Chapter 10

The next morning, Stephen got a call from Bailey. She happily asked him about the plans today and where he was taking her on a Sunday. "What else could it be?" Stephen mumbled. "We'll just walk around for a bit, and once we're tired, we can get some food." After giving it some thought, he asked Bailey for her address before saying he would come over to pick her up. Given how gullible Bailey was, he was afraid she'd get lost if she came to find him. At around 10:00 am, Stephen arrived at the address Bailey gave him. He rode over on his old bike. Every part of it squeaked and clanged, except for the bell. As expected, Bailey lived in Linden Town's wealthiest neighborhoods, and not in an apartment, but a proper villa. Even though property prices hadn't skyrocketed yet, the house was still easily worth over ten million. Parked in front of the villa was the Rolls-Royce Phantom that had been picking up and dropping off Bailey lately. It looked rather intimidating. Stephen sent Bailey a message saying he had arrived, and soon, she came out. She always dressed casually, and today was no exception. Her outfit was clean and simple. It looked like she'd just washed her hair, as it was still a bit damp. She wore a plain white T-shirt with no visible logo and a slightly pleated knee-length black skirt. The ensemble was paired with a pair of sandals. Under the scorching sun, her exposed legs were fair and slender. Even her feet looked perfectly sculpted. They walked out of the neighborhood with Stephen pushing his bicycle along. Once they got out, he got on and motioned for Bailey to hop on the back. It became obvious she'd never ridden a bike before. As soon as she sat down, she carefully grabbed a corner of Stephen's shirt. Her face turned a little pale. "Ready?" "Yeah." "Let's go!" Stephen slowly picked up speed. He had been riding bicycles since he was ten, so his skills were solid. The ride was smooth all the way, and Bailey gradually relaxed. Soon, she was smiling widely. Maybe it was partly because of Stephen, but she felt that moving around on a bicycle was more fun than being chauffeured by her family's driver. The two of them wandered around aimlessly, stopping to take photos whenever they saw something scenic. That was one of the advantages of a bicycle—they never had to worry about finding a parking spot. By noon, they were both getting hungry, so they headed to the pedestrian-only street by Benchalk Road. It was lined with street vendors selling local snacks and delicacies. Bailey hopped off the bicycle and ran off to buy something. She came back with two tacos and handed one to Stephen. After cycling for nearly two hours, he was starving. He devoured the taco in two bites. Bailey, on the other hand, only ate half of hers. "Here." Walking ahead of Stephen, she turned around, leaned forward a little, and held her half-eaten taco up to his mouth, making him freeze. Bailey was way too close. Right in front of him were her soft, dewy lips and flawless face. Amid her innocent gaze was an alluring look that was much too bewitching. "Stephen, why are you spacing out? Watch out—" It was too late for Stephen to catch himself. With a loud crash, he and the bicycle went crashing into a street vendor's cart. Chaos ensued. The vendor, a heavyset woman, wagged her finger at Stephen and cursed, "What the hell, kid? Is that how you ride a bicycle? Pay for the damage you did!" Scrambling to his feet, Stephen felt a mix of embarrassment and panic. "Don't get so worked up, ma'am. How much do you want?" The woman sized him up, immediately recognizing him as an easy target. He looked like a naive high schooler who could easily be hoodwinked. Without hesitation, she went for the kill. "500 dollars!" Stephen was dumbfounded. He didn't have 500 dollars on him, and the damage wasn't even that bad. Only a bunch of condiments had been knocked over. The woman had incurred no more than 50 dollars in losses. "Ma'am, do I look like someone who has 500 dollars?" However, the woman wouldn't let up. She grabbed a fistful of his shirt and started wailing like a seasoned actress. "These two kids knocked over my cart and won't pay for the damages! Is there no justice in this world? What happened to the laws of our society?" Clearly, this woman was an expert at drawing a crowd. In no time, the other vendors gathered around to criticize Stephen and Bailey. It was like dealing with an angry mob. Stephen could only smile bitterly. Realizing there was no way out, he decided to call Zachary for money. Zachary had a habit of saving up and had over a thousand in his secret stash. Just then, Bailey's eyes darted around, and she suddenly shouted in a shrill voice, "The city inspectors are here!" Immediately, the vendors started packing up to make a run for it. Even the plump woman let go of Stephen's shirt. "Quick! Run!" By the time Stephen realized what was happening, Bailey had grabbed his hand and dragged him along as she fled. They had no idea how far they'd run before they stopped. The shouting vendors were long gone. Stephen leaned against the railing along the riverbank, his face a mix of disbelief and amusement. Bailey's face was