Chapter 67 - Request From A Friend

Later that afternoon, Winter gets to prove that what Marcellus has told her is right.

She's walking around the grocery and doing her shopping when she saw it. Apparently, there's a particular section there that displays a whole row of magazines, newspapers and other periodicals. It was then did she find the weekly magazine featuring a certain someone on its cover page.

"So, this is what he's talking about, huh?" she said as she picked it up and took a closer look. 

They sure weren't kidding when they claimed him to be the country's hottest personality.

Winter tries her hardest to keep her expression straight while she looks at this stunning human masterpiece that may have been chiseled by the divine beings themselves. If she had seen Marcellus as an archangel from the seventh heaven, he's definitely a god created by Aphrodite on this one. He's on this black and white photo spread with his slightly soaked shirt unbuttoned all the way down, flexing his well-toned body that's made up of his tight-packed abs and ripped arms.  

"Hmph! Show-off."

Winter then snorted, reminding herself that she already saw Marcellus stripped down to his underwear when she was still living together with him.  

She never saw him with nothing on, though. When they got married, they never did 'that' because they respected each other's will to keep their distance as much as possible. That's probably for the better since she doubts she can even last just from staring at such a glorious piece of art.

Winter beholds the picture for one more moment, but she eventually snaps out of it as soon as she realizes that she is slowly getting enthralled - and by that flirt of all things.

"I gotta give it to him, though. He does look hot..." she commented for the last time before putting the magazine back to where she took it from. 

"Now, then, let's continue on with our shopping."

---

Winter finished getting everything she needed for dinner right when evening was about to fall.

On her way home, she passed by a restaurant that seemed to be surrounded with a considerable amount of people. Though she didn't intend to, she caught sight of the ongoing commotion near the entrance. There, she saw someone she never expected to see in that kind of situation. 

"Huh? Ace?"

Never had she imagined seeing this classmate of hers getting in a mess like this.

Winter finds Ace together with this unfamiliar-looking girl with reddish-orange hair and olive-green irises who's acting like she's on a date with her lover. She is making a fuss about something that has to do with him attracting other ladies' attention. On top of that, she even claims that she is pursuing him for a while now but has never been given a chance.

"I've already told you, Ms. Chloe. I've come here to turn you down - not accept your confession."

Hearing what Ace said, Winter decided to stay longer and get a grasp on what's really happening.  

Going by his present attire, which is this sumptuous casual suit from the Miller's fashion brand, it seems like he'll still perfectly fit the 'boyfriend image' even though he's saying the opposite. She at least understands that he doesn't want anything to do with this 'Chloe' who keeps forcing herself on him despite his opposition.

'Chloe, huh? I've never seen her before, so she probably doesn't go to the same school as us. But she does appear like she's from a rich household - from the looks of those expensive accessories she has as well as the outfit she's wearing, that is,' she thought as she continued to watch at the side.

That's until Ace suddenly spotted Winter among the crowd. 

They were taken aback when they ended up locking eye contact. From that moment on, the awkwardness prevailed along with the silence. 

"I've gotten the permission of your step father, you know! Mr. Miller told me you'd be happy to meet me today! I'm also close with your step sister, Ms. Miller! So, what is it about me that you don't like?!" Chloe then started to throw a tantrum all of the sudden, stealing back their attention. 

Now, Winter has a rough idea.

Since Ace has been spending more and more time with Violet these days, he must have caught the attention of his scumbag of a step father again. She knows that he will not follow any of his orders, especially if it involves entertaining the selfish request of this spoiled little brat. That's why he must have been forced to do this - there must be a good reason why he's obliging for once. 

Winter could see that Ace was stiff through it all. Chloe seems to be a clingy one. With how tight she's holding his arm at the moment, it will be tricky to slip away from her clutch.

She doesn't want to meddle in this kind of matter, but she can feel that he might need her help. 

"Hi there, Ace. I see you're with someone today," Winter greeted with a smile, making Chloe turn to look at her.

Contrary to her expectation, Ace didn't appear to be relieved. She thought that offering a distraction would be the way to get around this, but he looked like he didn't even want to be seen. 

"Hmmm? Who's that, Ace?" Chloe chimed in, narrowing her eyes in suspicion.

"I'm his classmate. My name's Winter. It's nice to meet you," Winter replied without dropping her smile, already expecting that she would suspect her but was not at all bothered. 

While she introduces herself, she catches a glimpse of her classmate's ambiguous expression. His line of sight is heading straight in her direction, making her blink in puzzlement. She only stares at him until he suddenly furrows his brows and flashes her one of his lady-killer smirks.

To Winter's confusion, Ace is making use of his charms again for some reason.

'What's up with him...?' was all she could think of from that, expression incredulous, while he only continued regarding her with that knowing look.

'Hmmmm? Is he trying to communicate telepathically? It's like he came up with a ridiculous idea.'

Fortunately, Chloe decided not to pay too much attention on Winter.

She's too thrilled for this date of hers to even care. But then, as soon as she turns back to where Ace is standing, she flinches in surprise at the sight of her self-proclaimed partner being ogled by other women. They're mostly passersby and onlookers who happened to catch sight of him making that playful smirk.

Little did Ace know that he hit so many wrong targets when he started shooting his endearing charms to Winter.

"Ace!" Chloe called out angrily, snapping him out of his daze.

"Y-Yeah?" Ace stammered out, thrown off guard.

"Let's get going! Now!"

As Winter expected, Chloe's the jealous type. A woman's intuition sure is useful at times like this.

Even when she practically drags Ace away from the spotlight, however, everyone's attention remains glued on him. What's funny is that he has no idea what's happening around him. What's more, his perplexed reaction to her vexed response is quite an entertaining scene to witness.

'Although I do feel bad for you, Ace, I can't involve myself too much. I'll just talk with you later. For now, do your best to survive, buddy,' Winter mused as she watched Ace and Chloe make a racket in the middle of the crowd.

"What a sly guy you are, Ace! I can't even tear my eyes off of you for a second. You keep bewitching everyone like this!" Chloe complained exasperatedly.

"Like I told you, I was doing nothing. I was just standing here," Ace reasoned with a frustrated sigh.

"Oh yeah? Why are they staring at you like that, then?"

"Stare? Who? When? Seriously, what are you even talking about?"

Winter thinks that this is going to be a heated exchange for a while. Ace is certainly putting up a good fight for this assignment of his. She trusts that he can handle it somehow.

'At least for now, I'll stay at the sideline,' Winter thought before turning around and walking out of the scene.

---

Winter had a call from Ace that night.

He asked her to meet up with him outside the convenience store - probably to explain what happened earlier. Now, they are on their own in this secret discussion of theirs, hanging around the entrance of that place in the meantime.  

Orbs of luminescence pierce through the dimness around them, taking form of this line of light posts on the street. A blanket of stars curtain the night sky above them, glowing ever so warmly amidst the biting cold brought by the blowing evening wind.

"So, what's this all about?" Winter started, going straight to the point. 

"I want to ask for help if that's alright," Ace said and earned her smile.

"Thought so. How may I help you, then?"

"Well, I would like to have you as a sidekick in this mission of mine." 

"Oh, cool! That sounds fun-"

"Be my girlfriend, Winter."

Then, she paused.

Winter may have just misheard it, but as far as she recalls, she has no hearing problems. They're also the only ones out there at the moment. Those words couldn't possibly come out from another person's mouth.

"Sorry, what?"

"Be my girlfriend."

Time and again, Winter managed to get herself in the weirdest situation.