“It’s not that long. About half an hour,” Charles answered, taking out his handkerchief and wiping away her sweat in concern.
Blinking in surprise, she asked, “Half an hour? I thought you guys reached way earlier than that.”
“Uh…” he uttered and chuckled awkwardly. “Well, we could have reached the top very early at first, but it’s all Tyler’s fault. He went on the wrong path. So—”
“What do you mean it’s my fault?” Tyler argued in a huff. He had just walked over and overheard Charles speaking badly about himself. “You’re the one who resorted to dirty tricks and pointed out the wrong way to me because you couldn’t beat me in speed.”
Snorting smugly, Charles said, “Even if I tricked you and pointed out the wrong path to you, you still went on it anyway. Just how dumb are you?”
“You!” Tyler hissed, holding his fist angrily.
Holding her forehead, Sonia interrupted, “That’s enough, both of you. Stop arguing. You’re giving me a headache.”
“I’ll massage you, darling. You’ll feel better after that.” Charles paced behind her and rubbed her temples as he spoke.
Seeing the situation, Tyler mumbled, “Bootlicker.”
Hearing him, Charles replied in an equally hushed voice, “Some people aren’t even fit to be a bootlicker.”
The edge of Sonia’s lips twitched, and she was speechless at the sight of an adult and a teenager arguing like children. “If both of you are going to continue fighting, then get away from me and let me have some silence by myself.”
“No more fighting. We’re not fighting anymore, darling,” Charles assured hurriedly.
Tyler nodded as well, indicating that he wouldn’t argue anymore. Indeed, both of them held on to their words and quieted down, and Sonia was finally able to have some peace.
Despite that, something suddenly hit Tyler a few minutes later. Looking down the mountain, he asked, “By the way, Sonia, where’s my brother?”
“He’s behind us,” she answered casually.
Charles sniggered. “A strong man like him can’t even beat two ladies in a hike and is taking so long to reach the top. He’s really useless.”
“That’s nonsense. It’s not my brother that’s the problem, but Tina, for sure. She must be the one who’s slowing him down,” Tyler explained on behalf of Toby indignantly.
Sonia raised her brows, thinking, I have to admit that, in a sense, this guy really hit the bullseye.
The reason that Toby still hadn’t made it to the top was really because of Tina dragging him down.
Sure enough, Tyler’s words were soon confirmed to be true when Toby arrived at the peak with Tina on his back.
After he placed her down, Tyler helped him to take a seat on a rock, and he closed his eyes as he adjusted his body to the fatigue. After all, it was a physically demanding task to carry a person weighing around a hundred pounds up the mountain. Even if he worked out all year round, he was still deadbeat tired and was panting slightly as he sat there.
In the meantime, Tyler stood next to him, fanning his sweat and passing water to him.
“Are you alright, Toby?” Tina asked in concern as she paced over.
Toby’s eyes flew open, and he was about to answer when Tyler stood between them and glared at Tina angrily. “Do you think he’s alright?”
Frightened by the ferocity in his eyes, she staggered backward and uttered, “I…”
“What do you want to say?” Tyler barked. “Don’t you have legs on you? Why do you need him to carry you? Can’t you walk by yourself?”
Intimidated, Tina’s eyes reddened, and she looked as though she was about to burst into tears.
The sight of her in this state frustrated Tyler even more, and he wanted to continue when Toby broke him off, saying, “That’s enough now. Stop lecturing her. I was the one who wanted to carry her. It has nothing to do with Tina. Get out of the way.”
“Toby?” Tyler spun his head around, looking at him in disgruntlement. “I’m speaking up for you and you want me to get out of the way?”
“So are you going to do it?” Toby asked instead with narrowed eyes.
Tyler moved his lips, but still moved out of the way after throwing a death stare at Tina.
“Toby…” Tina cried, finally seeing him.
Handing a piece of tissue to her, he cooed, “Don’t cry anymore.”
