All Chapters of Reborn: I Won't Compete for Their Love: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

I stood at the top of the stairs, running my fingers along the cold banister.Down in the living room, Mom and Dad led in a timid boy. He wore a washed-out jacket and looked around the unfamiliar, lavish home uneasily."Kenneth, don't be scared. This is your home now," Mom said, her voice soft and careful as she gently stroked his hair.In the past, that kind of careful tenderness had always made me jealous, but now, I felt nothing at all."This is Lenora, your older sister," Dad said, beaming. "She took time off from school just to come home and meet you."Lenora Shepherd, who had rushed back from out of town, pulled a beautifully wrapped gift box from her bag. "Welcome to our home. I got you a little welcome gift."Her eyes, usually so cool and aloof, were now full of smiles and brimming with doting affection.I watched the scene expressionlessly, as if it were a play that had nothing to do with me. I felt no anger, no jealousy, not even a ripple of emotion.Kenneth Shepherd

Dad had his head down, picking crabmeat out of the shell for Kenneth. Lenora ladled chowder for him while Mom kept piling food onto his plate."Kenneth, eat up. Look how thin you are.""This baked lemon butter salmon was made especially for you. You said you like fish.""Slow down. Don't burn yourself."Under the warm yellow light, they sat gathered around the table, all smiles. The scene was so heartwarming it hurt to look at.They looked like a happy family of four—and I was like an intruder who had barged in at the wrong time, disrupting their harmony.When Mom noticed me, she froze for a second. "Jonah, come sit down. Why are you just standing there?"I said nothing and just stared quietly at my seat.Kenneth caught my gaze and looked up, glancing at me timidly before lowering his head again.He knew perfectly well that it was my seat, but he sat there without budging an inch, as if he had no idea what my look meant.I let out a quiet laugh. Then I walked over to the tabl

Julia's bracelet was a limited-edition piece of fine jewelry worth six figures.The hallway fell dead silent in an instant.Kenneth went rigid, staring at the bracelet on the floor, his face as pale as a sheet."I'm… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to!" he stammered, his voice trembling with fear as he teetered on the brink of tears.Julia was taken aback for a moment, but she spoke gently anyway. "It's okay. It's just a bracelet."The crowd around them, though, had already erupted into chatter."That's a limited edition," someone gasped. "There are only three in the whole country!""Can he even afford to pay for it?" another asked."He's just some bumpkin from the sticks. He's probably never even seen jewelry like that before."Whispers buzzed from all sides, every comment jabbing at Kenneth like a needle.I stood at the edge of the crowd, watching the spectacle with cold indifference. It was perfectly clear to me that the whole thing was a performance he'd meticulously ed.I reme

What burned in Kenneth's eyes was jealousy bordering on madness.The day after the midterm results came out, the school forum blew up.Someone had put up an anonymous post titled, "Shocking! Jonah Shepherd, Ranked Third in His Grade, Stole Exam Questions in Advance—Video Proof Inside."The post described in detail how I'd supposedly cheated. It claimed that the night before the exam, I'd snuck into the academic affairs office and taken pictures of the answer key.Attached below it was a blurry screenshot of security footage.It showed a figure in a school uniform standing at the door of the academic affairs office with his back to the camera. His face wasn't visible, but his build did look somewhat like mine.The comments section exploded instantly."Damn, is this for real?""I knew it. His grades are usually middle-of-the-road, so how did he suddenly score that high?""If this is true, that's way over the line.""But you can't even see his face in the footage. How can anyone

"Jonah, I'm begging you. Just own up to it…" Kenneth pleaded through his tears.The sympathetic murmurs from the audience grew louder."Kenneth's such a good person. Even after all this, he's still pleading for Jonah," someone said.Another agreed, "Seriously. Having an older brother like that is the worst luck in the world."Hearing the crowd's comments, Kenneth could no longer hide the smugness in his eyes. He looked at me, his lips curling into a faint smirk.It was time."Is everyone done watching the video?" I asked, my voice calm and unhurried.Everyone in the auditorium was taken aback."Then could you freeze the footage at the 1:32 mark?" I added, turning to the dean. "And zoom in on that person's profile."The dean looked startled for a moment, then did as I asked.The footage paused. In the frame, the figure stealing the exam questions had just turned around, revealing his profile to the security camera. It was only for a split second, but it was clear enough for ev