After reaching a skyscraper in the heart of the city and pulling into the basement parking lot, the car stopped at an underground lobby. They headed straight for the elevator that whisked them up to the restaurant at the very top. When they stepped out right in front of the entrance, Dennis and Daisy's eyes went wide.
The place was incredibly high-end, and the patrons were dressed in formal wear that clearly cost more than most people's car payments. Meanwhile, Dennis was in a messy school uniform, looking completely disheveled, which made his confidence plummet.
As they were about to enter, Gary and Olivia turned back to see Dennis, Daisy, Jason, and Kimberly standing frozen in front of the restaurant doors.
"Come on, let's go. Why are you guys so stiff? I told you, it's on me," Gary said.
"Yeah, relax. Come on, don't be shy," Olivia added.
"Isn't there a more... normal restaurant? Maybe some fast food or something," Jason suggested.
"To be honest, I'm not used to places like this," Kimberly added.
"Yeah, me neither. I've never been to a place like this at all," Daisy added.
Dennis stayed silent. Just being around the five most popular students in school was already overwhelming for him; standing in front of a luxury restaurant on top of that made his self-esteem drop to an all-time low.
"Just drop it and come inside. We're sitting in a private room so we won't be bothered by anyone else," Gary said casually.
"Let's go, don't just stand here. It's not right to block the other guests," Olivia added.
Finally, everyone gave in and followed Gary and Olivia inside. The hostess, seeing Gary enter, immediately bowed in greeting. Without asking a single question, she promptly led him inside after counting how many people were in his party. They walked through a luxurious and seemingly private dining area, accompanied by the stares of patrons who clearly held high social status. Their faces were filled with silent questions: "Who are these high school kids, and why are they eating here?"
The server led them into a VIP room that was completely closed off, featuring a single long table that could seat six people. Once they were seated, Gary told the server to bring the "usual" that he ordered for groups—the best dishes the restaurant had to offer.
The server was clearly delighted to hear this, then left the VIP room, leaving them alone. The atmosphere in the room turned quiet since no one was speaking; the only thing audible was the melodic, flowing music perfect for a dinner setting.
During the silence, "ding," a notification suddenly hit all six of their smartphones. They grabbed their phones immediately; it turned out Vanessa had sent them an email containing their contracts and their salaries as the school's core team.
Dennis looked fairly unfazed as he read it, but when he glanced at Daisy beside him, he saw her trembling with a look of pure joy. Dennis immediately placed a hand on Daisy's thigh and leaned in close.
"Thank God. Now you don't have to do those weird jobs anymore, right?" Dennis whispered.
"Yeah, number 4 will close our deep web forum later. We won't be taking any more orders," Daisy whispered back.
"Good. For now, we'll just work at the school, and after that, we'll become official hunters," Dennis whispered.
"I understand, honey. Now we'll have savings for the future," Daisy replied, taking Dennis's hand.
After that, the two went silent again. Still, no one was talking except for those whispering to their respective partners. Finally, Jason broke the silence.
"Hey, why are we all being so quiet? It feels like we're enemies or at a meeting to dissolve a business. Let's talk, I can't stand this gloomy atmosphere," Jason blurted out.
"True, but what exactly should we talk about?" Daisy asked.
"Hmm... maybe the technical stuff? Perhaps from now on we should stick together, maybe even live together to make things easier if something happens... and if possible, we should also..."
"Stop. Did we come here to bond or to manage technical details? Our goal is to be friends and get closer, right? so please don't discuss things like that right now," Dennis said, cutting Gary off and stopping him mid-sentence.
Gary immediately turned to stare at Dennis, but this time he really looked at him, studying his face instead of just giving a passing glance. Then Olivia took his hand, and he turned to see her smiling at him. After that, he observed the faces of Dennis, Daisy, Jason, and Kimberly sitting around him. Finally, Gary's face, which had been flat and appeared arrogant, broke into a smile that looked genuine.
