Your First News

Angie leaned against the wall. She had come with Maxime after leaving the nightclub where they had been drinking earlier. Angie was not really expecting anything. But she did not expect to see a live abuse session. Maxime dragged two grown men into an alley and beat them unconscious. Absolutely insane.

"Is that your job or what?" Angie was curious.

Maxime turned to Angie. His fist was covered in blood, and some of the blood had even spurted out and stained his face. The smell of blood wafted out and made Angie's nose feel uncomfortable.

"Why, do you mind?"

Angie shrugged. Actually, she did not care. A scene of such brutal violence might be newsworthy, but not interesting enough for Angie. She was not a cub reporter. She craved big, phenomenal stories involving famous people.

"Not really. I mean, are you poor enough to take a job as a bouncer like this?" There was a dismissive tone in Angie's sentence, and she knew that Maxime did not like to be put down.

"Well, at least I don't have to sell myself just to get a news?" Maxime quipped.

Angie snorted. It was obvious that the sarcasm was directed at her. She took no offense. Angie was not the kind of person who got carried away when other people talked about her. Maybe she was immune? Or maybe she was just so used to it that she no longer cared.

"Speaking of the news I want, is there still no interesting information you can give me?"

Maxime washed his hands at a small tap in the alley. Blood splatters remained on his clothes, Angie's eyes continued to follow the man's every move in silence.

"Not yet, but it will be soon."

Angie frowned in confusion. "What does that mean?"

"I have received information from my associate that Arok is working with the Wolf Gang's Made Men. Is that interesting enough?"

Angie wrinkled her forehead. "Made Man? A regular member, right?"

Maxime nodded. "But they're still part of the Wolf Gang. Aren't you obsessed with getting news about the Wolf Gang?"

Angie laughed. "Yes, but if possible, I want to get information about the boss."

Maxime squinted. "You're obviously crazy."

"Hey, but seriously, the Wolf Gang is very famous, but no one knows who their ultimate boss really is. Rai once told me that the only members of the Wolf Gang who have ever been caught are the Made Men. The rest are just associates, mostly corrupt politicians or evil businessmen who use the Wolf Gang's influence for protection."

"This detective friend of yours, how much does he know about the Wolf Gang?"

Angie suddenly turned to face Maxime. There was a strange expression on the man's face that was hard to describe. It was only a glimpse, because Maxime immediately returned to his usual flat expression.

"I think he knows a lot. Not all police information can be shared."

Maxime rolled his eyes. "I'm sure the information you know was also obtained by forcing your friend to open his mouth."

Angie laughed. "Yes. Oh, I forgot, this Arok, you mean the son of the owner of the Sion Corporation?"

Maxime nodded. "He's strange. He's had a lot of scandals before, and they never got too much publicity because of his father's power. I think if he wasn't the sole heir to the Sion Corporation, Arok would have been banished."

"But for what? I mean, he comes from a wealthy family. Maybe it would make more sense for the Sion Corporation to be associated with the Wolf Gang?"

Maxime agreed. At first, he had not been too interested in the information provided by his associate. He had ignored the information, but then Angie's face, which had forced him to get information about the Wolf Gang, crossed his mind. Maybe this was just a small piece of news, but if Maxime could investigate further, he might be able to get more information.

"You didn't know that Arok often dated rich men?"

Angie was shocked. "Huh? He's gay?"

Maxime shrugged. He did not really care.

"Wow, he's crazy. I mean, obviously everyone knows that his abusive father is extremely homophobic, and he just casually comes out as gay?"

"Is that news interesting enough?"

Angie smiled happily. "Yes, for now. But I'll never be satisfied if I don't get the news about the Wolf Gang boss."

Maxime snorted. "Whatever."

"Huh? Oi, where are you going?"

Angie ran, trying to catch up with Maxime's fast pace in front of her. The man did not seem to bother to wait for Angie and continued to walk at a brisk pace.

"Why are you still following me?" Maxime was really annoyed. Angie's presence often annoyed him. She was stubborn and never backed down, even when Maxime deliberately used brutal force in front of her. How could this woman remain relaxed when she saw Maxime beating two grown men to a pulp with his bare hands earlier? What a strange woman.

Angie grinned. She came closer and pulled on Maxime's neck until his body dropped and their faces met. Angie placed a soft peck on the man's lips. There was an odd pause between them after Angie released her kiss. Maxime's expression was too abstract to describe. Angie laughed amusedly, not expecting to see another rather interesting expression from this man.

"Consider it payment for your news," he said. Angie waved cheerfully and ran off, leaving Maxime, who was still silent after the incident.

When Angie had disappeared around the corner of the alley, Maxime let out a long sigh. He rubbed the corner of his own lips and snorted softly. Why should he be surprised just because he got a short peck that did not even feel much? This kind of kiss was not the style of an adult. It was like a child's.

"She's totally crazy." Maxime muttered to himself before continuing on his way home.

Meanwhile, Angie did not go straight home. The news about Arok's scandal with the Wolf Gang was interesting enough, but Angie needed something else to make the news more popular.

He went to the Sion Corporation and snuck into the back of the building. There was a door near the warehouse that was easy to climb. Angie often saw pictures of this area in some of Arok's social media posts. It might be a place that held something interesting.

Just as Angie managed to jump down from the door, Arok was standing in front of her, girded at the waist and glaring at Angie in annoyance.

"What are you doing?"

Angie was silent for a while before she laughed blandly, "a-ah, um, I wanted to see you."

There was a faint sound of several people cursing at Arok. The man immediately grabbed Angie's arm and led her to the left side of the warehouse where they hid together.

"W-Wait!"

"Do you know what my father did when a stranger broke in here?" Arok asked suddenly. His voice was a whisper.

Angie looked at Arok with a furrowed brow. "What?"

"Kill them."

***