Fake Date, Real Fate-Chapter 46: So, My Date Might Be a Supervillain

The limo pulled away, its red taillights shrinking into the night.

A second later, the iron gates of the rosegate estate creaked open.

"good evening, miss Isabella," the gateman said with a polite bow.

"hi, Mr. Thompson," I replied, forcing a smile.

I adjusted the stupidly heavy necklace around my neck and stepped inside, heels tapping lightly on the stone walkway that led to the massive front door.

I didn’t get too far when my eyes caught the figure of someone standing motionless on the steps, half hidden in the shadows.

I jumped back. "Oh my gosh!"

My heart dropped until I realized─

It was Aria.

In a satin robe, wearing a glittering house slides and a silk scarf wrapped around her head like she was prepping for a vogue cover shoot.

And strapped to her face?

A terrifying red-lit led face mask that made her look like a possessed skincare robot.

"Aria? What in the world...?" My breath caught in my throat. "What are you wearing?!"

The red light pulsed rhythmically, casting an eerie glow on the pale stone steps. Finally, with a small internal whirring sound, apparently the mask came with sound effects! The mask switched off and aria lifted the mask slowly like she was revealing a villain’s face in a horror movie. "Red light therapy. For stress-induced aging. You’re welcome."

I glared at her. "you scared the life out of me!!!"

"you scared me too," she shot back. "Slamming out of a limo like a woman freshly dumped in a k-drama finale."

Aria stepped aside and pointed dramatically toward the open front door. "Well, get in before my mum sees you dressed like that and starts asking million questions we can’t answer."

I muttered something under my breath and walked past her, the weight of the necklace still an anchor around my throat.

The air inside the mansion was cool, scented faintly of sweetness and calm. Marble floors. Art you didn’t dare touch. A glass vase taller than my dignity tonight.

I kept walking like I own the place. I consider here my second home

Aria followed, pulling the LED mask fully off and tucking it under one arm like a clutch.

Without saying anything, I headed straight to the kitchen, opened the fridge and grabbed two juice boxes. I tossed one to Aria without looking and then stabbed my straw into mine like it had personally wronged me.

We walked in silence, side by side, the juice boxes slurping quietly as we ascended the wide staircase toward her room.

At the top of the staircase, just before we stepped inside, Aria finally asked, "So... how did it go?"

I didn’t answer immediately. I Just walked into her room, dropped onto her bed and stared at the ceiling like it held the answers to the universe.

Because where would I even start?

****

I lay back on the bed, sipping from the juice box and kicking off my heels like they’d personally offended me. Aria sat beside me, cross-legged while adjusting the scarf on her head.

"Help me get this thing off," I mumbled as I pulled at the necklace carefully. "I think it’s glued to my skin."

She bent forward, her fingers brushing my neck as she unclipped it. "Should I keep it?"

I held it up, the massive stone reflecting the light. "No idea. It’s probably worth more than my organs."

Aria giggled. "You’re not wrong."

She stood up and tossed it into her jewelry tray, then looked over at me as we both reached for our juice boxes again.

"So..." she said. "How’d it go?"

I let out a sigh, the kind that said ’where do I even begin?’

"I played my role. I smiled. I waved. I clapped at things I didn’t care about. Then Adrien Waltzon made a scene."

"A good scene?"

"I don’t know... I wouldn’t call it a bad scene either. He slipped the necklace on me in front of everyone and kissed my hand."

Aria blinked. "Your hand?"

I nodded, flopping back onto her bed. "yes, like I was some duchess in a Bridgerton remake. Slipped the necklace on, held my hand and kissed my knuckle In front of everyone. The cameras were going insane. I swear, people were clapping. Clapping, Aria."

Aria cackled. "Oh my God. He’s got the dramatics down."

"Tell me about it," I mumbled.

She laughed into her juice box, then sobered when I sat up, more serious now.

"But Aria...I think Adrien’s a bigger deal than we thought."

Aria tilted her head. "Bigger how?

"Like... power... Influence. The way people acted around him──People looked at him like he was untouchable. Like... whatever he said went. And not in a spoiled-rich-kid way. More like... I don’t know... Like he owns half the city."

Aria frowned, already reaching for her phone. "Hold up."

She tapped and scrolled. Then froze.

"Holy shit," she whispered.

I leaned over. "What?"

She turned the screen toward me.

There it was—Adrien’s name at the top of the search trends.

Dozens of blurry pictures of us at the auction, the moment he kissed my hand frozen in several frames. Headlines screaming ’Who is Adrien Walton’s Mysterious Date?’ and ’The Return of the Phantom CEO: Adrien Walton’s Auction Appearance Goes Viral’.

Aria scrolled further. "Holy crap. You won’t believe this—the CEO of Vantage & Cole is one of the richest young CEOs alive. He runs a massive tech empire, completely privately owned. No public shares, no leaks—so no one really knows how insanely rich he is. People have been digging for years, but it’s like chasing shadows."

"What do you mean, that’s just the start?"

"He basically owns a mini-world under the Walton Empire—architecture firms, malls, hotels, restaurants, even an airline. And get this? He lives completely off the grid. Nobody knows where he actually is or what he’s up to. It’s straight-up mysterious."

I nearly choked on air.

She looked at me. "Girl, what did you sign up for?"

****

I stared at the screen, juice box frozen halfway to my lips.

"I can’t believe this," I said. "

My brain started spinning, cycling through memories from the night like a malfunctioning slideshow. Adrien’s smile—charming, sure, but a little polished. The way people moved around him, like he was carrying an electric current. The security guy who followed us everywhere, even to the coat check.

Aria tapped her phone again, scrolling through another article. "Apparently, his company does something with encryption. And drones. And, like, private satellites? Why does anyone need their own satellites?"

I buried my face. "I thought he was just rich. Like, annoying-rich. Not Bond-villain rich."

Aria put her phone down and flopped back beside me. "Okay, but...you survived the night. You didn’t get kidnapped or blackmailed. Yet."

"Not helping."

She shrugged. "But seriously, what will you do? If the press finds out your name, you’re basically going to be famous by accident."

The thought made me have goosebumps. "I want to crawl into a hole. Or maybe Switzerland. They have good chocolate and extradition laws, right?"

Aria grinned. "Or you could just text him."

I gave her a look like she’d suggested I juggle chain saws. "Text him? What would I even say, ’Hey, saw you’re apparently a billionaire supervillain, just checking in!’?"

We both let out a deep sigh.

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