Black Card Canceled, Bill-Happy Nanny's Son Goes Berserk

Seeing the words "break up" made my chest tighten with a weird, unplaceable feeling. I lowered my gaze and quickly typed out a brief reply.

"Fine. Let's break up, then."

Claire clearly hadn't expected such a decisive answer. She instantly became flustered and angry.

"What's gotten into you? We've been dating on and off for a year. Don't you have any feelings for me?"

I stared at her disgruntled response, confused. Wasn't she the one who wanted to break up? Now, she was upset that I agreed. At this rate, she'd probably be unhappy no matter what I said.

A sudden wave of exasperation with her hit me. I didn't respond and just blocked her, not wanting to listen to her endless complaints.

Just then, my phone buzzed with a message from my mom. After sending her a quick reply, her call came through.

"Hey, Mom."

"Lucas, your dad mentioned you're abroad right now. Are you about to board the cruise?"

I listened absentmindedly while packing my luggage.

Her warm, eager voice came through the speaker. "Do you remember Richard Sullivan, our old family friend? His daughter is on that same cruise for a vacation. Would you like to get to know her?"

I was slightly taken aback, but I knew exactly what she meant.

My parents had been trying to introduce me to the Sullivan family's daughter for a while. I'd always rejected them—partly because of Claire and partly because I never liked the idea of an arranged marriage.

But now, there was no real reason to refuse. I was going to be there anyway, and I'd have a front-row seat to the drama tomorrow. So, I agreed without much thought.

"Got it, Mom. Her name's Sophia Sullivan, right?"

Mom sounded delighted by how quickly I'd agreed this time. "Yes, that's her name. You met her at the last cocktail party. You remember her, right? Have fun together, and I'll let her know you'll be there."

Hearing the barely concealed hope in her voice, I felt a mix of amusement and mild exasperation. I was still so young, and she was already matchmaking me.

…

The next morning, I headed to the dock. As soon as I arrived, I spotted the familiar crowd. Even from a distance, I could hear their enthusiastic chatter.

"Ethan, yesterday's five-star hotel totally blew my mind."

"No kidding. The rooms were amazing."

"Ethan, are we really sailing back in first class today?"

Listening to their fawning compliments, I couldn't help smirking. I wonder how they had the nerve to tag along for the free ride. Before they knew Ethan had money, most of them didn't even give him the time of day.

If they were looking forward to today's itinerary, so was I.

A few sharp-eyed classmates noticed me approaching, and the snide comments began instantly.

"Lucas? What are you doing here? Where'd you sleep last night? Not on a park bench, I hope?"

The others gradually turned to look. Some couldn't hold back their derisive snorts.

"Hey! Why are you here? You're not trying to mooch a ticket home, are you?"

"Can't afford the trip back alone, huh? If it was gonna come down to this anyway, why bother with yesterday's drama?"

Ethan saw what was happening and immediately put on a show, pretending to calm everyone down.

"Alright, everyone. That's enough. Lucas, let's just put yesterday behind us. We're all classmates, after all. No point ending the trip on a sour note."

His "big-heartedness" immediately won him another round of praise.

"That's our Ethan. If it were me, I'd leave Lucas to sort it out himself."

"Exactly. Some people just don't know their place."

Ethan slowly approached me, his tone dripping with false sincerity. "Tell you what. I'll get you an economy ticket, so you can return with us."

His words were earnest, but the offer was still condescending.

"No, thanks." I frowned and rejected him outright, not bothering to guess what game he was playing.

My refusal left everyone stunned, and Claire looked even more displeased. "Lucas, must you be so ungrateful? How can you be so shameless when we're trying to be civil? What are you even doing here, then? Are you just trying to piss us off?"

I caught sight of her holding hands with Ethan and kept my face blank on purpose.

Just then, someone tapped my shoulder.

"Lucas Hart?"