My Stepbrother, My Enemy {BL}-Chapter 117: How It All Began

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Ethan and I kept nibbling on the food he brought along, these cute little finger sandwiches that he clearly tried (and hilariously failed) to cut neatly, strawberries in a plastic container, one of those chocolate croissants from the local bakery, and two cans of sparkling lemonade that kept rolling away on the blanket every time the breeze kicked in.

It definitely wasn’t a perfect Pinterest picnic, but maybe that’s what made it so sweet. He really put in the effort for me.

As I munched on a strawberry, I found myself staring at Ethan’s hands while he rambled on about something light, a funny story from basketball practice... but my mind started drifting to heavier thoughts.

I’d always seen Ethan as the golden boy.

You know, the kind of guy who makes teachers grin, who freshmen whisper about, and who can light up a room effortlessly. The guy who shined in every hallway he walked through. My perfect sunbeam of a boyfriend.

But now... as I caught a glimpse of what he carried beneath all that warmth, I felt myself tugging at the threads of a bigger truth.

He wasn’t perfect.

He wasn’t free from pain.

His life wasn’t easy, or effortless, or sparkling.

He’d spent years alone in that huge house. Neglected. Hurt. Crying on this very cliff at thirteen because he had no one to lean on.

And yet, somehow, he still chose to smile at the world.

He chose kindness.

He chose love.

It made my chest tighten in a way I wasn’t quite ready to understand.

"Hey," Ethan said suddenly, nudging me gently with his shoulder. I blinked back to the present and saw him watching me with that soft, searching look. "You’re... deep in thought about something. Should I be worried?"

I snorted, shaking my head. "No. Just... processing."

"That sounds dangerous," he teased lightly, but then his expression turned serious. "I was thinking earlier... I was really shocked when I found out Adrien was your stepbrother. Like, I honestly thought the universe was playing a joke on me."

Despite everything, I laughed, a real laugh that echoed a bit over the cliffside. "Are you serious? It shocked me way more! One random Sunday morning, my mom just sits me down while I’m eating cereal and says, ’Sweetie, I’m getting remarried.’" I widened my eyes dramatically. "No build-up. No warning. Just... bam."

Ethan chuckled. "I can totally imagine your mom doing that."

"Oh my God, right?" I pushed my hair back, the wind messing it up again. "And a week later, she tells me we’re having dinner with the man she wants to marry and I’m freaking out, you know? But I’m trying to keep an open mind. Trying to be supportive."

Ethan leaned back on his hands, fully engaged. "Okay... and then?"

"And then," I said, pointing at him for emphasis, "Adrien Fell walks into the restaurant. Adrien. The same Adrien I’d been avoiding like the plague because he terrified me back then. And right behind him is Keith."

Ethan burst into laughter, full and warm. "No way—"

"Yes way," I groaned into my hands. "I swear I almost left my soul behind on that carpet. I just stared at him like I was seeing a ghost. And he looked at me like—like he wanted a refund on life."

Ethan laughed even harder, falling back onto his elbows as his hair slid across his forehead, catching the last bits of sunlight.

"And now?" he asked once he calmed down, a teasing smile lingering. "You two are... what? Almost friends?"

I shrugged, the wind tugging at my sweater. "I’m not sure what we are. Complicated, I guess. He’s... different now. More tolerable. Less... murder-y."

"Wow," Ethan deadpanned. "Truly high praise."

I bumped him with my shoulder again, smiling without intending to.

But inside, something warm twisted deeper.

Because even while I laughed with Ethan about it...

even while he smiled like I was the only thing in his universe...a small, traitorous part of me remembered how Adrien looked at me that morning.

The way he fell silent.

The way his jaw tightened when he noticed the hickey. I pushed that thought far, far away and took another sip of lemonade.

This moment was for Ethan.

I wanted it to belong to him.

I wasn’t ready to question what anything else meant.

"Okay, but... wasn’t it weird?" Ethan asked softly, picking at the edge of the picnic blanket as the wind teased his blond hair. "I mean... your mom marrying the father of the guy who used to bully you? That sounds like something out of a psychological horror movie."

I let out a dry laugh because, honestly, he wasn’t wrong. "Oh, it was weird. Super weird." I hugged my knees to my chest, staring out at the city below us. Willow Haven glowed with a soft golden light, like a postcard coming to life. "But I don’t think they knew at first. Adrien’s stepdad had no clue what his son was like at school, and my mom... well, she didn’t realize Keith’s son was that Adrien."

Ethan blinked in confusion, but I want on.

"Apparently they fell in love in a parent-teacher conference" I said, rolling my eyes because even after all this time, it still seemed ridiculous. "They must’ve bonded over mutual exhaustion for being single parents or something. And by the time they figured out that their kids couldn’t stand each other... they were too in love to back out."

"That must’ve been a shock," Ethan said, leaning a bit closer as if he didn’t want to miss anything.

"It was. For everyone." I tugged at the hem of my sweater, feeling the breeze sneak beneath it. "Mom and Keith got married with this big optimistic speech about blending our families. They thought... maybe, somehow... being step-siblings would magically fix everything between me and Adrien. Like signing the marriage certificate would wipe away years of misery."

"And how did you feel about it?" Ethan asked quietly.

The sincerity in his voice made me pause. I stared at my hands for a few seconds, trying to find the right words. "Honestly? I felt frustrated. And unheard. And... mostly angry at myself."

He frowned. "Why angry at yourself?"

"Because part of me thought I should’ve spoken up sooner," I admitted. "I should’ve told my mom how bad things really were with Adrien at school. But I... didn’t want to ruin her happiness. She’d been alone for so long, working so hard to raise me on her own. When she found someone who genuinely loved her, it felt selfish to take that away from her."

Ethan’s expression softened with an ache I felt in my chest. "Noah... no. That wasn’t selfish. That was selfless in the worst way. Your mom... should’ve asked you how you felt. At least once."

I gave him a small, helpless smile. "Maybe. But... I forgave her. And I’m really glad she’s happy now. I can’t stay mad forever."

"Still," he murmured, almost to himself, "it wasn’t fair for you to have to ’suck it up’ like that."

I laughed lightly. "Welcome to being the child of a single parent. Half of it is emotional yoga."

He snorted, shaking his head as if he couldn’t believe me. "I’m serious. You shouldn’t have gone through that alone."

I looked at him then, really looked at him — and the sincerity in his blue eyes made something shift inside me. He wasn’t judging me. He wasn’t pitying me. He was simply seeing me.

And for a moment, sitting on that cliff with the colors of the sunset painting his face, I felt such an overwhelming wave of warmth toward him that it nearly took my breath away.

"So," he said gently, brushing his thumb across the back of my hand, "how do you feel about it now? About... all of this?"

I exhaled slowly. "I don’t know. I think... I’m just trying to take it day by day. Adrien isn’t the same guy he was back then. And I’m not either. I guess we’re both just... trying."

Ethan hummed softly in agreement, looking out at the expansive horizon. "Trying is good."

For a while, neither of us said a word. The air cooled as the sun sank lower, the sky shifting from gold to rose. We sat shoulder to shoulder, breathing in the same air, staring at the same breathtaking view, and I felt... oddly at peace. Like the world, for once, wasn’t rushing me into defining anything.