flushed red, and she was panting heavily from the run. She felt both exhausted and nervous. This was the first time she, a straight-A student who had won countless merit awards, had ever told a lie. If Stephen had been the one to yell, those vendors probably wouldn't have believed it. On the other hand, Bailey didn't look like someone who'd ever lie. They looked at each other, and neither knew who started it, but soon, they both burst out laughing. Finally catching his breath, Stephen rubbed his sore cheeks. "Bailey, that voice of yours—who taught you how to do that?" Bailey's face was still red. "I… learned it from a television program." Stephen didn't know what to say. He just gave her a thumbs-up. "Well played." Bailey stuck out her tongue, still feeling a bit shy. "I just couldn't stand it. That lady was so mean. She was totally trying to rip you off." Just then, the sky, which had been sunny moments ago, suddenly changed. Clouds rolled in, blocking out the sun, and a cool breeze picked up by the riverside. After their run, both of them were drenched in sweat, and now the chilly wind cut through them. Even Stephen, with his thick skin, couldn't help but shiver. Stephen turned to Bailey. "Are you cold? Maybe we should take a cab home." "No way!" Bailey shook her head like a petulant child. "We left the house not too long ago! I haven't had enough fun yet." "But… it's really starting to get cold. I don't mind it, but what if you catch a cold?" "I'm not cold." Bailey smiled, her eyes sparkling like stars. "You know, I just realized something—wherever you are, it always feels warm, even when the wind is blowing." Since she put it that way, how could Stephen refuse her? If she said it was warm, then warm it was. Thus, the two carried on wandering around. Stephen dared not head back to the pedestrian street. As for his abandoned bicycle, he considered it that heavyset woman's compensation. She could sell it for tens of dollars. It was enough to cover her losses. Stephen gave Bailey two options. They could either go to the amusement park or hit the arcade. Without hesitation, she picked the arcade. She'd been to the amusement park countless times as a kid, but she had never stepped foot in an arcade. In the past, there were a lot of traditional arcades that looked seedy or shady. Stephen never would've dared to take someone as beautiful as Bailey to one of those. But these days, they were all getting replaced with cleaner, more upscale ones. During the early days of the arcades, most people considered them a risky investment that could net huge profits if executed correctly. However, as time went on, more sophisticated forms of entertainment establishments cropped up, and arcades took a hit too. That trend would only continue in the years to come. Soon, Stephen and Bailey arrived at a nearby arcade. Naturally, Bailey drew quite a bit of attention. There were already plenty of attractive young women in the arcade, many dressed more provocatively than Bailey. Nevertheless, beauty was all about comparison, and the moment she stepped in, every other female in the place took a back seat. Fortunately, most of the people in the arcade were students or couples. No one tried to command Bailey's attention by force. Stephen spent 20 dollars on 40 arcade tokens and started teaching Bailey how to play. She didn't know anything, so Stephen had to start from scratch—how to insert the tokens, press the buttons, tell enemies apart from allies, and how to use the right moves. Either Stephen was a good teacher or Bailey was a talented student. Whichever it was, she picked up everything he taught quite easily. It wasn't long before Stephen noticed that Bailey wasn't too interested in level-clearing games. Instead, she was more into fighting games. Perhaps it had something to do with her personality. After getting to know her for some time now, Stephen noticed she had a particularly strong competitive streak. In fact, most top-performing students shared this trait. Some made it known while others kept it hidden. Bailey's favorite game turned out to be a fighting game. Once Stephen taught her the basic moves, she played with great enthusiasm, focusing intently as she faced off against the system's pre-programmed opponents, which were generally less intelligent. Being an academic genius, Bailey displayed impressive skills even in video games. Despite it being her first time playing, she managed to clear the game with just three tokens. As she watched the final scene that sealed her victory, she grinned happily. Suddenly, she said, "Stephen, let's play together." Stephen shook his head and explained with a smile, "This is a fighting game. We can't play together unless we fight against each other." "Then let's fight each other." Bailey's bright eyes sparkled with eagerness. "Haha. How long have you even been playing? How can you beat me?" Stephen said. "Well, let's give it a try." "Alright, if that's what you want, I'll oblige." Stephen raised an eyebrow, a glint of competitiveness flashing in his eyes. As a Scorpio, he had just as much of that darn competitive streak. What came next could only be described as a brutal slaughter…