneeling beside her, numb and silent. That very night, our father brought home a beautiful woman. She was his first love. They had been together since high school but had broken up over a misunderstanding. Now, they were back together. The woman—our new auntie—was incredibly kind to us. She cooked delicious meals, helped Leo with his homework, took him to amusement parks, and would gently apply medicine to his bruises after our father punished him for bad grades. She bought me pretty dresses. She would tell me, in the same soft voice as my mother, that I was the most beautiful girl in the world. The feeling was so familiar, so warm. We both grew to love her, though we were too shy to call her "Mom." But in our hearts, she already was. Then, she brought home a little boy. He was about Leo's age. Our father told us he was our real brother. I didn't understand then. How could our auntie's child be our real brother? But after the little boy arrived, she had no time for us anymore. Leo's room became the new boy's playroom. My academic awards were folded into paper airplanes and scattered everywhere. Leo spent his allowance on a dinosaur toy for the new boy, only to have it thrown in the trash. The little boy cried hysterically, screaming that he was hurt. Our auntie held him tight, her eyes glaring at me and Leo with disgust. "He doesn't like these things. Stay away from him!" When our father came home, he didn't even ask what happened. He just made us kneel all night as punishment. From that day on, I knew. We didn't have a mother, and we didn't have a father. We were crammed into the smallest room, eating their leftovers, cleaning the house and doing laundry like servants. On the little boy's birthday, he was the center of the universe, dressed in a custom-tailored suit, surrounded by adoring relatives. The living room was overflowing with flowers, cakes, and piles of presents. Leo and I hid in a corner, watching from afar, completely out of place. 9 The next year, I became a boarding student. When I came home for winter break, I found Leo covered in bruises, kneeling on the floor and scrubbing, his body burning with fever. When he was done, he staggered to the kitchen to cook. I held his feverish body and begged our father to take him to the hospital. Our father, who was on the floor playing with the little boy, just snorted. "That little brat stole money from your aunt and broke my son's new toy. He deserves it!" "No... it wasn't me..." Leo sobbed, tugging at my sleeve. Our auntie, sitting nearby admiring her new manicure, shot me a look of pure loathing. "Your brother is a delinquent. If we don't teach him a lesson now, he'll grow up to be a menace to society!" That night, I took Leo to the hospital by myself. While we were gone, our auntie had someone throw all of our clothes and belongings out onto the street. Our father watched in cold silence, his approval implicit. I was twelve. Leo was eight. After that, I dropped out of school to support him. I collected cans, washed dishes, handed out flyers... whatever it took. Under my strict upbringing, Leo thrived. He was always at the top of his class, a ray of sunshine so handsome his classmates called him the "campus heartthrob." He was obedient and responsible, handling all the cooking and cleaning without complaint. He never gave me a moment's worry. He was such a good kid. How could he have become the "vicious villain" the pop-up comments described? And Julian... how could he be the hero everyone felt sorry for? 10 But I overestimated my ability to stay awake. When I opened my eyes, the sun was already high in the sky. The door to my brother's room was open. The bed was empty. Where was he? Did he sneak out while I was asleep to cause trouble? A surge of anger propelled me to my feet. But when I checked the bathroom, it was spotless. My toothbrush had toothpaste already on it, the washing machine was churning with a load of clothes, and my white sneakers were soaking in a basin. This was a far cry from the scene I had imagined: my brother lying in the tub, blood streaming from his wrist, whispering with his dying breath: Julian... did this to me... "Kristen?" Leo's clear voice came from behind me. I turned. He was holding a tray with breakfast and a glass of juice, looking completely normal. "Hurry up and wash your face. Lunch is ready." I stared at him for a long moment. I numbly brushed my teeth and walked to the table. As I drank the freshly squeezed juice and watched my brother across from me, a wave of pure, unadulterated joy washed over me. It was past midnight. He really wasn't going to do it. I had succeeded. My intense staring seemed to unnerve him. "...Kristen? Is the juice not right? I can make you a new one. What flavor do you want?" Just then, the doorbell rang. Leo didn't seem surprised. He glanced at me, grabbed an extra set of utensils, and went to open the door. Standing outside, holding a bouquet of roses, was the female lead. The moment Lana saw my brother, her eyes lit up. "Leo! I'm here to pick you up!" Leo didn't speak, but his ears turned bright red. What the hell? I thought. "I'm so sorry, Leo," Lana said, turning to me. "I didn't know Julian would say those things about you. Anyway, Kristen, Leo and I have plans to go to an auction today. Do you want to come with us?" She added, "I heard there's a special mystery item. If you like it, just let me know. I'll definitely bid on it for you." Lana was like a little ball of sunshine. She wasn't shy around me at all, even shoving the bouquet of roses into my arms. Leo seemed used to her chattering. He pushed a glass of juice toward her and said calmly, "My sister's very busy. She doesn't have time to go play with you." [The drama is about to explode!] [It's over! It's over! Because the male lead called the villain 'ill-mannered,' the villain is going to auction off the female lead's private photos and frame the ML for it!] [You bastard villain, I'm going to kill you!] [Kristen, say something!]
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