BLOOD GANG H.Q.

In a black and white minimalist design office, Dan turned sideways and picked up his phone from the coffee table for the umpteenth time that day and switched its screen on but on still not seeing any message or missed call notification, disappointment flashed in his sultry eyes.

He sighed and dropped his phone back on the table and laid back down on the reclining couch with listlessness after which he shut his eyes, completely ignoring the presence and inquisitive eyes of a certain person in the room.

With amusement and subtle gloating in his eyes, Ryan put down the document in his hand and stared from where he sat at his buddy who had been in low spirits since early that morning.

To be honest, he had long since noticed that Dan had been behaving out of sorts since around last week. He was sometimes in a daze and smiled foolishly while other times he was absent-minded and had to be called several times or tapped before he came back to Mother Earth from who-knows-where his soul had flown to…

If he still couldn't guess that this heartless heartbreaker friend of his was suffering from lovesickness then he would be really dumb!

However, he had thought that Dan would have settled the issue already as ultimately with that face of his, which girl couldn't he charm!

But with his current behaviour which seemed like a wife pining for her husband who has been gone for years, it was quite obvious that he still hadn't gotten the girl yet.

This made him increasingly curious about who the mysterious lady who could make Dan this restless was and he just happened to be someone who doesn't restrain his curiosity not when it could be satisfied.

Of course, he could likewise investigate who she is but he would never do that without Dan's permission as that would be intruding on his privacy.

This meant that if he really wanted to know, the person in question had to confide in him personally but how exactly should he do that…

Ryan fell into contemplation and after a while, a gleamer with slyness appeared in his eyes as his lips curled slightly into a devious smirk before disappearing in a twinkle.

He stood up from his chair and walked over to the other sofa which was separated from the one on which Dan lay by the coffee table and sat casually. 

After sitting for a few minutes without eliciting any response from the man who was obviously pretending to be asleep, he picked up a cherry from the porcelain bowl filled filled with large chunks of ice cubes placed on the coffee table and threw it on Dan's body and watched satisfactorily as his brows subsequently squeezed together though he still kept his eyes shut.

Staring at the cherries which was an inviting red placed on the misty ice cubes making it look even more tempting, Ryan mocked him internally for not forgetting to enjoy himself even when lovesick though his hands remained honest as he stoically popped one into his mouth and hummed with satisfaction at the tangy delectability on his tongue.

Just as he stretched out his hands to pick another one, a fair hand with distinct joints snatched away the bowl.

"Don't touch my cherries, Ryan!"

Not looking surprised, Ryan withdrew his hand and raised his head to look at the annoyed Dan who was already sitting upright on the couch at some point while holding the cherries bowl tightly as if guarding against a thief, and thought with some regret in his heart that he wasn't able to taste another cherry before it was snatched away.

This friend of his has always been stingy when it comes to the things he loves and cherries has always been topping the list.

He leaned back against the couch while crossing his arms on his chest and looked at Dan in amusement and said with some sarcasm.

"I thought you were already asleep?"

Dan glared at him with irritation written all over his face, knowing exactly why he was here, "You are really annoying! You know that, right? Who would believe that the high and mighty Ryan actually loved gossip so much!"

Ryan chuckled when he saw him this irritated and confessed without shame, "Since you are clear on exactly why I am here, you shouldn't hide it any more. Maybe who knows I might be able to give you some advice on how you could actually get the girl."

Shocked at his shamelessness, Dan gaped at him in shock after which a sneer appeared in his face and he said in a mocking tone.

"You? Give me advice? Have you forgotten that you are presently single? You can't even keep your partner and you want to offer me advice…," He consciously slammed his mouth shut when he noticed the darkening expression on Ryan's face and reflected to himself with deep regret and frustration.

'What am I even saying! Have I been possessed, because why else would I say something line that to this super petty person? Do I feel like I have lived enough or what?'

While smiling in anger, Ryan stared at him with a deep look in his obsidian eyes and chuckled out loud making Dan's skin pop out goosebumps and then heard his voice which sounded like a devil's in his ears say.

"You courage have gotten bigger, Daniel. You actually dare to mock me, your big brother for being single?"

Even though he was still sitting, Dan felt his legs weaken when he heard him say his full name, this meant that he was furious beyond belief at this moment. He could only hope that it wasn't as bad as he thought...

"Now that I look at you, you seem to have regressed in your training and since I happen to have the time, we should have some one-on-one combat training, don't you agree?", Ryan continued and asked him at the end with a smile but not a smile on his face.

Dan of course wanted to refuse as who wished to be a punching bag. A one-on-one training? That was just a nice way of putting it, where in actuality, it was just him getting one-sidely beaten up since he couldn't win against him in the first place.

But did he dare refuse? Of course not! But he still didn't want to get beaten up so…

An idea then sparked in his mind.

Didn't Ryan want to know about the girl he recently met? Maybe... Just maybe, he could use it to make him forget about the training? After all, Ryan loved gossips as much as he loved scheming…