Chapter 145: Dante Looks Exactly Like Him?

Vivien stared directly into his eyes, a sudden chill running down her spine. The air in the empty classroom felt freezing. She forced herself to take a breath, quickly plastering a nervous laugh on her face to hide her panic.

"I think you are just a nerd who studies 24/7!" she said, trying to keep her voice light and joking. "Otherwise, how come you have those heavy glasses just like mine, right? Haha!"

Enzo chuckled, his intense expression vanishing as he leaned back. "Oh, damn. Yeah, you’re right. You’re a genius."

Vivien could tell from his tone that he was mocking her, but she cleared her throat and pushed forward anyway. She needed to get close to him to figure out the truth. "By the way... are you free today? Actually, I really need some of your study notes. Can I come over to your place?"

"Sure," Enzo said, a smile spreading across his face. "You’re always invited. But aren’t you busy with your part-time assistant job? What if your boss scolds you again?"

Vivien pondered the risk for a second. That grumpy suit was supposed to be late to the office today anyway, so it should be fine if she showed up a little late, right?

"It’s fine. He won’t say much... I guess," she muttered.

Enzo smiled warmly. "Well then, sure! Let’s go."

"Eh... right now?" Vivien asked, her eyes widening as she watched Enzo effortlessly stand up and sling his backpack over one shoulder.

"Of course," he said smoothly. He started walking toward the classroom door, tilting his head with a glance that signaled her to follow him.

Vivien quickly gathered her pens and books. She hurriedly followed a few steps behind him, keeping her eyes fixed on his back. As they walked down the quiet hallway, she subtly zipped open the side pocket of her bag. Her fingers brushed against the cold metal of the small self-safety knife she always kept hidden inside.

Just in case, she thought, gripping the handle for a brief second before pulling her hand back. If this guy tries anything psycho, he’s getting a face full of steel.

Dominic pulled the book out from his desk drawer. He flipped through the pages until he finally found the Chapter titled "The Ending of Alina."

As he read the lines, his hands tightened. These were the exact, brutal scenes he had just witnessed in his nightmare. This meant the book was directly tied to the strange dreams that had been haunting his sleep.

He turned back to check the main character descriptions. Just as he suspected, the author’s description of Viella- red hair, fair skin, delicate body and bright, piercing eyes- matched the mysterious girl from his dreams perfectly.

But what was the connection between them? He turned another page and froze. There was a detailed sketch in the book. The character named Dante looked exactly like him.

Suddenly, a massive headache hit him. The pain was so intense that the veins on his forehead started throbbing, and his vision went completely blurry.

"Bos-"

His assistant walked into the room, stopping dead in his tracks. Seeing his boss gripping his head in pain, the assistant rushed over. "Boss! Are you okay?!"

As Dominic fought through the blinding pain, a sudden flash of a memory appeared right in front of his eyes. He saw a massive fire. Everything around him was burning, and in the middle of the flames, he was desperately holding onto someone’s body.

Slowly, the painful vision cleared up, and his eyesight returned to normal. Dominic blinked and looked down at his arms.

He was tightly holding his male assistant.

The assistant stared back at him awkwardly, completely frozen in his arms. A wild thought crossed the assistant’s mind. Wait... is this the real reason why the boss has never been interested in any high-society girls all these years?!

"Boss..." the assistant whispered nervously. "By any chance, are you ga-"

Before he could finish the word, Dominic disgustedly tossed him aside, sending him stumbling back. Dominic coldly cleared his throat and fixed his tie, his expression turning back into stone.

"Why didn’t you tell me that the main characters in this book looked exactly like me and Amelia?" Dominic asked, his voice sounded quiet angry

"I... uh..." the assistant stammered, sweating under his boss’s gaze. "It’s because, boss, you never let me finish my words! You dismissed me right before I could tell you!"

Dominic glared at him, and the assistant gulped hard, taking a step back.

"Why are you in here now?" Dominic demanded coldly.

"Uh, yeah! Right!" The assistant quickly straightened up. "I came to tell you that I found out some new information. It seems like this book was actually commissioned by Miss Amelia herself. Over the past year, she has been secretly paying several online authors to write these weird fictional stories about you and her. But this specific version became a massive hit because of how well the villainess was written."

Dominic listened, his brow furrowing deeply. A dark urge to completely crush Amelia right now flared inside him, but he forced himself to be patient. The right time wasn’t here yet.

"And what about Amelia and Vivien’s relationship?" Dominic asked, leaning back in his chair. "How do they know each other?"

"According to their backgrounds, they probably didn’t know each other at all until recently," the assistant explained.

"And where is she right now?" Dominic asked.

"Who? Miss Amelia? She’s currently in-" The assistant cut himself off the moment he noticed Dominic’s icy eyes piercing right into his soul. Oops. Wrong girl.

The assistant cleared his throat loudly. "Ahem! I mean, Miss Vivien... she’s... actually..."

He froze, realization hitting him. He actually had no idea where she was at this exact moment! But looking at Dominic’s terrifying expression, he absolutely did not dare to say that out loud.

