Chapter 158
Chapter 158
Noelle smiled brightly at him. Because we’re siblings! Of course, I want my older brother to like me!”
Labs had assigned her.
Her answer seemed simple enough, but the real reason was far more complicated.
ted. It was all part
was all part of the mission the labs ha
Her objective in returning to the Anderson family was to get everyone to like her. Eli was already warming up to her, and Darmon had stopped his unfair favoritism toward Leia
Now it was Charbhe’s run. Noelle needed him to bond with her just as Damon and Eli had or else the mission wouldn’t be complete
Charlie looked at her–her smile as bright as the sim. His cold eyes flickered slightly, but he turned his gaze away, his voice cool ‘I don’t know about others, but liking someone… that’s a luxury for me.”
“Aluxury?” Noelle asked, confused.
Charlie connued, his tone unchanged. “You might have some misconceptions. But the truth is, not all siblings get along like they do in fairy tales.
“Especially in rich families. There’s always some kind of power struggle going on. Siblings might seem all cozy on the outside, but behind closed doors, they’re plotting against each other.
I’ve seen it plenty of times–siblings turning on one another, sending their family members to prison for power and wealth.
Im not like those people, though, I won’t turn against my siblings. But I’m also not going to be like Damon and Eli, fighting tooth and nail to protect you or Leia.
“The only thing I can promise you is that I’ll do my duty as an older brother. But if you expect anything more than that, or want me to break my principles for you, that’s not happening. Understand **
Charlie wasn’t one to share his thoughts freely, so hearing him speak so much was rare.
Noelle listened closely, her big, bright eyes focused on him, then she blinked.
After a moment, she asked a question that caught him off guard. “Charlie, have you ever liked anyone? Not Mom, Dad, any of your brothers, or
Leia‘
From the first moment Noelle had met Charlie, she’d found him distant and hard to approach.
Even at home, she had never seen him show warmth toward anyone. He was always polite but distant, cold even.
Charlie paused, surprised by the question. He thought about it for a moment, and realized… No, he hadn’t liked anyone.
As for his parents, he obeyed them out of a sense of duty. But if they crossed line, he wouldn’t blindly follow. He’d stick to his principles.
As for his siblings, he interacted with them because they shared the same blood. Keeping things amicable was just the way of things.
As the younger be
the younger brother, he listened to his ol
older brothers, and a
nd as the older brother, he looked out for the younger ones. It was all very methodical
Because that’s just how society expected him to behave. And so, that’s what he did.
Charlie couldn’t honestly say he liked his family.
After all, in his eyes, each of his parents and siblings had their flaws. None of them were perfect.
They were tied together by blood, bound by a bond called “family,” but if it weren’t for that connection, Charlie felt like he wouldn’t have bothered with then.
Still, there was no need for Noelle to know that, so he didn’t answer her question.
But Noelle, as if she had suddenly leveled up in emotional intelligence, seemed to catch on that Charlie wasn’t going to say anything
She smiled and, as though she had figured it all out, declared, “I can tell Charlie. You don’t like anyone. But don’t worry. I’ll work hard to be the first pon you like!”
At her words, Charlie’s eyelids
ids twitched. His sharp, good–looking brows furrowed slightly as he turned his gaze back to Noelle “Why bother?”
“I already told you, that as long as you don’t cause trouble. I won’t make things difficult for you. If you need help, I’ll do what I can, bn’t that
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Chapter 138
enough“”
Noelle paused, thinking it over for a second “Well I guess that’s already pretty generous of you.”
But then she shook her head and flashed him another smile. “I’s not enough”
Charlie was speechless.
“I still want you to like me. Charlie!”
” she said cheerfully, a
, a clear mission in her voice.
Charlie, at a loss for words, couldn’t understand why Noelle was so fixated on getting him to like her.
He thought he had made it clear. He wouldn’t make life hard for her, and if it was within his power, he’d help. He wondered, “What else could she want! He didn’t get why she had to keep pressing him about it..
After all, she had already carved out a place for herself in the Anderson Family. As her older brother, why did his affection matter so much? He just couldn’t understand it
He’d always felt there was something off about Noelle–something about her sudden appearance in the Anderson family and her claiming to be related to them felt strange. He suspected there was more to the story than she was letting on
But, Charlie knew that even if he asked, she probably wouldn’t tell him.
Charlie wasn’t the type to get tangled in emotional drama, and Noelle’s persistence was starting to irritate him. Turning his face away, he said coldly. “Do whatever you want. But if you get in my way. I’ll lose my patience.
“No worries, no worries!” Noelle said with a grin. “I want you to like me, not hate met I’ll only do the things you like, and avoid the things you don’t
“Really? Charlie asked, raising an eyebrow and looking at her again.
Noelle nodded enthusiastically. “Yes!”
Then I’ll tell you
tell you this: I don’t like it when you’re all over n
over me. So, can you give me some space?”
Noelle paused for a brief moment, then stood her ground, hands on her hips, and said firmly. “That’s not going to happen!”
Charlie blinked. “Didn’t you just say you’d avoid everything I don’t like?”
Noelle blinked innocently. “Well, the thing is, if I want you to like me, it’s kind of a given, right? If I didn’t want you to like me, then your likes and dislikes wouldn’t matter to me at all!”
Charlie was at a loss for words. He couldn’t help but think that Noelle didn’t have much filter. He thought, ‘Does she need to say everything that popped into her head?
Charlie was cold by nature, but he knew how to handle things with subtlety, Norlle
the other hand, was like a blunt instrument, totally lacking in
Charlie had hoped that by being clear with her, they’d be able to keep things simple–no lama, no entanglements. But it seemed that Noelle was even more persistent than he’d imagined, and it was starting to give him a headache.
Still, her behavior hadn’t crossed any lines yet, so he could still tolerate it. Like he’d told Leis before, as long as the issue didn’t cross his boundaries, he could indulge her a little. This applied to Noelle too.
So Charlie didn’t snap at her. Instead, he just picked up his pace.
Noelle, seeing him speed up, quickly followed suit.
She pled her hand and shed sitt siste dess slayful speile teksalla i kased una rastlay simies Reyna bezni
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