Liar and Liar - Chapter 38
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 38
In Lower School, they were drama club lead partners.
In Middle School, they were concert partners.
Now in Upper School, they were student council vice president and student council member.
In reality, the two were a picture-perfect pair, and students would often whisper suspicions that Frederick and Stella were secretly dating.
The scenes of them together always reminded people of a romantic movie about childhood friends having a long, drawn-out romance.
Past afterimages covered Danielle’s eyes like a veil. Inside the dark Music Hall, Danielle was in the audience while Stella and Frederick performed a duet on stage. Stella wore a pale pink dress that day.
A gentle, warm voice from the other end of the phone tore through the veil.
-Yeah, honey. I’ll be right there. Just wait a little.
Her heart unexpectedly ached. Danielle had never solved problems this way before. No matter who the opponent was, no matter what the problem, she always handled things with her own strength. It wasn’t just school troubles either.
[Danielle, don’t find it annoying when mom asks for favors – you need to help on time. When a daughter treats her mother well, the mother feels proud of raising her daughter right.]
In place of her busy father, Danielle took on household affairs. From car insurance to utility bills to internet connections – the variety was extensive. Regardless of her father’s request, it was unavoidable since her mother Hye-ju couldn’t speak English.
[Su, the home internet hasn’t been working since we changed the plan.]
When calling companies to handle these types of issues, Danielle always pretended to be Hye-ju. It made the process twice as fast.
In other words, while Danielle’s exterior was that of an 11th grade junior, inside she was already no different from an aged housewife. That’s why hiding behind someone was endlessly unfamiliar to her.
And behind Frederick Bastia, of all people?
“You…”
After hanging up, Danielle realized why Stella looked like she had fallen into a trap.
‘Ah.’
She thinks we broke up because I’ve been keeping my distance from Frederick lately.
Realizing she had unintentionally completely fooled Stella, her anger subsided slightly.
“Frederick’s coming?”
“Yeah.”
Chris closed his mouth, and Cove slightly furrowed his brow. Danielle had no idea why these two were standing beside her. She couldn’t understand why Cove had followed her here in the first place.
Frederick appeared faster than Danielle expected. Before she could react, he approached with wide strides and rested his head on top of Danielle’s. Startled, Danielle stiffened.
“What’s wrong?”
Just by appearing, his presence was overwhelming. With this presence, Frederick had already stood above everyone since Lower School.
With Frederick resting on her head, Danielle spoke with difficulty.
“Stella made a tuition funding page for me, saying it was for my sake.”
Though she didn’t particularly want to show him the content, Danielle handed Frederick her phone.
While Frederick looked at the phone screen, a strange silence flowed through the entire classroom. Everyone was waiting to see how Frederick would react.
‘What will he say.’
Danielle anticipated his reaction based on Frederick’s usual personality and their relationship.
‘Stel, even so, you should have asked Daniel first.’? Of course, if he spoke that softly, Danielle was prepared to immediately jab Frederick’s solar plexus with her elbow.
Stella opened her mouth first, as if to get ahead of him.
“Rick, this is-”
But Frederick cut her off with a single stroke.
“Apologize to Daniel, Stella.”
Danielle was flustered by the low, heavy voice that rang out from above her head. Frederick had already lifted his head from resting on Danielle’s.
She could only see Stella’s expression, but somehow she could imagine Frederick’s face.
“I don’t want to say much. Don’t make Daniel tired and apologize properly right now.”
Stella repeatedly opened and closed her mouth soundlessly, like a broken doll. Eventually, she looked up at Danielle with an angelic face.
“Daniel, I’m sorry. I really did it because I was worried you wouldn’t be able to come to school. You said you might not even be able to attend next semester. Or has Frederick already agreed to help you?”
Instead of me apologizing, you should be embarrassed about something too. Danielle could clearly hear Stella’s true intentions.
After a moment’s hesitation, Danielle answered slowly.
“…I got accepted for a Caltech Lab internship and will receive a scholarship from there.”
“Oh, really…?”
“Honey.”
Frederick’s hand wrapped around Danielle’s arm.
“Are you feeling better? Did I speak too nicely?”
“It’s enough. Having you speak nicely for me was what I wanted.”
Even though the matter was resolved well, Danielle’s heart was pounding. Her hesitation was brief.
Danielle moved one hand forward and grabbed Frederick’s hand. Their eyes met at the same time.
