Rusty Stripe and his brothers stormed into the Costa Café viciously. The café, which was originally filled with a warm atmosphere, was suddenly interrupted by a tense silence. The guests all averted their gazes in horror, fearful that any eye contact could invite trouble. Julian remained oblivious to the commotion, his back turned, as he studied his bubble system with glee.
—— Julian had essentially cracked the system's fundamental logic. The next step was to exploit the negative emotion system effectively, and having more skilled people would be ideal, especially those with professional expertise. However, in a place as small as Southampton, such talented individuals were scarce. Southampton did boast a renowned "hometown" team——
Just as Julian's thoughts drifted away, a heavy hand, like a rake, slapped down on his shoulder. Julian gasped and almost exclaimed, "WTF!" Julian frowned and turned around to find the ferocious Rusty Stripe glaring at him.
As soon as Rusty Stripe saw Julian's handsome face, he erupted with anger: "Who do you think you are? A mere weak chicken like you deserves to be Sophie's boyfriend?"
Julian still recalled Rusty Stripe from 12 years ago. His real name was Chris Dick, and he was the main center back of the "Bucks Steel Horns," the Southampton private high school's football team. This guy was as robust as an iron tower, standing at 1.8 meters tall and weighing 88 kilograms. A blend of muscle and fat, he resembled a high school version of Harry Maguire's mini aircraft carrier. The point is, Rusty Stripe loved to be hot-headed. In the inter-school league, he once achieved the infamous feat of assaulting the referee and chasing the opposing forward to their locker room. The strong lads backing Rusty Stripe were also the school's top troublemakers. It could be said that the Southampton private school feared them, as teachers and students alike avoided them.
In his previous life, Julian had little interaction with the likes of Rusty Stripe. Because in the past, Julian had finished that lunch with Sophie calmly and unnoticed, then left quietly without incident, never crossing paths with Rusty Stripe and his group after they rushed out the door. But now, with rebirth, destiny had changed.
"Rusty Stripe! What are you doing?" Sophie rushed in nervously, pushing away Rusty Stripe's hand from Julian's shoulder.
Sophie's anxious look only fueled Rusty Stripe's jealousy. "Sophie, why are you so nervous about him? Tsk tsk, this weak Asian chicken needs a girl like you to protect him!"
The brothers behind Rusty Stripe jeered and whistled in various mocking tones. Julian frowned slightly.
Engrossed in his quest for useful skill bubbles, he had no interest in dealing with the likes of Rusty Stripe. But now that he was being ridiculed, he couldn't just ignore it. Sophie took Julian's arm, trying to lead him away. "Julian, ignore them, let's go." As she held Julian's arm, she pinched his skin gently, a covert signal to stay calm.
However, Julian had no intention of leaving and smiled at Rusty Stripe instead. "Want to go?" Rusty Stripe blocked their path with his iron tower-like body, a malicious smile on his face. "Not until you tell me to my face that you're breaking up with our Southampton private high school's belle, or else this weakling won't be walking out of here today."
He cracked his knuckles, his fist joints popping ominously. His bad boy entourage adopted fighting stances, glaring at Julian with arrogance.
If it was 12 years ago, such a battle would have definitely made Julian, who is a nerd, at a loss, and his legs would tremble with nervousness. But now, Julian has 12 more years of life experience, so he doesn't pay attention to such small scenes at all. Instead of panicking, Julian felt a hint of secret joy in his heart. This is a great chance to get professional skill bubbles!
"You're the Rusty Stripe, right?" Julian said, "I've heard that you are reckless, but seeing you today, you really live up to your reputation."
Rusty Stripe sneered, "Although you are praising me, I won't let you go because of it."
What the fuck? You actually take "reckless" as a compliment? Julian's head was covered with black lines. It seems that if you want Rusty Stripe to have negative emotions, you can't speak too politely; you need a little stimulation.
"Rusty Stripe, aren't you curious why Sophie fell in love with me?" As he spoke, Julian turned his head and gave Sophie an affectionate look. Those eyes were full of tenderness and sweetness, without any trace of acting. Sophie trembled uncontrollably. This is the first time she has felt such a real love emotion! And Rusty Stripe's complexion became very ugly!
Julian gently held Sophie's tender hand in his arms and continued to show affection: "The answer is actually very simple-I'm handsome enough."
As soon as this remark came out, many spectators in the café also nodded. Julian is 1.8 meters tall, with sharp eyebrows and starry eyes. On his already handsome face, there is a calm and mature gentlemanly smile. Even the brothers behind Rusty Stripe couldn't help but secretly nodded, admitting Julian's handsomeness.
Rusty Stripe yelled unconvinced: "What the hell is handsome? Sophie! Look at my muscles!" Rusty Stripe rolled up his sleeves, exposing his thigh-thick biceps, and his arm muscles rattled as if they were about to explode.
Sophie was heartbroken by Julian's behavior of holding hands and secretly pinching her. The teasing at a dangerous moment made her blush and heart race: This is the real man...
Glancing at Rusty Stripe's muscles mixed with fat, Sophie couldn't help but roll her eyes. Then, Sophie scolded Julian with a pretty face and shyness: "I hate it, I'm not superficial because you're handsome so I date you." Julian gave Sophie a doting smile. "I know, I'm just going to introduce my other specialties to Rusty Stripe." This very mature and charming doting smile made Sophie Turner almost faint on the spot!
Is this really that bookworm Julian? How did he become so attractive all of a sudden? Could it be... is he really in love with me? Why didn't I see it before? No, no, I don't want to fall in love so early!
Sophie covered her flat chest with one hand and tried to control her heartbeat, which had already stalled, while the other hand was still attached to Julian's arm.
There are obviously only a few ordinary dialogues between the two, but with the eyes, micro expressions and movements of both parties, it is simply a live show of affection!
All the customers in the café were fed dog food!
Julian secretly breathed a sigh of relief: Ha! It turns out that this is the acting skill of the Stanislavsky system: realism. Really useful!