58 Regret
After getting embarrassed, he quickly ran away from the scene. But something about the exchange had unsettled him.
Later that evening, with the image of that limousine and the man inside burning in his brain, he made the decision that would change everything: he asked his father about the number plate.
“0019.”
It had been a casual question at first, born from his insatiable need to understand who Noah was and to whom he was connected.
“Dad,” Mark had said as he dropped his backpack on the floor, trying to sound nonchalant. “You know anything about cars with number plates starting with 00?”
His father, Robert, was sitting at the dining table, reading the evening news on his tablet. At first, he hadn’t even looked up.
“Hmm? What do you mean?”
Mark had pulled out a chair and plopped down across from him. “I saw a car today near my school. A really fancy black limo. Its plate started with 0019. Just curious, that’s all.”
Suddenly, the air in the room changed. His father’s face shifted immediately. The casual, relaxed expression turned into something much sharper. Slowly, Robert set his tablet down on the table, his gaze now firmly locked on Mark.
“What did you just say?” Robert’s voice had dropped to a low, serious tone that sent chills down Mark’s spine.
Mark blinked, confused by the sudden shift in his father’s demeanour. “Uh… I said the limo had a number plate that started with 0019.”
Robert’s eyes darkened. For the first time in years, he looked genuinely worried—almost scared. He pushed his chair back from the table and stood up, pacing the room with a hand rubbing his chin.
“You’re telling me you saw a car with a 00 plate? And it was 0019 specifically?”
Mark nodded, now feeling the weight of his father’s growing alarm.
Robert stopped pacing and turned to face his son directly.
“Listen to me carefully, Mark. You need to stay as far away from anyone connected to that car as possible. Do you understand?”
Mark’s confusion deepened. “What? Why? It was just a car, Dad. What’s the big deal?”
Robert’s expression grew even more intense, his eyes narrowing.
“No, it’s not ‘just a car.’ ”
“Number plates starting with 00 are issued only to high-ranking military officials or people with deep ties to government authorities. 0019? That’s serious. It means whoever was in that limo isn’t just some businessman or local celebrity.”
“They’re military. High-up. People who can make things happen—and I’m not talking about good things.”
Mark’s stomach dropped as his father’s words sank in.
“Dad… you’re not serious, right?” he asked, though deep down, he already knew the answer.
Robert let out a heavy sigh and ran a hand through his hair.
“I’m dead serious, son. And if you’ve crossed paths with anyone connected to that kind of power, you better apologise as soon as possible. They could make our whole family disappear, and no one would even blink.”
The reality of what his father was saying hit Mark like a ton of bricks. “Disappear? Over a car? Over Noah?”
Mark’s heart pounded in his chest. His mind raced back to Noah. “Could he really be connected to someone that powerful?”
But Robert wasn’t finished.
“Mark, listen to me carefully,” Robert said, lowering his voice to a near whisper as if the walls themselves had ears. “Whoever was in that car has the kind of influence that makes people in positions like mine—irrelevant. You don’t mess with those kinds of people. You don’t even think about messing with them.”
Mark’s throat tightened. “Dad, I… I didn’t know. I—”
Robert cut him off, his tone now deadly serious.
“It doesn’t matter if you knew or not. What matters is what you do from now on. I’m warning you, Mark. If you’ve had any interaction with them, you need to stay out of their way. Stay silent. Keep your head down and do whatever you can to stay on their good side.”
Mark had nodded vigorously, trying to absorb everything his father was saying. His stomach churned with fear and regret. “What have I done?” he thought.
“I’ve been provoking Noah, mocking him, and now… now I find out he’s connected to something this big?”
Robert sighed, his gaze softening as he realized the fear in his son’s eyes. He walked over and placed a hand on Mark’s shoulder.
“You’ve always been too arrogant for your own good, Mark. Maybe this will be the lesson you need to humble yourself. I know you hate it, but you need to learn when to keep quiet. Not everyone’s as harmless as they seem.”
Those words had echoed in Mark’s head all night.
“Not everyone’s as harmless as they seem.”
