Not This Time

When my family was at its poorest, a wealthy family found me and claimed that I was their real daughter.

The school heartthrob I crushed on? He was my fiancé all along!

Still reeling from all these surprises, a mysterious message suddenly popped up in front of me.

"This is where everything changes. The cannon fodder is taken home by the female lead's parents, forced to drop out of school, and then gets pregnant by her fiancé. In the end, everyone thinks she's a harbringer of misfortune, and she's beaten to death."

My hand froze as I held the paternity test results.

My mom's eyes filled with tears as she took the report from me.

"My poor child, you've suffered enough all these years! Don't worry. Just come home with us and rest. You're our daughter now. The family business is enough for you to live comfortably forever. You don't even need to take the SAT if you don't want to."

The school heartthrob lowered his head and whispered sensually into my ear, "Listen to me, Lucia. Studying is hard. I'll take care of you from now on."

"This is so hilarious! The female lead's whole family is putting on such a show just so they can trick the female side character into thinking that she's a rich girl and give up on herself, all so their real princess can shine."

"When you think about it, the side character's life is so tragic. She grew up in a family that only valued sons, got beaten, and even starved. When she finally got into a top high school with grades good enough for MIT or Harvard University and change her fate, these scammers had to ruin everything!"

"She deserved it! This is all because she kept ranking top of the grade. Because of her, our beautiful, proud female lead can only ever be a runner-up. The male lead and the female lead's family just love the female lead more, that's all!"

"Exactly! She's just a side character meant to be a stepping stone. How dare she try to steal our female lead's spotlight? She's just getting what she deserves!"

Lines of comments flashed by in my eyes.

I looked at my hands. The paternity test certificate had already been taken away, and my nails dug deep into my palm.

So that was how it was.

Everything finally made sense.

Just a week ago, a well-dressed couple suddenly appeared at my home, claiming to be my real parents and crying about how I was switched at birth. To make up for it, they bought me designer clothes and moved me into a fancy villa.

They kept on whispering into my ears every day, saying the same thing over and over.

"You're the only daughter of the Walker Group. Even if you don't study or take any exams, you'll live in luxury for the rest of your life!"

Ever since the reveal, the school heartthrob I had a crush on, Scott Flores, started confessing to me every day with roses.

"You've been through so much, Lucia. As your fiancé, I'll never let you suffer again."

I thought the bad days were finally over—that I could finally get away from my abusive, alcoholic gambler of a father.

But right now, these endless bullet comments tore up all my fantasies and stripped away their disguise.

There was never any real or fake heiress. These people only brought me home and pampered me to ruin me on purpose.

And my so-called birth parents, nothing more than leeches, had happily pocketed the money from the Walkers and sold me to the rich as their plaything—to be laughed at and toyed with.

"Lucia, why aren't you saying anything?" Scott squeezed my wrist tighter. I could sense he was getting ever so slightly brutal. "You've seen the results of the paternity test. You can relax. Even if you never read or study again, you'll still be rich."

Mrs. Jane Walker smiled, too. "That's right, sweetheart. All that matters is that you're happy every day. School is too much work, anyway."

I looked up and put on a clueless, innocent smile. "You're right, Mom. School is way too tough. I guess I'll just quit for good."

A flash of satisfaction crossed Jane's eyes.

I pretended not to notice and cheerfully took Scott's hand. "Well, since you're my fiancé, I'll stick by your side every day from now on. Okay?"