Chapter 47 Alice, slender and composed, stood her ground.
âFine, fine, fine!â Luke ripped out Chloeâs IV line and scooped her up.âLetâs go. Weâre not treating her here.â
of satisfaction in her heart. a hint Chloe silently clung to Laikeâs neck, At the door, Luke saw the heavy rain and his small umbrella. He eyed Aliceâs large umbrella.âGive me yours. Youâll be fine with the small one.â
Alice found it ridiculous.âWhy?â
âBecause Chloeâs sick because of you. You should give her the umbrella.â Jack, his face stern, crushed Lukeâs small umbrella under his foot. His eyes were cold.âShe considered you brothers. Thatâs when you had the right to make demands. Now that she doesnât want to, who are you?â
Luke was furious.âAlice, why are you making things so difficult? Youâre sneaking around with that guy, and now youâre fighting with your family?â
Alice remained silent, approaching Luke with her umbrella. She opened it, shielding them from the rain.
Luke frowned. âIf you change your mind now, itâs not too late! That school nurse is no good, he has ulterior motives!â
The next second, Alice slapped him.
Luke was stunned. The stinging pain brought him back to reality. He was holding Chloe and couldnât dodge. He hadnât expected Alice to actually hit him!
Chloe cried out, âAlice, why did you hit Luke? Refusing the umbrella is one thing, but hitting him-â Then she received a slap from Alice.
The world fell silent. Aliceâs eyes were slightly bloodshot, her voice flat.âI hit him. So what? You can talk about me, but not him!â
Alice stormed towards Jack. âLetâs go.
Jack hadnât expected her to defend him. He took the umbrella from her, and they walked into the rain.
Luke finally recovered and chased after them, the rain pelting them. Chloe, already feeling unwell, was even worse now. She was annoyed at Lukeâs stupidity. She didnât want to get soaked. She faked a cough.âLuke, I feel dizzy.â
Luke realized Chloe was in his arms. He reluctantly said, âChloe, Iâll take you home first.â By then, Alice and Jack were far away.
In the car, Alice noticed Jackâs wet shoulder. Heâd shielded her from the rain.
Jack started the car.âYou were pretty brave back there.â
Alice looked uncomfortable.âI didnât want them talking about you like that.â That angry, huh?â
Alice hesitated. âYouâre my first friend. I donât want people talking about you like that.â She didnât. care what Luke thought. But he couldnât talk about Jack like that.
Jack smiled slightly, his eyes on the road.
Back at the apartment, Aliceâs phone rang repeatedly. It was Noah. She silenced it. Noah watched helplessly as the call went unanswered. He looked at Luke. She didnât answer.â I told you she was influenced, and you still condoned her. She even hit Chloe and me!â Noah said, âYou hit her too, right? Itâs fair now.â
âThatâs different! Iâm her brother! And Chloe didnât provoke her!â
Noah sighed. âI know, but Aliceâs not as easy to appease. If you didnât have an umbrella, you couldâve just had the driver take Chloe. Why did you need Aliceâs umbrella? Knowing she resented you, you still demanded she give it up! You asked for it!â
âI was trying to save time. And Alice couldnât manage that big umbrella alone! She refused and hit us!â Luke was still fuming.âI need to text her.â
[Alice, where are you?]
The message failed:âYou are not friends with this user. Please add them to your contacts before sending a message.â
Lukeâs face turned livid.âShe deleted me! How dare she?!â
Noah sighed.âI told you not to act rashly. Youâre still in disciplinary probation; you canât see her. If she reports you, youâll be punished.â
Iâm afraid of her? Iâll just pretend I donât have that sister!â Luke slammed his phone. He was humiliated.
âDonât be silly. Sheâs in her rebellious teenage years. Sheâs been wronged and influenced by that school nurse. Sheâs still our sister. That will never change.â Noahâs voice was firm. Iâll get her back. Donât do anything else unless you want to lose her.â
Luke didnât respond. At dinner, he only took a few bites. âWho made this sweet and sour pork. ribs? Itâs terrible. Whereâs the old chef?â
The butler hesitated.âAlice made them before. She adjusted the seasoning to your liking. Other chefs canât replicate it.â
Luke froze, staring at the dish, lost in thought. He hadnât noticed those details before. After Alice left, his life and the teamâs performance had fallen apart! His panic, not anger, overwhelmed him. when he found out he was blocked. He hadnât realized how much Aliceâs absence affected him.
The next day, Alice went to school, but Chloe was absent. Noah watched Alice in class, her posture straight, her expression focused. He was taken aback. Sheâd changed so much. He hesitated. âHow is Alice doing lately?â
The homeroom teacher replied, âAlice has made great progress. Parents should pay more. attention and avoid influencing her.
Her poor grades before might have been due to family issues. I think she may have been deliberately underperforming to take the pressure off Chloe. She is intelligent. Chloe is average, and Alice may have done this for three years because Chloe gets easily upset. I shouldnât have said this; please keep it discreet.â
Noahâs face turned pale. Alice had been underperforming to reduce Chloeâs pressure? He thought about her recent changes and her improved grades. A sharp pain pierced his chest.
14.30 Chapter 47 He almost stumbled. âTeacher, can I talk to Alice for a moment?â He needed to ask her if this was true.