Chapter 7: Seductive Reaction

Lucia opened her eyes, all the bad thoughts occupying her head all night and making her unable to sleep. Bryan's annoying face still haunts her. She didn't know, since when that spoiled brat who could only rely on his ancestral wealth could act so arrogantly like that?

Lucia knew that Bryan had always been known to be arrogant and had a big mouth. Everyone knows how many times his mouth had received a soft touch from Lucia's punch. But last night, everything he said hurt more than anything Bryan said before and the worst thing was the way he looked at her. No, not only Bryan, but almost everyone in the room looked at her with amusement as if they couldn't believe the woman before their eyes was the Lucia they knew. Yes, Lucia the alpha girl whose existence is very influential in this city.

"Damn Bryan! His words are much crueler than they used to be!" She thought. Lucia raised her head, sunlight streaming in through the gaps in the windows where the spring breeze gently blew the curtains.

Knock...knock...knock...

"Lucia, are you awake?" Mrs Joana said as she knocked on her bedroom door.

Lucia hurriedly got up from her bed and opened the bedroom door after brushing her loose hair.

"Good morning? I just woke up!" She said.

"What time did you get home last night?"

"I forgot, maybe around 10pm. What's wrong?"

"Ah... nothing! It's outside there is a guest who wants to meet you!"

"Guest? Who?" She asked. Lucia was surprised that someone wanted to meet her when she had only been living in this house for four days.

Instead of answering, Mrs Joana watched Lucia from head to toe carefully. She smiled slightly at the nightgown Lucia was wearing.

"Hurry and change your clothes! You don't want them to see you in a nightgown like this, do you?"

"Who actually came?"

"Your friends!"

"My friends?"

"Bryan, Chris, Pierre and Leo! Hurry up and take a shower and meet them!"

"What?"

Lucia was beyond shocked to hear that the guests Mrs Joana was referring to were the four men she had met last night at the reunion which she found very sad to remember. After telling Lucia the bad news, Mrs Joana just walked away. Lucia wondered, why and what did they come to this house for?

"How do they know I live here? Olivia! Yeah, she must have told them! Oh my God, how is this? Should I shower and get ready first! But why would I dress up if they were the only ones coming?" She muttered. Lucia was confused about what she should do now. If she had to take a shower first, then it would take her 45 minutes to finish. Not to mention using routine skin care and choosing the clothes she will wear. It will definitely take quite a while.

Drrringgg... driiinggg...

Her phone rang on the table, Lucia immediately took it out and checked who was calling her.

"Olivia?" Lucia immediately answered the call.

"Hi Lucia, good morning?"

"Yes, morning! Olive, did you tell Bryan and his friends that I was staying at Mrs Joana's house?"

"Hehehe... sorry, actually I called you to say that! Last night, you suddenly came home just like that while the event was still going on. Pierre came up to me and asked where you live now. So, I'll just tell you. Sorry?" She actually said that she didn't feel guilty at all after telling them Lucia's residential address without her permission.

Lucia took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. She didn't know what else Bryan wanted to bother coming to this house so early? It's not even 10 in the morning yet.

"They here now!"

"What? Really?"

"Yes!"

"That's good!"

"What's good? I even just woke up! You know I was humiliated like that last night?"

"Humiliated? Do you feel humiliated?"

"You really are insensitive, aren't you? Come on, Olive!"

"Are you still wearing your nightgown?"

"Why?"

"Ah it's okay, I was just curious! Hehehe... well, have fun. If anything happens between the five of you, don't forget to tell me, okay?"

"What's going to happen anyway?"

Tit... tit... tit...

The line was cut, Olivia ended the call just like that when Lucia had to hold back her anger at her reckless and insensitive attitude.

"There's no more time. Forget it!" Lucia put on her nightgown cardigan and smoothed her hair before opening the door and descending to the first floor.

Her heart was pounding, she wasn't quite ready to see those faces again. But she realized that there was no way he could avoid them forever.

As Lucia descended the stairs, Bryan, Chris, Pierre and Leo who were sitting on the living room sofa stared straight at her.

