Chapter 108 - Long Ride To Heaven

[To: My generous big bro

We've arrived~ ]

"Will you keep doing that for the rest of the night?" Devon asked with a frown as Dion just snapped another photo of her.

"Sis, I just need to update my brother that you are as beautiful as ever." 

"I mean… never mind." She shook her head along with a sigh, before unbuckling her seat. Dion also busied himself and then hitched outside, jogging around the car to open the door for her.

"You're learning." Devon pointed out as soon as Dion opened the door. "Thank you very much."

"Ehh. I am born to be a gentleman, sis." 

"Did my lover tell you to do that?" she raised a brow and saw him avert his eyes. "I do not mind if he did. Lu is such a gentleman after all."

"Right, no more. Let's go, sis." Dion cleared his throat and gestured for her to follow him, which she did.

The venue of the party was in one of the luxury hotels in the center of the city. Dion and Devon headed to the lift going up to the penthouse where the party was at. 

Devon gazed up at the numbers lighting up one after another. "Are we going to heaven?"

"Sis, you joke at the most unexpected moment." Dion cast her a look of disbelief, hoping she was really joking. But Devon kept her clueless expression, blinking innocently.

"I'm not joking, but the castles in this world are surely fascinating." Devon shrugged, as this world was surely something else. "Also, the people here were rather… lazy."

"Lazy?" 

Devon pursed her lips in a thin line and said no more. By lazy, she meant that back in her world, they had to use stairs to go up in a tower or down. But here, they use the lift or the moving magical stairs and arrive at their destination while standing.

'There are a lot of geniuses in this world. Their creativity is surely commendable.' She thought, nodding in agreement. 

"Sis, sometimes, you worry me," Dion murmured as he took a step away from her as he saw her nodding. 

Devon didn't speak for a long time and just watched the numbers above the door. Dion, on the other hand, leaned his back on the corner, arms crossed, staring at her side profile.

'Sis is really pretty, but she is weird… most of the time.' He thought internally, as he couldn't deny that she was attractive. It just so happened she wasn't his type, and even if she was, he'd have to forget about the thought as she was Lewis's woman.

'Still, it makes me feel less scared that not just anyone can penetrate her impregnable defense. Even my brother, who is one of the country's most eligible bachelor, had a hard time, so I just need to make sure to scare away some pest.' Dion nodded with that thought in mind. 'Until my brother announces his engagement, I'll be the scarecrow.'

"I wonder what this guy is thinking so hard," Ghost Lin murmured as she studied Dion's face, who kept nodding to himself.

****

The elevator ride was quiet until it stopped several floors before the top floor. Dion raised his brow and Devon as well.

"Are we here?" she asked and turned to him. 

Dion shook his head and kept his eyes on the door sliding open. "Someone will ride the lift, sis."

"Someone else?" 

"Don't worry. This scarecrow will shoo them away." Dion patted his chest proudly and waited until the door was wide open. When his lips parted, ready to tell them to wait for the next one, his face distorted.

"Oh! Devon! You really came!" Mike clapped and shifted his eyes towards Dion. "Yo, my brother!" 

"Wait for the next one." Dion clicked his tongue and leaned over to press the close button. However, Mike slid his hand in hastily. 

"Bro, are you really that selfish? Let us in!" Mike complained before turning his head towards Bella, who was standing quietly outside. "Let's go, Bella."

Mike didn't wait for anybody to react as he slid inside while Bella took her precious time to enter. Dion let out a deep sigh as leaned his back against the wall, crossing his arms. 

"Are you two secretly dating or what?" asked Dion as he darted his eyes from Mike to Bella.

"No!" Bella was quick to answer.

"Wow. Do you hate the idea that much?" Mike frowned and shot Bella a look full of disbelief.

Bella pursed her lips and cleared her throat. "We're not dating."

"Ahh…" Dion nodded and shrugged his shoulders. Not that he truly cared whether they were dating or just really friends — he just noticed, so he asked.

"Sis, move here." Dion gestured to Devon as there were now four of them inside, and he didn't like Mike going closer to her.

"Oh." Devon took little steps and stood closer to Dion, but the latter was still worried. Hence, he asked to switch places with her. 

