Chapter 404 - Finale of the Circus (3)

"You could have declined the invitation, but you decided to attend. If you want, I can call for a hover call, but even Rika isn't complaining." Alex seemed disappointed with Shelly.

"But your family treats her differently," she pointed out.

"Rika is family," he revealed she wasn't the same.

I almost gasped, never knowing Shelly would feel so horrible that she would ask if she could leave. Shelly, who noticed that the signs of chattering in the living room on this floor had died down, lowered her voice.

"I'm just asking to include me in some of the conversations," her voice wobbled.

"Why should I do that?" He didn't understand.

"Is it really that hard?" She felt she wasn't asking for much.

"You're causing more trouble than Rika," Alex sighed.

"Do you think since we didn't do anything, we don't hold anything against your family? Your family decided to work with the Nicole family since she was your friend for a project. Things don't work that way here. Do you think your family would have gotten that project in the first place if it wasn't for us?" He pointed out.

"But as her friend, I should be helping her out in difficult times," Shelly almost choked on tears.

"It's not a buyable excuse for us. We always place family first. In fact, Rika has the right to be treated better than you are. Her contributions to the family outweigh what your family has done for us," he revealed.

Ever since Shelly's engagement with Alex, I knew their families were extensively working together. And I knew how a single project brought in a sizable amount of money from what Luke had taught me. I wondered how much the cave and the tower was truly worth for it to offset all their collaborations for years.

"If you want to leave, go ahead. But don't attend next time if you're going to humiliate the Monete family through your actions," he coldly turned to walk away from her.

"I'll stay," she decided, stepping down onto the second floor, holding back.

"This is why I said we shouldn't have just let them go," Joanna commented after Shelly was on another floor.

"Maybe she'll learn," Juliana sighed.

"The worst case, we can just break off the engagement, although it'll take some work," she added.

I froze, not knowing the engagement between them could be broken. I thought that stage was already over once you passed elementary school. Shelly did possess the Monete family name in her middle name. Maybe I didn't know how everything worked yet. I was only certain that once your last name turned into the family someone was engaged, it was almost permanent.

"I made sure she wouldn't be asking for more," Alex shot an apologetic look at Lucius and Belle.

"It's fine, she's still young," Lucius accepted his apology.

"Your dress looks really pretty," I turned to Belle, switching the topic from Shelly.

"We can also pre-order a similar one for you," she twirled to show off more of her dress, fluttering up and down with the wind.

"Really?" I pretended to admire the illusion of butterflies moving in her skirt of her dress, forgetting the pain of wearing it.

"But I don't think I'll ever look as beautiful as when you wear it," I tried to decline when she opened her screen to immediately buy a similar one for me.

"Don't think that way," she smiled while making the purchase.

"I always thought it was a shame that only Luke got to pick out your clothes," she started to look at me like a dress up doll.

I gulped, regretting that it was the start of a new topic, deciding which clothes would match me the best. Even their mothers made some purchases for me while looking through the catalogs. Luke ran over to them as well, giving them some of his opinions, making the whole family join in. I looked away, not daring to look at the mounting number of orders. I never knew everyone else in his family had the same hobby as him.

"I like the small waist in this dress. She'll look more like a doll," Belle showed Lucius.

"How about this one with the laced back?" Lucius disagreed with her.

"I think the one with the ribbons looks better with the diamond buttons," Alex frowned at what they chose.

"We can buy all of them," Juliana told them, ending the argument.

"But we should buy these bracelets to go with them," Luke added.

Luke enjoyed shopping at exclusive stores, his closet being neatly organized with a collection of intricate watches, cufflinks and clothes. He also liked doing the same for me, knowing where everything was located in my closet. Arranging every one of my outfits and getting rid of the outdated ones that didn't fit me anymore.

"They said it's coming within an hour!" Belle looked at the status on the screen.

This was how the servants brought plenty of boxes with their orders inside the room. Since the workers used the time-space room from the stores, it was possible for them to deliver their orders with my tailored measurements. I sighed as I had to try on everything that they ordered for me, some of them taking pictures while I posed. Belle's eyes glittered whenever I would wear the ones she picked. It was the least I could do for them since it was their special day.