System Mission: Seduce the Final Boss [BL]-Chapter 59: No third wheelers

"Uh..."

Now, this was surprising.

The mascot took his head off, revealing a familiar face that Blake was not also not too excited to see.

"Ah, you’re Zlatan..."

Now, it’s not like it was completely unexpected, since Myles let a bit of his true nature out, but, at the same time...

’Does he actually work here? Didn’t he work at that cafe?’

Not like he had that much time to think about it, since Myles pulled Blake back, looking at him.

"How do you know each other?"

"Ah, you see—"

"We had a fun chat at the mall, actually."

Blake frowned, why was he speaking for him? And a little chat made it sound as if they were all buddy-buddy or something.

Fortunately enough, he did not seem to buy it.

With his hand still on Blake’s shoulder, Myles glanced at him.

"Did you meet with him?"

"No? I was just hanging out there with Anthony, then we ran into him. He was the one who talked most of the time, and even followed us."

"You were out with him?"

"You mean Anthony? Does that even matter? What I was saying is that—"

"Anyway," Zlatan cut in, "my shift ends in a bit. We should all have lunch together."

Blake and Myles spoke at the exact same time.

"No."

There wasn’t even a second of hesitation, funnily enough they didn’t even do it on purpose.

Blake crossed his arms, looking him up and down.

It wasn’t just that he didn’t like the idea. He simply stood out way too much with that beauty.

"We’re good."

Zlatan tilted his head slightly, amused more than anything.

"Oh? That’s a shame."

"Not really."

Besides, this wasn’t just about not wanting him around. Blake had a reason to be here. A very specific one. And it didn’t include a third person tagging along, especially not someone like him.

Before Zlatan could say anything else, Blake reached out and grabbed Myles’ hand.

"We can’t join you," he said, tone firm. "This is a date, so no third wheelers are welcome."

There it was, out in the open.

For a split second, even Blake felt a little cringed by what he had just said. But instead of backing down, he doubled down, tightening his grip just a little before turning away.

"Let’s go."

He didn’t wait for a response. Just started walking, pulling Myles along with him.

Behind them, there was a faint chuckle.

Still, Blake didn’t look back.

And Myles didn’t resist, either.

He followed without a word, letting himself be dragged through the crowd, past stalls and bright signs and the constant noise.

His gaze flicked briefly to their joined hands, then back up ahead, where Blake was very clearly pretending not to be thinking too hard about what just happened.

They didn’t stop until they were far enough that Zlatan was no longer in sight.

Only then did Blake slow down.

And only then did he let go.

There was a short silence.

"...So," Blake started, glancing sideways at him. "Is he actually your friend or something?"

"A friend?"

"Yeah," Blake shrugged, though it came off a little forced. "He does speak to you pretty casually, after all."

"What did he say to you that day?"

Blake looked ahead, thinking for a second.

"Nothing much, actually," he admitted. "He just talked a lot, asked questions, made comments, I mean, you know him better than me, so you can imagine. He even wanted to join us."

Looking back at Myles, he raised an eyebrow.

"Your turn now."

For a second, Myles just stared at him.

Then, completely serious and unbothered, he said, "Do you think I’d be friends with him?"

Blake paused.

...Okay, fair.

When he put it like that, it did sound a bit off.

"...Yeah, no. Probably not."

Someone who attracted that much attention, it’s exactly the kind of person Myles would avoid any day.

Still, Blake wasn’t entirely convinced.

Probably friends simply wasn’t the right word but there was something going ok between them. You don’t just run into the same person in completely different places without some kind of connection.

And Zlatan didn’t exactly come off as normal either.

If anything, he had that same energy.

Blake narrowed his eyes slightly, thinking.

Villainous.

Yeah, that was the word.

That classic, annoying kind of charm that made people trust you even when they probably shouldn’t. The kind that smiled too easily, spoke too smoothly, and always seemed one step ahead.

Zlatan had that.

’They definitely work together. That day, I’m that abandoned building, there were a few other masked figures along with Myles. Zlatan must’ve been one of them.’

That didn’t sound so ridiculous, after all.

Blake shook his head.

’Whatever. Doesn’t matter right now.’

There were more important things to focus on.

Blake glanced around, eyes scanning the park properly for the first time since they left. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

Bright colors, loud rides, people everywhere.

Right.

They were here for a reason.

"So," he said, shifting his attention fully, "what’s the best thing to try before lunch?"

Myles followed his gaze, looking around. As expected, he did not look particularly interested in anything.

"That depends," he said. "What do you want to do?"

Blake squinted slightly.

"You don’t have anything in mind?"

"No."

"...Seriously? Earlier you were pretty damn happy to get into the haunted house, though."

Myles shrugged.

Blake stared at him for a moment, then sighed.

"Unbelievable."

He turned his head again, scanning the park more carefully this time.

Games, stalls, smaller rides, and then he saw it.

Tall, loud and impossible to miss.

The roller coaster towered over everything else, its tracks twisting and looping in ways that looked both thrilling and slightly concerning.

Blake’s eyes lit up, just a bit.

"...That."

Myles followed his line of sight.

"The roller coaster?"

"Yeah."

Blake crossed his arms, a small grin forming.

"Don’t tell me you’re not into that either."

"I didn’t say anything."

"Yeah, that would have been even lamer."

He started walking again, this time without dragging Myles, but clearly expecting him to follow.

"Come on," he said over his shoulder. "We’re doing that first, unless you’re scared."

"I’m not."

Blake smirked.

"Good."