Chapter 277 - 275: Who’s Asking for It?

This kind of pretentious act made two of the male actors physically uncomfortable.

One of them quickly said, "The next scene is about to start. I’m heading over."

Seeing this, the other chimed in, "I’ll go with you."

As they left, they both gave Jade Smithson a strange look. Jade Smithson seemed oblivious, even offering them a generous smile and a wave goodbye.

As they turned away, intriguing expressions appeared on both male actors’ faces.

*

When school let out for the evening, Ethan Sterling had already packed his bag. The moment the bell rang, he was the first to bolt from the classroom.

Renee Reid watched his fleeting silhouette, her delicate brows knitting together as she wondered aloud, "What’s gotten into him?"

Ethan Sterling practically flew down the stairs, then rushed nonstop toward the bike rack under the school’s outer wall. He was in such a hurry because he was worried that such an expensive bike would get stolen, even if it was locked.

He had even stepped out of the school gates at noon just to check on it.

Since only the third-year students were dismissed at this time, there were very few bicycles left at the rack. The lights illuminated the shed clearly. Ethan Sterling quickly reached his spot, only to see that his bike, which he had parked securely, was now lying on the ground.

"What the hell!"

Ethan Sterling cried out and rushed forward to lift the bike. He then discovered that the handlebars were bent and the front wheel rim was warped.

His heart dropped. He quickly bent down to inspect the rest of the bike and found several distinct footprints on various parts of the black frame.

’My bike was... attacked?’

This was clearly intentional. Ethan Sterling’s heart ached for his bike, and he silently cursed out whoever had senselessly attacked it.

He tried to straighten the handlebars, but it was no use. The front end of the bike was heavy, and it seemed like the internal components had been kicked out of alignment. The entire handlebar assembly was twisted to one side.

"Fucking scumbags," Ethan Sterling spat. He then moved to the front of the bike, clamping the front wheel firmly between his legs to hold it steady. He gripped the handlebars and pulled with all his might, trying to force them back into place.

Maybe the front end was just too heavy, or maybe he was too weak, but he tried several times without success.

"Hey, what’s wrong?"

Just then, a voice from the side interrupted his frustrated efforts.

Ethan Sterling looked up at the sound and saw Jameson Stone. He was standing next to a bicycle with his bag slung over one shoulder, watching him. Jameson’s gaze then shifted to the bike in front of Ethan.

The large "TREK" logo on the frame caught his eye, and a look of shock spread across Jameson Stone’s face. "Holy shit! A TREK? Is this yours?"

With an expression of awe, he started to move closer.

Ethan Sterling was already on edge. Before Jameson Stone could get close to the bike, Ethan reached out and shoved him away. "Stay away from my bike!"

He didn’t use much force, but his tone was clearly hostile. Jameson Stone froze, looking at him in confusion. "Seriously? I’m not gonna break it just by looking. Why so stingy?"

Ethan Sterling couldn’t be bothered to respond, focusing his energy on trying to fix the handlebars.

It was only then that Jameson Stone noticed the problem. The bike had clearly been maliciously damaged.

He frowned, thinking to himself what a shame it was. ’Such a nice bike. What kind of asshole would do this?’

He watched Ethan Sterling struggle with the handlebars, using every ounce of his strength. A vein was even popping on his temple, but the handlebars wouldn’t budge an inch.

Seeing this, Jameson Stone sighed softly. He walked over, reached out, and pulled Ethan Sterling aside as if he were lifting a baby chick. "Go take a break. I’ll help you."

Ethan Sterling stumbled, nearly losing his balance. He saw that Jameson Stone had already started to help. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, he swallowed his words.

Jameson Stone was much stronger than Ethan Sterling, but even so, he couldn’t straighten the handlebars. After a few tries, Jameson shook his head in defeat. "A part is probably jammed inside. You’ll need a professional to fix it."

He looked at Ethan, frowning. "The handlebars and the wheel are both bent. You can’t even push it."

Ethan Sterling stood under the bike shed’s light, the bulb casting a pale, ghastly glow on his face, making him look utterly pitiful.

’My sister gave me such a nice bike, and this happened on the very first day I rode it.’

’How could something so absurd and malicious happen right outside Lorcain’s top high school?’

Ethan Sterling’s chest felt heavy, as if a stone were lodged in it. He just stared blankly at the bike, unsure of what to do.

But the next second, Jameson Stone suddenly tossed his own bag to Ethan Sterling and jutted his chin toward another bike. "You push my bike. I’ll take you to a repairman."

With that, he directly hoisted Ethan Sterling’s bike onto his shoulder.

Ethan Sterling was startled. He snapped back to his senses and looked at him. "It’s so late. Where are we going to find a repairman?"

In this day and age, bike repair shops were nearly extinct. And this was Lorcain, of all places. He looked at Jameson Stone, his expression full of uncertainty.

"You’d never find it on your own. I know a place. Grab my bike and let’s go!"

Hearing this, Ethan Sterling stepped forward to carry the bike himself, but Jameson Stone sidestepped him. "Just forget it. You’re as thin as a piece of paper."

But Ethan Sterling felt terrible about it. The weather was so cold, and the bike’s frame was ice to the touch. How could he let someone else carry it for him?

"Let’s take a cab! We’ll take a cab!" Ethan Sterling said, grabbing the bike Jameson was shouldering and pulling it down.

Jameson Stone heard this and nodded. "Fine, a cab works too."

And so, Ethan Sterling hailed a taxi and stuffed his bicycle into the trunk.

With the bike in there, the trunk lid wouldn’t close. Ethan Sterling looked at Jameson Stone. "Should we get another one? What about your bike?"

But Jameson Stone had already opened the car door and pushed Ethan Sterling inside. Then he stuck his butt out and climbed in after him, startling Ethan into quickly scooting over.

"We can just come back for it later. The starting fare for taxis in Lorcain is expensive; no need to waste the money. My old clunker won’t get stolen even if I leave it here overnight."

Ethan Sterling nodded lightly. He then snuck a fleeting, evasive glance at Jameson Stone and finally said, "Thank you."

Jameson Stone glanced at him out of the corner of his eye and grunted a laugh. "You’re welcome."

The taxi slowly drove toward a residential area north of Number Two High School.

The repair shop he mentioned wasn’t far, just very inconspicuous. It was in a semi-basement location on the side of the road in an old residential complex. The semi-basement level had a row of old shops: a tailor, a key-cutter, and also a bike repair shop. It was about two kilometers from Number Two High School.

"Mr. Lawson!"

Jameson Stone ran down the stairs himself, knocked on the glass of a lit window, and called out loudly.