Home / My Fiancée, My Sister, and the Pauper / Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

All Chapters of My Fiancée, My Sister, and the Pauper: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

24 Chapters

Chapter 1

Adrian's POVThat was the last time I ever brought up my engagement to Claire Lawson.The room went quiet for a moment. Then someone noticed the irritation on Claire's face, and everyone burst out laughing."Seriously? Arranged marriages? What century are we living in?""Looks like our golden boy finally has some competition. Feeling threatened, Adrian?"I ignored their jeers and kept my eyes on Claire, who was sitting on the couch.Her long, wavy hair fell loosely over her shoulders, revealing faint love bites along her neck and collarbone.It felt as though a needle had pierced my heart. The pain didn't even register until a moment later."We were just kids when we made that ridiculous promise," Claire said, looking up at me with a mocking smile.She gave me a dismissive glance. "Adrian, we're adults now. It's time to move on from that silly promise."I stared at her, stunned. I was about to respond when the door swung open.Ethan Reed walked in wearing a waiter's uniform,

Chapter 2

Adrian's POVThe club was owned by the Bennett family, and Claire was convinced I'd arranged for Ethan to work there just to humiliate him.The ridiculous part was that Claire and Vanessa treated Ethan like he was the most precious thing in the world. They sheltered him from everything and had already given him more money than he could ever spend.Why would he willingly put himself through the trouble of working a part-time job?But I knew better than to explain. Even if I called the manager over to back up my story, Claire still wouldn't believe me.In her eyes, I was the villain of the story—a spoiled rich kid who threw his family's money and influence around, making life miserable for a sweet, innocent guy like Ethan."Adrian." Claire stepped protectively in front of Ethan. "I have no interest in marrying a spoiled rich kid like you. Our engagement is off."The room fell silent once again the moment she said those words.Ethan's face went ghostly pale. He trembled slightly,

Chapter 3

Adrian's POVJust then, Ethan stepped beside her. "Mr. Bennett, please don't take this out on Claire. It's all my fault."I shouldn't have come here in the first place. I never should've bothered you two."Tears filled his eyes as he spoke. "I'll just go.""Ethan, I told you. I'll take care of everything."Claire's heart practically broke at the sight of his tears. She gently wiped them away before turning back to me.Whatever sympathy she'd shown me moments ago was gone. All that remained in her eyes was disgust."Adrian, can you please stop clinging to me and just…"I cut her off. "Fine. We can call off the engagement. Just give me back what's mine."Claire froze. "What are you talking about?"I took up the necklace around my neck, which held an antique pendant Claire's mother had given me when our parents arranged our engagement.Mom had given Claire something far more valuable in return—an antique gold bracelet that had once belonged to royalty and was said to have been

Chapter 4

Adrian's POVI wanted to laugh, but tears spilled down my cheeks instead."Vanessa, no one is taking anything Mom left behind. If you want to give Ethan something, fine. Give him whatever you want from the Bennett family.""It's not like the Bennetts have anything worth—" Vanessa stopped mid-sentence.She was right. What did the Bennett family have that was worth anything?Not a single thing. Not even the people.I tossed the shredded documents into the trash and turned to head upstairs. "Mom's death anniversary is coming up in a few days. Don't forget.""How could I forget?" Vanessa gave me an awkward smile. "Get some rest. I've got some work to catch up on in my study."I didn't answer or look back.I didn't sleep a wink that night.Instead, I went through the entire house, gathering everything that held memories of the three of us.I burned the photographs. Anything I could smash or take apart, I destroyed. Whatever was still worth keeping, I packed it into boxes and sent

Chapter 5

Adrian's POVOn the anniversary of Mom's death, I waited for what felt like forever.Dad at least sent someone to leave flowers at her grave. But Vanessa never showed up.I called three times, but she didn't answer.On the fourth try, Karen picked up. "Oh, Adrian! Were you looking for Vanessa?""Today's the anniversary of my mom's death," I replied."Oh, goodness! That's today? How awful of us to forget!" Karen exclaimed. "My dog had puppies this morning, and Vanessa and Ethan were so excited about them that it completely slipped their minds."She paused before adding, "It's probably too late for Vanessa to get there now. Oh, what are we going to do?""Karen, who's on the phone?" I heard Vanessa ask in the background."It's Adrian. I think he's upset," Karen replied anxiously. "Vanessa, what should we do?""Adrian? Hello?" Vanessa's voice came through the phone.I hung up without a word.Mom smiled at me from the photograph on her headstone, her expression as loving and gen

