CHAPTER 29: CAUGHT IN THE ACT OF STALKING

"Uncleeeee!!!"

Egypt’s voice rang down the hallway as she ran straight toward Alpheus with her arms wide open.

He barely had time to react before she threw her arms around his legs, hugging him tight and looking up with a huge, cheeky grin.

Paris trailed just behind, much quieter and more reserved. She stopped beside him without a word, offering only a small, shy smile.

Alpheus laughed softly and gave both girls a playful ruffle on the head.

"So... were you two good in class today? No causing trouble for your teacher?" he asked, crouching down to their level with a teasing smile.

"Teacher said we were super good today, Uncle! She said it was kinda surprising!" Egypt replied proudly, puffing out her chest like she’d accomplished something big.

Alpheus couldn’t help but let out a chuckle.

"She only said that to you," Paris mumbled, folding her arms with a small frown. "Don’t drag me into it."

He blinked, a little surprised that Paris had spoken up—but then burst out laughing at her dry honesty.

They were complete opposites, but both completely adorable in their own way.

----

Meanwhile, Calyx, Alfonso, and Dave could hardly believe what they were seeing.

Even though they were watching from a distance and couldn’t clearly make out the children’s faces, Calyx was certain—they were the same kids he had seen in the picture.

"Wait... is that really Alpheus?" Alfonso asked, pointing toward the man who had his back turned to them.

"You can see it for yourself, can’t you?" Calyx replied dryly, as if the question didn’t even need to be asked.

"So... those kids—are they his?" Alfonso asked again.

Calyx frowned.

"Do they look anything like him?" he said, obviously annoyed. "They don’t resemble him at all. So no, they’re probably not his kids."

Alfonso just laughed at Calyx’s irritated tone.

"Well, excuse me—I can’t see their faces that well from here." Alfonso replied, trying to defend himself.

"Why don’t we just get a little closer?" Dave suggested. "That way, we can actually see the kids properly."

"We can’t do that!" Calyx quickly shot back. "The whole reason we’re hiding here is so Alpheus doesn’t find out we’re stalking him!"

However, what the three of them didn’t realize was that they had already been drawing attention for a while—especially from the other parents who had come to pick up their children.

Many had paused mid-step, casting curious glances their way.

The three men stood out—not just because of their good looks, but also because of the way they were dressed. Their expensive-looking clothes seemed completely out of place in the modest surroundings of the school.

"Do you really think we’ll learn anything just by standing around here like this?" He looked impatient, which made Calyx and Alfonso exchange glances.

"Well then, what’s your brilliant idea?" Alfonso asked, raising an eyebrow.

"My idea?" Dave said with a shrug. "Simple. We walk right up to them."

And with that, he abruptly stepped out from where they were hiding and casually started making his way toward Alpheus and the kids.

Calyx and Alfonso both jumped in shock.

"Hey—what are you doing?!" Calyx hissed, lunging forward.

Without a second thought, the two of them each grabbed one of Dave’s arms, yanking him back before he could get too far.

"Let go of me!" Dave protested, struggling against their grip. "Come on, guys—what’s your problem?!"

"We’re stalking, remember?" Calyx hissed through gritted teeth. "We’re not supposed to get caught!"

They dragged him back behind cover, Dave still grumbling under his breath while they kept a firm grip on him.

"Nothing’s going to happen if we don’t go up to them!" Dave snapped.

"Damn it, Dave! We already know that—but we were supposed to follow them quietly! Honestly, when have you ever not charged in like a bull?!" Alfonso hissed, tightening his grip on Dave’s arm.

But Dave wasn’t backing down. The three of them ended up in a full-blown tug-of-war right there on school grounds, like a bunch of oversized kids.

Their commotion quickly caught the attention of several parents and students, who couldn’t help but stare, wondering if these guys were completely out of their minds.

All their noise didn’t go unnoticed.

From a short distance away, Alpheus turned his head toward the source of the ruckus—and immediately froze.

For a second, he just stood there, stunned at the sight of the three idiots flailing around like they were playing tug-of-war in the middle of the school ground.

But his shock quickly faded, and irritation took over. He hadn’t even realized he was being followed—let alone by these three nosy clowns.

With a heavy sigh, he started walking toward them. The two kids beside him looked up, confused, watching him head toward the trio that looked more like unruly teenagers than grown men.

"Hey, guys!" Alpheus called out sharply, his expression dark.

"You seem to be enjoying yourselves a little too much today. Have you seriously been glued to me all day long? Care to explain why the hell a bunch of assholes like you are here?!"

The three of them slowly turned their heads toward Alpheus, whose face was shadowed by a dangerous scowl.

And all at once, they gulped in unison.

Shock was clearly written on the trio’s faces as they suddenly found themselves face-to-face with the very friend they had just been secretly following moments ago.

Embarrassed, the three of them awkwardly glanced at one another and immediately stopped tugging at each other.

"H-Hey, bro! Good to see you here, haha... We were just, you know, passing by," Alfonso said, forcing a nervous laugh. "Total coincidence, right? We didn’t expect to run into you!"

But Alpheus didn’t say a word. The look on his face was dangerously dark and unreadable.

"H-Haha... the weather’s nice today, huh?" Calyx added. "This place is really relaxing. You should’ve told us you were coming here too, Alpheus. We could’ve, uh, come together or something—ouch!"

Alfonso immediately elbowed Calyx hard, making him wince in pain.

"What the hell are you even saying, Calyx? You’re going to get us in even more trouble!"

"Shut up, man... Look at Alpheus’s face. He looks like he’s going to kill us any second now if we don’t pacify him." Calyx muttered under his breath.

"You. Fucking. Idiots. What. The. Hell. Are. You. Doing. Here?!"

Each word Alpheus spat out was slow and dangerous—like a ticking time bomb ready to explode.

Alfonso and Calyx gulped in unison, feeling the tension in the air rise dramatically.

Meanwhile, Dave was the complete opposite of the two—he just stood off to the side, completely unfazed and relaxed, as if he hadn’t just been caught red-handed.

"Uncle, what does ’You fuckers, what the hell are you doing here?’ mean? Is that some kind of greeting?"