They froze, looking at Lucia from toe to tip of her black hair flowing and blowing in the wind. Subconsciously, they focused on her exposed thighs and clearly visible cleavage. Even without makeup, her beautiful face looks very tempting.

Seeing the four men who were previously talking, suddenly fell silent like this, Aunt Joana who was in the same room couldn't help but smile at their reaction. Moreover, they barely blinked at all.

Lucia walked over to them awkwardly and sat next to Mrs Joana who was grinning even more. It's funny to see their seductive reaction considering how they grew up together all this time.

"Okay, because Lucia has come! Shall I stay? Lucia, I'll take Grandma to the hospital. Please take care of the house, okay?" Mrs Joana said as she got up from the sofa.

"Okay!" She answer was shaking. Lucia tried to endure the awkwardness that made her entire body feel extremely cold.

She was just silent and refused to see their faces one by one. While Bryan, still with his arrogant eyes, Lucia wanted to beat him up like before.

"So, what's the point of you coming so early?" She asked. She started to notice they wearing gym clothes as if they had just come from the gym or something.

"We just finished the gym and stopped by here! Sorry for not telling you earlier!" Said the gentle Chris who never changed.

Lucia just nodded slowly, it was only natural that she could smell the strong male perfume.

"Even you guys go to the gym together! Have you been like this all this time?"

"According to you?" Brian asked. Leo suddenly laughed for no reason as he took a sip of water from a water bottle.

"So, you just woke up?" Leo asked. For some reason, since last night he had been focused on Lucia's thighs and chest. It made him feel strange because when they were little the five of them used to bathe together and it made him wonder what if now they were bathing together again with Lucia's drastic changes like this?

"Yes, do you mind?"

"Tsk, damn it! You're still pretentious, aren't you?" Bryan said annoyed. He hated Lucia's domineering attitude of never being afraid to talk to anyone.

"Aren't you the one who has been controlling the situation since last night? Why are you angry at me?"

"Why did you come back here all of a sudden? What do you really want?" Said Bryan who did not want to lose dominance. His high self-esteem made him want to control a stubborn woman like Lucia.

"What do I want? I-I just want to see my hometown again! Is that wrong?" She said nervous. Lucia knew that wasn't her main reason for returning to this place. She only felt that the sadness and suffering she had felt so far was a punishment for her past evil deeds to her friends.

Lucia was silent and looked down sadly, those who saw her were surprised because this was the first time Lucia showed a sad face like this as if she felt helplessness towards something they didn't know.

Pierre sighed, he had been silent all along and listened to them argue. He knew things had changed, it was impossible for them to treat her the way they used to. They grew up together from childhood to adolescence, going through ups and downs together. A friendship that can be said to last a lifetime. But on the way, one of them just left without saying goodbye.

"How are your dad, mother and your sister, Alexa?" Asked Pierre.

"My mom and dad are divorced and they've both remarried. Alexa is also married and divorced from her husband too!"

"Your parents Divorced? When?" Chris asked.

"A year after I moved to Louisiana!" Lucia tried to smile, as if the divorce of her parents and older sister was nothing to think about.

There was silence for a while and that made the quiet house feel even more quiet. Bryan, Chris, Pierre and Leo's heads were filled with questions about why Lucia left without saying anything to them as if they weren't a part of her life. But the question just popped into their head and was hard to say.

"May I ask you something? I just wanted to make sure!" Bryan said.

"What's that?"

"Who are we to you?" Brian asked. Lucia was surprised at Bryan's question. It feels very awkward if suddenly asked that because the answer is certain.

Lucia's face reddened, she became very restless now. They stared at her as if waiting for an answer from her. Looking back at what their relationship was like back then, Lucia felt it was a little different from what it should have been. They were very close, seeing each other almost every day of the year. At school they are always in the same class, their houses are close together. Rather than friends, they were like brothers.

"Why don't you answer?" Leo asked.

"O-of course, y-you guys were my subordinates, right?"

***