The Cure Is You

Is She The Same?

°ADRIAN °

Today, my legs felt strange—sore and tingling where the needles had pierced. Was that normal? I would ask her.

I was already out when it struck me. She’d probably be at college by now.

Whatever. I’d grab some food instead.

I called for my attendant, who helped me down the stairs. Each step was a brutal reminder of how much I hated this—being dependent, being weak. I hope these sessions work soon. This wasn’t a life I intended to endure much longer. I have many unfinished businesses out there.

By the afternoon, I was knee-deep in estate work with Timothy when the door swung open without warning.

By an Uninvited. Unwanted. And the person I despised most in this f*****g world—my half-brother, Victor Royce.

“Stop,” I said sharply, my tone cold and biting.

“Relax, Adrian,” Victor said, smirking, already testing my patience.

“Leave,” I ordered, my voice low and measured, barely containing the disdain beneath it.

Victor chuckled, throwing himself onto the couch as if he owned the place. “Come on. I’m the head of the family now. I can go wherever I want.”

Not for long.

“Not in my f*****g house,” I snapped. He might have the title, but I didn’t give a damn.

“I have some business here, brother.” The word "brother" dripped with mockery, like poison on his tongue. But the feeling is mutual.

“What do you want?” I asked, not bothering to mask my disinterest.

“Oh, just here to check on your little wife,” he said, his grin widening.

My brow twitched. “Why?”

“She applied for a job at my café,” he said smugly. “Guess she’s in need of money.”

Money? That little—

“Timothy,” I barked.

Timothy handed me the tablet, and there it was—Serena’s application. A café serving job? Seriously?

Victor leaned back, clearly relishing the moment. “Looks like she needs me to give her some money, considering her husband isn’t capable—”

“Victor!”

“She did apply for the job,” he said, his tone daring me to deny it.

Serena!

My jaw tightened. “What she does is none of my concern.”

Victor tilted his head, mock disbelief etched across his face. “Oh? Then I suppose I’ll handle her wants. I’ll approve her application.”

“Do whatever you want,” I said, dismissing him with a wave. “Just don’t waste my time with this nonsense again.”

Victor shrugged, standing as if he’d claimed some petty victory. “Fine.”

As the door clicked shut behind him, I exhaled slowly, forcing my grip to loosen on the armrest. I didn’t care what Serena did—she wasn’t my problem.

But the thought of her going to him? It burned.

And last night… Last night, I’d been stupid enough to believe she was different. Maybe forced into this marriage, trapped like me. How wrong could I be? That little gold digger.

When she looked at me, her words had been soft yet sharp, cutting through my defenses. I didn’t want to believe her, but there was a sincerity in her voice, a pain that felt too real to ignore. She spoke of choices, helplessness. And for a moment, I saw myself in her.

For a fleeting moment, I thought she saw it. That she knew what it meant to feel this helpless, to be all alone in the world. No one to lean on. No one to trust. Just an endless cycle of being a burden to others.

The feeling she had described. The feeling I lived every damn day.

But the way she spoke… Damn it. She’s a mystery I can’t unravel. Those emotions she showed—were they fake? Can they be faked?

Well, greed knows no end. It can make one do anything and I learned that from her, the things she did to me... they're just scars now but.

Evelyn.

She wasn’t just a name from my past; she was a scar, a wound that never healed. Once my mother’s closest friend, Evelyn, had slipped into our lives like a viper. After my mother’s death—one I could never truly believe was natural—she had wasted no time seducing my father and becoming the new lady of the house.

A disgrace a true friend would never do.

And her son, Victor, was the final nail in the coffin. She gave birth to him, securing her place in the Royce family.

She’d taught him well—to belittle, to mock, to dominate.

And the accident… It had given him everything he wanted. Everything she wanted.

The thought made my blood boil. If it hadn’t been for that damned car crash, which I suspect is also their doing, he’d be on his knees, begging me for scraps. Instead, here he was, acting like a king in my house.

I gritted my teeth, my hands curling into fists. I’d fought so hard to keep control, to rise above the venom she’d left behind. But Serena…

She gave him this chance to mock me, to flaunt his so-called power.

Last night, she said she didn’t want to be here either. That she was trapped by choices she never made. She looked at me like she understood. Like she saw the Adrian I was before all this. Before the accident. Before the betrayal.

But how could I believe that? How could I trust anyone when Evelyn had taught me what betrayal truly meant?

Is Serena the same? Craving attention, willing to stoop this low? Is she really another Evelyn?

I didn’t know. And I didn’t want anything to do with her. But one question burned on my tongue: Why?

If she was just after money, then why did she show me those emotions, those words..the need to know is burning me.

It was late evening, and my anger simmered beneath the surface as the door creaked open. I didn’t mean to yell, but the words tore out of me, sharp and accusing

“Why the f**k do you need it?”