Why Does Stellar Attract a Billionaire's Son?

TL;DR

Stellar attracts Julian because her beauty, intelligence, confidence, and defiance distinguish her from everyone around him. After Stellar temporarily replaces her injured mother as the Bransons’ maid, Julian pursues her through teasing, compliments, school visits, fireworks, and an eventual confession. Their affection is threatened by Mrs. Branson’s class prejudice and Stellar’s fear that she cannot belong in Julian’s world. Read on to see how their relationship develops.

Transcript

looking into the sun is really painful to the eyes but you know what's even more painful seeing cheerleaders posing and pouting in front of jocks I just wanted to study in the gym but I forgot there was an audition for The Muse of this year's football game suddenly I sneezed and everyone turned to me dude there she is even the way she sneezed is so... Read More

Key Insights

• Stellar is considered exceptionally pretty by students choosing a muse for the football game, even though she is not a cheerleader and is wearing messy hair and inexpensive clothes. Their admiration provokes Candice, who already resents Stellar's appearance and academic ability.
• Stellar's family depends on Mrs. Branson for housing and educational support because Stellar's mother works at the mansion. This dependence forces them to tolerate repeated humiliation, especially while Stellar is only a few months away from graduating from high school.
• Stellar is fiercely protective of her mother, but her retaliatory actions can harm innocent people. After Mrs. Branson publicly accuses her mother of stealing gold utensils, Stellar secretly adds extremely hot chili powder to the family's soup, causing the cook to be fired.
• Stellar becomes a temporary maid after her mother falls down the stairs and breaks her ankle. Candice exploits the situation by assigning humiliating and unnecessary tasks, while Mrs. Branson reinforces the idea that Stellar's social position should determine whom she can approach.
• Julian's attraction to Stellar is expressed through teasing, physical closeness, school visits, playful compliments, and deliberate attempts to capture her attention. Their childhood familiarity allows Stellar to challenge him openly instead of responding with the deference expected from a household employee.
• Stellar recognizes her feelings through jealousy before she can admit them directly. She instinctively stops a friend from pursuing Julian and later becomes angry when another girl clings to him, revealing that her attempts to dismiss him as a player have not eliminated her attraction.
• Julian's New Year's outing shows that he remembers Stellar's childhood wishes and regrets mistreating her. He takes her to see fireworks she previously missed because he and Candice locked her in a bathroom, then apologizes for behaving cruelly when they were children.
• Mrs. Branson's class prejudice is the central barrier to Stellar and Julian's relationship. She defines Stellar solely as a maid, warns her to stay away from Julian, and threatens the security Stellar and her injured mother receive from the Branson household.

Questions & Answers

Q: Why does Stellar attract Julian, the billionaire’s son?

Julian is drawn to Stellar’s beauty, confidence, intelligence, and refusal to act submissively around his wealthy family. He repeatedly seeks her attention through teasing, compliments, physical closeness, and a visit to her classroom. Their shared childhood also lets Stellar challenge him more openly than someone who sees him only as a billionaire’s son.

Q: Why is Candice jealous of Stellar?

Candice resents Stellar for being prettier and smarter than her. At the football game’s muse audition, students choose Stellar even though she is not a cheerleader and arrives with messy hair and inexpensive clothes. Candice responds by insulting Stellar’s background and later forcing her to do homework.

Q: Why does Stellar temporarily work as a maid for the Branson family?

Stellar replaces her mother after her mother falls down the stairs and breaks her ankle. Because the injury leaves her unable to walk for some months, Stellar assumes her duties at the mansion. Candice exploits the arrangement by assigning Stellar humiliating and unnecessary tasks.

Q: How does Julian show that he likes Stellar?

Julian follows Stellar with his eyes, deliberately brushes her hand, visits her classroom, waves, and blows her a kiss. He also creates physical closeness while exercising and openly admits that he is flirting. Later, he takes her to see fireworks and tells her that he really likes her.

Q: What happens during Stellar and Julian’s New Year’s outing?

Julian takes Stellar away from the mansion’s party to watch fireworks from the hood of his car in a grass field. He remembers that she missed the display as a child because he and Candice locked her in a bathroom, and he apologizes for that cruelty. They nearly kiss before Mrs. Branson calls.

Q: Why does Stellar resist a relationship with Julian?

Stellar believes she will not fit into Julian’s world and expects his family to reject her. Mrs. Branson reinforces those fears by defining Stellar as a maid and ordering her to stay away from Julian. Stellar also knows that defying Mrs. Branson could threaten the housing and support on which she and her injured mother depend.

Q: How does Stellar realize that she has feelings for Julian?

Stellar recognizes her attraction through jealousy before she admits it directly. She stops a friend from pursuing Julian and later becomes furious when another girl clings to him at a pool party. Her reactions reveal that dismissing Julian as a player has not eliminated her feelings.

Q: What is the main obstacle to Stellar and Julian’s relationship?

Mrs. Branson’s class prejudice is their central obstacle. She treats Stellar’s temporary work as a maid as proof that Stellar is inferior and warns her to avoid Julian. Stellar consequently fears both rejection and the loss of the security the Branson household provides her family.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Stellar lives beside the Branson mansion because her mother works for the wealthy family, which also pays Stellar's private-school tuition. Although Mrs. Branson and her daughter Candice repeatedly humiliate them, Stellar refuses to behave submissively. Her appearance, intelligence, confidence, and rebellious retaliation intensify Candice's jealousy and hostility.

• When Stellar's mother breaks her ankle, Stellar temporarily assumes her household duties. Julian, Candice's twin brother, returns from boarding school and begins openly flirting with Stellar. She initially dismisses him as a troublesome player, but his persistent attention awakens feelings that she struggles to admit, even to herself.

• Julian takes Stellar to watch New Year's fireworks, fulfilling a childhood wish she once missed because he and Candice locked her in a bathroom. Mrs. Branson later orders Stellar to avoid him. Despite this warning, Stellar cares for Julian during his fever, receives his confession and kiss, then becomes jealous at his pool party.