"Since you're just relatives, does that mean I can take your spot?"
What is this? What's with that sneer?
"My spot…?" I never had a spot beside him nor can I ever. For the first time, I felt relieved that I have a fiance. If not, she would be my romantic rival.But of course I couldn't tell her that, she would be as happy as a lark and cling to him forever.
Mia went ahead to the cafeteria to get food but this situation is getting out of hand. Natasha kept leaning closer and closer until I had to stop her from coming any closer. Her eyes were masked with a layer of innocence.
"Hey, let's make a deal," she looked into my eyes and continued, "if you let me take your spot, I will continue to address you by your family name. If not, I will call you by your name."
Deal? That sounded more like a threat to me.
However, I was hesitating whether or not to accept her deal. I really dislike the way she says my name, but I just couldn't imagine how it would look like when she stands beside Eric. She's a cheerful girl with a perfect body, a perfect woman to lighten Eric's constant cold mood.
"I..."
"What is this? Fighting for a boyfriend?" I startled when I heard Eric's voice from behind.
"Eric!" Natasha ran to him with a gleeful smile. "You see, if she's your relative, that means she can't be your girlfriend."
I was wondering where she heard from about us being a couple or was it just her running her mouth?
"With that said, I can-"
"Sometimes I wonder, if Amanda is really my relative." Eric took my hand and brought me to the classroom. Mia's happiness could be seen through her actions of hugging me tightly the moment I entered the classroom.
She brought me to her seat and gave me my favorite honeydew juice. There were various types of buns on her desk for me to choose from too. I took the red bean paste bun and sat beside her to eat.
"Were you the one who told Eric where I was?"
"Haha, you got me. Well, I could have stopped her by myself but isn't it better if the prince were to save the princess?"
Mia was satisfied with her actions because I was 'retrieved' successfully without harm. I thanked her as she was really a great help. If Eric wasn't there, I wouldn't know what to do.
'Sometimes I wonder, if Amanda is really my relative.'
What he said has been bothering me the whole day. Wasn't it confirmed when Alice told us in the hospital the other day? We share the same grandmother, I believe that was enough to prove our relationship.
When I reached home, my sister's shoes were there. Did she skip school? She does that sometimes without any valid reason.
I went to my room for a shower before having lunch. I wanted to check on my sister to see what reason she had this time but was shocked when I heard a serious cough.
'It's a genetic disease, Andrea knows it too.'
But it wasn't as serious as grandma's so I guess it should be a normal cough?
I didn't bother her and went to the dining room. While I was walking downstairs, a maid brought a tray of food to my sister's room. Guess we won't be eating together today.
My mother was already waiting for me at the dining table when I arrived, so I greeted her and took my seat.
"Mother, is Andrea sick?"
"Amanda, are you cursing your sister?" Her glare was sharp and I could see her eyes burning.
"Ah, no. It's just…." I hesitated to say any further, but my mother wouldn't let me go otherwise. I shouldn't have opened my mouth in the first place. "She was coughing quite seriously in her room."
She ignored me and resumed eating. Come to think of it, mother has once coughed quite seriously when I was younger back then. If it was a symptom…. 'No, Amanda, don't think too much!' I slapped myself on both of my cheeks until the maids worried what happened to me all of a sudden.
After dinner, I went to my room and used my phone for a while. I scrolled the messaging app to make sure I didn't leave out any unread messages. What Eric said in school today suddenly flashed in my mind when I saw his texts.
'Sometimes I wonder, if Amanda is really my relative.'
Ah, I was thinking too much again.
I sat at my table and started doing my assignments until there were some noises outside my room that distracted me. Out of curiosity, I went out to check.
"What is happening..."
"Miss Andrea, are you okay?!" The maids were rushing into her room with anxiety written all over their faces. I could hear some coughing from her room but to me, it sounded just like a normal cough you get when you're cold.
I wanted to go see her but the maids were blocking the door. /they kept bringing glasses of water to her room. Did something happen to her?
"Leave her alone." My mother came to see the commotion.
"But the Miss..."
"It'll only worsen her condition if here are too many people surrounding her."
"Y-Yes, my lady!" The maids went back to the kitchen and resumed their work. Mother seemed to have noticed I was curious about my sister's condition, so she explained to me in the living room.
Apparently, the cough my sister was having was most likely a symptom of the disease. My mother experienced it when she was younger too, but it will lessen as she grows older. After hearing that, I started to wonder when it will be my turn. When the time comes, I will leave this world peacefully, without any restriction of the family…..? Didn't mother mention about changing mine and my sister's surname last time?
"Your surname," woah, did she read my mind? "I won't change it."