Chapter 51
Chapter 51
It was late at night at the Encounter Bar in the Old Alley. Layton and Alex were lounging in a semi–enclosed private booth on the second floor, chatting and sipping drinks while keeping an eye on the stage below.
As their glasses clinked together, the sound ringing crystal clear Layton shot a teasing smirk at Alex. “I heard you dropped. Haley off at home, and her parents invited you for dinner. You really know how to charm then!”
Alex smirked back, his pride evident.
Layton continued, “Less than three months’in, and Haley breaks up with Aaron to be with you! I honestly thought they had something real going on.”
“Good luck in front of money and benefits,” Alex replied lazily, savoring his drink while his eyes remained glued to the beautiful Ellie on stage.
Following Alex’s gaze, Layton noticed Ellie, who was belting out a song. Unable to help himself, he exclaimed, “Look at those guys; their jaws are practically on the floor! I never realized this girl could sing so well. With that face and figure, it’s such a waste she hasn’t debuted yet!”
Alex let out a noncommittal grunt, as he downed a generous glass of red wine.
Layton eyed the ice cubes clinking at the bottom of Alex’s glass and teased, “Why do you keep adding ice to everything? Are you feeling that heated?”
Alex gave a vague hum, barely paying attention.
“Hey, want to make a bet? I bet you ten bucks that Ellie’s dealing with a breakup right now. Just watch,” Layton nudged Alex with his elbow.
Alex’s gaze
shifted to the LED screen on the second floor, catching a glimpse of Ellie’s eyes, brimming with unshed tears.
“Another breakup?” Alex thought, his brow furrowing.
At midnight, Alex was punctual as he made his way downstairs. “Where is she?” he asked, scanning the empty dressing room and stopping a passing waiter.
“Ms. Thompson was picked up by a guy,” the waiter replied.
Upon hearing that, Alex’s face turned stormy.
Layton rushed after him. “You’re not even her boyfriend! Why are you so upset?”
Alex shot a piercing glare at Layton before getting into his car.
“You can’t drive after drinking!” Layton shouted, but in an instant, Alex slammed the accelerator and sped off.
Meanwhile, Ellie was already in bed, winding down for the night. Aaron had surprisingly come by to watch her perform, and she had taken a break to chat with him for a while.
Just as she lay down, there was a loud banging at the door that made her jump. Startled, Ellie rolled out of bed, and her phone buzzed on the nightstand.
Glancing at the familiar number flashing on the screen, she hesitated before diving back under the covers. She silenced her
12:20 Sun, Jan 26 GT
Chapter 51
phone, tried to ignore Alex’s relentless knocking, and squeezed her eyes shut, pretending not to hear.
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Outside the door, Alex was seething, gritting his teeth as he glare at the keypad near the entrance. “Do you really think there’s nothing I can do?” he muttered before storming off toward the elevator.
Inside, as Ellie started to doze off, the knocking ceased. After lying quietly for a while, she realized she wasn’t able to sleep
anymore.
She flicked on her recently repaired laptop, intending to catch up on some research. But as soon as she logged into her WhatsApp account, the mouse suddenly guided itself towards her locked photo album. Confused, Ellie thought her mouse had malfunctioned.
Then, without her control, the cursor lurched over to her WhatsApp chat box…
As the mouse uncontrollably opened her chat messages one by one, Ellie slowly realized that someone was remotely controlling her computer.
