It's Your Turn To Cry and Beg, Dear Uncle
Chapter 61: Throwing Each Other Under The Buss

Chapter 61: Throwing Each Other Under The Buss

"Kyra!"

As Kyra turned her head and saw James enter the shop with Orlando, she instinctively glanced toward Mia Parks, who was sitting on the sofa. She pressed her lips together as she noticed the gleam of happiness in Mia’s eyes.

Her suspicions were confirmed. The person Mia wanted to approach was not her but her boyfriend. From the start, she had merely been a stepping stone for the upper class women in the capital.

Kyra gave a bitter smile, realizing that Hazel’s words might have been true. She could only hold on to Valeria because she was the only one who was genuinely willing to be her friend. As much as Kyra didn’t want to admit it, reality had slapped her in the face.

Mia Parks didn’t hesitate to rise from her seat and approach James. Valeria furrowed her brows at Mia’s audacity, acting as if she were meeting a close friend rather than a stranger.

Then, Valeria turned toward Kyra, who remained silent. Even the man’s girlfriend hadn’t spoken yet, but Mia had already boldly taken the lead.

"James!" Mia called out enthusiastically. Her long legs carried her quickly toward James, stopping him in his tracks.

James was startled to see a woman suddenly blocking his way. From the moment he approached the shop, his eyes had been fixed on Kyra through the glass, so he hadn’t noticed anyone else coming toward him.

He furrowed his brows as he stared at the woman in front of him. However, before he could register who she was, Orlando recognized her first.

"Mia?" Orlando’s voice sounded hesitant.

Mia smiled when Orlando remembered her. She directly called him intimately, "Hi, Ando! How are you? It’s been a long time since we last met." Then, Mia seemed to think for a moment before continuing, "It’s been almost six years, hasn’t it?"

Orlando’s expression grew friendlier in the next moment. "Actually, seven years. So it’s really you, Mia? Wow, Mia Parks has changed so much. What happened to the short, chubby girl?"

Hearing this, Mia immediately pouted and playfully punched Orlando’s shoulder. "And you haven’t changed at all! Heartless playboy! Who are you calling short? Back then, I was still growing! Of course, I was short and had a baby face."

Then, the corners of her lips curved into a dazzling smile that had charmed countless men on her campus. Spinning around, she said, "But what about now? I’ve turned into a beauty, haven’t I?"

Although she had been talking to Orlando the entire time, her eyes were still fixed on James. It was clear the question wasn’t just for Orlando but also for James. The answer from the man in front of her was the one she desired most.

The woman’s green eyes sparkled with hope, and her heart raced with each passing second. From head to toe, her entire being radiated love, all directed at James.

Orlando chuckled softly and decided to give in. "Yes, you’ve become very beautiful, but I hope you didn’t go on one of those crazy diets like other girls these days."

"No way! It’s all in my genes. Take my mom and my sister, for example. Both of them are slim, and even though my dad’s a bit on the stocky side, he’s not what you’d call fat. So, of course, I was destined to grow up slender," Mia replied, her chin lifted, her posture straight, and her hands on her slender hips. Yet, even as she spoke, her eyes never left James.

If Orlando had initially missed the direction of Mia’s gaze due to the excitement of reuniting with her, now it was impossible for him not to notice. He frowned slightly and instinctively glanced at Kyra.

He could see his sister’s expression had soured, as if her womanly instincts had picked up on something. Despite the distance between them and the fact that Mia’s back was turned to Kyra, his sister seemed to sense Mia’s attraction to James.

James himself finally realized who the girl in front of him was when Orlando called her Mia. Mia Parks was Selene Parks’ younger sister, a woman who had once been his college friend.

Back then, he and Selene had been close, and she was also the first woman he ever took on a date. James’ eyes shifted to Kyra. He pursed his lips, noting Kyra’s displeased expression. Without saying a word, James stepped around the woman in front of him and walked toward Kyra.

Orlando noticed Mia’s frozen expression when James left her without a word, not even a casual greeting or asking how she’d been. Orlando sighed and followed James.

Within their circle of friends, everyone had known that Selene Parks’ little sister always showed up whenever Selene hung out with them. Initially, no one thought much of it since Mia acted like a typical younger sister, always smiling warmly.

But eventually, one by one, they began to pick up on the oddities in how Mia behaved around James. How she behaved around him or how she would watch him from afar. Anyone could see that Mia had feelings for James.

Still, none of them ever called her out. They simply pretended not to notice because Mia never crossed any lines.

Yet Orlando hadn’t expected the little girl to still harbor feelings for James after all this time. Could it be that Mia had started hoping again because James and Selene never worked out?

Mia turned to watch as James approached Kyra. Seeing Kyra’s expression remain displeased despite James ignoring Mia entirely made him ask, "What’s wrong?"

He lightly stroked her cheek with his fingers. "Why does my princess look so glum when I was only gone for a moment? Tell me, have your brothers been teasing you again?"

Earlier, after breakfast at the restaurant with Creighton and Jane, of course James was tasked with dropping them off before he could catch up with Kyra at the mall.

