Filed to story: That Campus Prince Is a Girl
Still holding the tongs, Bradley flipped the chicken wings without missing a beat. “No appetite?”
“It’s fine.” Cameron then recalled Eddie’s absence. “Where’s Eddie?”
“With his girlfriends,” Bradley replied.
Cameron nearly choked upon hearing this.
Pearl purred contentedly at their feet.
Soon, the beef started sizzling. Bradley served the first slice to Cameron.
“Thanks.” Cameron reciprocated with another piece.
The chef’s signature marinade was exceptional.
Cameron tilted her head thoughtfully. “Brad, the chef is pretty good. You paid highly for him, right?”
Bradley nodded. “Yeah. You’ll be spending more time here. He’s trained in multiple cuisines. You’ll never get bored.”
Cameron asked, “How much per month?”
Bradley paused mid-flip, looked at her for a long moment, then said, “7,000 dollars a month.”
Cameron raised an eyebrow. “Worth it.” She had expected more.
Bradley added, “The chef, plus four animal caretakers-their salaries are all included in the rent. You don’t have to worry about payroll.”
Cameron was surprised, thinking, ‘The rent covered five full-time staff members?’
Now she understood why Eddie had given her that weird look last night. That was just…ridiculous.
“Chicken wings are done,” Bradley said, placing one on Cameron’s plate.
Cameron looked at him. “Brad, maybe you should requote me the rent.” Bradley helped her out so much, and she couldn’t take advant this
Bradley took a bite of beef wrapped in lettuce before sighing, “Alright then. What do you think is fair?”
Cameron thought for a moment. “600 thousand dollars?”
Bradley didn’t hesitate. “Fine.” He handed her a grilled squid. “And here’s your squid.”
Cameron felt relieved. “Okay. 600 thousand dollars a year. Give me your bank details later.”
Bradley asked, “You sure you can afford that?” It wasn’t pocket change.
Cameron nodded. “Yeah.”
“Where’d you get it?” Bradley narrowed his eyes slightly.
Cameron smiled, “Tutoring Xander and doing a few other things.”
Bradley smiled, “Well then. With how fast you earn money, you can afford Pearl.”
Cameron chuckled, “If I couldn’t, I’d have to find Pearl a new owner or send it to a zoo,
At that, Pearl let out a whine, then nudged Cameron’s ankle gently with its fluffy head.
Cameron stroked Pearl’s head. “Don’t worry, I can take care of you for now.”
Pearl let out a contented growl before settling back onto the sun-warmed grass.
“It’s Pearl’s fortunate to have you,” Bradley smiled.
If Pearl had stayed with Samuel, it would have been reduced to a mere tool for violence. And once Samuel got into trouble, Pearl’s fate would have been sealed. But with Cameron, that wasn’t going to happen.
But with Cameron, that wasn’t going to happen.
Cameron was straightforward. Her connections were the roommates from Room 316.
Cameron shrugged slightly. “It’s just fate.”
That fateful day, she could have chosen to put Pearl down. But Pearl was no more responsible for Samuel’s crimes than a sword would be for its wielder’s murders. Life, in all its forms, deserved preservation.
They were halfway through barbecue when Bradley’s phone buzzed.
It was a WhatsApp message from Elijah: [Hey Brad, where are you? You’re not home?]
Elijah had bought a house in Noble Vista partly because Cameron and Bradley lived there. But now, Cameron didn’t come back.
A familiar loneliness crept over Elijah. His parents had always been busy since his childhood. He and his sister were basically raised by the butter.
His sister had gone abroad for high school. Most of the time, it was just Elijah at home. Even with servants everywhere, he still felt alone.
There were days when the only way to see his parents was to go to the hospital. And even then, they barely had time to chat before rushing off again.
The past two weeks since moving to Noble Vista had actually been pretty good for Elijah. Being around Cameron made him feel relaxed. Even when Xander was being annoying, it was somehow nice. But that happiness vanished so quickly.
Elijah had spent the entire day reading in the villa, feeling bored and lonely. He should have been used to this kind of life, but Cameron’s sudden absence hit harder than expected. It was so weird.
Bradley put down his fork and replied: [Yeah. What’s up, Eli?]
Elijah replied almost immediately: [Just bored. You and Cameron aren’t around anymore.]
Bradley was surprised, thinking, ‘What? Elijah felt bored? Wasn’t he always buried in textbooks?’
Bradley chuckled, glancing at Cameron, “It seems that everyone gets bored without you at Noble Vista.”
Bradley had been busy last week, but both Elijah and Xander were too preoccupied to bother him. Cameron was gone, and suddenly, they remembered Bradley’s existence.
Cameron glanced at Bradley’s screen. “It’s Elijah?”/
She thought, ‘We haven’t known each other for yery long. How did they usually spend their weekends before this?’
Bradley nodded, smiling, “I bet Austin is bored too.”
Austin is
Cameron shook her head. “Austin isn’t just bored. He’s having a rough time at Fraser Villa.”
Bradley nodded, not pressing further.
Cameron didn’t offer more details either,
Bradley replied to Elijah: [You can go out and explore if you’re bored. The night view outside Noble Vista is actually nice. I’m tied up right now do yo tomorrow at school.]
Elijah: [So you haven’t seen Cameron either?]
Bradley stared at the message. Then he burst out laughing and said to Cameron, “Eli is just using me to get info on you. Shall I tell him?”
He didn’t mind Elijah, who always kept boundaries. It wasn’t a problem if he came over.
Cameron shrugged. “If you’re fine with it, I don’t mind.”
Bradley contemplated for a few seconds before saying, “Forget it. Let’s not tell Eli. He didn’t dwell on why he felt reluctant to inform Elijah.
Cameron nodded. After all, this was Bradley’s estate, so the decision was his to make.
Bradley replied to Elijah: [Yeah, I haven’t seen him either. Maybe he’s just busy?)
The message only deepened Elijah’s unease. He thought, ‘What if something happened to Cameron? After all, he had attempted suicide before. And now he’d vanished from Noble Vista without warning…
Elijah immediately dialed Cameron’s number.
No sooner had Bradley set his phone down than Cameron’s
“Elijah is calling me,” Cameron said, glancing at the screen.
Bradley noticed how Cameron addressed Elijah and frowned slightly, but he just gave a slight nod for Cameron to answer.
Cameron picked up, putting it on speaker. “Hey, Elijah.”
“Cameron, where are you right now?” Elijah’s voice was cautious.
“I’m out right now. What’s up?”
“Nothing, I just wanted to check in. Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, Elijah. Don’t worry. I’ll be back at school tomorrow night.”
