Chapter 136 The Second Place
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Alistair looked lazily at Caleb, who was practically shaking with
rage.
He was only about an inch taller than Caleb, maybe an inch and a half at most, but to anyone watching, that inch might as well have been a mile. If Alistair stood at six feet, then Caleb looked like he barely scraped three and a half. It wasn’t about height. It was his
presence.
So when Alistair looked down at him, despite the negligible difference in stature, there was an unmistakable air of superiority
in his gaze.
Caleb was furious. His chest rose and fell violently, as if he were about to pass out from sheer indignation. And yet, for all that anger, he couldn’t do a thing to Alistair.
Alistair was already bored.
His time was valuable. He had no intention of wasting it on someone this beneath him.
He said impatiently, “If you went through all this trouble just to
feed me that kind of fantasy, then you’ve said your piece. Now get
lost.”
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“You-” Caleb choked, but forced himself to breathe deeply, over
and over, until he managed to rein in his temper and spit out the
real reason he’d come.
Alistair gave him a pitying look, as if genuinely wondering whether the guy had finally cracked after taking one too many hits.
He wanted Alistair to rescue Celeste.
What a joke.
Alistair had personally handed Celeste over for judgment, and now Caleb wanted him to pull her back out? What, did he think this was some kind of game?
And Caleb’s reasoning nearly made Alistair laugh out loud.
He said Liam was paralyzed and needed care. That family would always take better care than‘ outsiders.
Alistair stared at Caleb, who truly believed he could be persuaded, and said with measured sympathy, “Caleb, you and I barely grew up under the same roof, but even from a distance, I always knew you couldn’t keep up with me academically. Do you
know why?”
He chuckled. “Even with your mom pushing you nonstop, even with all the pressure and effort, you still couldn’t beat me. Ever
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wondered why she had to destroy my life just to make you look better? Why did she have to sell me out just to prop you up?”
Caleb’s face darkened like he’d just been struck.
He hated it when people compared him to Alistair.
And nothing stung worse than hearing it from Alistair himself.
Most people didn’t realize Caleb had spent his entire life competing with a shadow. He hadn’t lived with Alistair for long, but his name had followed Caleb everywhere, like a ghost chained
to his ankle.
The one who bound them together wasn’t fate. It was Celeste.
Her favorite refrain had been, “You have to work harder. You have to beat Alistair. You need to crush him, humiliate him. If you can’t, then what’s the point of anything?” Over and over again.
It was like Caleb’s whole existence had been designed for a single purpose, which was to eclipse Alistair, to reduce him to nothing.
No matter how many tutoring sessions Celeste paid for, no matter how many hours Caleb put into studying, no matter how many times teachers praised his work ethic, when test results came back and she saw Alistair’s scores, he was always just a little
higher.
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That constant, unshakable gap drove Caleb mad.
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Finally, one day, it happened. Caleb beat him. Not just by a few points, but by a lot.
He thought all his hard work had paid off. Celeste was thrilled and even bought him those designer sneakers he’d been dying to
own.
But the celebration didn’t last.
They soon learned the reason Alistair’s total score had dipped was because he’d missed the math exam due to illness. And math was Alistair’s strongest subject. He usually scored a perfect.
Which meant if he’d shown up, he would’ve crushed Caleb again.
Celeste snapped. Caleb snapped.
That night, Caleb lay in bed, seething, whispering curses into the darkness, wishing Alistair would just die already.
If he died, maybe Caleb could finally breathe. Maybe the endless
grind would stop.
His parents had given him the best they could, a decent life, good clothes, good food, the best they could afford. But he was
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exhausted. Mentally and physically drained.
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The older he got, the worse the pressure became. By senior year, it was unbearable.
Then Alistair came home one day, and as usual, Celeste dug through his backpack. She found his tests, which were clean, neat, and flawless. One of them was even marked with a perfect
score.
Caleb knew right then that Alistair was destined for the Ivy League.
And as for him? That was far less certain.
So that’s it? I’m destined to be his second place for the rest of my
life?
He refused to accept it. Celeste refused to accept it.
Then, by some miracle, Alistair dropped out.
Caleb’s golden era had begun.
Life without comparisons was bliss. Everything seemed to fall into place. He felt like he could finally win.
But the universe wouldn’t let him have it easy.
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Alistair, the one who was supposed to be ruined, came back stronger than ever, rising to heights Caleb never even dreamed of.
And now, to save his mother, Caleb had no choice but to beg.
Only to get humiliated all over again.
He stood on the curb, watching as Alistair slipped into a Bentley and disappeared down the street.
Caleb’s fists clenched tightly.
No, no, no. This isn’t right.
He was supposed to be the one stepping into a luxury car, looking sharp, successful, untouchable.
Alistair should have been the one stuck on the sidewalk, watching him drive away, burning with envy.
Somehow, their lives had been swapped by some twisted cosmic
joke.
His face contorted with envy.
A passerby caught sight of him, froze in alarm, and hurried away with quickened steps.
Chapter 136 The Second Place
Caleb stumbled across the street like a man in a trance.
He had to get to the bus stop across the way.
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A screech of brakes shattered the moment. A driver stuck his
head out the window and shouted, “You walking or sleepwalking, genius? Next time, try looking before you cross!”
Then came the call that finally broke him.
“Mr. Caleb Harlow, this is a final notice. You have one week to
repay the five million you owe Ms. Anne Thorne. If payment is not received, we’ll be filing a formal lawsuit.”
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