The distance Danielle had set was just this much, but Frederick easily crossed the line she had arbitrarily set. He pulled Danielle’s hand caught in his and kissed the back of her hand.
Smooch.
Danielle’s heart jolted as if hit by an electric shock. She felt like she might fail at managing her expression.
“We’ll be late for class, my honey. I’ll walk you to your classroom.”
This is a bit.
‘Too much like actual dating…’
Leaving Cove, Chris, and Stella’s group behind, Danielle was led out of the classroom by Frederick’s hand. Since class time was approaching, there were hardly any students in the hallway.
“Do you believe now that I have no intention of breaking up?”
Believe, huh.
“…For now.”
“Honey, is there anything else I can help you with? Hm?”
He seemed like a completely different person from in the classroom earlier.
“Not right now. But weren’t you close with Stella? You spoke quite firmly to her.”
“Close? Well, I guess it might have looked that way to others. We were stuck together quite often for various reasons.”
Someone once said that in love and war, you can do anything. Danielle’s hesitation wasn’t long.
“Stella likes you.”
While walking side by side, Frederick turned his head toward Danielle. Even though Frederick’s gaze was affectionate, Danielle felt nervous.
‘I can be this petty of a person.’
Though the expression ‘petty’ itself was funny between sworn enemies.
Anyway, she wanted to destroy everything between Frederick and Stella. That purpose was everything.
“You think so?”
“Yeah.”
“Are you jealous?”
“No.”
Their clasped hands tightened. To say such things, me… In my right mind…
“I’m telling you how you should behave if you want to keep being called honey by me.”
She did her best to speak matter-of-factly. But the moment Frederick’s face came close, Danielle’s composure crumbled.
“Then if I just keep doing this, you’ll keep calling me honey?”
How do I answer this…
“I suppose, so.”
“You’ll reply to texts and take calls, and when something happens, you’ll call me first?”
“…Usually.”
This was exactly the limit of fake dating that Danielle could handle. However, Frederick tilted his head sideways with the same smiling face.
“Kisses too?”
Danielle’s face turned helplessly red. Her composure had reached its limit.
“What kisses? Why would I do that with you?!”
“Why would you? It’s what people in love naturally do.”
The Italian’s word choices had a way of shocking Danielle.
‘Can’t he use more ordinary expressions?’
“We don’t need to go as far as lo-ve, couples usually do that. But you and I-”
Beep-
At the perfectly timed class bell, Danielle forcefully pulled her hand away.
“We have things to do properly in this situation. You know? Hurry up and get to your class too.”
Danielle backed away while pointing with her index finger toward the opposite direction. Frederick stood in place with a leisurely expression as if he had nothing to rush for.
His eyes curved into an eye-smile. Then he raised both hands to make a heart with his fingers. Danielle paused and stared blankly at Frederick’s hands.
* * *
‘Ugh.’
Even after class started, Danielle couldn’t get Frederick out of her mind.
‘Does he even listen in class? Can he still get good grades even with terrible attendance?’
No matter how much money he has, he’ll at least go to college. How does he plan to get into college like that….
Come to think of it, colleges had something called legacy admissions (alumni system). Danielle let out a silent sigh.
‘Who am I to worry about him.’
After shaking off her worries, a fundamental question about Frederick remained.
Even though Elmir Westlake was basically a school attended only by the upper class, almost all the male students joined the Athletic Department.
There were quite a few cases where they turned their backs on the family business or their parents’ wishes to actually become professional athletes. Meanwhile, only Frederick Bastia was letting his life drift by. As if he had no future.
‘…Huh?’
Danielle gripped her pen tightly at the sudden thought that occurred to her.
‘Don’t tell me… he doesn’t have some kind of illness, does he….’
Even if her concern seemed excessive, she couldn’t help it. As a family member of a rare disease patient, Danielle knew very well that 0.00001 was not zero.
Even if 1 in 100,000 people develop it, that 1 person definitely exists in this world. Whether terminally ill or suffering from a rare disease, for Danielle it wasn’t a story from movies or dramas—it was all reality.
‘Ah, this is driving me crazy.’
Looking at how he uses his body, he’s completely healthy, right? His inability to stick with anything long-term is just his screwed-up personality.
‘No way. Sick, my ass.’
Though she had switched to pre-med, the investigative spirit of an aspiring scientist still remained in Danielle’s blood.
‘…I’ll just ask him directly. Whether there’s something wrong with his body.’
As soon as lunch break comes.
But just before lunch break, Danielle’s phone rang.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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