Chapter 35 Sweeter than Sour

Chapter 35 Sweeter than Sour
The unexpected blessing came so fast that Gary Blacker was completely stunned for a few seconds. Naturally, his intense paranoia kicked in immediately. "Wait, what's the catch? Are you buying my drinks because you're expecting me to buy your lunch?! Don't even think about it!"
"Fine. Pretend I didn't say anything." Warren Gale slowed his pace, effortlessly creating distance between himself and Julie Carven walking ahead.
"Explain yourself!" Gary refused to let it go.
"You talk too much," Warren said flatly. "If you don't want the free drinks, forget it."
Like hell I'm forgetting it.
Gary was absolutely terrified Warren would actually take it back. "No way! Starting tomorrow, you are completely financially responsible for my beverages. This isn't even about the money—this is about my son finally showing some filial piety! A father's heart would break if he refused! It's settled!"
Just as the two of them were about to start violently shoving each other like overgrown toddlers, Julie suddenly turned her head back to look at them.
Warren, whose eyes had been locked onto the path ahead, froze for a fraction of a second. That split-second distraction was all Gary needed. Gary seized the opportunity and slammed his elbow right into Warren's ribs.
Warren grunted in pain, his brows snapping together as he bent slightly at the waist.
Gary faked an attempt to kick him, his tone dripping with mock awe. "Warren, you shouldn't even apply to an Ivy League. You need to apply to a film academy. Give this man an Oscar!"
Warren straightened up instantly, moving faster than Gary, and swiftly kicked him right in the ass. "Get lost."
Julie: "..."
She really wanted to just stare up at the sky and pretend she didn't know them.
Gary acting like a clown was par for the course. Even ten years in the future, the man never grew up. But seeing her future billionaire boss acting exactly like an immature, chaotic high school boy was deeply confusing. It wasn't quite a shattered illusion, but she couldn't deny that the stoic, terrifying image of the 27-year-old CEO in her head was rapidly fading, completely overwritten by the reality of the 17-year-old boy currently throwing kicks in the middle of the sidewalk.
So much for his calm, untouchable composure.
It was completely gone.
She cleared her throat, raising her voice to ask, "Warren! Gary! I'm going to get boba, do you guys want any?"
Gary, currently dusting a dusty shoe print off the seat of his pants, yelled back even louder. "Yes! The Three Brothers Milk Tea!"
Julie turned her gaze to Warren. Exactly as she expected, he shook his head. "I don't drink that."
"Alright. There's a supermarket in the basement level here. You guys go up to the restaurant and start grabbing plates. Tania's already got a table. I'm going to pick up the drinks and some stuff from the store."
Hearing that, Warren fell completely silent. He instantly assumed she was going to the supermarket specifically to buy him milk.
After making her announcement, Julie turned and disappeared into the dense mall crowd heading toward the boba stand. Gary took a few steps toward the escalator before realizing Warren wasn't moving. He frowned. "Why aren't you walking?"
Warren was internally conflicted.
After about ten seconds of intense debate, he finally made a decision. "You go up. I'm going to help her carry the drinks."
Gary was completely bewildered. "What?"
Carry the drinks? It's literally just three cups of milk tea. Does she need a forklift for that?
But Warren didn't bother explaining. He just turned around and walked in the exact same direction Julie had gone, leaving Gary standing alone at the bottom of the escalator. For some inexplicable reason, Gary felt like Warren was acting incredibly strange today, but he didn't have the vocabulary to explain why.
By the time Warren found her, Julie had already placed her order. She was currently flashing a brilliant smile at the cashier. "Hey, I'm just going to run down to the supermarket to grab a few things. Can I come back and pick these up in a little bit?"
The cashier smiled back. "Of course! Just hold onto your receipt."
Julie shoved the receipt into her jacket pocket and turned around to head to the basement level. She practically walked straight into Warren's chest. They locked eyes. Before she could even ask, he provided an excuse.
"The drinks are heavy," he said smoothly. "I came to help you carry them."
\---
A few minutes later, the two of them were standing on the escalator, separated by a few steps, riding down into the massive underground supermarket.