"You're right, man. Sorry, I'm used to being rigid because my dad always taught me to be that way... thanks. Let's just relax, enjoy the food when it gets here, and talk. I want to get to know you guys," Gary said with a smile.
"Now that's more like it, dude. I can finally relax. Just looking at your face earlier made me tense and I had no idea what to say," Jason chimed in.
The atmosphere began to thaw as they started laughing and chatting casually, asking each other questions without leaving anyone out. Not long after, the server opened the door and brought in their food. Seeing the lavish spread in front of them in such large quantities, they flinched slightly—though they quickly regained their composure after seeing how unfazed Gary and Olivia were by the familiarity of it all.
They began to eat casually, asking questions and sharing stories, though they still kept certain boundaries and avoided personal topics. Before this, they had only known of each other without ever being close, despite all six of them being famous in school. Gary, Olivia, Jason, and Kimberly were known as the popular power couples, Daisy was known as the most beautiful and brilliant girl in school, while Dennis was known as the most repulsive creature on campus.
"So you just woke up and dude had suddenly turned hot like that in the morning?" Jason asked Daisy, pointing at Dennis.
"Well... pretty much," Daisy replied.
"But are you really okay? You were hit by two watermelons, weren't you?" Kimberly asked.
"I'm fine. By the next day, I was completely healed," Dennis answered briefly.
"At the time, he was lying flat on his back next to the building. Sorry, I didn't really know what to do back then, but at least I could tell Olivia, who then told Daisy since they were both in the student council office," Gary added.
"That's right. Daisy and I were the ones who carried you to the clinic. You were still huge back then; it would have been too much for Daisy alone," Olivia said.
"Oh, is that how it went? Thanks, then," Dennis replied sheepishly.
"Yeah, Olivia and I carried you, but since we weren't strong enough, Mr. Neil, the janitor, helped us out. You were so big back then, we really struggled to move you," Daisy said with a smile.
"Okay... please, let's not talk about this anymore. I'm embarrassed," Dennis said, looking down.
"I'm sorry again, man. I didn't know who you were, so I posted your photo in the group chat because I was curious," Jason replied.
"It's fine. It's over, just forget it," Dennis replied.
"I was actually scared, you know? When you approached my husband at the classroom door, I was afraid you were going to do something to him. I'm so sorry, I totally misjudged you," Kimberly added.
"It's no big deal. Seriously, let's just stop talking about it," Dennis replied.
"But because of me, the classmates are all scared of you now, aren't they?" Kimberly said.
"Take it easy, I'm used to it. No need to worry about it. Besides, it's probably better if they don't get too close to me anyway, right?" Dennis said, glancing at Daisy.
"Yep, exactly. Now that he's transformed and become this hot, right on the same level as Gary and Jason, plenty of girls are definitely going to be gunning for him, and I'm obviously not going to let that happen," Daisy added firmly.
"Well... the only one still brave enough to go after him would be Bella, but her husband is a jerk, so she won't dare try anything crazy. Don't worry, Daisy, I'll keep an eye on her in class," Jason joked.
"Right, and I'll be keeping an eye on you so you don't try anything with Bella," Kimberly said, glancing at Jason.
"Huh... relax, I'm loyal to you. Anyway, don't worry, Daisy—Dennis is safe," Jason replied, giving a thumbs up.
"Got it, thanks," Daisy replied.
"Hey, don't talk about me like I'm not even sitting right here, come on," Dennis said, glancing at Jason.
"Hahaha... sorry, dude," Jason replied.
After that, they all laughed and went back to discussing other things about their lives. They kept talking to Dennis like he was just a normal guy—something he had wanted for so long. He finally had friends he could talk to about anything, and he didn't feel lonely anymore. For the first time, Dennis looked completely relaxed, talking a mile a minute with a wide, effortless smile on his face. Seeing the change in him, Daisy gripped Dennis's hand under the table and beamed with a face full of gratitude.