Chapter 175
The rest area was deathly quiet. Sharon tossed the words over her shoulder and dropped into her usual chair, pointedly ignoring the group.
“Who are you calling jealous? What about you is even worth my envy?” Lydia erupted like a firecracker. She wasn’t jealous of Sharon. Her family background and status were as good as Sharon’s.
As Lydia fumed, her cronies clustered around, towering over Sharon.
Sharon looked up arrogantly. “What, you want to
row down?”
next
Lydia’s face paled. “Do I look like a thug like your with
Everyone knew Sharon had roughed up plenty of people without repercussions. She wasn’t about to start a fight she couldn’t win.
Once Lydia stormed off, the rest area went dead silent.
Karen glared at Sharon through watery eyes and said in a bitter voice, “Don’t get too smug.” She wouldn’t let this slide.
“I’ll be waiting.” Sharon leaned back in her chair and noticed the crowd around her had dispersed.
A pair of legs slid into view. Nicholas set a thermos beside her. “Tried a new blend. See what you think.”
“Okay.” Her response was distracted.
Suddenly the light dimmed as a tall figure crouched in front of her, eye level with her seated height. Their gazes locked, and Sharon was struck by his sheer height.
Even crouched, Nicholas was almost as tall as she was sitting down. It hit her how ridiculous they must look standing together. Sharon, the tiny one, to his towering frame, was upset. She thought, ‘Why does he have to be so damn tall?‘
“Who pissed you off?” Nicholas arrived late but picked up on Sharon’s subtle irritation.
His deep voice rolled over her, and Sharon shrugged. “How did Karen get in here?”
As family head, she should vet who entered. Roxanne had made her brothers‘ lives hell. Now she’d make her pay. Karen had no place at Oriston Academy. Yet there she was, a direct insult to Sharon’s authority.
Nicholas followed her gaze and saw Karen, indeed, standing in Lydia’s group with her head down, lost in thought.
He frowned slightly. “I need to look into this.” He wasn’t fully clear on the situation either.
Almost everyone had lined up, but Nicholas remained in the rest area, naturally drawing more attention.
Sharon spoke up. “You should go over.”
“Okay. I’ll tell you later.” Nicholas didn’t hesitate. He stood and marched toward the field, his steady strides powerful, his broad–shouldered b catching.
Sharon squinted, wondering for a moment what his bare chest looked like. She snapped back to reality, realizing Nicholas was distracting her.
At the front of the line, Nicholas assigned training tasks.
During a lull, Caesar walked over. “I heard the board’s picking fights?”
“Yeah. What, you want to meddle too?“, Nicholas said.
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Chapter 175
“Just seeing if I can help. After all, Solar Flare has a beef with you. This is probably about you.”
“You think so?”
Caesar lowered his voice. “Someone’s been snooping around people or groups named Niko fately. You know how many fans use your name. No one has suspected you yet, but the longer it goes, the worse it gets.”
“Who’s after me?”
“Not sure. They’re sneaky. If you want to find out, just ask the nosy Justin. He’s a pro at digging up dirt.”
Even though Caesar always butted heads with Nicholas and loved to take shots at him, he knew when to set aside grudges. In situations like this, he’d focus on tackling the threat first, then go back to mocking Nicholas later.
Nicholas glanced at Justin, thinking Caesar’s idea wasn’t half bad.
Just then, Brent walked over. “What’s the discussion about?”
Nicholas replied, “The board’s announcement–you must have heard. We need to find the mole before the month–long training ends, or we’ll all be in hot water. Imagine the embarrassment if we can’t catch an impostor among the freshmen.”
After all, it would be a major blow to the reputation of the Obsidian House big shots if they failed to uncover a fake during the training.
Brent narrowed his eyes. “I’ve been keeping an eye on the guys. Nothing out of the ordinary so far.”
“Same with the girls.” Nicholas‘ sharp gaze scanned the area. He thought, ‘That woman is hiding deep.‘
Caesar chimed in, “Nicholas, you’ve faced off against Solar Flare. What’s her height and build? You know, right?”
“Yeah, Nick, you said she’s a girl. Is she busty?” Brent said.
Nicholas frowned, recalling the dark, chaotic scene in the grove. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he replied, “5’3” to 5’5“, average build.” He paused. “Probably a B cup.”
Some distance away, Sharon suddenly sneezed.
