Chapter 72 True Colors
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Bastian wanted his family to understand that Azalea wasn’t who they thought she was–but he’d forgotten these people had never intended to have a reasonable conversation. What they demanded was simple: his unconditional allegiance to Sydney, now and forever.
Matthias crossed his arms, his expression dripping with disdain. “A
misunderstanding? What misunderstanding could possibly explain you siding with that traitorous Azalea over Sydney?”
The accusation rankled Bastian. “I didn’t take sides. I merely stated facts.
“In esports, you win or lose fair and square. A championship won through underhanded means nothing to me.”
Matthias let out a derisive laugh. “Who cares what you think? If Sydney hadn’t felt guilty about your team’s loss, I wouldn’t have intervened–only for Azalea to turn it around and make a fool of us!
“How noble of you, Bastian. So righteous, while Sydney bears the brunt of public hatred. The only reason I haven’t dragged you here by your collar to apologize is because you’re my brother.”
“Bastian, what’s done is done. But next time something like this happens, consult your family before acting recklessly! Ivy sounded helpless. As a mother, she hated seeing her children divided.
Wesley’s glare silenced further discussion. “You should be grateful Sydney’s even willing to forgive you. Otherwise, I’d be the first to teach you what’s right and wrong. You can’t just turn against your own family.
“She’s working on some club or whatever lately, right? That’s your area of expertise. Why don’t you give her a taste of reality and make things difficult for her? Think of it as a way to make it up to Sydney.”
For a moment, Bastian’s mind went blank. When comprehension finally dawned, it hit him like a physical blow.
The truth was, they all knew Azalea had been falsely accused. And really, that made sense–Bastian was the foolish one here. As the ones orchestrating everything
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Chapter 72 True Colors
behind the scenes, how could they not know what was real and what wasn’t?
He had thought they just misunderstood Azalea.
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At that moment, Bastian felt that it was only today he truly saw his closest family for who they really were.
His voice shook with barely contained fury. “You mean … the only reason you’re upset is because I messed up your plan to frame Azalea–and now you want me to help bully her too?”
The naked truth, stripped of all pretense, hung horrifyingly in the air.
Bastian was utterly shocked. He couldn’t believe the.. words came from his
parents.
“Bastian, listen to yourself. Who’s bullying Azalea? She’s the one who’s been disrespectful to Sydney, going against mom and dad. We’re just trying to teach her a lesson. She’s too rebellious–she needs guidance before she causes an even bigger mess.” Skyler spread his hands, looking exasperated, as if his good intentions were being misunderstood.
Ivy nodded approvingly at her third son. Finally, someone in the family understood them. “Skyler’s right. We’re doing this for Azalea’s own good. Just look -when she was still living here, would she have dared to act like this?”
Her face drooped slightly. Honestly, Matthias had been right from the start. Back when they first found Azalea and brought her home, Ivy had wanted to make up for all those lost years–giving her the best of everything.
But Matthias had warned her; a girl raised in an orphanage would be unpredictable. If you gave too much too soon, you risked raising someone completely wild.
Wesley’s face flushed with anger. “That ungrateful wretch severed ties at the hospital because she’d already latched onto the Lennoxes! You and Cassius are out of your minds. The way you’re indulging her is only giving her the guts to challenge us. If she dares to hurt Sydney again, I won’t spare either of you.
“She doesn’t understand pain, so she doesn’t know what she did wrong. Now that she’s got a bit of talent, she thinks she can defy the family. If we don’t show her the consequences now, she’ll think she’s above everything. We’re asking you to teach
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Chapter 72 True Colors
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her a lesson—for her own good. Even if you’re not doing it for Sydney, do it for
her.”
The more he spoke, the angrier he got. Wesley remembered attending a recent dinner party, where people were gossiping about the situation online–laughing at him. What a disgrace! Back when she was kept under wraps, no matter how bad she was, only they knew. Now that she was out in the world, she was out of control.
Seeing that their persuasion worked, Sydney lowered her eyes as if struggling to find the right words, then said softly, “Bastian, I know you care about Azalea. But it’s dangerous for a girl to be living alone outside. No matter what has happened, can’t we just bring her home first?”
In the past, Bastian wouldn’t have thought anything was wrong with these words. He would probably think that Sydney truly cared for Azalea. But now, hearing them, he found them utterly ridiculous.
Azalea already resented them. If they really followed their parents‘ suggestion— cutting her wings in the name of “caring” just to force her back–could that possibly be for her good? Wouldn’t that only push her to hate them even more?
Bastian’s heart ached. He, too, had once believed Azalea was rebellious and needed correction, back when she still lived at home.
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Chapter 73 Who’s Your Sister?
Chapter 73 Who’s Your Sister?
