Octopus and Crocodile

I stood there, stunned and regretful for blurting out something important before discussing it with everyone first.

"Yes, sir!" – The older brother bowed deeply."I… I'll do the same!" – The younger brother nervously mimicked him.

I looked at the two of them. It seemed I had chosen the right people. I silently continued walking, but inside, it felt like fireworks were exploding—excitement and joy. This was the first time anyone had acted this way toward me. But no, as a chairman, I had to stay silent, walk with authority, and radiate a deadly aura.

After walking for a while, I suddenly remembered something important I hadn't done yet.

"Right! Now that you two are members of the company, you need positions and nicknames… uh…"

I thought for a moment, then said:

"Lu, from now on, you'll be Octopus.""And Bin, you'll be Crocodile.""I'm the leader here. When you're in the company, you must call me Chairman. Got it?"

Owl burst into laughter.

"HA HA HA HA!"

I blushed, embarrassed, and turned away. Owl stepped forward, his tone turning serious:

"I'm the manager in the gang, basically the captain. My nickname is Owl."

I looked at the three of them, suddenly realizing I had forgotten to assign roles for Octopus and Crocodile.

"Octopus will be the Employee Manager. As for Crocodile… um…"

Octopus immediately spoke up:

"Chairman, please let my younger brother—uh, I mean, Crocodile—be the Assistant Manager in my team!"

I nodded in agreement. But now, there was a bigger problem: the loan sharks.Call the police? That would only be a short-term solution. Those bastards would find a way to retaliate later. What should I do…?

I fell into deep thought, then asked:

"Octopus, do you know those guys?"

Octopus shook his head and turned to look at Crocodile.

Crocodile's face darkened. He hesitated, then mumbled:

"I'm sorry… Back then, I needed money to buy food for…"

He suddenly fell silent, unwilling to say more.

SMACK!

A loud slap landed on Crocodile's left cheek, leaving me stunned.

"You're brothers! Why did you hit him?!" I asked in shock.

Octopus clenched his fists, gritted his teeth, and shouted:

"If you needed money, just tell me! I'd go and earn as much as you need! Why did you have to borrow?!"

Crocodile bit his lip, trying to hold back tears like a real man. Then, he quietly pointed at his worn-out sandals.

We all looked down. Those sandals were so old they could barely be called sandals anymore. At least four or five years old, torn in multiple places. Worse, Crocodile's feet had already outgrown them.

Octopus fell silent, his whole body seeming to lose all strength. He turned his face away.

"Sorry…" – The word came out light as air.

I turned to look at Owl, and he immediately understood.

"I have plenty of shoes and sandals at home. If you don't mind, I'll give you a pair."

Crocodile froze. His eyes shimmered, and a single tear silently rolled down his cheek. Then, he suddenly turned and ran off. He definitely didn't want anyone to see him like this.

I smiled slightly. It's time to deal with those damn loan sharks.

The next day, at school.

"Hey Cam, I need to talk to you!"

I panted, having run all over the school to find Cam.

Cam raised an eyebrow in surprise, motioning for me to catch my breath before speaking. Then, he said:

"Perfect timing. I also have something to tell you. I just recruited two new employees."

I froze. He keeps recruiting more and more people. That meant the Vice Chairman now had five employees in total. But I set aside my doubts and got straight to the point.

"Cam, about yesterday… I need your help."

I told him everything that had happened. Cam was silent for a moment, then simply said:

"Okay."

I frowned.

"That's it? I'm asking how we should deal with this!"

Cam calmly pointed at me.

"Beat them up. And their boss too."

I nearly choked.

"What?!?!"

Cam was serious.

"First, Chairman, take me to meet your new employees—Octopus and Crocodile. We need to end this, right now."

I swallowed hard. Damn, he's cool…

If we resolve this, I don't know how I'll ever repay Cam.

As planned, I led Cam to meet Octopus and Crocodile. I was a little worried they might feel awkward, but whatever—at the very least, company members should know each other.

To my surprise, Cam brought all five of his employees with him. I wasn't about to be outdone, so I brought Owl along too.

Counting everyone, the company now had about ten members, including me.

Finally, we arrived. As soon as Cam saw Octopus and Crocodile, he immediately reached out and shook hands with them like they were old acquaintances.

Then, he pulled out three photos from his pocket.

"Here, Octopus and Crocodile. Point out the ones you borrowed money from."