Filed to story: A Second Chance with My Billionaire Love
“Flossie! You’re finally awake!” Jeffrey jumped in his seat, almost in tears.
“Where am I?” Flossie’s head was aching, but she forced herself to sit up and look around. She remembered being stuck in surging waves, and familiar arms had carried her away from the abyss, but… Why was she here now?
“You’re at a hospital in town.” Jeffrey explained, “You went to the beach alone this morning and almost drowned. When we found you, it was almost too late. I brought you to shore and rushed you to the hospital in town by boat. You’ve been unconscious for a whole day.”
“What?” Flossie’s blue eyes were teary and full of child-like confusion. “How could you be the one who saved me? It was him!”
“Who… is he?” Jeffrey asked carefully.
“He’s someone very important to me. He dived into the sea to save me when I almost died.” Flossie sounded certain.
“But you were alone when we found you. Did you remember it wrongly? Or… were you hallucinating?” Jeffrey said hesitantly, “When I was in biology class, my teacher told US that people would hallucinate when they’re dying. They would see whatever they’re obsessed with.”
“No, I wasn’t! I remember it clearly; I wasn’t hallucinating!” Flossie clenched her fists, her face flushed in agitation. “I knew it when I held him-his body was just as warm and strong as I remembered. It wasn’t an illusion!” She had been entangled with Halston for so many years, and could tell that it was him even with her eyes closed. How could it be an illusion?
“Flossie, I think you’d better rest. Your memories will probably be clearer once you’ve recovered,” Jeffrey suggested gently.
Flossie was silent briefly, then she yanked out the catheter in her arm and pushed the blanket off to get out of bed.
“Flossie, where are you going?” Jeffrey asked anxiously.
“I trust my instincts-l know he appeared and saved me, but he’s not willing to show himself. I’m sure he’s around and watching me. I have to find him!” Flossie said stubbornly, walking barefoot towards the door.
Then, before Jeffrey could stop her, Flossie dashed out of the ward. Jeffrey couldn’t catch up with her, and watched her run off nervously.
When Flossie reached the corner of the stairs, she suddenly saw a tall figure in familiar clothes. He looked just like Halston.
“Halston!” Flossie screamed and rushed over to the man, grabbing his clothes firmly. “I’ve caught you! You can’t run away now…’ She gripped his clothes, then hugged his waist. “I knew you were still alive!”
“Umm…” The person Flossie was hugging recovered from their shock, then mumbled awkwardly, “Sorry to disappoint, but it’s just me.”
Flossie’s jaw dropped, and she looked up at the man in anger. “Haze, are you out of your mind? Why are you wearing Halston’s clothes?” The person she had grabbed was not Halston or Jovan, but Justin. She had thought he was Halston because Justin was wearing a casual jacket that Halston had once worn. Flossie remembered that jacket because Halston always wore formal clothes, and it was a rare occasion when he wore something casual. However, even that casual jacket had been from a luxury brand, and it was elegant, high-quality, and comfortable. Flossie just couldn’t understand why… Justin was wearing it.
“No, I’m not. These clothes are mine. They’re limited editions of VL, and there are only two sets in the whole world,” Justin said defensively. He was different from stefan-he rarely wore formal suits, and most of his clothes were casual, so it wasn’t impossible for them to wear similar clothes.
Disappointed, Flossie pushed Justin away. “What a waste of my feelings!” She had spent a lot of energy running just now, and was now feeling dizzy and tired.
Justin slid his hands into his pockets and smiled teasingly at her. “What’s wrong? Do Halston and I have the same clothes? We do have similar taste in some aspects, like our fashion… and the person we like.”
Flossie narrowed her eyes at him. “My head hurts. Can you not make it worse?”
“I’m sorry, you know I get a bit carefree when I’m happy.” Justin supported Flossie and said in concern, “I called you just now, and a young guy picked up. He said you were at the hospital, so I rushed here right away. They’re looking for you all over the world, but I was the first to find you. Doesn’t that prove that our mental link is the strongest?”
Flossie rolled her eyes at him, not bothering to respond.
Although Justin could be playful sometimes, he dutifully helped Flossie back to the ward since he knew she was feeling sick.
“Flossie!” A sigh of relief escaped Jeffrey when he saw her. “I’m glad you’re okay.” He looked at Justin, who was supporting Flossie, and hostility shone in his eyes. “Who are you, and why are you so close to Flossie?” “Huh?”
