"I'm really innocent!"
In the apartment living room, Luca rubbed his shoulder, feeling a bit aggrieved.
"Oh~ Luca, the video of you and Britney is already on the news, and you're still lying?"
Lima twirled a baseball bat in her hands, speaking with an imposing air.
"Lima, don't be mad! We have to believe Luca; he's never lied to us," Kate said, holding Lima by the shoulder.
Lima tilted her head and thought for a moment. That seemed to be true.
She nodded slightly, "Alright, I'll give him one more chance to explain."
Kate smiled softly. "Luca, you better use this time wisely and explain. Stop saying you're innocent—we want to hear the truth. Why did you get in the car? Why was it shaking? And what's with the clapping sound?"
Clap clap!
At that moment, little Eve clapped her hands and spread them open, asking, "Luca, big brother, why is that?"
Nina's face darkened, realizing the little girl was still in the living room.
"Eve, go play in the gym."
"No, I want to listen too!"
"Eve, listen to me," Nina said sternly.
"Hmmph~" Eve pouted, reluctantly got up, and wiggled her way to the hallway. She immediately stopped in her tracks, her big eyes blinking, tilting her little ear to eavesdrop on the living room conversation.
Luca, feeling wronged, said, "That day, Britney invited me to drink in her car. I was planning to refuse at first."
"Cut the nonsense, get to the point," Lima said coldly, twirling the bat.
"Yeah, Luca, just tell us what happened. What did you do in the car?" Kate added.
Luca sighed. "I had a drink with Britney, made some small talk, and then I proposed a deal."
"Oh?"
Now, the three judges—Kate, Lima, and Nina—along with witness Ed and little Eve, the secret audience member, all paid close attention.
"What deal? Did you offer to sleep with her in exchange for her helping you promote your book?" Lima asked with interest, rubbing her chin.
Luca shot her an annoyed glance. "I wrote a song and asked her to help promote *Twilight* in return."
"A song?"
"You can write songs?"
"You wrote a song for the famous Britney?"
None of the three judges seemed to believe him.
"Yes. I had some inspiration once and wrote a song. I showed it to Britney that day, and she liked it."
"That's all?"
Kate asked, puzzled. "Writing a song shouldn't cause such a big commotion, right?"
"There was... a commotion because I was dancing," Luca said, embarrassed. If it weren't necessary, he wouldn't have mentioned the dancing—it was too awkward.
"Dancing?"
"Yes, I made up a simple dance to go with the song."
"I don't believe it!" Lima shook her head. "I can believe you write novels, but since when can you write songs and choreograph dances?"
"Luca, just tell the truth," Kate sighed. "If you've been unfaithful, we won't blame you. You've cheated thirty-four times already, and Lima knows about it too."
"Yes, I know. I'm prepared for that," Lima said indifferently.
Luca held his face in his hands, sinking into deep frustration.
What a pain~ Why do I have a sister who loves keeping count?
"Luca!" Kate called again. "Just confess. At worst, Lima will hit you a few times, but she won't leave you. If you lie, though, you know what that means, right?"
"You'll lose our trust!" Lima said calmly.
"Yes, Luca, be honest," Judge Nina said sternly.
"Fine!"
At this point, Luca knew he had to throw caution to the wind.
He took off his jacket and slowly said, "Just so you know, this dance is a bit awkward, and I'm not very good at it. You're not allowed to laugh."
"We won't, we won't. Hurry up and dance!"
"Stop stalling, dance already!"
Everyone urged him in unison.
"Alright, you're forcing me to do this," Luca muttered, cracking his neck. He suddenly blinked and, in a sweet voice, sang:
"Are you ready?"
Pfft~
Ed, who had been drinking water, spit it out in shock.
Luca ignored him, fully immersed in his performance. He didn't care what anyone thought now.
"I want nobody, nobody but you
I want nobody, nobody but you
How can I be with another
I don't want any other"
He pinched his voice, singing in a high-pitched tone, wiggling his hips, and sensually rubbing his waist and hips from bottom to top.
All four people in the room were stunned, their mouths twitching uncontrollably.
"I want nobody, nobody but you"
Clap clap!
He winked at Kate and Lima, then adorably clapped his hands.
"Ew~"
Lima shuddered, dropping the baseball bat, which clattered loudly to the floor.
"Hahaha~"
Kate covered her eyes, collapsing onto Lima's shoulder, her body shaking with laughter.
"I want nobody, nobody but you"
Clap clap~
He clapped his hands again, throwing a flirtatious glance at Ed.
"Ugh~"
Ed covered his mouth, turning away in discomfort. He finally understood why the clapping had such a rhythmic sound that day. He thought Luca had been using a new position, but now he realized Luca had really been clapping his hands.
"I want nobody, nobody but you"
Clap clap~
Luca, fully committed, sensually touched his waist and hips.
The English version of "Nobody" was released in 2008 and quickly became a hit across Asia and even worldwide. It inspired countless people to imitate it, with over 3,000 parody or cover videos uploaded to YouTube.
When Luca met Britney, he thought of copying the song.
However, his mind was full of Chinese songs, and he didn't have a single complete English one in his repertoire. Out of desperation, he borrowed this overplayed song and its particularly awkward dance, which he had learned during a blind date at a square when he was bored.
Wiggle wiggle, touch your chest.
"I want nobody, nobody but you"
Bang!
Just as Luca was dancing, a loud thud echoed behind him, followed by the sound of someone laughing uncontrollably.
"Cluck, cluck, cluck~"
He turned around in surprise and saw little Eve lying on the floor, clutching her belly, laughing so hard she was calling out in pain.
"Enough, stop dancing!"
Nina shouted, her face covered in exasperation.
Phew~
Luca let out a sigh and slowly finished his performance.
Seeing everyone's strange expressions, Luca felt awkward for a moment. If it weren't absolutely necessary, he would never have danced that routine a second time.
Fighting the embarrassment, he asked, "Now you believe me, right?"
Nina looked at Kate, Kate looked at Lima, and Lima shrugged.
They had no choice but to believe him. After seeing that dance, it was clear why the car had shaken, why there was clapping, and why Britney had laughed seductively.
"Hmph, Luca, that chick Britney is pretty hot and a big star. Don't you want to sleep with her?" Lima asked with a teasing smirk.
"I do!" Luca answered honestly.
"Wow~ then why didn't you?"
"Because of you, of course. I'm your boyfriend, and I can't do anything to betray you," Luca said.
"Haha, good man," Lima chuckled, punching him lightly in the chest.
Luca forced a smile and took hold of her hand.
Smack!
Kate slapped the sofa firmly and declared with a serious expression, "I now declare that due to insufficient evidence, the suspect Luca is found not guilty and is hereby released!"
"Thank you, judges. Thank you, witness Ed Dominic. Thank you, little audience member Eve Heath. Thank you, everyone, for clearing my name."
"Wow~ Luca, big brother, you're finally innocent!" Eve exclaimed.
"Eve, stay away from him!" Nina said sternly.
"Huh~ why?" Eve pouted.
"Anyone who can dance like that definitely has something wrong with them," Nina said, tapping Eve's little head.
Luca: ￣□￣｜｜
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(End of chapter)