Nora learned very quickly that being polite was suspicious.
Julian watched her like she was a math problem he didn't trust the answer to.
She noticed it when she handed him a document without comment.
When she didn't roll her eyes.
When she said thank you.
His gaze lingered, sharp and assessing.
"…Are you feeling unwell?" he asked finally.
Nora smiled. It hurt. "Perfectly fine."
That was a lie. She was internally screaming.
Across the hall, Iris was having her own crisis.
Theo stood at the window, hands in his pockets, staring outside like emotions were a personal weakness. When Iris entered the room, he stiffened—just slightly—but she caught it.
Awkward silence settled between them.
In the original novel, she would have complained. Demanded attention. Mentioned her ex out of spite.
Instead, Iris blurted, "I won't talk about him anymore."
Theo turned.
"…About who?"
"My ex," she said quickly. "I know I used to. A lot. And I shouldn't have."
The air shifted.
Theo's jaw tightened. "You don't need to explain yourself to me."
"I do," Iris said. "Because you didn't deserve that."
He stared at her like she'd just spoken a foreign language.
Elsewhere, Nora was losing ground fast.
Julian set down his pen. "What are you planning?"
She blinked. "Planning?"
"This sudden change," he said coolly. "You expect me to believe it's genuine?"
Nora exhaled. "What if it is?"
Julian's eyes hardened. "Then why now?"
Because I'm not her, Nora almost said.
Instead, she shrugged. "People get tired of being awful."
He studied her for a long moment.
"…You won't keep this up."
Challenge accepted.
Later that night, Nora and Iris met in the hallway like criminals.
"I think I broke him," Iris whispered.
Nora groaned. "Julian asked if I was sick."
They stared at each other.
"…We're overcorrecting," Iris said.
"Definitely."
A sudden chill passed through the corridor.
The lights flickered.
Both of them froze.
"Did you feel that?" Iris whispered.
Nora nodded slowly. "The plot."
Somewhere, a door slammed.
A servant ran past them, pale-faced. "The main house is in chaos," she said breathlessly. "Something that was supposed to happen tomorrow… happened tonight."
Nora's heart dropped.
They hadn't even done anything big yet.
Iris grabbed her hand. "Nora."
"We changed something," Nora said. "Didn't we?"
From the far end of the hall, Julian and Theo appeared at the same time.
Both looking unsettled.
Both looking directly at them.
Theo spoke first.
"…What did you two do?"
The world felt like it was holding its breath.
Nora swallowed.
"I think," she said carefully, "we stepped off the script.