The college student I had a passionate night with at the hotel turned out to be the intern I was supposed to mentor.

On his first day at the company, he pulled me into the break room and wrapped his arms around my waist. "You have such a slender waist. That night, I never expected you to be that fervent..."

I stood holding my drink, scanning the bar for tonight's target, when a commotion at the nearby table caught my attention.

Several men were pressuring a young woman, who looked to be a college student, to drink. She constantly rejected them and tried to leave, only to be pulled back each time.

"Hey, your friend's looking for you by the restroom. You should go check on her."

I shot the woman a meaningful look. She immediately caught on, grabbed her bag, and slipped away.

The men then surrounded me, exchanging glances. "Hey there, handsome. You just ruined our fun. But if you drink this, we'll call it even."

It seemed I would not be getting out of here without drinking that glass. "Fine. I'll drink this as my apology. Hope you have a successful night."

I downed the drink and returned to my seat, preparing to pack up and leave, when suddenly, my vision blurred. I tried to get up quickly, but one of the men came over and sat down, wrapping his arm around my waist.

I struggled to push him away, but something was wrong with my body. My consciousness was becoming hazy.

"Didn't you say you were going to organize materials for tomorrow's class presentation tonight? Didn't expect to find you out partying."

A clear, gentle male voice reached my ears.

"I feel terrible. Please help me." My awareness was already fuzzy, and I instinctively leaned toward that cool presence.

"Hey, please don't do this. I'm here to take you home." He helped me outside the bar, where the cold air cleared my head slightly.

"Take me to a hotel." I looked up and noticed that the guy in front of me was quite handsome.

He had rather thick brows and bright eyes. I asked, "By the way, what's your name?"

"I'm Dexter Cooper," he replied.

…

My whole body ached like I had been beaten up. When I opened my eyes, I realized I was in a hotel room and suddenly remembered being drugged last night.

I could vaguely recall getting to the hotel. Some college guy brought me here. Everything after that was a blur, though my throat was hoarse from all the screaming.

"You're awake. I bought you an acai bowl. Sit up and have some." The guy in front of me was tall with a bright smile that revealed two little canine teeth.

"What are you looking at? Didn't you see enough last night?" Dexter laughed shyly under my stare and scratched his head in embarrassment.

"Ah, it's nothing. Thanks for last night."

"No, don't mention it. Last night, we..."

"Oh, don't worry about it. We were both just having fun. It was mutual, so we're even." I put on the bathrobe as I spoke. After picking up my clothes, I headed toward the bathroom.

"That's not what I meant, babe."

"Um, calling me 'babe' isn't really appropriate, is it?"

"But we called each other that all night long. Come on, just be my boyfriend, babe."

"Whoa, hold on there, pretty boy. Last night's game is over."

I felt like things were heading in a direction I could not predict. Was he actually asking me to take responsibility for him?

Absolutely not. I, Lincoln Shaw, was determined to be a player for life.

Facing this innocent college guy, all I wanted was to escape quickly.

"Here, this is 200 dollars. Keep it. Actually, I don't know if it was your first time, so here's another 300. That's all I have in my wallet."

"What do you mean? Are you dumping me already?" he suddenly asked angrily.

"No, no. We're not lovers, so you can't call it dumping. At most, it was just a one-night stand."

After I finished speaking, I saw anger and disappointment flash in Dexter's eyes.

I quickly tried to comfort him, saying, "I was really satisfied with your performance last night. Well, I wish you all the best in your future, young man!"

I pulled open the door and rushed out. As I closed it behind me, I heard him say, "Just you wait."

…

Two weeks had passed since that incident. I had been busy with work lately and had not been back to that bar.

Today, the company welcomed a batch of college interns, and the senior employees were assigned to mentor them on projects.

"That covers the basics. Now, let me introduce everyone to our new colleagues." The supervisor had been droning on and on.

I glanced at my phone. My mom had introduced me to another blind date prospect. I had come out to her years ago, and after much back and forth, she had become fairly open-minded about it.

However, since retiring, she had not been able to stay idle and had started looking for potential boyfriends for me. I supposed parents would be parents no matter their child's orientation.

According to her, this guy was 20 years old—a college student who had been studying abroad and recently returned home. She asked when I would be free to meet him.

Good grief, where was she finding these connections?

I did not reply and put my phone away. When I looked up, one of the guys standing in front of me looked familiar. Wait, was that not the guy from the hotel last time?

What a small world. I raised my left hand and pretended to fix my hair, using the motion to block his gaze.

"Let me introduce Dexter here. He's doing his studies abroad and is graduating next year. He has outstanding abilities and is quite accomplished for someone who's only 20."

Our supervisor, Colin Clark, looked impressed and continued, "Oh, and Lincoln, starting today, you'll be partnering with Dexter."

