Good Boy, Call Me Sister-in-Law

When the rockstar Liam Shaw was asked about his love life on a talk show, his first thought was of me.
Did Ava Reed pay you guys? he scoffed. Are you that desperate to ship me with her?
He leaned into the mic, a smirk playing on his lips. I'll give her this, she's persistent. Chased me for two years straight. She's obviously head over heels for me, but she plays these weird games, telling me I should treat her with respect, like... like she's my sister-in-law or something.
The internet immediately erupted in a chorus of mockery aimed at me.
[Ava Reed, the industry's prettiest face, is just another one of Liam Shaw's simps. How pathetic.]
[Sister-in-law? What kind of weird kink is that? Ava's really trying everything.]
The live comments were a torrent of insults until one of Liam's die-hard fans dropped a bomb.
[Hold on, doesn't Liam actually have a brother?]
At that exact moment, I was at home, watching the livestream.
And my phone rang. It was a call I hadn't received in a very long time.
"Ava," a deep, familiar voice said. "I'll be back in the States in three days. Thank you for looking after my little brother for me."
1
Liam saw that comment on the monitor and immediately shook his head.
"Get your minds out of the gutter. My brother's been overseas for years. How would Ava even know him?" he said, dismissing it with a wave. "Besides, my brother told me a long time ago he has a girlfriend."
The die-hard fan replied: [Maybe... Ava is that girlfriend?]
The internet, never one to pass up good drama, seized on this. A secret romance with the mysterious older brother was infinitely more exciting than a one-sided crush.
The trolls and shippers immediately started fanning the flames.
User #1: [To be fair, Ava might not be the best actress, but that face is a 10/10. And that body? Damn.]
User #2: [I'm calling it. She's the real sister-in-law.]
Liam let out a cold, humorless laugh.
"My brother said his girlfriend is the definition of perfection. Is Ava Reed perfect?"
He started counting on his fingers, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Sure, Ava's got a pretty face, flawless skin, a killer body, and a smile that could stop traffic, but besides all that, what else does she have going for her!"
He was getting worked up, his voice rising until he slammed his hand on the table, making the host jump.
The live chat went into overdrive.
User #3: [Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, my friend.]
User #1: [Bro, you just listed, like, a dozen good qualities.]
Die-hard Fan: [I hear the sound of my idol's world crashing down.]
Seeing the tide turn, Liams smirk faltered slightly, but his gaze remained defiant.
"Let me be clear. I could never fall for Ava Reed. You can all relax. I'm not interested in girls who play these kinds of manipulative games."
He then added, as a final, definitive statement, "And neither is my brother!"
2
After hanging up, I went back to the livestream, marveling at the internet's detective skills. They'd somehow sniffed out the truth from two throwaway lines. When Liam declared with absolute certainty that he could never like me, a wave of relief washed over me.
Good. That would save us a lot of awkward family dinners down the road.
As for his narcissism, I was well acquainted with it. Ever since we were kids, if a girl so much as glanced at him twice, he'd run home and tell his brother he had another secret admirer. He'd complain about the "curse of his own charisma."
So I didn't take his ridiculous statements personally. The kid was born self-obsessed.
But that last thing he said... I had to disagree.
His brother wasn't just interested. He was completely, utterly, head-over-heels in love.
I glanced down at my phone, which was buzzing incessantly. As expected, my social media was under siege. The consensus was that I was a frog trying to eat swan meat.
I was the frog, Liam was the swan.
Honestly, I think they had it backward.
Sure, I was known as the industry's most famous "pretty face," with zero acting talent to my name. But that face alone had made me an overnight sensation. Liam, on the other hand, had to grind for two years to make a name for himself as a musician.
If anyone was the swan here, it was me.
But I've never cared much for fame. I only got into showbiz to keep an eye on Liam, to make sure he didn't get into trouble. It was a promise I'd made.
He, however, seemed to have completely missed the point of my "doting care."
Just then, my phone rang again. It was Liam, calling me live on the air. I looked at the TV screen. His face was a mask of annoyance.
"Ava Reed," he said, not bothering with pleasantries. "The show is making us invite the last person we called to be a guest at 'The Hideaway.' Are you coming or not?"
"The Hideaway" was the reality show he was currently filming, broadcast 24/7 via livestream. The producers were notorious for stirring up drama, which was why it had millions of viewers just after its premiere, with numbers still climbing.
