Bring Your A Game

Chapter 68

Bring Your A Game Mr Chapter 68

No Buts!

Without providing any explanation, Elise then dragged Julius out of the bar and soon vanished from Alexander’s sight.

Alexander believed that him seeing H was a product of his hallucination since he was under the influence of alcohol. After disappearing without a trace for ages, it wouldn’t make sense for her to show up and sing at this bar. Plus, the girl he saw earlier had a different aura from his memory of H. He withdrew his gaze and turned to leave.

Once Elise was out of the bar, she released her grip on Julius. “I need to head back now because there’s something I have to do tomorrow.”

It was Julius who appeared reluctant to part ways with her. He finally expressed the thoughts he had wanted to tell her all along, “H, did you see that? They were all engrossed in your music earlier. After so many years, some of your fans are still checking in on Twitter daily to wait for news on your comeback. Are you really okay to say goodbye to the fans who love you?”

“I guess I can only apologize to them.” She pursed her lips.

Julius was aware that Elise would react in the same way that she did years ago—she would not renegade on her words. Still, he was clinging on to a sliver of hope. “No matter what, we’re waiting for your comeback. We’ll be here to witness you recreating the glorious years from before.”

Without replying to him, she merely smiled and patted him on the shoulder. “Send me home now,” was what she said next.

After sending her to the lobby of her apartment, Julius added before leaving, “If you arrive at a decision at any time, feel free to contact me. I’ll be waiting for you.”

Elise waved at him before she headed straight into the apartment. Since Alexander was not back yet, she decided to retire to her room, wash up and go to bed.

As there was an exam the next day, she woke up earlier to prepare herself for it. Then, she realized that Alexander, who stayed in the room next door, had stayed out for the entire night. She didn’t give it much thought and hastily grabbed a bite at the joint in front of the neighborhood entrance. Then, she hailed a cab to the exam venue.

Once she arrived, she saw Samantha and Riley waving at her from afar. “Elise, we’re here!”

It was at that moment when Elise walked over to them. “You guys are quite early.”

Riley chuckled. “We actually arrived yesterday! Last night, we even had some northern cuisine for dinner! It was delicious!” © 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.

Then, Elise asked, “Which exam hall are you in?”

Riley checked her entrance pass and replied, “I’m in Hall 7. What about you?”

“I’m in Hall 21.”

Samatha chimed in, “Oh, what a coincidence! I’m right next to you—I’m in Hall 20.”

The three of them headed into the campus while chatting. When they were close to the exam halls, they happened to run into Zachary. He had also spotted Elise and handed her a pouch full of stationeries that he prepared beforehand. “I packed you some 2B pencils and ballpens.”

Elise was a little taken aback and hurriedly turned him down. “It’s fine! I brought mine.”

He did not reply to that and instead shoved the pouch into her hands. Before leaving, he added, “See you after the exam.”

She looked dumbfounded as her friends exchanged looks beside her. “Miss Elise Sinclair, tell us the truth. What’s going on?”

“Nothing,” Elise replied as she shrugged in confusion.

Samantha and Riley obviously didn’t believe Elise’s words and continued to pester her. After having been defeated, she playfully knocked them on their heads. “Quit being busybodies and focus on your exams!”

Although Riley wanted to ask further, she ultimately held her tongue. “I think he must have fallen for you.” Then, she stuck out her tongue at Elise before she waved and wandered into her exam hall.

Upon seeing that, Samantha hurriedly comforted Elise, “Don’t mind her. All the best!” Then, she waved at Elise, who watched as her friends walked away.

Elise looked at the pouch in her hand and wondered whether Zachary had truly fallen for her. What does he want from me, though? I don’t have the most beautiful face… Since she could not figure out his intention, she gave up and handed his pouch to her classmate who didn’t bring any stationery.

The duration of the exam was two hours, but because Elise had performed so well, she was able to submit her papers half an hour before the time was up.

She strolled out of the exam hall, checked the time and hailed a cab back to the apartment. At that time, she bumped into Alexander, who was about to leave his room. When he saw her, his expression had remained calm. “Something came up at the last minute. I’ll head home tomorrow.”

Elise was fine with that. “If you’re busy, don’t mind me. I can head home on my own today.”

As Alexander narrowed his eyes, he replied, “Grandpa asked me to take care of you. If you return alone, do you think he will let this slide?”

Indeed, using Grandpa as an excuse to shut her down was always effective. She instantly agreed to stay for another day. “Are you heading out? Where to?”

He said nothing as he scanned her from head to toe. “If you are bored, you can join me.”

Elise wanted to turn Alexander down, but upon a second thought, she realized that she’d be bored if she stayed in the apartment after her exams. That was the reason why she decided to follow him out. Little did she expect him to bring her to a luxurious salon.

A panicked Elise then tugged on his sleeve. “Why did you bring me here?”

He explained, “I will meet a client later. Do you think you look presentable?”

She quickly checked her appearance but thought she looked alright. In fact, she was used to her lack of fashion sense.

On the other hand, Alexander had directly passed her case to the stylist. “I’ll give you an hour. Style her and give her a totally different look.”

Upon hearing that, the stylist scrutinized Elise to the point where Elise felt a little on edge. She hurriedly urged, “It’s fine; you don’t have to exercise too much effort. Just give me a formal suit.”

After looking at Alexander for confirmation, the stylist only brought Elise to pick an outfit after he agreed.

“Miss, please pick your outfit first. When that’s done, we will style you.”

A layer of cold sweat started to coat Elise’s forehead as she replied, “I don’t want to trouble you! I can take care of my own hair and makeup.”

The last thing she wanted was to allow the stylist to work on hair and makeup because she’d be in deep trouble if her identity was exposed.

In the face of Elise’s apprehension and insistence, the stylist did not insist on styling her. She finally changed into a black formal suit, pulled her hair back into a bun and retouched her ugly makeup. As a result, she looked a little fairer than before and her features seemed to be more harmonious. Other than that, she looked quite similar to before.

Elise regarded her new look in the mirror. When she confirmed that she looked decent, she walked out and announced, “I’m done.”

When Alexander looked up, his eyes flickered with strange emotions because she had a voluptuous body and her gown did its part to accentuate her alluring figure.

“Do I look okay?” she asked hesitantly.

He turned away and answered with a question, “Is your French good?”

As Elise was confused by the purpose of Alexander’s question, she blinked a few times. “Well, I can hold basic conversations.”

“If that’s the case, help me to interpret later.”

She clarified, “Huh? You mean to say that you want me to be your interpreter?”

“Yeah,” he retorted. “Do you have any problem with that?”

There was a slight frown on her face. “But—”

He ignored her reservations and replied, “No buts!”

Then, Alexander stood up to his full height and led Elise out of the salon.