Chapter 556 - Melting into Spring (5) - Shelly's POV

I watched Rika lazily about to lay down on the sofa, looking annoyed from trying on many dresses. Luke glared at her to properly sit, warning her that he could add to Charles and Alex choosing her clothes, shoes and accessories. Rika cutely puffed her cheeks as if she was a squirrel, immediately fixing her posture. I almost smiled, forgetting about this familiar scene since it has been a while that I had seen her.

It was extremely comfortable in using the dorm room by myself with Alex gone from Rika's excessive stalker. I could do whatever I wanted, not caring about messing things slightly by an angle. Everyone inside the club room sometimes rejoiced, not having to maintain their image in front of Luke and Alex. Although we pitied Rika, we couldn't deny how everyone was in a better mood, including the teachers.

Miliana was the happiest out of all of us. She skipped into the classroom with a big smile, nearly humming a bright tune. I had never been in a long conversation with her before, only the two of us in the classroom. She shared the latest gossip and rumors in the school with me, trying to confirm some of the news. I wondered if living with Charles was that miserable, remembering her shy demeanor ever since she transferred into our class..

Maybe I would tell the others on how Rika was doing since she wouldn't be returning to school for another month. I knew the Roselia family was working on handling her extreme fans trying to follow her around everywhere. The store we were inside was completely reserved, only us as its customers. Luke had messaged me the previous day to invite me to shop with them, mostly due to Rika.

There were many beautiful items inside this shop, making me contemplate on which ones I should purchase. Unfortunately, most of the items I liked were expensive, costing around my entire monthly allowance. However, I had saved my money for six months, allowing me to get the chance to buy around five things. Noticing a beautiful necklace, glimmering with diamonds embedded into tiny flowers, I reached out my hand.

"This is for Rika," Alex quickly swiped it away.

"But Rika hates necklaces," I waited for him to pass it to me.

"That's why it's for her," Alex passed the necklace for Rika to try on.

"Can't you let Shelly have it?" Rika complained.

"You already chose so much," she gestured to the large pile on the table.

"Do you want us to take back the deal?" He began to threaten her.

Rika instantly tried on the necklace, making the piece appear more splendid with her lovely face. I couldn't help but agree that the necklace would look better on her than me. Her long slender neck and smooth collarbones resembled a doll. Alex proudly smiled with his pride increasing from finding many successful matches. I never thought he would have this kind of hobby, treating Rika as a dress-up doll.

However, I knew Luke liked dressing Rika, going shopping with her often. It seemed Rika was used to this, groaning while watching Charles being passionate as Alex. Charles didn't take a break, searching for the most gorgeous dresses for her to try. I grimaced when noticing the extremely small waists for some of them. It was surprising when Rika perfectly fit into them, not appearing tight on her.

The staff went silent as Charles and Alex continued to pick the most exclusive and expensive items, almost toppling on the counter. Luke didn't join them, helping Rika with the accessories and dresses instead. However, he added his opinions whenever they brought an item for her to try. If it wasn't for him, they would've almost emptied the entire store. When he was about to pay for Rika's accessories and dresses, Alex quickly handled the bill before him.

"I'm going to choose more in the next store," Alex explained.

I wondered how many stores we were going today, finding her current pile to be already overdone. The next place we visited was a shoe store, making Rika roll her eyes from the sight. Rika hated her shoes to the point she would try to put them off when Luke wasn't looking. But the shoes here were stunning, sparkling from the hints of sunlight. My hand reached out to a pastel pink flats, comfortable but decorated with pretty ribbons.

"Wait. I saw it first," Charles claimed the flats for Rika.

"I let you take the bracelets for Rika in the last store," I wasn't willing to give in.

"Choose something else," he narrowed his eyes.

"Let Shelly have them," Rika looked like she was fed up.

"Do you want to be confined to your room again?" He warned her.

"I'll try them on," Rika received the shoes from him.

Once we arrived at the shoe store, Luke set the rules on which ones they could choose. His guidelines made sure Rika would be able to wear them later on. Meaning, their only options were the comfortable ones with low heels or none at all. But there were many comfortable shoes in this shop, making me admire its practicality. I wanted to come back here again with Sienna and Delia.

My hand collided with Alex, brushing on the edge of his sleeve when I found an adorable slipper. I stiffened when he looked at me with disgust from the slight touch. Dumbfounded to the point that I didn't realize the shoe was gone. Unexpectedly, Charles lowered his voice while explaining to me, "Rika trashed his entire closet. All his clothes turned into rags and had to be thrown out."