The Villainess's RedemptionChapter 2

[Next mission: Force the Male Lead to buy you an expensive coat before Christmas.]

That was the System's answer.

Ethan was home early for once. He was standing on a stool, fixing the broken lightbulb.

The basement was old, the wiring faulty. It broke, he fixed it. It broke again.

"I bought a rechargeable lamp. I charge it every day at work. If the light breaks again, don't touch it. Just turn on the lamp and wait for me."

I held a glass of warm orange juice, my face clean and soft, standing gently behind him.

Ethan, whose hands were once pampered and smooth, now had fingers stained with grime and palms covered in small cuts.

"I..."

I stammered for a long time before delivering the scripted line:

"Christmas is coming. You have to buy me an expensive coat so I can dress up. Otherwise, how can I celebrate Christmas properly?"

I showed him a screenshot on my phone, feigning ferocity:

"This one. You must buy it for me. If you can't, you useless trash, don't bother coming home."

Ethan washed his hands thoroughly before taking the phone.

He looked at it for a long time, then looked up. His voice betrayed no emotion.

"Just this one?"

At the same time, the System shrieked in my head:

[What the hell? $120? Are you crazy? Where did you find a 'luxury' coat for that price?]

The brand required by the plot was too expensive. Luckily, I was smart and scoured Poshmark and eBay.

Sure enough, I found someone selling a $600 coat for $120, shipping included.

Dropping the price to $120 meant Ethan would have to work a few less days, sweat a little less.

"Just this one?"

Ethan asked again.

Long afterwards, I would understand the obscure emotion in his eyes.

Once, $120 wouldn't even buy a button on his shirt.

But for me, squeezed into this dilapidated basement with him, it was a "luxury" coat I longed for.

When he was at his peak, I received nothing.

When he fell, I suffered with him.

But at that moment, I didn't understand. I thought he felt the price was too high, that I was bullying him too much.

Ashamed, I started babbling:

"Oh, um, well, I can haggle. Maybe I can get it for less than $120..."

I almost forgot my persona, my mind filled with panic and bargaining strategies.

Suddenly, my hand was empty. Ethan had reheated the orange juice and handed it back to me.

"Lipstick, hat, scarf, Christmas tree, apple, cake."

Outside, the cold wind howled. Inside the narrow room, it was peaceful.

I was guided to sit on the sofa in a daze.

Ethan half-squatted in front of me. I looked into his dark, beautiful eyes.

"You need those too,"

"To celebrate Christmas properly."

He said.