Chapter 274: Howard's Nightmare
"Howard, what's wrong?"
Mia was startled by little Howard's behavior and quickly asked.
Little Howard glanced back at the boy in the center but didn't speak, only hugging Chuck's leg and crying.
"Elliott?"
Mia vaguely guessed something and looked at the boy in the center.
"Mrs. Baran, you're back."
Elliott, the boy in the center, stepped forward and smiled.
"What happened?"
Mia said angrily. "Did you bully your classmate again?"
"I didn't."
Elliott smiled. "If you don't believe me, ask Howard!"
Mia couldn't help but look at little Howard on the ground, gesturing for him to speak.
Little Howard's crying stopped, and he didn't dare to look up.
"Mia."
Nicole, who had been waiting, approached and pulled Mia towards the castle. "I need to talk to you!"
"I still have this to deal with."
Mia shook off Nicole's hand, her expression cold. "It's my duty."
Nicole was taken aback, glanced at Chuck, and added sarcastically, "It's Mr. Baran's duty!"
"Then bring him back!"
Mia gave her a cold look, her words carrying a double meaning.
Nicole was speechless, glancing at Chuck again, inwardly seething.
She knew that running into Detective Chuck would never end well! But things had changed too quickly!
However, in public, she couldn't say much, so she could only step back a few paces, walk to the side, take out a cigarette, and watch the show with her arms crossed.
"Howard, tell me."
Mia said gently. "I'll help you!"
"Chuck!"
Little Howard looked up at Mia, then at Chuck, his eyes full of pleading.
Clearly, Mia, the headmistress's wife, held no authority in his eyes, making him doubt she could help him.
He only trusted Chuck!
"Let's talk privately."
"Okay."
Chuck nodded.
"Follow me."
Seeing this, Mia led the way, taking Chuck and Howard to the castle.
Young Elliott blocked Howard's path, a half-smile playing on his lips as he whispered a threat: "Talk it out properly. Maybe he can really help you—at least for today..."
Howard shuddered.
He understood. This was a warning that Chuck would eventually leave.
Chuck turned, grabbed Howard by the back of his shirt, and lifted him into the air, holding him high. He calmly followed Mia towards the castle.
A gasp of astonishment rose from behind.
Even though Howard was small, he was still a boy, and these kids had never seen such strength.
Compared to the commotion and amazement of the others, Elliott, the boy in the center, looked grim.
In his eyes, this was blatant provocation!
Hearing the commotion, Mia turned around and saw the scene. She immediately stopped and exclaimed, "Chuck, what are you doing? Put him down!"
"Don't worry about it."
Chuck continued to lift little Howard, walking step by step into the castle. "Let him look at the sky more often, so he won't just keep staring at the ground all day. It'll do him some good!"
"Mrs. Baran, I'm fine."
Little Howard was being held by his shirt, forced to look up at the sky. He was actually quite uncomfortable and struggled a bit, but after hearing Chuck's words, he realized that although it was uncomfortable, he couldn't see the person he feared most, and he immediately felt much better.
Moreover, he knew that Chuck wasn't the type to be gentle, and if he kept complaining, he'd only end up hurting himself, so he quickly stated his position.
"Alright."
Seeing that the parties involved had no objections, Mia, although she felt it wasn't appropriate, could only let it be.
"This is his office."
Mia led Chuck and the others to the headmaster's office, looking around as if searching for which corner her 'murdered' husband was hiding in, spying on her.
"Speak."
Chuck put little Howard down.
"Mrs. Baran, Ms. Honnold is looking for you."
Howard Jr. reminded her, trying to get Mia out of the room.
He still wanted to keep the secret.
"She's staying!"
Chuck ignored Howard Jr.'s frequent winks and said expressionlessly. "Your headmaster isn't here right now. She's the acting headmistress. She needs to be here to handle your problems."
"She doesn't need to be here. I trust you!"
Howard Jr. said with a forced smile. "As long as you're willing to step in, any problem can be quietly resolved. My cousin Monica always tells me that."
"Did your cousin tell you that I'm a man of my word?"
Chuck looked at him.
"Well..."
