2024-09-10 08:23:41Before lunch, news of Tedmond accepting Kyle’s challenge had spread throughout the school. Everyone was talking about it, and it even reached the ears of his ex-girlfriend. She and his former siblings were eagerly anticipating the event.
They were seated in the cafeteria since it was lunchtime but not yet 2 PM.
“That bastard is going to show us how useless he is again,” Max sneered, gesturing with his hand and smirking. “He doesn’t even have great stamina, let alone the ability to win.”
Maxine chuckled. “He’s always been stupid. I’ll make another video of his embarrassment for my vlog.”
Lisa had the brightest smile on her face. “I’m so glad I chose you, Max,” she purred. “He was such a pain in the ass.”
Just then, Tedmond walked past them, catching the attention of many, including Lisa. The moment she saw him, a disgusted look appeared on her face.
‘Why is he so neatly dressed?’ she thought, scanning him from head to toe and noticing his new clothes and shoes. ‘Where did he get the money to buy those?’
Everyone else began to murmur, making sure that no empty seats were near them.
Tedmond paid no attention to the whispers and headed towards a group of four males sitting at a table. It was thirty minutes before 2 PM, and he still hadn’t formed his team.
When he reached the table, the four males, all dressed in nerdy outfits with large glasses, looked isolated from the others, like a bunch of nerds forced to do assignments for their classmates.
“Hello,” Tedmond said.
His voice drew their attention, and they looked up at him, their eyes widening in surprise.
“Oh, hello,” one of them replied, nervously fiddling with the bottle of water in his hands.
“Can I sit?” Tedmond asked.
“Sure!” they all chimed in unison, as if they’d been waiting for him to ask.
Tedmond knew all four of them from high school, though they hadn’t spoken much. Now, they were all freshmen at the same college. The four had been best friends since childhood and had never separated.
“Are you here to ask us to be your teammates for the basketball match?” Liam asked, the one who had first replied.
“If that’s the case,” Noah chimed in before Tedmond could respond, “then yes.”
“Definitely yes,” Oliver, the third one, added.
“Count me in,” James, the fourth one, said. “Do you know how long we’ve wanted you on our team?”
A smile crossed Tedmond’s face. He had approached them for that exact reason. These four were the best players on their high school basketball team. Even though it was a community school, they had won a few medals, though they weren’t very well-known.
They had seen Tedmond play basketball once and had asked him to join their team, but he had declined because he needed to work part-time to afford college.
“That’s exactly why I’m here,” Tedmond confirmed. “I’m surprised you agreed, considering I turned you down years ago.”
“That was nothing,” Liam said. “We’re more than happy to team up with you.”
“Thanks for reaching out,” Oliver added.
“We’re really glad,” Noah chimed in.
“We’ll be there by 2 PM,” James said. “We’ll make sure that rich kid eats his words. He called us losers, but he’ll regret it.”
Tedmond felt a bit out of place, considering he was now part of the “rich kids” group. “Thanks. I’ll see you on the court.” With that, he rose and left the cafeteria, leaving smiles on the faces of his new teammates.
“This is your chance to get the necklace,” Max told Lisa, frowning at the fact that there were still people willing to talk to Tedmond. “Make sure you get it from him.”
As Tedmond walked past, Lisa followed right after. Sensing that he was being followed, Tedmond changed course and headed toward the men’s restroom instead of his class as originally planned.
Seeing his direction, Lisa called out to him.
“Ted!” she yelled, running after him and blocking his path.
He glared down at her, raising an eyebrow, waiting for her to try and manipulate him like she had so many times before.
“Stop walking,” she said.
“What do you want, sister-in-law?” he asked, intentionally using the title to mock her.
Her eyes flickered with fake concern. “I was wondering where you slept last night,” she began. “I had no idea you’d been thrown out like that. If you need a place, you can stay at my old apartment. I’ll help you, out of the love we once shared. I know you still love me, so I’ll let you stay there until the rent I paid runs out.”
His glare intensified. “I don’t need your fake help.” He tried to walk past her, but she grabbed his arm.
“Stop being stubborn!” she shouted, her patience wearing thin. “You dared to accept Kyle’s challenge! Aren’t you terrified of being a slave for the rest of your life? I’m trying to help you, and you still won’t listen. This is why I left you.”
He pulled his arm free, fists clenching. Just yesterday, she’d said she left him because he was too poor, but now she was blaming his stubbornness.
“What I do with my life is none of your business!” he snapped. “Don’t ever talk to me again.”
