The Reed Family Mansion was quiet late at night. A happy happy was disturbed by Lucas' presence.
After the tense family meeting ended then Lucas followed his mother through the long hallways of the mansion.
Lucas walked behind his mother in the long hall. Her steps were soft but steady. Servants step aside to give them space, their faces polite and blank.
Crystal chandeliers hung on the ceiling wall like frozen stars in the sky. The house looked calm but the atmosphere around felt tight.
His mother kept a small distance ahead. She held her head high. Several times she opened her mouth to say something but then she hesitated because her heart felt a mix of guilty and awkward feelings. And words sat heavy on her tongue but can't come on.
She gathered some courage to speak and finally she spoke in a soft voice.
"Lucas... are you uncomfortable?"
Lucas smiled lightly.
"A little."
His honesty surprised her.
For a moment, guilt appeared in her eyes.
She understood why he felt uncomfortable.
A month ago, her son had been living in a small apartment where he used to live from childhood but now he is going to live in this luxurious villa and is suddenly surrounded by strangers who call themselves his family.
Soon, they stopped in front of a room.
His mother opened the door and waved her hand and said with a smile.
"This will be your room."
Lucas quietly entered the room.
The room was larger than his old apartment where he used to live. He looks around the room and finds out many things in the room that are different from his old apartment.
A comfortable and soft bed compared to his old apartment where he always sleeps on a hard matrix.
At the study desk in his apartment he used to sit on the floor and do study.
A large wardrobe.
A private bathroom.
A television mounted on the wall.
To people like him this room is like a luxurious room.
"This room is better than the one I had where I used to live before." he said honestly.
She moved into the doorway and rested her hand on the frame. She said with a soft voice.
"Please don't mind your sister's behaviour. It will take time but she will surely accept you as your brother.".
"... Thanks mom, I wait for that moment." he replied with a happy tone.
She sighed with relief and hugged him briefly. "Good night, my son."
He closed the door and jumped on the bed and looked at the ceiling wall for a few seconds then he sighed with tiredness.
'This family was easy to handle. Here every member of the family was an idiot. They don't think with their brain.' he thought.
Then close his eyes thinking about his sister Eva. "She was going to be troublesome."
The next morning.
Lucas woke today was his first day in this family after bathing and arrived at the dining room.
A long dining table was filled with expensive different dishes he only saw in T.V, mobile. For him this feels like having breakfast in a five star hotel.
Everyone was already present and waiting for him to join the breakfast together as family.
His father sitting at the chair at the centre of the table his eyes are fully focused on reading the newspaper. He lifted his eyes once and looked at Lucas, gave him a brief nod and then turned back to reading the newspaper.
'Zane Reed, head of Reed family and CEO of Blue Star corporation. The Reed family come under second class noble families. The current net worth of the Reed family is 1 billion.' he thought.
Adrian was sitting calmly beside dad and he sipped coffee slowly while reviewing something on his tablet, thumbs moving across the screen. He looked up and offered Lucas a small, formal smile.
'I don't think he was happy about my presence. He was adopted by my parents because I was lost, so he was my replacement. Nothing more than looking around the atmosphere felt like he was the real Young Master of Reed.'
Eva sat beside their mother.
'Rose Reed, she was my mother look at her feel she care about me and she comforted me after hearing harsh words from Eva'
The moment she saw Lucas enter, she frowned slightly.
Clearly, she still wasn't happy about his existence.
'hah, she acts like a child, with this kind of attitude how can she become General Manager of Blue Star corporation.'
Lucas quietly took a seat on the chair.
The atmosphere felt awkward around the family.
They start eating.
After reading the newspaper, Zane put that to the side of the table. The rustle sound of paper felt louder in the silent room than it should have.
"I have an announcement."
Everyone turned their attention towards the father. The room tightened around the words as if they might snap.
Eva's hands stilled at her plate. Her eyes dropped so quickly they nearly left the rest of her face behind.
Zane spoke with the steady voice that had always stopped arguments and shaped decisions. "Lucas Reed is my biological son."
Adrian did not flinch after hearing. He kept the practice of keeping his gentle smile that acknowledged pain but offered no drama. His gaze landed on Lucas and stayed.
Zane folded his hands, as if that completed a sentence. Then he continued speaking, his voice steady and firm.
"Starting tomorrow, Lucas will also attend Westbridge International University with Adrian."
Lucas paused slightly after hearing Zane.
Westbridge?
The most prestigious university in the country?
'He is really treating me like a real son…but why did Adrian come to the same university, since yesterday there is a feeling inside my heart that he has ill intention towards me.' he thought.
"The admission process has already been completed." Zane said.
Then he looked toward Adrian.
"You and Lucas are in the same class."
Zane eyes swept the room, catching each familiar face. "I wanted you all to hear it from me," he said. "Mind your behaviour in Westbridge International University no leaks and no rumors that affect the whole family reputation."
For the first time, Adrian's expression changed slightly only for a moment then his smile returned.
"That is such a wonderful thing, brother!." He said with a smile to Lucas.
"I'll help him adjust in the University." This time his voice sounded friendly to Lucas.
Lucas quietly observed him.
Adrian's words sounded friendly but his eyes were cold.
Yet Lucas couldn't tell what he truly felt.
Across the table, Eva looked toward Lucas again.
"Westbridge isn't easy like other local universities like Elite University where all guineas, rich hire and heiress come to attend the University." she said in a cold voice.
"Many people will look down on you there because you came from the countryside pumpkin."
Lucas smiled slightly, his eyes full of confidence and looked at her eyes.
"I've dealt with worse."
For some reason, that answer made Eva pause.
Then she looked away again.
Zane nodded approvingly. "Good."
He leaned back with the ease of a man who believed statements could shape the world. Then he fixed Lucas with those sharp and familiar eyes. "Remember something."
"You are a Reed." His voice was low and certain. "You do not need to fear anyone."
The words landed like a seal. Everyone held their breath as if waiting to see whether the claim would stick.
Rose's eyes shone briefly. She seemed to measure the shift: a son reclaimed, a future redrawn. Her smile was quick and guarded, a moth fluttering against the window of propriety.
"You understand?" Zane asked.
Lucas nodded, though the nod felt inadequate to contain the ache and the light colliding within him. "Yes."