It's obvious she has a crush on him," Esmeralda mocked, her voice light but teasing.
"Irene, can you tell your friends to stop?" Daniel asked, his voice low, clearly uncomfortable with the way things were escalating.
"They didn't start it. They were talking to Brian," Irene said, shrugging and defending her friends.
"And is Brian someone you can talk to like that?" Daniel asked, his voice sharp, turning toward Irene.
"If he doesn't like it, let him talk himself. He's not a baby," Irene shot back, her eyes challenging Daniel's.
"Can you both go a day without fighting?" Joshua asked, clearly tired of their back-and-forth.
"I might not wake up the following day if I don't fight with him," Irene joked, making light of the situation.
Justin took a drink and asked, "How do you keep your sanity with this kind of company?"
"Oh, you see, Richard, Victor, and Joshua here are the reason I'm still sane," Irene said, looking at her friends with a playful grin.
"Thanks for keeping my baby sane," Justin said, raising his glass in appreciation.
"Are you guys dating?" Brian's voice broke through the conversation, his first words since he arrived.
"Us?" Justin asked, glancing at Brian. Brian nodded. "Of course not. I don't want to shorten my lifespan," Justin added, and the others burst into laughter.
"Am I that bad?" Irene asked, raising an eyebrow, her voice teasing but curious.
"I don't mean it that way," Justin explained, "I'm just saying we're so alike, so it's dangerous if we date."
Irene grabbed a plastic bottle she found on the table and threw it at him. Justin dodged with ease. "I don't want to date you either," Irene shot back.
"Why are you asking if they're dating, Mr. Brian?" Esmeralda said, not letting the moment pass without continuing the conversation with Brian.
"Nothing," Brian muttered, clearly uncomfortable.
"If you want to know if she's single, my baby is never single," Justin teased, a playful grin on his face.
"What?" Irene shot him a look that could kill, clearly warning him.
"You were never single," Justin said. "You're with this person today, and tomorrow you're with another."
"Hey, I've changed. I'm a changed person," Irene said, putting on an innocent face as if to defend herself.
"Oh yeah, you changed," Justin said sarcastically, smirking.
"Your friends are interesting," Joshua said, smiling at the bickering. "It's been a while since we had fun like this."
"Fun? More like chaos," Mary muttered, her annoyance evident as she rolled her eyes.
"Bro, when are you planning to date this girl, or do you have no plans?" Irene asked, shifting the attention to Victor.
"What?" Victor asked, looking shocked, clearly not understanding how he ended up being dragged into this.
"Just let her know her standing," Irene said with a knowing smirk. "I'm tired of unrequited love."
"I don't like guys that can't say their mind, or do you just like the attention?" Esmeralda added with a teasing grin.
"Can you guys shut the fuck up?" Mary suddenly panicked, her voice rising in frustration.
"We're here helping you out, and you want to insult us?" Esmeralda said, clearly displeased.
"In that case, Brian, do you like either of Susan or Victoria?" Irene asked with a teasing grin, refusing to back down.
"Enough, you guys. Stop causing trouble," Justin interjected, trying to defuse the escalating tension.
"If I like anyone, do I need you to tell me what to do?" Brian shot back, his tone edgy and defensive.
"I heard someone liked you for 13 years, and you haven't given a tangible reply. Do you like attention, or are you just egoistic?" Irene threw out, her words sharp and direct.
Daniel, unable to tolerate it any longer, shouted, "Irene, stop it!"
Julius, who had been quietly observing from the sidelines, thought to himself, This girl is the only one who can speak to Brian in this manner and not be scared for her life.
"Why? I'm just helping our little sister talk to the man she likes," Irene pretended to be sweet and innocent.
"Who asked for your help, you bastard?" Victoria shot back, clearly embarrassed by Irene's forwardness.
"I just want to be sure. I don't want a case where I'll have to drag a man away from my sister," Irene said with a mocking tone.
"My baby doesn't like sharing her man," Justin chimed in, adding fuel to the fire.
"If you guys aren't dating, why do you keep calling her 'baby'? Don't you feel that's a bit much?" Brian asked, raising an eyebrow in challenge.