"Huh? Mr. Clark, don't you think Lucy might be more suitable? After all, she studied abroad too, and people closer in age would have more to talk about." I tried to deflect.

"Mr. Shaw, right when I got here, I heard that you have extensive experience handling these projects. I really want to learn from you. I specifically requested this assignment," said Dexter.

Seeing him put on that 'humble' and 'sincere' expression, I really wanted to slap him.

"Alright, that's how we'll arrange the pairs. And since they're new to the company, as mentors, you should look out for them in their daily lives as well as at work."

I was about to grab my laptop and escape when Dexter stepped in front of me and suddenly leaned close to my ear. "Long time no see. Let the game begin."

I stared at him in shock, suddenly realizing that his previous sunny, innocent demeanor had been an act. This was not some naive college guy with clear, doe eyes. This was clearly a wolf in sheep's clothing!

"Dexter's really handsome, isn't he? Look at those arm muscles. He must work out regularly."

"Yeah, totally! His butt's perkier than mine, and he's a guy. His Adam's apple is gorgeous too. I'm in love!"

Ever since Dexter arrived, I had been overhearing conversations like this in the break room.

'He does have a decent body and pretty good strength.'

God, what was I thinking?

He was seven years younger than me. Sure, he was handsome, but a man that smart was not my type. I preferred dumb, pretty boys since they were easier to fool.

Plus, how had this guy tracked me down here anyway? He was too persistent. Gosh, I had to stop thinking about it.

I grabbed the printed materials and was heading back to my desk when a pair of large hands suddenly pulled me into the stairwell around the corner.

"What the hell..."

Before I could finish saying '...is wrong with you', I saw who was in front of me.

"Babe, I've missed you so much." Dexter reached out and hugged me, as if savoring the memory. "You have such a slender waist. That night, I never expected you to be so fervent. No matter how I held you, you never got tired."

"Dexter, are you out of your mind? I already told you that night is over."

His solid chest pressed against me, making it hard to breathe. I lowered my voice angrily.

"This is the first time you've called me by my name. It sounds nice. And the fact that you still remember that night means that you like me."

He looked at me with a somewhat relieved expression.

"You're not my type, and I'm not looking to date anyone." I figured maybe being direct and clear with him would make him give up.

"How do you know you won't like dating me if you won't give it a shot? Don't tell me you plan to just hook up without ever falling in love?"

"Bingo. I'm a player, okay? Now, please move," I spat.

"I won't. Kiss me and I'll let you go."

He tightened his arms around me. I was worried a coworker might suddenly appear, so I quickly gave him a light peck on the cheek.

"Good job, babe. I'll let you off the hook for today," he said.

"By the way, why are you even here?" I really could not understand how our one-night stand came with a sequel.

"That night, a few of us interns went out together. When I came back from the restroom, I happened to run into you," he continued enthusiastically.

"It was such a coincidence too. That night, you asked me to find something in your bag, and I saw your work ID. Right then, I thought it had to be fate."

After hearing his explanation, my head started pounding. Was this what they meant by play with fire and you would get burned?

"Oh, there's one more thing I haven't told you. But you'll find out tonight," he said mysteriously.

I had to put in some overtime that day. Exhausted both physically and mentally, I decided to go to a bar to unwind.

I returned to my apartment provided by the company to clean up and get ready. Right as I was walking past the unit next door, I heard noise coming from inside. That place had been empty for a while. A new coworker had probably moved in.

By the time I finished getting ready, it was already 11:00 pm, and the noise next door had stopped.

Just as I was about to leave, I discovered the door lock was broken again. I was locked inside and could not get out. Fortunately, I had an emergency backup plan.

I tried to find my next-door neighbor's contact in the community's group chat. Sure enough, there it was.

Soon after, the person texted me back. Following my instructions, he found the spare key under the flower pot by the door and opened it from the outside. The moment the door opened, I froze.

How was it Dexter again? This guy was relentless.

"Babe, this is the second time I've saved you." He leaned against the doorframe with a smug smile.

"Well, well, look at you, all dressed up. Don't tell me you're going bar hopping again?"

"It's none of your business."

"Take me with you, alright? I'd like to shadow you and learn a thing or two."

"No need. I prefer going alone."

"Well then, I guess I have no choice but to show you something." He pulled out his phone and swiped once. A photo of me nestled in his arms in bed instantly appeared on the screen.

"Dexter! Are you insane? Delete that right now!" I said angrily. He was actually blackmailing me with photos he had secretly taken that night.

"Then take me along. Three, two..."

"Fine, I'll take you! Now, delete the photos."

"Well, that depends on my mood. Besides, my baby looks so stunning in every shot. I'd hate for anyone else to see these."