No longer a pushover (Noelle and Cedric) novel Chapter 1

"Noelle, are you going to admit your mistake or not?"

Noelle Liddell's mouth and nose were both submerged in water while her throat burned from the choking sensation.

On the brink of death, she opened her eyes and saw her second brother, Frank Liddell, on the edge of the swimming pool. She also spotted her fourth brother, Blake Liddell, holding Xenia Quigley in his arms.

A flash of disbelief crossed her eyes. This scene was so familiar.

Hadn't she died already?

Could it be that she had been reborn back to three years ago, on the very day Xenia was officially adopted by the Liddell family?

Xenia had deliberately framed Noelle at the banquet, making everyone believe that the latter had pushed her into the pool.

Blake was the first to discover them, but he only saved Xenia. He left Noelle, who also couldn't swim, to struggle in the water.

Meanwhile, Frank even pressured her to admit that it was her fault, seemingly refusing to save her unless she confessed.

Desperate and terrified, Noelle begged and forcibly admitted to it, pleading for her brothers to save her. She was only pulled out of the water when she was on the brink of death.

After that, she no longer dared to provoke Xenia and went to great lengths to appease her brothers. But that ultimately didn't get her anything.

Xenia stole Noelle's graduation thesis, but Frank testified for Xenia instead. Noelle was labeled a plagiarist and expelled from school.

When Xenia needed a kidney transplant due to her poor health, her third brother, Carl Liddell, immediately took her to the operating room and performed the surgery himself.

Xenia had to participate in an international competition to boost her credentials, so Blake, Wyatt, and Lucas kicked Noelle out of their team without hesitation.

When Noelle found evidence of Xenia's plagiarism and falsified medical records, she took it to her eldest brother, hoping to expose Xenia.

Instead, she incurred the wrath of the entire family. No one believed her. No one even looked at the evidence.

Her eldest brother, Donovan Liddell, threw her out of the family and ordered her to reflect on her actions.

Ended up homeless and penniless, Noelle went through unimaginable suffering.

Past memories surged like a tide. She stopped struggling and allowed herself to sink to the bottom of the pool. Her eyes were wide open despite her stoic expression as if she had died.

Looking at her brothers surrounding Xenia on the shore, she felt a sharp pain in her chest—even though she had experienced this before.

She thought it was absurd. She was their biological sister, yet she meant less to them than an outsider.

All of Frank's attention had been dedicated to Xenia. Realizing that the sounds of Noelle putting up a fight had ceased, he swerved around and noticed that she had sunk to the bottom of the pool. He paled instantly. "Noelle!" Without hesitation, he dove into the pool.

Xenia's eyes glinted as she saw the scene before her. She felt that it would be better if Noelle died.

Pretending to be meek, she tugged at Blake's sleeve and said weakly, "Blake, I want to save Noelle too. It's my fault that she fell in the water."

Blake was equally concerned. Hearing this, he reassured her, "Don't be silly. Frank's help is more than enough. Noelle is just reaping what she sowed. She won't die." As he turned to look at the pool, his expression grew complicated.

Underwater, Noelle saw Frank swimming toward her. He seemed genuinely worried even though just moments ago, he had forced her to apologize and watched her drown. This time, she didn't want his help.

Mockery crossed her eyes as she turned and swam to the surface.

After the near-drowning incident in her past life, Frank forced her and Xenia to learn to swim. She had been traumatized, but she overcame her fear and learned how to swim to please her brother.

Yet, in the end, he only praised Xenia's bravery in curbing her phobia. No one cared about the lasting trauma Noelle endured—even a minute of neglect under the waters had left her scarred for life.

Everyone only cared about Xenia, not her.

"Noelle, what kind of stunt are you pulling now?" Frank blocked her path. "Do you think pretending to drown can undo the damage?"

He noticed something different about her. He wondered when she had learned how to swim.

Noelle met his gaze. Once, he had been her favorite brother. Donovon had always been strict, but Frank was always close to her. Now, however, only disgust and impatience filled his eyes.