Chapter 141

At the sudden shout, Greyson was startled. But that wasn't the end of it.

"Move!"

Dane didn't give him a long explanation and immediately kicked off from his spot and ran out.

"Dane!"

The flustered Greyson immediately chased after him. Dane crossed the corridor at a terrifying speed, and when he reached the stairs, he threw his body forward.

"Dane, it's dangerous!"

Greyson shouted, turning pale, but it was unnecessary worry. He jumped down to the landing in one go, ran a few big steps, and then jumped down to the next landing again. Greyson's eyes went wide. He had witnessed such a scene before. In a nature documentary he saw as a child, when a lion that had been starving for a week spotted a lone gazelle calf in the distance, it ran like that.

As if there wasn't even time to step on each stair individually, Dane continuously moved from landing to landing and reached the hall in an instant. When he finally set foot on the first floor, he momentarily lost balance and staggered, but soon regained his composure. And leaving Greyson, who had only come down about half the stairs, behind, he immediately sprinted toward the front door.

"Wait, hold on! Ashley Miller! Mr. Miller!"

As he flung the door open and shouted, Ashley, who had been just about to get in the car, turned around. His eyes slowly widened in surprise at the sight of Dane Striker looking at him through the open door, panting.

"What..."

Ashley, who had raised one hand to stop the bodyguard trying to block his way, stared at Dane. He waited until Dane came down the stairs and stood in front of him, silently fixing his gaze. As if asking what he had to say.

"To the chief, that, not other things, please tell him to stop the volunteer work."

At Dane's request, Ashley frowned and opened his mouth. But before he could speak, Dane continued first.

"Just forget what Greyson said."

Ashley's frown slowly smoothed out. His mouth corners slightly rose as he quietly looked at Dane. With a strange smile, Ashley Miller said.

"Why should I listen to you instead of my son?"

"Because Greyson misunderstood."

Dane answered immediately. How many people would have the guts to confidently say that your son was wrong in front of a father? Especially to Ashley Miller, who was already considered no different from a president in the public eye.

Look at this.

Ashley slowly stroked his chin. As he was staring at Dane, Greyson soon appeared. Following Ashley's glance, Dane turned his head and spotted Greyson standing on the front steps.

"Greyson, you tell me."

"Huh?"

Dane called my name!

Greyson was surprised and his eyes went wide. It was "Greyson," not "Miller." At this unbelievable fact, he just blinked blankly, when Dane made a menacing face and gestured with his eyes. At that expression, Greyson came to his senses somewhat. Not understanding the situation and just looking back and forth between Ashley and Dane, Ashley opened his mouth.

"This man is ignoring your request and telling me to only listen to him. What should I do?"

There was a faint laugh mixed in his voice. Ashley Miller was clearly finding this situation amusing. It looked like he was enjoying himself while holding the leashes of Dane and Greyson. Of course, the fact that those leashes were just about whether or not to do volunteer work felt quite trivial.

Meanwhile, Greyson's mind was very complicated. The impulse to run wild at the fact that Dane had called his name for the first time, the reason that he must stay calm in front of Ashley Miller, and the worry that he had to figure out and grant what Dane, who was glaring at him, wanted were all tangled up, making it difficult to reach a conclusion.

Making a groaning sound, he chose one with difficulty.

"Please do as Dane wants."

When he put aside all his impulses and worries and made a decision for Dane, Ashley looked at his son without saying anything.

"Is that okay? Really?"

At the question asked after a pause, Greyson nodded.

"Yes, what Dane wants is what I want, so it's fine."

"I see."

Ashley was inwardly amazed at another aspect of his son. Perhaps really...

"Let's do that then."

Ashley, who readily answered, this time asked Dane.

"Is there anything else to say?"

"No."

Looking at Dane, who answered briefly, Ashley's eyes narrowed.

"Thank you."

He sarcastically threw the words Dane should have said, but Dane just blinked blankly. With a face that looked annoyed to death.

Ashley shook his head as if incredulous and got in the car. The bodyguard immediately closed the car door and scattered in all directions. Then the front car started and the vehicles moved in order. And this time, peaceful quiet truly arrived.

"Haaaa."

Dane stretched and yawned as if he had come back to life. Greyson blinked as he watched the back of Dane, who was leisurely walking away, his earlier speed nowhere to be seen, then hurriedly chased after him.

"Da-Dane, Dane!"

Greyson shouted in an excited, raised voice.

"You called my name earlier, right? Huh? You called my name!"

Dane looked straight ahead and asked indifferently.

"Did I?"

"You did!"

Greyson protested indignantly. Going back and forth beside, behind, and in front of Dane, who was still holding the stair railing with an indifferent face and moving sluggishly, Greyson continued to pour out words.

"You called me Greyson, you called my name! Not Miller, but Greyson, right? You called my name, right? From now on, you'll keep calling me Greyson, right? You can't call me Miller! There are six more Millers in our family! So you have to call me Greyson."

"Seven."

Dane suddenly said. Greyson, who had been chattering away, stopped and blinked, saying "Huh?" Dane explained with a face full of annoyance.

"Five siblings besides you, Ashley Miller, Koi Miller. Seven."

"Ah."

Greyson, who let out an exclamation as if he had belatedly realized, soon explained.

"Daddy doesn't use the surname Miller."

"Why?"

At the unexpected words, Dane hesitated. Come to think of it, when they first met, he seemed to have said a different surname. To him, who was puzzled, Greyson said.

"Well, he does use it sometimes, but he says the surname Niles is more comfortable. It's more familiar and I heard it's better for work too."

Well, that makes sense.

Dane easily understood. The surname Miller was too common to make connections difficult, but it would be freer to use one's own surname. Come to think of it, Dane suddenly recalled a forgotten fact. Joshua also used his own surname as is. It was probably for the same reason.

Marrying into an overly famous family isn't easy either.

Dane indifferently resumed walking. Thinking it was a story that had nothing to do with him anyway. Greyson, who immediately followed, chattered beside him.

"When I get married, I want to change my surname to Striker."

At the sudden declaration, Dane's eyes flashed open. When he turned around with round eyes, Greyson, whose gaze finally met his, said excitedly.

"Greyson Striker, doesn't it suit well? Like the two of us! Right? You think so too, right? Huh?"

He repeatedly urged for an answer, but Dane said nothing. He just looked at Greyson with an expressionless face.

At the incomprehensible silence, Greyson stopped with his smiling face and just blinked. 1 second, 2 seconds, 3 seconds. After a not-so-long silence, Dane suddenly chuckled.

"Cute."

There was no sincerity felt in his tone at all. Leaving behind words that seemed to be said out of habit, Dane, unlike before, climbed three stairs at once and moved far away in an instant.

"Sleep well."

Leaving a formal greeting, he went into his room. Greyson, who had been looking at the closed door, stood there silently for a while before inevitably heading to his own room.

Click, after closing the door behind him, silence suddenly arrived. Three cold teacups remained on the tea table, but in the wide room, there was only Greyson alone.

Standing blankly, he suddenly discovered the gift placed on the table in front of the sofa. It was what Koi had given him. The moment he unwrapped it without much thought and opened the box, a fragrance he had never smelled before spread out. The box was filled with flowers he had only seen in photos.