Justin smiled, but his gaze was menacing. “Phoenix, your charms really are boundless. You managed to turn a hothead into a loyal dog!” They were both men, and although they were around ten years apart, Justin could tell that Jeffrey had feelings for Flossie. He felt jealous, but also marveled at Flossie’s charms-he had such a diverse group of competitors! Not only did he have to compete against an exceptional man like Halston, but he also had to fight against a youth like Jeffrey… How exhausting!
“Cut the crap! Jeffrey is just a boy,” Flossie growled weakly from where she lay in bed. Justin was so weird, thinking that way about a boy. What a scoundrel! Flossie wished he hadn’t been the one to find her.
Jeffrey’s face flushed in embarrassment, and he mumbled awkwardly, “Ah, so you both know each other. Umm… I’ll give you both some privacy then.” Hurriedly, he left the ward. He knew that Flossie was way out of his league, so even spending these few days with her felt like winning the lottery.
There was no point in wishful thinking-Flossie was superior to him, and only a man on her level could approach her.
“He’s sensible… and handsome. No wonder you refuse to go home,” Justin chuckled.
“You’re annoying. I told you he’s just a boy, so how could you even think that way? You’re going overboard,” Flossie snapped at him rudely. “And I don’t need your comments about whether I want to go home or not.”
“Fine, I’m sorry for overstepping then.” Justin hurriedly apologized after getting scolded.
Flossie, however, was still frustrated, and her anger got worse every time she saw Justin’s jacket.
“But why didn’t you tell anyone that you came to such a remote fishing village?” Justin asked carefully.
“No reason in particular. This is my Utopia; When I’m upset, I come here to relax,” Flossie answered honestly. Besides, the trip to Garcia Village hadn’t been planned. Even after spending so much time there, she hadn’t found out much about Quinton, and had nearly gotten herself killed.
“I saw your status and found you from the photo you posted, but all Jovan could do was make a fuss.” Justin smirked and declared triumphantly, “I won this round.” He and Jovan had driven all around Beach City in the rain looking for Flossie that day, and being in that small space for so long had escalated their petty rivalry to mortal enemy status. They bet over who would find Flossie first, and the one who lost the bet would have to address the winner as ‘father’. Justin’s smile was wicked as he thought about it.
“You found me based on my status?” Flossie asked him in disbelief.
“I found the place you posted about and called you. Then, that guy answered the call,” Justin explained patiently.
An idea sparked in Flossie’s mind. “Does that mean you’re good at cracking private IPs?”
“Of course!” Justin raised his chin proudly. “Nobody can beat me in that, not even you, Phoenix. Isn’t that right?” “Yes, that’s true.” Flossie nodded, giving him a thumbs up. She was being humble because Justin was more skilled than her in that area, and the one time Justin beat Flossie to become champion of the Global Hacker Competition, he had done it by defeating her at cracking IPs.
“Why are you asking?” Justin’s eyes brightened, and he asked Flossie excitedly, “Are you planning to compete with me at the Global Hacker Competition this year? If Haze and Phoenix, the perfect couple of the hacker world, made a comeback this year, there’ll be an uproar!” Justin rubbed his hands together eagerly. When Phoenix retreated from the hacker competition, Haze followed suit, and even left the hacker world. Their story became a legend in their circle, and everyone had heard about it even if they had never met them. If Flossie wanted to return to the circle again, Justin would immediately follow suit.
“I’m not interested in competing against you but… I need your help,” Flossie said calmly.
“My help?” Justin frowned in disappointment. “Is that the only thing you want?” “Yeah.” Flossie nodded.
“What do you need my help with then?” Justin asked curiously. “Is it related to private IPs?” “You’re so smart!” Flossie praised Justin like he was a child. “You’re my soulmate-you know what I want to say before I can even say it. I love spending time with smart people like you.” “Ugh, stop it.” Justin knew something was up, and he narrowed his eyes at her suspiciously. “What do you need my help with? spit it out.” “Well, I’m not sure if you can do it, but…” After a brief pause, Flossie said, “If someone texts you but immediately deletes the message, can you still find that person’s address from the deleted message?” “Isn’t that simple? He has to log in to text you, and as long as he logs in, there’ll be a record of his IP address. It’ll be a piece of cake to figure out!” Justin scoffed, looking smug.
