Complicated Crushes

I have a cousin, Rachel Guerrero, and she was a bit naive when it came to relationships.

She often mistook kindness and politeness from a guy as romantic interest.

Although she had gotten hurt more than once, she never seemed to learn a lesson.

During the New Year, my boyfriend, Braydon Wheeler, peeled an apple for her...

Then she gazed dreamily at him and said coquettishly, "You're my cousin's boyfriend. You cannot do this to me."

1

Braydon was so embarrassed that he didn't know what to do after he heard her words.

My mom and Valda, my aunt, gave us strange looks.

I quickly stepped in from the balcony to help Braydon out.

"What's the big deal? He is my boyfriend, and you are my cousin. Can't he peel an apple for you?"

My mom and Valda took back their gazes and resumed chatting and snacking on nuts.

I breathed a sigh of relief.

But Rachel didn't let it go yet.

She pouted and said, "Why don't you peel one for the elders?"

Braydon regained composure and said, "I was just about to. I thought it wouldn't be polite to interrupt them while they were chatting."

I grabbed a knife and peeled an apple, too. Then Braydon and I handed the peeled apples to Valda and my mom.

Then, I used the excuse of showing Braydon around the neighborhood and dragged him outside.

2

As soon as we were out, Braydon began to complain, his tone filled with anger. "What's wrong with your cousin? She has no sense of boundaries. Others might think I had some interest in her."

I put my finger to my lips and signaled him to lower his voice, as the people inside the door could hear us.

Braydon lowered his voice. "Seriously, how can she be so self-centered?"

Of course, I knew Rachel well.

I patted Braydon on the shoulder. "It's not your fault. She fell for her instructor during school orientation camp, for her boss at work, and even for her hairdresser after she had a haircut. You see, you peeled an apple when you visited my parents, and she misinterprets it again."

Braydon couldn't stand it and was eager to explain himself to me. "I was just being polite and thought she was the same age, so I tried to talk to her. Her eyes were practically glued to the apple in my hand, so I had no choice but to give it to her."

I gave Braydon a sidelong glance and said, "Be smart about it from now on. Don't hang around Rachel too much. She misinterprets every polite behavior from a guy as romantic interest."

3

Rachel's behavior was even worse than being lovestruck.

In simple terms, she always thought about having a romantic relationship with every guy she met.

Before eighth grade, Rachel and I were very close.

Back then, she would share all her girlish secrets with me.

According to her, the cutest guy in her class, her deskmate, and the English teacher all had a thing for her.

For example, the cutest guy would always sneak glances at her during class; her deskmate would help her move her desk every week; and the English teacher would always explain questions to her.

Among them, she disliked the English teacher the most because he was nearly forty.

She nicknamed him "Creepy Old Man."

Every time she mentioned him, she looked upset.

After hearing about it so many times, I developed a dislike for the English teacher.

Whenever I saw him in the office smiling and explaining questions to other students, I would scoff at him internally.

"You just keep pretending," I thought.

Later, when Rachel came to me in tears and told me the English teacher had touched her inappropriately, I didn't doubt her at all.

She cried her heart out, and I was furious and cursing the English teacher.

I comforted her and promised to seek justice for her.

4

I was quite naive back then.

I first anonymously posted on a forum, saying some male teacher with the family name Gilbert at a certain middle school was behaving inappropriately with female students and asked for advice.

Many people used the forum back then, and some students from the same school saw the post.

Someone directly commented and asked if it was Mr. Gilbert, the English teacher.

So the English teacher's name was directly given.

Others suggested gathering evidence and reporting it to the education committee.

After reading through the comments, I thought calling to report it to the education committee was a feasible idea.

The matter escalated later.

Someone even called the police, and all the blame started pointing at me.

Initially, I confidently vouched that Mr. Gilbert had the problem, but when I asked Rachel to testify, she remained silent.

The story then became that I had tried to seduce Mr. Gilbert and failed. So I falsely accused him.

Because I couldn't provide evidence, the school expelled me.

My parents were ordinary employees with little education. They beat me black and blue after they heard about it and even considered making me drop out and find a job.

I had to threaten my dad with a knife, crying my heart out, to get him to transfer me to another school.

I didn't ask my mom for help.

She sided with Rachel and always trusted relatives from her parents side.

From then on, I disliked Rachel.

Later, she apologized to me and told me that she was grateful that I stood up for her. But she didn't want the matter to escalate and hoped I'd forgive her.

I didn't cut ties with her.

Her guilty behavior made me suspect there was another side to her story.

When I finally uncovered the truth, I realized the fact was nothing like what Rachel had said.

The cutest guy in her class had a girlfriend and never even glanced at Rachel.

She brought her deskmate breakfast every day, so he reciprocated by helping her move her desk.

5

But thanks to her, I grew up a lot after I had been expelled from my previous school and faced my parents' punishment.

After transferring to another school, I focused on my academic learning.

I was admitted to a top-tier university in the country, while Rachel only attended a less prestigious local college.

I met Braydon in college.

We were from the same city and both went to college away from home. So he took extra care of me. Over time, we developed feelings for each other.

Our relationship stabilized this year, and I brought him home to meet my parents. I hadn't had the chance to tell him about staying away from Rachel before that incident happened.

Over the years, Rachel and I kept in touch. She still liked to share her romantic stories with me.

She loved bragging about her feminine charm.

"It's so annoying that I think my boss is interested in me. He doesn't pay much attention to others but is particularly attentive to me."

When I received her message, I rolled my eyes.

"Is it possible that you're not doing your job right?"

I didn't follow her lead, so she got upset.

She said, "How could that be? Everyone knows I perform well in my work."

So what could I say?

I could only reply, "Alright. Then he must like you."

Only then was she satisfied.

