Chapter 32: Next Time!
"We’re finally here."
Luca stretched his neck and rolled his shoulders, letting out a long breath. The past few days had been nothing short of exhausting. Between the storm, the hospital scare, and the nonstop travel, he felt as though he’d aged several years.
Across from him, Arabella Windsor looked at him quietly. Sunlight filtered through the windshield, illuminating her delicate features and the loose strands of dark hair framing her face.
"Luca, thank you," she said sincerely. "For everything."
There was genuine gratitude in her eyes.
If she hadn’t run into Luca during her trip to Silver Province, her broken-down car would have forced her to abandon the journey altogether. Then there was the night of the storm. He had rushed her to the hospital without hesitation and stayed by her bedside until she recovered.
Looking back, the trip had been filled with one unexpected incident after another. Yet somehow, she found herself remembering it fondly.
Luca smiled.
"It’s nothing, Arabella. We’re friends."
"Friends..."
Arabella repeated the word softly, as if testing it.
A moment later, she seemed to recall something. A faint, almost mischievous glimmer appeared in her eyes.
"As a friend," she said, "I have a gift for you."
She paused.
"Close your eyes first."
A gift?
And she wanted him to close his eyes?
Luca’s imagination immediately started running wild.
’Wait... seriously?’
His heart skipped a beat.
Trying not to look too eager, he obediently shut his eyes.
The interior of the car fell silent.
Then came the sound of a zipper being opened.
Rustle.
Rustle.
Something was being searched through inside a bag.
Luca couldn’t help cracking one eye open slightly.
The second he saw Arabella digging through her belongings, his excitement deflated.
’So it’s not that kind of gift.’
For one brief, glorious moment, he’d thought this usually emotionless genius had finally developed some romantic instincts.
Apparently not.
"Alright," Arabella said. "You can open them now."
Luca opened his eyes fully.
A sketchbook was being held directly in front of him.
His gaze froze.
It was a drawing.
A remarkably detailed one.
The subject was unmistakably himself.
In the picture, he was seated beside a hospital bed with his head resting on folded arms, completely asleep.
The lines were clean and elegant. Despite being only a sketch, it captured his features perfectly.
"This is..."
Luca stared at the drawing in surprise.
No one had ever given him a gift like this before.
Arabella lowered the sketchbook slightly.
"When you fell asleep beside my hospital bed, I drew it."
A hint of anticipation entered her voice.
"Do you like it?"
Luca looked at the portrait again before nodding firmly.
"I do."
His smile widened.
"I really do."
For some reason, receiving this hand-drawn sketch felt more meaningful than many expensive gifts he’d received before.
A small look of satisfaction flashed through Arabella’s eyes.
Then, without warning, she asked:
"Did you think I was going to kiss you just now?"
"Cough! Cough!"
Luca nearly choked on his own saliva.
How did this woman’s brain work?
One second they were having a heartfelt moment over artwork.
The next second she casually launched a missile directly into his face.
Most people at least gave some warning before changing topics.
Arabella apparently did not believe in such things.
Seeing his reaction, she tilted her head slightly.
"Based on your facial expression earlier, the probability was quite high."
Luca rubbed his forehead helplessly.
’Can she not analyze everything like a research project?’
Fortunately, his skin was thick enough to survive the attack.
Putting on a wounded expression, he sighed dramatically.
"Since you’ve already exposed me, I might as well admit it."
He placed a hand over his chest.
"Yes. I was disappointed."
Arabella blinked.
"So... are you actually going to give me one?"
For a brief moment, she fell silent.
Then she lowered her head thoughtfully and tapped a finger against her chin.
She genuinely appeared to be considering the question.
After several seconds, she looked back up.
"Next time."
Her voice remained calm.
"There are too many people watching."
Luca froze.
Wait.
What?
He had only been joking.
Why was she treating it like a formal proposal?
This girl really took everything seriously.
Before he could respond, Arabella opened the passenger door.
"I’ll go first."
She stepped out, smoothing her white dress.
Then she glanced back over her shoulder.
"Drive safely."
With her handbag hanging from one arm, she walked gracefully toward the dormitory entrance.
Luca watched her disappear through the gates before finally shaking his head with a laugh.
