Chapter 597: Wasn’t completely irresponsible

Penny hadn’t met Nina’s husband in her first life for a reason. She tried to avoid Nina, knowing she would only be subjected to trouble that would accentuate how much better Nina was. However, Penny recalled catching a glimpse of her husband at one event.

"I’ve always had his name on the tip of my tongue," she whispered, closing her eyes as she took a deep breath. "Ah... I’m scared now. I might turn into an alcoholic if I keep letting her out."

"I’ve been basically drunk all day," she muttered, scratching her head as a headache lingered. "How else would I make her come out, though?"

Penny took a deep breath and snapped her eyes open, glancing at the papers on the desk. She lazily picked them up, arranging them to call it a day.

"I’m afraid that Prime Group will fall if I keep doing this. I need a schedule..." Penny trailed off as she was about to exit all the tabs on the computer, only to furrow her brows as she noticed the other files that were already open. "Hmm?"

Penny skimmed through them and then checked the emails. The corner of her mouth curled up as a shallow laugh escaped her.

"Well... I guess I wasn’t completely irresponsible. Wow! I’m... amazing, am I?" she mused, laughing as she saw that her drunken self had still completed some important tasks that the sober Penny was supposed to finish. "I thought I was going to work once I recovered, but I guess I can rest."

Satisfied, Penny leisurely closed the tabs and then cleaned her desk. As she did so, she noticed a piece of paper slipped between the files. Taking it out to take a look, her smile stretched.

"How diligent," she mumbled, reading the notes the drunken Penny had left.

The note contained mostly pointers about the life of the sober Penny: her friends, the family dynamic, business associates, clients, and even her employees. The note also reflected the same messy pattern she would usually employ.

"I guess..." she nodded, letting out a laugh. "I am me, after all."

Even though sober Penny and drunken Penny sounded and acted differently, they were the same person. Both versions were her, and their differences stemmed from living in different lifetimes. Despite that, the drunken Penny was eventually following the sober Penny’s lead.

It was like watching her old self start over, only this time, she wasn’t an infant who could only cry and poop. It was strange and ridiculous, but at the same time, it made quite a bit of sense.

While Penny was laughing to herself and finishing up her desk arrangements, she flinched when the door suddenly flew open. Her eyes widened; the abrupt entrance was something she hadn’t expected.

"Miss Penny!"

Shifting her startled gaze to the entrance, she saw Benjamin bolting toward her. Penny jolted again when he suddenly slammed his hand on the desk, his expression aghast.

"Is it true?" Benjamin gasped, his complexion pale.

For a second, all she could do was blink. "Ah?"

"That you already revealed you’re Thursday Girl!" he intoned urgently, only to earn a long and thick silence from her.

"..." Penny tilted her head a bit, peeking at the entrance behind Benjamin. No one was coming to explain—a hint that whoever had told this guy didn’t want to deal with him anymore.

"Uh." She nodded, her lips awkwardly twisting into a smile. "Yes?"

"What?! And you didn’t tell me?!"

"Oh. I thought Renren already told you."

"Huh?!!" Benjamin gasped in shock, making Penny jump again when he pointed a finger at her. "Miss Penny, but my boss said you’re the one who didn’t want to tell me! So he kept sending me on these weird errands!"

"..." Penny pressed her lips into a thin line.

Initially, that had been the plan—just for a reason like this one. She didn’t want to deal with Benjamin when she was already handling a lot of things. This guy, after all, would give her hell with his nonsense. What a way to be reminded of Slater.

However, Penny had thought that once everything cooled down, Zoren would let Benjamin know. She didn’t expect that until now that Zoren hadn’t told this guy yet.

’No wonder I wasn’t seeing him here lately,’

"Since when?!" Benjamin’s sharp voice snapped Penny back to her senses. "Miss Penny, since when have you two known? How long have you been deceiving me?"

"Why do you sound like you’re the legal wife..." she trailed off when his eyes glinted, somehow scaring her. Penny cleared her throat and massaged her temple before she smiled. "Mr. Vitt, why don’t you calm down for now, hmm? I’ll be sure to tell you everything—"

"Tell me now!"

"..." Penny frowned, planting her hands on the desk before slowly pushing herself up. "Mr. Vitt! Why are you scolding me? I said I’d let you know! You don’t have to shout—it hurts my brain!"

This time, Benjamin flinched the second she raised her voice. He looked at her, wide-eyed, watching her hiss and huff.

"Just... sit, okay? I’ll tell you everything about it." She irritably waved him off, considering Benjamin deserved to know the truth. After all, this guy had helped her when she needed to hide the truth from Zoren.

Hiding the truth from Zoren was something Benjamin had been reluctant to do. However, for the "greater" good, he listened to Penny. Even when he had to berate her for the show, she knew he didn’t want to do it. How could she not know when Benjamin would bombard her with apologies and crying stickers afterward?

***

Meanwhile, in the lobby of the manor, Hugo gazed up, resting his hands on his hips, deep in thought. When he recovered, he turned to where Zoren stood.

"Hey, is it really okay for him to barge into the study?" he asked out of pure curiosity.

Zoren looked back at him before he slowly nodded. "I guess?"

"You guess?"

"Mhm. I haven’t done anything my wife doesn’t want me to do," Zoren explained. "So, even if it wasn’t fine, I think I won’t be the one in trouble."

"Ahh." Hugo laughed out loud, which ended in a snap of his fingers. "You’re right."

"Second Brother, where are you going?"

"Home. I’m not waiting for my sister to kick me out and humiliate me." Hugo grinned as he turned around, waving dismissively. "Tomorrow is your regular checkup, right? I won’t be there, but I’ll see you at the gym."

Zoren blinked, staring at his brother-in-law’s back, tilting his head to the side. "So... he knew he’d be in trouble, huh?" He nodded in understanding. "There’s still the pudding, though. He didn’t have to go."