Chapter 18

Caught in the Act

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Eric realized his karma had finally caught up with him. Only this time, it walked straight into his office dressed as a rodent exterminator.

"Hi," Allen replied. He said it so casually that it seemed he didn't have any emotions at all, not even a hint of surprise when he saw Eric. He stood by the doorway, wearing an exterminator's gear while holding some tools meant for rat murder, and looking way too good for someone about to go to war with rodents.

"A–Allen?!" Eric squeaked. He was entirely caught off guard.

Allen walked straight into Eric's office and stopped right in front of his desk. Without a word, he pulled something from his pocket—a calling card from the exterminator agency, complete with his name printed neatly under the title "Rodent Specialist".

"I'm here for the rats," Allen said flatly.

Eric did not respond. His entire brain seemed to shut down the instant he saw Allen standing in front of him. This man hadn't contacted him for four whole days, and now he suddenly appeared in front of him...as a pest control expert?

I think my brain's glitching right now that needs a hard reboot! Eric screamed internally. He's certain his mental system had blue-screened.

Allen noticed Eric's weird behavior, of course. That's why he leaned down slightly and knocked on the surface of Eric's desk, as if checking whether Eric's sanity was still intact. "Are you listening?"

"Huh?!" Eric jolted so hard he practically launched himself out of his chair. "Rats?!"

"Yes." Allen's tone was so neutral that no one on earth could've guessed whether he had emotions at all. Just as the first time they met, his expression was so enigmatic, and his sentences were terse, that Eric was having a hard time guessing what was on his mind, if anything was going on at all. "Unless there are no rats here," Allen added dryly. "Then, I can go now."

"Wait a minute!" Eric yelped. At least, he managed to say a word before Allen decided to leave. But for some reason, he sounded like someone trying to speak after being unplugged and plugged back in. "Why are you...here?"

"I told you, didn't I?" Allen's brows pulled together just enough to form the tiniest frown. "I'm here for the rats. This is my job." Then, with absolutely no warning, he added, "Unless you don't like me, then the agency can send someone else."

"No! I like you!" Eric blurted out so fast he practically tripped over his own words. Then, right after he said that, his brain finally caught up and realized it sounded so wrong it might cause another confusion. That's why he immediately corrected himself while waving his hands like a malfunctioning machine and said, "I mean—I like you for the job!"

Allen blinked once, unamused. "Right."

For some reason, the way Allen emphasized the word "Right" shot straight through Eric's conscience like a fresh wound sprinkled with salt.

"Yep..." Eric thought miserably. "... he's still mad at me."

Although Eric desperately wanted to clear up the giant, festering misunderstanding between them from their last conversation four days prior, the rat crisis had to take priority. Priorities, unfortunately. So he had no choice but to escort Allen to the stockroom, where Allen would be doing the actual work...and where Eric would be supervising the job while silently dying inside from pure, unfiltered guilt.

God...this is so awkward! I just want to disappear right now, or melt into the floor! Wait, can I jump off the building? No—no, I'm not ready to die yet!

Meanwhile, Allen definitely noticed how Eric kept a whole kilometer of space between them. He wanted to say, "I'm not mad at you," but every time he opened his mouth, something entirely different came out. And somehow it always sounded sarcastic. Talking to people in person clearly wasn't Allen's strongest suit. He's pretty sure at this point, Eric is currently on overdrive from overthinking how angry he was about what happened to them the last time they talked over the chat.

But for now, he had to do the job he came there for, and that was none other than the rats...

Not Eric.

"Here we are..."

Eric led Allen into the stockroom, where the young man immediately went into full "exterminator mode." He scanned the ceilings, peeked into every corner, and even crouched to inspect the tiniest cracks where the rats might have sneaked in. Despite his thorough inspection, Allen came up empty-handed. There wasn't a single rat entry in sight.

Then suddenly, a large rat scuttled out from under Allen's feet and made a beeline straight for Eric.

"Ahhhh!" Eric screamed, jumping back so fast he nearly toppled over a stack of boxes.

Fortunately, Allen's reflexes were fast. He yanked a pen from his pocket and hurled it like a seasoned dart player. It quickly struck the rat square on the head, pinning it to the floor. The rodent squirmed helplessly for a moment before going still, while Eric froze in place, gaping in stunned awe.

Eric accidentally glanced at Allen's face. He could clearly see that something had changed the moment Allen threw that pen and killed the rat in an instant. This wasn't the Allen he thought he knew. The guy in front of him had transformed into...something else entirely. And those movements earlier? They were definitely not normal for an ordinary rat exterminator. He had only seen it in movies, where a simple ballpoint pen could be used as a lethal weapon. But now, he'd seen it in real life, being executed by Allen.

His previous impression of Allen as a bouncer or bodyguard suddenly changed.

Now, he thought, "Was he a hired killer before?!"

Allen didn't like being called a hired killer. He preferred the more professional term "hitman." But, of course, that was all in the past. These days, he preferred the much safer title: the exterminator.

