“There's no need for you to hurry.

We're going to meet up with a few close friends. There aren't going to be any outsiders. I can assure you of that. I would truly appreciate it if you could come and join us." Having such a good time talking to

Debbie, Niles completely forgot about the fact that there was actually someone else riding along with them in the back of the car. As they waited for the traffic Light to turn green, he looked back at Carlos and asked him, "Carlos, you wouldn't mind if I ask Debbie to tag along with us, right?"

Hearing such an atrocious question, Carlos quickly opened his eyes and stared at him intently.

"I actually do mind," he frigidly answered.

Both Debbie and Niles were lost for words at his terse statement.

The air inside the car suddenly thickened, filled with so much awkwardness. Debbie tried to break the silence by saying, "I'm grateful for the invitation, Niles. But there's someone waiting for me at her place right now. Maybe some other time.”

It totally slipped Niles' mind that Debbie and Carlos actually knew each other. In a low voice, he tried his best to explain, "That's too bad. Okay then. Please don't mind my friend. Carlos just doesn't Like interacting with strangers, especially women."

“Strangers...' A bitter smile was embedded onto Debbie's face after hearing that word.

"I'm aware of that. I know Carlos well," she told

Niles.

This time, it was the two men who were caught off guard.

Knowing full well that Carlos would never tell him anything about it,

Niles thought it would be best to ask his two other friends about this mysterious woman and Carlos when they got together later. Carlos had never gotten himself involved in any kind of gossip, to avoid being the talk of the town. Be that as it might, his relationship with Debbie probably wasn't as simple as it appeared to be.

Niles was such a gentleman. As soon as they got to Kasie's building,

Niles immediately opened the door for Debbie and lent her a hand in getting out of the car.

“Thank you for dropping me off, Niles And goodnight, old man."

Both of them were taken aback by the way Debbie addressed Carlos before she left.

Her way of saying it... felt so personal and sounded so intimate.

Those words became the last straw for Niles. He just couldn't contain his curiosity any longer. The second Debbie stepped foot inside the doorway to the apartment, he quickly contacted his brother, Wesley.

“Wesley, do you know of a girl named Debbie?"

Some time had passed and yet, there was only silence on the other end of the Line. When Wesley finally opened his mouth to answer him, he said, "Where have you heard that name from?" Niles was so certain that there was a bit of displeasure in Wesley's voice. Since the phone call had been made through the car's LED screen, every person inside the car could hear the conversation.

Niles could easily tell there was something going on.

Through the rearview mirror, he shifted his gaze over to Carlos who was still silently Leaning against the seat with his eyes closed.

“What? I just wanted to know." Niles grinned much like a Cheshire cat.