It’s Your Turn To Cry and Beg, Dear Uncle

Kyra stared at the name card in her hand. Lila's name was written on it along with her position as the owner of Wordsmith Wonders, a publishing company that specifically handled fiction novels. Kyra had heard of this company once and even considered sending her manuscript there but she decided to work with her best friend instead who was an editor.

As she put down the name card, Kyra searched for Lilian Barnett. Apparently, that was Lila's pen name. She used to be an author before she decided to open her own publishing company after the success of her last two books.

That was also the reason why Kyra was interested in sending her manuscript in the first place. She thought a publishing company that was under Lilian Barnett would understand her better as a fellow author.

So, yes, she knew of Lilian Barnett but not the fact that Lila was Lilian.

"That was an absolute disaster," said Valeria from the other side of the phone call. As soon as she woke up this morning, Valeria had called her to ask about last night.

Well, Kyra did confide in Valeria at one point because she almost went crazy trying to deny her feelings for James.

Kyra chuckled mockingly while covering her eyes with her hands. "You tell me."

She no longer knew what to feel. She just felt numb and her mind empty.

"What's uncanny is this coincidence. For some reason, I don't like this situation."

"It doesn't matter anymore," Kyra responded in a weak voice. She didn't want to talk but this was her best friend since elementary school. She couldn't just avoid Valeria.

"It does matter!" Valeria raised her voice exasperatedly.

"I'm already ruined before I even made a move! What more could I say? What more could I do?!"

Valeria's encouragement and constant denial was the last thing Kyra needed now, so she couldn't help but scream at Valeria out of frustration. She couldn't give Valeria a chance to feed her with hope. She didn't want to let herself drown further when she could barely breathe at the moment.

And adding to the injury, Kyra's feelings remained the same even when she couldn't have what she desired or even a chance to chase after for James.

"Kyra…"

"He hasn't been home for a week now." Kyra chuckled mockingly. Her voice was slowly lowering but it was filled with self-deprecation. "I shouldn't be counting but foolishly, I started counting before I knew it."

"Ky–"

"You know, I thought I would cry at one point but the tears never fell. It just hurts without a way for me to let it all out."

Kyra's voice was laced with small laughter. For Valeria, this condition felt more worrying than her crying. She preferred Kyra wailing and screaming until her eyes were swollen.

"Kyra, I don't want to upset you but I do need to remind you that maybe…"

Kyra shook her head as she buried herself between her knees. "No more, please…"

However, Valeria stubbornly continued her words. "Maybe Mr. James knew about your feelings and that's why he did this."

Her heart went into a jolt as Kyra slowly raised her head. She frowned, seemingly not understanding. "What?"

"It's sort of weird how Lila suddenly pops out without you knowing about their relationship beforehand. I don't think Mr. James is that kind of person. We all know he loves you like his own family, that's a sure fact. Everyone with eyes can see this."

"W-What…" Kyra put her legs down and picked up her phone. "What are you saying?"

"What I mean is based on how Mr. James usually acts, he would have told you that he was getting to know Lila. But, he didn't. He just suddenly brought her to celebrate his birthday and even replaced your cake!"

"Kyra," Valeria continued with much certainty that her hypothesis was right. "You're his only family. I mean, what would have changed if he had told you that he was seeing someone? What was so wrong in informing his niece?"

"...Unless he knew about my feelings," Kyra drew the conclusion and widened her eyes in disbelief.

"Yes. The tipping point is Mr. James replacing your cake. That's completely unnecessary unless his purpose is–"

"--to humiliate me," Kyra finished Valeria's sentence.

"No. I don't think that's his purpose. I think he just wants you to give up your feelings entirely and he might think that the only way to do that is–"

"By humiliating me!" Kyra persisted. At this point, her voice had lost its warmth. Her heart burnt not in woes but in a ball of fury. The hatred was slowly seeping into her bones.

"Well…" Valeria hesitated, "Yes, by rejecting you in the cruelest way."

Right at that moment, Kyra heard a knock on her door and Mr. Roman's voice sounded from outside. "Miss, there is Mr. Oliver downstairs and he's asking to see you."

Kyra was silent. Her hands were gripping tightly onto the edge of her desk to the point that her knuckles had turned white. Her breathing rugged out of anger. She tried to calm down but the thought of James knowing about her feelings and choosing to reject her by humiliating her kept circling in her head.

Her mind was full of questions of what she would do if that was true. In fact, when she ruminated on the party from last night, she suddenly noticed a lot of weird points from James' actions and all of them pointed to the probability of that one conclusion.

But, her feelings might be deeper than she had initially thought because even now, her logic and her heart were at war against each other. Her heart wanted to deny this truth.

However, as she was internally debating, a familiar voice broke her train of thought.

"Kyra."

It was Oliver. Unlike James' other friends, Oliver always spoke to her in such a kind and careful tone as if he was speaking to a child. And it always managed to sway her, Kyra ended up opening the door.

"Brother Oliver."

She schooled her face into a smile. "What is it?"

Oliver glanced at Roman who was standing at the side. "Can we talk inside or somewhere else?"

Kyra noticed the glance and chose to welcome him to the bedroom. Mr. Roman seemed to disapprove but Kyra shook her head reassuringly. Then, as soon as she closed the door, Oliver began to speak.

"I want to apologise for the other night at the party."

Kyra knitted her brows in confusion. "At the party?"

Oliver stared at her for a while before exhaling a long sigh. "Kyra, the others might not notice but I know."

"You know…" The frown on Kyra's forehead deepened as she tried to recall what happened with Oliver last night, and when she did, her smile disappeared. She took a step back.

"H-How did you know?" Her voice shook, nervously.

Oliver sighed. "I read your work, remember? Anyone who sees it and knows you will be able to make a guess. It's pretty obvious."

"Did you tell him?" Kyra went straight to the point. She shot a piercing gaze at the man before her. If even a stranger noticed it, then it was already a fact that James knew as well.

But, how did James know?

"No, I didn't. I said what I said that night because I was annoyed at him pretending to be oblivious. I don't think what he did to you was right. The other might think it was a mistake or a coincidence but I know what James intended to do."

Kyra bit her lower lip as the corner of her lips began to twitch. Her eyes slowly watered. Oliver felt a pang in his heart when he noticed Kyra's blue eyes began to redden. He couldn't help but approach the girl and rubbed her back.

"But, thinking again, I think I was overstepping. I might've embarrassed you as well, and knowing you…" James chuckled as he tried to cheer Kyra up, "You certainly do not need anyone to fight your war."

Kyra chuckled and finally, the tears rolled down her cheeks.

She broke down.

Oliver immediately caught her in his arms. He continued to pat her. "But, Kyra, I want you to know that you don't have to face it alone. I'm here for you."

Kyra tried to stop herself from crying as she gently pushed Oliver.

"What do you mean?"

Oliver pursed his lips. There was a hint of hesitation on his face. He knew he had to tell her before she found out about it herself. But, looking at how messed up the little girl was, Oliver suddenly didn't have the heart to tell her.

"What do you mean?" Kyra stressed her question once again. This time, she stared straight at him.

In the end, Oliver gave up and unlocked his phone before handing it to her. Kyra stared at him in confusion but her hand slowly reached out for it.

What entered her eyes immediately beget vengeance in her heart and her eyes darkened diabolically.

"A Rising Author VS Best-selling Author: Kay Hammond Plagiarizes Lilian Barnett's Work."