Julian Blackwood, a name that strikes fear into the hearts of many.
I never told anyone, but I once had a relationship with him.
Looking back, my entanglement with him was entirely of my own making, a consequence of my own actions.
To have a one-night stand with Edward, I secretly spiked his drink at the party, only to accidentally drug myself instead.
After the party ended, Edward only cared about sending Catherine home, forgetting all about me.
In a dazed state, I mistook Julian for Edward, carelessly throwing myself at him. He took advantage of the situation and we spent the entire night changing positions.
To see if Edward would be jealous, I intentionally pushed Julian against the wall in front of him and kissed him, saying he was my boyfriend.
I could feel Julian's heartbeat quicken at the words "boyfriend."
The lighting was dim, so Edward didn't clearly see Julian's face.
Edward simply said, "Oh, congratulations."
After that night, I was furious and anxious, leaving Julian a message: "Let's break up. Your skills in bed are terrible, I don't want you anymore."
Then I walked away.
My phone was flooded with messages from him:
"Dare to break up? Try it."
"I'll give you an hour. Come to my apartment, and we'll have a proper talk."
...
"Where are you? I'll come find you."
"Talk to me."
"Was I too harsh earlier? I'm sorry. I won't do it again. I swear, I won't."
"Cecilia, why break up? I don't want to."
"Did I not satisfy you these past few days? I'm sorry, I'll practice harder. You can't leave me."
I read them all without replying, completely blocking and deleting him.
No wonder he hates me.
I was too cruel to him.
Catherine tugged at my sleeve: "Cecilia, what are you daydreaming about?"
Then she shyly looked at Edward: "Edward, Cecilia told me she has something to say to you."
She whispered to me, "It's all set up for you. Just propose boldly."
This was the show they had carefully prepared for me, even setting up the stage.
As long as I proposed to Edward, he would pour cold water on me in front of everyone, saying the one he truly loved was Catherine, and that I shouldn't get carried away.
Because of Catherine's actions, the social elites around us were drawn to the bouquet and engagement ring I was holding, and they all fell silent, staring at me.
Julian also stopped talking and turned to watch me, his fingers clenched, his body radiating tension.
Since they had already set the stage for me, it seemed I had no choice but to propose.
But in this situation, I was caught between a rock and a hard place.
The comment was filled with excitement:
"The second female lead is so silly, just propose to the villain! Once you do, even if you want the stars from the sky, he'll gladly get them for you."
"Yeah, as long as you propose to him, what do the male and female leads even mean?"
"If the second female lead dares to propose in front of the villain, tomorrow she'll probably have trouble even getting out of bed."
I found the comments amusing. After what I did to Julian, how could he ever agree to my proposal?
He probably couldn't wait to humiliate me in front of everyone.
But, I had wronged him once.
So, I was willing to give him a chance to take revenge on me.
I nodded slowly: "I came here tonight because I do want to propose to someone."
Upon hearing this, Catherine's triumphant smile became even more apparent.
I slowly raised the bouquet.
"The person I want to propose to is..."
Edward sneered, "Propose to me? You think you're worthy of that?"
At that moment, I suddenly turned to Julian and shouted, "Julian, can I propose to you?"
I suddenly changed my mind, and the comments were in complete disbelief.
"Can someone slap me twice, am I seeing things? Did the second female lead really just propose to the villain?"
"Holy crap, this is like a little lamb walking straight into the wolf's den! You know, when the second female lead told him his skills in bed were bad, it really pissed him off, and he's been holding a grudge for years."
"Breaking up with that excuse... thinking she can just get away with it."
"That's right."
Julian remained motionless.
I calmly closed my eyes.
As expected, he wouldn't agree.
Seeing me propose to Julian, Edward's face immediately darkened, his expression turning grim.
"Cecilia, what nonsense are you saying? Apologize to Mr. Blackwood, and we'll pretend this never happened."
Catherine rushed up and grabbed my hand, forcibly pushing me toward Edward:
"Cecilia, what are you doing? Didn't we agree that tonight you would propose to Edward? Why are you bothering Mr. Blackwood? He's not someone you can even approach."
I smiled and said, "I never planned to propose to Edward. I grew up with him, who want a childhood friend as a husband."
"I'm fine just dating him, but if you're asking me to marry him, I'm really too scared to do that."
Edward looked at me in disbelief, as if he couldn't believe I said that.
Catherine said, "What are you talking about? You've always told me how much you like Edward and how you can't marry anyone else."
I looked at her with feigned confusion: "Catherine, what do you mean? I just saw you kissing Edward in the makeup room."
Catherine's face turned pale, then red.
"It's not what you think, I—"
Everyone was smart enough to know what was going on, and they couldn't help but start whispering among themselves.
"I heard that the second daughter of the Darnell family wasn't well-liked in her own family, but I didn't expect it to be this bad. At the banquet, she was even schemed against by her own sister."
"I can't even imagine, what will happen if she actually proposes?"
"But now, hasn't she just fallen from one pit into another? She's about to propose to Julian, the man everyone wants to get into bed with. The consequences won't be pretty."
I heard the murmurs of the bystanders, and a sinking feeling filled my chest.
But it didn't matter. I had once carelessly played with Julian's feelings. Even if he publicly humiliated me, I would accept it as my punishment.
Julian stared at me for a long time before finally grabbing my wrist, his gaze heavy as he looked at me.
"You've been avoiding me for so long, it's time you come back with me."
I froze for a moment, then allowed Julian to pull me out.
Edward's face darkened instantly. "Enough, Cecilia, stop pretending. Isn't marrying me your lifelong wish? Are you trying to play hard to get with me now?"
"Stop acting out, I don't have the patience to deal with your games."
"Mr. Blackwood, don't take it seriously, the girl is just being reckless. Please forgive her this once. From now on, I'll make sure she behaves properly."
comment comments:"Uh-oh, Julian's dark side is definitely rising again."
"Earlier, Julian probably thought he could let go of the past and start fresh with the second female lead. But now... looks like he'll be testing all his little toys in the basement again. Female lead, good luck."
I was about to turn my face to retort, but Julian pulled me along, his gaze cold as ice.
"I haven't even punished her yet. Who are you to do that?"
