CHAPTER 22: 22. FIRST KISS

"Riki! What are you doing? Why are you—" Hannah’s words stuck in her throat. She was so shocked by what she had just seen with her own eyes.

Riki kissed Liz, in front of many people.

What was he thinking?

"Riki..." Liz muttered, still in shock.

Riki’s kiss was just a sweet peck on her lips. But it made Liz feel almost crazy. Her heart was racing so fast that she was afraid Riki could hear it beating so loud at that moment.

"You’re so beautiful, Liz, today or any other day. Don’t listen to the jealous girls who envy you. They think they’re more beautiful than you, but they don’t realize they’re beneath you. Don’t feel insecure about Angeline or anyone else, because you are you. You’re beautiful in your own way." Riki said, then turned to Hannah.

"And you, Hannah, stop bothering me or Liz. There’s no need to pretend to be nice; I know why you’re here. There’s no chance for you to get close to me or Liz. Go away," added Riki.

Hannah’s face turned red at that moment. She didn’t expect Riki to reject her even before she tried.

"W-who would want to get close to you! I just wanted to apologize to Liz for yesterday... oh right! Aren’t you dating Angeline? Why are you kissing Liz now?" Hannah, back to her old ways of looking for others’ faults to cover up her own mistakes.

Riki laughed upon hearing this, "Why are you so easily fooled? Angeline and I were just acting to make you angry. Don’t misunderstand, I no longer have any feelings for you. I just like making you feel embarrassed. And for the live TV broadcast, I did all that to make you feel really stupid for breaking up with me. But the ring I gave to Angeline, it’s just because I have a lot of money. I could even give Liz a similar ring, even a more expensive one."

Hearing that, Hannah clutched her clothes. She was furious and embarrassed at the same time.

Some words formed in her head, but her tongue was too tied to speak them. She felt betrayed, even though she was the one who had betrayed him.

It should be Riki who feels ashamed now, not her.

"So, you’ve been hiding your wealth from Hannah all this time?" Evan asked, also confused by the situation.

Riki nodded confidently, "Of course! I wanted to test her to see if she was the right woman for me, but I was wrong. While I worked hard to fulfill her requests, she cheated on me with Anton. She even humiliated me at the nightclub, and her boyfriend paid people to beat me nearly to death. You should have ended things with me properly if you didn’t want to live a hard life with me; there was no need to betray me like that, Hannah. The diamond ring had to go to Angeline... and Liz, do you want this pink diamond ring too?"

Hannah’s legs went weak as she watched Riki pull the ring box out of his pants pocket. When the box opened, Hannah could see the rarest ring available today, more expensive than Angeline’s diamond ring.

"Riki... this isn’t fair! Why are you making my life difficult, while Angeline and Liz—who aren’t even your girlfriends—get the ring! It should be mine!" Hannah shouted.

Riki’s eyes widened in shock as Hannah suddenly approached Liz and tried to snatch the ring already on her slender finger.

"Give me that ring! You don’t deserve it!"

Hannah, who was about to attack Liz, was immediately stopped by Anton’s shout.

"Enough, Hannah! Don’t make me more embarrassed than this! If you keep this up, it’s better if we just break up," said Anton.

Hannah turned around and chased after Anton, who had already left.

"Anton, wait! Don’t break up with me... no! Please..."

"You’re making me so embarrassed! Don’t come near me again!"

"Don’t leave me, please, darling..."

"Don’t call me that!"

Since everyone’s attention was on the couple, Riki pulled Liz away from there.

They laughed because they felt so silly having to run away like that.

"Riki, stop! Hahaha— I’m so tired."

Finally, they stopped in a quiet place. In the empty hallway of the university building. Since it was still too early, most people were watching Anton and Hannah’s drama outside.

"Hahaha, I feel very satisfied because I embarrassed her," said Riki, leaning his back against the wall and closing his eyes. He was still trying to catch his breath after running away from the crowd.

Liz stood silently, admiring how handsome Riki looked at that moment.

