His Naughty Lessons
Chapter 135: Attention Seeker

Chapter 135: Attention Seeker

** Harper **

Harper had expected Eli to be relieved by the news. Shouldn’t it be a good thing that Wallace wasn’t suddenly interested in her just because he discovered a NSFW web novel she wrote? But why was Eli looking like he actually got more annoyed after hearing it?

"... Were you hoping that I had talked to him differently?" she asked. It was the only reason she could think of. "I thought it’d be better to get straight to the point, so I didn’t beat around the bush about it."

"Oh yes. Of course. I didn’t mean to sound like I was judging how you handled it." Eli let out a muffled groan, leaning into her. From their current position where she was still caged between him and the wall, the gesture felt satisfyingly intimate, and Harper liked it ... until he groaned again with a clear hint of annoyance.

"Goddamnit," he grumbled against the top of her head. "HappyRoastedBeans ... I spent two weeks trying to outrank that guy! When I first started reading your book, he was your number one fan for all the comments and gifts he sent you. I actually felt so accomplished when I finally took over the spot he had held for so long ... But to think that reader is the suitcase jackass! Damn it!"

Harper: "..."

Wow, that was quite a bit of information to process. She had no idea that Wallace was "the suitcase jackass" in Eli’s dictionary. Nor that Eli could somehow always turn out so adorable when he was jealous. Nor that he was involved with HappyRoastedBeans in a secret rivalry of some sort all this time—

"Wait," she blurted as the next thought struck her. "Wallace — as in, HappyRoastedBeans — hasn’t been my number one fan for quite a while now. Are you saying you are the one who replaced him?" She pushed Eli up from her shoulders so she could stare at him, almost rendered speechless by just how many web novel surprises she could stumble upon in a single day. "Are you saying you are my current top fan with that impossible to pronounce name? Cher.St.Sucre??"

Eli blinked. Then, slowly and sheepishly, he returned her a half smile, half grimace, as if only now realizing that his rant had exposed his hidden identity. "Um ... Maaaybe?"

Harper was certain that her mouth must’ve hung wide open in an O shape for at least fifteen seconds.

Cher.St.Sucre was one of her most elusive readers. Low-key to the point of almost silent, they rarely sent her gifts or left her comments, but even during the days when her updates were the most unstable, they would always read her latest Chapter immediately after it was posted and give her a kudos. In the rare cases when they did comment, it was never empty applause either, but true praises that pinpointed where a scene was the most beautiful or where a Chapter’s emotions were the most resonating. She had actually learned a lot just from reading those remarks.

Authors probably shouldn’t play favorites, but Harper had to admit that Cher.St.Sucre was not only her top fan at the moment, but also steadily becoming her most cherished reader. And now ... it was turning out to be Eli??

"Um ... Does it really surprise you that much?" Eli asked when she had remained wordless for too long. He still looked sheepish. "You knew I was reading your book ... And well, I just couldn’t help being an attention seeker and wanted to win that top fan spot."

The excuse snapped Harper out of her daze. She burst into laughter as soon as the words left his mouth. "You, an attention seeker?" She snorted. "Come on, you could’ve taken over the spot within a second if you simply sent me one expensive gift. It’s not like you couldn’t afford it. But you didn’t actually want the attention that would make me suspect who you were, did you?"

With the initial shock quickly subsiding, Harper was beginning to understand the situation fast. It was so typical of Eli’s style that looking back, she wondered how she hadn’t figured it out by herself already. He wanted to help her gain confidence during those early, difficult days of her book, but he didn’t want to hurt her pride by doing it so obviously and "out of favoritism", so of course he would become just another quiet reader who silently supported her, who encouraged her only when her Chapters were good enough to deserve genuine compliments. It was the same way he had always helped her — subtly, carefully, never patronizing and never downplaying the credit of her own hard work.

Eli’s grimace softened to a smile when he saw the understanding in her eyes. "Well, I suppose there’s no more reason to hide it now, with your story getting so many real fans every day." He ran a hand through his hair, a subconscious gesture he often did when he was slightly embarrassed, which Harper found unreasonably cute. "Besides, I never truly intended for it to be a secret. The hint was in the username ... You would’ve found out sooner or later if you looked at it the right way."

... Hmm? That gave Harper pause. "What username? Cher.St.Sucre?" She turned the weird words over in her head. "Dear Saint Sugar, right? Since when did you develop an interest in playing with random French words and stringing them together into bizarre usernames?"

Eli chuckled. "They aren’t random French words. It’s an anagram of Secret Crush, the name of your book ..." He ruffled his hair yet again. "I wanted a way to pay homage to your story, so I played with the title for a little while ... and I thought Dear Saint Sugar actually worked out well. It sounds sweet and kind of charming, just like the vibe you’re trying to go for in your book."

Now, out of all the surprises that descended over her today, Harper found this one the most unbelievable. Eli had actually made a username precisely for her story? And actually managed to find something so adorably fitting?

The amount of effort and thought he had put in for this made her heart feel full. "It’s sweet and charming indeed," she agreed. "Just like my story ... and just like you, too."

She laughed softly when he reacted to that comment with a stunned look. Pulling him back toward her, she pressed her lips to his again, tasting that charming sweetness off of his tongue. "And I think I’m starting to get addicted," she whispered into his mouth.