DUMPED BY MY GIRLFRIEND, CHOSEN BY A SUPERSTAR

Chapter 5

"Hey! There you are!" a breathless voice suddenly broke through the silence of the hallway.

Ethan looked up from the trash can, turning his head toward the sound. Walking quickly toward him, was Cynthia Rose. She stopped right in front of him, panting slightly as she tried to catch her breath. "I had hoped you'd still be lingering around here."

Ethan forced his expression into a calm one. "Is everything alright?"

"The doctors... they pulled it out," Cynthia whispered, her voice trembling slightly as her hand gently touched her throat, which was now completely free of the tightness. "It was exactly what you said. A parasite. Dr. Sarah told me that if I had waited even five more minutes, the creature would have breached my main artery and released a fatal toxin. I would have choked to death right there in the lobby. How did you do that? How could you possibly know that deadly insect was hidden inside my throat without a single medical tool?"

Ethan looked at the famous influencer, shrugging nonchalantly. "It's just a little unique gift of mine."

Cynthia scoffed softly, crossing her arms, completely unsatisfied with the vague response. "A gift? Come on, don't play games with me. Seriously, how did you really know it was there?"

Ethan looked at her, a genuine, amused smile breaking across his face for the very first time since the breakup with Chloe. He leaned in just an inch closer, his voice dropping to a teasing murmur.

"I have Argus Vision."

Cynthia frowned in confusion but then rolled her eyes, thoroughly amused. "Oh, come on. Argus Vision? What does that even mean? That's the most ridiculous, comic-book story you could possibly come up with"

Ethan shrugged casually, stepping back. " It means I can see through things and people when I want to and I'm completely serious. I was born with it. That is  how I saved your life."

Cynthia let out a soft chuckle, a playful smirk dancing on her lips as she stepped closer, looking him up and down. "Yeah, right. Fine, if you really have Argus Vision, then tell me: what color of bra am I wearing right now?"

Ethan let out a low, smooth chuckle, shifting his gaze away with a polite, easygoing smile. "A gentleman never looks."

Cynthia burst out laughing, completely charmed by his quick wit. But as the laughter died down, her eyes traveled past his worn sneakers to the floor. Her expression instantly softened, turning into curiosity as she looked at the shattered chocolates and trampled red roses scattered across the pavement.

She looked back up at his calm face. "What on earth happened here? Where is your girlfriend?"

Ethan let out a quiet, tired sigh, giving a nonchalant shrug. "She broke up with me."

Cynthia's eyes filled with genuine pity. "Oh. I am so incredibly sorry. That's awful."

"It's fine," Ethan replied smoothly, looking down at the ruined gifts without a single shred of regret or sorrow left in his voice. "She wasn't worth it anyways."

Wanting to clear the campus pathway, Ethan slowly bent down to start picking up the scattered, broken rose stems and the torn pieces of the chocolate packet. To his surprise, Cynthia didn't care about the onlookers. She bent right down next to him, her expensive designer skirt fabric lightly brushing the dusty floor as her manicured hands reached out to help him gather the broken flowers.

Ethan paused, staring at her in disbelief. "What are you doing? Wouldn't your pristine, multi-million-follower reputation be completely tarnished if someone took a picture of you doing dirty, manual labor like this?"

Cynthia laughed, rolling her eyes playfully at him. "Oh, please. I am incredibly famous, Ethan. I am very sure that if anyone snaps a photo of this, my publicist will just spin it as me doing a heartwarming good deed for a fellow student instead."

Ethan let out a genuine, hearty laugh at her confidence. Trying to lighten the mood for him, Cynthia glanced sideways as she gathered the last few crushed petals. "So... did your girlfriend break up with you because you told her you have Argus Vision?"

Ethan burst out laughing again, shaking his head. "Mm, nice one. But, that's pretty rich coming from someone who literally has to pay an actor just to be her fake boyfriend."

Cynthia gasped in mock horror, a wide, dazzling smile breaking across her face. "Hey!" Before he could dodge, she reached out with one of the loose rose branches and playfully hit him across his hand, causing both of them to break out into bright laughter as they stood back up, dusting off their palms.  

"Whatever," Cynthia said, tossing the ruined stems into the nearby bin and smoothing down her clothes. As they straightened up, her expression turned slightly thoughtful, her eyes locking onto his.  

"I'll tell you what," Cynthia said, crossing her arms. "Be my fake boyfriend."

Ethan stared at her in shock. "Wait... are you actually serious?"  

Cynthia let out a soft, teasing giggle at his stunned expression, nodding firmly. "Yeah, I'm entirely serious. Don't look so terrified, remember it's completely fake. It's just a strategic move for my public image, and besides, you look like you could really use the extra pay anyway." 

A smile returned to Ethan's face. He reached over, unzipping the front pocket of his backpack, and pulled out the beautifully wrapped, velvet box containing the multi-million-dollar limited-edition pink diamond watch he had picked up earlier. He extended his hand, presenting the priceless box directly to her.  

"Alright," Ethan smiled, his voice steady and full of an unspoken charm. "In that case, take this. Consider it a gift to commemorate the official beginning of our relationship."

Cynthia stared at the luxurious velvet box, completely surprised by the gesture, but a warm smile returned to her face. "Yeah? Okay, good."  

She tapped her chin thoughtfully, getting straight down to business. "Alright, so just so you know, the position pays $10,000."  

Ethan nodded as he processed the number. To a global corporate chairman who pulled in millions by the second, the figure was amusingly tiny. "$10,000 an hour? Hmm. That's a bit under what I am usually used to getting paid."  

Cynthia laughed loudly, shaking her head. "No, you completely misunderstand me. It's $10,000 in total for the whole arrangement." She shrugged off his ridiculous statement as a clever joke.  

"Look," Cynthia explained, her tone turning eager. "The student body is throwing a massive welcome party for me tonight at one of the luxury estates near campus. That party is going to be our very first official public appearance together as a couple. So, don't be late."  

Ethan nodded calmly. "I won't."  

Satisfied, Cynthia gave him one last warm smile before turning to leave. Ethan watched her walk away for a few paces, a sudden, mischievous glint entering his eyes. "By the way Cynthia, Your bra is bright red and quite scandalous to wear to school"  

A gasp of pure shock escaped her lips as she immediately spun to face him . Her cheeks flushed a brilliant crimson color, completely matching the exact lingerie he had just flawlessly named. She let out a loud, breathless laugh, shaking her head in complete disbelief. She didn't deny it; instead, she just waved the back of her hand at him, pointing a finger warningly but playfully as she shouted back, "Just don't be late!"  

With that, she turned and continued walking until they disappeared around the corridor. Ethan smiled watching her leave and very much looking forward to the evening.