The morning sunlight streaming through the glass window illuminated his handsome face. His black hair was now messy, but it only added to his sexy appeal.

Liz realized that Riki had changed a lot. He was taller and more muscular. His face was more handsome than before, but... maybe that was just Liz’s imagination.

Riki opened his eyes and looked at Liz, who was staring at him in awe.

Liz’s thoughts returned to the moment when Riki suddenly kissed her.

Her cheeks flushed red suddenly. She felt both happy and embarrassed at the same time.

But the daydream was quickly shattered when Riki suddenly pulled her, pressed her against the wall, and trapped Liz with his large body.

"Riki?"

"Do you like the ring?" Riki asked in a nearly whispering tone, sending shivers down Liz’s spine as his deep voice sounded seductive in her ears.

"I... like it."

"I’m glad you like it. And I’m sorry for suddenly kissing you earlier; I did it reflexively. I also felt like I was going crazy at that moment—"

"But I like it."

Riki stopped talking, staring into Liz’s clear, beautiful eyes.

"What?"

"I... like it, the kiss. So— don’t feel guilty. It was my first kiss, and I’m glad I did it with you."

Riki lowered his head until his face was inches from Liz’s.

The girl closed her eyes, but then she heard a whisper in her ear.

"I liked it too, Liz. I hope your first kiss is as beautiful as this memory."

Liz opened her eyes, and suddenly Riki’s lips were on hers.

Riki’s lips were very soft as they pressed against hers. This time, it wasn’t just a small peck on the lips, but a deep and intense kiss.

***

[Your second mission today is to find the right manager for your store and a suitable assistant to help you start your own company.]

[You only have time until tomorrow, and the reward is an office building to start your new company.]

[There is no punishment for failing this mission]

[Good luck!]

Riki smiled at the screen that appeared before him.

He was truly enthusiastic this time. Because if he succeeded in building the company, he would obtain information about the person who had slandered his father in the past. Riki wouldn’t let it go that easily.

Nevertheless, Riki was certain that the person responsible wasn’t just his father’s enemy but also someone close to him. So, there must be several people involved.

"Let’s go to Jobvac," said Evan.

As he had mentioned earlier, there were some courses he needed to retake. That’s why Evan was in the same class as Riki and Liz.

"Jobvac? Is it to find a new manager?" Liz asked.

Evan nodded, "Of course, because the store can’t stay closed for too long. Besides, Jobvac is known for being very strict in selecting the right person. I’m sure they’ll find a good manager for the store."

Evan looked very enthusiastic at that moment.

"Do you want to come along?" asked Riki.

Liz shook her head, "I can’t, I want to arrange my garden again this afternoon. I want to make a mixed flower garden, it sounds fun." she said.

"Do you want to buy various flower seeds from me?" asked Riki.

Liz furrowed her brow in confusion, "Are you selling flower seeds?"

"I’ll give them to you for free, but if you succeed, you have to promote these flower seeds. They’ll be available for purchase at Little Heaven later."

Riki pulled out another light blue box, which also contained small boxes filled with various selected flower seeds.

Liz was very happy to receive them.

"Why didn’t you give me some too?" asked Evan.

"We have to go to Jobvac right away, Evan! You also need to pack your things and move; we have a lot of schedules!"

"Alright, but take it easy, hey!"

Riki and Evan went to Jobvac, a place where people look for good and reliable jobs. In addition to finding good jobs, companies also often hire workers from there.

When they arrived, they were greeted by a woman who then took them to a special room.

Riki looked at the list of people whom the system deemed trustworthy.

The problem was, none of those people were familiar to Riki.

When the woman earlier handed over documents about potential managers she thought were suitable for working at Little Heaven, Riki didn’t see a single face there that matched the list from his system.

"Riki, what about this one? I think he’s decent; just look at all his achievements," said Evan, taking one document to show Riki. However, Riki immediately rejected it.

"No, Evan, none of them match my criteria. Are there any others, ma’am? Give me the entire list." Riki said.

"Alright, sir! But... well, I’ve already selected the best ones here."