I was worried Liam's ego would get him bullied on the show, or worse, that he'd be tricked into leaking corporate secrets. The Shaw Corporation was in a precarious state; it couldn't afford any more scandals.
So, I didn't hesitate. "Okay. When do I need to be there?"
On the TV, Liam theatrically covered the phone's mouthpiece, as if I couldn't hear him, and gave the camera a long-suffering smile.
"See? I told you. She's obsessed."
I just... I had no words.
3
I remember the first time we met. I showed up at his front door with a suitcase, and he answered, bleary-eyed from sleep. I gave him a friendly smile.
"I'll be looking after you from now on," I said. "Don't feel pressured. You can just think of me as... family."
The hint was obvious enough, I thought, though I cringed internally. But I remembered the instructions I'd been given before a certain someone left the country, and I was determined to put his mind at ease.
I plastered on my most benevolent smile, ready to explain further.
But Liam just laughed. He recognized me as an employee who'd been with his family's company for three years.
He summed up the situation in his own unique way: "You want me to think of you as family? What, you want me to call you 'sis' like you're my brother's wife or something?"
My eyes lit up. I nodded enthusiastically. "Yes, that's perfect!" It was exactly what I wanted.
But then his smile vanished. His face darkened, and he ground out the words through his teeth. "In your dreams!"
A long, tense silence followed.
"I'm not a pervert!" he finally spat out. "I'm not into that weird stuff!"
Worried he'd gotten the complete wrong idea, I decided to show him the picture in my wallet. I thought once he saw the photo of the two of us, he'd understand everything.
Instead...
The moment he saw the picture, his eyes widened in shock. He pointed a trembling finger at it. "You're even more obsessed than I thought! You actually photoshopped yourself into a picture with me!"
Honestly, a profound sense of helplessness washed over me. How could two people, born from the same mother, identical twins, be so vastly different in the brains department? This was going to be a long, hard road.
No matter how many times I tried to explain, he always circled back to his conclusion: I was a desperate stalker using any means necessary to get his attention.
Eventually, I gave up.
I chose to endure in silence, focusing on taking care of him and selectively ignoring his daily narcissistic pronouncements.
Then, he decided he wanted to be a rockstar. The entertainment industry is a shark tank, and I was worried he'd get eaten alive, so I jumped in too. Unfortunately, I had no talent for acting and ended up as a decorative "pretty face." Fine. As long as I could be near him, that was enough.
But for two whole years, Liam rarely gave me the time of day. He was either convinced I was trying to seduce him or that I was after his money.
As if!
It came to a head when he tried to force me to make a vow. "Ava, swear on that pretty face of yours that you have no ulterior motives. Swear that you want nothing from me. If you're lying, may your face rot and fester until you're a hideous monster!"
What a vicious oath.
I chickened out. Because, technically, I did want something from him.
I wanted his brother.
His twin brother.
I told him this, sincerely.
Liam's face turned a fascinating shade of purple. "Ava Reed," he seethed, "have you no shame?"
And then he just stormed off, leaving me to deal with the verbal assault.
So frustrating. Trying to communicate with a brainless narcissist was exhausting.
Later, in a desperate attempt to get me to "give up" on him, he found some girl from the industry and started showering her with affection, trying to make me jealous.
When I first heard the news, I was ecstatic for a solid half-day. It felt like my difficult, overgrown son was finally getting married off. A true milestone.
Then I did a background check on the girl, Sophie.
And discovered she had multiple shady connections to the Shaw Corporation's biggest rival. This was not a simple romance.
My joy evaporated. This was a classic honey trap, set up specifically for Liam. And I'd gotten my hopes up for nothing. Why was it so hard for this kid to find a nice girl? It was stressing me out.
All I could do was warn him to be careful. Don't sell out the family company for a pretty face. The Shaw Corporation had been in crisis for the past two years, which was why his brother had to go abroad to stabilize things in the first place. I wasn't asking Liam to be a business genius. Just... cautious. If only for the sake of his own future trust fund.
But after my heartfelt warning, he just sneered.
"Ava, is this another one of your pathetic schemes? Trying to scare me away from Sophie so you can swoop in?"
I... what? Is he incapable of understanding human language?
Unfortunately, he was a grown man. I couldn't just beat some sense into him. Otherwise, I would have been tempted.
Maybe it was his rebellious phase. The more I warned him to stay away from Sophie Clarke, the closer he got.
Case in point: for the two guest spots on the show, he invited me. And Sophie.

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