Chapter 43
Dawson took the bag from the door handle and closed the door. Rica wanted to take a look outside, but it was already too late. Noticing the brand logo on the shopping bag in his hand, he asked, “Wait, I forgot to give you yours. Did you order this online?” Bussen ignored him completely. Walking to the bar counter, he picked up scissors and cut open the packaging, reviewing the glass cup’s appearance. Made with diamond-cutting glass technology, it reflected bright, dazzling light under the overhead lighting, looking just like a star. The glass even had a name—Polaris. It wasn’t particularly special, but it was definitely beautiful.
Rica was used to Damon’s silence. Fortunately, he was talkative enough for both of them. He wildly speculated, “It wasn’t Autumn who gave this to you, was it? All that rushing to close the door and acting sneaky?” Powsennimed around and placed the Polaris on the display shelf. This entice wall, including pieces he’d chosen himself, now occupied three spots. Then, he picked up his phone.
Soon after, Mars’s phone buzzed, and he looked down to read, “Sending me 38,000 dollars out of nowhere—like it.” They would occasionally Venmo each other money and gifts, typically small amounts like tens of dollars. “But this amount is oddly specific,” he muttered, raising a brow. Nonetheless, he gladly accepted it. Once he confirmed that I wasn’t asking more questions, he finally said, “This is the money Autumn wanted me to give back to you.”
He froze, and looked up with narrowed eyes. “What do you mean?” Dawson implied, “She doesn’t want to owe you any favors.” Rico’s jaw dropped, then twisted into an expression of pure offense. “Dawson, how long have we known each other? You think I’m the kind of guy who gives a girl a gift and then asks for the money back? Are you insane? You need to return this money to Autumn right now!”
As he spoke, he immediately transferred the money back to Dunson. “Make sure she gets it, alright?” The entire situation shocked Rico. He wasn’t done ranting and added, “If the others find out I charged a woman for a damn gift, they’ll mock me at every single hangout forever. I’d never live that down!”
Barson remained silent, simply watching his best friend have a meltdown. When Luce saw that Dawson transferred the money back to him, he suddenly felt something was off. Then, it hit him. Lace turned pale. “Wait, you did that on purpose, didn’t you? You waited for so long before telling me it was from Autumn! You tricked me! Straight-up trap!” Dawn replied calmly, “I was just helping out.” “Helping out? Why would you help with something so insignificant? It’s not like you’re young and have nothing to do all day!”
Dawson responded, “Actually, I’m panicking.” Looking at Dawson, whose expression had changed throughout this entire exchange, Rico finally laughed in exasperation. “You sly fox! You’d throw your own best friend under the…” Dawn pointed toward the door and said, “Polling…”
He fell silent. In the end, no matter how much he pleaded and sweet-talked, Dawson refused to take his money back. Eventually, fed up with the noise, Dawson just told him one word—
He was so furious that he went back to Cli that very night, cursing the entire pay about how all Southerners were sneaky as hell—especially Dunson, with his half-Southern…
That Thursday, Aun received a call from Olhu. “There’s a million-dollar job. Are you interested?” At that time, Datultat was making putine in the company break room. He replied, “What kind of job pays a million dollars? Is it a scam?”