Chapter 2

My adoptive parents, Hugh Watson and Lindsey Sanders, stood in the doorway, looking at me coldly. The bodyguards behind them cast long shadows across the hallway, making their presence even more menacing.

The moment Flynn saw them, he rushed forward. "Dad, Mom, you're finally here. I'm sorry—it's my fault I didn't handle things properly and let Zayne be misunderstood…"

Lindsey frowned deeply as she grabbed Flynn's arm to check for injuries. When she finally looked at me, her gaze was filled with nothing but disgust and disappointment.

"Zayne, you're hopeless! How many times did I warn you when Flynn came back? You're the older brother—you should take responsibility. You should look after your younger brother! We raised you in luxury for 18 years, treated you like our own, and this is what we get?

"Flynn told us you bullied him at home, and we didn't believe it at first, thinking you were always kind. We even spoke up for you so he wouldn't overthink it. And you? You cheated on the exams and tried to make Flynn take the blame.

"Did you really think that destroying Flynn would let you keep the position of the Watson family heir? Keep dreaming! A fake will always be a fake. You don't even come close to Flynn!"

I had heard those words countless times in my previous life. I thought I wouldn't care anymore, but my heart still ached like it was being stabbed with a thousand knives.

Lindsey used to panic and call the family doctor at the slightest scrape or bruise I got from playing. She would march off to demand justice if anyone called me a "bastard", caring nothing for the appearance of propriety.

She had even once said that both Flynn and I were her children, and she would never treat me coldly just because Flynn returned.

And yet, she was also the one who loaded every one of Flynn's lies onto my shoulders without verifying a single fact.

"It's true, then," someone muttered. "Even the parents are saying it."

"You really can't judge a book by its cover. A fake will always be a fake, and cruelty is in their very nature."

Ignoring the whispers around me, I looked at Lindsey with the last flicker of hope I had left. "Mom, do you really think I would cheat or bully Flynn at home? We've lived together for 18 years, and all of that counts for nothing against what he says?"

Hugh stepped forward, slamming the "evidence" Mr. Stone had given him onto the floor at my feet.

"The proof is right here! There's no denying it! Two identical test papers, even the mistakes match perfectly! How could this be fake? Flynn earned first place, and you're dead last! Do you think we'd believe he copied from you?

"How could you stoop to such despicable tactics just to take his guaranteed admission? Do you even know how much Flynn endured in the countryside? He earned first place on his own, and you try to steal it from him? Have you no conscience? You've brought shame on the entire Watson family!"

Flynn tried to calm Lindsey but added, "Dad, don't get too worked up. Zayne might have just lost his head for a moment. He's usually fine with me. He only sometimes says I'm a country bumpkin, that I don't belong in the Watson family, that everything in the family is his…"

"What? He actually said that to you?" Lindsey snapped.

"I didn't!" I shot back. "I never said that, and I never needed to steal his guaranteed admission!"

I fixed my gaze on them. "Have you forgotten? I received Harmington University's admission letter last month. Why would I ever cheat?"