“Okay,” she answered, nodding aggrievedly.
Just then, Sonia and three others, who were away collecting wood and stones, returned.
Seeing Toby and Tina, Zane placed down the small rocks in his hands and said in amusement, “Hey Toby, you finally made your way up here. It must have been tough on you.”
Toby merely glanced at him nonchalantly and ignored him. Very quickly, he retracted his gaze, but before that, he pretended to look in Sonia’s direction casually.
Using the stones Zane had collected to build up a stove, Sonia was preparing to heat up the lunch which they had brought to the top. It was getting late and everyone had completed a hike, so they were all hungry; it was time to prepare the food.
“Alright, does anyone have a lighter?” she asked, looking at Zane and Charles while brushing her hands off after she was done putting up the stove.
Charles shook his head. “I don’t have one because I don’t smoke. What about you?” he asked Zane.
Zane felt his pockets and smiled awkwardly. “Sorry, I forgot to bring it.”
“I didn’t bring one, either,” Rebecca and Tyler said.
Looking up into the skies helplessly, Sonia lamented, “So nobody has a lighter. What are we going to do about lunch?”
Everyone was quiet, and while Sonia was contemplating to send someone down the mountain with the cable car to bring a lighter, Toby’s cold voice suddenly echoed. “I have one.”
Whisking out a metal lighter which looked very expensive, he got up, walked to Sonia, and passed it to her.
However, she merely looked at it, hesitant to accept it.
The look in Charles’ eyes dimmed when he saw that she was tempted, and he stood up, speaking to Toby with a stiff smile on his face. “President Fuller, you better keep your lighter away. We don’t dare to accept anything from you. If your fiancée gets jealous again, all of us will be in trouble.”
Toby knitted his brows and turned to look at Tina behind him.
With a smile, Tina said, “You think of me as such a narrow-minded person, Mr. Lane. It’s just a lighter, and I’m not so petty as to be jealous over something like this.” Turning to Sonia with the same smile, she continued, “Miss Reed, please accept it.”
Sonia looked at her for a few seconds steadily before taking the lighter from Toby’s hand. “Okay, I’m taking it, then. Thank you, Miss Gray and President Fuller.”
“You’re welcome,” Tina replied.
Although Toby didn’t say a word, the knot between his brows eased up, and he appeared to be very satisfied with the fact that Sonia had accepted his lighter.
“Darling, you’re really taking it?” Charles questioned unhappily.
Flicking open the lighter, Sonia began to start a fire as she answered, “Why not? Everyone is hungry, so the most important thing now is to fill our bellies.”
“But—”
He wanted to say some more, but Sonia instructed him, “Bring the lunchboxes over here.”
“Okay,” he uttered and went to bring the food obediently.
Soon, the food was heated up, and Sonia handed out the lunchboxes to everyone. At the end, she brought two boxes to Toby and Tina.
“Here,” she said, handing the food to both of them.
Narrowing her eyes, Tina then asked her with a smile, “Miss Reed, this is…”
Toby was also looking at Sonia, and so were Charles and Zane.
“Thanks for the lighter,” Sonia replied calmly.
“I see. Thank you, Miss Reed,” Tina said, taking a lunchbox from her.
“Thanks.” Toby took the food as well.
When he was receiving the food, the tips of his fingers brushed over hers.
Sonia flinched as she gazed at him, who happened to look at her at the same time, and their eyes locked.
Beside Toby, Tina saw the scene and almost pierced through her palm with her fingernails. “Toby, why are you staring at Miss Reed? You’re making her embarrassed,” she said softly, trying her best to maintain the smile on her face.
Although her voice was soft, it was mixed with aloofness.
Only then did Toby and Sonia snap back and avert their gazes simultaneously.
After pushing the lunchbox into his hands, Sonia then turned around and left.
As Toby stared at the lunchbox in his hands with the thought that it was personally heated by Sonia, an inexplicable sense of delight washed over him, and a smile appeared on his face.