He had expected to be greeted by his girlfriend’s playful laughter but instead found himself face-to-face with a woman who could jeopardize his relationship and his girlfriend’s sulking expression.

However, it wasn’t Kyra who answered his question, but Valeria. Her friend eagerly reported, "Not Orlando, Anthony, or Harvey, but our two beloved college acquaintances here. They called us low-class women. I just found out there’s a family greater than the Synders."

Kyra widened her eyes, quickly turning to her friend, who lied without batting an eye. No one had called her low-class. Hell, no one would even dare in the first place!

As foolish as Hazel might be, even she wouldn’t be bold enough to insult the Synders. Kyra bit her lower lip, trying hard to suppress the laughter threatening to escape. Her friend was truly calculating.

She wasn’t about to let this slide, and since Kyra was conveniently there to back her up, Valeria shamelessly took advantage of the situation to get back at Hazel.nKyra didn’t protest, and instead cooperatively lowered her head, pretending to be deeply wronged.

Orlando was speechless. He wasn’t sure whether to believe Valeria or not, but seeing his sister’s expression, he too cast an irritated glare at the three women standing there.

James immediately narrowed his eyes, his aura turning menacing. "Who dares call Kyra a low-class woman?"

Hazel’s eyes were already brimming with tears, and her heart pounded erratically. Shaking her head, she denied it.

"No! I didn’t call Kyra that. I said Valeria was low-class!" Hazel cried, pointing accusingly at Valeria. Valeria rolled her eyes at Hazel’s lack of decorum.

Meanwhile, Gladys, equally nervous, felt the urge to slap Hazel right then and there. It was the first time in her life she’d met someone so foolish!

No one cared whom Hazel had insulted; what mattered was that she admitted to calling either someone here low-class. That alone was enough to prove Valeria’s statement was true. Gladys bit her lower lip and glared at her foolish friend in secret.

Sure enough, in the next moment, James’s expression darkened further. His voice was low and growling. "So you did call them low-class women. Just who do you think you are?"

Hazel panicked, stepping back. Still shaking her head, she continued to deny, "No! I didn’t... I really didn’t insult Kyra. Isn’t that right, Evelyn, Gladys?"

Desperate, she turned to her friends for support, but Evelyn, who also knew the Synders’ reputation, immediately averted her gaze.

Forget her own family—even Hazel wouldn’t dare oppose James, whose family was leagues above Hazel’s. She wasn’t about to dig her own grave. On the other hand, Gladys looked hesitant. She didn’t want to invite trouble for herself either. She could already imagine her family’s reaction if she dared interfere. But no matter what, Hazel was her close friend.

In her indecision, Gladys almost opened her mouth, but she suddenly caught Mia’s sharp glare. That look was a clear warning not to be foolish. In the end, Gladys averted her gaze as well.

Hazel was shocked by her friends’ reactions. She hadn’t expected to be thrown under the bus so easily when she was in trouble. Weren’t they close friends who had known each other for a long time? How hard could it be to defend her?

After all, she wasn’t in the wrong. Hazel had only insulted Valeria, which they could attest to and support. But why couldn’t they do something so simple?

Facing her friends’ cold attitudes, Hazel suddenly laughed. She gritted her teeth, and the next moment, she spoke again, "I swear, I didn’t insult your family, Mr. James. But I also can’t provide proof for my words because, clearly, everyone here is too afraid to go against you. That said, I should also tell you that my friend Gladys and my cousin Evelyn were also mocking Kyra."

"Hazel! Don’t accuse me of nonsense! When did I ever insult Kyra?" Gladys exclaimed.

"I didn’t either!" Evelyn added in denial.

But Hazel wasn’t about to let them off so easily. If they refused to help her, then she wouldn’t play nice either. If no one was going to play by the rules, she could lie too.

"Before we entered the store, you told me Kyra’s dress made her look like a paid escort, a hooker. Incredibly unclassy," Hazel said coldly, her face carrying a mocking smile.

She then turned to her cousin and added, "You didn’t insult her outright, but you laughed at Kyra and Valeria. I believe the store employees here could testify. Your laughter was loud enough earlier."

Both women froze in place. They never expected Hazel to drag them into the same pit. Gladys, in particular, was fuming. Did Hazel not realize the position they were in? Someone lower than her dared to pull her down?

"I didn’t say that! Where’s the witness who heard me say something like that?" Gladys snapped, her tone now entirely hostile.

Hazel smirked slyly. "True, I don’t have a witness who heard it. But given your past behavior, wouldn’t it be believable that you’d say something like that?"

Gladys furrowed her brow. She had no idea what her friend was implying. This was the problem with someone who constantly pretended to be perfect. Gladys thought she had cultivated a flawless image, so much so that even her minor missteps had long been forgotten.

Hazel laughed again. Then, she turned her gaze to Kyra and said, "Did you know, Kyra? This campus darling here was the one who spread rumors that you were ’easy.’ That’s why you suddenly started receiving all those inappropriate texts from guys."

The entire store froze in an instant. Kyra’s eyes widened in shock.