The Stepbrother’s Hidden Desires

The biology teacher was an old man in his fifties whose teaching skills were rather poor. Annabel propped her chin up with both hands, unable to absorb a single word. However, she didn’t dare to fall asleep in his class, so she discreetly took out her phone and started playing a game.

Just as she was getting into it, a hand suddenly reached over from her right and snatched her phone away. Annabel turned her head and immediately tried to grab it back. “Mind your own business,” she snapped.

Logan glanced at her sideways and lazily called out, “Sir…”

The biology teacher adjusted his glasses, “Is there a problem?”

Annabel quickly withdrew her hand and pretended to listen attentively. Logan then asked a highly complex question, and the biology teacher enthusiastically launched into an elaborate explanation, almost veering off into outer space.

Under the table, Annabel gave Logan a hard kick. “Despicable!” she muttered.

He hissed in pain but continued to take notes as if nothing had happened.

Logan’s insistence on sitting next to Annabel had caused many of his admirers to be heartbroken for a long time. They soon noticed that Logan, who never used to interact much, was frequently bothering Annabel. He would catch her sleeping in class, playing on her phone, or arguing with others, and he would interfere every time.

Annabel could never outargue him and would get so frustrated that she’d resort to physical actions, but Logan was more agile. He would block her every move, and she couldn’t even touch a hair on his head.

One day, it was their turn to clean the classroom. Annabel used to pay George to do it all by himself, but Logan was different; he couldn’t be bribed.

After class in the afternoon, Annabel picked up her bag, planning to leave as usual. “It’s your turn to clean today,” Logan said, stretching his legs to block her between him and the wall.

The remaining students craned their necks to watch. Annabel felt humiliated. She had enough pocket money to pay off George, but there was no way to buy off Logan.

“I’m not cleaning. So what?”

“Are you sure you won’t do it?”

Logan stood up and moved closer, forcing Annabel to press herself against the wall. “What are you doing?” she snapped, looking disgusted.

Annabel had been practicing Taekwondo since she was a child and tried to kick him, but Logan was so close, with one hand propped against the wall, that he had her completely pinned. Any movement she made could be countered by him. Annabel wondered when he had gotten so skilled.

Logan seemed to read her mind. In a low voice, he said, “I got better because you bullied me so much!”

They were struggling with each other, but to onlookers, it looked like Logan was about to kiss Annabel. Some boys started cheering, and someone even whistled.

Logan’s good friend, Louis, seized the opportunity to fan the flames. “Get together! Get together!”

Logan ignored them, acting even more stubborn than Annabel. “I don’t mind. I have all the time to wait.”

Annabel was extremely depressed. Seeing the crowd around them, and saw Aria standing a short distance away, her lips pursed tightly in resentment, made her even more exasperated.

“Aria, stop looking at me like that. I’m not interested in him!”

Aria’s face turned red and then white.

Lately, Aria’s grades had been dropping, and even a blind person could see it was because of Logan.

Logan paused for a second, then his face also showed disdain. “Same here. Don’t flatter yourself.”

He suddenly leaned in, his warm breath tickling Annabel’s ear. “I know you have a crush on Mr. Curry, but does Mr. Curry like you?”

Everyone at school knew she liked David, but it was clear he didn’t feel the same. Recently, he had been getting closer to Nancy. During the last basketball game, Nancy wiped David’s sweat in front of everyone, and he didn’t object. Yet, whenever Annabel got near him, he showed all kinds of disdain. Annabel suspected that the two of them were going to start dating, and she had been feeling depressed about it lately.

Frustrated, she threw her bag at Logan, not wanting to continue the conversation. “Fine, I’ll clean, okay?”

Logan finally retracted his hand. “Don’t think about running away; you won’t outrun me.”

Having experienced his persistence before, Annabel reluctantly cleaned the classroom properly for once.

____

On Saturday , David spent the day in the countryside with some friends and returned home to find his parents having dinner.

His father, Clay, beckoned him over. “Today have your favorite grilled fish. Come and have some.”

“I’ve already eaten.”

“Annabel came to the clinic today.”

Hearing this, David stopped in his tracks and turned back to the table. “What happened? Is she okay?”

“She said her stomach was upset. Probably from irregular meals, but nothing serious.”

David wondered if Annabel was up to her old tricks again. Ever since she participated in that talent show, she had made many new friends at school, but they were all slackers like her.

Iris gave David a meaningful glance. “I heard the vice principal’s daughter has had a crush on you for four years. I met her once; she’s quite nice. Have you considered her?”

Annabel had been very sweet, calling Iris mommy nonstop at the clinic. She wouldn’t leave even after getting her medicine and spent a long time chatting with Iris, mostly talking about David. Annabel’s enthusiasm for David left Iris feeling a bit helpless. To discourage her, Iris had mentioned that she liked Nancy, but Annabel had pouted and said, “I like you a lot too. Don’t you like me?”

This had made Iris feel a bit sorry for her.

David frowned. “Mom, I’m only twenty-two. What’s the rush?”

“I just mean you should try dating a nice girl. I’m not saying you should get married right away. Do you like some girl already?”

David rolled his eyes and deflected her questions. He had already been distancing himself from Annabel and didn’t look after her like he used to.

That afternoon, he saw boys from other classes, all slackers, hanging out with Annabel after school. He had held back a few times but finally couldn’t take it anymore and called Annabel into his office to scold her.

David stood with his arms crossed and a stern expression on his face.

Annabel wasn’t afraid of him at all. She looked up at him with a mischievous smile.

“What are you doing after school, not going home, hanging out with them?” David demanded.

“Playing games. They’re really good, but I’m still better. Every time…”

“Stop.” David cut her off, annoyed. Annabel immediately shut her mouth and put on a serious face, but he could see the triumphant gleam in her eyes. She was doing it on purpose to irritate him.

Annabel smiled sweetly, “We just play basketball for an hour, tops. Then we all go home and do our homework.”

David’s anger subsided somewhat, though he still looked stern. “Why haven’t I seen you on the basketball court?”

“We don’t play at school. Besides, if you saw me, would you have come to find me today?”

David raised his hand as if to hit her. She laughed and shrank back. Then he remembered what Iris had said about her visit to the clinic. “Why was your stomach upset?”

“You’ve been ignoring me, so I lost my appetite. It triggered my stomach problems.”

David almost laughed in exasperation. “Are you blaming everything on me?”

Though he kept a stern face, he couldn’t help but smile a little. Annabel, acting like a lovesick puppy, quickly hooked her arm around his and rested her head on his shoulder.

“Don’t be stingy. Just let me lean on you for a moment, really, just a moment.”

Before he could push her away, he looked up and saw the vice principal, Nancy’s father, standing outside the window, his face as dark as thunder.