"What a strange girl."
---
What Luca didn’t know was that the moment his black G-Wagon appeared on campus, San Fierro University’s forums had exploded.
[SFU Forum Hot Topic: The Campus Belle Is Dating?!]
[Thread #1: Mysterious Mercedes-Benz G-Class personally escorts Arabella Windsor back to campus!]
[Thread #2: The Campus Belle’s secret boyfriend exposed! Evidence included!]
Within an hour, countless rumors had spread across the student forums.
Every discussion revolved around one person:
Arabella Windsor.
The university hadn’t seen this much online activity in months.
---
One of the first people to notice the posts was Arabella’s best friend, Camille Jose.
While scrolling through the forum during class, she immediately recognized the blurry figure stepping out of the vehicle.
"Wait..."
Camille zoomed in.
"That’s definitely Arabella."
And that car...
Wasn’t it the same black G-Class belonging to the man who had helped Arabella when her Ferrari broke down?
A knowing smile spread across her face.
"Oh, now I understand."
She shook her head helplessly.
"You refused to return to campus with me because you wanted to ’find inspiration for sketching.’"
"What a terrible liar."
Despite the teasing words, she looked genuinely happy.
Her ice-cold best friend finally seemed to be opening her heart.
---
Elsewhere, one of Arabella’s dormitory roommates had also seen the photos.
The moment she recognized the luxury SUV, jealousy flashed across her face.
She had been the undisputed beauty queen of her high school.
Back then, countless boys had competed for her attention.
Everything changed after she entered San Fierro University.
The moment Arabella Windsor appeared, she became invisible.
Even the wealthy, ambitious men who approached her often did so only to get closer to Arabella.
The roommate stared at the screen and clenched her jaw.
"Arabella Windsor..."
"Why is it always you?"
Her eyes remained fixed on the photograph.
Beauty.
Talent.
Status.
Attention.
It felt as though Arabella possessed everything she wanted.
And now there was apparently a handsome man driving a Mercedes-Benz G-Class personally escorting her back to school.
The jealousy in her chest grew stronger.
One day, she swore, she would climb into that world herself.
---
Meanwhile, the man at the center of the storm remained completely unaware.
Luca drove leisurely along the riverside road toward the Elvis Muskov Villa Complex.
As the G-Wagon approached the estate gates, a security guard immediately stepped forward and saluted.
"Welcome home, Mr. Hale."
Luca smiled and exchanged a few casual words before continuing through the beautifully maintained grounds.
The moment he entered his villa, however, all remaining energy abandoned him.
He tossed his keys aside, walked upstairs, and collapsed onto the bed.
Within seconds, he was asleep.
The trip had been exhausting, but the outcome wasn’t bad at all.
Especially when it came to Arabella.
As drowsiness overtook him, one particular thought surfaced in his mind.
’Next time...’
Did she really mean it?
Would she actually let him kiss her the next time they were alone together?
A grin slowly appeared on his face.
Whatever dream he was having, it was clearly a pleasant one.
---
Before falling asleep, Luca had switched his phone to silent mode.
As a result, he had no idea that the device sitting on his bedside table was flashing nonstop.
Message after message continued pouring in.
By the time he finally woke several hours later, the sun had already begun setting.
Still half asleep, he picked up his phone.
Then he blinked.
"99+?"
Luca stared at the notification count.
"What happened while I was sleeping?"
"Did the world end?"
For a second, he genuinely wondered whether he’d somehow slept through an apocalypse.
The moment he opened the messages, however, the answer became obvious.
Nearly every notification came from Twist Streaming.
Different senders.
Different wording.
Same topic.
The promotional PK tournament for rising streamer Naomi Monroe had officially begun.
Luca smacked his forehead.
"Oh, damn."
With everything that had happened during the trip, he’d completely forgotten.
He immediately opened the Twist Streaming app.
Hopefully Naomi hadn’t already been crushed while he was busy sleeping.
Not that it would be a disaster if she lost.
After all, he was one of the platform’s major shareholders.
If necessary, he could create another tournament whenever he wanted.
Still, Luca couldn’t help smiling as he entered the livestream section.
After all, supporting Naomi was a lot more interesting than handling corporate paperwork.