"Didn’t I tell you to keep a very close eye on her while I was away?!" Dominic’s voice rose significantly, his deep tone cutting sharply through the quiet office.

"But boss, please understand! I have been working non-stop, managing a multi-million dollar corporate deal the entire time you were absent!" the assistant frantically defended himself. He held up a thick stack of financial contracts as proof of his hard work, his hands trembling slightly under his boss’s terrifying glare.

"I don’t care about that deal right now. I want you to do exactly what I asked you to do. Is that completely clear?!" Dominic said. His voice suddenly dropped that made the hairs on the assistant’s neck stand up.

The assistant immediately shut his mouth tight, dropping his hands to his sides.

"Unless, of course, you want me to fire you right this second," Dominic added, his dark eyes narrowing.

The assistant’s eyes widened in absolute shock and horror. "You can’t do that to me, boss! I have little kids and a loving wife at home to feed!" he cried out dramatically. He put a hand over his heart, squeezing his eyes shut, and made a highly emotional, pathetic face to gain some sympathy.

Dominic merely raised an eyebrow, staring at him with pure indifference. He didn’t buy the act for a single second. "You have been completely single for the past eight years."

The assistant’s dramatic face instantly fell, and his eyes actually teared up with real sadness this time. His boss had just casually stabbed him right in a highly sensitive spot. Well, that is only because you never give me a single day off or a weekend break to actually go out and find a date! he desperately wanted to yell out loud, but he forced himself to swallow the angry words. He valued his high-paying job too much to argue.

Dominic completely ignored his assistant’s ridiculous mood swings. He turned his attention back to his desk and opened his laptop screen.

The footage that popped up on his screen made his blood run completely cold. Jealousy fired up in his veins, making his skin crawl. In the footage it can be seen that shes walking out with Enzo towars the campus gate.

Dominic aggressively grabbed his expensive suit off the back of his chair and marched toward the office door.

"Where are you going in such a hurry, boss?!" the assistant yelled in a panic, hurriedly scrambling across the room to grab his notepad and pen. "Wait for me! Please take me with you!" he added, running quickly behind Dominic as the tall billionaire stormed down the corporate hallway.

---------------

Vivien stood completely frozen on the driveway, her mouth slightly agape as she stared up at the massive modern villa towering in front of her. Slowly, she turned her head to look Enzo up and down. He was standing there casually, hands shoved into the pockets of a plain, slightly faded hoodie and worn-out jeans- clothes that looked like they were bought from a clearance rack.

The math was absolutely not mathing.

"This isn’t actually your house, is it?" she asked, her voice dripping with skepticism as she pointed a finger at the mansion. "Did you break in? Are we trespassing right now?"

Enzo let out a low chuckle, entirely unbothered, as he pressed his thumb against the scanner on the front door. A soft beep echoed, and the lock clicked open.

"Care to come in?" he said, pushing the door wide open and gesturing with a polite wave of his hand to invite her inside.

Vivien swallowed hard. As she stepped across the threshold, she noticed the rich decor. Although the villa wasnt as big as Dominic’s one but it was way bigger than the tiny apartment she lived in.

She quietly walked deeper into the foyer, her cheap sneakers squeaking softly against the polished marble floor. She tried to keep her expression neutral, but her eyes were frantically scanning every corner.

"Uh... are your parents rich or something?" she asked, trying to sound curious. "Because you definitely don’t dress like a guy who lives in a palace."

He nodded. turnig around to face her with a relaxed smile. "Yeah, you could say that. They are always away on international business travel and never really get the time to come home. It’s usually just me here. So, please, make yourself at home."

She nodded nervously and sat down on the edge of a massive sofa, her eyes still darting around the room to map out the layout.

"Would you like anything to drink?" he asked, stepping toward the open-concept kitchen area. "Water? Juice?"

Vivien was about to immediately refuse but a sudden plan hit her.

"Yes, coffee please," she said, giving him a bright, innocent smile. "Black coffee. It takes a little longer to brew, right? I really need the caffeine after that exam."

Enzo’s eyes flashed with an unreadable emotion, but he simply nodded. "Sure, let me go grind the beans and make you a fresh cup."

Before he could disappear completely into the kitchen, Vivien’s voice rang out again, stopping him in his tracks. "Oh, and can I use your restroom first? I kinda need to wash my face and freshen up."

Enzo turned his head, pointing a finger toward the grand staircase. "Of course. Go up to the second floor. It’s inside the third bedroom on your right. You can’t miss it."

"Thanks!" she muttered, quickly jumping off the couch and walking toward the stairs, trying not to look like she was in a hurry.

Enzo stood perfectly still by the kitchen entrance, his relaxed demeanor fading into a cold, calculated stillness. He watched her figure retreat up the stairs, his dark eyes narrowing as he tracked her every step until she vanished around the corner of the upper balcony.

"What exactly are you up to, babygirl?" he muttered under his breath, a smirk pulling at the corner of his lips. He knew she wasn’t just here for study notes, and he couldn’t wait to see what she would do next.

.

.

.

.

.

TO BE CONTINUED