CHAPTER 26: Horny

This was the first day of my job as Yuan's personal assistant. It was only the first day, but here we were, already at a club. This was not the club where I used to work, but a completely different one. It was far more private, far more expensive, and the people frequenting it were undeniably absurdly rich.

That much was obvious from the sleek, high-end cars parked in the lot and the people draped in designer clothes and lavish jewelry.

We were inside a private room of the club. The space was spacious, featuring large circular couches surrounding a low coffee table at the center. The dim lighting gave the entire room a quiet, exclusive atmosphere. I saw a crystal chandelier hung from the middle of the ceiling, adding an extra layer of elegance to the interior. All around, the sophisticated, costly decor made it obvious that nothing in this room was cheap.

It was not just Yuan and me. His group of friends was also present, Jeno, Marcus, and Stephen. Alejandro was absent because he was currently in Japan, playing as a volleyball athlete there. He was over there training since the VNL tournament was approaching. How did I know? I simply overheard them talking about it.

I sat on the couch with my legs crossed, sipping a drink. Yuan was sitting directly to my right, doing nothing other than draping his arm around my shoulders and resting his head against me.

As usual, I just let him be, mostly because I had grown accustomed to him doing it, even if my shoulder sometimes went numb from the weight of his head.

"Is Kaden not coming?" Jeno asked out of nowhere.

"He said he couldn't," Stephen replied. "Probably busy with his business."

"Good," Marcus blurted out.

"Huh? Why? You're going to be in deep shit if he finds out you said that." Jeno warned him.

"I mean, it's better that he's not here."

"Why, though?"

"Because if he were here, he would definitely bring Helios along."

I watched Jeno nod in agreement with Marcus. "Admit it, you're actually terrified of Helios, aren't you?"

"Please, who is he for me to be scared of—"

"Who are you scared of, Marcus?" Marcus's sentence was cut short when the very man they were gossiping about suddenly appeared from behind.

"Hey man, you made it!" Marcus greeted him instantly, his tone suddenly energetic, as if he hadn't just been harbouring resentment toward the guy a second ago.

"What were you saying earlier?" Helios asked coldly, his voice deep and controlled. It was the kind of tone that felt intimidating even when spoken quietly.

Marcus scratched the back of his neck nervously. "Huh? Oh, nothing... I'm just... scared of snakes, that's all."

I couldn't help but roll my eyes. Even now, I still couldn't understand the dynamic of their friendship.

Helios's brow furrowed when his eyes shifted toward me. He stared coldly in my direction, or more accurately, at the arm draped heavily over my shoulder. There was zero playful mischief in his gaze, unlike the way he looked at me back at the gate of Stephen's mansion.

He took a seat next to Stephen, but his gaze never left my direction. Momentarily, I felt Yuan's arm tighten around my shoulders.

"Hey man, how are you?" I heard Yuan ask, his eyes fixed on Helios.

"I'm good. How about you?" Helios countered. His voice sounded calm, yet carried a distinct weight.

"I'm doing great, especially since I have a good assistant right here," Yuan answered, glancing sideways at me.

I just rolled my eyes at him.

Helios's brow furrowed in confusion. "Assistant?"

"Yeah, he's my personal assistant now. Right, Neo?"

I didn't bother answering, instead I choose to roll my eyes again.

The confusion on Helios's face remained evident. "How did that happen?" he asked, his eyes darting back and forth between Yuan and me.

"Because I wanted him to be my assistant. Is there a problem with that?" Yuan shot back casually.

I noticed Helios's jaw clench tightly. "Is that true?" he asked, his eyes locked onto mine as if silently pleading with me to deny it.

"Yeah, it's true." Yuan answered on my behalf, tightening his grip on my shoulder.

I rolled my eyes at both of them and downed the remaining alcohol in my glass.

"Why?" Helios kept asking, looking as though he still couldn't accept what he was hearing.

"Because he's broke, man. He needs cash," Stephen interrupted, tossing a sly look on my way.

Helios frowned at Stephen's remark. He didn't say another word and simply stared at me, though his eyes felt packed with endless unanswered questions.

I broke eye contact, shifting my focus entirely to my phone screen. I had nothing to explain to him anyway, considering he was practically a stranger to me.

"Why do you look so disappointed, Helios? Shouldn't you be happy that Neo isn't around to boss you around anymore?" Jeno interjected.

"Yeah, you know Neo is real obedient now. Just hand him some cash and he'll do whatever you want," Stephen added, bursting into laughter.

I couldn't stop my jaw from clenching as I glared daggers at Stephen. When he noticed my glare, his laughter instantly died down, replaced by a nervous smile. "Chill out, I'm just joking."

I raised a clenched fist toward him. "Do you want a taste of this?"

Instead of being intimidated, he just chuckled. "Man, Neo, you really can't take a joke."

"It's true, though," Marcus interrupted in the corner. "Neo, if you ever need another job, just let me know. I've got something for you," he added with a wink.

"No," Yuan cut in firmly, his tone sharp and visibly irritated by Marcus's suggestion.

"Why not?"

Yuan's grip on my shoulder tightened further as he pulled me closer to his side. "Because he's mine," he stated in an authoritative tone, as if I were some piece of property he owned.