So, Eric wasn't entirely wrong about Allen being a hired killer. Still, he was this close to the truth behind Allen's previous' profession.' Of course, Eric quickly dismissed the thought as his imagination running wild, probably fueled by the endless action and suspense movies he'd been binge-watching in recent weeks.

"Looks like someone brought rats into your office to destroy the documents," Allen said.

"What?!"

"There are no entry points for rats here," Allen said while his eyes did a quick scan around the room. "The ceilings are solid, and no rat in the world could penetrate these concrete walls. So...if they didn't come in on their own, someone must have brought them here to destroy the documents."

"What the...who the hell would do such a thing?! Eric exclaimed.

"That's what you need to find out," Allen said calmly. Then, he sets down his tools to check for any rats that might still be lurking. He scooped the rat he'd already killed into a sack and added, "If I were you, I'd install CCTV here and launch an investigation into what happened."

"O-okay..." Eric mumbled, feeling simultaneously impressed, overwhelmed, and completely out of his depth because of what they had discovered. Right after that, he let Allen do his work, choosing to hover awkwardly by the doorway and just watch. Allen, on the other hand, did a spotless job, such as tidying up the knocked-over cardboard boxes, setting traps, and restoring the stockroom as if he were auditioning for a home makeover show.

By the time Allen was done, there were ten rats in the sack. Ten, and they are all dead. Eric didn't know whether to be impressed...or terrified.

"Thank you for your help...." Eric said, a little shyly.

Allen didn't respond. He just started packing up his tools and headed for the door. That alone made Eric feel so uneasy that his chest finally reached maximum capacity, and he panicked, reaching out to stop him.

"Allen, wait!"

Allen stopped mid-step and turned to face Eric.

"What? Do you need anything else?" he asked.

Eric swallowed hard. He had no idea where to start or how to even begin. A part of him feared he'd say the wrong thing, hurt Allen again, or make the misunderstanding even worse. He doubted whether he even knew how to relate to someone on an emotional level. But he also learned one thing: nothing would change if he didn't finally speak what was truly in his heart.

So the young man took a deep breath and tried to calm the storm in his chest before he spoke the words.

"Look...I know you're mad at me, and I'm sorry!" his words somehow tumbled a little, but he continued anyway. "I was...I was insensitive, and I didn't mean to cause you any upset. The truth is, it's none of my business who you are, or—" He waved his hands helplessly, as if trying to physically wrangle the right words into place. "—and, well... it's true that I like you. Out of all the people who could have agreed to be my fake lover, you were the only one who said yes. So please...please don't hate me!"

But then he nearly continued with "Because without you, how can I escape my marriage?!" but he swallowed it down so fast he almost choked on his own secret.

After Eric blurted out the words, he came to a complete stop. His chest heaved like he'd just run a marathon. Meanwhile, Allen just stared at him. Allen blinked once, then, in his usual emotionless tone, he said:

"I just realized, you talk a lot when you're panicking."

"Eh? I did?" Eric blinked, completely unsure whether he should be concerned, embarrassed, worried, or mildly horrified. Despite that, Allen's expression didn't change. Instead, the guy took a step forward, while Eric, in full panic mode, backed up without thinking until his body collided with the wall. Eric instantly froze. Only then did he realize he'd cornered himself, and the obstacle in front of him wasn't just a wall.

It was Allen.

Then, for some reason, Allen placed one hand against the wall, effectively trapping Eric in place, and stared at him with an intensity that could make even a grown man like Eric completely melt on the spot.

Eric's heart nearly leapt out of his chest the moment his eyes met Allen's.

Why is he looking at me like that? Am I about to get scolded?

Then, Allen suddenly spoke, his voice low but clear. "I'm not angry with you. Consider that whatever misunderstanding we had that day was just part of your training. That way, our fake lover scheme will be more...realistic."

But Eric couldn't shake his doubts. This is not how fake lovers are supposed to act. Not like this!

"Then..." Eric looked away because he was starting to feel confused and uncomfortable with the unfolding situation. "Why are you so close to me now? Is this...still part of what you call...training?"

"Sort of," Allen replied calmly. "Besides, cornering you like this isn't part of the boundary agreement, right? I didn't touch you, and I certainly didn't kiss you."

"Kissing is forbidden!" Eric blurted out, but he still avoided staring into Allen's eyes. "And don't ever think about trying that here! Especially here!"

Allen's lips twitched ever so slightly, creating the faintest hint of a smirk he could ever produce.

And that alone made Eric's heart skip a beat.

Meanwhile, Eric's secretary had secretly peeked into the stockroom, and what she saw made her freeze in place. The rat exterminator was...flirting with their boss? And she even caught words like "kiss" and "touch."

She clapped a hand over her mouth in shock before quickly backing away. Then, she pulled out her phone and dialed a number. And that person who picked it up was none other than Eric's soon-to-be fiancée...

Annette.

"Lady Annette!" she said, taking a deep breath as if preparing herself for the gravity of the news. "There's something you need to know! And I swear, you won't believe this—but your fiancé...Sir Eric has a male lover!"

A long, stunned pause followed after that shocking news, and then a sharp, loud "What....?!" suddenly erupted from the other end of the call.