371: [Bonus chapter]OS 08: A Pair of Two (Wen & Nanzie)

[Bonus chapter]OS 08: A Pair of Two (Wen & Nanzie)

The cameras loved Chloe Hathaway almost as soon as she was born.

Her round hazel eyes were bright and clear and her onyx hair was as shiny as the surface of a gemstone. Nanzie held the little girl's hand who gazed at the preview monitor, entranced by her mother's beauty. 

Eve had her face turned away from her daughter. She stared into the camera while sitting on stool and a gray business suit covering her from neck to toe. Her scarlet hair stood out easily. She crossed her arms and held up a pen, bringing the attention to her whole outfit instead of allowing her hair to completely steal the spotlight.

"So pretty…" Chloe gushed softly. 

A crack of a smile hinted on Eve's face. She put her hand down and looked at her 8-yr old daughter. "Chloe, come here."

Beaming, Chloe skipped towards her mother who lifted her up. Eve placed Chloe on her lap, grunting at how heavy her daughter was now and the latter's short legs swinging over the side.

The denim jacket and pale purple ruffle dress Chloe wore added more colors to the camera. The photographer pressed on the shutter button and captured every moment. Nanzie sneakily turned on her phone and recorded the impromptu photo session.

Eve handed Chloe the pen and nudged her chin towards the camera. "How does dad look when he's working?"

Chloe lit up before remembering her father's serious face. She frowned, her hazel eyes squinting in front of her. She pointed the tip of the pen forward as if there was a monitor screen there. Eve pressed her lips together and muffled her laughter.

=====

Ambryan sat on his desk, a pen in his hand. He scanned clauses of the contract on his monitor and reread them. His eyebrows scrunched deeper as he reached further down the page. 

Wen stood near his desk, watching Cain who laid on the sofa. The little boy had an important job to do according to his father. He held a tablet in his hands and watched an unreleased kid's film made by Eros Productions. 

It was the first one made since Ambryan had taken over as CEO. Safe to say, his son's opinion was highly valued.

A bell notification echoed throughout the room. Wen coughed. Her ears tinted red. With the quiet air, even a needle dropping could be heard. She took out her phone and clicked on the message, auto playing when it opened.

"How does dad look when he's working?"

Ambryan snapped his head. A storm clouded his violet eyes. Wen gulped and showed him the clip. Nanzie had zoomed in to show Chloe mirroring her father's current pose. Ambryan looked at his pointed pen and let his hand fall.

He sighed deeply. "It seems like my wife is up to her antics again."

"Mom?" Cain perked up. He put the tablet down and ran over to his father's desk. Wen handed him the phone. A toothy grin spread across his face. "Looks like fun! Wish I was there too."

At that, Ambryan grunted. "I can be fun."

Cain blinked up his innocent eyes. "I never said you weren't, dad."

"So you are saying that I am fun?"

"Whatever makes you feel better, dad."

"..."

Ambryan clicked his tongue. He looked over his digital calendar, going through his schedule. Highly important red boxes filled up his day. He wouldn't be free for another few hours. The side of his throbbed.

How could his own son not want to spend time with him? He glared at the tablet. The movie must be insufficient and needed to be redone. He closed the folder on his desk, making Cain jump.

Softening his expression, Ambryan racked his brain for a solution. This couldn't go on. If it did, both his children would favor their mother over him. Eve deserved nothing but adoration but that had to come from him the most.

An invisible light bulb lit up above his head.

"Tell you what," Ambryan began to say. Cain recoiled a bit, his father's frustration still clear in his mind. "Wen will take you to the amusement park. I'll join you after I'm done with work."

"Really?!" Cain exclaimed. He bolted for Wen's hand and tugged it. "Let's go, let's go!"

"Young master Cain—"

"Come on! We have to go before he changes his mind!" 

"..." 

Ambryan closed his eyes. He should have taken Chloe and left Cain with his wife. The little girl, at least, would kiss his cheek before escaping his office. 

Wen nodded her head at Ambryan. Then, she followed Cain out the door. Her other hand typed a quick text message.

=====

"News from Wen, Nanzie?" Eve spoke up as she stepped out of her dressing room. Chloe followed right behind her.

Nanzie met their gazes. "Wen is taking Young Master Cain to the theme park."

"What?!" Chloe yelled. She pulled on her mother's skirt. "What about me?! I should get to go too!"

Eve wrinkled her nose in suspicion. "Did Ambryan allow that?"

"It's direct orders from Mr. Hathaway."

