"Why does it matter? That was so long ago," Bradon replied dismissively, as if he didn’t want to talk about this topic any longer.
Despite what he wanted, I wasn’t inclined to let it go, because I could clearly imagine the consequences of his actions. I stared at him intensely while feeling a stinging sensation at the back of my eyes that made realize that I was on the verge of tears. It was probably because I could relate to his situation, imagining the punishnt and the price he had to pay to cover for . If on that day, the one who had covered for was truly Anthony, then I was sure he would have gotten off with little to no punishnt at all. However, things must have been very different for Bradon.
"Why did you do sothing like that? You knew that you would be punished in my place. There was no way they would let you go without any punishnt," I said as my voice cracked under the strain of my emotions.
"I did it so you wouldn’t get punished and so that no more conflict would arise between our families. I didn’t want any issue to arise in Anthony’s engagent either," Bradon explained calmly.
I wanted to ask him again why he did such a thing, but my lips only quivered. How he protected during that incident made believe he was a helpful and trustworthy person who would protect my sister right to the end. Little did I know that, just like , Bradon probably needed soone to protect him. Sadly, I was forced to realize that there was probably no such person for him to rely on when he was growing up and perhaps there was no such person for him now.
"Thank you for helping out on that day. Well, I guess this is a very delayed thank you," I said softly and shyly.
"Don’t worry about it. It was my decision, and you should not worry about the punishnt. As I said, it was so long ago," Bradon said before he smiled a little at .
"I had no idea that it was you. I couldn’t tell you apart from your brother," I confessed in a voice barely above a whisper, realizing just how guilty I felt.
Although there was no way for to realize that the one I had t was Bradon because I had never t him before, I still felt extrely guilty for so reason. I couldn’t help but wonder if things would have been different between us or if we could have beco allies in so way had I realized his true identity and the things he was going through. Despite my worries, Bradon looked calm and strong as if there was nothing for him to worry about in this world.
"Don’t beat yourself up over sothing like that. I have to say that I didn’t recognize you at first either. On the first day we t, I thought you were Diana," Bradon said before letting out an amused chuckle, recalling our first encounter.
Sothing about how he phrased his sentences caught my attention, and I ended up narrowing my eyes curiously as I stared at him.
"What about after that? What about the days after that?" I asked, feeling my chest clenched tightly in anticipation of his answer.
He did say that on the first day he did not recognize and couldn’t tell apart from my sister but what about the other days after that?
"Why are you suddenly so curious?" he teased as he placed his large hand on the top of my head. The way he smiled so cheerfully at made my heart skip a beat.
"Tell !" I demanded without backing down.
"Fine. Not so long after that, I t your sister for the first ti. Sohow I could tell that she was the real Diana, and that could only an that the one who broke the heirloom must have been you, Dahlia. That was the only day that I mistook you for Diana, and it was because I had never t her before," Bradon explained patiently before he flashed another attractive smile.
"How could you tell the two of us apart?" I asked, sounding slightly upset. Perhaps I wasn’t a pro at acting as my sister back in the days, but it still hurt my pride a little to see that he managed to figure out so easily.
"You two are very different. Back then, and even now," Bradon said confidently, nodding his head.
"You may have helped , but I wish that you hadn’t done that," I whispered before letting out a sigh. I knew it was already too late and we couldn’t go back to change the past, but that didn’t stop from feeling so guilty. I hated the idea that Bradon was punished for my sake, even if he said it was out of his own volition.
"You should stop worrying about every small little thing that happened in the past," he said in a tone that sounded very comforting.
"I don’t think that it was just a little thing," I retorted.
"Well, if it bothers you so much, let tell you a little sothing to ease your mind," Bradon said before the corners of his lips lifted into a teasing smile.
"What is it?" I asked without hiding my curiosity.
"You’ve already returned the favor a long ti ago. So let’s say that we are even now," Bradon said.
"What do you an? I don’t recall returning any favor," I said, my brows drawing together in a frown. I honestly couldn’t recall any action in the past that might have counted as returning his favor for saving on that day.
"Did I end up doing sothing for you while thinking that I was doing it for Anthony?" I asked, the thought suddenly crossing my mind.
"I have to say that you were a pretty good actress even when you were young," Bradon teased before letting out a soft laugh.
"I don’t understand. What are you laughing about?" I asked, starting to feel slightly annoyed by how he was withholding the truth from .
–To be continued...
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