I was soon back to being Irina and Cecilia's full-time manager. I would go with them every day to accompany them to practice, and at other times I would be busy with all the people trying to get Irina or Cecilia.
There are a lot of offers to appear in the talk shows but I kept it on hold for now. With how there is less than a week for the contest, I didn't want to burden Irina and Cecilia.
Moreover, the talk shows that want Irina and Cecilia are not that popular either. I believe that after the contest, Irina and Cecilia would get offers from more popular shows which would be good for boosting their popularity.
For now, I decided to hold the offers given by the talk shows and other offers.
"Alan! Excuse me, do you have a moment?"
I thought that every day the normal routine will continue, never did I expect someone popular to approach me.
The one who called me was Mia. Mia is one year older than me, and she is also one of the popular idol trainees. But the reason why I recognize her is not because of that but because she had been to the same school since elementary school.
I was not close or anything to her but sharing school for so many years would at least guarantee that we at least know each other.
"Yeah, sure. What's up?"
I asked.
"I was wondering if you're free right now?"
"Yeah, I'm free."
"Great! I was thinking of asking something while grabbing some coffee. Do you want to come with me?"
"Coffee sounds good. Sure, let's go!"
Anyway, I had nothing to do. It was break time and I might have just gone to class and listened to Orion's gibberish.
Walking with Mia, I realized how much of a celebrity she is. Every student that we come across would at least glance at her once and half of them would keep staring at her until she is no longer in their sight.
We entered the cafe and found a table to sit at. As we waited for our drinks, Mia and I began talking. We were mainly talking about Irina and her music. Mia really showed passion when explaining the depth and melody of the song.
It seemed like she is a big fan of those songs.
"So, do you know who that composer is?"
Mia asked.
"Why do you want to know? Is your company interested in signing him up?"
I asked.
"Well, if Mr. Eclipse Shadow wants to, my agency would certainly be glad to invite him to our company. However, it is my personal request. I wanted to know who would have written such a masterpiece and if possible ask him whether he could also write one for me."
Mia said.
I thought for a second. If it was her agency asking to seek me, I would have rejected her. But it looks like she was searching for me because she admires the songs that I gave to Irina and Cecilia.
"Well, you can say that I do know the composer who wrote the songs for Irina."
"Really!"
Mia exclaimed, her eyes lighting up with excitement.
"Though I doubt that you could meet him."
I said that. Right after, Mia's expression was that of disappointment. I felt sorry for her but I didn't really want to reveal that I am the composer (or at least somewhat of a buyer) of those songs.
"But I can pass the message on to him if you want."
I said. Anyway, if she wanted a song, I could easily pull one of the songs from my System Store. Although I would not immediately give it to her as it would be suspicious.
"Really! I would be grateful if you could do that. Thank you, Alan!"
Mia's face brightened up with gratitude.
As our conversation came to an end, Mia took out her phone and said, "Hey, let's exchange contacts. That way, we can stay in touch and you could tell me directly what Mr. Eclipse Shadow thinks about my request."
I nodded in agreement and also took out my phone. We exchanged phone numbers and added each other to social media.
"Thank you, Alan! Make sure to congratulate Irina on my behalf! And Cecilia too!"
With that, Mia took her leave.
I thought that this event was over and I was about to leave the cafe, however, a new problem came looking for me right when I was leaving.
As I was leaving the café, someone grabbed my arm tightly. Startled, I turned around to face the stranger.
"Who are you? What were you talking about with Mia?" the man demanded, his eyes filled with anger and jealousy.
"Let go of me," Alan said firmly, but the man only tightened his grip.
"I said, what were you talking about with Mia?"
The man repeated, his tone even more hostile now.
I took a deep breath and tried to remain calm. I didn't want to escalate the situation into a physical altercation.
"We were just having a conversation," I replied. I didn't know who the person was but looking at his attitude, I believed that he was some kind of admirer of Mia or something.
The man glared at me suspiciously, as if trying to read my thoughts. "What kind of conversation?" he demanded.
"Just catching up, talking about music," I replied calmly, freeing myself from his grip. The man tried to first resist but I used my full strength and flung his hands.
I stood calmly as the man approached me, his face twisted in anger. The man reached out to grab my shoulder again, but I was quick to react. With a flick of my hand, I brushed the man's grasp away.
I already tolerated the man, thinking that it might be some kind of misunderstanding, however, he had already gone past my boundaries.
The man stumbled towards me, caught off guard by my sudden movement. He quickly regained his balance and made another attempt to grab me, but I easily sidestepped out of his reach.
"You think you're tough?" he sneered, clenching his fists.
I remained calm, my gaze fixed on his face, uncertain of his intentions. If he made another attempt to grab me, I was prepared to defend myself.
"I don't want any trouble," I said firmly.
The man's expression was twisted into a menacing scowl.
"Too late for that, buddy," he growled, lunging forward with a punch aimed at my face.
But I was too quick for him. I ducked under his punch and delivered a swift blow to his gut, causing him to double over in pain.
"Are you done?" I asked, keeping a watchful eye on him.
The man glared at me, seething with anger, but he made no further attempts to attack.
The situation had drawn the attention of onlookers, and I could feel their curious gazes upon us. The students seemed startled by the commotion caused by our fight.
"Hey, isn't that Xin?" one of them exclaimed, peering through the crowd.
"Yes, it looks like him! Is he getting beaten up by that boy?" another one added, their interest piqued.
"Quick, take out your camera. This is my chance to capture an idol getting into a fight," a third one said, fumbling for their phone.
I could hear their chatter and see the flash of their cameras as they snapped photos of me and the man. It seemed that the man I had just punched was some sort of idol. He did seem to have a handsome face, though there was no speck of attractiveness after I had punched him.
Despite their excitement, I remained unfazed. I didn't care if the man was an idol or not. If someone tried to attack me, I would attack them back.
It was frustrating to have an audience watching, but I was relieved that Xin, whoever he was, wasn't planning on fighting again.
I watched as the man struggled to stand upright, his handsome face now twisted in pain. It seemed that the fight had left him feeling defeated and embarrassed.
Despite his defeat, the man continued to eye me warily, as if sizing me up for another attack. I could hear his words through his gritted teeth.
"Stay away from Mia from now on. She's mine."
After saying that to me, he quickly left.
I shook my head in disbelief as I watched him disappear into the crowd. What was that all about? I thought to myself.
I watched him go, relieved that the altercation had ended. The group of students at the café continued to whisper and murmur amongst themselves, their attention now focused on me.
I took a deep breath and calmly walked away, hoping to put the whole incident behind me.