Since it was lunchtime, the store was packed. Warren stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Julie practically marching toward him pushing a massive metal shopping cart. He stared at it.
She's buying one carton of milk. Why does she need a shopping cart?
Julie was there to buy his milk, but that absolutely wasn't the only reason she was there.
She wasn't an idiot. This wasn't the future where you could just scan your face and walk out. The checkout lines here were brutal. If she was going to suffer through a twenty-minute line, she was absolutely going to buy everything she needed. She mentally reviewed her shopping list. She was completely out of instant coffee; she needed a new box. Lara had recommended a specific brand of laundry soap; she needed to grab that too.
Warren followed behind her, watching in complete silence as she casually grabbed a massive family-sized bag of potato chips and tossed it into the cart. "..."
He brought a hand up to rub his forehead, fighting the urge to laugh.
Knowing Tania and Gary were upstairs waiting for them, Julie didn't dawdle. She efficiently grabbed her daily necessities and a few snacks. As she looked down at Warren's impeccably clean sneakers walking beside her, she actually felt a wave of regret. If he hadn't followed her down here, she could have stocked up on sanitary pads, too.
"Is one box enough?" she asked, pointing to the single carton of milk resting on top of her chips.
She had specifically told him to grab it, but he had only taken one.
"It's enough," Warren said. "We're focusing on the pizza today."
Julie thought back to the last time they went to the buffet, remembering how he had quietly avoided the entire tomato sauce section. She burst out laughing. "You're so dramatic."
"It was genuinely that bad," he chuckled softly.
"What about..." Julie asked, "the marinara?"
Last time, it had been Beth and Dan loudly debating between the classic marinara and the white sauce pasta. She suddenly realized something. No wonder Warren hadn't touched a single thing from the tomato side that day either. "Wait, do you not eat tomato sauce?"
"I don't." Warren thought about it for a second. "But you guys can order it. Don't worry about me, I was just joking."
"But the marinara is so good," she said, genuinely confused.
"I don't eat tomatoes," he said simply. "I don't like sour things."
Julie finally connected the dots. "Got it. Alright, you're the boss today—"
As she spoke, she quickly pulled her phone out of her pocket, not even looking up. "I'm texting Tania right now. We're sticking to the white sauce and the garlic butter options."
"You don't have to do that," he said, feeling a little helpless. He really was just joking. He was clearly terrible at it.
"I have to! I've officially made a mental note that you hate tomatoes," she said brightly. "I want you to eat well and be happy today."
Warren looked down at the top of her head. He slowly shifted his gaze away, staring fixedly at a massive, colorful lollipop displayed by the register. He seemed lost in thought, or maybe just completely zoned out. By the time Julie pulled the cash out of her wallet and handed it to the cashier, he finally snapped back to reality. He was speechless. The entire reason he had followed her down here was so he could smoothly pay the bill.
He had completely missed his chance.
Riding the escalator back up to the restaurant, Julie stood behind him. She watched him easily holding her heavy plastic grocery bag in his left hand, and the three cups of milk tea in his right. She couldn't help but ask, "Warren, do you want me to hold the drinks?"
Warren glanced back at her. "It's fine. I've got it."
They quickly walked into the bustling all-you-can-eat pizza buffet.
The second they stepped inside, the rich, heavy, mouth-watering aroma of fresh dough and melted cheese hit them.
When they sat down at the booth, Julie was stunned to discover that Tania and Gary had only grabbed a single plate of garlic bread between them. "Didn't I tell you guys to start loading up your plates?!"
Tania immediately raised her hand to tattle. "I told Gary to go get food, but he absolutely refused! I had to grab the garlic bread myself just so we had something!"
She had no idea why the normally bottomless pit was being so polite. It made her feel awkward about piling up a mountain of food, too.
Gary scrambled to defend himself. "I..."
He couldn't find a good excuse. He gritted his teeth. "I'm on a diet, okay?!"
He genuinely didn't dare eat too much today. He had even pulled his belt one notch tighter.
