Chapter 1599: Slap on the butt

Patricia stared at her phone, studying the portrait she had taken a photo of with Penny’s permission. Her other hand cupped her cheek, tapping it lightly as she thought about it.

Why did she look like someone?

She didn’t mean that the picture looked like the maid, but rather, she felt that this person resembled someone else. For Patricia, the resemblance was uncanny. The question was, who did she resemble?

As Patricia thought about it, she hadn’t noticed she was starting to lose track of time. Before she knew it, the CEO’s office door flew open from the inside. At the same time, Mark was already standing.

"Huh?" Patricia blinked, catching Penny walking out. "Penny, where are you going?"

Penny cast her an indifferent glance. "Don’t you have my schedule with you?"

"You do."

"Then you’d know where." Penny snapped her eyes back to Mark. "Wait for me in the parking lot. I’ll just get changed."

"Yes."

Yet, the two of them still walked off together, with Mark following from behind her.

Patricia frowned and intuitively checked Penny’s schedule. Her face twitched, gasping in shock.

"I can’t believe I’ve just been staring at this photo all this time!" she panicked. "Oh no. I still have some real work to finish!"

Shoving the thought about the picture aside, Patricia quickly got to work. But as she did, another bitter thought crossed her mind.

I forgot to give her a snack!

---

[PIERSON CORPORATION]

Dean stood in front of the elevator door, his head starting to throb painfully. After an entire night in the laboratory, Dean barely went home to change. Then, without rest, he went to the office. Even so, he didn’t plan on staying in the office all day.

He still knew his limitations, so he was planning to go home to rest. Perhaps a nearby hotel, just to lower the chances of getting ambushed by Belle.

DING!

As the lift dinged, the door slowly parted open. The moment it did, Dean caught a figure standing inside the lift.

Atlas and his little Allen.

When Dean locked eyes with Atlas, the latter slowly reached out for the button, almost as though Atlas was expecting Dean to waste his time by waiting for the door to close on its own without getting in. It wouldn’t be the first time.

This time, however, much to Atlas’s surprise, Dean spoke right before he could press the button.

"I’m too tired to wait for the next lift," Dean said as he walked into the lift. "Thank you very much."

Atlas glanced at him but said nothing. He pressed close, expecting a rather long elevator ride. For some reason, it felt like whenever they rode the lift with someone else, it always took longer.

’I just hope they won’t start fighting,’ Allen, standing in the back corner, sighed quietly. He looked up at the numbers nervously. ’Why are these elevators so slow when someone has to share the lift with my boss?’

Having witnessed too many unpleasant encounters, Allen dreaded the simple fact that one of them would break the building’s silence. He knew that if Atlas or Dean opened their mouths, it was going to be a verbal battle—again. And Allen would have to be sandwiched in the middle—again.

Surprisingly, though, neither Atlas nor Dean broke the silence.

It had been a full fifteen seconds!

Allen shouldn’t have noticed, because the next second, Dean finally spoke.

"How’s Jonathan Pierson?" he asked, eyes still on the door before him.

"Fine."

"Guess he missed my department."

"Take him back. He’s useless in every meaning of that word."

Dean chuckled, sliding his eyes at Atlas. "What did you expect from him? Do a real job?"

"If he wants this company for himself, he’d need more than just play."

"Hearing that from you, I’m surprised you’re not worried."

"There’s nothing for me to worry about."

"Why?" Dean arched an eyebrow. "Because Zoren Pierson is still alive and kicking? You don’t even know how long he’d be alive."

"Because I’m still here." Slowly, Atlas turned his head and faced him squarely. "That’s why."

For a second, Dean and Atlas just stared at each other in pure silence. The tension between them grew heavier, making one wonder what words would come out next.

At least, that was what Allen thought as he squeezed himself into the corner while holding his breath.

’Just a little more,’

For some reason, the heavens seemed to listen to Allen’s pleas. Atlas and Dean didn’t say a word as they simply looked away from each other. Then, they didn’t speak again.

’Am I hallucinating?’ Allen wondered, rubbing his eyes in disbelief. ’Or am I actually dead, caught between the crossfire, and I’m simply thinking this should’ve been what happened instead?’

But even when Allen pinched his cheek, nothing was said anymore. If anything, Atlas and Dean seemed to have just decided the other person didn’t exist at all.

Was the world ending?

DING!

As if answering Allen’s traumatized thoughts, the elevator dinged. It somehow snapped Allen back to his senses, darting his eyes between Dean and Atlas’s backs. The two quietly walked out, not speaking a word, not giving each other the time of day.

"Oh!" Realizing he was going to be left behind, Allen quickly jumped out of the elevator to follow.

"Wow, they didn’t fight?" Allen whispered to himself, following the two as they headed to the exit. But just when Allen thought nothing terrible could happen, he realized how wrong he was.

When the three of them reached the usually busy lobby of the company, with people stopping to greet Atlas and Dean, the latter arched a brow.

Dean glanced at the people and then cast Atlas a sidelong glance.

"See you later, sweet pea," he suddenly remarked, loud enough for those around them to hear. He then reached out a hand and smacked Atlas’s butt cheek mildly.

His action quickly brought Atlas to a full halt. Allen, on the other hand, gasped in disbelief. Those who saw that? Their eyes went wide, jaws slack.

Dean, on the other hand, just walked away with a triumphant smirk.

’People have been talking about them,’ he thought, laughing to himself. ’I might as well join in on the fun.’

Deep down, he knew that such a rumor might not be enough to take down Zoren. However, it wasn’t going to be a good look in the long run. Dean might as well confuse others and divert their attention from Zoren to him.

But just as Dean stepped out, the smile on his face faded, and his steps slowed down.

"Wait a second," he whispered, his brows knitting. "How did I not think of that combination as an antidote before?"