Chapter 83: Honesty

Chapter 83: Honesty Stefan watched Genevieve, tilting his head slightly, intrigued by the certainty in her tone. "Why do you say that?" Genevieve traced the rim of her wine glass with a fingertip, her gaze flickering down as if hesitant to meet his eyes. "Because I’ve done lots of things I’m not proud of," she said finally, thinking of Abigail. "Are you talking about the sex tape scandal?" Stefan asked curiously. Genevieve sighed deeply. "Not necessarily. That’s just one out of the many stupid things I did." "What else did you do? Take hard drugs? Run over someone while drunk?" He asked playfully. "Thankfully, it never got to any of that," she said with a laugh. "Then I’m guessing the sex tape scandal is probably one of the worst things you have done. And that was done because you were immature and..." She waved off the excuse before he could finish. "It’s usually easy to excuse some actions by claiming they were done due to childishness or immaturity, but I think it’s more than that. Maybe that was done then out of immaturity, but I don’t think that’s all there is to it. I believe it’s just who I am. You could say I have it all in my genes," she said with a self-deprecating laugh. Although her father was quite discreet in his dealings, he was a womanizer. That was why he had never wanted to get married. He wanted the freedom to live as he pleased. Stefan leaned back in his chair, studying her. "I think people choose who they become. We all have the gift of choice. To choose our path in life..." "I don’t think so," Genevieve countered, "I think sometimes our path has already been set for us, and we just walk in it. We do not always have a choice." "I don’t agree with that. I believe we always have a choice. You don’t have to be bad because someone bad gave birth to you," he said, and she shrugged. "When you have two selfish parents, it’s natural to become selfish and self-centered as well. People tend to love others the way they’re raised loved," she said, and Stefan raised a brow, wondering if she was referring to her biological parents or if she was speaking generally. "The fact that you know it is wrong means you know the right thing to do, and it is your choice to do the right thing, don’t you think so?" He asked, and she let out a soft, humorless laugh. "What’s even the right thing? The line between what is right and wrong has been blurred for a long time now, and now I don’t just care anymore," she said with an exasperated sigh. "I don’t think you don’t care. I think you do. Maybe you’re just scared of what might happen if you retrace your steps," Stefan said, watching her with interest. "Maybe," she said without looking at him as she raised her glass to her lips. It was true that she was scared. She was terrified of what her father would do to her. And she was scared of the kind of life that would await her if everything was exposed. "You can retrace your steps, you know? Just because you have traveled on the wrong path for long doesn’t mean you can’t reverse and take the right route," he said with a kind smile. "I don’t think I can. I don’t have the courage for that," she confessed as she looked up at him, searching his expression for any sign of judgment, but there was none. Just curiosity. Stefan held her gaze for a moment, feeling sorry for her. He wasn’t sure what her story was or why she was doing what she was doing, but he could tell she wasn’t all that bad. "What’s the worst thing you’ve done?" He asked, and she scoffed. "I’ve done lots of bad things. All terrible things. I’m a terrible person," she said since she knew that even being with him right now was wrong. If she weren’t such a terrible person, he’d be with Abigail right now, not her. "Why are you telling me this? Are you always this honest about yourself?" He asked, and she shook her head. "I don’t know. Maybe it’s because I’m Genevieve right now. Maybe I want you to know the real me, not Dawn," she said with a shrug. "Enough about me. Let’s talk about you, Stefan. Do you think you’re a good person?" she asked, turning the question back on him. Stefan took a sip of his wine, considering his answer. "I try to be," he said after a moment. "But I think everyone has shades of both. We all do things we’re not proud of." Genevieve smirked slightly. "That’s a very diplomatic answer." He shrugged. "But it’s the truth." She sighed, swirling her wine in her glass. "What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done?" "As Stefan or Jamal?" He asked, and she grinned. "Hmm," she considered it for a moment. "As Stefan." "The worst thing I’ve ever done would probably be pretending to be someone I’m not," he said, and she raised a brow. "I guess because you do not want your identity as Jamal to be known, you tend to lie a lot," she deduced, and Stefan chuckled. "You could say that." Genevieve couldn’t help but think about how they were both different. While she claimed to be Dawn, the wealthy heiress, Jamal claimed to be someone else, not wanting others to know he was a billionaire. "Have you pretended to be Stefan a lot of times?" She asked, and he laughed. "Yeah." Before either of them could say anything else, Stefan’s phone vibrated, and he took it out to see a text from Jamal. > Jamal: We’ve left the hotel now. Thanks. I’ll explain everything to you later. "It’s Pete. He says they just finished up at the hotel, and he has left now. "Oh. That’s a relief," Genevieve said, and then he looked at her with curiosity. "So, are you very close to the mute Abigail? Are you people around the same age?" Stefan asked, wanting to understand what sort of relationship she had with Jamal’s Dawn. Genevieve’s heart skipped a beat. Where was that question coming from? She thought they were done talking about Abigail. "There’s a two-year age gap between us," she said, not bothering to state who was older between them, "but we are not close," she admitted. "Why not?" Stefan asked, and she shook her head. "I grew up not liking her much," she confessed. Stefan’s brow shot up, "Why? Did she do something?" "I told you earlier. My Dad seemed to care about her more than he cared for me. I grew up not liking her," she said with a shrug. "You mean she didn’t do anything to deserve the hostility? You just do not like her because your father favors her? That sounds like jealousy to me," Stefan pointed out. "In a way, yes. But over the years, I’ve come to understand that my father doesn’t care much about her either. He’s only a businessman." "Now that you know that, do you still feel that way towards her?" Stefan asked, and she sighed. "No. Not exactly. Why are you asking me so many questions?" She asked, feeling like she had said too much already. "Because I want to know you better. I want to understand you and decide for myself whether you’re a good or bad person," he said, and she held his gaze. "What happens if I’m a good person like you want to believe?" She asked, and he smiled. "Then I’d save you from whatever you’re scared of and help you become brave so you can really be good." "What would you do if you confirm I’m a bad person?" She asked, wondering if she was ruining whatever chances she had with him by being so honest. Stefan shrugged, "Then I’d save you from yourself, Genevieve," he said, causing butterflies to flutter in her belly.