The Sickly Young Master Forced Me To Love

Xavier was dreaming again.

In his dream, he cooked a terrible meal, which angered Ariella. She slapped him and forced him to kneel on the floor, forbidding him to sleep.

In the dream, he watched himself as a bystander, seeing how the woman continuously abused him from the age of ten to eighteen. He had eight long years of suffering.

He let out a cry of pain.

I woke up in the middle of the night to flashes of lightning and the sound of heavy rain outside.

Amid the rain, I could hear a faint, eerie sobbing sound. It was unsettling.

I quickly turned on the bedside lamp with a "click." Too scared to sleep, I grabbed my phone and used the flashlight to track the source of the sound.

Walking through the hallway, I realized the sound was coming from a small room in the corner.

It looked like Xavier's room.

The original owner must have forced him into this tiny room again, under the excuse of "saving space."

I knocked on the door, but there was no response.

I thought maybe he was still mourning his father, so I figured I'd leave him alone. Just as I was about to turn and leave...

I heard a heavy thud. What was that kid doing?

Growing concerned, I pushed the door, feeling some resistance. I had to use some force to get it open.

The lock was broken. No wonder he had used a chair to barricade the door.

A kid with no sense of security.

I turned on the light and saw Xavier lying on the floor. His face was flushed. The tears streamed from the corners of his eyes, and soft whimpers escaped his mouth.

He looked like a broken porcelain doll, fragile and shattered.

I rushed over and lifted him onto the bed, feeling the heat radiating from his body. He must have a fever.

I wanted to call the family doctor, but my phone had no signal. Strange.

In a flash of lightning outside, I saw... the grown-up Xavier!

His eyes were bloodshot, glaring at me with intense anger.

My heart skipped a beat. How could he be here? We hadn't even reached the part of the story where he was supposed to be an adult yet.

Another bolt of lightning struck outside.

He was gone again.

It felt like I had hallucinated his appearance.

Still shaken, I didn't want to stay in that room any longer.

I went to find Austin, hoping he could take care of Xavier, but his room was empty. Who knows where he'd gone in the middle of the night?

I couldn't just leave Xavier like that, so I nervously grabbed the first aid kit and went back to take care of him myself.

I put a cooling patch on his forehead. I wiped his sweat with a towel and decided to give him a little lecture.

"Xavier, look at how good I am to you. It's the middle of the night, and here I am taking care of you. When you grow up, you better remember to repay me," I teased.

The story's only just started, and I haven't done anything to hurt him yet. I just hope he grows up soon so I can take my inheritance and escape far away.

That way, if the plot unfolds and he tries to kill me or send me to a mental institution, he won't be able to find me, haha.

"Mom!" Xavier cried out in pain, calling for his mother.

"Missing his mom? Poor kid. No mother growing up, stuck with a deadbeat dad and a wicked stepmother."

Still, I hoped that with me here, he wouldn't turn out so crazy when he grew up. At least let me escape the main plot before he loses it.

I played a lullaby for him.

Singing wasn't an option. My voice is off-key.

He grabbed my thumb and didn't let go, slowly calming down.

In Xavier's dream, the scene shifted. A faceless older sister was protecting him, holding him, and singing a beautiful song.