"Direct orders?" Eve cocked an eyebrow. What had gotten into her husband's head? She looked down at Chloe. "Well, I don't see why you can't go. Nanzie, take her please. Stay together with Wen and Cain."

"Yay!" 

"Yes, ma'am."

Nanzie held Chloe's hand and led her out of the building. Eve watched them leave, her mind whirling and speculating what had gotten into her husband's head. She checked his schedule saved in the DTC app. Avery had upgraded it so it's in sync with their work schedules.

Dates plans were made easier this way.

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.

.

Inside the car, Chloe sang a tune while looking out the window. The smile on her face never wavered. This was great! They were going to a theme park! 

And without their parents!

Time flew by in her head. The next thing she knew, the tall rides towered over her. A giggle escaped her lips. She ran to the entrance with Nanzie right behind her. Her eyes spotted a sulking boy on the other side of the gates. 

Feeling her stare, he glared at her. "You're late! The lines are now longer!"

Chloe scoffed. "Why were you waiting for me then?" 

"I wasn't," Cain grumbled. He crossed his arms over his chest. "Wen won't let me go without you."

Nanzie made eye contact with Wen. They exchanged a silent conversation, a secret pact to always stay in touch and to always keep an eye on both kids. The little ones had yet to see their family's bodyguards as authoritative figures. With their genes having mischief and intellect combined—a formula that promised trouble—they had their work cut out for them for the day.

It didn't take long for the first sign of distress to emerge.

"Nanzie, do you have a visual on Black Bunny?"

Finding an abandoned jacket with Chloe's tracker on a carousel, Nanzie gripped it tight and cursed to herself. "Negative. Red Sparrow?"

Wen sighed into her intercom. "Negative."

The two ran around the park, searching for two children on the loose. They had memorized the map on the way and deduced which places they could hide in. Two adults were already hard to spot in a crowd and kids only made it harder with their small stature. 

Nanzie gritted her teeth and sped up. Her ponytail of black hair flew behind her. Dread crept over her head. She shook it off at once. Nothing had happened to the children. That was the only thought she'd tolerate.

Behind an empty food truck, Chloe pinched a bit of her cotton candy and offered it to her younger brother. "Want some?"

Cain wrinkled his nose. "Ew, it has your germs."

"I liked you more when you were tinier."

"That's because you could boss me around."

"I still can since I'll always be older."

"Just you wait, someday I'll be head of the family and you'll have to answer to me." Cain ate his candy apple. Shards of the hard candy coating stuck to his lips. He licked them off. "How long have we been missing?"

"Not long." Chloe continued picking on her cotton candy as she ate, never biting on it directly. Her fingers became sticky from the sugar floss. "Now, I want to try the other colors. Maybe they have different flavors."

"Mom and dad will be mad once they find out."

"Only if they found out."

"You know more than anyone that adults don't listen to kids," Cain pointed out. He tossed the popsicle stick on the untouched land before them. It landed behind the bushes. "If they did, we didn't have to sneak out."

Chloe scrunched her onyx eyebrows. "You're right… But we'll think of something."

The Hathaway siblings fell silent. They wanted to get on the roller coasters but the ride operators refused when they didn't have a guardian. Instead, they chose the next best thing:

Eat all the sugar they weren't allowed to.

The bush leaves rustled. Their eyes looked up as their bodies froze. They held their breaths, listening in. This time the rustling lasted longer and two men stood up to reveal themselves. 

Chloe dropped her cotton candy and grabbed her brother's wrist. 

Cain gasped, his heart pounding in his chest.

One of the men grinned. He held up the once popsicle stick of a candy apple. "Didn't they tell you it's wrong to litter? Do you know what happens to bad children?"

His partner bent forward to meet their eye level. "They get punished."

"Run!" Chloe yelled. She took out a pepper spray and aimed for his eyes. He yelped in pain. Then, she dragged Cain behind her, pulling him to her side so their pace would match. They headed back towards the crowd. 

"Not so fast!" The first man leaped forward. He snatched Cain's other arm. The children stumbled backwards and screamed at the top of their lungs. The man pulled out a swiss knife. "Stop or one of you gets hurt."

Chloe felt the blood drain off her face. For a moment, she lost the ability to move. Then, her attention went to Cain. It shook her out of her daze. She dropped her brother's wrist and stepped in front of him.

Her voice cracked as she spoke. "Please. Let him go."

Cain yanked the back of her shirt. "Chloe, no!"

"Aw, what a brave little girl you are." The second man recovered and joined his partner, showing his own swift knife and pressing the blade against her cheek. "Let's see… should you pay me back with a scar on your face? Or maybe a gash across your eye? You know what they say, 'an eye for an eye,' and you peppered both of mine."

