Chapter 210: Midnight Secrets and Birthday Schemes

Later that night, after dinner, Eric returned to his room to get some rest. He lay back on his bed, scrolling through his smartphone to read whatever caught his eye, from web novels to trending news, hoping to spark an idea for the next track for The Empress and Nobelia.

But his mind kept drifting back to the court session three days prior, the day they presented evidence and witness testimonies. He had taken the stand, placed his hand on the Bible to swear the oath, and recounted the exact moment Jason rammed him in front of his apartment building.

He could still vividly recall the terrified look on Jason’s face back then. His brother had panicked, continuously interrupting Eric’s testimony to the point that even the public defender appointed by the court struggled to ask proper questions for his defense.

Once Eric stepped down, Melissa took the stand as a witness to describe how Jason had showed up at the hospital right before attempting to murder Eric. As the formal charges were read out one by one, more witnesses stepped forward, Martin, Ruby, and even Arthur, Emma’s father.

By the time the hearing wrapped up and the overwhelming weight of the evidence left no room for denial, Jason’s face had turned deathly pale. Even before the judge officially rendered a verdict, Jason looked utterly shattered, swallowed whole by disbelief and sheer hopelessness.

Eric squeezed his eyes shut, forcing the unpleasant courtroom memories out of his head. Once he regained his composure, he resumed reading, though his focus had completely evaporated.

"Mom really didn’t show up yesterday, huh? But Melissa came with Vivian... looks like they’ve gotten close again, just like old times. Since they’re both Jason’s victims, I guess they bonded over shared trauma... oh well, leave them be, it’s none of my business anyway," Eric thought to himself. "Man... why am I still obsessing over that trial? Brain’s totally useless tonight," he added in his head.

"Sigh."

Eric let out a tired breath and turned his attention back to his phone. But he had barely skimmed a few lines when "slam!" his bedroom door swung wide open. Eric jumped, snapping his head toward the entrance in surprise. His eyes went wide as Emma, Chloe, Priya, Monica, Heidi, and Laura strolled into his room wearing nothing but sheer, see-through lingerie that was unabashedly hot and tempting. Once the door clicked shut behind them, all six piled onto Eric’s bed, instantly crowding the space and surrounding him.

"Hey, hope we’re not interrupting anything?" Emma asked, sitting down and wrapping her arms around Eric’s biceps.

"Not at all... but why are you all in here? Don’t you guys usually... take turns?" Eric asked, feeling a bit bewildered and slightly on guard now that he was completely surrounded.

"We just felt like hanging out as a group for once," Priya smiled, sitting close as her fingers casually traced pattern across Eric’s stomach.

"Yeah, it’s not like we ever get to just sit down and talk one-on-one as a whole group," Monica added, perching next to Eric and gently pulling his head against her chest.

"We wanna get to know you on a deeper level. Sure, we’ve all been open with each other and we’ve been intimate, but there’s still something missing," Chloe said, resting her chin on Eric’s chest as she gazed up at his face from inches away.

"Hmm... okay? Meaning... you guys wanna get to know each other better?" Eric asked.

"Bingo! You really get it. We came in here just to chat," Heidi chimed in, wrapping her arms around Eric’s arm.

"Hmm... well, what do you wanna chat about? Fire away. But why in my bedroom? How about we head to the living room? It’s pretty cramped in here," Eric pointed out.

"Nope... right here is perfect. Besides, it’s not cramped at all," Laura countered, crawling up to lay her body flat against Eric’s chest, forcing Priya to shift over a bit.

"Ugh... fine, let’s chat then," Eric gave in with a sigh.

Yet the moment Eric spoke, total silence fell over the room. None of the six girls said a single word, leaving Eric utterly confused. He looked at their gorgeous faces staring down at him as their breathing gradually began to hitch and quicken. Finally, Emma leaned in and pressed her lips to Eric’s, followed by Chloe, then Monica, Priya, Heidi, and lastly Laura, who lingered the longest. Breaking the kiss,

"Wait... what happened to wanting to talk?" Eric teased, taking off his glasses.

"We ARE talking," all six girls chimed in together.

In the end, very little actual talking took place. Instead, the six girls took turns kissing Eric, taking turns coming and going like patients in a doctor’s waiting room. Granted, they didn’t just stay quiet the whole time, they talked right in the middle of being intimate. After more than three hours, Eric’s bedroom finally quieted down, though the room itself was a total wreck. Naturally, Eric wasn’t alone; all six girls lay tangled on top of him, completely bare. Eric could only stare at their beautiful sleeping faces one by one, completely speechless.

