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As the insults flew, Alicia turned to Hank, who looked pale and shaken. Hank’s thoughts were a swirl of regret -he hadn’t expected things to spiral out of control from just a singlement.
How did this all happen?‘ he wondered uneasily. He’d only meant to embarrass her, just like Tiffany asked, but now it was aplete disaster.
Hank’s fists clenched as he nced at Alicia, who somehow stayed perfectly calm.
After time–traveling and spending years in the entertainment world, she’d endured far harsher words and all kinds of online harassment. This was nothing to her.
Besides, right now was so much better than thest. At least her reputation hadn’t been ruined online, and nobody had photoshopped her into those revolting images. For now, she was chillingly unfazed.
But when Hank faced Alicia and saw her calm, unyielding eyes, he couldn’t help but recognize the truth. I’m just a petty, despicable jerk,’ he thought bitterly.
Alicia had treated him as a real friend, confiding her past humiliations. And here he was, carelessly tossing salt into her wounds.
But really, Hank had no choice<i>. </i>
His mom was already in poor health, and now his little sister was sick with kidney failure.
Hank needed money to save her, and Tiffany was the one who could give him the cash he desperately needed. So he had no choice but to go along with Tiffany.
Hank said to himself in his heart, ‘I’m sorry!
He lowered his gaze, unable to meet Alicia’s eyes.
Tiffany smirked at Alicia, a wave of satisfaction bubbling inside her. ‘This is what happens when you mess with me, Alicia, Tiffany thought gleefully.
Just as Tiffany was savoring her triumph, a breathless voice burst in from the doorway. “Hey, Miss Lawrence. Finally tracked you down. Here’s your lunch.”
Alicia turned and saw Brooke lugging an impressively big wooden lunch box, stacked fiveyers high and looking fancy as ever.
“Brooke? What brings you here?” Alicia asked, genuinely surprised.
“I’m here to deliver your lunch, Miss Lawrence. It’s already past lunchtime–c’mon, you have to eat on schedule or your stomach will start protesting,” Brooke said. <fn5fc3> Original content can be found at find?novel</fn5fc3>
As she spoke, Brooke pulled the elegant lunch box out of the bag.
Alicia blinked and said, “I’m already discharged, so you really don’t have to keep bringing me meals.”
15:42 Wed, <b>Oct </b>1
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“Nope. I’ve got strict orders to keep your mealsing every day,” Brooke replied with a big smile, passing her a small rectangr wooden box. “Go ahead, and take it.”
Alicia took the box and popped it open–inside was a neatly arranged fork.
Just then, someone blurted out in surprise, “Whoa, is that a Noble Leaf Bistro lunch box?”
“No freaking way. Alicia’s actually got lunch from Noble Leaf Bistro?”
“Dude, for real? Noble Leaf Bistro? That ce is impossible to get food from–and the prices are insane. Seriously, who pulled the strings for Alicia? Must be the Lawrence family, right?
“Talk about being treated like royalty. You can’t just order that online; you have to line up for hours, sometimes even a whole day just to get a spot.”
“So, who’s really the number one heiress in the Lawrence family, Alicia or Tiffany?”
“Come on, it has to be Alicia, hands down. Just look at how much they’re pampering her–one gets Garden Nook Bistro, the other gets Noble Leaf Bistro.
“Garden Nook Bistro’s nice and all, butpared to Noble Leaf Bistro? No contest.”
Tiffany listened to everyone gossiping, her eyes glued to the Noble Leaf Bistro lunch box Brooke set down. Her fingers dug into her palm, burning with jealousy and disbelief.
‘No way. How on earth is Alicia getting food from Noble Leaf Bistro?‘ Tiffany thought, her mind reeling. ‘Impossible. Who the hell would order that for her?‘ Tiffany grumbled to herself.
‘Could it be Mom and Dad? Or one of our brothers?‘ she wondered, biting her lip.
After thinking it through, Tiffany realized, ‘It’s only Adam. Only Adam would go out of his way to do this for Alicia. Why would Adam betray me like this?
