Don't ever let anything pollute your love because the littlest impurities can turn everything upside down.
***
"If I told you that I didn't do it, would you believe me, Brian?"
The air was thick with uncertainty. Everyone in the room was looking at Brian who was just eyeing
Becky callously. His lips were pressed together and he was just gazing at Becky as if he was waiting
for something else to happen or perhaps, trying to read her mind.
Becky didn't shift her eyes under his gaze instead she met his eyes and stared him down. Her eyes
were bloodshot from not having slept the whole night or maybe from crying because of everything that
had happened. Her nose was twitching and she pressed her lips together not saying anything. She was
still as a rock and quiet as a mouse just waiting for Brian to answer.
Because neither Brian nor Becky was saying anything and no one else was speaking, the atmosphere
was getting stranger. Becky continued to meet Brian's gaze as Molly and Eric also had their attention
towards Brian. Eric looked confused while Molly held her breath as if she was afraid of what she was
going to hear.
Time passed by as Becky and Brian continued to stare each other down. The muted air was getting a
bit awkward. Becky felt so vulnerable and exposed as if she was naked and her heart was front and
center. She could feel it coming—she was going to get hurt quickly and deeply by Brian any moment
now.
Becky bit her lips anxiously as Brian scowled at her. But at this moment, she didn't really care what he
thought of her. At that moment, she just wanted to know his answer. The man standing in front of her
was the man that used to love her, and she needed to know if this man that she still loved believed her.
Brian frowned so scantily that no one else caught it. In his mind, he was thinking how the last time he
saw Becky like this was 13 years ago. 13 years ago, Brian visited to Dragon Island to attend his
grandfather's birthday party. A day after that he went to the Royal School to find Eric. He stood outside
a classroom and peeked through the massive window—he never forgot what he saw. Until now, he
could still describe in detail what he had seen.
Everyone who studied at the Royal School came from a prominent family in Dragon island. While
Becky's family was still important, it wasn't as prominent as the rest. They said that in cases like this,
one wouldn't enjoy the school as much. For Becky's status, she could've gone to another prestigious
school where she would have gotten more attention but she instead chose to study at the Royal
School. Thus she didn't stand out as much because there were so many rich and powerful students
there.
"I didn't do that!" At that time, Becky was just a 12-year-old girl—her voice was sweet and small. She
lifted her head a bit as she clenched her hands together. She looked at the teacher, her eyes brimming
with tears, and said, "I didn't do that! Don't you believe me, teacher?"
He was a bit shocked at how unflinching she was. As he squinted at the girl who stood so boldly, a little
butterfly-shaped hair clip caught his attention—it was clipped on one side of her hair that
complemented her piercing eyes. Brian was surprised. Even three years later when she had already
grown a little, he could still see the same girl who had helped him before and left without so much as a
name or a number.
After that, he frustratedly went back to the XK Intelligence Agency and passed all the tests and
completed all his tasks. But never did he forget about that girl's face—as if valor and disquiet lay
beneath her brooding eyes.
"Becky, it was you! I have a witness!" The girl who stood beside her didn't even try to hide her contempt
for Becky. "Who else would do this but you?" she accused.
"Well, she's a Yan!"
He didn't pay much attention to the fight but rather he was amazed at how strong her stance was and
how she cleverly asked the teacher directly. For her, it didn't matter what the others thought—just what
her teacher did.
That fight culminated in the lazy and arrogant words from Eric. "I believe her!". Then the teacher
choose to trust Becky too. That fight ended right there that day. But Eric once told Brian that even after
that day, Becky spent two weeks trying to find proof that she really was innocent—Brian smiled at this.
Becky, the girl who had helped him before told him, "Well, if you're going to stand by something, you
might as well prove you're right." He could still remember that day because he came to meet her again
but she didn't recognize him and that was okay. That way they were able to start their relationship
purely. From then on; Brian, Eric, and Becky spent a lot of time together. She didn't ever question who
Eric really was or why Brian frequently disappeared for periods of time. They all enjoyed their youth
together until one day, he found out something that would change everything.
Brian was still stuck in the past. That day when the girl covered in smudge asked him, "Do you need to
have a reason to help others?"
When she was accused, she said point blank, "I didn't do it. Teacher, do you believe me?"
Memory was quite unreliable—it's never just clear all the time as sometimes it can be a bit fuzzy. Even
if you thought you remember it clearly—you never really know.
"I believe you," Brian said softly. A lot of time has already passed and they've all changed—Eric, Brian,
and Becky. But Brian still chose to believe her because of all their history—it would just be weird not to.
"Brian..." Caught up on emotion, she couldn't help it. She sniffed and walked squarely towards Brian to
wrap herself around him.
This stunned everyone in the room. They didn't expect that Becky would be so bold as to do this. Brian
was frowning and Eric was fuming. On the contrary, Molly was looking surprisingly calm. Even when
Brian said that he believed Becky and even right now as Becky was hugging Brian.
Molly clenched her fists as she shifted her gaze from Becky to Brian unblinkingly. She spoke in a calm
voice, "You-you believe her?"
Molly pressed her lips together after she spoke trying to suppress her emotions. Even then, she still
shuddered.
Brian saw that Molly was looking at him as if he had betrayed her, as if he was the enemy. His eye
brows knitted together and pushed Becky away. He spoke to Molly in a soft voice, "Becky wouldn't do
that. She has nothing to do with this."
"Brian! You know this is Becky! We have proof!" Eric gritted his teeth—he was seething. He continued,
indignant, "And you're choosing to believe her over me?"
They were all visibly in quite a predicament. But Brian remained calm and said flatly, "She didn't do it."
He spoke conclusively that shocked Eric and Molly.
"Brian!" Molly shouted. She was hysterical now—something she'd never been before as she pointed a
finger to Becky, "You told me you won't let anyone hurt Mark! And here she is! She's the one who hurt
Mark! How are you defending her?"
Molly was able to scream in such volume because she felt betrayed and she was scared. Tears were
running down her face now. She looked at Brian through her tears who just frowned at her. His
eyebrows seemed to furrow together as if he found Molly silly.
Still sobbing, Molly fixed her gaze on Brian. "Brian, do you really believe Becky?" Eric asked,
disappointed.
"I'm going to figure this out," Brian said flatly, "But this is not about Becky."
This was all too overwhelming for Molly that she almost lost her balance—she was about to fall in a
heap when Eric held her arm as support. She saw Brian moving to pull her up too but Eric was nearer
and faster and besides, she didn't want to be anywhere near Brian right now.
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