"Ris, what are you doing here? Who is he? Why is his face completely covered in blood?" Noelle's brows drew together as she pointed at me.

"Noelle, it's me! Hurry up and recognize me!" I pleaded inwardly. My body was bound tightly; all I could do was squirm and wriggle toward Noelle.

Faris stomped on my face. "Stay still!"

The impact left my head spinning and my vision blurred, but I still mumbled out Noelle's name, "Noelle… Noelle…"

Faris flew off the handle. He kicked me in the mouth a second time. "How dare you call out her name in front of me, you piece of shit?"

Noelle shuddered when she heard my voice. She crouched down, scrutinizing my face.

Before she could figure out who I was, Faris said, "Honey, look, you don't have to explain. He's the boy toy you've been keeping overseas, right? I know you bought this villa for him.

"Honestly, I don't have a problem with it. You're such a successful businesswoman. It's only natural for you to keep a little secret lover on the side." Tears welled up in his eyes, and his voice cracked. "I only came here because I wanted to know what you see in him. I can learn, and I can act just like him... if it means you'll love me just a little bit more..."

Noelle was visibly moved by his tears. She rose to her feet and drew him into her arms. "What are you on about? I told you that you're the only one I love. If not, I wouldn't be getting engaged to you.

"I bought this villa for Noel, you silly boy. He's coming home tomorrow, remember? I wanted to surprise him, so I didn't tell anyone. That is to say, you've got it all wrong.

"By the way, you still haven't told me who this guy is! I can assure you I'm not keeping anyone on the side." Noelle asked again, pointing at me.

The puzzle pieces finally landed into place in Faris' mind, and every ounce of color instantly drained from his face. "He… He's just some punk who crossed me. Blaine and I were just teaching him a lesson..."

Noelle grimaced. "He crossed you? He had it coming then. But you shouldn't have brought him into Noel's villa!"

After hearing that, Faris' voice trembled. "You're right, I'm sorry. I'll have someone drag this kid out and clean up the mess right now, and I'll invite a priest to bless the villa. Tomorrow, I'll personally apologize to Noel. He won't hold a grudge against me, will he, honey?"

Noelle beamed. "Noel's a sweetheart. He definitely won't hold it against you!"

My heart hammered against my ribs in pure, unadulterated terror as a burly man hoisted me up and carried me outside. Faris was definitely going to silence me for good. He had clearly figured out who I was. He simply couldn't risk it, so he had to make sure there were no loose ends.

Horrified by the thought, I thrashed against my captors. My resistance earned me another ringing blow to the cheek. "This is what happens when you step on my toes, brat. Get him out of here, now!" Faris urged.

Just then, Blaine walked back in. Noticing the dark expression on Noelle's face, he put on his best brown-nosing smile and approached Noelle. "Cheer up, Boss! We honestly didn't mean to draw blood from this pretty boy, but the guy actually had the nerve to masquerade as your little brother...

Faris wanted to shut him up, but he was a split second too late. Noelle instantly caught on and asked icily, "What did you just say? He was posing as Noel?"

Blaine nodded eagerly. "That's right! This punk didn't even do his homework. We searched him, and his IDs don't have Mr. Brown's name on them at all!" Right after saying that, he obsequiously handed all of my documents to Noelle.

Looking at my identity card, Noelle's face turned stark, ghostly white. "How could this be?"