In the end, Devon was the one who stood in the corner while Dion stood next to Mike. Bella, who was reading too much in Dion's action, bit her inner lip and cast Devon a look. Just as she did, Devon also raised her eyes towards the pair of eyes staring at her.

"Greetings," Devon smiled weakly and Bella nodded.

"It's been a while, Miss Lin." Bella then looked away and said nothing more. 

Earlier, when Dion and Devon were inside, even if they were silent, it didn't feel awkward. But now that Bella and Mike joined in, it was not just awkward, but also stifling. The only one who wasn't affected by this was Devon, as she truly just didn't care about their thoughts. 

"Geez. What are you even doing on that floor together?" Dion smacked his lips to break the silence, as he somehow didn't like the sudden air inside the lift.

"Well, long story short, I helped Bella change."

Dion raised a brow but then shifted his eyes to Bella as she explained in a hurry.

"Something just happened, and I had to change. Brother Mike just helped me to my room since I've been being stalked by a fan." Bella let out a sigh before sporting a smile. "Don't misunderstand."

"I don't. But, someone is stalking you? What is the agency doing with your security?"

"They're doing their job, but I just don't feel at ease if I'm left alone," Bella explained in a weak tone as she held her arm.

Devon and Dion studied her body language, and they could tell she was terrified. Especially, Devon who had gone through unimaginable situations a person could experience.

"I see, be careful." Dion nodded, as this wasn't new to people like them. Not only they had to be wary of the paparazzi, but there were also crazy fans out there that couldn't respect their idol's privacy. 

"Thank you." Bella smiled warmly but felt the bitterness in her heart seeing his indifferent expression. 

She never had a long conversation with Dion, as he was rather the 'quiet' type, which she liked about him. However, she noticed Dion speak more with Devon and seemed to only care for her. Thus, the increasing jealousy.

"Devon, you look great." Suddenly, Mike commented after studying the quiet Devon.

"Thank you." 

"Hey, watch where you're looking at." Dion took a step to block Mike's view of Devon. "Damn this elevator ride. Are we really heading to heaven?" 

"The hell are you talking about?" 

"I was talking about heaven, not hell," Dion grumbled expressionlessly, as it seemed they were taking longer than usual. 

"I didn't know you're the possessive type of guy." Mike clicked his tongue in irritation as Dion's over-protectiveness was just too much. "You just got a girlfriend and you're treating your friend like this."

"Ah?" Dion gasped in dismay as he bobbed his head at Mike. His friend really spoke about the most terrifying things.

"You have a girlfriend?" Devon finally broke her silence as that caught her attention. 

Dion let out a defeated sigh. "No, no, there got to be a misunderstanding."

"You're not his girlfriend?" Surprised by Devon's reaction, Bella also inquired with her eyes fixed on Devon.

"No, I'm not. What gave you the impression that I am?" 

"Really?!" Mike gasped as he cast Dion a look of pity.

"Ughh! Enough of this talk!" Dion ruffled his hair in annoyance. "We're not like that, alright?! That's not the kind of relationship we have!" 

"That's right." Devon nodded with a smile. 

"Not the kind of relationship?" Mike repeated in a questioning tone, studying Dion and then Devon. But why was Dion so over-protective of her? If they were not together, did that mean he could try his luck?

Meanwhile, a sigh of relief slipped past Bella's lips as she believed she must've misunderstood something. That's right, she thought. They could be relatives. She could not hide the smile on her face, relieved that she had done nothing yet.

"Hallelujah! We've finally arrived!" Dion exclaimed when the lift finally stopped and slowly opened. "Are we going to be welcomed by cherubims or something?"

"Dude, not cherubims, but angels and demons alike." Mike smirked proudly, making Dion frown.

Mike was the first one to get out, followed by Dion, as he felt suffocated inside. Before Bella got out, she cast Devon a look… and then smiled. This slightly took Devon aback because she had noticed the contempt in Bella's eyes.

'I didn't think she was faking her smile,' Devon thought as she trudged outside the lift and walked beside Dion.. 'I wonder what had gotten into her.'