My eyebrows knitted together in rage, and I violently yanked his arm off my shoulder.

"What did you just say?!" I barked, smacking the back of his head hard. "I'm not your property, you asshole!"

"It amounts to the same thing since I'm the one paying your salary."

I gritted my teeth and smacked his head a second time.

"Ouch! I'm your boss, you know! Why are you hitting me?" he complained, but I just kept glaring at him menacingly.

"Hey, calm down, you two. Don't go killing each other again in here," Stephen stepped in to mediate.

I ignored him and rolled my eyes. My anger flared right back up, making me deeply regret accepting this job in the first place. So frustrating.

"Hey, behave yourself. It's your first day, so step up your service," Yuan told me.

I shot him a vicious look. The nerve of this idiot to insult me directly to my face.

"Yeah, it's my first day, and I'm doing my job fine. Do you want me to knock you out so you feel satisfied with my service?" I asked sarcastically.

"You bastard, what kind of service is that?"

"Don't like it? It's my special service," I said, holding up my fist.

I heard his idiot friends laugh, except for the one sitting quietly, watching me with a intense look.

I couldn't help furrowing my brow. I genuinely couldn't figure out what this guy's deal was. Honestly, he was even more irritating than these assholes making fun of me to my face. He remained silent, yet looked as if he were constantly passing judgment on my entire existence.

Overwhelmed with irritation, I pulled a pack of cigarettes from my pocket to light one up. But as soon as I pulled the pack out, Yuan reached over to grab it, but I quickly dodged his hand.

"Hey, hand that over. As your boss, I'm banning you from smoking."

"Who are you to tell me what to do? It's my life," I snapped, standing up from my seat.

"Did you forget? I'm your boss," he barked back, his eyes narrowing at me.

I simply raised my middle finger at him.

"I never gave you permission to meddle in my life, asshole!" I yelled at him before walking out of the private room.

Before I could fully exit, he shouted after me.

"Hey, Neo! Get back here! If you leave, I won't pay your salary!"

"I don't give a damn, asshole! Keep your fucking money!" I shouted back before stepping out entirely.

I walked downstairs and headed out of the club. Standing near the entrance, I decided to light a cigarette, slipping it between my lips and exhaling a thick cloud of smoke into the air.

This day was immensely stressful. I didn't even know how to feel anymore. Sure, I wasn't stressing over finding money today, but dealing with these assholes, especially Yuan, was draining my sanity. Maybe I just had to accept that not a single one of them was sane.

"So you know how to smoke now?"

I froze as a voice called out from behind me. It was none other than the other lunatic, Helios.

I slowly turned around to face him and blew a puff of smoke straight at his face. He showed zero reaction and didn't even flinch, despite it being painfully obvious that I blew the smoke at him on purpose.

He stood there with his hands shoved deep in his pockets. Though his eyes were no longer as icy as before, his expression remained dead serious.

"What do you care if I smoke?" I snapped at him.

I watched his lips part slightly as his eyes scanned me from head to toe.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"About what?"

"About your current situation."

My brow furrowed at his words. The way he spoke made it sound like we were actually close.

"Why would I? Who even are you for me to share my life struggles with?"

I saw his jaw clench tightly, as if my words struck a nerve. He ran a hand through his hair, clearly trying to exercise self-control.

He stared directly into my eyes with a soft, quiet gaze, looking as though he wanted to say something but couldn't bring himself to.

"Why? How could you forget me?" he asked quietly under his breath, sounding more like he was asking himself, though I heard it clearly.

"Hey, whoever you are, I just want to inform you that I am still the exact same Neo you used to know. So if you're expecting me to have changed because of the misfortunes in my life, you're dead wrong. Whatever I did to you back then, I'm never going to apologize for it," I declared.

However, I froze when I saw the corner of his lips curl upward into a smirk. He offered a sly, mischievous smile. Suddenly, that cold look in his eyes vanished completely, as if he actually enjoyed what I just said to him.

This guy definitely had a screw loose.

Annoyed by his reaction, I took another drag from my cigarette and blew the smoke right in front of his face. He remained completely unbothered, as though he were entirely accustomed to breathing in secondhand smoke.

I watched him reach into his pocket and hold something out to me. My eyes dropped to the object resting in his palm. It was a lollipop.

I frowned. "What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Instead of a cigarette, why don't you stick this in your mouth instead?" he uttered casually.

I raised an eyebrow at his suggestion. "If you think I smell bad because of the cigarette smoke, then back off and get out of my face. Do you honestly think I'm going to adjust for your comfort?" I snapped in frustration.

"No, you've got it wrong."

"What?"

"I don't think you smell bad because of the cigarettes..." he uttered softly.

"Then why the hell are you handing me a lollipop to replace my cigarette?"

The corner of his lips tugged upward into a teasing, provocative smile. "You just look hot while you're smoking..." His eyes slowly trailed downward toward the front of his pants, and my gaze involuntarily followed his. "Now this guy down here is going wild. Sorry, I can't really control it, he's a bit more aggressive today," he added, his voice low, raspy, and strained.

My jaw dropped at his words. "What?"

"You're making me horny again, Neo..."

I turned completely to stone. For the second time, what he said caught me completely off guard.

And I absolutely despised the effect it had on me.