My Stepbrother secret-possession

Learn To Lie Or Accept Consequences

The street is quiet, with hardly a car passing by. The sun has set, leaving the moon to accompany the bright stars that have taken their place in the darkness. I stroll down the street as the gentle breeze from the evening air blows against my skin.
Why didn't I bring a jacket along?

I stroll through the silent neighbourhood; the houses are all lit up and look so lively.

When I reach the gymnasium called Lilith, referred to as a cheetah's workout centre, I walk through the entrance freely. It's quieter than any gymnasium should be, and most confusingly, it's sparsely populated. It seems they're about to call it a day as I spot two boys clearing up.

"Hello." I politely wave.

"Hey." A young man in his twenties responds, while the other just pauses and gawks.

They don't even bother telling me to come back tomorrow. I'm sure it's my outfit; it doesn't look like someone who is about to lift weights or punch bags.

I should be grateful—I have a slim body that barely gains weight no matter how much food I consume, although I rarely eat excessively. It always surprises Sawyer, as she had to restrict her diet to maintain her Barbie figure.

I can't imagine how the girls would treat me if I dare to gain weight. Embry will probably put me in a national commercial. I'm sure of it.

"I'm looking for Leigh," I say to them.

They both look at each other with suspicious eyes before shooting me an apologetic smile. "Don't know him." The gawking dude responds.

They must be kidding. "Leigh Boyce, he comes here to train." I clarify.

The two boys shake their heads. "Sorry, I can't help you." The first dude says. "We're about to close, so you can come back tomorrow to stalk him."

What the heck? They think I'm a stalker? They think I would walk in here just to meet someone I don't know? They must be insane.

With boiling annoyance surging through my body, I say, "Stalk? He's practically my stepbrother."

Taken aback, both of their eyebrows arch. "Wait? You're Ava? Of course, you are, Ava." The first dude asks, and without letting me reply, he also answers himself at once.

"How didn't I realize it? The accent and everything." The gawking dude chuckles. "I'm following you on Instagram."

Of course, you are.

"Oh, I'm sorry." The other dude apologises. "It's just that girls always adopt the habit of stopping by to see Leigh or tricking us into giving out his personal information. Dealt with quite a few today; I'm just so exhausted. That itself is a workout on its own." With a weak smile, he concludes the explanation.

I'm not surprised; I myself am getting used to girls' behaviour towards my soon-to-be stepbrother.

"It's okay. Is he around?" I get straight to the main question.

"He's at the swimming centre next door." The guy kindly answers.

"Thank you." With an appreciative smile, I leave the gymnasium and head towards the swimming centre, which takes me less than a minute to walk to.

The place is eerily quiet as I walk in. Some bulbs have been switched off or damaged.

When I finally reach the main area, I find Leigh standing across the tall pool with his back to me, arranging some pool equipment, I suppose.

He must be lost in thought because he doesn't notice my presence until I say, "So, this is the place you hide when you're away from home."

Leigh quickly spins around, his eyes widening in surprise as he finds me smiling at him. "What are you doing here?" he asks, still baffled.