Her teeth clenched. If it weren’t for the necklace, she wouldn’t have bothered clinging to him like this. But she hid her frustration. If she could get that necklace, she would be fully acknowledged by the Griffin family.
“If you don’t want the apartment, how about giving me something to remember you by?” she suggested. “Something I can wear all the time, like a necklace.”
She was trying to use his past feelings for her to get the necklace, but all he felt looking at her now was disgust. It made him wonder why he had ever liked her.
Just then, three males walked out of the restroom, and Tedmond smirked. “Why would a married woman want to remember her ex? Do you still want me as your boyfriend, even though you’re married to my brother?” he asked loudly, catching the attention of the other guys.
Lisa bit her lip. “Of course n...”
“Look behind you,” Tedmond said, cutting her off. “Don’t you dare speak to me again or call me ‘Ted.’ You’re not qualified to call me that. And tell Max that whatever he wants, he’ll never get.”
She glanced back, and the blood drained from her face when she saw the group of males. Tedmond took the opportunity to leave, while she scrambled to explain herself, trying to prevent any rumors from spreading.
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Kyle stood grinning on the court, his teammates gathered behind him. A crowd had gathered to watch the game, eager to see how it would play out. Kyle could hardly wait for the moment he would crush Tedmond.“Isn’t he coming?” Kyle asked impatiently. Tedmond was two minutes late. “Don’t tell me he backed out at the last minute. Maybe he couldn’t find a team.”His teammates snickered.“He must’ve run home,” one of them said, shaking his head. “Oh wait, he doesn’t even have a home to run to.”The others burst out laughing.“He better not have backed out,” Kyle stated. “We should find him.”Just as one of Kyle’s teammates offered to search for Tedmond, he appeared with his four friends. They were dressed in matching uniforms, their hair slicked back, looking like college heartbreakers. Tedmond wore an expressionless look as he stood a few feet away from Kyle.“Here I am,” Tedmond said. “What made you think I fled?”Kyle’s lips curled. “Eager to be a slave, aren’t you?”“Not really. I coul
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The crowd went silent when they heard Tedmond’s words. Who would have thought the arrogant Kyle would lose to the so-called loser of college and have to become his slave?“We made a deal,” Tedmond muttered. “You can’t go back on it. From now on, you’ll listen to me and do whatever I want.”Kyle’s teeth gritted. He had never been this humiliated in his entire life.“Do it!” the crowd yelled."A deal’s a deal—it must be upheld!""Don’t back out now!"Kyle’s eyes darted to Max, who shook his head, before turning back to Tedmond.“Master,” Kyle said, forcing the words out in a barely audible whisper.“I can’t hear you,” Tedmond taunted.“Master!” Kyle yelled, his body trembling slightly as embarrassment overwhelmed him.Tedmond’s lips curled into a satisfied smile. “Now that you’ve called me master and have become my slave, go get me a milkshake,” he ordered.Kyle’s teammates looked on in surprise, but Kyle turned to one of them.“Go get the milkshake like he asked,” he ordered.The teamm
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“How dare you talk about my mother like that?” Tedmond demanded, pinning Max against the table.No matter how much they had talked about him, he hadn’t retaliated, but today they had gone too far. No one could talk about his mother now. That might have been possible in the past, but not anymore.“What are you doing?” Maxine questioned. “How dare you hit your elder brother?”Glaring back at her, Tedmond snarled, “You think of him as my elder brother now, don’t you? Why didn’t you say something when I was being insulted?” He released Max and stepped closer to Maxine.Maxine trembled but stood her ground. ‘How can that bastard get so strong in just a day?’ she wondered. However, she quickly regained her composure.“Why are you doing this to him when he just asked if you could afford to eat at the restaurant?!” Maxine yelled, switching the topic as fast as she could to make herself look less bad. “We all know you’ve been kicked out of the family without a penny! How can you afford to eat
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As soon as Tedmond finished counting, the others hadn't had time to react when the door of the restaurant swung open. A man in a tailored creamy suit hurried in, followed by three others, with sweat dripping down his forehead.Everyone’s gaze turned to the man who had just walked in, and the security guards froze in their tracks.“What is going on?” Max demanded, glaring at the manager. “Throw him out!”Blood drained from the manager’s face as he stared at the man. “He really came!” he yelled. “The owner of the restaurant is really here! How is that possible? I messed up!”Max and Maxine’s eyes widened in disbelief. Even when their father had tried to speak to the owner of the restaurant, he was told to book an appointment. Yet Tedmond had managed to call him with a single phone call.Lisa glanced at Tedmond and noticed the smile on his lips.“He really came?” murmurs began to spread.“The owner arrived in ten minutes, just like he said.”“Who the hell is that guy?”“How can he call t
