Part 2I Claimed My Best Friend's Brother

I shot to my feet. Seriously? You're not even mad? My mind was a mess. I turned off my phone, trying not to think about it.

The next day, Jenna asked for a progress report. I realized I hadn't even added Alex yet.

"Progress: -1."

"?"

"He didn't add me back."

"Ugh, he's like that. It took him five hours to accept my request."

I patiently chatted with her for a while longer. She was hungover from the party, and this would have been the perfect opportunity for me to play the caring friend. But thoughts of Ken kept weighing me down.

That afternoon, as I was leaving the library, a man named Mr. Chen called. He said the paperwork was ready and waiting for my signature.

This has to be a joke, right?

I got in the car, steeling myself for the inevitable humiliation. But there was no mockery, no lecture. Mr. Chen respectfully led me to the sales office and into the VIP manager's room.

"Are you sure you want to sign?" I asked, half-expecting the act to drop any second. Aren't you going to call me a gold digger now?

Mr. Chen looked confused as he pushed the contract toward me. "Mr. Gordon has already picked out a villa for you, but he said this location is closer for you and would be more convenient."

I glanced at the contract. My name was printed in black and white.

I sighed and put the pen down. "I'm sorry, I don't want it."

Mr. Chen looked baffled. The manager looked like his world was ending.

"Ma'am, if you have any concerns, please let me know. I will do my absolute best to resolve them."

Money could be returned. A house was a whole other level of entanglement. What was Ken thinking, actually agreeing to buy me a house?

In the end, I just left. A gift like that, given during a relationship, could be taken back after a breakup. It was too messy.

"You don't like it?"

Ken's call came through. His voice was as cool and steady as ever.

"I don't like it. And Ken, I've been thinking. I don't like you anymore, either. Let's break up."

What was there to be concerned about? For a rich boy like him, the messier the breakup, the more he'd hate you. And if he didn't hate you, it was even simpler. It was just about money. He'd just find someone new.

I hung up before he could respond. For good measure, I blocked his number and deleted his contact.

I tried to act casual when I got back to my dorm, but a message from Jenna was waiting. I reluctantly opened my chat with Alex. Turns out you have to actually click "add friend" on a contact card. Who knew?

This time, he accepted instantly. A simple "hello" emoji popped up.

I was feeling pretty miserable. On a whim, I sent him a series of reaction GIFs that, when strung together, told a story: "See this flower? I'd rather throw it away than give it to you."

After I sent it, I just stared at my phone. I was supposed to be charming him, for Jenna's sake. But I just didn't have the energy. I felt like crying, but I held it back.

A voice message came through. It was Alex.

"It's okay. Where did you throw it? I'll go pick it up."

His voice was lighter than Ken's, with a lazy, sun-drenched quality. And that line… it was smooth. Especially considering he didn't even know who I was. All he had to go on was my profile picture—a stylized, dark- Goth bunny. Not exactly flirtatious material.

...So he was the type to flirt with anyone. A real "cast a wide net" kind of guy. So this was the man my heiress friend was crazy about.

"Did he accept? Send me a screenshot," Jenna texted.

I couldn't bring myself to screenshot my own ridiculous GIFs. I sent her his reply instead. She was ecstatic. "OMG, Alex uses reaction GIFs? And he sent one first? Babe, I'm shipping this so hard."

If you heard his voice, you'd be building the whole boat, I thought. I wanted to block and delete him too, but I restrained myself.

After the "breakup" with Ken, I became a hermit. My life was a simple routine: library, eat, sleep. I didn't even have time for Jenna.

"Anna, meet me at The Reverie tonight. I have a party, but you can wait for me in the lobby. It'll be late and you won't get a cab. You have to come."

It was an order.

Now that I was done with Ken, I knew I couldn't be Jenna's sidekick anymore. What if I ran into him? The fallout would be catastrophic. Jenna's revenge would be terrifying.

I didn't want to go, but she didn't give me a choice.

"By the way," she added in a follow-up call, her voice buzzing with excitement, "I don't think Alex is poor! I just saw him with old Mr. Crawford. I think he might be his grandson? Let me do some digging. Hold off on the seduction for now, okay?"

I breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, an out. "Okay! Should I just delete him, then? I always thought you two were perfect for each other. And now that you're in the same social circle, it's even better!"

"Yeah, you can delete him. I know you don't like him anyway," she said with a laugh. "Oh, and send me a screen recording of you blocking him. I want to make sure you're really over him."

"Okay."

I had been ignoring Alex's messages for days, avoiding any place I might run into him. It was just too awkward.

After hanging up, I started the screen recording, blocked Alex, and deleted his contact. I took a screenshot of my block list and sent it to her for inspection.

Suddenly, a terrible feeling washed over me. I scrolled through my phone, the feeling growing stronger.

Oh, crap.

I knew I'd forgotten something.