For over two hours straight, Mike and Lenny had reacted to numerous currently trending videos and either offered their two cents or clowned on the video and its creator.
Lenny had gradually gotten over the apprehensiveness he felt when in front of the camera and now, it was only slight and in the form of a reminder to himself to watch what he said and how he reacted.
By 2:54 PM, live on stream, Lenny whispered close to Mike that he had to go and prepare for his upcoming night shift by 4 PM.
Mike nodded and addressed his 231 viewers, "Chat, my boy Lenny has got some important things to attend to. So, he's gotta go..."
— @Topsmug: Finally! He sucks a**!!!
— @Loyalilian: Great! F**k off, Leni
— @321: Aww, I liked Leni :(
— @Hambruno: What did the a**hole say to the buttocks? Kiss me. Hahaha…
— @John_See_You: Bye Leni, I hope you start streaming soon too.
'...They are so annoying. Very few aren't. My goodness…' Lenny thought as he read the influx of comments.
He forced a smile and waved. "Bye, see you guys next time. And thanks Mike, I had fun."
Sighing, he got up from his seat and headed for Mike's apartment door. The apartment was exactly like his with the location of the bathroom, kitchen, balcony, and windows, but opposite.
Closing Mike's door behind him, he took a few steps forward and halted in front of the door opposite that read '304'. Putting his hand in his left pocket, he retrieved his apartment door key.
At that moment, from the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a stylish individual with permed short black hair and trimmed goatee, donning orange-tinted sunglasses and a Leopard-print single-breasted suit with the top buttons of his purple dress shirt undone to reveal a thick gold chain, coming up from the stairs about 15 meters away—the length of one and a half school bus.
'…B-Boss Falcone…?' His mind raced.
Noticing Lenny too, Boss Falcone's lips curled up as he quickened his steps. He smugly uttered, "Kiddo, I've come again to visit."
A second later, four other men in black suits and red inner dress shirts appeared behind Boss Falcone, their gazes on Lenny too. Among them were Andre "Jug", the bald dark-skinned man with a sturdy build, and "Lizard" Liu, the Chinese-looking goon sporting a buzz cut.
'...Oh, shit! Fuck!' Panicking with beads of sweat forming on his forehead, Lenny plunged the key into the keyhole with precision and frantically unlocked the door.
"Kiddo! You've got some explaining to do." Boss Falcone shouted and hastened his footsteps even further, chasing after Lenny with his henchmen behind him.
Bam!
Lenny swiftly entered the apartment, shut the door behind him, and hastily locked it. Then, he dragged his small dining table over to the door, employing it as a wedge.
"Ohhh fuck… What do I do now…?"
Utterly frightened, Lenny couldn't even think straight. His mind was as blank as an infant's.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Several bangs erupted from the other side of the door.
"Open up, kiddo. Don't make this worse for yourself," Boss Falcone said, his voice carrying a playful undertone.
"Ohh shit…" Lenny turned his head to look at the balcony and window at the far end of the apartment.
'...Should I jump out the window? But I'm on the third floor…' Lenny thought, the bitter taste of fear mixed with a heavy dose of desperation overwhelmed his thoughts.
Pa!
He unexpectedly slapped himself and furrowed his eyebrows.
'...Are you thinking of running away again, Lenny? They're in your home. Think. You have max agility, perception, and appropriate strength. If anything, they should be the ones running. For weapons… there are ceramic plates, forks, knives, and even… Jug's gun. No fucking running anymore, you already knew they were going to come, you were prepared for this...'
He steeled his mind. At that moment, he froze as a series of information streamed into his brain, with the details imprinted at the forefront of his memory, similar to remembering a dream one once forgot entirely.
[Task #3: Insult Boss Falcone to his face.]
Difficulty: Easy.
Reward: 5 VP.
Ending In: 19 mins 59 secs.
[Optional Tasks]:
~ Spit on him (+3 VP).
~ Slap or punch his face (+5 VP).
~ Kick him in the balls (+5 VP).
"So many optional tasks…" Lenny muttered with greed igniting in his eyes and overwhelming the fear he felt.
…
[Rule #8: Failure of a task shall result in the automatic failure of all associated optional tasks.]
…
Outside the apartment door, Boss Falcone was just about to order his men to bring down the door when he heard the sound of a table being pushed away from behind it.
Clip~ Clip~
The door calmly unlocked and opened slowly. Lenny peeped through the slim opening, sporting an awkward and unreadable grin.
Sighing, he hesitantly spoke, "Boss, I've tidied up my apartment. I… I can let your stinky old ass in now."
His gaze trailed over the group and landed on Lizard Liu and Andre Jug.
With a bead of sweat rolling down the corner of his forehead, he chuckled, "Seems… Seems like you guys are back for more already."
Lizard Liu's face flushed red with anger and shame, while Andre Jug gnashed his teeth and clenched his fists tightly. They wanted to retort and beat the living daylight out of Lenny then and there, but they had to compose themselves in the Boss's presence.
Dumbfounded and perplexed, as though he didn't believe his ears, Boss Falcone's smile lessened.
He asked, "Wh… What'd you just say to me, kiddo?"
Lenny nonchalantly glanced at the other two goons behind Boss Falcone and retorted, "Didn't you hear me? Or is old age causing you to lose your hearing?"
Opening the door even wider, he added with a slightly anxious smug, "You can come in, dumbass. And this time, take your shoes off. Ah, on second thought, keep them on. I'm sure your feets stink."
Boss Falcone's face, still sporting a reduced but playful smile, froze. The veins of his forehead bulged slightly and the corners of his jaws stiffened. Under the orange-tinted rimless rectangular sunglasses, his eyes remained squinted.
What had happened to the whimpering dog he had just broken yesterday? Had the kid finally run mad? Or is he now a cornered rat? In that case, one had to show him that no matter how hard a rat tried, it could never defeat a lion; it was still a puny rat.
Cautiously turning around, Lenny was about to walk further into the room when he suddenly twisted and caught a hand aiming for his head.
'…What the...?'
Lenny's pupils dilated in astonishment. His gaze traced from the tight fist he held by the wrist, to the attacker—who was none other than Boss Falcone, sporting an equally shocked expression on his face.
Boss Falcone's body tensed up and he threw another punch with his free left hand, aiming for Lenny's abdomen.
Pa!
Reflexively, Lenny swiftly caught the hand with his palm. His astonishment rose even further.
'…I'm quick!' he thought to himself, relishing in the dumbfounded gazes of his assailants before an idea crossed his mind.
"Haaark! Ptooey!"
A liquid mixture of mucus and saliva landed on Boss Falcone's glasses, then, it strolled down till it got to his upper lip.