Chapter 38
38
When she finished, Rebecca's breath became heavier, as if she was repressing something. "Where are you?" Rebecca asked.
Tm at Celeste Couture in Grand Mall. What happened?" Yvette was confused, but the only response she got was the click of the line going dead. Yvette was baffled, having no idea what had just happened. After saying goodbye to Xanthe and Berry, she walked out of the store. Just then, she heard a voice from a passerby's phone, which astonished her. "Tim sorry, I shouldn't have used your design. It's all my fault!" Suddenly, Yvette realized something. She rushed over and took the passerby's phone. "What are you doing?" the passerby got mad, but then he recognized Yvette in surprise. "Wait, you're Yvette Nelson? The girl
in the video?"
Yvette stared at the screen, eyes wide as she saw a video posted on the official Nelson Group account. "Who? Who did this?" she screamed.
The passerby, startled by her outburst, quickly grabbed their phone back and stepped away, turning his camera on her. "How could a rich girl be like this? Just like in the video, no class at all!" Yvette glared at him. "Stop filming! Put that phone dow down!"
The commotion drew more onlookers, and soon, a small crowd had gathered. More people raised their phones, recording her.
"That's the rich kid who stole someone else's design for the competition? Wow, what a spoiled brat, dirty and unapologetic.
"Yeah, didn't she say she'd sincerely apologize in that last video? And now she's acting like nothing happened. When confronted, she plays dumb and cries like a victim."
"Exactly! The person she
copied from must be so fed up. Yvette publicly said she'd apologize, but when it came time, she cried like she was being bullied." "She's just pulling a a pity card. Does she really think we're that gullible? Cry a little, and the public will take her side? She really thinks she is wronged."
"Huh, should
should we praise her for her crying skills? What a great performance of playing the victim!"
The murmurs and accusations around her grew louder, and Yvette tried to keep her composure.
But now, these stupid trolls were right in front of her, taunting her in person. And they were all losers who dressed in cheap clothes Yvette's anger boiled over.
What a
t are you filming for? This has nothing to do with you!" She lost control and swung at the nearest phone, knocking it out of the person's hand. The phone hit the ground with a sharp crack, shattering into pieces. Then, Mitchell arrived, witnessing the scene "Yvette!"
"Mitchell! You're finally here!" Tears welled up in Yvette's eyes as she threw herself into Mitchell's arms, looking weak and pitiful. They're all bullying me..."
"I'm taking you out of here Mitchell wrapped an arm around her, shielding her from the agitated crowd as he led her toward the parking lot, finally getting her into the car.
Mitchell let out a sigh of relief as he shut the car door behind them. The past ten minutes had been some of the most chaotic of his life. In the scuttle, someone had even yanked on Yvette's hair, and his silk shirt had been torn in the process
08:22 08:22
Oct 19 Oct
Now, looking at Yvette's usually well-maintained hair, which was now a tangled mess with knots, Mitchell couldn't help but
frown.
Yvette was on the verge of tears. "What are those idiots even doing? I can't take this. I'm calling the police. I'm going to sue them—'Text © owned by NôvelDrama.Org.
"Yvette, how could you smack that person's hand?" Mitchell asked. His question stunned Yvette, leaving her momentarily speechless.
Tears quickly welled up and streamed down her face. "Mitchell, are you blaming me, too? Is it my fault for bringing trouble to the family? Everyone is mocking me, criticizing ine, and I'm just supposed to take it without fighting back?"
In the past, no matter what, Mitchell would always comfort her when she cried, without questioning right or wrong. But now he felt an unexplainable irritation.
Especially since he had seen her furious expression when she knocked that person's phone out of his hand, he found Yvette. his cherished little sister, felt so unfamiliar to him. He wondered how she turned out like this.
Mitchell rolled down the window, letting the breeze cool his temper. "Claude, get in touch with the person whose phone was broken. Offer him ten times the compensation." Mr. Mitchell Nelson," said Claude.
Yvette was angrier, for she thought Mitchell shouldn't offer that loser ten times the compensation.
"Yvette, you saw the video, didn't you?" Mitchell took a deep breath and turned back to face Yvette, locking eyes with her. "Didn't you tell me that you would apologize to Shakira?"
"I was going to apologize, but I didn't say I'd do it in front of the whole class!" Yvette's expression twisted with discomfort. It was right after class, and everyone was watching."
As she spoke, she began to sob. "I begged Shakira. I asked her if we could talk somewhere else, but she refused. She even said maybe Mom and Dad hadn't taught me properly. She used Mom and Dad to threaten me. What was I supposed to do?" Her face tilted upward, tears of anguish rolling down her cheeks her eyes filled with helplessness. "Do you also think I'm wrong, Mitchell? It's Shakira who won't let me off."
Mitchell clenched his fists, his breathing heavy. "But Yvette, it doesn't matter where you apologize. In any situation, it's the same. We-the Nelson family-can admit when we're wrong. If she asks for an apology, you should apologize to her. But you... Mitchell wanted to ask her what she was crying for. But before he could ask this question, Yvette had already lowered her head, burying her face in her knees, sobbing uncontrollably.
"How could you blame me like this? You're not my brother anymore. You're siding with Shakira All of you are siding with her! Fine, I'm sorry, okay? I'm the one who's always causing trouble. I'm the disaster that brings everyone grief!" she shouted Mitchell's face remained tense. This time, he didn't console Yvette like he usually did. Instead, he silently turned his head
away.
He wanted to take Yvette's side, but now he couldn't bring himself to do it.
In the past, he had never really reflected on whether they had been too harsh on Shakira, whether they had hurt her deeply. As a man and an older brother, he had always believed it was no big deal for Shakira to make some concessions for Yvette. But this plagiarism incident had shaken him. For the first time, le felt that Yvette had brought this upon herself. Yvette
e continued her fake sobbing, crying for a long time, waiting for Mitchell to apologize to her as he had countless times before-softly, patiently, humbly coaxing her.
But the
then her heart missed a beat. Peeking through her fingers, she saw Mitchell's back turned toward her, cold and distant. A chill ran through her.
Yvette's body began to tremble involuntarily. 'Shakira-this is all because of Shakira! She has humiliated me time and time again, made me the subject of ridicule, and now, Shakira has even cost her Mitchell's care and affection!" Biting her lip, Yvette's tear-filled eyes slowly filled with hatred.
Meanwhile, Shakira finished helping Walter with dinner and his evening routine, then returned to her small room. She opened her tablet again, noticing that the Nelson family had already managed to clean up most of the online backlash. Shakira had expected as much and let out a silent, mocking laugh
Suddenly, a thought crossed her mind. She picked up her phone and unblocked a certain number from her blacklist. The moment she did, dozens of missed calls and text messages flooded her screen.