"You guys are ridiculous." Julie stood up, ready to lead the charge to the buffet line, but suddenly remembered she was the one hosting. She quickly gestured to Warren. "Warren, you go first. Grab whatever you want~"
Warren frowned slightly, trying to be tactful. "Anything is fine. I'm actually not that hungry."
Looking at the two boys acting so incredibly bashful, Julie couldn't help but laugh, though her heart felt incredibly warm. Looking back, the friendships formed during these three years of high school really were the deepest. College was four years long, but it was completely different. You mostly just hung out with your roommates; you barely interacted with the rest of your classmates. At least, that's how her college experience had been.
"Should we just go get food, then?"
Julie had a great memory. It had only been a few weeks since their last outing, so she already knew a few of Warren's preferences. And honestly, teenagers at an all-you-can-eat buffet were mostly the same — everyone just wanted the meatiest, cheesiest option available.
Warren watched Julie and Tania head to the buffet line together, plates in hand, chatting animatedly.
He wanted to tell them not to pile up too much, but he couldn't bring himself to say it out loud. So he just subtly kicked Gary under the table.
Gary: "..."
If looks could kill, Warren Gale would have been dead on the floor.
Gary muttered under his breath, "Do you not have a mouth?"
Warren kicked him again.
Gary dusted off his pant leg and finally spoke up, calling after them. "Hey, Julie, you probably shouldn't grab too much! It's just the four of us, we won't be able to finish it all!"
Tania agreed, turning around. "Yeah, don't over-load. Your eyes are always bigger than your stomach. If we take too much and can't finish it, it's a waste."
Julie looked up, her eyes meeting Warren's across the restaurant.
Warren couldn't take it anymore. He stood up. "I'll come with you."
Confused, Julie handed him a plate. Before she knew what was happening, he had quietly and efficiently steered them away from the towering pasta mountain she had been eyeing and toward a far more reasonable selection. She was absolutely speechless. By the time they sat back down, it was too late to sneak back for seconds without him noticing.
She stared at him, dumbfounded. "...Warren?"
At that exact moment, Warren Gale truly embodied the commanding presence of a future CEO. His voice was low and reassuring. "If it's not enough, we'll go back up."
Facts proved that the valedictorian was just as calculating in real life as he was on a math test. When they finally pushed their plates away, Julie thought they had barely eaten anything. But shockingly, every single one of them was perfectly, comfortably full. Not a scrap wasted.
When the bill came, Julie was still a little dazed. The total was noticeably lower than she had braced herself for.
Walking behind her, Warren heard her muttering to herself.
She was probably celebrating the money she had saved. He couldn't help but smile.
\---
After lunch, the four of them wandered around the mall for a bit. Since they weren't in a rush, they didn't take a cab back, opting for the subway and a bus transfer to get back to campus. For Julie, the day had been productive, but it wasn't perfect yet.
Why? Because she still had one incredibly important piece of business to take care of.
Before evening study hall started, the classroom was less than half full.
Julie was incredibly popular and well-connected. After interrogating Dion Faust to find out who had started the rumor, she hadn't just sat around. She had already found out exactly which row and seat the guy sat in, and she had bribed a girl in his class to keep an eye on him and text her the second he showed up.
When her phone buzzed with the signal, Julie immediately stood up. She had already stepped out into the hallway when she remembered that this mess involved Warren, too. She spun around and poked her head back into the classroom. Warren was sitting at his desk, wearing his earphones, reading a book.
After a second of thought, she walked over to his desk.
He had his earphones in, so he didn't hear her approach. It wasn't until she placed her hands flat on his desk that he looked up, startled. He pulled one earphone out and sat up straight. "Did you need something?"
"Yeah." She didn't want the rest of the class to hear, so she leaned in close, lowering her voice like she was sharing a massive secret. "Are you busy right now? Can you come outside with me for a second?"
Warren's heart gave a sudden, hard kick against his ribs.
He wasn't busy.
But... go outside? Where did she want to go?
Seeing him hesitate, Julie immediately assumed he was swamped with studying. "If you're—"
If you're busy, forget it. I'll just report the results to you later.
She only got three words out before he pulled the other earphone out, stood up, and said in a low voice, "...Alright. Let's go."