Chapter 3

The bar was poppin'—music blaring, lights flashing, folks gettin' down on the dance floor, waiters hustling drinks, and shady stuff goin' down in the corners. Just another night out.

"In private room K105," Simon told Alice. "Clara's in there with her crew and some rough dude who's been all over her. You sure you wanna handle this solo? Need backup?"

Alice weaved through the crowd, gave Simon a once-over, and smirked. "You tryna get noticed or what? Dressed like that for a fight, tomorrow's headline will be 'Mr. Williams from the Williams family threw down with chicks in a bar.'"

Simon rolled his eyes. Sometimes he thought Alice should've gone into journalism instead of computer science. She was so good at getting a title.

At the door to the private room, Simon grabbed Alice's arm, hesitated, and said, "How 'bout I get you some muscle? It'll be quick! Ten minutes... no, five!"

Alice shook him off, cracked her knuckles, and said coldly, "Nope, can't wait another second."

She pushed the door open and walked in. Simon peeked through the door, keeping an eye on things.

Inside, there was just one dude, the rough guy hitting on Clara. But Clara had a bunch of girlfriends with her.

As soon as Alice walked in, Clara, who'd been laughing with her friends, stood up and pointed at Alice, yelling, "Alice, you got the nerve to come here!"

Remembering that phone call, Clara was fuming. She'd always been the princess of her family. Her dad, though always busy with work, had never yelled at her!

But thanks to Alice, she got chewed out by her dad for the first time. If her mom hadn't stepped in, her dad might've even slapped her!

All because of Alice. Otherwise, her doting dad would've never scolded her.

Alice crossed her arms, looking calm. Hearing Clara's words, she smirked, "Why wouldn't I come?"

Clara sneered, hating Alice's attitude. After all, Alice was just an illegitimate kid! How could she compare to someone as high-class as Clara?

Sizing up her group in the room, Clara became confident, though Alice was really tough.

Clara gave a nasty smile. "Alice, I've been holding a grudge. Since you came to me, don't blame me."

With that, Clara signaled her friends, and a bunch of girls got up and moved towards Alice.

Simon was freaking out outside. He guarded the door to keep anyone from barging in and stayed alert. If things went south for Alice, he'd jump in to save her.

Simon peeked inside now and then, shocked by Alice's brutal moves.

Alice grabbed one girl's hair while kicking another in the gut. When another girl yanked her hair from behind, she elbowed her in the stomach, then used her as a cushion to slam into the wall.

After about ten minutes, Alice walked out, sporting more cuts and bruises.

Simon finally swallowed and awkwardly asked, "Alice, I've always wondered, who taught you to fight?"

Alice's scalp ached, and she replied seriously, "Nathan Brown, the arcade owner. He did kickboxing. I paid him to teach me a few moves."

Simon didn't know what to say. Seeing her messy hair, he reached out to fix it, but Alice winced and pulled back.

"What's wrong?" Simon quickly lifted her hair and saw a cut on her temple. His eyes narrowed, "Damn, those jerks."

"Enough." Alice pulled Simon back, glanced at his watch, and said, "Alright, I gotta go."

Simon, still pissed, followed Alice. "He's not even your real uncle. If you're late, is he gonna beat you?"

"Yeah, he will," Alice replied.

Alice thought about it. David had warned her this afternoon, and now she was hurt again. Who knew how he'd react?

Alice pulled out her phone and texted David to ask when he'd be back.

She glanced at Simon and said, "Honestly, David's got a bad temper and looks scary. If not for the respect he had for my grandfather, think he could rape me?"

Simon looked horrified and exclaimed, "Then why go back? Don't go, I'll find you a place to crash."

"No," Alice said.

If she could move out, she would've found a place on her own. But David was someone Lucas had arranged to take care of her, and she didn't want Lucas to worry while he was recovering. So when Lucas asked, she agreed without a second thought.

Simon was about to say something, but Alice's phone buzzed. She checked the message and froze.

David: [Look up.]

Seeing Alice's stiff expression, Simon got worried. "What's up?"

Alice didn't answer. She had a bad feeling and slowly looked up.

Under the blinding lights, a tall figure stood on the second floor, looking seriously pissed.

It felt like someone dumped a bucket of ice water over her. Alice felt a chill run down her spine. David's vibe was like a devil from hell, and she couldn't help but gulp.

David held his phone, his face tense, making his features even sharper.

The guy next to David, who was laughing so hard he could barely stand, took a few deep breaths. He put a hand on David's shoulder and leaned on the railing, looking down. Just as he was about to crack a joke, his smile vanished when Simon looked up.

"Simon!" Dylan shouted.

Dylan Williams couldn't believe his little bro Simon was in a place like this. He stopped joking with David, walked down the spiral staircase, and yanked Simon out of the crowd.

Dylan glared at Simon. "What are you doing here? Didn't you say you were going to the arcade with your classmates?"

Simon, with his ear being pulled, winced. "Bro, chill! I can explain. I did go to the arcade, but something happened, and I came to help a friend..."

"Help with what?" David asked coldly as he came down from upstairs.

Judging by his suit, he seemed to be a business buddy of Dylan's. Simon, already feeling guilty, didn't want to mess up any business deals and risk getting chewed out by Dylan.

Then Simon answered, "Well... my friend's family was cursed to die early, and my friend couldn't take it, so I helped a little..."

Dylan sighed and let go, annoyed. "Who says crap like that? Cursing someone to die early? Simon, good job."

Simon rubbed his burning ear and stayed quiet.

David looked at the anxious Alice in the crowd, his eyes darkening, and scolded, "What are you wearing?"

Dylan and Simon both looked surprised.

Alice tugged at her leather jacket to cover the crop top underneath and coughed. "Well, for fighting... I needed a disguise."

David walked up to Alice, his tone icy. "What did you just say? I didn't hear you clearly."

Seeing David like this, Alice was scared. She was really afraid he would spank her when they got home.

To avoid further embarrassment, Alice had to lower her stance and admit her mistake to David.

Alice bit her lip, took two small steps forward, and tugged at David's suit jacket, mumbling, "David, I was wrong."

Simon had never seen Alice so gentle. He widened his eyes, then quickly reacted, glaring at the stern, cold-eyed man in front of him.

Suddenly, Alice's earlier words echoed in his mind. 'Bad temper, scary appearance.'

Simon immediately rushed forward, pulling Alice behind him to protect her, and glared at David. "So you're the bad-tempered, scary-looking guy who wants to rape Alice! You look so refined, but you're actually a pervert!"

Alice closed her eyes and covered Simon's mouth from behind. "Simon, can you shut up? I was lying to you earlier, and you believed it!"

Alice thought, 'What a foolish teammate! Couldn't he see that David was already on the verge of hitting me?'

Simon pulled Alice's hand down, looking at her with concern. "I know, your uncle is here, so you have to say you were lying to me. Don't worry, if he hits you or tries to do anything to you, come to me. I'll find you a place to stay."

Dylan stepped forward and slapped Simon, pushing Alice towards David.

"Why are you so involved in their business? Shouldn't you be explaining what you were doing in the bar? Did you drink? Are you hiding something you shouldn't have?"

Alice sighed and looked up, only to see David's stern face, feeling even more frustrated.

She had already lost her dignity by showing weakness in front of Simon. If she pleaded again, it would be even more embarrassing.

Moreover, the nonsense she had spouted earlier was now exposed by Simon in front of everyone, leaving her with no dignity.

She decided not to care about anything anymore and said to David, "If you want to hit me, hit me. If you want to scold me, scold me. I won't admit I was wrong because I wasn't!"