"Show me your right hand?"
Curiosity clouded the air around their space as soon Payton decided to bring out his concern for master Ethan's hand with much expected doubt and mystery in his tone.

Nicole watched the two men confused as she saw Payton holding master Ethan's hand next, intending to check up on it.

Or inspect his hand closely, which was strangely wrapped around a handkerchief.

Rather accidentally tugging on the material, Payton's move only made master Ethan wince in extreme pain the other second.

Payton's eyes widened in wild shock witnessing the same hand that he had been questioning with much suspect, as surprising as it...

The hand was heavily bloodied as the handkerchief slipped off of his hand, showcasing master Ethan's injury.

Master Ethan's furrowed eyebrows hinted utter dissatisfaction, his reaction was seemingly painful.

He was trying to hide his injured hand the entire time?

Why would he do that? Also why would he lie about it?

Master Ethan cursed under his breath while shaking his hand once, the action of Payton pained him way too much to mind the shocked faces of two of his friends.

"Fuck!"
Cursing out loud, master Ethan went down on his knees and picked up the handkerchief that slipped on the ground, intending to wrap it around his wound again.

But it was too late.

"Bro, What happened?"
Payton questioned as his eyes followed his injured friend's action with full of concern.

To look at it clearly, his hand was wounded by something?

Or someone?

"Don't mind it."
Fresh, marks of someone's teeth was visible with dark stains of blood still rushing through the wound.

Someone bite him off? Sure was the case!

Payton's eyes enlarged at the realisation.

But Nicole was in fact too busy minding master Ethan's pain to not notice anything else.

"It doesn't look like nothing, Eth!"
Complaining, Nicole approached master Ethan immediately while wanting to touch his hand which he tried so hard to hide it away but again, it was too late.

"Eth, you are badly injured. How did this happen?"
Nicole demanded answers to those questions which master Ethan's was never ready to answer just yet.

But he too knew, he had to make up something quicker to divert the attentions from him.

Acknowledging everything, he wasn't really that keen to share about the matter with anyone.

Even be his friends whom he was meeting after entire 2 decades!

"A Cat... Cat bit me!"
Indeed as random and nonsense as it sounded, but coming from someone so raw and emotionless as master Ethan, Nicole had to believe him anyway.

He wouldn't joke about anything, they knew...

Although they didn't know he could lie...

While in Payton's case, master Ethan's reason did not sound any convincing at all.

His body language said it all that he was making everything up.

Hence scoffing at his remark, Payton rolled his eyes. The billionaire friend's voice darkened a bit to furl his shiver of tone and his behaviour became fishy, everything just hinted that there was indeed something he didn't want them to know.

Payton was never much of a person who could easily feed on bullshits like that.

Never when he knew Master Ethan's guts the best, since their childhood.

He can fool Nicole with his words, but never Payton. Even Master Ethan knew it!

"Cat? It could be wild one, you need to get tetanus immunisation as soon as possible Eth."
So deadly concerned seemed Nicole, she tried checking upon his wound more while watching the two, Payton smiled bitterly from distance.

Payton was smart enough to figure out that Master Ethan was lying about the injury but why couldn't Nicole see that all?

Indeed, she was too blind in his love to be that dumb, she could be feed on his lies without any worry...

Blood still being gushing out of his hand stated everything clearly that the wound was still fresh and was caused recently.

Also he needed a treatment as soon as possible instead of just wrapping the god damn handkerchief to try stopping the bleeding.

"Right it was a wild cat, you need not worry about it. I'll have my manager book an appointment for the vaccination!"
Master Ethan made another excuse out of hurry.

While finding Nicole so close to him and inspecting his hand in worry, Master Ethan's panicked pair of eyes reacted evidently that all he did was lying and nothing else.

Payton rolled his eyes having enough of him.

At this point, Nicole was making fool of herself to believe master Ethan that blindly.

And knowing Payton, he could not take it anymore...

"Was the cat wild or you had a wild time with one Eth?"
Payton commented sarcastically, holding a double meaning context which immediately caught master Ethan's attention.

For a flash of second, his eyes held a hint of shock too but soon masking his reaction up. Master Ethan glared at Payton with heavy offence to his words.

Daring him with his eyes to comment any further after that...

