Sweet Devil [BL]

Chapter 46. Not the First Time

After a short silence, Gabriel asked, "You're not asking why?"

"Do I need to?" Masha replied with a drawn-out sigh. "But I'm still curious about one thing: when exactly did you come up with this twisted idea?"

"When your brother asked if I was Sleeping Beauty. These words hinted that I had slept for a certain amount of time, and your next words confirmed my thought. The underlying meaning indicated that I had been in a coma, probably due to a head wound. Then came the idea of pretending to have lost my memory."

"Honestly.... I'm surprised you were so clear-minded after emerging from a two-week coma. Shouldn't you have been muddle-headed? Or, I don't know, a little confused?"

"As you know, it's not the first coma I've experienced—but I do hope that's going to be the last one. My brain can only take so much damage," Gabriel scoffed, a cold light flashing in his emerald eyes. "Of course, it took me a few seconds to organize my thoughts and recognize that strange feeling of sluggishness. This, coupled with your brother's words and yours, made it rather easy to guess what happened. Although I admit my memory of why I fell into a coma is blurry. Really, I don't remember much of that day, so I'm not completely lying."

"Sorry, it was my brother's fault. He threw a tantrum and was careless. He said you saved him." Masha murmured as she lowered her head, pausing to chew on her lips. "Just now, I didn't think before opening my mouth. I didn't want you to remember such awful memories. That first coma of yours...."

"Don't make that face. It has already been four years since then," Gabriel interrupted, trying to stretch out a hand to ruffle the teenage girl's hair only to realize that he didn't have the strength to, and seeing the state of his hands... better not to move them carelessly. He could only let his arm fall back on the bed. "Although the anger is still there, I am not devoured by it anymore. I'm fine."

"You say so, but aren't you planning to take revenge on them no matter what? Pretending to have amnesia...." Masha paused and shook her head. "It's for that purpose, isn't it?"

"If the law can't bring my mother justice, I need to do it myself. Even if she wasn't the best mother in the world, she still loved me from the bottom of her heart," Gabriel confirmed, his cold gaze turning somewhat gentle, albeit only for a short moment. "But don't worry, I won't do anything stupid, nor will I commit a crime."

"I know you won't; you're too cool-headed for that. But that's not what I'm afraid of. I'm scared of what that woman will try to do to you. We both know who caused you to fall into your first coma and how vicious she is. She won't miss this opportunity to get rid of you, not now that you're weak and defenseless."

"I don't think so. Knowing her, she won't do anything too extreme—for the time being, at least. Now that I have lost my memory, I'm not a threat to her or her sons' position in my father's heart. She's all too aware of my father's personality. He'll never allow a sick person to become his heir, which means the spot is open for one of her children."

"For goodness' sake, that damned company should be yours, not theirs!" Masha growled through gritted teeth, clenching her fists in a vain attempt to restrain her anger. Whenever the topic was brought up, she felt like strangling someone.

"A company built on shady deals?" Gabriel sneered, contempt distorting his beautiful face. "I'm not interested in it."

"I know, but still! Your mother sacrificed so much for it, and it was a flourishing business in the beginning. It's your father who's destroying it! He forgot what human rights mean, only thinking of profits!"

As Masha talked, her face turned redder and redder. Her chest felt stuffy, and she had the urge to scream her lungs out, yet Gabriel was the same as ever; it was as if what they were talking about didn't concern him. It made her feel even more depressed and helpless. Whenever Gabriel acted like a block of ice, it only reminded her that the sunny boy she had once known would never come back.