I Faked My Death—Now I Have to Tame the Crazy Men I Left Behind-Chapter 46 - 44: Abdominal Cramps

Mia Grant had never addressed Hayes Hughes like that.

She had always called him "Second Brother" whenever she saw him.

She wanted to call him that now, just like before, but the current atmosphere didn’t seem right.

On top of that, the moment she looked up, she noticed the corruption value above Hayes Hughes’s head was only two-thirds that of the other male leads.

He didn’t seem to be as... bothered by her death as she’d imagined.

So, the words "Second Brother" died on her lips, replaced by a distant "Dr. Hughes."

Under Hayes Hughes’s slightly shattered gaze, she curved her lips into a small smile. "Dr. Hughes, it’s nothing serious. I’m just on my period. So I won’t trouble you..."

Before she could finish, she caught a glimpse of Hayes Hughes’s hovering hand as it rose slightly.

He murmured an apology.

Then, he took a half-step forward and pressed his hand to her lower abdomen. "Is this where it hurts?"

Beneath his palm, the girl’s stomach was faintly cramping.

He raised his gaze slightly and could see the rise and fall of her chest.

It was proof that her heart was beating fast—proof that she was still alive.

...

The man’s hand rested firmly on her stomach through the thin layer of fabric, and she could faintly feel the warmth from his palm.

In a daze, she gave a slight nod. The whole period thing was a complete lie.

"You need to be more careful during your period. Don’t have anything cold. The weather’s gotten colder recently, too. You’re dressed too thinly; you’ll catch a cold easily."

"Did you not prepare because the semester just started?"

"Ask the family..." Hayes Hughes’s Adam’s apple bobbed, his voice hoarse. "Second Brother will take you shopping later."

"Later..." His voice was unsteady, trembling faintly. He took a sharp breath, but his tone was still as gentle as she remembered. "Do you have classes later?"

Before she could answer, he continued on his own, "Send your class schedule to Second Brother."

Except when he was at work, he rarely showed such a forceful side.

In Mia Grant’s memory, he had always been considerate and gentle. He rarely got angry or held grudges and never forced anyone to do anything. He was respectful, self-restrained, and always knew his boundaries—a breath of fresh air among all the male leads.

Hayes Hughes reached into his pocket for his phone.

He was wearing a white trench coat today, which from a distance looked a lot like a doctor’s white coat.

The trench coat’s pocket was a bit deep, and he fumbled inside it for a long time.

Out of sight of the others, the hand that could hold a scalpel steady through back-to-back surgeries was now shaking uncontrollably inside his pocket.

Hayes Hughes pressed his fingers hard against the edge of his phone, trying to stop the trembling.

But it was no use.

When he finally managed to pull out his phone, he opened WeChat. But as his gaze met hers, his hand trembled, and he quickly drew it back.

"Or... never mind." Seeing that she didn’t move, he interpreted it as resistance. "Your studies are important. Just focus on your classes."

"If you need anything, Second Brother will go get it for you and drop it off at your dorm later."

It wasn’t that Mia Grant was against adding him on WeChat; it was just that she currently had location sharing active with Ian Sinclair, and it would automatically turn off if she left the screen.

The atmosphere grew heavy, becoming awkward and strange.

From beginning to end, Mia Grant had only said a single sentence, while Hayes Hughes had been talking almost entirely to himself.

The vice principal had already left. The principal, who was standing to the side, now had a general idea of their relationship and didn’t interrupt the "siblings’" reunion.

Serena Grant, however, just couldn’t understand.

She knew Second Brother was nice to everyone, but seeing it up close today, she realized his kindness toward Mia Grant was different!

There were many kinds of kindness.

There was kindness for his patients, kindness for strangers, kindness for family and a sister, and... kindness for someone you love.

’Someone you love?’

The moment that thought surfaced, a chill shot through Serena Grant, freezing her to the spot as if she’d been plunged into an icy cavern.

’Why?’

’Why do both of my brothers have to be in love with Mia Grant?!’

The principal cleared his throat, breaking the awkward silence. "Since Miss Grant’s health isn’t a major issue, please, come have a seat. Let’s talk about the matter on the school forum."

After hearing her account, the principal nodded. "I knew it had to be a misunderstanding. You two are sisters. How could it possibly be like what was written on the forum?"

"We’ve already dealt with the forum. In this matter, both students are victims, and you’re all family. Dr. Hughes, what do you think? Should we just let it go?"

It was only through Mia Grant’s words that Hayes Hughes finally understood the full story.

He frowned slightly.

He had just gotten off a plane not long ago and happened to be nearby when his aunt suddenly called. She told him that Serena Grant had just been crying to them on the phone, saying she was being bullied by her classmates.

They were out of town and couldn’t come right away, and Silas Grant was still in Portia.

So they had asked him to come see what was going on and comfort Serena Grant first.

On the phone, his aunt had been dramatic, her voice even breaking into sobs, which led him to believe that Serena Grant was the real victim.

Now, having heard the whole story, he felt a pang of sympathy, but not for Serena Grant.

Mia Grant sat alone across from them. Noticing Hayes Hughes wasn’t speaking, she couldn’t help but glance his way.

’Judging by how he just treated me, he probably won’t make things difficult for me.’

She was just waiting for him to speak up and let her go.

She waited and waited. He finally opened his mouth, but what he said was, "This matter can’t just be dropped."

Her heart seemed to skip a beat. Mia Grant hadn’t expected Hayes Hughes to react this way.

The principal had the same expression.

"This incident has indeed caused harm to Miss Serena Grant. We will deal sternly with the student who spread the rumors."

"We can just have Miss Mia Grant come forward and explain things to everyone, to clear up the misunderstanding."

Mia Grant’s dark eyes narrowed. ’Have me explain?’

’That sounds nice, but isn’t it just making me the scapegoat to divert attention?’

’If I step forward and say it was all a misunderstanding, wouldn’t that be throwing myself to the wolves?’

’Explain what? What misunderstanding?’

’Tell everyone that everything I said was a lie?’

"I don’t think I did anything..." *wrong*.

"The fault isn’t hers."

The two voices overlapped.

Both of them paused, taken aback.

Hayes Hughes gave her a reassuring look before turning back to the principal. "The root of the problem hasn’t been solved."

"The root of the problem?"

"The source of the conflict is the person who made the initial post targeting Mia Grant."

"I know the school administration has the authority to find that person’s information, so I must trouble you to do so."

"Of course, if it’s not convenient, that’s fine too. But as Mia Grant’s brother, I believe we have the right to involve the police."

...

"Second Brother!" Serena Grant shot to her feet, agitated. "Mia Grant suspects it was me, so you’re choosing to believe her instead of me?"

"You suspect me of being the one who made the post, don’t you?"

"Second Brother, you’re playing favorites!"

Hayes Hughes shook his head. "Quite the opposite, Serena. This is called being fair."

"As the victim, Mia has the right to get to the bottom of this."