Number one and two immediately fixated Paige in a kneeling position. At the same time, Thirteen, horrified of their young master being injured, hastily went to him, helping him up and looking at the wound above his ear that colored his white hair red.
"Young Master!" He looked at the dazed child, scared out of his wits by the Madam's wrath they would face.
Meier dazedly stood up. That was....unexpected.
He looked at Paige, kneeling but still looking through her neck-long hair, staring into his eyes like she did the whole time.
"You...." He began and then paused.
"What's your name?" He already knew, but what he read about her was nothing like what he saw for himself.
"Call me Grandpa." She said, bringing out every cool sentence she had ever read or seen in a movie.
She had a list in her head and only waited for the matching question for her answers.
Suddenly, Meier laughed childishly, bending down while hardly getting a grip again.
After stopping, he looked again like a little adult, memorizing each of her features in fascination.
"We will see each other again." He stated.
And then, he walked out of the room, bringing the stunned bodyguards.
He entered the car and thought over every detail that just happened.
'How incomparable this meeting was.'
Meier said to his bodyguards languidly,
"This will not be mentioned to my mother or all of you are dead."
The others nodded hastily, they would take this to their grave, if only to save themselves.
"Go to a hotel to let me shower before going home."
His mother would wait at the door when he came back home. And if she saw him injured by someone...he could never let her see.
Fortunately, the hair he hated, but his mother demanded to be grown out would cover the wound.
Seeing that Meier had left, the system gave the correct club name to the male lead, while said one had an anger outburst, kicking a trash can heavily, then calming down scarily before kicking the trash can again.
After getting the name, he ran to the next cab and urged the driver, now again scarily calm, to drive as fast as possible, throwing money at him.
Finally, being at the right club, he grabbed the next waiter he saw and asked him where Paige was.
Naturally, he didn't get an answer because the poor man didn't know what he was talking about. He yelled at the system, now aggressive again, and ran his way in the pointed direction.
Seeing her bloodily leaning against the couch while sitting on the floor, still holding a bottle of schnapps in her hand, he immediately kneeled beside her and turned her face to see her injuries better.
"You...You...why?"
He asked incoherently, feeling his heart clench seeing her injured.
"I'm sorry for lying," she said sadly. She had promised never to lie to him.
Saying that when being in such a sorry state was right of cheating. Seeing her like this, he would promise her anything.
"Forget it, but don't do it again...I was worried as hell.." He hadn't intended to say the last part, but it just came out.
Paige had heard for the first time that someone had worried for her and felt moved.
No accusations nor disappointment, just forthright worry.
"Can you carry me home?" She asked as if she was a kid, suddenly wanting to be spoiled.
"Yes, let's go home."
He picked her up without problems, holding her against his chest with her head resting on his shoulder. He stabilized her behind with the lower part of his arm, paying attention not to touch anything inappropriate.
Her arms slung around his neck, entirely depending on him, like a shy little animal finally opening up fully.
Lance held her tighter, liking how she fitted in his arms, her obedient behavior, and how she trusted him wholeheartedly.
He carried her out of the club, and not wanting to take a cab, he walked home after asking the system how bad her injuries were.
"A Kevlar vest? Clever." He chuckled. Fortunately, she was okay besides being exhausted, and that was only because she had to play the role of a boss.
He let the system recite every word and describe every motion of everyone since she had entered the club. He allowed himself not to be angry for this night and only to marvel at her being badass.
He had to suppress laughter at every one of her antics, from how she set up the girls to how she spoke to Meier, knowing full well how she was and guessing what she had thought.
The system even told him what she had said to itself, asking if she was being cool and such.
He shook a bit, trembling in laughter.
'Please...How cute is that?'
It was a harmonious walk back home, leaving the rest for tomorrow.
It was cold, but with their body temperatures near each other, he felt especially warm. The light snoring sound in his ear gave him a special kind of responsibility: to make sure she would arrive at their home safe and sound.
After returning, he carried her to her room and laid her on the bed.
She rolled herself up and didn't cling to him, which he found regrettable.
Lance found he had read too many romance novels. Usually, the girl should cling to the guy, and he had to sleep with her in the same bed.
Lance slapped himself mentally; he was thinking of Paige, not some female lead.
He furrowed his brow at having this cozy scene interrupted because of the female lead.
Then, he slapped himself mentally again to make his brain stop thinking bullshit.
He took her shoes off and searched for the medical kit.
Then he disinfected the wound on her lips in full concentration, and instead of dwelling in hatred for the people hurting her that bubbled inside him, he admired her chapped lips.
He felt it would be better to moisten them, preferably with his tongue.
Lance paused, shocked.
'What the hell am I thinking?!?''