Chapter 9: Chapter 9

"It's still fortunate that you weren't reported to counseling, it means that Rian still feels sorry for you because you're a new student here. Next time, think before you act so you don't regret it later."

Like an expert who is good at patronizing others, for ten minutes Zidan had been ranting at length to Cakra about Cakra, who had hit Rian, the famous senior.

He said that Cakra was not good at controlling his emotions, that he was temperamental, that he was too easily provoked, and that Cakra did not know what Rian would do if someone bullied him. But for that last one, there's a bit of truth to it. He didn't know his stepbrother's current personality.

Cakra felt dizzy by himself. He repeatedly took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. While behind him, Zidan continued to give Cakra comments that again made Cakra's ears buzz.

When it was time to go home from school, Cakra intended to go to his workplace as usual, but Zidan was still following behind him.

Unable to stand it, Cakra stopped and turned around. He looked flatly at Zidan, who had almost bumped into him when Cakra stopped suddenly.

"Well then, do you understand what I'm commemorating?" asked Zidan while pointing at Cakra's chest.

Cakra replied quickly and sharply. "No!"

Zidan widened his eyes. He looked surprised by his new friend's response. But Zidan tried to stay calm, he cleared his throat again and straightened his tie.

"Here, I'll repeat it in a shorter, clearer, shorter version, and it will definitely make you understand what I mean."

Cakra chuckled in exasperation. "No need. I understand what you're talking about, so you better shut up and go home. I'm going home too." Cakra let out a long sigh.

"Yes, I really want to go home. We are going in the same direction to the parking lot."

Cakra chose not to care about Zidan. He let out a long breath, turned around, and then walked with wider steps than before. Meanwhile, Zidan tried to follow in Cakra's footsteps.

Turning the corner, Cakra and Zidan were suddenly surprised by a crowd of students. The two boys' steps stopped, they looked at each other for a moment.

"What's wrong?" asked Cakra while raising his eyebrows, asking for an explanation from Zidan.

Instead of giving a satisfactory answer, Zidan was confused. His forehead was wavy. Both shoulders suddenly lifted. "I don't know what's wrong either," he answered honestly while shaking his head slowly.

Cakra continued his steps a little more hurriedly because he wanted to know what was happening in front of him. The crowd was getting denser, Cakra was even willing to push forward to see what actually happened to make everyone gather like this. Cakra's curious soul was already on the edge.

Managed to get into the crowd, Cakra circulated his gaze, then stopped at an object that immediately made him fixated.

In a fairly close distance, Cakra saw Rian, his half-brother, dealing with a girl. Cakra's surprise didn't even end there. He recognized the girl standing in front of Rian.

"Drunk girl?" he muttered, pointing at Inez with narrowed eyes. There was no way he was wrong, it was indeed the girl who asked to be raped while drunk.

Chakra replayed the memory of a few days ago, and he blinked softly. "So the girl who helped me find a class yesterday was a drunk girl?" Cakra spoke to himself, of course with a low voice. He looked down for a while and thought about the incident. No wonder at that time Cakra seemed familiar with the girl's face, apparently he had indeed met her.

"Meaning my shoes?" Cakra turned his head quickly to look at Inez. He looked at the shoes she was currently wearing. But, Inez wasn't wearing Cakra's shoes. Which meant his shoes were at Inez's house.

Chances were, Cakra would collect before losing track of Inez again. He was about to take a step forward, but Rian's voice stopped him.

"Inez, I've liked you for a long time. Please, give me just one chance, you accept me this time. I promise I'll make you comfortable with me."

Her name was Inez, he had to remember that. He nodded firmly. Meanwhile, Rian immediately knelt before Inez while handing her a bouquet of flowers and three expensive chocolate bars.

There was a surprised squeal from the assembled students. They whispered, then their voices grew louder.

Cakra turned his head to the right and left, sweeping his gaze. Then a second later, his gaze turned back to Inez and Rian.

"It's crazy that Inez didn't accept Rian, they're really good together," said one of the students beside Cakra. The boy took the time to glance at her.

"Yes, I agree, and I also salute Rian, who never gave up on getting Inez. Just imagine, how many times has Inez rejected Rian? More than ten times, I think."

Ten times? Cakra was surprised by that information. He remained silent and watched the drama unfold before him.

Inez let out a long breath through her mouth. She looked down and looked lazily at Rian. "How many times do I have to tell you? I don't like you, and I don't want to be with you forever. Understand now?"

"Give me a chance, Nez, and I'll do my best for you. I love you."

Inez smiled wryly, chuckled, and then folded her arms across her chest. She looked at Rian, who was now standing up again. "How bad do you have to be to beg me like this? How pathetic is that?"

"I—"

Not quite finishing his sentence, Rian fell silent when Inez snatched the bouquet of flowers in his hand and threw it roughly to the ground.

Everyone was surprised to see Inez's action. Including Rian himself, who was speechless. Cakra also rounded his eyes, aside from the many students who closed their mouths in shock.

"I don't need anything from you, and I ask that from now on you don't interfere with my life anymore. I don't like you, understand? Do I need to repeat myself again so that you understand, huh?"

Inez gave Rian a hateful glare. He hissed angrily, then decided to get out of the way and walk towards her parked car. However, before she could take a step away, Rian immediately held her back.

"Inez, I'm begging you."

"Let me go!" Inez shouted, struggling to be released. But Rian's grip tightened even more.

"I won't let you go until you accept me," Rian replied.

Inez glared in disbelief. "What did you say? Let go?" Inez tried to break free again, but of course her strength was no match for Rian's. Inez was too weak. She could only swear.

"No!"

"Let me go!"

"Accept me as your boyfriend first!" Rian stood his ground, he didn't want to lose to Inez.

BUGH!

Suddenly, from the left side, Rian was attacked by an unexpectedly hard punch. The boy was immediately thrown to the side and let go of Inez's hand. Rian held his throbbing jaw as he cursed and whimpered in pain.

"One more time I see you hurting a girl, I'll make sure you break your neck! Make sure of that!"