Chapter 7: Gossip Girl!!

The next day, after school, Elijah went straight home, completely forgetting about meeting Ashley. It wasn't until he received a text from her, asking where he was, that he remembered. He quickly apologized, explaining that he was at home.

As he sent the message, a new scenario popped up on his phone.

[New scenario, Ashley wishes to meet up with you for a talk, invite her over to your house and see what that specific thing is. Completion of this scenario will reward you with 1 bitcoin. Accept: Yes/No!]

It instructed him to invite Ashley to his house if she needed to say anything that she couldn't through text. Hesitant, he texted her his address, though he had other things in mind.

He was shocked when she agreed so quickly.

Looking back at the scenario, he made a split-second decision and hit "No" to reject it.

A prompt appeared on his phone[The prize has been recycled, and the punishment will soon begin.]

'The prize has been recycled, does that mean I can't get that prize again, or can I get it back at a later date? Maybe through another scenario, can rewards stack, and if they can what about punishment—'

Suddenly, a massive headache hit him, blinding him with pain. He struggled to keep his eyes open as the pain intensified. After what felt like an eternity but was only five minutes, the headache subsided. He received a notification that the punishment was over.

"Fuck I feel like I've been run over by a bus." He commented holding his head, he walked over to the kitchen to wipe the sweat from his forehead.

'If the scenario had been harder or more complicated, the punishment would likely be greater and more life-threatening,' he theorized, though it was just a theory for now.

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[Date: September 26 - Time 5.01 pm - Location Golden Gate City - Bakeres Street - Number:111]

Ashley arrived at Elijah's house, her chauffeur driving away as she stepped onto the porch. She took a deep breath and adjusted her bag, wondering why she felt so nervous. Elijah greeted her at the door, giving her a warm, if slightly awkward, smile. "Hey, come in," he said, stepping aside to let her enter.

As she walked inside, Ashley glanced around, taking in the cosy yet somewhat sparse decor. Elijah closed the door behind her. "No one's here. My dad passed away a few years ago, and my mom travels a lot for work, so it's just the two of us."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," Ashley said, feeling a pang of sympathy for him. She could imagine living alone most of the time.

They walked into the living room, and Ashley couldn't help but notice how comfortable the seats looked.

She thought to herself that these seats were more luxurious than the ones she had at home, which were worth thousands of dollars. As she settled into one, she commented, "This place definitely needs some pink."

Elijah rolled his eyes playfully. "Pink isn't a thing in the Woods household," he retorted, a hint of a smile tugging at his lips.

Ashley smirked and pointed at a pink anime kettle in the corner. "Oh really? What's that, then?"

*Crash*

Elijah's face flushed as he quickly grabbed the kettle and hid it behind the couch. "That's...an exception," he muttered, embarrassed.

Ashley chuckled, enjoying his discomfort a little too much. But then the mood shifted, and Elijah sat back down, his expression turning serious. "So, what did you want to talk about? If it's about what happened before, you don't need to worry. I'm sorry for not communicating properly at that time. When you offered to kiss me and all that, I wasn't trying to force you to up the reward. I was just really confused and would have let you go, but things happened so fast."

Ashley was surprised by his apology. Listening to him, she felt even more embarrassed and put her hands over her face, feeling like an idiot. "I partially forgive you," she said, her voice muffled by her hands. "But to fully forgive you, I need you to do me two favours."

She took out an NDA and handed it to him. Elijah's eyes widened as he took the document. "This states that whatever happened on the roof stays between the two of us. If you tell anyone and it spreads, you'll be charged a hefty fee."

Elijah read the contract carefully while Ashley waited, crossing her legs and fidgeting with her phone. After reading through it, he signed without hesitation. "Here, all signed. Oh right, you wanted another favor. What was it?"

Ashley hesitated, clearly nervous about asking. "Well, that. It's not easy to ask, but—" she began, but Elijah cut her off.

"If you don't mind and if you have nowhere to be, I'm cooking dinner right now. Maybe we could talk after dinner?" he suggested.

She thought about it for a second before accepting. "Sure, I don't have anything to do."

Elijah turned on the TV for her while he headed to the kitchen to cook his spaghetti Bolognese. As he left, he noticed Ashley getting a call on her phone.

"Hey, Jenna," Ashley said, her tone shifting to a more casual and relaxed one.

"Hey, girl! Are you coming to Davis's party this weekend?" Jenna's voice crackled through the speaker.

"Of course. I wouldn't miss it for anything," Ashley replied, leaning back on the couch. She glanced towards the kitchen, ensuring Elijah wasn't listening in.

"Great! I heard it's going to be wild. Did you see what happened to the head teacher's toupee in the lab yesterday?" Jenna asked, giggling.

"Oh my God, yes! I can't believe someone set it on fire. That video is hilarious. Poor Mr. Thompson, though," Ashley said, laughing.

"I know, right? And did you hear about Claire and her new boyfriend? She was all over him in the cafeteria today," Jenna continued, her voice dripping with gossip.

"Ugh, Claire is such a drama queen. I bet this relationship won't last a week," Ashley said, rolling her eyes. She loved her friends, but sometimes the gossip could be a bit much.