Winning My Ex-Crush

Fenella’s POV

“I didn’t expect it to turn out like this. I really wanted to help you, Fenella. Please trust me.”

Alan pleaded with me in a soft voice. His body was now fully facing me, and his legs were no longer propped up sideways on the table.

No matter how many times he said that, I couldn’t believe him. Maybe if another woman were sitting here facing Alan, she might believe him. His handsome, charming face, dark eyes that glittered seductively, and the stubble on his jaw that gave a modern impression-all of it screamed the word ‘charmer’.

After various heated debates and bad soap opera dramas, it seemed we were starting to reach some calm. I hoped this was enough to soothe my emotions and speak calmly. Although I wanted to treat the burn on his leg, Alan insisted that the cold compress on his leg was enough. He said he would endure it until all my questions were answered.

“Alright, if you want me to trust you, answer all my questions honestly.” I demanded answers firmly.

“I will answer anything.”

“Is it true that you took on other models’ projects to give them to me?” I asked slowly.

“It’s not true.” Then he fell silent for a long time. I blinked, waiting for more from him, but there was nothing.

“Then what is true? Why did Mike say that to me?” I pressed him further. Alan licked his dry lips and answered me as I demanded.

“Mike is just jealous of you. He hoped to get more projects, but the designers and clients chose you. Mike’s unprofessional behavior has spread among the agencies. No one wants to take him on.”

“What about the other models? Are they also unprofessional?” I narrowed my eyes, still not trusting his words.

“Fenella, you have to distinguish between stealing a project and legally obtaining one. Stealing a project means replacing another model who may have already been pitched by the agent. It’s different from the way I’ve been working to get your projects.” Alan explained slowly.

“What’s the difference with your method?”This belongs to NôvelDrama.Org.

“Gene is contractually tied to you as the main model. It’s only natural that I promote you more and recommend you to clients. They trust my pitch and your portfolio, and that’s why they chose you.” Alan shrugged.

“So, you didn’t give other models a chance to get projects?”

“I still promote them along with you. Although I can’t deny that I prioritize you, the company has invested a lot in you, so we want to reap as much profit as possible. It’s all just business.”

I was silent, listening to his words. Once again, Alan managed to convince me with his philosophies and ways of thinking. He was indeed smart, and I began to doubt myself.

“Are you really going to fire Jessy?”

“I told you. If you don’t resign from Gene, I’ll continue employing him,” he said to me in a calm tone.

“Why does Jessy’s job depend on my decision?” I frowned, not accepting Alan’s reasoning.

“Because Jessy’s professional performance has declined. I tried to pair him with another model, like Mike. He ended up dating him. Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed Jessy’s change in behavior toward you lately.” He reassured me with precision once again.

“I see that even now he depends more on you than the other way around. So, I feel that if you’re not at Gene, I can’t keep him.” Once again, Alan’s words began to influence me.

“But please don’t use this as a weapon to threaten me. Jessy needs his job to pay for his mother’s treatment.” I pleaded with him.

“I don’t want to threaten you. I just hope you’ll stay at Gene. We’ll fix that scandal together. I already have a way.”

He continued to persuade me with his sweet promises. Honestly, this was all so bad. I didn’t know if I could trust him anymore. On one side, my logic said he had a point. But on the other side, my heart told me he couldn’t be trusted and would only drag me down again.

I scratched my eyebrow, which felt itchy from the cold wind. Although I wanted to trust Alan, the lies seemed to have gone too deep. He was clearly still hiding something about his relationship with Amy.

Maybe I needed to hear the truth about Amy.

“I didn’t expect you to change so much, Clark. Are you really Clark Thomson?” I crossed my arms in front of my chest and looked at him closely.

“Yes, guilty as charged.” He spread his arms in the air.

“My chemistry classmate? My dance partner at the year-end dance in 10th grade?” I asked again, still in disbelief.

“Yes. You must be amazed because I’ve changed so much, right? Do you like my new look?” Now both his elbows were resting on the table. His face leaned toward me with a wide smile etched on his lips.

I stared at his appearance closely. Yes, his hair was the same curly as Clark’s, just cut and styled more suave. His hair was also dyed black and no longer reddish.

The fat on his cheeks was gone, replaced by a strong jawline. His body was still tall and big, but his posture was now upright. His muscles had replaced the fat that used to accumulate in his chest and neck. Yes, he had clearly changed his physical appearance.

“Why did you do all this, Clark?”

With all those changes, what did he really want from me? Why did he keep bothering me?

“I love you, Fenella.”

My mouth dropped open, and my eyes widened at his answer.

“Did I hear that right?”

He shook his head. I looked at him in astonishment, in silence. I couldn’t deny that my heart was beating faster.

“But I already rejected you. You can’t possibly still like me after seven years since I rejected you. Besides, you’ve changed your appearance so much that you could even date Mallory as a summer fling. Why me?”

I stifled the laughter that threatened to escape my lips. What came out was a scoff of disbelief at his statement.

“Yes, I might be able to do that. And you could too.” Alan chuckled.

“Even though Laird rejected you and broke your heart, you still liked him for seven years. Even after you became a model who could get any man, you still liked Laird. What’s the difference with me?”

“He’s different.” I blinked. “We love each other.”

“No. I love you more than he loves you. I’m willing to do anything for you.” Alan raised his index finger in the air to counter me.

“We’re childhood friends, Clark. I lived my life with him first. Maybe it’s just a matter of delayed fate.”

“No, no, no! Love doesn’t care who meets first.”

He waved his index finger again. He seemed adamant about his own beliefs. My eyelids fluttered once again. Yes, I’d often heard such phrases in women’s magazines.

I really didn’t expect this. All of Alan’s arguments were very convincing and managed to break my defenses. How could he be so insistent on me? I mean, I didn’t want to be full of myself, but this was indeed mind-blowing. Was this what it felt like to be Laird Evans when I paid attention to him?

Oh my God, does he think the same way I do? Does he want to get back at me by wooing me, making me fall for him, and then rejecting me? Is that true?

My heart started pounding because of it, but I still couldn’t accept his feelings. However, my anger seemed to evaporate into thin air. I tightened the jacket I was wearing and fidgeted restlessly.

“So, you did all this not because you wanted to make me miserable? Not because Amy told you to do it.”

“No. In fact, Amy has always bullied me.” Alan shook his head firmly. There was no doubt in his answer, and maybe it was true.

“So, you two are really siblings? That doesn’t make sense. You only met in the first year. Remember when I introduced you two? You seemed genuine when you met her.”

“Yes, the first year of high school when you introduced us was indeed the first time I met Amy. But for our parents, that first year was also the beginning of my mother’s relationship with Amy’s father.”

Alan explained slowly. There was a hint of sadness in his eyes, and I unconsciously held my breath. My eyes widened as I realized the truth.

“We’re step-siblings.”