Samuel POV

My name is Samuel Sinclair and I am the son of the Sinclair family. Because of my family's status, many nobles have started approaching me and becoming my friend. I was glad since I got along with so many people and many nobles praised me for being such a sociable and friendly kid.

But all of that changed with one outing...

"Hey guys! Sorry for being late!" I said to greet my friends.

" Oh Samuel! It's fine! We're just glad you came here!" A friend of mine said.

I arrived late so I wanted to apologize to them since I made them wait for me.

I'm glad they forgive me.

As I got closer to my friends, I saw a bird with a broken wing.

"Oh god! What happened to this bird!" I exclaimed.

I got worried over the bird's condition as I got closer to it.

"Umm... We just got here when we saw that the bird is injured." One of my friends said.

" Yeah...We were worried when we realized about the injured bird." Another one of my friends said.

" Don't worry, guys! I am just glad that we noticed the injured bird so that it can recover from the injury!" I said while calming my friends down.

They must be worried about the bird...

I wrapped the bird with a towel that was in my pockets to comfort it and prevent the bird from hurting itself.

"I am going to take the bird to a veterinarian. You guys have fun while waiting for me!"

As I head out, I went to the streets to ask for the nearest veterinarian.

After ten minutes or so, I finally got the bird to a veterinarian.

" I see... The bird is seriously injured on its wing. It would take around a week for the bird to fully recover. Come take the bird when it is fully recovered." The veterinarian said.

"I see... Thank you for taking care of the bird! I will give you my payment when I take the bird." I said

" Ok, Pleasure doing business with you." The veterinarian said

As I head out of the veterinary, I felt a sense of relief knowing that the bird will be taken good care.

When it fully recovers, I will take it to our backyard garden. I'm sure it will be delighted to its new home since we have many plants for it to eat and trees for it to rest.

As of right now, I am walking back to my friend's house.

I hope that they're having fun without me. I need to apologize to them for leaving to help the bird.

They are kind people so I am sure that they will understand.

As I head inside of my friend's house, I saw that they are talking.

Oh there they are! I should tell them that I am back and apologize---

" I hate Samuel!"

Huh...

No.No.No.No...There must be a misunderstanding! My friends are kind!
There is no way that they can say something like that! It must be a joke!

I hid to listen more about their conversation.

" I know right! Being a goody two shoes helping a little bird! Way to ruin our outing!"

" Yeah! Those pesky birds deserve it anyway! Making a nest on our land without permission! "

"Really...It is annoying that my parents are forcing me to get along with him... Just because of his status..."

"Well, you've got to endure it. He is the son of a duke, after all. Besides, think of the prestige and benefits of being friends with him..."

" Don't worry about it! Let's just keep pretending that we are on good terms with him! I'm sure he will buy it!"

"Yeah! After all, he's gullible!"

Gullible... They are just pretending... I can't believe it...

Those words pierced my heart. My vision slowly became blurry.

I don't know what to do... I just want to run away and forget all of this...

"Sir Samuel?"

As I am lost in my thoughts, a maid comes to me looking concerned.

"Umm... Can you tell my friends that I am heading to my home early because I felt sick?"

"Understood, Sir Samuel. Please take care."

As I am heading back to my home with a carriage, questions after questions keep popping in my head.

Was it all a lie...Do all my friends hate me...Was I just being used...Are they just putting up a facade... Are they just pretending to like me...

But no matter how many questions keep popping up, I couldn't answer any of them...

I don't want to answer any of them...

This heavy feeling in my chest won't go away. It feels like I lost everything.

I want to pretend that it did not happen...but I can't keep lying to myself.

After all...I witnessed everything.