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A glint of satisfaction crossed Tedmond’s face when he saw the look of astonishment in the eyes of the Griffins. He had intentionally called Max dumb, knowing that Max hated being called that, even though he was.Max was taken aback and hurt flashed in his eyes for a few seconds. His lips parted as he searched for words, but he couldn’t find any. After a few moments, he finally spoke up.“Why do you think I am dumb?” Max questioned hastily. “I only said what needed to be said.”Tedmond grinned. “No, you didn’t,” he replied. “Xinca doesn’t need to put others down to get ahead or stand out.”Harold didn’t like the fact that his son was being called dumb. From how things were going, he had a feeling they might lose this opportunity, so he stepped in.“I am sorry for my son’s rudeness, President,” Harold said. “He didn’t mean to offend you.”Harold gestured for Max to apologize, but before that could happen, Tedmond spoke up.“Are you sure you know what your son did?” Tedmond asked.Harol
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CHAPTER 232
Silence filled the room. No one had expected the grandmother to offer the position of heir to Tedmond so casually—just a few words, and everything changed.Max’s eyes widened in disbelief, his face draining of color. He knew his grandmother suffered from amnesia, but he hadn’t imagined she’d go this far—handing over his rightful place to someone like Tedmond.Not only was she willing to give away everything he had worked for, she was also casting aside her own grandson.Lisa was just as stunned, her mouth hanging open. She had never imagined this would be how Max lost everything.“You can’t do that, Grandma!” Max suddenly shouted, rising from his seat. His face was livid. “How could you give my position to him like that?!”Even Tedmond, the man at the center of it all, looked taken aback. He blinked, his lips parting slightly. Sure, he knew Grandma Vivian liked him now—thanks to the amnesia—but he hadn’t expected this. Not in a million years.“That’s right!” Lisa added quickly, standi
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Max’s head snapped to the side from the force of the slap. A red handprint bloomed on his cheek, and his eyes flew wide with shock.Tedmond's brows lifted in surprise, his gaze settling on Max. Then, slowly, a satisfied smirk curled his lips.All he had to do was provoke Max into cursing him, and the slap would follow.He was a genius.Lisa, still stunned, immediately rose to her feet, her eyes darting to the source of the slap.“Who the hell is that bitch who dared to touch—” Her words cut off abruptly when she saw who it was. Her face instantly paled. “Grandmother…?”Hearing the word, Max’s head snapped toward the direction of the voice to confirm if it was truly her.There she stood, tall and imposing, a deep frown creasing her elegant face.Vivian Griffin. Max’s grandmother.“Oh—Grandmother!” Max quickly stood up, rubbing his cheek. “What did I do to deserve that slap?”Vivian's eyes darkened at his question.The look alone made Max take a step back. He didn’t understand what he h
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“Is this supposed to be a restaurant?” Tedmond asked himself, his brows furrowing. The place looked old and dirty. The walls were cracked, and some parts were black from dirt. The sign above the door was broken. One of the letters didn’t light up, and the rest blinked like it could go off at any time.The front door was small and dusty. The wood looked weak, like it could break if someone pushed hard. A broken doorbell was hanging by the side, and it didn’t have a button. There were two trash bins near the door. One was open, and a bad smell came from it.Old posters were stuck on the wall, but they were ripped and dirty. The windows had marks all over them, and the blinds inside were hanging the wrong way. “What is this place?” he said, looking at his phone again to check the address.The address was the same as the one Max had sent him, indicating that he hadn’t gone to the wrong place. But no matter how much he thought about it, the place he was standing in front of wasn’t where
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Neil’s eyes darted to Tedmond, brows furrowing. Tedmond had told him to stick close to Max and make sure he didn’t go near Persis—but now Max was heading straight toward them, and Neil hadn’t even noticed until it was too late.“Tedmond is going to kill me,” Neil thought.He shot to his feet and rushed after Max, grabbing his hand. “Where are you going?” he asked, shaking his head in disbelief.Max glanced at Neil, then looked away. “You should go back to your seat, Alicia. I don’t want to trouble you too much.”Neil sighed and let him go. In three seconds, he was back in his seat while Max reached the table where Tedmond sat.Tedmond looked up as a shadow loomed over him, only to find Max standing there. Without a word, Max pulled out a chair and sat down next to Lisa like it was the most natural thing in the world. His expression wasn’t angry—just unreadable.Finn, still cleaning up the mess he made earlier while staff looked on, glanced up at the table. When he saw Max, a frown cre
