I am the brainless, busty "villainess" in a high school romance novel. My only hobbies? Trying to seduce the male lead and framing the female lead. Unfortunately, I failed at both. In the end, my true colors were exposed, and I was expelled. To prevent this tragic ending, I decided to find a new target and avoid the male lead like the plague. But the male lead, who was supposed to be a perfect gentleman in the original story, pinned me against the wall like a madman. My uniform skirt wrinkled under his grip as his hand tightened around my waist. His voice was low and bewitching, laced with an imperceptible madness: "Sophie, didn't you say you liked me the most?" 1 The third time I used "delivering milk" as an excuse to seduce Caleb Vance, I awakened my memories. I realized I was the villainess in a novel. In the original story, I was the daughter of the housekeeper working for the Vance family. Since childhood, my mother instilled in me the twisted idea of climbing the social ladder. Living under the same roof, Caleb was the best target I could find. Unfortunately, he had no interest in a beautiful idiot like me. Instead, he favored the resilient, "white lotus" female lead, Lily Hart. Jealous, I made things difficult for Lily at every turn. But my schemes were clumsy and always exposed. In the end, I was expelled and kicked out of the Vance estate with my mother, never to be heard from again. Expelled? That means no high school diploma! In this economy, without a diploma, I wouldn't even be able to get a job shaking bubble tea. So, "never to be heard from again" probably meant starving to death in a rental apartment. The thought made me shiver. I dared not covet Caleb anymore. But just then, the door in front of me opened. Caleb looked down, seemingly tired of my clumsy tricks. "What is it?" Startled, my hand shook. The glass slipped from my fingers, shattering on the floor with a crisp sound. I didn't care about the milk splashing onto my nightgown. I immediately squatted down. Just as my fingers were about to touch the shards, Caleb grabbed my wrist. "Do you want to lose your hand?" His voice was cold. I tried to pull my hand back timidly. But Caleb didn't let go. Confused, I looked up at him. I found his gaze landing squarely on my chest. Wait! Tonight, to seduce Caleb, I had chosen a sheer nightgown. Now, soaked in milk, the already translucent fabric became even more revealing. What Caleb was seeing... was self-evident. I yanked my hand back from his grip. Covering my chest in panic, I stammered, "I, I... I'll clean it up later!" I ran back to my room and changed. Long sleeves, long pants, plaid pajamas. Covered up tight. Then, ignoring my mother's disappointed look, I obediently cleaned up the glass shards and milk stains. After finishing, I looked up at his closed door. I swore in my heart: Stay away from Caleb Vance. Stay safe. 2 I had nightmares and didn't sleep well. The next morning, unsurprisingly, I woke up late. Yawning, I stuffed a piece of blueberry toast in my mouth, put on my shoes, and ran out. Unexpectedly, I bumped into Caleb at the gate of the estate. The standard school uniform looked different on him. The crisp collar and the metal emblem on his blazer reflected the blinding sunlight, making him look noble and upright. Seeing me, Caleb didn't say much. "Get in." I took half a step back. Wait, this wasn't what I planned. I grew up in the Vance household with my mom. While I wasn't family, Mrs. Vance took care of me because I was young and sweet-talking. Thanks to her, I could attend the same elite private high school as Caleb. My mom even pushed her luck, asking for me to share a car with him to and from school, creating opportunities for me to seduce him. Unfortunately, Caleb was an unmelting block of ice. No matter what I did, he was unmoved. I wanted to use being late as an excuse to start going to school separately. I didn't expect him to wait for me. I hesitated, wanting to refuse, but swallowed my words under Caleb's gaze. "Hurry up, we're going to be late." "...Okay." I dared not disobey and got into the car. Throughout the ride, I pressed myself against the window, trying my best not to touch Caleb. Almost there! Almost at school! I clenched my fists, cheering myself on. Suddenly, the car lurched. Caught off guard, I lost my balance and fell toward Caleb. My forehead slammed into his shoulder. Pain blinded me, and I almost cried. Covering my forehead with one hand, I searched for a support point with the other to push myself back. But my hand slipped, and I fell onto Caleb again. This time, I saw clearly. My palm wasn't pressing on the leather seat, but on Caleb's thigh. 