"What were they actually trying to accomplish here? Man... my body feels so weak and sticky with sweat... but I can’t even move because I’m pinned down... ugh... I’m gonna be a goner if this happens every night," Eric thought to himself, a warm smile spreading across his face as he stared up at the ceiling.

***

The next morning, after getting dressed and ready, Eric, Emma, Chloe, Priya, Monica, Heidi, and Laura sat down for breakfast at the dining table. All six girls were already clad in their school uniforms, their backpacks sitting ready beside their chairs. Midway through her meal, Emma glanced over at Eric,

"Babe, don’t worry about picking us up today. We have some stuff to take care of at school before coming home, so we’ll just head back together on our own later," Emma said.

"Huh... why? Is there some event happening at school?" Eric asked, puzzled.

"Um... um... uh... yeah, just an event," Emma stammered out.

"What Emma means is, my drama club has a function, and they asked us to help out with performing, singing, and playing music," Priya quickly cut in.

"Huh... what kind of school event requires all that?" Eric pressed.

The six girls instantly fell dead silent, exchanging darting glances. Eric could practically hear the gears grinding in their heads as they scrambled for an answer. Before he could speak up again,

"We were invited to a party thrown by one of the students’ parents... it’s not a school event," Laura blurted out.

Noticing the painfully obvious lie written across all six faces, Eric smiled. He deliberately decided to push further,

"Oh yeah? Whose parents?" Eric asked playfully.

The girls looked even more flustered, trading frantic glances as the sound of their frantic mental gymnastics grew practically deafening,

"Um... as it happens, my friend’s parents are close friends with my dad... yeah, that’s it! They both work in the medical field," Heidi chimed in.

"Oh really? Which hospital do they work at?" Eric countered with a grin.

"Uh... it’s not just Heidi’s dad’s friend, it’s actually a mixer for top lawyers... yeah, exactly," Monica added hastily.

"Hmm... so Mr. Richard Stone must be invited then. Guess I’ll ask him about it later," Eric noted casually.

Silence descended on the table once more. This time, all six girls turned pale as they realized they had backed themselves into a complete corner. With their lies exhausted, raw emotion took over,

"Ugh, fine! Just trust us, okay? Relax, we’re not gonna do anything crazy, and we’ll be super careful, don’t worry, babe," Emma said, shooting Eric a sharp, warning glare.

"Yeah, you don’t have to worry about us checking out other guys. You’re the only one for us," Priya added, staring at Eric with intense eyes.

"We’ll fill you in on the details when we get back. No need to worry, we’re not going anywhere far," Monica chimed in, fixing her eyes on Eric.

"We’re also planning to stop by my office later. Just give my office a call after we get back," Chloe offered, giving Eric a look that desperately pleaded for belief.

"Bottom line: just trust us! We need to have our own plans sometimes, and don’t worry, we’ll explain everything later," Heidi added, looking at Eric with utmost seriousness.

Laura reached out and cupped Eric’s cheek since she was sitting right beside him. Pulling his face closer, she pressed a soft kiss to his lips before staring into his eyes,

"We just need to do our own thing for a bit. Plus, we wanna figure out what to do about those school scholarships... please don’t worry about us," Laura pleaded softly.

Hearing Laura’s explanation, which actually made total sense to Eric, as they likely wanted to discuss their scholarships in private and map out their respective futures together, Eric smiled softly. Cupping Laura’s cheek in return, he kissed her forehead, then turned to press a kiss to Priya’s forehead beside her, followed by Emma next to Priya, Heidi next to Emma, before standing up to walk over to Chloe and Monica, pressing a gentle kiss on each of their foreheads as well.

"Alright... I’ll be at the office all day. If you guys need a ride or need anything at all, just call and let me know," Eric replied warmly.

"Okay babe... thank you!" all six girls cheered happily.

After finishing breakfast, the six girls said their goodbyes, each giving Eric a quick kiss before heading out. As the elevator doors slid shut, Eric lowered his waving hand. A warm smile broke across his face as he shook his head,

"Man, none of them can tell a lie to save their lives. They already plan on turning back those scholarships... last night they were all carelessly mumbling about it in their sleep between moans. They’re clearly hiding something, and judging by the questions they were throwing at me last night, they’re definitely planning something for my birthday... oh well, I’ll just let them have their fun. I just like messing with them," Eric chuckled to himself, a soft grin lingering on his lips.

Meanwhile, down in the first-floor lobby of the building, where the concert hall was located, the six girls walked out with their chests puffed out and their chins held high, triumphant grins plastered across their faces as if they had just won a major victory.

"After school... let’s go shopping!" Emma cheered, raising her fist in the air.

"Yeahhhh!" Chloe, Priya, Monica, Heidi, and Laura shouted in unison, pumping their fists into the air.