The first man shoved his hand away. "Not yet. If we injure them now, they'll be worth less. We could ask for a higher price with threats of injury. Their parents would bargain for a lower ransom but we can keep the bid high if we deliver the kids in pristine condition."

"... That's actually a good idea."

Chloe raised her leg and used the heel of her foot to strike downwards on the arm holding Cain captive.

It did the trick. 

"AGH!" The first man grunted while Cain hissed in pain. 

The second man raised his knife high. "Why you—"

"Uh-uh-uh!" Chloe interrupted, raising her hands. Her round violet eyes blinked innocently. "Can't ask for another million or two if we have the tiniest bit of injury, remember?"

Realization sparked in his eyes. He turned his glare towards his partner. "You just had to run off your mouth loud enough for them to hear. Now, they—Hey, wait! Stop!"

The children successfully made it back, blending in the crowd. Their perpetrators refused to give up and hunted them down. One of them halted a random civilian. "Excuse me, miss. I was robbed. I told my little girl to run but without my stuff…, I can't call her or show you her picture. Maybe you've seen her, perhaps? Please, I really need your help."

"What does she look like?"

His lips quivered, demonstrating panic and fear. "She has black hair and hazel eyes. She's wearing this purple dress. A pastel shade, I think? It has these ruffles that made her look cute. If you remember where she went, please tell me. I'm so worried."

"Hmmm." Nanzie twisted her neck from side to side. She clenched her hand around the denim jacket. "I think I did see her. She was with a little boy."

"Yes, yes! That's her and her brother!"

Nanzie arched an eyebrow. "I thought you only had one child?"

"Ah…" The kidnapper gulped, scratching the back of his neck. "She's the taller one so I figured she's the easier one to spot. I also wasn't sure if they stayed together or not."

"I see." 

.

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.

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Nanzie patted his shoulder and flashed a toothy smile. "Don't worry. Everyone gets rattled after a traumatic experience. I'll help you find her. She went this way."

"Thank you! Thank you!" The kidnapper followed behind her, hiding his smirk. With one person convinced about his situation, the others were likely to believe him now. He heard the children's conversation from earlier. Their rich parents probably dropped them off with their nanny. 

Even if their nanny found them before he did, he'd be able to take her out.

"You don't understand! We have to get inside!"

A commotion in front of the haunted house captured the attention of nearby passersby. 

"I'm sorry. It's against the rules. Come back with your guardian."

Chloe grabbed the security's trousers. "This is an emergency! We need to hide! Two bad men are after us! They want to kidnap us and ask for ransom from our parents!"

"That's right!" Cain backed her up.

"Children!" The kidnapper called out. He walked towards with his arms spread apart. "It's okay now. The robbers are gone. I had to give them everything but, at least, you are safe."

"These children are yours?" The security guard questioned.

"He's—" Chloe stopped short. Nanzie placed a finger on her lips.

"Yes, I'm sorry. They must have been frightened," the kidnapper explained. He reached for the kids and had one hand on each of their shoulders. "I was also pretty scared. I can't imagine how they must have felt." 

The security guard nodded. "Understood. Please calm them down first. If they cause public disturbance, you'll be asked to leave."

"Of course, of course. We'll take a little break first. Come on, kids."

Wen appeared beside Nanzie, panting from her run. She gave the latter a nod. 

The kidnapper turned around and skidded to a stop when he noticed them standing in their way.

"So these are your kids?" Nanzie crouched and pinched both children on the cheeks. They groaned in pain. "They're as cute as you said."

"Ah, yes… and who is this?" The kidnapper switched his focus between the two. 

"This is my wife. We like to wear matching outfits on our dates."

Wen rolled her eyes playfully. "It's cringey, we know."

"Nonsense. Love is love."

She chuckled and bent forward, hovering on top of Nanzie. "Your kids must have taken after their mother. They don't look like you at all."

"Oh. Uh, they're adopted actually," the kidnapper lied through his teeth. "My husband and I had always wanted kids. We also like to wear matching outfits for our dates."

Right on cue, his partner turned up around the corner. He raised his hand and waved. "Honey! I found the kids! They're alright. I can't believe you came over so fast after I called."

"Didn't you lose your phone?" Nanzie was quick to poke through the holes in his story. She slowly rose to her full height, crossing her arms over her chest. Wen also straightened her posture.

The kidnapper tightened his hold on the children.They needed to leave as soon as possible. "I-I borrowed one from a stranger."

"Really?" Nanzie stepped forward. "Why didn't you call your daughter then?"