3 This was fatal. If the driver hadn't stopped the car right then, my escape would have counted as jumping from a moving vehicle. I didn't dare look at Caleb's expression and bolted toward the classroom. Maybe shame buffed my speed. I wasn't late. Caleb, on the other hand, walked in unhurriedly just as the bell rang. I rejoiced. Thankfully, Caleb had refused my request to be desk mates, citing he wasn't used to having people next to him. Otherwise, I would be sitting on pins and needles, preferring to drop out. That morning, contrary to my usual behavior, I didn't pester Caleb. Not even eye contact. The second to last period was PE. The noon sun was blinding. I leaned against the only tree on the field providing shade, slacking off. No special reason. My mom was afraid I'd get tanned. She once said: "Men are visual creatures. If you're fair and your skin is tender, they'll worship you without you even smiling. If you're dark and ugly, they won't appreciate you even if you die for them." Is that true? I don't know. But I was happy not to sweat on the field. PE ended quickly. I followed the crowd back to the classroom. Looking down, I saw my jewelry box open under the desk. It was empty. I froze. This scene felt familiar. Before I could think, a hand picked up the box. It was my desk mate, Bella. "Sophie, did you lose something?" Her voice was loud, attracting attention. I remembered. This was my first confrontation with the female lead in the novel! I had stuffed my necklace into Lily's bag during PE to frame her. But I failed, and my necklace was exposed as a fake. In reality, I bought it with real money! I wanted to cry. But right now, my necklace was still around my neck. What was missing was the bracelet Caleb gave me. He tossed it to me on my seventeenth birthday, saying it wasn't worth much. I wore it happily. But yesterday, I decided to distance myself from him. If Lily misunderstood my feelings because of a bracelet, I'd never clear my name. Better to put it away. I waved my hand to stop Bella. "It's nothing, just a bracelet... not worth much." Unexpectedly, Bella got excited. "You mean the bracelet you always wear? That's Sugilite! Ice-grade cherry blossom pink! It's worth at least twenty grand!" Twenty grand?! I jumped up in shock. That's my mom's annual salary! Is this what rich people mean by "not worth much"? I blinked in confusion. Bella said indignantly, "Who is shameless enough to steal Sophie's stuff? Return it now, or I'll search your bags!" Whispers started. Someone mentioned Lily. "Besides Lily, who else is poor enough to steal? No wonder her parents sold everything to send her here. Stealing a bracelet would cover the tuition." Mocking laughter erupted. Lily's eyes turned red, holding back tears. Bella rushed to search Lily's bag. Seeing things spiral out of control, I hugged Bella's waist to stop her. "Wait! We can't accuse her without evidence! Being poor doesn't mean having bad character!" In the book, Lily was the epitome of integrity and resilience. But maybe too resilient. Lily slammed her bag on the desk and dumped it out. Contents scattered. Clatter. Caleb's bracelet lay there conspicuously. Silence fell. Lily's face changed. She seemed confused about why it was there. Then, she looked at me coldly. "Did you frame me?" Me? Me? The study representative added, "I saw Sophie return to the classroom during PE." Everyone's suspicious gaze fell on me again. I opened my mouth to explain but couldn't say a word. A sense of powerlessness washed over me. What does this mean? I have to take the blame? My reaction looked like guilt. Plus, I had been hostile to Lily because she was close to Caleb. Framing her seemed logical. "Check the surveillance, then call the police." Caleb, sitting by the window and silent until now, looked up. His gaze swept over me briefly. I felt uncomfortable. Someone asked, "Wasn't the camera broken?" "I had it fixed," Caleb said, looking indifferent, then lowered his eyes again. A voice broke the deadlock. A boy picked up the bracelet and sneered, "Just a joke. Lily is always so cold and aloof, so I borrowed Sophie's stuff to prank her. No need for police, right?" He handed the bracelet back to me. I held the pink bracelet. And did something unexpected. I slapped him across the face. "It's not funny at all!" 4 The framing incident passed without disaster. I was relieved. In the car home with Caleb, I fidgeted with my skirt and tentatively spoke: "Caleb." He turned, his dark pupils like bottomless whirlpools. I handed over the bracelet. "Here, take this back." He didn't take it. I swallowed and explained, "I didn't know your gift was so expensive. I feel uneasy wearing it. Please take it back." After a moment, Caleb reached out. He picked up the bracelet. His hand was slender and well-proportioned. The cherry blossom pink bracelet hung on his knuckles. I noticed him looking at a bead cracked by Lily. "Sorry, I didn't take good care of your gift." Caleb didn't respond. He deftly disassembled the bracelet, removed the cracked bead, and replaced it with a wooden bead from his own bracelet. The crystal pink bead and the wooden one looked mismatched. I didn't understand his intention. Caught off guard, he grabbed my wrist. His temperature was cool, making me shiver. He methodically put the bracelet back on my wrist. His movements were serious, like putting a collar on a pet. "Wear it." Caleb repeated what he said on my birthday. "It suits you."
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