‘Why the hell is Adam ordering Noble Leaf Bistro for Alicia and not for me?
‘Seriously? He promised he’d have my back, too. Didn’t he say that just the other day? So why is Alicia the only one getting all this special treatment?‘
Tiffany felt like she was going to explode. ‘Why is Adam treating me like this? I’m his sister.’
Right now, Tiffany could feel nothing but pure hatred for Adam. She stood there, shaking all over.
Just then, a voice called out from the doorway, “If you’re going to fake it, at least put in some effort. Passing off this Noble Leaf Bistro meal as legit?
delivery
“That’s hrious. Don’t you know Noble Leaf Bistro doesn’t even do delivery?”
Everyone turned to look. Elliot Clifford strolled right into the restaurant.
Someone whispered, “Whoa, that’s Elliot. He’s the school board chairman’s son. He’s got to know his stuff— probably eaten at Noble Leaf Bistro a hundred times.”
15:42 Wed<b>, </b><b>Oct </b>1
“So Alicia’s really been ying games, huh? Dragged in a fake lunch just to embarrass Tiffany? How could she even know Tiffany was splurging on Garden Nook Bistro today?”
“She probably had no clue about Garden Nook Bistro, but someone like her–always desperate to look fancy –definitely had a stash of fake stuff on standby just to flex.
As the crowd turned its attention back to Alicia, Tiffany finally felt some relief.
Tiffany walked up to Elliot, her smile radiant and sweet. “Hey, Elliot, have you had lunch yet? I’ve got tons of food–want to join me?”
After asking, Tiffany sighed wistfully, “I actually wanted Alicia to join, but she’s got something way fancier. Guess my food isn’t good enough for her. So, would you keep mepany instead?”
Elliot’s heart twisted at her words. He nodded, “Yeah, I’ll eat with you.”
Sienna saw the way Elliot was doting on Tiffany and instantly started to freak out inside. ‘His dad’s the chairman of the school board–no way we can afford to cross him,‘ she thought anxiously.
Sienna leaned in, tugging Alicia’s arm, and muttered, “Alicia, Elliot’s here. Let’s bail; we seriously can’t mess with a guy like him.”
Alicia didn’t n to stick around anyway. She nodded, snatched up her lunch box, and got ready to leave.
But just as she was about to leave, a long arm shot out to block her way, and a mocking voice came from above her head. “Alicia, ever thought about being honest for once?”
Alicia shot Elliot a cold smirk. “How about you, Elliot, try opening your eyes, for once? Or are you just pretending to be clueless?”
Elliot’s eyes narrowed. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means exactly what it sounds like,” Alicia said, her voice cool. “So, could you move aside?”
Elliot let out a mocking scoff. “What, trying to make a quick getaway? Why don’t you let everyone see if that Noble Leaf Bistro lunch is really as fancy as you im?”
Saying that, Elliot reached out and snatched the lunch box straight from Alicia’s hands. “Let’s find out what you’re actually hiding in here; if it’s legit, or just for show.”
Not wasting a second, Elliot flipped open the box right there.
The rich aroma of food instantly filled the room; inside were four tantalizing dishes, a heap of rice, plus a dessert and fresh fruit.
Noble
Elliot had smelled this before; no doubt about it, that was the real Noble Leaf Bistro aroma.
Noble Leaf Bistro’s chefs and nutritionists all studied medicine, turning out these miracle meals.
His aunt was pretty much always sick, so his grandparents would send people to line up for hours to grab a meal from the ce–sometimes you got lucky, sometimes not.
15:42 Wed, Oct <b>1 </b>
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Elliot remembered once knocking over his aunt’s lunch and getting chewed out so hard by his grandparents that he never forgot that scent after
Getting a whiff now, Elliot stopped dead in his tracks and muttered under his breath, “Damn, this really is Noble Leaf Bistro’s food.”
As soon as those words left his mouth, everyone who’d been mocking Alicia suddenly shut up.
AD