"T-They only had enough for one call."

"Why not borrow another cellphone?"

The second kidnapper slowed down his pace as he reached the scene. 

His partner gave an awkward smile. "She doesn't have one yet. Neither does he. We felt like it was too early to give her one. Right, dear?"

"Uh… yeah. We think they'll become lazy." The second kidnapper joined his partner and coughed. It was best if he didn't talk. He didn't hear the whole story so if he spoke, it might blow their cover to peacefully leave the park.

Wen nodded. "That's good parenting."

Then, she looked at Chloe. "Hi… um, what's your name?"

"Chloe!" 

"And your father's name?"

"Ambryan Hathaway!"

Nanzie raised her eyebrows at the man claiming to be their father. "You're the CEO of Eros Productions? You look different from your press pictures."

Beads of sweat dripped on the kidnappers' foreheads. 

"I'll say…" Wen rolled up her sleeves. The light in her blue eyes dimmed. "I'd be fired if I can't even recognize my own boss."

"Sh—"

Nanzie knocked out the newcomer first while Wen push-kicked the kidnapper who held the children on his chin. The police on standby left their hiding spots and pointed their gun at the culprits. 

"Freeze! Hands in the air!"

"Are you kids okay?" Nanzie knelt with her arms open for a hug, Wen copying the same position. The kids ran up to them and squeezed both their bodyguards.

"You scared us to death, you know that?" Wen said as she patted their heads. "Don't ever leave your tracker behind. You don't have phones yet but if you do, they can always take it from you and we only have your tracker to rely on. Besides, one more stunt like this and your parents might inject a microchip in you."

"Please don't tell them what happened! We'll behave from now on!" Chloe cried out, terror in her eyes. "Mom and dad won't let us leave the house ever! Please, please, don't tell them."

"We learned our lesson!" Cain added. "We'll always listen to you."

Nanzie pursed her lips. Their pleading eyes stared straight back at her. Then, she looked at Wen. "What do you think?"

Wen gaped in return. "A-Are you actually considering this?"

Leaning in to whisper in her ear, Nanzie explained the situation. 

"Hm…" Wen wore a hard expression. She glanced at the children. "Fine. We won't tell them. But promise us that you absolutely must follow everything we say. Break it and we will tell your parents."

"We promise!" Chloe and Cain answered in unison.

Wen grinned. "Good. Now, how about that roller coaster you've been eyeing since we got here?"

Their eyes lit up with delight and their fears melted away…

… or so they thought. 

The Hathaway siblings learned another valuable lesson that day about rules—one they gained by puking their guts out over and over. All the sugar and one roller coaster after another made their stomachs churn and their heads lightheaded. 

They'd rest for a while and Wen or Nanzie would lead them to a new ride once they felt better.

Catching on to their scheme, the children surrendered. 

The four of them relaxed on the grass until it was time to go.

"Mom! Dad!" They yelled, dashing for their parents' car.

"What's going on?" Eve asked. Alarm bells rang in her ears as she stepped out of the passenger's seat. She met them halfway with Ambryan right behind her. "What's wrong?"

Chloe and Cain sobbed. Mucus oozed down their noses. Chloe, acting as the older sibling, spoke for the both of them, "We're sorry! We've been bad children! We ran away and left our trackers so we almost got kidnapped since Wen and Nanzie couldn't find us. We also tried to hide it from you, even asking Wen and Nanzie to keep it a secret. We were wrong! It's wrong to run away! And to lie to our parents!"

Wen cleared her throat.

"Oh, and it's wrong to bribe others to lie for you too!" Chloe finished. 

Cain hugged his father's leg, raising his eyes. "We really are sorry, dad. It won't happen again."

Eve and Ambryan exchanged looks. 

"Well," their mother said after a moment of silence. "Thank you for being honest. It is indeed wrong to do all those things. As long as you promise not to do them again… we won't punish you." 

Ambryan knelt on one knee and ruffled his son's red hair. "It's only for this time. Not every wrongdoing can be forgiven and forgotten with an apology."

"That's right." Eve held up a finger. "You have to be good role models for the baby."

"What?!"

"What?"

"What—" Ambryan turned to his wife. He almost stopped breathing. "... You're pregnant?" 

"And whose fault is that?" She glared in his direction but chuckled in the next second. "We'll have our hands full. The twins will need all the help we can get. Right, Chloe? Cain?"1

At that, Ambryan nearly doubled over. "Twins?!"

Nanzie stepped closer to Wen. Neither of them looked at the other. 

The message was clear enough. 

It might just be the time for them to ask for a raise.

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