Compared to the noble, aloof, elite, and powerful Eric Bennett ten years later, the Eric Bennett from ten years ago was much more youthful. His soft hair clung to his cheeks, his bangs were thin and scattered, fully revealing those beautiful eyes. The lines of his face were still gentle, lacking sharp angles, and he even seemed to have a bit of baby fat. Maybe because he was angry, his face was flushed, making his eyes look even more moist and bright...

...Oh no, he’s kind of cute.

Andrew Foster's breathing grew a little rapid. He knew Eric Bennett was good-looking, but he hadn’t expected the eighteen-year-old Eric Bennett to be so soft and adorable, so different from his usual strong demeanor... No, he couldn’t let himself be fooled by this look!

Eric Bennett is off-limits, off-limits!

Andrew Foster forced himself to calm down, but out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the high school uniform on Eric Bennett, with the words "Nanyang High School" on the chest. He felt a bit dazed and confused—did Eric Bennett go to school in A City when he was young? Were they really this close to each other at this time?

No memory, absolutely no memory. It seemed he had never learned anything about Eric Bennett's past.

Henry Clark noticed Andrew Foster staring intently at Eric Bennett, nudged him with his elbow, and brought him back to his senses. "Do you know him?"

Andrew Foster stammered, "No... I mean, yes... no, I mean, I kind of know him..."

"..." Henry Clark: "So do you know him or not?"

Andrew Foster: "..."

With a pained expression, Andrew Foster said, "I know him."

My wife, he added silently in his heart.

But since they weren’t supposed to know each other yet, Andrew Foster added, "I know him, but he doesn’t know me."

Standing nearby, Eric Bennett heard this and the slight frown on his face slowly relaxed. Andrew Foster had a unique presence—if he’d met him before, he wouldn’t have forgotten.

There was something Andrew Foster had to admit: the first moment he saw Eric Bennett, he felt a guilty panic, like he’d been caught doing something wrong. That was a reaction only Eric Bennett could provoke in him.

That’s why, whenever he saw Eric Bennett in a place like this, his first instinct was to hide.

Why Eric Bennett was here was no longer Andrew Foster's main concern. When he saw Eric Bennett grabbing that thug-like boy, he instinctively thought Eric Bennett was being bullied. He didn’t have time to process his complicated feelings and blurted out, "…Are you being bullied?"

The boy was ugly, and Andrew Foster didn’t think there was any emotional entanglement between him and Eric Bennett, so he could only assume Eric Bennett was being bullied.

Fu Donglin’s two lackeys could read the room. Seeing that Andrew Foster and Henry Clark were both dressed in understated luxury and looked good, and glancing back to see the high-and-mighty manager of the Jinyu Hotel personally seeing them out, they realized these two must be important. Not daring to cause trouble, they quickly said, "We’re classmates. He’s drunk, and we were just about to take him back to school."

Andrew Foster secretly glanced at Eric Bennett. Now that he looked, he realized that ten years later, Eric Bennett... seemed to have only grown a few centimeters taller!

...This... made him even cuter!

This discovery brought a strange sense of novelty to Andrew Foster, which actually helped suppress his panic at running into Eric Bennett. While sneaking glances at Eric Bennett, he declared loudly, "Nonsense! You’re definitely bullying him. I have eyes—I can see it!"

The two lackeys immediately looked miserable. "Really, we’re not. Eric Bennett, say something!"

Eric Bennett looked at them quietly, and the two lackeys seemed to realize something, shrinking back a little.

Andrew Foster fanned the flames from the side: "Classmates? Then you’re bullying him at school! That’s too much. I’m calling the police right now—he and I are both witnesses!"

As he spoke, he pointed at Henry Clark. Henry Clark had no choice but to nod and say, "As it happens, the chief of the A City police department is my uncle. He’ll definitely investigate this bullying incident thoroughly."

The two lackeys couldn’t handle it anymore. They quickly pulled Eric Bennett over and whispered, "Brother Fu told us to take you back to school, strip you, and lock you in the girls’ bathroom. That’s it, really, that’s all."

A shadow flickered in Eric Bennett's eyes, but he said nothing.

The two lackeys turned to Andrew Foster and said, "It’s a misunderstanding, all a misunderstanding! We’re all classmates—how could we bully him?"

As they spoke, they nudged Eric Bennett. Eric Bennett looked at them, then his gaze fell on Andrew Foster, and he nodded. "It’s a misunderstanding."

Andrew Foster believed him and breathed a sigh of relief. "As long as it’s a misunderstanding. As a righteous and enthusiastic citizen, I absolutely won’t allow bullying to happen to you!"

Andrew Foster realized his words might be ambiguous and, afraid Eric Bennett would overthink, quickly added, "Not just you—if it were anyone else, I’d stand up for them too. You don’t need to remember me or thank me!"

Chapter 4: Heart Itch

When Eric Bennett heard Andrew Foster say this, he still calmly replied, "Thank you."

Henry Clark tugged at Andrew Foster. "Let’s go. The flight’s at ten—you can still catch some sleep in the car."

Andrew Foster looked at Eric Bennett, his eyes showing a reluctance he didn’t even realize himself. Without looking at Henry Clark, he rubbed the back of his neck and asked, pretending not to know, "Are you a student at Nanyang?"

Eric Bennett lifted his eyes slightly and gave a soft "Mm."

Andrew Foster asked again, "Senior year?"

Eric Bennett looked at him and nodded gently.