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Tedmond looked at Finn. He had just arrived on campus and hadn’t even done anything yet, and still, he was bombarded by Finn—someone who clearly had no idea how to read the room before acting.Giving Finn a blank stare, Tedmond genuinely wondered if he was just stupid. Not only did Finn fail to read the atmosphere, but he also just said the most ridiculous thing ever.This wasn’t the first time Tedmond had eaten in the cafeteria. It wasn’t even the second.The only reason he had avoided the cafeteria in the past was because it was one of the main places Max and his friends had humiliated him the most.He hadn’t wanted them to do something to his food and make him eat it.So, he’d stayed away—not because he couldn’t afford the meals that only cost a few bucks—but to protect himself.“What the hell are you talking about now?” Persis asked, frowning as she looked at Finn. “Don’t tell me you came to join the table just to say that?”She was already irritated that Lisa was at the table, ev
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Persis looked at Lisa, the thought weighing on her. If Lisa had overheard their conversation, then she would’ve known that Tedmond was the one Persis had called—but it didn’t seem like she did.Lisa asked if Persis had called Neil. It felt more like she had asked intentionally, to find out who Persis would say she called.Since Persis remained silent, Lisa looked at her, eyes dark with anger. Persis hadn’t said a word after the question—just stared at Lisa with a slight frown, like she couldn’t even be bothered to respond.That alone was enough to set Lisa off. But she held back. She needed answers.If Persis was close to Alicia, then this was her only shot. Her only chance to find out why Alicia kept dragging her into one mess after another.Alicia had already told the rest of the family about her so-called plans with Hino. And if that wasn’t enough, she’d somehow gotten Evelyn to slap her in front of everyone.Since that day, nothing had been the same. The family had grown distant,
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Max regretted mentioning his brother the moment Neil asked that question. He hadn’t even adequately told his new friends that Tedmond was his brother. He’d only dropped subtle hints, letting them piece it together themselves. It wasn’t like he was proud of the connection.He hated the fact that he and Tedmond shared the same blood. He’d even taken multiple DNA tests, hoping—praying—that the results would prove otherwise. But the papers always said the same thing:They were related.‘I didn’t want to tell Alicia about Tedmond,’ he thought, sneaking a glance at Neil. ’It would’ve been better if she found out on her own, in her own time.’Neil raised an eyebrow, watching Max spiral into silence over a simple question. “What’s with the sudden mood drop? Did I say something wrong?”Max blinked, snapping out of his thoughts. “No, you’re good. It’s just... complicated.”Neil leaned back, folding his arms. “Complicated how? I just said you never told me you had a brother. I was curious about
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As soon as the car began moving, Tedmond glanced out the window. He hadn’t just chosen to let the men deal with Ottis and the others—he had also left without seeing how badly they would get beaten. Nor did he try to use the situation to his advantage.Letting Ottis get beaten wasn’t enough—not after everything Ottis had done to him and the way he had insulted his mother.Shaking his head, Tedmond snapped out of his thoughts. There were still plenty of chances to deal with Ottis. This was only the beginning.Everyone who had disrespected his mother was going to get a taste of their own medicine—and he wasn’t going to let any of them off quickly.At that moment, his phone began to ring. Pulling it from his pocket, he glanced at the caller ID. The name read Persis.Seeing her name, Tedmond immediately answered the call. Persis had planned to attend afternoon classes, and she had gone earlier because her extra class started before the general one.“Hello…” Her voice came through the speak
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Not knowing what to say to them anymore, Tedmond decided not to bother trying to convince them. Ottis had dragged them into this mess when he could’ve simply handed over the money.Tedmond tucked his phone back into his pocket, calm as ever. “If you’re so confident, then come at me. Don’t hesitate now.” His gaze swept across them, daring. “And when you’re writhing on the floor, try not to beg too much. It’s pathetic.”That was the last straw.“GET HIM!” Remi roared.The thugs charged at Tedmond like a pack of wild dogs—fists clenched, eyes blazing with rage.But just as they closed in—CRASH!The ceiling burst open, and masked men dropped down like shadows. The walls cracked open, revealing hidden panels from which more men in black silently stepped out. The front door slammed shut as two more guards entered, locking the exits. Even the corners of the floor opened up, and more men rose from hidden compartments.Everyone froze.Even Tedmond was stunned. He knew help would come—but he h
