My Brother, My Spouse

Chapter 2 Who's Brian's Mate?

The pool wasn't very deep, so they both quickly resurfaced.

Sylvia was in shock; she had just kissed Brian.

It was utterly unacceptable. Fleeing back to her room, she slammed the door and struggled to catch her breath.

Oh god, kissing her stepbrother—how utterly scandalous!

But as Sylvia touched her face, something felt off. She looked down at herself, realizing with growing horror that she was in a man's body.

Fighting back a scream, she rushed into the bathroom.

In the mirror, she saw a tall, blue-eyed blond staring back at her—Brian.

She had become Brian!

Meanwhile, Brian was still by the pool, stunned by the kiss. That softness, that sweetness—damn, he had kissed his stepsister!

Shaking his head, he tried splashing his face with water to regain his composure, but when he glanced at the pool's reflection, he saw Sylvia's face staring back.

He had turned into Sylvia!

He dashed back inside and saw himself—no, Sylvia—standing on the second-floor landing.

"You look like me!"

"You look like me!"

They spoke in unison, both equally shocked.

Brian and Sylvia had swapped their bodies... This was horrifyingly unacceptable.

"This... can't be real!" Sylvia whispered, struggling to grasp the situation.

"Looks like we've swapped bodies," Brian said with a shrug.

"This is horrible! I'm supposed to live as you—a spoiled, arrogant playboy?" Sylvia spat.

"Oh, so that's how you think of me?" Brian scoffed. "What, you think I'm thrilled about being a girl? This is my worst nightmare."

"So, what now? This couldn't get any worse!" Sylvia demanded.

Brian frowned. "Maybe we need to figure out how this even happened."

"I remember Lucky charging toward us, we stumbled into the pool, and then..." Sylvia trailed off.

They exchanged a knowing look.

"We kissed!" they suddenly exclaimed, both cringing at the memory.

Brian suggested tentatively, "Maybe... if we kiss again, we'll swap back?"

Sylvia grimaced. She didn't want to kiss her obnoxious stepbrother again, but if she didn't... they might never return to normal.

It was too hard to make a choice.

"Fine," she muttered. "But hurry, Mom and Arthur will be back soon."

Brian climbed the spiral staircase to where Sylvia stood.

"This is wild, seeing myself from someone else's point of view," he remarked with a smirk.

Sylvia rolled her eyes. "Quit admiring yourself and get on with it."

"Alright, alright."

As he moved closer, Sylvia's face was inches from her own. Closer... closer...

Just then, the front door swung open. "Kids, we're home!" Zola's voice rang out.

Sylvia quickly shoved Brian away, forcing a smile. "Hey, welcome back!"

Arthur glanced at the two of them, raising a brow. "Brian, Sylvia... what were you two up to?"

Sylvia replied hastily, "Oh, we were... uh... studying! Talking about school assignments, right, Br—Sylvia?"

Brian nodded. "Yep, just some school stuff."

Arthur chuckled. "It's great to see you two getting along so well."

Zola added with a smile, "Yes, kids. Anyway, Avril's ceremony starts soon, so get ready to head over."

"Will do." Sylvia turned toward her room, momentarily forgetting she was still in Brian's body.

Zola blinked. "Brian, why are you going into Sylvia's room?"

Sylvia froze, cringing at her mistake.

She quickly forced a laugh. "Oh, just got a bit mixed up. I'll head to my room now."

Then, Sylvia went to Brian's room while Brian went to hers.

Zola asked Arthur, feeling suspicious. "Don't you think they're acting rather weird today?"

Arthur shrugged it off, "A little weird, maybe, but they're finally bonding, aren't they?"

Zola nodded. "True enough."

Inside Sylvia's room, Brian took in the pastel colors, the shelves of stuffed animals, and the stacks of books.

"Definitely a girl's room," he muttered. But then—

Opening the wardrobe, he spotted a few black leather jackets tucked between the soft pink and white dresses. He smirked. "Just as I suspected. Sylvia's got a thing for dark styles."

Even though he was more interested in the black jackets, he decided to avoid suspicion and chose a simple white dress.

Staring at the makeup on her dresser, Brian shook his head, opting to go out barefaced with just his hair dried.

When he met Sylvia outside, he saw her dressed in one of his black leather jackets. "Nice choice," he commented, amused.

"Thanks," Sylvia replied with a huff, glancing him over. "Though... never mind."

On the way to Avril's, Sylvia prayed that Brian wouldn't become an easy target for Avril's teasing.

In the car, Arthur asked, "So, Brian, have you met your mate yet?"

Sylvia, still adjusting to Brian's body, felt a wave of panic. She shot a quick look at Brian, who shook his head slightly, then replied, "No, maybe the time just isn't right yet."

Arthur nodded thoughtfully. "Could be. Perhaps your mate hasn't had their ceremony yet."

For werewolves, mates could only recognize each other once they had both had their coming-of-age ceremonies.

Until then, even if they had known each other for years, they wouldn't feel that intense connection.

They would only fall for each other when they were both of age.

Zola chimed in, "Tonight might be a chance to meet your mate, Brian. Avril could even be the one."

Sylvia couldn't help a scoff. "Maybe."

If Brian's mate turned out to be Avril, and she had to act on his behalf to love Avril, she'd rather just drop dead on the spot.