Hollywood Zenith

There was an air of tension inside the car during the journey toward the restaurant. Samuel and Adele sat side by side, Iblis and Karolina sat opposite them while Oscar rode shotgun. Awkward silence permeated throughout the journey, with an occasional conversation between both parties.

" Karolina, how long have you been with Iblis?" Samuel initiated the conversation. Adele also focused on Karolina anticipating her answer.

" Over a year now, I mostly stay at home with her. Recently she started to go outside, and as her helper, I also have to leave the house. But I could see the appeal." Karolina answered and looked at me provocatively. She had to admit a certain charm about the young man across from her.

" Is she sane?" Samuel thought but didn't voice it out.

" That is good." He replied, not wanting to play whatever game she was playing.

" You are so pretty. Where are you from? Why did you decided to become a bodyguard?" Adele asked.

" Russia and my choice of profession are due to personal reasons." Karoline brushed off the latter part of the question. You can tell she was hesitant to speak about her personal life.

" I also don't understand my father's decision to hire her. My previous bodyguard was fine." Iblis said, unhappy with Karolina's presence. Her previous bodyguard was a loyal follower of her grandfather; she always had her suspicion, but in all likelihood, he was fired to reduce her grandfather's influence over her. Her father and grandfather never get along much.

" Young lady, I have told you countless times that I am here to help you. I am not your enemy." Karolina retorted, but it was of no use in front of Iblis. She simply ignored Karoline.

" What about you? Why are you so obsessed with Adele while you probably have tons of girls interested in you? " Iblis asked directly.

" Now, show your narcissictic side. Anyone with your appearance always loves to boast; I have seen it a countless times. I will reveal your true face right here right now." Iblis thought and a small smile formed on her face.

" I am obsessed. She is my first friend ever, so I guess our bond is special. I don't know what you mean by tons of girls. It would not be possible a few months ago, but I am thankful for her company." Samuel gave a vague but meaningful answer. Samuel will lie to himself if he considers Adele only a friend; she is much more than that. He knows and is not afraid to say it out loud.

Adele blushed hard, hearing Samuel's words. She is also grateful for having Samuel in her life. It is still confusing for her to deal with her feelings, but one thing is certain, she wants to become something he can be proud of.

Someone who can someday stand in a position where they can help others. Her previous faltering resolution hardened as she set her mind toward her goals.

Seeing Adele blush made Iblis angry. She is still not convinced with all this goody-two-shoe bullshit, while Karolina is impressed by the boy. She could discern lies from truth, and her instincts told her that the boy was genuine, which was surprising.

" I thought he will not be a problem for the young lady but it will be problematic. How can someone with such appearance and money is not corrupt to the core? his age could be a factor but most of those monsters starts early. He could completely disrupt my mission." Karoline thought.

" Few months ago? What happened few months ago? " Iblis inquired out of curiosity.

" Iblis, that may be too pers---" Adele wanted to interject, but Samuel stopped her.

" No, It is alright. I was completely blind as of a few months ago. So, this world is fairly new for me." said Samuel. He is never ashamed of his past; why would he? Even with the ailment, he was happy. People cared for him, and he respected them for it.

He is fed up with Iblis' attitude toward him. He is not trying to gain any sympathy but wants her to see from his side of the aisle. He doesn't know her circumstances but knows that she is not a bad person because of how she treats Adele.

His answer surprised Iblis and Karolina. They didn't expect such a past. Oscar is monitoring their conversation while keeping an eye out for Karoline. For some reason, he is still wary of her.

Samuel narrated his life experience and how he was adopted and met his current family. He mostly kept names out of conversation due to how adapted he has become to calling every family member by his relation. He left out his book business and focused on the acting side of things while telling the story.

Adele already knows about Samuel's life story but hearing it from his own perspective is surreal for her. She felt like she was truly his friend because of how he described their encounter. She is immersed in the story, which ends after a few minutes.

The whole time Iblis and Karolina stayed silent and listened intently; they became sad when Samuel told the part about Elise and Hannah; they cheered in their heart at the part when Samuel saved Adele from bullies.

Samuel is already a master of literature with his powerful control over flow and articulating mastery. If you add his leadership title to the mix, it becomes a recipe for excellent storytelling.

" I see. It was like that." Iblis said with a low tone but backtracked immediately with--

" Still, I don't approve of you. It doesn't change anything." Iblis is embarrassed, but the hostility in her voice completely disappears. She understood why Adele was drawn toward him. Honestly, she also envisioned someone like Samuel to come and save her from her predicament.

" What the hell am I thinking?" She thought and immediately dispelled her dangerous thoughts. It is only wishful thinking.

Karolina looked at Iblis, which made her facepalm inside her mind. The situation she dreaded was already happening right in front of her eyes.

" I can't let a young lady and this boy to interact much more. He is dangerous, much more than I thought. It was my wishful thinking earlier, but in reality which girl would not fall for a guy like him? Perfect appearance with noble temperament. A recipe for disaster. The Hanson family will give me lot of shit if Iblis fell in love with some nobody, He will not be pleased, which I can't risk right now." Karolina thought and started thinking about countermeasures.

" Which is the name of family who adopted you? You never mentioned their name. There are not of rich people around here." Karolina asked innocent tone. She wanted to learn more to start her investigation.

" Oh, The Roth--" Samuel wanted to answer, but Oscar interjected and stopped him at the right moment, but Karolina had already guessed the name.

" Young master, You have to remember about your agreement and keep things confidential as much as possible." Oscar looked at Iblis, and Karoline both showed confused expressions, which made him relax.

" Sami have already blabed so much about himself. I wanted to stop but it will look very suspicious on my part. I am still not ready to tell him about myself. But giving out family name will be too much even if I have already interjected; it is justifiable." Oscar thought.

" Oh, okay.' Samuel said and didn't disclose further information.

Karolina maintained her stoic expression, not to give away that she had already guessed the name. She was already suspicious of him as she had heard the rumors but rich lies all the time. Without photo proof, their arguments were baseless.

She successfully evades Oscar's suspicion, which is good. She is extremely happy; if she played her cards right, she could kill two birds with one stone.

" Samuel Rothschild, Interesting. It will be fun." She thought.