Before Klan's grandmother went to bed, these three had a fun time chatting about this and that, they discussed their daily life at school. Cali talked about her childhood stories that others _ Klan, his grandparents and Neil maybe_ didn't already know and Klan's grandmother told them the history of Artus family, how their company grown up and she also shared embarrassing pictures about Klan's infancy. They shared giggles while having their night snack…
Now only Klan and Cali were left in the room. They were lying on Klan's bed when looking at the ceiling in silence. The atmosphere, much calmer than before, was conducive to engage in slightly more serious topics.
"Klan, what are you going to do after graduation?"
" How so?"
"You know, we're in our last year of high school, we'll be graduating in a few months, so what are you going to do next? what are your prospects for the future?"
Klan frowned as he stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"What am I going to do after high school…um?"...
"I think I'm going to get a piercing or a tattoo!... Phew" in response, he received a pillow blow in his face. Of course, he was pretending to think about his future, he just wanted to goof around one last time,
"Ok, ok… you tell me first"
"Me?... I'm probably going to take a course in economics, I want to learn the art of making money... and you?" replies Cali
"In a way, Neil's decision to face this succession war also motivated me. I am going to devote myself to training and acquire the necessary skills to take over the company as my grandfather wants… not everyone will like that!" he said with a reserved smile _ Klan was referring to his father who obviously wanted this position to go to one of his sons_
For a moment, silence reigned in the room. Klan rolled over to lie on his stomach and turned his head towards Cali
"Tattoo or piercing?" he asked
"Hmm?"
"Which one would you like me to get, a tattoo or a piercing?"
"I don't think that a tattoo or a piercing makes a good impression when one wants to be a CEO "
"But it's not forbidden either and I'll be the boss anyway... plus it'll be like my rite of passage to adulthood"
It was useless to try to go against Klan's will, when he sets his mind on something, he went through with his idea and never back down.
"I prefer the piercing, it's much safer...". Cali muttered the rest of her sentence, "and you'll look super sexy with an ear piercing."
…
It was late at night and Klan was deep asleep. Cali, while still admiring the ceiling, thought about the things she learned that evening, in particular, about Neil.
It's true that she was worried for him because he had chosen a difficult path strewn with pitfalls, but deep inside, she was relieved. Relieved because Neil was a good strategist and a very thoughtful person. If he had chosen to fight for this succession, it was because he had a good reason and certainly the means to get out of it unscathed.
After a moment, Cali turned to her right side, then she faced Klan who was deep asleep. She carefully observed the features of his face; his almost curly hair, spread out to his face and the pillow where his head rested, his closed eyes revealed his long eyelashes in all their glory, his face looked too perfect to be true.
She ran her index finger over that face, from his forehead to the tip of his nose, but his skin was still perfect and his nose… she started poking the tip of his nose with her finger and found it amusing.
"Humph!". now, Klan's half-awake eyes peered into Cali's, the bluish moonlight was reflecting in his clear irises. A slight smile appeared on his face, then he grabbed Cali's hand, which was bothering him.
Klan brought Cali's hand close to his face so that the back of her hand lightly brushed his lips and then, Klan immediately fell back asleep. Since her right hand was now in captivity, Cali used the index finger of her left hand to peck his nose again until she too fell asleep.
Like that, two years passed by.