Chapter 167

Niles led Charlie back into the room. Toby remained, while Neo had fainted from the pain. Seeing Charlie enter, Toby stood and greeted him politely.

“I heard he got hurt. I’m here to clean the wound,” Charlie said calmly, setting down his medical bag and taking out a bottle of rubbing alcohol.

Niles peeked through the window, quickly covering his crotch and hurrying away, muttering, “Better stay away from this. The Moores really raised a disaster of a son.”

Toby instinctively stepped back. Neo was unconscious. Charlie uncapped the rubbing alcohol and poured it onto the blood-stained area, showing no emotion.

Neo, who had been out cold, screamed in terrible pain, flipping and writhing on the floor. Charlie had already poured most of the alcohol on him. Seeing Neo's face covered in cuts and blood, Charlie calmly poured the rest. Neo’s screams were loud and piercing; his face was barely recognizable.

Charlie threw the empty bottle in the trash and told Toby, “I’ve finished cleaning the wound. You can take the rest.”

Toby thought, ‘No wonder he’s close to Yannis. They’re both cold and super effective. Neo got what he deserved for his bad mouth. Of all the people to pick a fight with, he had to mess with those girls.’

‘If it weren’t for Maisie being a fighter and Zinnia knowing her medicine, they wouldn’t have been able to protect themselves. Facing spoiled rich kids and troublemakers like that, they might not have made it out unhurt.’

‘The Moore family has really met their end this time.’

“Should I stay with you girls for a bit?” Yannis asked, glancing at them as he drove toward the Jenkins residence.

Maisie munched on her bread. “Nah, it’s okay. Go back to work. Zinnia and I are hanging out tomorrow, so don’t stay and cramp us!”

After the chaos, the girls were ravenous. They hadn’t eaten and were furious about it. Yannis bought them some bread.

He looked at Zinnia, worried that this might be her first experience with such violence and she might be scared. Zinnia said, “Yannis, go home and get some rest. Don’t forget to make your soothing soup.”

Zinnia took small bites of her bread. After everything, she was definitely hungry. “The milk is warm,” Yannis said.

At the red light, Yannis reached into the armrest compartment and grabbed the milk. He inserted a straw and handed it to Zinnia. After everything, something warm and sweet might help her feel better.

“Thanks, Yannis,” Zinnia said, taking the milk and sipping it. The warm drink soothed her panic.

Zinnia thought, ‘I was really shaken by today. It was the first time I saw such a violent fight. Watching Maisie fight all those people alone while I couldn’t do anything really got to me.’

“Yannis, what do you think will happen to them?” Zinnia asked.

“I’ll handle them,” Yannis promised. “Zinnia, they won’t bother you two again.”

In the backseat, Maisie listened. She knew Yannis would fight them all. ‘If they’d caught some regular girl instead, who knows what could have happened?’ she thought grimly.

‘These spoiled rich kids are just Neo’s followers with no sense. Never underestimate how bad they can be. I’d never feel sorry for scum like that,’ Zinnia thought. Knowing they were finally going to get what they deserved, she felt at ease.

Seeing her mood improve, Yannis felt relieved. “Go rest properly. Call me if anything happens,” he said.

Chapter 167

Yannis gently tousled Zinnia’s hair and said, “Zinnia, call me if anything comes up, okay?”

He slipped a piece of candy into her hand. She saw the wrapper resembled the one she’d given him that morning.

“Okay,” Zinnia said, holding the candy as she opened the door and got out. Maisie was already outside, and the two girls walked away together.

Yannis watched them leave before restarting the car. While driving, he checked his phone and saw what Charlie had done. A small smile appeared on his face. ‘Really good work for a medic,’ he thought.

That night, as they prepared for bed in the same room, Maisie suddenly said, “Zinnia, you look amazing!”

Maisie saw Zinnia emerge from the bathroom in a simple white spaghetti-strap nightdress. Standing there, soft and gentle, she looked like a sweet marshmallow.

Maisie was blow-drying her hair when Zinnia came out. She immediately jumped up and ran over, playfully touching Zinnia’s soft skin. Maisie pinched her cheeks and stroked her back, her eyes shining with playful mischief.

Without thinking, Maisie buried her head against Zinnia’s chest. “Your breasts are so soft! Why aren’t mine?” Zinnia’s face instantly turned bright red.

“Let me put some medicine on your shoulder,” Zinnia offered, seeing the bruise on Maisie’s arm.

Maisie gently pinched her chubby cheeks, teasing, “Sweetie, you’re just too cute!”

“Zinnia, looks like Yannis has been treating you well,” Maisie said softly, pinching Zinnia’s soft, springy cheeks.

She thought, ‘I really didn’t think Yannis was the type to take care of someone. But Zinnia is a little chubbier than when I first saw her.’

“He’s been taking good care of me,” Zinnia said, applying ointment to Maisie’s bruises. She wondered why everyone thought he was unreliable.

“Maisie,” Zinnia asked, confused, “why do you guys think he can’t take good care of me?”

Maisie explained, “Well, it’s because Yannis can’t even take care of himself, let alone look after you. When we were kids, Yannis was the perfect boy. Everyone liked him. He was always polite and well-behaved. But then, things changed. After Grace died, he became distant. He kept everyone away. He became cold and didn’t show his feelings, always on alert. Don’t be fooled by his smiling eyes. That grin doesn’t really show how he feels. He only opens up to a few people. Sometimes, even we don’t know if his smiles are real or just for show. Since you two didn’t know each other long, when he let you stay at his place, we weren’t sure if Jackson asked him to watch out for you or if it was just because you could help him with his insomnia. No one can really figure out what he’s thinking. Who knows how much he genuinely cares about you? That’s why we worried he wouldn’t take good care of you. But Zinnia, I feel much better now. I can tell Yannis really cares about you—you’ve been smiling a lot more than when we first met.”

After applying the ointment, the two girls settled into bed and talked late into the night.