Howard Jr.'s smile froze, and he leaned closer to whisper, "It's not convenient to tell her about this. It's a little embarrassing."
"I know."
Chuck said calmly.
"..."
Howard Jr.'s lips twitched.
Well!
Before, he was just suspicious, but now he was certain. Chuck knew perfectly well that what he was talking about was embarrassing and difficult to say, yet he deliberately kept Mia around to humiliate him.
Actually, it had nothing to do with whether Mia was the acting headmistress or not!
Sheldon Jr. was right.
Chuck really is a total jerk!
But now, he has some connection with this jerk, and while using him for help might seem a bit shameful, it also gives him a greater sense of security.
"Actually, this is all your fault."
Little Howard opened his mouth, but seeing Mia present, he didn't dare say it directly, instead speaking indirectly.
"If I had asked you for help back then, and you hadn't insisted on bringing my cousins along, making a scene that everyone knew about, and my mother finding out and being unable to accept it, how could you have sent me to this godforsaken place?"
He smiled politely at Mrs. Baran. "No disrespect intended, ma'am."
"Tell your mother, don't be so polite."
Chuck said bluntly.
Correcting this early, preventing young Howard from wasting his energy on meaningless fantasies, might mean one less Mr. Wolowitz and one more Dr. Wolowitz!
If the current Mrs. Wolowitz knew, she should really thank him!
"..."
Young Howard's smile froze again. Seeing that Chuck showed no sympathy for him because he was Monica's cousin, he could only say helplessly, "Did you see that guy just now? His name is Elliott. He's the bully here... not as bad as you, but definitely a bully. He's bullied almost everyone in school."
Thinking of his past experiences, he couldn't hold back anymore and burst into tears again.
"How did he bully you?"
Mia looked at Howard with pity.
Howard, seeing Mia approach, instinctively wanted to hug her and cry, but then he noticed Chuck's gaze on him. His romantic thoughts vanished, and he tearfully began to recount his heartbreaking story.
"He's been targeting me ever since I arrived. He not only stole my allowance, but he also made me work like a slave for them..."
"Get to the point."
Chuck interrupted.
"Chuck!"
Mia stared at Chuck in disbelief.
Couldn't he see the poor kid was confiding his sorrows? Wasn't that the main point?
"If it were just these things, he'd be used to it by now."
Chuck said bluntly. "He might even find it enjoyable, and he wouldn't have reacted so strongly. Besides, these things aren't embarrassing for him at all."
"Really?"
Mia looked at Howard Jr., puzzled yet deeply shocked.
"Chuck understands me best."
Howard Jr. said, his pitiful expression fading, and he chuckled sheepishly. "Actually, at first, I gave in because I couldn't win, and I didn't resist at all, willingly obeying Elliott's orders and tests.
But he really went too far!"
As he said this, his eyes reddened again, as if remembering something.
"What did he do?"
Mia asked.
"He tricked me into the bathroom..."
Little Howard, his usual sly and shameless grin gone, said with red eyes, "He told me that if I wanted to truly join them, I had to pass a test. I initially refused.
But he said it was like a college fraternity initiation, just earlier than usual, and asked if I didn't want to be his brother.
Of course, I didn't dare say no.
Under his combination of threats and persuasion, I couldn't resist and did it."
"Oh, you poor thing. What did you do?"
Mia asked with pity.
"..."
Howard fell silent, avoiding Mia's gaze and looking pitifully at Chuck. "Remember the first time I asked you for help?
I don't know how, but he found out about this.
He said he wanted to see...
and then forced me to do it again in front of him.
He even said it was just him watching.
But who would have thought he secretly had a camera and filmed it all.
He threatened that I had to obey him from now on, or he would upload it to the internet.
Once it's on the internet, it can never be taken down.
But I'm really scared.
He's a monster—who knows what terrible things he'll force me to do in the future!
I don't want to be driven to kill myself by him one day!
My father abandoned his wife and kids.
My mother only has me!
Now I'm all alone!
I'm not just doing this for myself! I'm doing this for my mother too!
So I can only ask you for help, Chuck. I know that if you want to help me, you can definitely help me completely eliminate this blackmail and get me out of here!
