Chapter 61
Juniper was startled, but she still wasn't willing to give up. She stared at me with eyes full of venom, as if she wanted to tear me apart and eat me alive.
She bit her lip, her fingers clenched pale, and after a long while finally squeezed out an apology filled with grievance and unwillingness. Her voice was as quiet as a mosquito's buzz, clearly without any sincerity.
I glanced at her and didn't respond. I had no interest in this half-hearted apology. "I don't accept your apology."
Juniper stomped her foot hard. "What exactly do you want?"
"I want you to stay far away from me, right now."
Anyone connected to James and Amelia had better stay far away from me.
Juniper didn't dare leave. She looked at James. "James, you heard it. This woman told me to leave."
James just glanced at her lightly and said nothing.
Juniper didn't want to stay any longer. Before leaving, she didn't forget to shoot me a vicious glare, the hatred in her eyes almost spilling over.
I didn't care at all. Ignoring James and not asking why he came back, I turned and continued walking out.
Unexpectedly, Juniper hadn't gone far. She was blocking the road at the villa entrance, and when she saw me come out, she stood in front of me.
Her eyes showed a kind of arrogance, her chin slightly raised, looking me up and down with a superior attitude. "Sophia, don't think you're something special just because James protects you!"
Without James there to suppress her, Juniper crossed her arms, her arrogance flaring up again. She said smugly, "I want to make a bet with you."
I was relaxed. "Bet on what?"
"I have a friend who's really good at gaming. There's a very difficult game. You two can compete to see who can beat it faster."
I asked curiously, "What game?"
"Maze."
I felt like the name sounded familiar. A memory buried deep in my mind was awakened.
Wasn't this the game I made when I first joined the association?
I held back my laughter and pretended to be troubled. "I've never played this kind of game. I barely know anything about this stuff. If I compete with your friend, won't I definitely lose?"
"Coward." Juniper made a face. "You don't have to compete. You can come with me to the hospital right now, kneel down and apologize to Amelia and me until we're satisfied, then lick our shoes, and I'll let you go."
The corner of my mouth twitched. Give her an inch and she takes a mile.
So I said, "I agree."
"Then you right now..." Juniper realized something was wrong. "What did you say? You agree?"
I nodded. "I think I should be able to compete with your friend."
Juniper rolled her eyes. "He's number one in computer science, and you... "
She looked me up and down with disdain. "I advise you to give up early, so you won't lose too badly."
"No need." I lightly propped my chin with my fingers. "If I win, you and Amelia also have to kneel down and lick my shoes and apologize."
Juniper agreed without thinking. "No problem, you won't win anyway."
I pressed my lips together to keep from laughing.
After arranging a place with Juniper, I went to find Andrew. I reviewed recent work with him and confirmed future tasks. By then it was already noon.
Andrew took me to lunch, and then I found the place Juniper mentioned.
Juniper was already waiting for me.
When she saw me arrive, she eagerly pulled a guy over. "Let me introduce you. This is Aaron Hill. He's the top student in computer science at his university."
"He's really good, quite well-known in the industry. Many big companies are competing to hire him."
Aaron nodded, his tone flat but with an obvious sense of superiority. "You're Sophia? I've heard of you for a while, but it's all bad reputation."
"I haven't heard of you though." I looked at him with contempt. "Young man, you still need to work harder."
Aaron frowned, his eyes disdainful. "Sophia, do you even know how to code as a housewife?"
"I won't go easy on you just because you're a woman. Don't cry when you lose."
Juniper also pointed at me, her tone mocking. "Sophia, I advise you to give up now. I can go easy on you if you have a good attitude and let you suffer less."
I looked at her coldly and said sarcastically, "Who wins and who loses is still uncertain. You're laughing so happily now, be careful you won't even be able to cry later. I'm more worried about you - will you back out when you lose?"
"How could I back out!" Juniper was eager to declare, patting her chest to promise, "I keep my word. If I lose, I'll apologize obediently and definitely won't go back on it!"
I tapped the phone in my pocket. "Let's start."
"Wait." Juniper called Amelia to come watch the show.
Amelia arrived quickly, wearing a gentle white dress. Her face showed just the right amount of concern. She walked to Juniper's side and asked softly, "Juniper, Sophia and we are family after all. Isn't this not quite right?"
She said she was worried about me, but her eyes were full of schadenfreude. She was clearly here to watch me make a fool of myself too.
Juniper patted her hand and said with a smile, "Amelia, don't worry. With Aaron here, Sophia will definitely lose. Just wait for her to apologize to you!"
Aaron opened his computer, skillfully pulled up the programming software, and looked at me with contempt. "Do you even know what software to use to write code?"
I didn't say anything, just silently opened my computer, opened the software, and my fingers started tapping on the keyboard.
Juniper and Amelia stood beside Aaron, occasionally leaning over to look, their faces full of smugness. They seemed to have already foreseen victory.
Aaron opened his computer, opened the game, and looked at me with contempt. "Do you know how to download this software? Do you need me to help you?"
I didn't say anything, just silently opened my computer and downloaded the game.
After I finished downloading the game and everything was ready, we started.
Aaron's speed at breaking through levels was fast. In just this short time, he had already solved a third of them.
At some point, many people had gathered around. When they saw Aaron, they couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
Juniper was even more smug, turning her head from time to time to mock me. "Sophia, you're so slow. Do you even know how to do this? I think you should just give up early and stop wasting time here."
I couldn't be bothered with her and focused on breaking through the levels on my computer.
Time passed bit by bit. The discussion around gradually quieted down, and many people noticed my computer, their eyes full of surprise.
Someone couldn't help but say quietly, "I didn't expect this woman to be so good. She's breaking through faster than that guy next to her."
When Juniper heard this, her face immediately darkened. She glared at that person and scolded, "Don't talk nonsense. Sophia knows nothing about this. How could she break through so fast?"
"Aaron is the professional one. Sophia can't compare to him at all. We'll definitely be the winners in the end."
That person, after being yelled at by her, didn't dare say anything more and just silently watched the computer screen.
I went through smoothly and was the first to break through all the levels. With some time left, I looked over at Aaron out of boredom.
He looked troubled, his hands not moving, apparently stuck on a level he couldn't get past.
After another ten minutes or so, time was up, and Aaron still had more than ten levels left.