"Aghhh… my head hurts…"
What did I even do last night?
Oh, right. I spent the money I won from illegal gambling on drinks. Then I remembered I had to buy groceries, but I didn't have enough left… so I tried to win it back. But...
Unfortunately, the police showed up.
I almost got caught. I didn't know the police could be that strong. All the officers I'd seen before were morbidly obese—no offense—but these guys were different, especially the captain.
He was huge. Built like a bear, his biceps were as big as my head, and I could see the outline of his abs through his uniform like it was a compression shirt.
His features were ordinary—black hair, black eyes—but when combined, they were deadly. He was the kind of handsome you only see in fashion magazines or under stage lights.
He took one step.
The ground shook.
"An earthquake…?"
One step, and the whole building trembled.
He grabbed the first guy he caught by the collar and lifted him like he weighed nothing.
"B-bonjour..?"
Fling.
He tossed the guy straight into the paddy wagon. Honestly, I don't know what to admire more—his strength or his aim.
Then the other officers started grabbing everyone involved in the illegal gambling. It was chaos. People were running in every direction.
"I… I need to run too."
But the moment I took one step…
We made eye contact.
"Oh sh—"
Boom.
He grabbed my head and slammed me to the floor. Hard enough to knock me out, but not enough to kill me.
That's all I remember.
Now the hangover and the bump on my head are killing me. A tight bandage was wrapped around my head, pressing against a throbbing lump that reminded me of the captain's bear-sized hand.
But wait…
"How did I end up at home?"
I can't remember anything. Did they let me go? Did someone carry me here?
I sighed.
Knock knock.
Someone's at the door.
"Is it the police..?"
I swallowed hard and got out of bed, shaking.
'Please, please, please, please, please! Don't be a police!'
Should I open it… or escape just in case?
No time to think.
I'll just jump them as soon as I open the door.
Click.
I opened it.
'Please, God… don't let it be the police.'
A bright light hit my eyes.
"What took you so lo—"
I charged before they could finish, tackling them to the ground.
"W-who are you? Why are you glowing?!"
This must be some special kind of police! Are they made of glowstone?!
"…Uh, what are you doing?"
The voice sounded high and sassy.
Wait… that sounded familiar.
"Clarise…?"
Tears ran down my face.
"Thank God it's you!"
"EWW! Don't get so close! These are too expensive for you to touch. Get off me!"
My snot stretched like glue as she shoved me away.
She gagged.
"Hehe… sorry…"
"Ugh. Now my outfit's ruined because of you. Do you even know how expensive these clothes are?"
"H-how much?"
"More than your lifetime salary, duh~!"
"…"
No matter how many times I look at her outfit, it's still ugly. I'm pretty sure a real fashionista would faint—not from how beautiful it is, but from how tragic it looks.
She was wearing a blinding gold glitter top with pitch-black bottoms.
Wow. What a combination.
A ray of sunshine on top and Wednesday Addams at the bottom.
"Yeah… right."
"It's true! This is a limited edition. Only five pieces exist in the world! Designed by the greatest designer in the universe!"
This girl… she got scammed.
"Then how much was it?"
"Around ten billion for the top and another ten billion for the bottom. So twenty billion in total."
"Wha—"
She definitely got scammed. No one would buy something that ugly and that expensive. Billion. With a B. Not millions. Not thousands.
"Besides, why are you even asking?" she continued. "It's way out of your budget."
"Well, I don't want it! Even if it were affordable, I still wouldn't buy that."
"Just admit you're broke, peasant."
…
I clenched my fist.
I'm going to punch this girl someday.
-----------------------------------------------------------
"So… why are you here?"
"Did you watch the news?"
"No… as you can see, I don't have a TV…"
Clarise looked around my house.
No TV. One couch. A table beside the window with two chairs. And a small door leading to the room where my bed was.
My house was small, but not too small for one person. Around fifty square meters, I think.
"…Just how poor are you?"
It's true that I'm poor to her. After all, she's the daughter of one of the most successful men in the world. But I'd say my life is… average. I'll probably save up for a TV next time.
"I-I just didn't have time to watch TV, you know… t-that's why I didn't buy one."
"…."
"So… what's on the news?"
"Apparently, last night the police raided a casino," she said.
My stomach tightened.
"That place was known for its lawless environment. Even murders happened there."
Murders...?
Suddenly the hangover in my head didn't feel like the biggest problem anymore.
I swallowed my saliva.
"Y-yeah… serves them right…"
"Where were you last night?" she asked.
"You weren't there… right?"
Sweat started dripping down my face as I clenched my fists.
"N-no. I stayed at home yesterday… and today."
She sighed.
Then she pulled out her phone.
She turned her phone toward me.
A video began to play.
A police officer grabbed someone by the head.
My stomach dropped.
The officer was huge. Black hair. Massive arms.
The same captain from last night.
Then the camera zoomed in on the person he was holding.
Brown hair.
Unconscious.
My breath stopped.
It was me.
If he saw that video...
I already know where I would end up again.
No... I don't want to go there again.
"I want to believe you," she said quietly, "but the proof is right here. That's you… isn't it?"
"…"
"Why did you lie?"
"I'm sorry… I panicked. I didn't know what to do."
My vision started to blur. My voice trembled.
"You know what will happen if my father sees this, right?"
"Y-yes."
"You knew there would be consequences. So why did you do it?"
"…"
"You said you'd quit gambling. And now, just a few months later, I see you involved in illegal things again?!"
"I—"
"Please… brother…" she whispered.
The word brother made my chest tighten.
I looked down at my hands.
They were shaking.
Not because of the police.
Because of him.
"I will tell my father about this."
I didn't know what to say.
I had no excuses.
If her father found out…
My life would be over.
When I was seven years old, they told me my parents died in a car accident. The brakes failed, and their car fell off a cliff.
After that, Sir Matthew took me in. I was too young to live on my own.
Sir Matthew had a daughter. Her name was Clarise.
She was younger than me.
Unlike Sir Matthew, who had black hair, Clarise had blonde hair.
We grew up together, and eventually I started to think of her as my little sister.
Sir Matthew gave me a monthly allowance and let me go to school. But I never went to college. I thought I would just become a burden to them.
Instead, Sir Matthew brought me to modeling agencies.
He forced me to earn money.
I became everything he needed me to be.
A model. An idol. A child actor.
Anything that could make him money.
Whenever I disappointed Sir Matthew…
he would take me somewhere no one else in the house dared to enter.
The basement.
Down there, he would remind me how useless I was…
how I would never be good enough for him.
Sometimes I wondered why he even adopted me in the first place. I was nobody to him.
Every day, I wished someone else had adopted me instead of Sir Matthew.
Whenever he dragged me into the basement, he would kick me and punch me until he was satisfied.
And he always made Clarise watch.
Like it was some kind of show.
Sometimes, when the pain became too much, I would reach out my hand toward her.
But she would run away and hide behind her father.
I didn't blame her.
Back then, the punishment only lasted thirty minutes.
If I endured it, the pain would eventually stop.
Or so I thought...
But each time I went down to that basement…
The punishments became longer.
Worse.
The last time I was there…
It lasted three hours.
I don't want to go back.
"C–Cla—"
The words wouldn't come out.
Suddenly it became hard to breathe. I grabbed my throat with both hands, gasping for air.
My vision blurred as I looked up at Clarise.
And then I froze.
Clarise was smiling.