Payton chuckled at his billionaire friend's reaction while Nicole frowned at the odd behaviour of both males while wanting to question Payton about the meaning of his statement.

"What do you mean, Payton?"
Nicole reacted rather confusingly while waiting for Payton's response who was still looking Master Ethan with weird sense of challenge now.

A minute passed with nothing but weird sense of negativity in the air around the three friends.

Nicole still waited for her answer from Payton who rather chose not to speak at all on the matter anymore.

Hence soon breaking the trace of his dead stare, Master Ethan spoke tearing up the dead silence...

"Nicole it's okay, I am fine."
He spoke as Nicole frowned again in protest.

"But Eth-"
She tried reasoning him how dangerous his wound could be if continued to be poorly dressed like that with the same handkerchief but again,

Caring about nothing, Master Ethan shook his head.
"I told you I'll get an appointment as soon as possible, need not worry about it."

MEANWHILE
THOMPSON'S MANSION

By the time when the confused and freaked out Hattiea managed to come back to her residence, that is the household of Thompson's... it wasn't surprisingly that late.

The night was still young and why wouldn't it be?

Tonight was supposed to hold a huge significance for the Thompson's household.

The new master's arrival was the reason obviously!

Erasing the hint of uneasiness from her face, Hattiea saw the mansion being decorated beautifully.

Obviously, she couldn't possibly forget about who was finally coming back after years right?

Her foster brother is it...

The one whom she never met before, growing up she indeed heard a lot about master Ethan from the great master.

Being the only son of the great master, master Ethan never owned up or relied to the name of his father or his business for once.

In fact, he was raised by his mother's family and owned up to his mother's name till now, which was indeed very controversial to believe.

Finally after years of his disappearance and mad numbers of disagreements with his father's will and legacy, master Ethan was coming back to the Thompson's household.

And be it great master Thompson's poor health be the only reason of all...

Finally he was coming back for once and all to take over the business and lastly own up to his responsibilities of his father.

The last time the great master Thompson ever saw his son was when, he was barely 15 years old.

Now after 10 entire years of disappearance, great master was meeting his son again and that obviously calls for a huge celebration.

And exactly what tonight is all about, his welcome ceremony.

"I am home, uncle!"
Hattiea called out for the elder on his wheelchair, who seemingly busied himself with something in his office.

Responding to the call almost immediately, the elder man looked up to find his foster daughter approaching him with questioning and tired eyes.

Sylendra was raised and brought up in the care and protection of great master Thompson from such a young age, that could obviously reason why their relationship was so cozy and comfortable.

Great master Thompson after facing the loss of his son, was seeking love and innocence from someone desperately... which he then found in a little girl.

Sylendra Louis was it.

It might be too ironic to believe that Sylendra after being capable and independent now, still didn't choose to leave the household. In fact she still stayed with great master Thompson to take care of him.

That's how pure their bond was till even this day!

"Lendra, you are here? Come on have a seat!"
The elder smiled warmly in welcome as it took no more minute for Sylendra to hesitate, taking the seat next to him, she inspected what the elder was busy doing.

"Watches?"
As soon as her eyes witnessed the collection of expensive watches being displayed on the table in front of her, she frowned heavily.

To which the elder smiled warmly again.
"Ethan used to love my collections, he would always tell me about how he wanted to be like me one day and get all these"
The great master revealed surprising the guts of Hattiea, who chuckled at his choice of words finding it a little funny to believe.

"He wanted to be like you because he found your collection of watches cool?"
Hattiea questioned to which the elder laughed off shaking his head.

"Oh would always copy me. He would pick up my angry accent and start acting like me, scolding everyone around him."
The elder replied being delighted as Hattiea chuckled again at the innocence of his son's mention.

Indeed, Sylendra had heard a lot about master Ethan in past but never the great master Thompson mentioned about his candid moments with his son to anyone.

"So you are planning to gift these all to him? A welcome gift is it?"
Hattiea raised her brows in surprise as for someone like the great master Thompson, who always lived his life with strict principles and routine...

It was unbelievable for him to give up on his favourite possession to someone else, be it anyone.

Guess, the theory doesn't work that well with his son.

Great master Thompson loves his son way too much to not care about his possessions.

"Yeah, I feel like it's the time. As Eth finally agreed to come back home, he can be like me now!"