Falling In Love with Younger Brother

He held two umbrellas in his hands.

I took a step back, creating some distance silently.

"No need, my boyfriend is coming to pick me up soon."

I told the simplest, yet most truthful lie.

"Then I'll wait with you until he gets here, and leave after."

Chandler was...

He was completely insane.

I felt like I was punching the air, leaving me speechless for a moment.

"Fine, then just wait."

Based on what I knew about him, he wouldn't last more than twenty minutes before losing his patience.

But I underestimated him.

From seven o'clock to nine-thirty, the downpour never let up, and Chandler stood next to me the whole time, saying nothing, gripping the umbrella, stubbornly waiting with me.

Finally, I couldn't hold back anymore.

"Chandler, you really are crazy! Fine, I'll tell you, my boyfriend's not coming tonight, but I'm not going with you either. I don't want to stay with you. Do you understand? I'd rather walk home in the rain and get a raging fever than walk side by side with you. That would make me sick!"

I shouted.

The next second, I rushed out into the rain.

If this went on any longer, I'd be spending the night on the streets.

The torrential rain instantly blurred my vision, water pooling at my ankles. I stumbled forward, slipped, and fell to my knees.

The sound of footsteps in the water grew closer, and the downpour over my head suddenly stopped.

I collapsed into a warm chest.

"Are you alright? Can you still walk? Let me take you home."

Chandler's concerned tone didn't seem fake. He held the umbrella in one hand and wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me into his embrace.

I struggled to free myself, but the pain in my knee forced me to give in.

It seemed I wouldn't be able to walk.

Perhaps seeing my embarrassment, Chandler hesitantly offered, "Should I… carry you?"

His tentative manner made me think of the time he confessed.

His ears had turned red as he stammered, "C-can we be together?"

It had only been half a year, yet it felt like everything had changed.

This time, I didn't put up a front.

"Alright, then.

"Sorry to trouble you."

Once we got inside my home, Chandler began looking around.

"Stop looking."

I kicked off my heels, tossing them aside carelessly.

"I threw away all your stuff."

His footsteps halted abruptly.

I stumbled toward the couch, struggling to reach the first-aid kit in the drawer of the table.

Chandler was faster. He grabbed me by the waist and set me down on the couch, turning his back to me as he muttered, "I'll put the medicine on for you."

When we were together, he'd done this plenty of times.

I was careless and often ended up with scrapes and bruises without even noticing. Chandler never complained, always patiently disinfecting and applying medicine.

He never said much while he did it, but the furrowed brow and tense expression on his face showed how much he worried about me.

The rain outside hadn't let up.

Halfway through applying the medicine, Jayvon suddenly called.

Chandler caught a glimpse of the name of the caller, and his expression darkened. He freed one hand to pick up my phone from the table.

"You want to answer it?"

My gut told me that nothing good would come from this call.

Chandler feigned ignorance. "You can answer it. Just ignore me."

I shot him a glare and answered the phone.

"Gisselle, I have something to do today. Please don't be mad. In a few days, I'll take you to that new restaurant in the east town to try some food. I heard they need to make reservations in advance, and I've already made one. Also…"

No matter how hard he tried to hide it, I could still hear it.

I could sense his labored breathing and the soft sobbing of a girl.

The excuses and games that adults played were mutually understood but unspoken. I'd seen it too many times. Sometimes overthinking it became a burden. Instead of dwelling on it, I thought it was easier to pretend not to know.

So, I responded as usual, "Alright, I need to talk to you about something when you come back tomorrow."

Before Jayvon could reply, I hung up immediately.

Chandler overheard and pieced it together. He silently tidied up the first-aid kit, putting it back in the drawer as if it were second nature, cleaning up the trash, and sitting down next to me quietly.

I held onto the couch to stand up and slowly walked to the bedroom. Then I found a large woven bag and threw all of Jayvon's belongings into it.

Chandler understood what I meant. As I tossed out the last of Jayvon's items, his voice held a hint of surprise. "Are you breaking up with him?"

"What else? Should I keep him around like spoiled leftovers?"

It seemed like he got the answer he was hoping for. Even though I snapped at him, Chandler didn't seem to mind. He took the large bag from me and tossed it outside.

Perhaps the breakup gave Chandler a strange sense of encouragement, or maybe he still believed that he was somehow special to me.

After I finished organizing everything, he took advantage of a moment when I wasn't paying attention and suddenly hugged me from behind.

His warmth spread through my body in an instant. I was frozen for a second. Then I snapped out of it and asked coldly, "Chandler, what do you think you're doing?"

"Let's get back together, please?"

He buried his soft hair into the nape of my neck like a puppy.

"I never go back on my decisions. When we broke up, I thought I made myself clear."

"I just need one chance. Please give me a chance to pursue you, okay?"

When his soft approach failed, Chandler changed tactics, his arms tightening around me.

As long as I didn't agree, he wouldn't let go.

Just then, someone called him.

Coincidentally, his phone was right in front of me.

Just like earlier when he saw Jayvon's call, I saw his.

His phone wallpaper was a picture of a girl.

She looked about seventy percent like me.

"Chandler."

I didn't want to keep dragging this out.

"If Anaya knew what you're doing, wouldn't she come back to life from sheer anger?"

In an instant, the façade of calm he had been maintaining collapsed.