Chapter 158: Surprise welcome

A soft groan escaped his lips as his fingers moved slightly.

Relief flooded Nathan’s face.

“That’s it… come on…”

Lucas blinked slowly, his vision unfocused at first. He tried to push himself up, but the moment he moved, his hand shot to his head.

“Aww…” he winced sharply, eyes squeezing shut as pain hit him.

“Easy,” the doctor said quickly, steadying him with a firm hand. “Don’t rush.”

Lucas’s breathing was uneven as he tried again, more carefully this time. The doctor supported him, guiding him up little by little until he was on his feet.

“Good… slowly,” the doctor instructed.

He led Lucas to the couch nearby and eased him down gently.

Behind them, the waiter helped Nathan up as well. Nathan staggered slightly but managed to steady himself, moving over and dropping onto the couch beside Lucas.

“Luc…” he turned to him immediately, eyes scanning his face. “Are you alright?”

Lucas nodded faintly, still wincing at the throbbing in his head.

The doctor had already opened his first aid kit, carefully examining the swelling on Lucas’s head.

“What happened?” he asked, his tone calm but alert. “Were you attacked? Or was this a fight?”

Nathan let out a breath, running a hand on the bump on his own head. “We were attacked,” he said. “But… we didn’t see the person’s face.” His brows furrowed. “I don’t even know how long we’ve been out.”

Lucas swallowed, his mind still foggy, trying to piece things together, but it was all blank after a certain point.

“Oh no…” Lucas muttered suddenly, his eyes widening slightly despite the pain. “Alex and Dave, they might be looking for us.”

He tried to shift forward, urgency creeping in. “We need to find them.”

“First, let me check you both,” the doctor interjected firmly.

He moved to Nathan, examining the bump on his head as well, applying a quick dressing.

“Any dizziness? Nausea? Blurred vision?” he asked.

“Just… the headache,” Nathan replied, wincing slightly. “It’s bad, but that’s it.”

Lucas nodded in agreement. “Same here.”

The doctor studied them for a moment, then closed his kit with a small sigh.

“You’re lucky,” he said. “But this isn’t something to ignore. You both need a proper check-up. Head injuries can be deceptive.”

He stood, his expression turning more serious. “And you guys should report this to security immediately. Whoever did this could still be around.”

Nathan and Lucas nodded. “Thank you, doctor,” Nathan said sincerely.

“Thank you,” Lucas added, already pushing himself up again, more carefully this time.

The waiter gave them a quick nod before stepping aside.

Nathan steadied himself, then looked at Lucas. “Can you walk?”

Lucas gave a small nod. “Yeah, let’s go.”

Without wasting another second, the two of them headed for the door, still a bit shaken and still in pain.

But now driven by urgency. They had no idea what they were walking back into.

The hallway felt colder than it should have. Every step seemed to echo too loudly.

“Did you see who hit us?” Nathan asked, his voice tense as he walked beside Lucas.

Lucas shook his head slightly, wincing as the movement pulled at the swelling on his head. “No, whoever it was, was too fast.” He exhaled sharply. “And I was already feeling tipsy.”

Nathan frowned. They moved instinctively, their eyes scanning, front, back, corners, every shadow suddenly suspicious.

Lucas’s thoughts refused to stay still. Too fast… calculated… knocked out clean but why? A familiar unease crept in. Could it be Mac or James’s doing?

His jaw tightened.

“Damn it,” Lucas muttered under his breath, anger beginning to rise. “Why would someone do this?” His hands curled slightly into fists. “Hiding like cowards… Why not face me one-on-one?”

“Hey,” Nathan said quickly, placing a steadying hand on his arm. “Calm down, Luc. We’ll figure it out.”

Lucas didn’t respond immediately, but his breathing slowed just a little.

“When we find Alex and Dave,” Nathan added, “we’ll check the security footage.”

Lucas nodded faintly as they turned a corner and there they were with Jason. Alex with an almost empty bottle of liquor. All together like in a serious meeting.

For a brief second, relief flickered in Lucas’s chest. Good… they've found them before they even started searching. But then, he noticed that something was wrong and it seemed very wrong.

Alex was the first to notice them.

His eyes locked onto Lucas and then shifted briefly to Nathan.

A slow, bitter smile crept onto his lips. “Oh,” he said, his voice cutting through the space with quiet venom. “The love birds are back.”

The words landed like a slap.

Jason and Dave turned immediately, their heads snapping toward Lucas and Nathan.

That was when they saw the looks on their faces. It wasn't relief, or concern but suspicion and hurt. It felt like something darker.

Lucas’s steps faltered first then

Nathan felt it too. The shift in the air became heavy and suffocating.

Their pace slowed unconsciously as they approached.

“Alex…” Lucas started, his voice uncertain now, searching his face. “What’s…”

But the words died in his throat.

Because Alex didn’t look at him the way he used to. There was no warmth or softness. The sweet glow in his eyes has disappeared. He could only see something cold and broken.

Instantly, Lucas understood.

Or at least, he felt it. Whatever they had just walked into was worse than whatever had knocked them out in that room.

Nathan’s eyes shifted immediately to Dave, searching for clarity, normalcy, anything that made sense.

“Dave… is everything alright?” he asked, his voice cautious.

Dave didn’t answer right away.

He just stared at him long and hard. Then a short, humorless chuckle escaped his lips.

“You tell me, Natty,” he said, tilting his head slightly. “Where have you guys been for almost two hours?”

The question dropped like a bomb.

“What?” Lucas and Nathan said at the same time, their voices overlapping in pure shock. They turned to each other instantly.

“Two hours?” Nathan repeated, disbelief written all over his face.

“That’s not possible,” Lucas added, his brows furrowing deeply. “We were out for…what? Minutes?”

Nathan shook his head quickly. “It couldn’t have been that long…”

Their confusion wasn’t subtle. It was raw and unrehearsed.

Jason observed it. He hadn’t taken his eyes off them since they appeared, but now, something in his expression shifted. His gaze sharpened slightly, observing every detail, their unsteady stance, the swelling on Lucas' head, the genuine confusion flickering between them.

They’re… He leaned slightly closer to Dave, lowering his voice just enough.

“They’re not acting,” he muttered under his breath. “Look at them.”

Meanwhile, Alex’s patience was wearing thin. “Stop pretending,” he said, his tone tightening. “You disappeared into a room and now you show up talking shit”

Nathan blinked, clearly thrown off. “We’re not pretending.”

“We were attacked,” Lucas cut in, his voice firm despite the tension. “Someone hit us from behind. We just woke up.”

Silence dropped briefly, but heavy.

Dave’s expression didn’t soften. It grew more complicated.

Alex's laugh came again low and bitter like he had already made up his mind. Nothing they said could change it.