From Villain to Virtual Sweetheart: The Fake Heir's Grand Scheme(BL)-Chapter 235: Delete Post, Delete Me

Micah’s eyes widened, his breath catching in his throat. His fingers tightened around his phone as if he could physically erase the post completely.

It meant everyone in his contacts had seen it. Everyone. Family. Friends. Classmates. Even Darcy himself.

His face flushed beet red, burning so hot it made his ears ring. He swayed slightly, overcome with a cold wave of horror. Darcy... what would he think when he saw it? The caption... he surely would tease him, saying he was so desperate to make Darcy his date or something...

His mind raced. Oh no...

Clyde...

Micah’s stomach dropped. Clyde didn’t even know it was his birthday. Micah hadn’t said a word. Not a single one. He had used the man like a cushion, relying on him when he was near collapsing, and now this... a cake photo, publicly shared, practically screaming ’I’m in a relationship...

What if he misunderstood like others? What if he got hurt by it? Thinking he wasn’t even considering him a friend to tell him something this important, like a birthday, or having someone in a romantic sense...

Micah’s breath came faster, panicked. His throat tightened.

The caption!

Micah closed his eyes. It was childish, cringy, and sounded like he was bragging about being loved. Like he was trying to show off.

Micah groaned inwardly. Please. Just someone end his life. He thought in dismay.

With every second that passed, Micah realised what a mess he had created. He wanted to turn back time. Smash his phone before he ever posted this stupid moment.

Then he remembered the original male leads. Archie, Aidan, and even the owner of the damaged roof car... They had all seen it. His identity...

Now, Aidan and that guy, Alex, knew it was his birthday today. That he was just 19 years old.

Why didn’t he look at his phone carefully? Now, it was a public suicide! He felt his soul physically attempt to exit his body. Just float away and disappear from sheer humiliation.

He could feel the eyes in the room still on him. Vivian’s snickering, the adults looked at him with pure curiosity.

Micah wanted to run. To be alone. To think about what he should do.

Just then, Aria and Willow reached him in time to see that Micah’s expression had turned pale. The two exchanged a quick look, one of those silent, sibling communications.

"Micah, Dad wants to see you in the study," Aria said gently, placing a hand on his shoulder.

Micah blinked, waking up from his daze. He nodded gratefully at Aria and Willow. "Okay," he said hoarsely. Anywhere was better than here.

He turned, shoulders stiff, and walked quickly toward the study with long strides, escaping the social death.

The moment he reached the study, he knocked once before entering.

Jacob looked up from his desk, his expression brightened upon seeing him. "Son! Happy 19th birthday."

Micah forced a smile.

Elina came quickly from outside. Her eyes landed on her son, realising something was off. "What happened, dear?"

Micah let out a noise that was halfway between a groan and a plea. "Mum! My beautiful, kind mother. Help me!" he called out in despair.

Elina cupped Micah’s face, stopping him from hanging on to her. "What is it?"

"Can I not show up?" Micah said, his voice coming out muffled.

"Why?" Elina frowned, letting go of his face.

"That post! ugh... It wasn’t meant for everyone! I only wanted to send it to Aria, Willow, Cora, and Vivian. Not everybody. And it was supposed to be a joke, not some declaration!" Micah dragged a hand through his hair, frustrated.

Jacob and Elina sighed in resignation.

"Can I ask you something first?" Elina grabbed Micah’s hand.

"Umm," Micah nodded, dejectedly.

"Who made that cake?"

Micah’s ears turned red again. "My friend... Darcy, you know him," Micah mumbled, barely audible.

Even as the words left his mouth, the guilt filled his heart. In front of Darcy’s actual biological parents, he just admitted he got their son to make him a cake. For his own birthday. The audacity!

Elina’s forehead lines jumped. A spark of realisation flashed in her eyes.

That boy... she knew something was up. The last time she met him, Micah was acting strangely. And the boy was standing up for Micah a little too much.

Why hadn’t she thought of him until now?

Right. Micah stopped mentioning him altogether. She figured they had less contact now.

Elina took a deep breath. "Well, are you just friends? You know, Mum will support you no matter what you choose..."

Micah jolted, realising what Elina meant. "Mum! No way. We are just friends!" he yelled from the bottom of his heart in fright.

If they knew the truth and thought he had designs on Darcy? Their real son?

No.no.no...

He waved a hand in front of him, shaking his head so hard his glasses nearly flew off. "It’s not like that."

Elina blinked, holding in a chuckle. The way Micah reacted was kind of funny. "Alright, sweetheart. No need to get so worked up about it."

Micah pouted, puffing a breath out.

"Listen," Elina said, her voice calm. "After the speech, you can just leave. And I’ll tell everyone you lost a bet. That’s why you posted it. Simple."

"You’d really do that?" Micah asked, finding the solution acceptable. Given his personality, most people would probably believe it. Once this WeChat moment crisis was dealt with, he really needed to start thinking about damage control and how to convince Darcy, Clyde, and those male leads that it was just a joke. Micah felt really stupid. He was in deep shit.

Elina nodded.

"Thanks, Mum," Micah mumbled.

"Good. Now go say hi to your grandma. I’ll take care of the rest." Elina said.

Micah offered a small smile to both of them and left. The panic had dulled into something manageable.

The moment the door shut behind him, Jacob laughed.

"What are you so happy about?" Elina snapped.

"Why shouldn’t I? Didn’t you hear? He said it was that genius boy. I felt relieved." Jacob replied with a grin.

"You, simple-minded!" Elina nudged his shoulder with the back of her hand. "Micah might not see him that way. But what about Darcy? Huh?"

Jacob paused. The thought hadn’t occurred to him. He rubbed his forehead. "Right..."

"Let’s hope it’s just our overthinking," Elina said, brows furrowed.