Chapter 9

The Anderson family's staff were impressively efficient. Once Noelle picked her room, they immediately got to work cleaning, making the bed, and setting up her daily essentials in the room she'd chosen. Everything was ready.

After a quick shower, Noelle settled into the soft, new bed and dialed Nicolas. She waited, but nothing happened. The call didn't go through, and before long, it was disconnected due to a timeout.

Noelle stared at her phone, frowning slightly, her head tilting in confusion. This didn't make sense. It is only 9 PM, she thought. Nick shouldn't be asleep this early. Maybe he didn't hear it! She dialed again, but the same thing happened—call dropped due to a timeout.

Noelle stared at the screen, silent. Most people would think if someone didn't pick up twice, they were probably busy and would just wait a while before calling back. Some might wonder if the other person was avoiding them and hesitate before calling again. But Noelle wasn't like most people. She was stubborn, relentless, and wouldn't stop until she got what she wanted. So, if he wasn't picking up, she'd just keep calling. She believed there was no way he'd ignore her forever.

She dialed again. Disconnected again. But she wasn't stopping; she dialed once more. Still no answer. Without missing a beat, she called again.

After dozens of attempts, just as Noelle was about to hit call number 99, Nicolas finally picked up.

"Hello?" His voice came through deep and smooth, a little raspy like he'd just finished something physically intense.

"Nick!" Hearing his voice made Noelle's face light up. "Finally! You picked up?"

Nicolas let out a low laugh, still a little out of breath. "I swear, you little troublemaker... if I didn't pick up, were you really planning on calling me over and over like some kind of psycho?"

Nicolas had just wrapped up his first round of hunting. During the event, his phone had been on silent, so he hadn't even noticed the calls. When the hunt ended and he finally checked his phone, he nearly had a heart attack when he saw the dozens of missed calls.

"Yeah!" Noelle's voice rang out, bright and mischievous. "I knew you'd pick up eventually!"

Am I the only one thinking this, or does she have a bit of a crazy streak! he thought.

Nicolas chuckled, then teased, "You're just gonna keep calling me and not do anything else?"

"No way, Nick, you're such an idiot," Noelle replied, her tone playful. She continued, sounding oddly serious, "My phone has this auto-dial thing. I can just set it to dial and leave it, and still have time to do other stuff."

Nicolas paused for a moment. Well, well. Looks like the little airhead has a bit of smarts after all. Taking a deep breath, he asked, "Why aren't you asleep at this hour? What's up with the call?"

"I'm bored," Noelle replied casually. She rolled over on the bed, her legs lazily kicking in the air. "Nick, what are you up to right now?"

"Hunting."

"Hunting?!" Noelle shot up in excitement. "Nick, can I come! I wanna hunt too!"

"You?" Nicolas laughed, low and amused. "Sure, why not?" He gave a casual response but then added, "But do you even know how to—"

Before he could finish, Noelle cut him off, practically bouncing. "I'm coming to find you now!" And with that, the phone clicked off with a sharp thunk.

Nicolas stared at his phone, blinking. Wait, did I even tell her where I am? This little scatterbrain... He didn't rush to call her back.

Instead, he was curious to see how long it would take her to realize she hadn't asked for the address. Minutes ticked by, but there were still no calls.

So she really hasn't realized she forgot to ask for the address? How the hell does she plan on getting here? Nicolas thought, irritated.

Just as Nicolas was about to dial her number, a voice called out, pulling him from his thoughts, "Nicolas, what's up!"

He turned to see his best friend, Oscar Walker, and Declan Turner. Oscar was the loud, outgoing one, while Declan was quiet and composed. Behind them were two women, Ophelia Walker and Celeste Reed. Ophelia was Oscar's younger sister, and Celeste was her best friend. Tonight, the five of them were teamed up for a game of hunt.

The targets weren't animals, but people. It wasn't a deadly game, just a shooting game with model guns. The bullets wouldn't hurt anyone, but they'd mark them. Anyone who got hit was out. Teams could have anywhere from five to eight people, and there were usually four or five teams at once. The last team standing won.

"I'm on the phone," Nicolas replied casually, his eyes still glued to the black screen of his phone, lost in thought. Seriously, where is that little scatterbrain? Why hasn't she called yet? he thought, a little annoyed.

Oscar, ever the gossip, noticed Nicolas was waiting for something, clearly expecting a call. He leaned in with a smirk and asked, "So, is it true? I heard someone saw you out with a super cute girl at a restaurant today. What's the deal? Already switched girlfriends again?"

Celeste, who had been standing next to Ophelia, froze. Ophelia immediately shot her brother a playful scold. "Oscar, stop being an idiot. Nicolas is just playing the playboy for show. He doesn't have a girlfriend." As she spoke, she gave Celeste a shove, pushing her toward Nicolas with a mischievous grin. "Nicolas, if you need someone to pretend with, why not pick someone who knows the deal? I've got just the girl for you, she'll play along perfectly."

"Ophelia, seriously, stop messing around." Celeste, her face flushed with embarrassment, quickly ran back to Ophelia's side. But she couldn't help sneaking a shy glance at Nicolas. Her eyes shimmered with a mix of admiration and hope.

Ophelia flashed a big grin. "What? I'm not messing around! Celeste is way better than all those other girls. Nicolas, seriously, she's perfect for you."

"Are we here to play a game or set up some blind dates?" Oscar teased. "Hey, Ophelia, how about setting me up with someone?"

Ophelia rolled her eyes. "You! Who would dare set you up with anyone? You're the ultimate playboy." Then, she turned back to Nicolas with a playful grin. "What do you think, Nicolas? How about giving Celeste a try!"

Nicolas stood there, looking effortlessly cool with his usual half smile, lips pressed together, clearly showing no interest in responding. Celeste's hopeful gaze slowly faded as she realized he wasn't going to bite. Just as Ophelia was about to push for her best friend again, Nicolas's phone rang once more. This time, he picked it up immediately.

"Hello?"

"Nick…" A soft, almost sulking voice came through, and Nicolas didn't even need to guess who it was.