Reborn as the Villainess

Once Felix had left, Eleanor pulled Samuel into the room. She unscrewed a bottle of alcohol on the table and said, "Samuel, let me treat your wound."

Samuel froze, caught off guard. "How did you..." He was baffled. He hadn't even shown her his palm.

Eleanor seemed to sense his confusion and explained, "I'm very sensitive to the smell of blood. I noticed it as soon as you got close to me." She couldn't really explain this unusual ability of hers, but thankfully, Samuel didn't press the issue. After cleaning the wound and disinfecting it, Eleanor reached for a band-aid. But before she could apply it, Samuel grumbled coolly, "I don't want the green one."

His stubborn expression resembled that of a child refusing a candy flavor they disliked.

Eleanor sighed and opened the box of bandages. "Pick whichever one you like," she said.

The box wasn't large, but it contained an assortment of colorful bandages - red, green, blue, purple, and more. Each one was adorned with cute cartoon designs. When Samuel remained silent, Eleanor assumed he didn't like any of them. "The cut isn't deep," she quickly added. "We don't have to use one if you don't want to..." "Blue," Samuel suddenly said. "I want the blue one."

Eleanor blinked in surprise. "Oh, okay." She carefully placed the blue bandage with a puppy design on his palm.

Samuel examined the bandage on his hand with satisfaction. He had quickly counted earlier - the green ones with cat designs only had seven and a half cats, while his blue one had eight puppies. That was half a cartoon character more than Felix's. "Let's go," Eleanor said, gathering her things and opening the door. She wasn't sure if three minutes had passed yet.

But Samuel remained rooted to the spot behind her, his eyes fixed on her with an unmistakable hint of anger. He didn't say a word, but his gaze spoke volumes.

Confused, Eleanor asked, "What's wrong?" She couldn't recall doing anything to upset him.

Samuel raised his hand haughtily. "My hand hurts too."

""Huh?" Eleanor frowned.

"You didn't blow on it for me," Samuel finally explained.

Eleanor was speechless. Not wanting to waste more time, she stepped forward and gave his hand a perfunctory puff. "There, better now?"

Samuel's expression brightened considerably. He shoved his hand back into his pocket and tilted his chin up with an air of feigned indifference. "Humph, how childish. It's just a trick for kids. Who'd actually believe in that?" His words might have been dismissive, but the grin threatening to split his face told a different story.

Eleanor's lip twitched. She was starting to doubt their actual ages. They were adults, yet, at this rate, calling them toddlers would be a compliment.

However, Eleanor suddenly realized something. Not only did she feel comfortable around Ross, but she also didn't experience any physical aversion to Felix or even Samuel, whom she had just met. She wondered if her previous psychological issues had resolved themselves.

****

As Eleanor and Samuel reached the staircase, they bumped into Felix, who was craning his neck to look up. He glanced at the stopwatch on his phone and let out a cold snort. "Three minutes, one second, and seventy-seven milliseconds. Two seconds too slow." Eleanor blinked in surprise, not expecting him to actually keep track of the time. "I was as quick as I could be," she said.

Felix pursed his lips and magnanimously declared, "Alright, I'll let it slide this time." He cast a wary glance at Samuel behind her and leaned in close to whisper in her ear, "Did Samuel give you any trouble just now?" "No, he didn't," Eleanor replied.

"If that jerk ever messes with you, just say the word." Felix smirked. "I've got dirt on him. Those bed-wetting pics from when we were kids? One post online and his fan club would-Oof! Samuel, what the hell?"

A pillow rocketed across the room, nailing Felix square in the face..

Samuel's ears turned bright red as he sputtered furiously, "Stop spreading lies!"

"How is it a lie? I've got the photos. Don't believe me? I'll pull them up right now," Felix retorted, already reaching for his phone to scroll through his gallery.

Samuel leaped up in a flash, lunging at Felix with

fury. "You bastard, I'll finish you off today!"

As the two were about to start brawling again, Eleanor felt a throbbing pain developing in her head. She suddenly felt a pang of sympathy for Andrew. Keeping five younger brothers in line and well-behaved was no easy feat, especially when they were all hot-headed teenagers ready to explode at the slightest provocation.

Andrew, of course, witnessed the scuffle unfolding before him. With a calm frown, he turned to Vincent and instructed, "Vincent, throw these two out. They can come back when they're done fighting."

Vincent could only remain silent. Watching Felix and Samuel pulling each other's hair, he twitched his lip and hesitated for a long while, not daring to step forward.

This wasn't the rough-and-tumble brawl he'd expect from guys no punches thrown, no furniture overturned, just hair- pulling and spitting. It seemed more like a schoolyard catfight than a manly dispute.

The absurdity of the scene struck him as he noticed their dainty pinching motions, so at odds with their muscular frames.

Fortunately, though fighting, they weren't completely foolish. Hearing Andrew's voice and sensing his anger, they immediately let go. The next second, both simultaneously checked the band-aids on their hands. Both siblings breathed a silent sigh of relief, grateful the bandages were still in place.

Seeing they had finally settled down, Andrew continued, "Hey Ellie, I had the chef whip up that garlic lobster you love. Give it a taste, will you?"

"Sure thing!" Eleanor's face lit up, and she took a seat next to Andrew. Without hesitation, Andrew slid the entire platter of lobster in front of her. The aroma of garlic mingled with a hint of spice, making her mouth water instantly.

Gloria eyed the dish, biting her lip in slight disappointment. 'Andrew is so biased,' she thought. 'I wanted some too. Dylan, seemingly sensing her thoughts, reached over and placed a lobster in her bowl. "Here, Gloria. Dig in," he said softly.

Gloria's frustration melted away. She looked up at him, pleasantly surprised, and chirped. "Thank you, Dylan. You're so sweet."Property © of NôvelDrama.Org.

While one end of the table radiated warmth, storm clouds were gathering at the other. Samuel had claimed the chair next to

Eleanor - a seat traditionally occupied by Felix. Whether this was a calculated move or an innocent mistake remained

unclear.

Felix suddenly lost his cool. He slammed his hand on the table, demanding Samuel to stand up. But Samuel sat there, cool as a cucumber. "Why should I? First come, first served. This seats taken, buddy"

Felix's face flushed with anger. "You little-" He cut himself off, dragging over a chair. With grim determination, he attempted to wedge himself between Eleanor and Samuel, hell-bent on reclaiming his territory. Eleanor could only stare in disbelief. 'What is so special about this spot? Why are they fighting over it like it was the last slice of pizza?'

She sighed and started to get up, ready to give up this seat. But Andrew grabbed her hand, keeping her in place. He shot a glare at Felix, who was still trying to cram his chair in, and barked, "Felix, go sit somewhere else." Felix wasn't having it. He protested, "No way! This was my spot to begin with. Why should I give it up?" He'd figured it out. Samuel clearly had ulterior motives.