Chapter One

Eric dropped his schoolbag on the ground and turned on his right to another street. He ran and yelled a curse as he hated the leather shoes he wore to class that morning. They were uncomfortable, and they tightened around his feet, making it difficult to run faster.

“ He’s there!” he heard the men shout and he turned his head quickly to see them running after him.

“ Shit!” he yelled and ran as fast as he could. He turned to enter another street and widened his eyes when he saw two men coming from the other side.

“ Lord have mercy”, he muttered and slowed down as he looked around. There was no way out this time. The men dressed in black cornered him, and each one of them held a wooden baton in his hand. They approached him slowly, smirking and grinning like psychopaths.

Eric rolled his eyes and let out a deep sigh as he mumbled, “ I’m gonna lose the last train because of you”.

“ We could always drive you home”, one of the men scoffed, “ after smashing that head of yours, of course”.

Eric rested his head against the wall and closed his eyes tight to take a deep breath. He had been running for about half an hour, and he didn’t get a chance to catch his breath.

“ Don’t you ever get tired of this?” he asked them with a tired voice, “ I see you more often than my parents. That’s bad, you know”.

“ Don’t you dare call them parents”, Jack mocked, “ they let you drown in debts instead of helping you”.

Eric gulped and looked away. Jack was right. If his so-called parents had agreed to help him in the first place, he wouldn’t have the loan sharks biting his butt every day.

“ Now, let’s get on with this”, Jack nodded to his guys, and they drew their batons, ready to hit their target.

Even if Eric was exhausted, he was still not an easy man. As soon as the men approached, he stretched his arms and dodged their hits successfully. He pulled a baton towards him, and the man holding it ended up with a bump on his head. Eric then lifted his legs off the ground and kicked two men, forcing them to land to the ground, before he quickly grabbed another’s arm and nearly dislocated it amidst the poor guy’s screams.

“ Aren’t you such an arrogant bastard?” Jack pulled Eric’s university uniform jacket and gritted his teeth, “ you’re lucky our boss doesn’t allow us to use knives, or else I would’ve cut that filthy tongue of yours”.

“ Yeah, yeah, sure”, Eric looked away and spotted a black car parked at the end of the street. He furrowed a brow and wondered why they were not helping him. He was sure someone was inside. People are such cowards nowadays.

While he was busy looking away and assessing the situation around him, the men nodded at each other, and they were ready to attack him when he pulled one by the collar, and punched his face and kicked the other in the stomach.

“ Just because I’m not looking at you does not mean that I can’t stop you”, Eric smirked and finished the last man with a simple hit on the nose, making him lose consciousness. “ It was a pleasure tonight………again”, he winked at Jack, “ I’m hungry, so I gotta go. Ciao!” he waved his hands and left running.

“ Catch that bastard!” Jack yelled at the men who could barely move. “ You useless brats! Get up! Get him! Fools!”

Eric laughed when he turned around and saw the men running after him. They were slow, and some were limping. One of them was still on the ground.

As predicted, the last train left the station, and he had no choice but to walk home. Like every other night, he made sure that no one followed him to his street. He was thankful he had the keys in his pocket as the rest of his belongings stayed in the bag he threw somewhere downtown. He opened the door, took off his shoes, and took a deep breath once he smelled the familiar scent of his home and heard the cartoon background music.

Eric rested his head against the wall and sighed. Monica left the kitchen and frowned once she saw him.

“ Did they follow you again?” she asked.

Eric hummed and took off his uniform jacket and hung it.

“When will this ever stop?” Monica shouted in a whisper, “I’m tired of this!”

“What about me?” Eric lifted a brow, “Going to classes in the mornings and working three jobs after. You think I like doing that? Huh? I’m also exhausted”.

Monica inhaled sharply and looked away, “this needs to end, Eric. I don’t know how you’re going to do it. Get more jobs or whatever”, she crossed her arms, “I can’t even go out with my friends, and I have to lie to them every time and tell them that I have to take care of Leo. Little do they know that I can’t afford to spare a single change on a cup of coffee”.

Eric sighed and ran his fingers through his dark hair, “I know, Monica. Our situation isn’t the best, but please bear with me. A few more years and it’ll be over”.

Monica scoffed and looks at him in disbelief, “A few more years you say. I might as well stay in here forever until the hairs on my scalp turn grey”.

Eric ignored her this time and walked into the living room to find Leo sitting on the couch and watching cartoon.

“Isn’t it my cute little baby?” he jumps on the couch, making the boy laugh.

“Papa!” the little boy exclaims.

Eric smiled and rested his head on Leo’s thighs, “did you have fun today at school?” he asked.

“Yes, papa”, Leo caressed his hair gently without taking his eyes off the TV screen. That was just how much Spongebob Squarepants engrossed him.

Eric hummed, “did you play with your friends?”

Leo nodded, “we played football and handball”, he said in his tiny little voice, “I scored like Messi when we were playing football!”