Please!
For Monica's sake!
Please help me!"
Chuck raised an eyebrow and calmly said, "Okay."
"You agreed?"
Little Howard looked at Chuck with delight, somewhat incredulous that it had gone so smoothly.
He had expected Chuck to mess with him a bit before helping him.
"You're pretty smart."
Chuck said. "You thought to ask for help immediately, before things escalated further."
"Anything else?"
Little Howard looked at Chuck, waiting a while but not getting the second half of the sentence, and couldn't help but ask.
He felt this wasn't Chuck's reason for agreeing to help him so quickly.
His cousin Monica's relationship wasn't the reason either!
"Also, if this video goes online, it won't just be a memory unique to us."
Chuck said bluntly. "It will become a traumatic memory for everyone. From now on, when we talk about it, it will only bring sadness and unbearable pain, no more laughter or jokes. That's not good."
"..."
Little Howard was speechless.
He knew it!
There was definitely a catch!
Chuck agreed to help him so readily not because he was pitiful, but because this situation couldn't be spread around, otherwise it wouldn't be a joke in Chuck's eyes anymore.
How cruel... and how reassuring!
That's right!
Although Howard had countless curses running through his mind, he truly relaxed after Chuck gave a genuinely "reasonable" explanation.
This was settled!
Unlike Mia, who was speechless and dumbfounded, Howard perked up and asked expectantly, "Chuck, what should we do?"
"Block the signal!"
Chuck said expressionlessly. "Make sure he can't upload the video, then delete the original. No video, no proof. Even if he tells others later, it won't be a big deal for you, and you won't see him again soon."
"Then hurry up!"
Howard exclaimed, startled. "I'm afraid he's already uploading it!"
He looked at Mia nervously. "Mrs. Baran, where's the school's internet router?"
"No need for that."
Chuck pulled his phone out of his pocket and waved it. "This phone has a signal jamming function, and I activated it the moment I saw you calling for help."
"Awesome!"
Howard was overjoyed, and as a tech enthusiast, he instinctively tried to grab it, but Chuck stopped him with a look.
"Let's delete the original video now!"
He muttered, then continued complaining. "I told my mom a long time ago that there are some things I can't talk about, I can't!
She wouldn't believe me, saying things like how would the teachers at school discipline me if they didn't know? She naively believed the teachers would keep it confidential!
If they really could keep it a secret, how come Elliott found out as soon as I arrived?
So-called information confidentiality is all BS!
It almost killed her son..."
Chuck said to Mia, the devout former nun who was still reeling from the shocking news, "Let's deal with this first."
"Oh, okay."
Mia stared blankly. "My God, how could this happen?"
Seeing Chuck's unresponsive expression, she asked, puzzled, "Aren't you shocked?"
"No."
Chuck shook his head honestly.
"Why?"
Mia couldn't understand.
"Because although Elliott said it was like a fraternity test, it wasn't actually the worst of fraternity hazing."
Chuck said calmly. "At least he didn't make Howard perform 'elephant walks' or any of that stuff."
"..."
After a brief explanation, not only the devout Mia, but even the shameless Howard, who dared to battle alien robot arms again and again, couldn't bear it and exclaimed in disbelief.
"That's impossible! This is a fraternity, not some cult! Besides, unless someone is an idiot, how could they do something like that for a fraternity spot..."
"Before this, could you imagine being bullied, having that scene reenacted, and even being filmed?"
Chuck asked.
Little Howard was speechless.
At Chuck's reminder, he had no choice but to suppress the shocking revelation and take Chuck to find the devil, Elliott.
The most important thing now was to delete that video. It absolutely couldn't be leaked!
As Chuck said, being seen and laughed at by relatives and friends, even repeatedly, wasn't a big deal for a shameless, perverted person like him.
He could just endure it, become numb to it, and it would pass.
"I'm not embarrassed—it's others who are embarrassed!"
Besides, no one would be so bored as to bring this up all the time.
But once it was uploaded online, it would be a complete disaster. Even for him, the thought of that possibility made his heart ache.
(End of Chapter)
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