Chapter 378
Chapter 378:
The call cut off suddenly, leaving Neal staring at his phone in disbelief. He exhaled deeply, his hands shaking with frustration. For a moment, he considered throwing the phone across the room.
But then a thought stopped him. If he shattered it, he’d need to buy a new one, which meant spending more money. He stopped himself just in time. Neal looked up at the sky, his thoughts racing. “Two hundred thousand… how am I supposed to come up with that p>
After a brief pause, he picked up his phone again and opened a live-streaming app. His eyes drifted to the fan leaderboard. He clicked on the profile of the top fan, someone named Cutie.
After a brief pause, Neal gathered his thoughts and sent a message to Cutie. “Want to move up the ranks p>
Bonita sat on a bench at school, scrolling through her messages when a notification popped up. She froze, her heart racing. Was this real? Had Neal actually messaged her first?
Without hesitation, she quickly typed back, “Yes p>
Just the thought of playing e-games with him felt like she was spending time together with him. Bonita was more than excited to take part. “Hold on,” Neal’s message popped up. “Do you actually like me?” Bonita’s heart began to race uncontrollably.
What was happening? Why was Neal asking her this out of the blue? Her face flushed immediately, warmth spreading across her cheeks as they turned bright red.
She read Neal’s message over and over, a wave of excitement building inside her.
Not long after, Neal’s second message popped up, demanding, “Come on, answer me p>
“Yes,” Bonita typed back without hesitation.
“Then send me two hundred thousand, and I’ll be with you,” came Neal’s reply.
Your journey begins on gⱯlnσνe𝓁s․com
Bonita’s eyes grew wide with shock. Was this really happening? Was she imagining it? Neal was offering to be with her—for two hundred thousand?
But then, a thought crossed her mind. She didn’t believe Neal would ever be that kind of person.
In his live streams, Neal always made it clear that virtual gifts were not necessary and that he had never asked for money from his fans.
Bonita quickly understood that Neal must be in a difficult situation. Just as she was about to ask him more, her phone was yanked out of her hands.
Turning in surprise, she came face-to-face with Beckett’s stern expression. In an instant, all the romantic thoughts in Bonita’s mind disappeared, replaced by a surge of fear. She trembled uncontrollably, from her head to her toes.
As night fell, the streetlights cast a faint yellow glow across Beckett’s face. One half of his face was bathed in light, while the other remained lost in shadow, giving him a chillingly divided appearance.
He fixed his gaze on Bonita’s phone screen, studying the few sparse lines of her conversation with others. Bonita hadn’t written much, but the exclamation mark in her message spoke volumes about her excitement.
Earlier, from a distance, Beckett had seen her smiling. Her happiness was so contagious that he could almost feel it from where he stood. But now, as he was closer, all he could sense was her fear and panic. Beckett turned his head slowly, dragging his gaze away from the phone screen to Bonita’s face.