Seven Years Secret, I Stopped Chasing - Chapter 6: Chapter 6

I feigned surprise, raising my eyebrows. "Oh? And did you actually pull it off?"
"Not even close," I admitted. "She shot down everything I said like I was some whiny kid."
Serena hesitated, her stern expression softening just a fraction. "You're angry because I didn't help you earlier, aren't you?" Her voice carried an uncharacteristic gentleness.
Before I could respond, she launched into that infuriatingly rational tone of hers. "Be reasonable. Stephanie was right there - your own sister. If things got bad, she'd obviously step in. But Cyril? At that moment, I was the only one who could help him. If I hadn't intervened, he might've been seriously injured." She gave me that piercing look. "You wouldn't want that on your conscience, would you?"
It sounded noble. Almost believable. If I hadn't seen her sprint toward him without a second thought, I might've bought it.
"Who said I'm mad?" I forced a grin that felt like cracked plaster. "Honestly? You and Cyril make a great couple."
"Stop being ridiculous—"
Stephanie rounded the corner just then, ice pack in hand. "What's the big secret over here?"
I averted my gaze, the fake smile still plastered on my face. "Serena was just asking if she should say yes to Cyril's confession."
Serena's expression turned arctic. I saw the fury ignite in her eyes - that dangerous, barely-contained wildfire look. In two strides she was on me, fingers digging into my wrist like steel clamps. "Albion," she hissed through clenched teeth, "do you have any idea what you're saying?"
Even as pain radiated up my arm, I kept smiling. "Pretty sure I do. You like Cyril, don't you, Serena?"
Our eyes locked, and in that split-second hesitation of hers, I got my answer.
A bitter chuckle escaped me before I could stop it.
Stephanie, blissfully unaware of the tension, shoved the ice pack between us. "Okay, drama queens. Whatever's going on with Serena and Cyril is their business. Albion, put this on your ankle unless you want to be limping all week."
Serena had no choice but to release me under Stephanie's watchful eye, though the storm in her gaze promised this wasn't over.
I glanced down at my wrist - angry red marks already blooming where her fingers had been. Stephanie's eyes widened. "Jesus, Serena! What'd he do, insult your hair?"
Serena stiffened, caught off guard. No comeback this time.
Rubbing my wrist, I shook my head. "Forget it. She didn't mean to." No point dragging this out. "Let's just call it a night."
Back in my room, my phone vibrated with a text:
[Serena: I'm coming to your room tonight. We need to talk properly.]
I left it unanswered, tossing the phone aside. Between yesterday's lingering cold and today's throbbing ankle, my head felt stuffed with cotton. Dinner could wait - I collapsed onto the bed instead.
The knock came just as I was drifting off.
Cyril stood in the doorway holding a dinner plate, already stepping past me without invitation. "Your sister had the kitchen save this for you," he said, too casually.
Leaning against the doorframe, I rasped, "You didn't hike all the way here to play delivery boy." With no audience, Cyril dropped the act. That smug, cat-with-cream smile spread across his face.
"Not as dumb as you look, Albion." His eyes glittered with triumph. "Serena and I... we've always had something special. I'll admit, I was starting to worry she might actually be into you." He leaned back, savoring the moment. "But after today? No question - she's still mine."
So he'd planned it. Pushed me deliberately to test her reaction.
I wanted to throw his stupid dinner in his face, but my throat felt like sandpaper. All that came out was a ragged laugh. "She tell you that herself?"