FALLING FOR MY BULLY STEP-BROTHER

Natalie's povFINAL YEARThe beginning of the end. As I stepped into the hallway of Bennington college, I grinded my jaw, the sharp pain that rose soothed me strangely.Students gathered in clusters, talking over each other. The chaos felt new, even when it was the same as always, at the start of a new semester.“Hey bitch!” Someone bumped into me, shoving me with her elbow. I turned, trying to steady myself.“Allison, I genuinely am not in the mood for this!” I groaned. She only scoffed and held my shoulders, steadying me.“You are never in the mood for anything fun.” Her eyes glowed with a poorly subdued excitement, “this is our last year in college, Natalie! You've got to live a little!”I squinted my eyes at Allison, my best friend since sophomore year.“What difference would it make?” “See, this is what I'm talking about. You always go on and on, talking about some doom and gloom. Not anymore! You're coming with me to the party tonight!”I sighed, as we walked towards our lock

Natalie's pov “Must I be there?” I muttered, my voice coming out small.True to her word, before the end of the day, I was roaming the halls of a building fit to be called a palace by the sheer ridiculousness of its size.My mother was also nowhere to be seen, and I was led into a room by a man who introduced himself as Butler Jeffrey.He was quiet, then his expression softened into a pitiful one. I hid my disgust, not wanting to ruin my chances of making him an ally.“Yes. Mr Lawley demands it.” He responded shortly then he was gone as well. So I wandered.The house was too quiet. I felt like an intruder, my feet making scuffling sounds on the rugs that I was certain cost more than I would ever earn.I hated it.Everything gleamed, polished floors, paintings that probably cost more than my college tuition.Fresh flowers arranged in crystal vases.Every corner screamed money.I shoved my hands into the pockets of my jeans as I wandered aimlessly.At some point, I realized I was l

I scrunched up the letter, throwing it at the far end of my room.I was up and ready before 7am, not because I was heeding to the Kian's command. I was simply scared of offending Joey.Kian was bluffing anyways. I knew there was no way in hell that he'd be taking me in his car to school.When I stepped out of the mansion, Kian was there, leaning on his car, his face was a study in concentration, as he typed furiously on his phone. The moment he heard my footsteps, he looked up. That smug look returned.“Took you long enough.”I walked past him, heading towards the gates. There was no way I was going to school with him.Before I could take another step, he grabbed my arm, and pulled me close to him.My heart rate spiked, the thudding so loud I was certain he could hear it.“What are you doing?” I managed to let out, keeping my voice as steady as I could.“Behave. My dad is watching us,” he drawled, looking back to the house. I followed his eyes and truly, Joey stood there, at a balco

Natalie's pov The folder sat on my dresser in the room that still felt too strange to be mine. I was at the edge of my bed, staring at it, and then at the message on my phone.‘If you value your scholarship, stop reading that file.’I knew exactly who it was from.It must be one of Kian's stupid pranks again. “He must think I'm a fool. If he believes this stupid text would scare me away, then he is mistaken.” I scoffed softly.Opening the folder, my eyes scanned through that strange page. I studied the shipment record, trying to make sense of the figures and what it meant.Nothing changed.The numbers remained numbers.The shipment codes remained just that - shipment codes.And the strange note scribbled at the bottom remained just as confusing as it had been an hour ago.I rubbed my eyes. Maybe I was overthinking it.Maybe it really was just some misplaced company document.Yet, I couldn't shake away the nervous knot that seemed to not want to leave my chest.My mind remembered K

Natalie's pov The room spun.“And also, you would be introduced as the new member of the Lawley family in front of the press.”There it was.The way I died.I woke up with an overwhelming feeling of dread in my gut. It left a bitter taste in my mouth.I went through my morning routines robotically, not paying attention to any of the things I was doing.By the time I reached school, the feeling had turned into full blown terror.I couldn't tell if it was because of the engagement party happening tonight or something else. The second I stepped into the school hallway, I knew something was wrong. Deja Vu.Everyone was staring at me… just like last time.“Please just give me a break,” I whispered to myself. People were staring again, and it was not the casual kind of staring.It was full blown stares, quite different from the curious ones I got from the drug investigation.The whispers were louder as well, bits and pieces of conversations reached me, but they were not coherent enough