"I like it," Irene responded with a smile, unapologetic.
"Irene, you don't have my time today," Richard said, trying to ease the tension and deflect attention away from the argument.
"I'm sorry, darling," Irene teased with a playful wink, clearly enjoying the chaos she was stirring.
"It's funny how you claim to want a man and flirt with another man," Susan said, taking a seat at the table, clearly trying to provoke Irene.
"It's funny how you keep going after a man who doesn't even look at you," Irene shot back, her words cutting deep.
"How dare you?" Susan asked, her anger rising as she glared at Irene.
"My love for Brian did," Irene joked with a mischievous smile, her eyes twinkling with mischief.
"Isn't it better for the three of us to drink at home than here?" Esmeralda asked, trying to suggest a change of environment.
"You're right, there is a lot of bad air here," Irene agreed with a smirk, glancing around at the tense group.
"Who are you calling bad air?" Mary asked, narrowing her eyes.
"The one who responds," Irene winked at Mary, unfazed by the challenge.
"I don't know how you guys cope with wild seeds," Susan muttered, clearly fed up. As Esmeralda was about to reply, Irene gestured for her to hold it.
"Can we all stop fighting?" Joshua said, trying to intervene.
"We're not fighting, we're just getting to know each other, right, guys?" Irene responded smoothly, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
"That's one unique way of getting to know someone," Victor said, slightly in awe of Irene's ability to stir the pot without breaking a sweat.
"Should we go home?" Justin asked, eager to wrap things up.
"I think so," Esmeralda nodded in agreement, ready to leave the tension behind.
"Irene, my dad's birthday is coming up next week, will you be there?" Richard asked, his voice softer as he tried to steer the conversation to something more personal.
"Am I going as your companion?" Irene asked, her tone teasing but with a hint of curiosity.
"Should we do that?" Richard replied with a playful smile.
"Who's the future and who's the present?" Esmeralda teased, raising an eyebrow at the pair.
"The present seems not to be functioning," Justin added, his words loaded with sarcastic humor.
"Okay, I'll be there with my friends. Bye, guys… hey you!" Irene called out, flying a kiss at Julius before she left with her friends.
Julius watched in stunned silence. ("_")
Victoria looked equally speechless. ("_")
Victor stood there, caught off guard. ("_")
Richard sighed, shaking his head. ("_")
Mary crossed her arms, rolling her eyes. ("_")
Joshua just looked around at the group. ("_")
"Why is she always finding trouble with me?" Julius thought, frustrated yet oddly amused by Irene's antics.
Victor, still in shock, asked, "Are you coming home tonight?"
"Of course not," Irene shouted back as she walked out with her friends, her voice teasing and carefree.
"Her best friend is kinda handsome; it's just a matter of time before they fall in love," Joshua teased, a grin on his face.
"They are pretty close," Richard commented, his tone casual but thoughtful.
"I don't know why you guys like the lady. She's just troublesome," Susan chimed in, clearly not a fan of Irene's antics.
"At least she's always speaking her mind. She's better than people who talk behind others' backs," Brian defended, his voice firm.
"Brian, are you okay? That girl is no way good. Look at how wild her friends are?" Daniele asked, genuinely concerned.
"Who knows? Maybe they're all sleeping with each other," Mary added, with a sharp edge to her voice.
"Don't talk about my sister like that," Victor said, his voice low but filled with warning. "I won't take it."
"No, let her say whatever she wants," Irene said, a smile playing on her lips as she walked back into the room, grabbing her phone from beside Richard.
"Why are you back?" Richard asked, his expression confused.
"Thank Christ I forgot my phone. I wouldn't know what some people think of me," Irene said as she picked up her phone. "I slept with him or not, I'm a grown-up. I can do whatever shit I want. At least I'm better than someone who couldn't even get her childhood love till date," she added with a cheeky grin before leaving again.
"That's what I call maturity," Richard praised, a bit amused. "She says whatever she wants to your face, not behind your back."
Brian smirked, silently agreeing with Richard's assessment.