Chapter 187: Matthew The Coward
For a moment, Rebecca seemed to freeze.
She stood there completely still, genuinely unsure how to respond.
At the same time, annoyance rose in her chest.
’Does Luca really like women like Arabella? The type who always acts so aloof?’
Just then, Arabella came downstairs.
Since Luca had messaged her beforehand, she spotted the conspicuous red Ferrari almost immediately.
And naturally, she also noticed Rebecca leaning over the driver’s side window.
Arabella was still dressed in a snow-white gown, its long hem swaying gently in the breeze.
Combined with her breathtakingly beautiful face and flowing white hair, she looked almost unreal.
It was the kind of beauty that could make someone stare for far too long without realizing it.
Through the rearview mirror, Luca caught sight of that familiar white figure.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
Then he turned back to Rebecca, and the warmth in his expression disappeared.
Rebecca saw him smile and immediately assumed he had finally softened toward her.
A surge of excitement rose in her heart.
Then Luca spoke.
"Why are you still here?"
The smile on her face froze.
Luca frowned, the impatience in his expression obvious.
He then backed the Ferrari up slightly to give Arabella more room and waved at her.
Rebecca instinctively followed his gaze.
Her expression stiffened when she saw Arabella walking toward them with the same calm, indifferent face as always.
Rebecca gritted her teeth before forcing a slightly flustered expression onto her face.
"Ah! Arabella, is this your friend? I was just chatting with him for a bit. Don’t misunderstand."
The moment she finished speaking, Luca and Arabella exchanged a glance.
Neither of them said anything.
Yet both clearly understood what the other was thinking.
’Is this woman insane?’
Luca took the initiative.
"Arabella, get in. I’ll take you out for some tea."
Arabella immediately understood what he was doing.
A faint trace of amusement flickered through her eyes, though her expression remained as calm as ever.
"I’m not going."
She glanced at Rebecca.
"I’m already sick of green tea."
"Arabella, you..."
Rebecca’s face darkened.
She knew perfectly well that the two of them were mocking her.
But before she could finish speaking, Luca cut her off.
"Shut up."
His voice was cold.
Luca pushed open the door and stepped out of the car, placing himself between Rebecca and Arabella.
The smile was gone from his face.
His gaze turned sharp enough to make Rebecca instinctively tense.
"If you dare say another bad word about Arabella, I’ll make sure you regret it."
Rebecca’s face paled.
Luca ignored her reaction and slowly looked her over.
Then he sneered.
"All dressed up and putting on this fake innocent act. Do you really think everyone else is stupid?"
His expression turned even colder.
"Get lost."
Rebecca visibly flinched.
She took two steps back, her eyes quickly filling with tears.
She looked as though she had suffered some terrible injustice.
Pitiful.
Fragile.
The kind of expression that might make other men rush forward to comfort her, pat her head, and tell her everything was going to be alright.
But in Luca’s eyes...
She looked even more fake than before.
He was starting to feel like his eyes would hurt if he kept looking at her.
So he turned around, ready to take Arabella’s hand.
Then an unwanted voice interrupted him.
"You’re a grown man. How can you bully a girl in front of everyone like that? Shouldn’t you apologize?"
Luca’s outstretched hand stopped.
Slowly, he lowered it.
He took a deep breath, frowned, and turned around.
’Where did this idiot come from now?’
Beside Rebecca stood a young man in his early twenties.
He had curly hair and an arrogant expression, with a cigarette still held between his fingers.
He took a drag, slowly exhaled a ring of smoke, and wore the kind of expression that suggested he thought he looked incredibly cool.
Luca stared at him.
Then silently thought...
’What era are we living in?’
’Is he still trying to act like some rebellious young hotshot?’
However, after looking at him more carefully, Luca remembered where he had seen the man before.
Both of them, actually.
He had encountered them near the school district at Golden Water Bay when he went out to buy flowers for Naomi.
Rebecca had tried to seduce him back then.
And this man had even arrogantly claimed that he would teach Luca a lesson.
Remembering that incident only made Luca dislike Rebecca even more.
"Matthew, don’t be impulsive. You can’t beat him."
Rebecca suddenly grabbed Matthew Montgomery’s arm.
