Stop Appearing In My Dreams, Brother-In-Law

Lisa's POV

"And here is a toast to the couple."

I stood at the head of the table, my fingers tight around the stem of my glass. All eyes were on me, but I only had eyes for Elena. She was beaming, her face flushed with a happiness so pure it made my chest ache.

"Sister, I am so happy for you," I said, the words tasting like poison. "You’ve finally found the perfect guy to spend the rest of your life with."

Liar. The thought screamed in my head. How could I smile like this? But if I didn't, how would I ever face her again? I wanted to be happy for her—I truly did—but then my gaze drifted toward Adrian, her husband.

Every time he smiled, my heart didn't just flutter; it broke.

“To a long and happy life to you, Adrian and Elena,” I lifted my glass and then smiled. “Congratulations.”

By the end of the speech, the tears that I had been trying to hold began to roll down. They were real so I let them fall, masking the sob in my throat as ‘tears of joy’ for the guests.

But those tears weren't purely out of joy.

As I stepped down to take my seat, a hand appeared in front of me, offering a crisp white handkerchief.

"You're more emotional than the bride, Lisa," Adrian said softly.

I looked at the handkerchief and then at him. Why does he have to smile at me like that?

I gulped down the thought and took it, barely able to breathe, and my fingers grazed his. It sent a jolt up my spine, but I quickly looked away to hide my reaction.

Just then, Elena pulled me into a tight hug, her perfume filling my senses. "I'm so proud of you, Lisa," she whispered into my ear. “I didn't know you could make such a speech. But I'm touched.” She pulled back, laughing as she wiped a stray tear from my cheek. "Careful, you’ll ruin your makeup."

I forced a laugh, but my eyes stayed fixed on Adrian. He was watching us from behind her, his expression steady. I closed my eyes, the guilt swallowing me whole. I'm an awful sister.

How did it come to this? Elena has been my shield and protector ever since the accident that took our parents. I was too young so I don't remember much from back then but we weren't sent to an orphanage thanks to our inheritance left behind by our parents.

My sister didn't let any relatives interfere either. And thankfully, she was already 18 so she had the right to withhold the inheritance.

Just like that, she gave her life to provide for me and protect me. She was everything to me, and I was everything to her. But then one day, she brought a man home.

And ever since she introduced him to me, he had been the lead in every one of my dreams. And they weren't just dreams—they were erotic, vivid hallucinations of him touching me, holding me tenderly, whispering things in my ear that no brother-in-law should ever say.

I didn't want them. I hated them. But my heart wouldn't listen. And he was making it worse just by being kind in real life. By smiling at me like that. By offering me a handkerchief…

Adrian belonged to my sister but my heart decided to be a devil and wished he belonged to me instead. So ungrateful. I hate myself.

I wanted to run. I wanted to get out of the hall and their lives and never turn back. But I had nowhere to go.

I have been living with Elena since the start and even now, she would not let me live outside alone because the world was a dangerous place.

Even now, I had to live with them. Adrian hadn't even hesitated when Elena told him about it, since she didn't trust me to live alone. “She’s your little sister, so that means she's my sister too now,” he had said. “I’ll treat her as such.” Every word he spoke felt like a whip across my back and I gripped my dress.

There was no escaping it.

The new house was huge—a maze of marble and glass. The couple's perfect home they had been building before the wedding.

From my new room, I could hear their laughter echoing from the hallway as they carried boxes.

The room was beautiful, much bigger than the cramped space we shared in our old rented apartment, but it felt like a cage.

I started unpacking, my head spinning from the day’s stress. And then, when I was done with the little that my tired body could do, I decided to take a bath.

I reached for the hem of my top, pulling it over my head when the door suddenly swung open.

Adrian stood there, his hand still on the knob. He had forgotten to knock.

I froze, my top halfway off, my skin prickling in the cool air.

"What are you doing? Get out!" I snapped, the panic making my voice sharp as I quickly pulled my dress down, turning my back to him.

He pulled the door shut instantly. "I'm sorry! Lisa, I’m so sorry, I forgot..." His voice was muffled through the wood, sounding genuinely mortified.

My heart was racing so hard I thought I might faint. Did he see anything? How much did he see? My hands, gripping the hem of my shirt, were trembling.

"Lisa?" he called out softly. "I really should've knocked.”

Maybe he just sees me as a kid. I'm 23 for crying out loud. An adult. Even if I have a smaller stature than my sister, I'm still a woman. He shouldn't have barged in.

I should've locked the door.

“It's fine,” I muttered. “What did you come here for?”

He took a moment before responding. “Your sister asked what you'd like to have for dinner."

"Anything," I stuttered, leaning my forehead against my hands. "Anything is fine."

"Right. Sorry again," he said, and I heard his footsteps fade away.

I let out a sigh of relief. This was only the first day, and I was already having a heart attack. Just how am I going to face my sister?

When I finally gathered the courage to go downstairs, the tension in my chest didn't ease.

They were both in the kitchen, laughing as they unboxed takeout containers on the counter. Everyone was too exhausted from the wedding to think about cooking.

Why are they even here? I wondered bitterly. Why didn't they just leave me here and go on a honeymoon somewhere far away?

I pulled my chair back, the sound loud in the kitchen. As I sat down, my eyes met Adrian’s.

He smiled at me—a warm, easy smile, as if nothing had happened upstairs. As if he hadn't just walked in on me half-undressed. As if he weren't the man who tore my world apart every time I closed my eyes.

My heart skipped a beat, and the guilt returned, heavier than ever. He was acting like a brother. Why couldn't I just be a good sister?