📖 The Story Continues
The story doesn't end here.Continue reading the full story adaptation below and discover what happens next.
Reborn to Love Mr. Right – Episode 08
Derek yanked the handle again, but the Rolls-Royce remained locked. His reflection in the tinted window showed a boy dressed like an heir and stranded outside the car he claimed as his own. “Arianna, what are you doing?” he demanded. Students gathered closer, eager to watch the strange confrontation.
Arianna lowered the window only far enough to make herself heard. “Didn’t you say you never wanted to speak to me again?” she asked, recalling his anger after the volleyball game. “So why are you trying to get into my car?” The emphasis was deliberate, and Derek heard the danger immediately.
The students did not. One girl called Arianna insane and insisted the vehicle obviously belonged to Derek. Others urged him to throw her out, certain that his delay came from excessive kindness. Each defense tightened the trap around the identity he had invented.
Derek forced a forgiving expression onto his face. “I was going to let the volleyball thing go,” he said, pretending their dispute explained the scene. “But you’re really starting to make me angry.” His voice carried the warning that had once controlled Arianna without effort.
“Forgive me?” Arianna asked. “Why would I need your forgiveness?” She remained seated, calm enough to make his anger look unreasonable. The question unsettled the crowd because it did not fit the grateful poor girl Derek had described.
Ivy stepped close to the window, still holding a tissue to her nose. “How can you be so rude? Just because Derek lets you ride in his car doesn’t mean the car belongs to you.” Her tone dripped with moral superiority. She clearly expected public opinion to succeed where Derek’s private command had failed.
Several students agreed at once. Arianna looked from Ivy to Derek and allowed a small smile to form. “Did you hear that, Derek?” she asked. “Just because I let you ride in my car doesn’t mean it’s yours.”
Silence spread around the Rolls-Royce. The competing claims had finally been spoken clearly enough to demand proof. Students glanced at Jeff behind the wheel, waiting for the driver to identify his true employer. Jeff kept his eyes forward and said nothing.
Derek’s face hardened. If he admitted the truth, years of carefully cultivated prestige would collapse in a single afternoon. The students who admired him would learn that his designer clothes, tuition, and transportation came from the girl they mocked. Ivy might also begin questioning whether his promises of wealth had any substance.
“What are you waiting for?” someone called. “Are you going to let her walk all over you?” The crowd’s support became another kind of pressure. To protect the lie, Derek had to act like a man with the right to command the car.
Arianna watched the calculation pass through his eyes and recognized the same fear he had shown in the ballroom years later. Exposure terrified him more than cruelty troubled him. In the future, he had used violence when her truth threatened his reputation. Even as a teenager, he was already reaching the same decision.
He opened the front passenger door and leaned across Jeff to unlock the rear. Jeff could have stopped him with a word, but instead shifted aside. That small cooperation told Arianna how completely father and son had confused access with ownership.
Derek pulled open her door. “Get out,” he said beneath his breath. To the crowd, he raised his voice and added, “I’ve tolerated enough of your behavior.” He reached for Arianna’s arm before she could respond.
The contact brought back the ballroom floor with brutal clarity: his shoe striking her body, blood beneath her cheek, and guests believing every lie he told. Arianna’s muscles locked for one instant. Derek used that hesitation to drag her from the seat and set her on the curb.
She caught herself before falling. Around her, students laughed and congratulated Derek for finally putting the supposed freeloader in her place. Ivy smiled through her injured pride, delighted to receive another public victory.
Derek opened the door for Ivy with exaggerated courtesy. She slid into Arianna’s seat as though accepting a throne, then arranged her skirt and looked out with a triumphant smile. The scene echoed the future in miniature: Derek taking what belonged to Arianna and presenting it to Ivy while everyone applauded.
Jeff started the engine. For a moment, his gaze met Arianna’s in the side mirror. There was unease in it, but no apology. He drove away because obeying Derek served the future he imagined for his family.
The crowd erupted into renewed ridicule after the Rolls-Royce pulled from the curb. They pointed at Arianna and joked about her failed attempt to impersonate an heiress. Derek had preserved his identity for another few minutes, and they believed the spectacle was over.
Arianna smoothed her uniform where Derek had grabbed it. Anger burned through her, but it was controlled now, sharpened by the knowledge of exactly what to do next. The car, driver, and accounts all belonged to the Taylor family. Derek’s performance could survive only while the real owner chose not to challenge it.
She took out her phone and selected her father’s number. As it rang, she watched the Rolls-Royce approach the corner. Derek believed he had driven away with proof of his power, but Arianna needed only one sentence to summon the car back—and this time, the whole school would be watching.
