"So, what do you think about the offer?" Emily asked Yohan during their ride back to the hotel.

"I don't know for sure… but it would be nice if we could get full ownership of the island," Yohan replied.

"Then what are you unsure about?" she wondered.

"I don't trust that guy," he said plainly.

"Which guy? The mayor?"

"Doesn't he look a little suspicious to you?"

"I've known Grant since before he became mayor. Over the years, he's done a few questionable things — nothing too serious. But you can't really blame him; he's a politician, after all."

"Yeah, that's probably one of the reasons I don't trust him," Yohan said with a faint smirk.

"I heard he has ties with the mob," he added.

"All those are just rumors. He actually jokes about it sometimes — says it's good publicity," she said with a casual smile.

"You don't have anything to worry about. I'll have my lawyers review everything before we sign," she reassured him.

It wasn't enough to put him at ease, but there wasn't much he could do about it for now.

They arrived at the hotel a short while later.

In the parking lot, Freddie was already waiting — flanked by his small entourage of two guys and three girls.

As soon as the car pulled in, he strutted over, his swagger just as loud as his impatience.

"Mom, since when do I have to wait for your permission before using one of the cars?" he demanded, his tone dripping with annoyance.

"Since you crashed your third one," she shot back, stepping down from the car. "And how many times do I have to tell you I don't want you hanging around with those good-for-nothing friends of yours?"

"You can't tell me what to do! I'm an adult now!" he snapped.

Just then, Yohan stepped out of the car.

"Huh?" Freddie blinked, too confused to say anything else.

His crew approached from behind.

"Hey, isn't that Yohan?" Hazard asked, tapping his shorter friend on the shoulder.

Jasper squinted, recognizing him immediately — though it took him a moment to accept what he was seeing.

"Yeah… it is," he said finally. When they got close enough, he added, "Yohan, what are you doing here?"

"I had some business with Emily here," Yohan said casually, placing a hand on her back.

Freddie's eyes narrowed. "What kind of business could you possibly have with my mom?"

"I can't really go into the details," Yohan replied with a smirk, "since there's a lot of money involved."

Freddie's jaw tightened. "Mom, what are you doing with this fucker?" he demanded, glaring at her.

"Yohan's right," she said evenly. "We're doing business together."

"See? Told you," Yohan added with a playful grin.

"Hello, Mrs. Michael," one of the girls said, stepping forward with a small, respectful bow.

"Hello," Emily replied warmly. "And who might you be?"

"I'm Nora, Freddie's girlfriend. It's nice to meet you, ma'am."

"It's very nice to see you too," Emily said with a pleasant smile. "I've been telling Freddie to introduce me to his girlfriend for months now. You're so pretty…"

"I just didn't have the time," Freddie said from behind, a bit defensive. "You know I've been busy working on our streaming channel."

Yohan watched from the side as the little family drama played out.

'I thought this bastard told me Cassie was his girlfriend' he mused, irritation bubbling up. 'Now he's here introducing a different pretty girl to his mom? This guy's trash…'

But what annoyed him most was how pretty Nora was. She has bright blonde hair, with the edges dyed pink. Her eyes were rose gold and her figure was very alluring.

And so, he decided to stir the pot a little.

"Hey," Yohan said suddenly, his tone casual but cutting. "I thought you told me you were dating my cousin Cassie."

"W-What?" Freddie stammered nervously. "I never told you anything like that."

"Have you forgotten that day at the mall?" Yohan asked, his tone light and teasing. "You and Cassie were acting all lovey-dovey together."

Beads of sweat formed on Freddie's forehead as his gaze darted between the two women before locking on Yohan.

"You better shut the fuck up and stop spewing lies from your stupid mouth before I break it," he snapped, stepping forward and grabbing Yohan by the collar.

"Wait—Cassie? As in Cassie Choi?" Nora's expression shifted, unease flashing across her face.

"Yes, that's the one," Yohan said, flashing a satisfied grin. "Seems you know her too."

Nora's eyes widened. "She's my classmate… how could you do this to me, you bastard?!" she shouted, slamming her fist into Freddie's arm before storming off.

Freddie grabbed her wrist, panic in his voice. "Wait, babe, please—listen to me. She said she was a virgin. Nothing happened between us. I'm serious, please—"

"Is that the defense you're using? You dumbass, I never want to see you again!" Nora cried, ripping her hand free and running.

Freddie whirled toward Yohan in under two seconds. "I'm going to kill you!" he snarled, rage pouring from every syllable as he lunged.

His two friends jumped in and held him back. "Let me go so I can kill that fucker!" he raged, straining against them.

"Freddie, calm down!" his mother screamed from the side, but he ignored her.

"Freddie, you shouldn't do anything like that in front of your mom," Hazard warned as he kept a firm hold on him.

After a few seconds Freddie's reasoning returned and he forced himself to calm down.

"Stay the fuck away from me, Yohan Choi. If you don't, I'll make you regret ever being born," he hissed, chest heaving.

"Let's get out of here," he spat, and they stalked off.

The whole time Yohan kept an indifferent expression, watching Freddie's display with mild amusement.

'I was kind of hoping he'd break so I could knock him out. That would've been satisfying… too bad' he thought, letting out a quiet sigh.

Emily shook her head, apologetic. "I'm sorry about Freddie. I wanted you two to be friends, but I don't know why he's always so difficult. I just don't know what to do with him."

"It's fine," Yohan said. "I'm used to his act by now. I should get going — we can finish this tomorrow."

"Sure. See you then," Emily replied.

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