Chapter 6

Adrian's POV"Adrian, you've been headstrong and overbearing since you were a kid. I've put up with you for long enough. Ethan won that award because of his own talent. You keep saying he stole your design, but do you have any proof? If you don't, then you're slandering him.""Adrian, I really didn't steal your design. You've always hated me. When would I ever have had the chance to get anywhere near your computer?"Ethan looked utterly hurt. My gaze snapped toward Vanessa.My computer was always kept in the study. And the only person who regularly went into that room was her.Vanessa immediately looked away, guilt written all over her face.At that moment, the situation couldn't have been clearer."Adrian, just look at yourself."Claire's high heels clicked against the floor as she strode over and looked down at me from above. She casually tossed the antique gold bracelet in my direction. It landed on the floor beside me."I honestly don't know why I ever liked you."A moc

Chapter 7

Adrian's POV"The mistakes of the previous generation aren't Ethan's fault."Ethan kept his head lowered, sobbing silently.Claire stepped forward and wiped his tears before turning toward me."Adrian, you've gone too far! Besides, it's just a watch. Ethan, let's give it back to him."She yanked the watch off Ethan's wrist and hurled it to the floor."Come on. I'll take you to buy a better and more expensive watch right now."Vanessa glanced at me and sighed."Adrian, why do you always have to be so childish? Why do you have to make a scene? Ethan's had a hard life. He's been through so much, and you're still being so mean to him. You're a grown man. Why can't you be a little more generous?"And about the design sketches… Adrian, you've already been given so much. You'll have plenty of chances to win major awards in the future. But Ethan's situation is different. He needs this award to build his reputation and establish himself in the industry. That's the only way the Lawson f

Chapter 8

Adrian's POVLate that night, I tossed the thick stack of letters into a fire. Then, I picked up a photograph. In the picture, Claire and Vanessa stood on either side of me, both smiling radiantly. Looking at that picture now, all I felt was bitter irony.The flames consumed the photograph bit by bit. Their smiles vanished in the fire, turning to ash. The flickering light filled my eyes.As the letters burned, fragments of their words surfaced before disappearing.Vanessa had written, "I'll always love and protect Adrian. We'll be the closest brother and sister in the world."Claire had written, "When I grow up, I'm going to marry Adrian. He'll be my husband. I'll love him forever. We'll have two children. The first will be a boy, and the second will be a girl."They had both made sincere promises to me. And I had made my own promises in return. They had both once told me that I was more important to them than their own lives.But now, the letters had yellowed with age. Even t

Chapter 9

Third-person POVEthan stood below the stage in a tailored suit, waiting for his name to be called.Just then, Claire's phone rang. Annoyed, she pulled it out, intending to silence it. That was when she caught a glimpse of a message notification that flashed across the screen."Claire, call me back immediately. Something's happened to Adrian."She let out a scornful laugh. Thinking of Adrian's last message, her resentment only deepened. She nonchalantly replied, "What trick is he trying to pull now?"Ethan was about to receive his award. She had neither the time nor the patience to deal with Adrian, who was obviously causing trouble now because he wanted to ruin Ethan's big moment.Her friend's call came through again. Claire declined it impatiently.Ethan glanced over nervously, saying, "Claire, I'm a little nervous."Claire took his hand and reassured him, "Relax. I'll be right here with you."On stage, the host announced Ethan's name.Claire smoothed out an imaginary wrink

Chapter 10

Third-person POVThe award ceremony ended in perfect fashion.To celebrate Ethan's win, Claire and Vanessa took him on a vacation. On the way to the resort, Ethan brought up the phone calls during the ceremony."Was that Adrian calling you? I thought I heard his name earlier.""Don't worry about him. He's just trying the same old trick again, starting a fire to get everyone's attention.""You shouldn't say that, Claire." Ethan protested gently. "Adrian just wants you to notice him. He doesn't mean any harm. This is all my fault. If you and Vanessa weren't spending time with me, he probably wouldn't have done something so extreme… Maybe we should go back and check on him. Even if he gets angry and yells at me, I'll be fine."His eyes were damp and shining, like a harmless, wronged kitten.Claire's heart melted. She stroked his cheek and said, "Ethan, you're too kind. That's why he always walks all over you."Vanessa immediately chimed in, "Don't blame yourself, Ethan. He's the o

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