Matthew Clark let out a snort of laughter and said, "Whatever... I thought you were going to run away."
Ryan Miller widened his eyes. "Me, run? You didn't run, so why would I?"
"Who knows."
Matthew Clark sat up, bent over, and pulled a pack of cigarettes and a lighter out of someone's pants, lit one, took a deep drag, and said, "You should be the one to pay for the coffin, right? I'm out of money."
He was grimacing in pain, yet this guy could still sit there calmly smoking.
"Don't worry about dying. However many times you die, I'll buy you that many coffins." Ryan Miller said with a dark face, continuing what he was doing.
"Hold on." Matthew Clark exhaled smoke. "You pay for this time first. I'm afraid you really will run off."
For a moment, Ryan Miller didn't get it. "Pay? Pay for what?"
Matthew Clark said, "Didn't you say last night you wanted to 'sponsor' me? What, you sleep with me and now you want to deny it?"
"......"
Ryan Miller remembered everything.
He remembered getting drunk yesterday, barging into the bathroom, seeing Matthew Clark washing his hands, and then pulling a black card out of his wallet and tossing it at Matthew Clark, making a scene about wanting to keep him.
Ryan Miller laughed in exasperation. "Was it me sleeping with you, or you sleeping with me?"
Matthew Clark flicked his ash and looked up. "So, did you enjoy it?"
Ryan Miller was stunned. Following Matthew Clark's words, he subconsciously shifted his gaze and glanced at the bedding under Matthew Clark.
"Me, enjoy it?" Ryan Miller scoffed. "You're dreaming. With that pathetic toothpick of yours, it wouldn't even fill a gap in my teeth."
Matthew Clark laughed too. "Then come try it, let me see how big the gap in your teeth is."
Ryan Miller had never imagined that one day, in broad daylight, he'd be trading dirty jokes face-to-face with Matthew Clark.
"Screw you, I didn't enjoy it at all!" he cursed.
Hearing this, Matthew Clark nodded, stubbed out his cigarette, then lifted the blanket and said, "Wait here."
The guy wasn't wearing any clothes. Ryan Miller picked up a pair of black underwear from the floor and tossed it over. "Wait for what? A fight? If you want to fight, at least put your clothes on. Otherwise, if the ambulance comes and they carry you out naked, how embarrassing would that be?"
Matthew Clark put them on as told. "I'm not fighting. I have professional ethics—I don't hit my sponsor. I'm just going next door to ask something."
Ryan Miller didn't get it. "Ask what?"
Matthew Clark snorted a laugh. "Ask if they heard you last night."
"......"
Murder is illegal, murder is illegal, Ryan Miller chanted silently in his heart.
Namo Amitabha.
"And tell your friends you want to freeload," Matthew Clark added.
Ryan Miller had never realized Matthew Clark could be this shameless.
Usually, even though they were mortal enemies, Matthew Clark always had that deadpan face, speaking in a sarcastic and icy tone, able to piss people off with just a few words.
He was nothing like the guy today, shamelessly insisting on being paid the sponsorship fee.
Ryan Miller said, "Matthew Clark, have you no shame?"
"I'm already bankrupt, what do I need that for?" Matthew Clark replied.
Fine.
You win.
Ryan Miller calmed down, buttoned his pants. "Wait a minute."
Matthew Clark smiled, stopped as told, and sat down on the sofa nearby.
He'd been in too much of a rush to notice earlier, but now Ryan Miller saw that not only were their clothes scattered on the floor, but there were also several used condoms, and even some unsightly things.
Ryan Miller took a deep breath, wanted to sit, but was worried about his own butt, so he could only stand.
"Yeah." He rubbed his temples. "I did say I wanted to keep you."
"Hold on." Matthew Clark took out his phone, started recording. "Say it again, I'll record it."
Ryan Miller snapped, "You think I'd try to weasel out of it?!"
Matthew Clark shrugged. "Who knows. Weren't you just about to?"
Ryan Miller took another deep breath and repeated, "I want to keep you!"
"I'll pay... but, there are rules to sponsorship, you know that, right?"
Matthew Clark said, "Nope."
Ryan Miller said, "...Anyway, just one! During the sponsorship, I call all the shots!!"
"As long as it doesn't threaten my personal safety," Matthew Clark agreed readily. "What do you want?"
That question stumped Ryan Miller.
He'd never sponsored anyone before, how was he supposed to know what to ask for?!
"We'll talk about the rest later. For now, just one thing!" Ryan Miller gritted his teeth. "If anyone ever asks you... about that stuff, you have to say it was me who did you!"
Matthew Clark raised an eyebrow, nodded, lips pressed tight. "Mm, got it."
Ryan Miller's face flushed red with anger again. "What the hell are you smiling at? Can you have a little professional integrity?!"
"I do." Matthew Clark leaned back. "If anyone asks me, I'll say..."
His voice was slow. "Say you were amazing, did me so hard I was half dead, and made me moan all night..."
"I didn't ask you to be that detailed, damn it!" Ryan Miller felt like his lifespan had just been cut by twenty years.
"Alright." Matthew Clark nodded.
Ryan Miller felt he couldn't talk to him anymore. Enduring the pain, he hurriedly put on his clothes.
Before leaving, he pulled out that black card from his pocket and tossed it at Matthew Clark again.
"This card... you keep it for now," Ryan Miller said. "The password is 199511."