“You’re right, why didn’t I think of that?” Flossie nodded, smiling at him sweetly. “You’re so smart. No wonder you could defeat me back then, you really deserve to be the champion.” “Our skills are pretty much at the same level. At most, I’m only a little better than you.” “No, I’m sure you’re much better than me…” Flossie pressed, then quickly asked, “So, can a capable person like you help me crack this account and find his IP address?” “No problem.” Justin snapped his fingers. “Give me the account. Who do you want me to find?”
“Halston!” Flossie answered directly.
Justin’s expression immediately changed. “No way!” “Why not?” Flossie huffed, then complained, “I rarely ask for your help. I just need you to find someone’s IP address, which you said was easy to do, but you don’t even want to help me with that.” “You don’t understand!” Justin sighed. “He’s a special case. I can even get you the president’s IP address, but I’m sorry, just don’t ask me to get you Halston’s.” There was only one reason he couldn’t do it-Austin had specifically warned Justin not to stick his nose into Halston’s affairs before he left for Beach City, and told him that if he did, he would break his legs. Justin loved his legs too much to disobey Austin.
“Please!” Flossie put her hands together and begged, “You know I’ve been going mad searching for him. This is the only clue he left behind, but I can’t use it the way you can. Please do me a favor and help me crack it. I’m sure it won’t take up much of your time.”
Justin shifted uncomfortably. “Time isn’t really the issue here…” “Then what is?” “It’s just that I can’t.” Justin exhaled deeply, then added, “If he texted you, it means he’s alive, but doesn’t want to show himself. I’m sure he’s facing something or has a plan; either way, I don’t want to get in the middle of it.” “You…!” Flossie stood up and strangled Justin. “I wont go easy on you if you don’t help me crack it.” Justin was a genius in hacking, but Flossie was more skilled than him in martial arts.
Justin’s face started to turn red, and he yelped, “Let me go! Ugh, I can’t breathe… Let go!” “Well, are you going to help me or not?” Flossie snarled as she tightened her grip on Justin’s neck. Justin was her last option, so decency had gone out the window.
“Fine, I’ll help you! Just let me go, okay?” Justin gasped, tugging at her hands. She was just too violent… Justin had no choice but to go against his grandfather-he’d rather be disabled than dead.
“That’s more like it!” Flossie let go of Justin and dug her phone out, then clicked on Halston’s profile picture. “This is it. Go ahead!” “Ahem, let me see.” Justin massaged his sore neck and took Flossie’s phone. When he saw that Halston’s profile picture was a moon, he teased,” Gosh, he’s so old-fashioned. How can a man use something like this as a profile picture? I thought it was my mom for a second!” Middle-aged people typically used pictures of nature, flowers, or their family as profile pictures, so Halston’s was certainly quite odd.
“I asked you to get his IP address, not comment on his profile picture!” Flossie snapped impatiently. “Stop wasting time! I think thirty minutes should be enough for you given your skills, right?”
Justin turned on his virtual keyboard and a screen lit up in the air. A series of codes appeared on the screen, and Justin smirked. “Thirty? I’ll crack it in ten!”
Justin hadn’t exaggerated-in around fifteen minutes, he had hacked Halston’s account and gotten his IP address. “It seems he’s at…” Justin pointed at the address on the lingering screen and his eyes widened in disbelief. “Your house?” “Yeah, that’s my house!” Flossie stared at the familiar address, not sure whether to laugh or cry. She had searched in so many places and met so many people, almost turning the whole city upside down to find him… but he had been at home all this time. It seems he still felt the responsibility to go home, but it was still unkind of him to not show himself when he knew Flossie had been going mad trying to find him.
“Is he out of his mind? He’s not a kid anymore, so why is he playing hide- and-seek with you?” Justin asked helplessly. Justin was a straightforward person, and wasn’t very romantic or flirtatious, but… how could Halston hide in Ellsworth Manor and not contact Phoenix, knowing she had been searching so frantically for him? The man had to be crazy.
“You care so much about him, so I thought he was good, but now it seems that I was wrong. He’s not better than me at all, so why are you so obsessed with him?” Justin scoffed.
“Yeah, I want to know why too.” Flossie smiled bitterly, wondering why she had stupidly done so much to find him. “He’s still alive and keeping an eye on me, so that means he did save me when I fell into the sea. I guess… he’s nearby then.” Flossie sighed, then called out for Jeffrey.