Eric watched his eyes shine with excitement, and he let out a laugh, “really?!” he exclaimed, “does that mean we have the next greatest footballer here?”

“Yes!”

Monica scoffed, “do you think it’s time to be laughing?”

Eric frowned and left the couch to follow her to the kitchen.

“Seriously, what is wrong with you?!” he asked, “Leo has nothing to do with this, okay? Don’t speak like that in front of him”.

“That’s exactly it”, she countered, “he has everything to do with this”.

Eric looked at her in disbelief, “are we doing this again?” he asked and looked behind to make sure that Leo was still focused on the television. “He is just a child. If you have to take it out on someone, take it out on us, okay? We did this. We did this by not taking precautions that night, not him”.

Monica gulped and looked down, pressing her lips tight to stop her tears from falling.

“How stupid of us!” she cried.

Eric sighed and pulled her towards his chest before he caressed her back, “it was a wrong decision. Indeed. But we had little Leo, didn’t we? You can’t tell me it’s not the best thing that has happened to us”.

Monica rested her chin on Eric’s shoulder and looked at Leo sitting in his usual corner on the couch. He let out little chuckles as Spongebob tried to fit himself inside a pipe, and his eyes widened and brightened.

Monica sniffed and nodded her head, “you’re right”, she whispered, making Eric smile and kiss her temple gently.

“Now, now, let’s cook dinner and get some sleep, okay?”

“Okay’’.

The next morning, Eric didn’t have classes until ten, so he was in charge of dropping Leo at school before heading to his own school.

“Goodbye, little prince”, Eric kissed Leo’s cheek and watched him bow to his teacher before he ran to his friends. He smiled and felt grateful to have him in his shitty life. No matter the difficulties he and Monica were facing, Leo’s arrival was the reason they stuck together. From staying up late at night to running to the hospital at the slightest sign of illness, they endured everything for years. But time flew by, and now, the baby was an adorable five-year old.

Eric ran to catch the bus that’ll drop him off at school. He left a text to Monica saying that he had dropped their child at school and that she should pick him up if she’s done with classes early.

When the bus stopped, Eric got out and headed to the business school campus. But before he climbed the stairs, someone called him. They didn’t say a name, but he knew he was the one being summoned because he was basically the only one there.

Eric turned around and saw a car – the same black car from yesterday. He furrowed a brow and waited until the window opened fully. A man with bright white hair appeared, wearing a three-piece suit that must cost five times his debt.

“Hello, young man”, the man’s deep voice sent chills over his body, and it definitely wasn’t good chills. He was wearing a cloth that must cost more than Eric’s mere existence, of course the chills wouldn’t be borne out of excitement. The watch around his wrist was from a famous luxury brand. Like, this man smelled like money from head to toe.

“Do I know you, sir?”

“I don’t believe so”, the man said, “unless you’re from the Head families”.

Eric frowned as he had no idea of what he was talking about.

“I saw you yesterday, fighting those men”, Eric nodded, “that was quite the show. Impressive, I must say”.

“Thank you, sir”, Eric said, still unsure of what the money-smelling man wanted from him. “But how did you find me?’

“I recognized your jacket yesterday”, the man replied, “my son goes here too”.

Eric hummed, “and?”

They had to be something else. Such a man wouldn’t just come all the way here to tell him how impressive his fighting skills were.

“I need someone with your skills”, the man said, “I always make suer to get the best men for both my company and my family. You are a college student, so you must be as the same age as my son”, he paused to eye Eric, “his bodyguards never last a week by his side”, he added, “he needs someone to end his child play”.

“And you think I can do that?” Eric lifted a brow as he scoffed internally. As if it wasn’t already enough to take care of one child.

“I believe you can”, the man replied.

Eric sighed and took a look at his watch. His class was about to start in ten minutes, and he needed to hurry inside.

“Uh……sir, your offer is kind, but I’ll have to decline. I don’t think I’m up for this sort of job”.

The man, as if he guessed Eric would answer this way, nodded to one of his men. He handed him a black box which he opened. Eric’s eyes widened when he beheld the number of bills inside.

“I guessed the men from yesterday are loan sharks”, the man said, “so, five grand a month. Is it enough to cover your debt?”

Eric gulped and let out a laugh as he could not believe the amount of cash he mentioned. He thought about how his life would be after paying off his debt. He would finally drop the night jobs and come back early to study and play with Leo. He could also go on dates with Monica and bring back the good old days.

Eric cleared his throat and looked at the man with a smile, “it’s more than enough, sir”.

The man nodded proudly, “good. I’ll send one of my men to pick you up after you’re done with your classes. He’ll drive you to the mansion, and there you can meet my son”.

Dearest gentle reader, this author has……………….got you right there. Don’t mind silly me, pretending to be in a Bridgerton movie. This is a BOSS X BODYGUARD story, and I hope you enjoy the ride.

Not like that ride, you know, no, not that one.

Your thoughts?

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