Now, sitting in class, facing the cold intensity of Noah’s voice, those words rang louder than ever.
Mark clenched his fists under the desk, his heart pounding in his chest. His father was right.
He had picked the wrong person to mess with.
Noah’s eyes bore into him, and Mark could feel the weight of his mistake.
He had provoked a wolf in sheep’s clothing, and now… now he would have to deal with the consequences.
Mark’s stammered words hung in the air like a fog, thick and heavy with the weight of what was about to happen.
His voice was shaky, eyes darting between Noah and the floor as if searching for an escape. But there was none, he was trapped.
Noah’s gaze remained fixed on Mark, the intensity in his eyes growing sharper with every passing second. Mark, trembling under that gaze, could barely bring himself to speak. His mind was in complete disarray, fear and regret swirling like a storm inside him. fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com
“I-I remember Da—” Mark stammered, his voice barely a whisper.
Before he could finish, Layla, who had been quiet throughout the entire conflict, suddenly spoke up from the other side of the room.
Her voice was calm, but it cut through the tension like a knife.
“Don’t say it, Mark. You don’t owe him anything. He can’t force you to say it.”
Her words hung in the air like a lifeline, but to Mark, they felt like a death sentence.
He froze, his mouth half-open, and sweat began to trickle down his forehead. What is she doing? he thought, his heart pounding in his chest. “Is this Harl*t trying to bury me?”
In his mind, Mark cursed her. “What is this b**** saying?”
“If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t have crossed paths with Noah to this degree in the first place.”
“She dragged me into this mess, and now she wants to make it worse?”
Anger surged through him, fueled by his fear. His body, which had been paralyzed just moments before, now acted on impulse.
His hand slammed against the desk as he shot a furious glare at Layla. “Shut up! Who do you think you are, Layla?” he shouted, his voice cracking with desperation.
His glare was filled with venom, as though she had become his lifelong enemy.
Layla’s eyes widened for a moment, caught off guard by the sudden aggression. But just as quickly, her expression hardened, and she crossed her arms over her chest.
“I’m trying to help you, you idiot!” she snapped back, her voice filled with frustration. “If you don’t want my help, then fine! Do whatever you want, but don’t cry over your ego. Call Noah ‘sugar daddy’ if you want, I don’t care!”
The sarcasm in her words only fueled Mark’s rage further. His fists clenched tightly as he struggled to contain his frustration.
Layla narrowed her eyes, her lips curling into a scornful smirk. “Hmph. Who do you think wants to speak with you, anyway?” she retorted, turning her back to him with a dismissive flick of her hand.
The entire class sat in stunned silence, watching the exchange unfold like a slow-motion train wreck. Everyone was shocked at the scene, after all Layla and Mark were rumoured to be dating.
No one had expected them to explode like this. It was like watching two bombs go off simultaneously, leaving nothing but chaos in their wake.
Mark’s breathing was heavy, his face flushed with humiliation. Layla’s words had stung him more deeply than he would ever admit, but now he had bigger problems.
His eyes flicked back to Noah, who had been silently watching the whole scene play out with that infuriating smirk on his face.
Mark swallowed hard. His body still shook with a mixture of rage and fear, but he knew he couldn’t escape this, not after everything that had happened.
“I-I’m sorry, Noa— I mean, dad…” Mark stammered, the last word slipping from his lips like a stone sinking into deep water.
The entire class froze.
Noah’s smirk spread wider, his eyes gleaming with satisfaction. He leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest as though he were a king.
“Good boy,” he muttered, just loud enough for everyone to hear.
The effect was immediate.
A wave of shock rippled through the classroom. Students who had been silently watching the drama unfold now exchanged incredulous glances. “Mark?”
“The same Mark that we know? Calling Noah
‘dad’? This couldn’t be real.” Whispers began to fill the air, soft at first, then louder as more students turned to their fellow students in disbelief.
“No way… Did Mark just call Noah ‘dad’?”
“Is this for real?
Lily who was seated next to Noah, shook her head at the scene and a small wry smile that was barely visible formed.
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