Love’s Cunning Ruse

Chapter 11

Even though she seemed to be cool as a cucumber on the surface, she couldn’t hide the anger that bubbled within. Julie strutted out of Kieran’s hotel room with her head held high, but her steps were as shaky as a newborn deer.

If it wasn’t for Kieran reminding her, she would’ve forgotten that she was a top law school graduate, who had top grades of the class. Actually Julie wasn’t particularly brainy. From kindergarten to high school, she had always followed Kieran, attending the same school and class. They were the kind of buddies who grew up together. Deep down, Julie knew that she had to study hard to get a chance to see Kieran every day.

Later on, before going to college, Julie heard that Kieran was heading to law school. Without any clear life goals, she had always taken Kieran as her guiding star. So, she chose law as her major faster than a hot knife through butter.

While waiting for the acceptance letter, Julie asked Kieran about his college choices by herself. Only when the acceptance letters arrived did she find out that he had chosen business school for corporate management studies.

Julie was shocked. She wanted to retake the exams, saying, “If I go to law school, how many years would it take before I see him again? And even after I start working, I won’t be able to help him in his field. If I retake the exams, I’ll miss him for one year at most, and then I’ll be his college mate. How sweet would that be!”

Even though Julie was as stubborn as a mule, she couldn’t fulfill her wish to retake the exams. Her family was well–off and her sister Sansa was a lawyer. Her parents planned to find her an easy job through Sansa after graduation.Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

In the end, Julie had to eat humble pie, all because Kieran told her, “Joyce, if you don’t retake the exams, I promise I’ll come to see you every Saturday. If you retake, I’ll study abroad.”

Was Kieran threatening her? Of course, he was. But she was as soft as putty in his hands and gave in without a fight. So, to see him every week, Julie ended up going to law school.

Back then, Julie’s ultimate goal in life was to become Kieran’s wife. For her, studying was harder than rocket science. The only reason she got into law school was that she thought Kieran had applied there.

Later, when she lost sight of her goal, Julie went from being top of her class to nearly flunking out, making many professors question whether she had cheated on her entrance exam. Just when Julie was about to throw in the towel and switch majors, she heard that Kieran, the business school guy, had passed the bar exam. The fact was that the man who seemed to be good at everything had passed.

Julie’s fighting spirit was rekindled instantly. She stuck to Kieran like glue, begging him to tutor her. Eventually, under her relentless pursuit, Kieran gave in and agreed to help her.

Under Kieran’s help, Julie performed like she had superpowers, shocking those who thought she wouldn’t even graduate. In the end, not only did she enter law school with top scores, but she also graduated as the valedictorian, becoming a distinguished law school graduate.

If Kieran hadn’t reminded her today, she would’ve completely forgotten that she was once the top student in law school. Ironically, she now adamantly refused to work in anything related to law, all because of him, the man who taught her everything about law.

Julie took a deep breath with a smirking smile on her face. Her phone buzzed in her pocket for a while before she finally pulled it out.