Her expression was pitiful as though she were genuinely trying to stop him.
Of course, she wasn’t.
She was simply adding fuel to the fire.
Anyone with half a brain could see through such an obvious provocation.
Unfortunately...
Matthew apparently didn’t have half a brain.
The moment he heard Rebecca’s words, his anger exploded.
He stepped forward with a fierce expression and stopped directly in front of Luca.
"Don’t think you can act so arrogant just because you have some money!"
He pointed at Luca.
"This is a school. And there are plenty of people richer than you!"
Then he glanced back at Rebecca.
"Apologize to her. Right now."
Slap!
Matthew hadn’t even finished acting like a righteous hero before Luca’s palm landed heavily across his face.
The force sent his head snapping to the side.
"You dare hit me?! I..."
Slap!
Another slap landed before he could finish.
Luca looked at him calmly.
"If you want another one, keep talking."
Matthew froze.
The anger on his face faded almost immediately.
Under Luca’s cold gaze, he slowly retreated.
Then another step.
And another.
Until he had moved several meters away and ended up standing beside Rebecca again.
Rebecca’s expression darkened.
She hadn’t expected Matthew to be nothing more than a loudmouthed coward.
Luca shook his head.
He suddenly felt bored.
This kind of person was so pathetic that even beating him felt like a waste of effort.
So he stopped paying attention to the two of them.
He took Arabella’s hand, pulled her into the Ferrari, and drove away.
The two people left behind could only stand there under the curious gazes of the surrounding students.
Matthew and Rebecca looked like animals on display at a zoo.
Both of their faces burned with humiliation.
Rebecca had a fiery temper.
Matthew was supposed to be physically imposing.
The moment they were alone, Matthew tried to grab her hand.
Rebecca immediately shook him off.
She had always thought this sycophant was useless.
Today had simply confirmed it.
Completely.
She turned and walked away without looking back.
Matthew watched her leave, his face growing darker.
The humiliation from earlier slowly turned into hatred.
Finally, he took out his phone and dialed a number.
The call connected almost immediately.
"Cousin, I’ve been beaten up! You have to help me get revenge!"
"Who dares hit Damian’s cousin?"
A furious voice came from the other end.
"They’re asking for trouble."
Matthew’s eyes lit up.
"He’s a pretty boy named Luca Hale!"
Matthew had seen Luca on the university forum before and had indirectly learned his name through Rebecca.
There was silence for a moment.
Then the voice on the other end suddenly rose.
"Who did you say?!"
Matthew didn’t notice anything strange.
"Luca Hale!"
He continued angrily.
"Cousin, you have to teach him a lesson for me!"
The other side fell silent again.
If Matthew could see Damian’s face at that moment, he would understand what true fear looked like.
Damian’s face had turned deathly pale.
Like he had just seen a ghost.
"You wait there."
His voice suddenly became cold.
"I’ll handle it."
Before Matthew could say anything else, the call ended.
...
Meanwhile, Luca had already driven Arabella to South Park.
Just as they parked the car, his phone rang.
It was Austin Silva.
Luca answered the call with a laugh.
"You little rascal. You already knew I was back in San Fierro?"
"Haha, Luca, I only just found out too."
Luca raised an eyebrow.
’Could this have something to do with those two idiots?’
Before he could ask, Austin continued.
"Bro Luca, Damian called me earlier. He said his cousin offended you."
"But it’s already been dealt with."
"Damian?"
Luca didn’t immediately remember the name.
Austin explained, "The guy you hit at Crimson Velvet Lounge."
"Oh."
Luca finally remembered.
"That idiot."
He paused before asking, "How did you deal with it?"
"I took him home, beat him up, and was preparing to send him abroad."
Luca took the drawing board from Arabella’s hands.
His expression remained calm.
"Too lenient."
Austin fell silent.
Luca’s voice turned completely indifferent.
"Tell Damian to break that kid’s legs."
He paused for a moment.
"Then kick the Montgomery family out of San Fierro."
Austin’s expression changed slightly.
"And if they refuse?"
Luca glanced at Arabella.
His tone remained emotionless.
"Then kick the Hawthorne family out of San Fierro instead."
Austin immediately understood.
"Clear!"