Chapter 3

3

He had carefully crafted an image of exactly what I liked. He lingered near me, acting conflicted and shy, as if he didn't dare to approach me.

But I was never his goal.

His goal was my dear cousin, Cora Jenkins.

Actually, Cora and I weren't even blood-related. I only found out they were involved after I became a ghost in my previous life.

Grayson had hidden her very well.

Cora was adopted, but my aunt loved her so much that she introduced her as the second Vance daughter.

In reality, I only had one true cousin.

She was far away in London, which allowed Cora to play her little games.

Grayson and Cora grew up in the same orphanage. They were childhood sweethearts.

Cora was arrogant. she hated being around poor people and would never admit to knowing Grayson publicly.

Even so, Grayson was hopelessly obsessed with her.

In a way, I really couldn't compete with her. I didn't have her talent for manipulation.

She had my aunt wrapped around her finger, which was why my real cousin was forced to move to London.

Cora's favorite hobby was playing the moral saint.

The morning after I told my dad to stop Grayson's funding, she stormed into my classroom.

"Lyra, how could you do something so cruel?"

Without a word of greeting, she started accusing me with a look of utter heartbreak.

"I always thought you were a kind person. Do you realize you might have ruined someone's entire future?"

Her words were so dramatic that people probably thought I'd committed a crime.

Class had just ended. Everyone was about to leave.

But Cora's outburst made the whole room go silent.

I swear, if I gave these people popcorn, they'd sit there all day.

"How exactly did I ruin someone's life?"

I rolled my eyes right at her face. I knew she was here to complain about Grayson losing his funding.

After we started dating, I felt bad for him. I thought he was under too much pressure with school and work.

So, I arranged for him to be sponsored. To save his pride, I kept it a secret.

Now that I think about it, since they were old friends, Grayson must have known the whole time.

Every time he acted poor in front of me, I'd soften up and ask my dad for more money.

What kind of student needs five thousand dollars a month just for living expenses?

Cora was bold enough to make a scene, but she wouldn't dare tell everyone I was the one paying for Grayson.

So, she just stuck to the general topic.

She asked why I was revoking a poor student's scholarship.

She stood on her moral high ground, hoping the crowd would turn against me.

I looked at her with a mock smile. "If you're so saintly, why don't you sponsor him yourself?"

Despite my aunt's favoritism, Cora didn't have access to unlimited cash. She got an allowance like anyone else. My funding for Grayson came from my own savings.

Unlike me, Cora loved to play the big spender. She was always paying for everyone's drinks and meals.

She didn't have a penny left to help Grayson.

In fact, I bet most of the money I gave Grayson ended up in Cora's designer handbags.

Cora argued with me for a bit, but realized she was losing the verbal battle.

Two perfect tears rolled down her cheeks.

"Lyra, I'm just trying to tell you that charity isn't a game. You shouldn't treat people like stray dogs you can just toss away. If you had helped him finish school, he would have been so grateful to you."

I heard a snort from the crowd. Someone called Cora a self-righteous martyr.

Good. At least some people here had brains.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a familiar figure outside the door. I changed my tune immediately.

"Yeah, so what if I treat him like a beggar? He keeps his hand out for cash but never says thank you. Why should I keep funding a person like that?"