I was half-heartedly responding to her while scrolling through photos from the competition I participated in. I selected a few I liked and posted them on my social media with a caption. "Keep pushing, Rita! You are getting better."

She liked it instantly.

After liking it, she returned to our chat. "Rita, the photos you posted are a bit ugly. Why haven't you spruced yourself up now that you're in college?"

I just replied with an emoji and said nothing.

Gradually, besides showing off, she started criticizing me more.

I could sense jealousy in her proud words.

6

Braydon and I had only walked out for a short while when I received a message from my mom. "Come back quickly. You're grown up now, and you can help out instead of waiting for dinner to be served."

I sighed and reminded Braydon once more, saying, "You'd better stay as far away from Rachel as possible."

Braydon had learned his lesson.

Wherever I went, he followed me after we went back.

Valda teased, "Oh my, they are really inseparable."

As soon as my mom heard Valda's comment, she quickly inquired about Rachel, asking, "Why didn't Rachel bring any guy home this year?"

Valda waved her hand with a smile and said, "I'm not worried about her at all. She always rejects others, never the other way around. She often calls me and tells me some guy has given her a gift."

Rachel sneaked a glance at Braydon and smiled shyly.

My heart skipped a beat.

On the way home, Braydon focused on driving while I sat in the passenger seat, restless.

7

I didn't expect that my mom would use an excuse to let Braydon be away and pull me into a room as soon as we got home. "Rita, you need to break up with Braydon immediately. "I won't allow you to date him."

I was completely baffled and asked, "Mom, why? Did he do anything wrong? Before coming over, he carefully selected the best gifts and tried his best to be polite. Plus, he graduates from a prestigious university and is good to me. And his family is local..."

My mom interrupted me, saying, "If he's such a great guy, why is he interested in you? "Do you know what Valda said when I was leaving today? She said Braydon had ulterior motives and was interested in Rachel because she's pretty. I'm embarrassed for you. Break up with him immediately, and I'll set you up with another guy."

I couldn't suppress my anger.

First, I was mad that my mom easily believed Valda's words.

Second, I was upset that my mother didn't care about me at all.

I shouted at her, "How could you see Braydon liked Rachel? He stuck to me all the time. Didn't you notice it?"

My mom pounded the bed forcefully, and her eyes were bulging.

Her finger trembled as she pointed at me.

She said angrily, "You're still being stubborn. Valda said Rachel sternly rejected Braydon's advances and that Braydon must be afraid of losing everything, so he deliberately stuck to you."

I retored, "Valda said that again. Can't you have your own opinion? Does everything have to be what Valda says?"

I had never defied my mom like that before.

She was furious, so she jumped up from the bed and slapped me with lightning speed.

8

I stormed out angrily and told Braydon to pack up.

In just ten minutes, we loaded everything into the car and sped off.

On the way, Braydon tried to comfort me. I was so angry that I kept repeating the same thing over and over again.

"Rachel is indeed insane."

I wanted to say more, but my phone rang, interrupting me.

I took it out and saw it was my dad calling.

I hesitated for a moment and answered it.

My dad's voice was loud and anxious. "Have you grown wings? Get back here immediately. Your mom is so upset that she's having a heart attack."

Braydon and I immediately turned around and rushed my mom to the hospital.

In the hospital, my mom gave me the cold shoulder. She rolled her eyes whenever she met my gaze.

My dad said to me, "Don't go against your mom. Her heart isn't good, so just go along with her for the next few days."

She only said to me the next day at noon, "I don't want to eat the dishes bought in the hospital. Go home and bring me something."

When I got downstairs, I realized I didn't have the keys.

I returned to the ward and overheard my mom lecturing Braydon in a very harsh tone.

9

"Braydon, I'm not blaming you. But what matters most is one's character. We're a decent family. Even if we don't have as much money as your family, any guy from my family doesn't fall for everyone he meets. Stop clinging to my daughter. I heard your family is local too. It's not good for you to fall for my daughter's cousin when you are my daughter's boyfriend. Don't force me to involve your parents in this."

I was outside the ward and could see Braydon's face turn pale. His lips were tightly pressed together, and he looked very embarrassed.

He didn't dare to argue with my mom, fearing it would upset her and worsen her condition. So he had to remain silent.

I pushed the door open and said, "Mom, what are you talking about? Those are baseless accusations. Can you stop making things up?"

My mom waved her hand and threw the water cup from the bedside table at my head. As the glass shattered, I felt warm blood trickling down my forehead.

She didn't care if I was injured.

She continued in a lecturing tone, "Don't yell at me. Are you really choosing him over your mother? You ungrateful daughter." I'm doing this for your own good. Don't you understand?" You have to break up with him now, or how will I face Valda's family in the future?" Don't think you're something just because you graduated from a prestigious university. I've been around longer than you have."

10

Braydon pulled me aside to find a nurse to simply treat my wound. Later, Rachel and Valda arrived, empty-handed.

Rachel had been walking in the front. But since Braydon was near the door of the ward, she awkwardly turned around and hid behind Valda.

She pretended to avoid meeting Braydon, and my mom tried to let Braydon leave. "The room is too crowded, so I won't keep Braydon here. Spend more time with your family for the New Year."

I gritted my teeth and led Braydon downstairs.

"I'm sorry to let you suffer through everything."

Braydon felt awkward and realized it was pointless for him to stay there. So we agreed that he would drive back to his place now.

I thought that would be the end of the matter.

But later, I stumbled upon a short video with 50, 000 likes when I scrolled through a social media app.

"During the holidays of New Year, my cousin's boyfriend gave me some strange looks. Should I tell her?"

Since Rachel and I followed each other, I quickly came across that video.

It was a sensational and taboo topic and gained 20, 000 likes in just an hour.