Red

The man on the other line went silent when Selena yelled at him.

Selena thought that the man was offended after calling him names. She knows he deserves it but, she shouldn't have had said those words in front of her family.

But the man did not seem to be a bit hurt with her words.

He let out a slight chuckle and Selena could picture the grin he has right now.

"Well, honey. I'll be more than happy to take the necklace back in one condition."

His sneaky remarks have made Selena's heart pulverized. And she already knows what he was going to say.

"Look, Darling," she groaned with irritation when she uttered his name. For a moment, she wondered if it's his real name.

"I am serious when I said that I don't want to be your girlfriend."

"What? No, I mean it will be nice to have you as my girlfriend but, since you are so eager to be single, we will do something else."

Selena gulped hard, she nervously nibbled on her lower lips while the thought of his condition has made her skin crawl.

"What is it?" she replied eventually. She could have asked for her uncle's help but, this is her mess and she prefers to clean it by herself. Since it was her fault for not being careful.

"I want to go out on a date with you."

Astonished by his words, Selena's body has turned frozen. She gulped repeatedly to get herself back but, all she could feel was her cheeks burning in embarrassment.

Her eyes nervously roamed around the house, hoping that someone didn't take it seriously.

"Date?"

"Yes?"

"Just a date, right?" her heart petrified when she asked that question.

"Yes and don't worry I won't touch you but, you can still touch me. I mean I couldn't blame you if you can't stop yourself from penetrating my perfect body."

Selena rolled her eyes, thinking that even the most narcissist in the world would be ashamed around him.

She got up and turned to Barney and to her surprise the man was standing behind her.

Startled by his presence, Selena took a step back.

Her eyebrow creased when Barney showed her his phone. He was showing a photo, three men in the same uniform were sitting on a bench. She could recognize Alejandro and Barney but, what shock her the most was the man sitting in between Barney and Alejandro.

She moved closer to look at it carefully, her fingers touched the glass screen and slowly enlarge the photo.

"Is this the darling you were speaking with?" Barney asked, his voice was dulled.

"Yes, do you know him?" excitement rushed over her body when she realized that Barney must have known him.

Instead of answering, Barney past her and took the phone from Louisa.

"Killian?"

Barney was unsure at first. When he heard the familiar voice, he could not help but to think that it might be Alejandro's older brother.

The man on the other line chuckled, Selena could hear the bitterness in his laugh, it was dangerous with a hint of sarcasm.

"Hi, Barney. I didn't know you're still there. So, did you recognize my voice?" he said, remain laughing.

Barney casually shrugged a shoulder and said, "Barely, I recognized you because of your egocentric attitude. I mean, I've only known one self-centered person in my life and it's you."

Selena took Barney's arm and slowly turned to her side, she was baffled by their conversation. It was as if they're close.

"Do you know him?" she asked.

Barney nodded as a response and turned his body around to look at the phone laying on Louisa's lap.

"Your father is looking for you and what did you do to Selena? How do I remove the necklace?" Barney asked, suddenly his voice raised with irritation.

"I will remove it myself on our date this Sunday. Selena honey, dinner on Sunday, I will pick you up at 7, alright?"

Selena's shoulder jumped when he suddenly called out her name. She remembered her promise to Alendro about bringing him to visit her horse.

"I can't go on Sunday. What about Saturday?" at first, she doesn't have a plan on going out with him but since Barney knows him, she figured that she will be safe.

"Fine but I want you alone. Don't bring Barney, he already broke my heart when he chose my brother over me. Bye."

Selena let out a sigh when the man ended the call. She was still shocked that he's Alejandro's brother, the two absolutely have a different attitude.

For a moment, her brain frost. She was enlightened when she finally realized that the reason why Alejandro seems familiar to her was that she had met his brother. Even though the two have a different personality, thinking of it now, their eyes and facial features were quite similar.

Later that night, Selena walked Barney out of the cafe. The man explained to her how did he know Killian and hearing his story, she felt as if she was part of it.

The three have been friends since high school. During college, Barney and Killian had become closer since they both went to military school while Alejandro had decided to enroll himself into a medical school.

They stopped in front of Barney's car parked on the side road.

"Killian is a nice guy. Don't worry, I am pretty sure he will not do anything stupid to you," Selena felt the assurance and trust in Barney's voice. His face was calmed, while his hand lifted to caress her cheek.

"Let me know if you need help." Selena nodded at him, a small smile was on her lips as she thought of having him around.

She's feeling grateful for all his help. She feels safe to be around him, it was as if he's a family.

Then she remembered Barney's sister. Wondering what kind of woman she was, and how was her relationship with Barney. Based on how soft-spoken and gentle Barney was towards her, she thought they must be close.

She stopped his hand from caressing her cheeks and gripped it tightly. Ar first, she was confused why he was so good to her to the point that she thought he might have had a feeling to her, but she was wrong. She realized that Barney must have missed his sister so much, something happened to Barney's sister that's why Barney acted like that towards the pervert that harassed her, she doesn't know the whole story but she got everything all wrong.

Barney doesn't have a romantic feeling to her, he only felt protective as a brother.

Selena's feeling elevated when she had finally realized his feeling. A contentment smile plastered on her lips as she tiptoed to place a small kiss on his cheek.

She giggled sweetly, staring straight at him, she said, "Thank you for all your help Barney. I never had a brother but, I certainly could use one."

"I will always be here for you Selena. Off you go, we have cupcakes to bake tomorrow."

Barney took in a deep long and painful sigh, grateful that the darkness of the night was able to hide the pain in his eyes.