Falling For My Alpha Stepsister (GL)
Chapter 9: Got A New Side Gig But...

Chapter 9: Got A New Side Gig But...

I was done with my shift.

Time to head to the place where I lay my head to rest for another day.

Just as I stepped outside the library, a familiar figure was sitting on the bench near the bike racks, her head tilted down toward her lap until she noticed the sound of the exit.

Benny.

She was waiting.

The moment she saw me, she stood up and walked toward me.

Her eyes locked right onto mine behind my lenses, her expression completely serious as she cut across the open space of the plaza, making it impossible for me to pretend I hadn’t noticed her.

I looked back and even took a step back, planning an escape.

I was even wishing for the ground to open up and swallow me.

Before I could turn around and bolt back into the staff room, her warm fingers slid smoothly over my palm, catching my wrist with a firm, unyielding grip that completely shocked me into stillness.

This was the first time she had ever held my hand.

What is happening?

I stared down at our joined fingers, my breath catching in my throat as I struggled to find a single word to say to break the heavy silence between us.

"Please, can we talk about last night?" she asked with a gentle expression.

Her voice was soft and pleading, her brown eyes wide with a deep anxiety that told me she wasn’t going to let me leave until she got exactly what she came for.

I had no choice but to listen to what she had to say.

So there we were, inside a coffee shop.

I kept my backpack clutched tightly in my lap like a shield, staring down at the dark liquid in my white ceramic mug without touching it.

"About what you saw last night... please, can you keep it a secret?"

She leaned forward across the laminated table, her hands folding together as she dropped her voice into a low, frantic whisper that barely carried over the hum of the espresso machine.

Wow.

A bitter, cold weight settled deep in my stomach, the remaining fragments of my silly crush completely turning to ash right before my eyes.

She really came all the way here just to all say that.

She hadn’t come to apologize for tricking me, and she certainly hadn’t come to see if I was okay after banging my head into a doorframe; she was just protecting her own skin.

Well...

"What I saw last night is none of my business. I’m not going to say anything, but you know she’s a nun. She’s not meant to be doing what I saw."

I adjusted my glasses with a sharp, defensive flick of my finger, keeping my tone as flat and professional as possible to hide the deep ache in my chest.

"I know, but... I love her, and she also loves me. You were not supposed to see us. It’s supposed to be a secret."

Benny reached out, her fingers twitching on the table as if she wanted to grab my hand again, her face twisting into a mask of pure desperation.

Hearing those words made my heart crack into a million pieces.

I couldn’t believe I was falling for someone I thought I had a chance with.

It’s a good thing I didn’t confess my feelings to her.

If I had actually opened my mouth and told her how much I liked her before walking into that scene, I would have died right there on the floor.

I would have been so... embarrassed.

Now I feel so fucking stupid.

But why did she invite me in the first place?

A sudden spark of anger flared up through the sadness, a burning question forcing its way out of my throat as I finally looked up to meet her eyes.

"Benny, why did you ask me to come with you to the orphanage? You could have done the reading to the kids yourself."

"I needed a way to see her, and she can’t leave the orphanage for certain reasons. When I heard that the orphanage was looking for someone to teach the kids, I told them I knew someone. The other day, you sounded like a kind, friendly person who could easily befriend kids. That’s why I asked you."

Now I felt even more stupid. I was only friendly with you because I wanted to...

I was just used so two secret lovers could secretly meet.

I wasn’t a date, I wasn’t a potential partner, and I wasn’t even a friend; I was just a convenient distraction, a cover story to fool the older nuns at the front gate.

"Okay, don’t worry. I won’t open my mouth. I’m good at keeping secrets. Thank you for the coffee. Goodnight."

Even if I was heartbroken, like they always say, what is yours will be yours, and no one can take it from you.

Benita Goodman isn’t mine.

I can’t believe I wasted nights trying to make her mine.

All that energy thrown into the trash, completely wasted on someone who was already looking at a girl in a silver cross chain.

Just when I thought the book was over, it turned out there were still more Chapters.

"Despite the nuns’ disapproval, the kids seemed to like you, and I’ve come to ask if you would like to continue reading to them. Just on weekends."

"I’m sorry. I’ve got other things to do. Maybe you should find someone else to do the reading," I said, refusing to be use.

All my life I have been used by people.

The bitter memory of group projects in school, of friends who only called when they needed a ride or a favor, flashed through my mind like a dark movie reel.

From high school to college.

It was always the same pattern, a constant cycle of being the quiet, helpful girl who stood in the background while everyone else got what they wanted.

Always seeing people with happy faces while I cried in a corner made my heart ache.

I was going to stand by my offer, but then she named her price.

She was going to pay me to teach the kids how to read and write while she made out with the love of her life.

The cash offer was substantial, a regular weekly amount that was way more than what the library paid me for sorting through old returns.

It ached, but I would at least get money as compensation.

I needed money so badly that I was willing to do it.

The more money I saved up, the sooner I would be able to rent my own place and no longer have to live according to my mom’s rules.

I would be free from my mom’s clutches.

She wouldn’t have any say in my life anymore.

I could finally breathe, waking up to a world where my choices were entirely my own, paid for by my own hard work and my own savings.

And more importantly, I would be free from my stepsister’s tantrums.