The Alchemists

Caspar stood out like a sore thumb while queueing for Liao Fan Chicken Rice that he attracted the attention of so many people. This really handsome guy covered in an expensive outfit from head to toe was really out of place.

Finland then remembered the first time she saw Caspar in the car on the way from the airport, she, too, held her breath in amazement.

This beautiful creature looked so contrast with the hawker center around him. Finland was also beautiful, but her appearance was very simple, and her cheap handbag made her look very modest.

She looked very much in place when queuing up with dozens of other blue collared workers and students in front of her who wanted to taste an affordable Michelin starred restaurant dish.

People started whispering, then someone voice greeted Caspar in a surprised tone.

"Professor, you eat here too?!"

Some students who had just arrived seemed very surprised to see Caspar waiting in line. They were his students from NUS. Caspar just smiled and waved, without saying anything.

"Are they your students?" Finland asked. "Why not say something to them?"

"I'm not that close to my students." Caspar shook his head, "A lot of people misunderstood my intentions when I was friendly, so now it's better for me to keep my distance."

"Oh, you mean... you are afraid that your students will fall in love with you?" Finland asked casually. "Have you dated your student before?"

Caspar shook his head. He looked like he didn't like the question, but was still patient enough to reply Finland's question.

"Isn't he a movie star? I think I've seen him in a movie somewhere..." there more were whispers around them.

"Come on, take his picture..."

Some people secretly began taking pictures of Caspar. As time passed by, some of them even dared to approach him to take close-up pictures. Caspar tried to cover his face with his hands. Finland felt guilty, then used her handbag to cover him.

"Sorry... I didn't expect you to attract this much attention," she whispered softly.

Caspar sighed.

"I didn't expect you to be this stingy..." he said while looking at Finland sharply. "This is the cheapest Michelin restaurant in the world."

"You didn't say the restaurant had to be fancy," Finland answered, "Besides, I have to save money."

Suddenly the atmosphere around them became quiet. She no longer heard the whispers from around them and Caspar had lowered his hands from his face.

Finland was astonished and saw that the people were no longer making noise and taking pictures of Caspar. They were all queueing well and tried to avoid looking at them.

She looked around and was surprised to see two dangerous looking men dressed in black and wearing dark glasses approaching the people around them to tell them something. They also asked for their cellphones and deleted Caspar's pictures from the galleries.

When they were finished, the two then kept guard in the distance to make sure that Caspar was not bothered again.

Finland held her mouth wide open and looked at the quiet-looking Caspar next to her, stepping forward in the queue, pulling her hand forward.

"Who are they?" she whispered.

"My personal bodyguards." Caspar sighed before pinching Finland's hand, "If you hadn't cheated on me like this, they wouldn't need to take action. You should have told me that we will eat at the hawker center, I can change clothes and look poor as to not attract any attention."

"THERE IS NO WAY YOU CAN LOOK POOR!" Finland tried to hold back so as not to laugh out loud. "See, talking is is easy for you, how can I ever take you seriously?"

"Wanna bet?" Caspar asked, narrowing his eyes, a sign that he was very serious, "I can look poor. If I win, what do I get?"

Finland looked at Caspar from head to toe, trying to weigh her chances of winning, then nodded.

"Fine, I accept your bet. Next month there will be a launch of Bartz's new luxury line at your hotel. Many rich people will come. If you can go there and look like a poor person, and you get kicked out by the staff, it means you managed to look poor, and I admit defeat. But if the staff continue to serve you and try selling luxury items to you, it means that you failed. We are all very smart, you know."

"Hmm... you won't cheat and disclose my identity?"

"Of course not, I never cheat! Who do you think I am?"

"Good. If I get kicked out of the show, that means I managed to look poor and win this bet. What will be my prize?"

"I will treat you to dinner in a place that doesn't need such a queue... hehehe."

"Hmm... it's not sufficient. I can eat in a fancy place every day, I don't need to win a bet for that." Caspar pulled Finland forward again in the queue, until finally there were only two people in front of them. "If you win, I can grant you one request."

"Uhm... can I ask for anything?" Finland asked excitedly. In her mind she was thinking of the amount of money that seemed reasonable to ask for as a gift. Maybe one month of his salary…

"Can I get your salary for a month if I win?"

Caspar looked at Finland with wide eyes, as if he did not believe what he had heard. "You only think about money, huh?"

"You said I could ask for anything if I win."

Finland advanced in the queue and she pulled Caspar's hand to come forward. There were no more people in front of them.

"OK, if you win, I'll give you my salary for a month." He raised his hand and greeted the chicken rice vendor, "I want two servings of chicken rice. What do you want, Finland?"

Finland raised two fingers, "I also want two servings."

"Well, we would like to order 4 servings of chicken rice," Caspar said. He continued speaking to Finland while the girl pulled out her wallet and paid for their food. "If I win, you have to grant my request."

"Fine, as long as it's not a weird request like dancing naked or sleeping with you." Finland received her change and signaled that Caspar take their order.

"Ouch... how do you know I really want to see you dance naked or sleep with you? Can you read minds?" Caspar said sarcastically. He lifted the tray containing their food and followed Finland to the empty hawker center table. They then sat down and began to enjoy dinner.

"What do you want?" Finland asked later.

"If I win, and I get kicked out of this event, I would surely be very sad... Imagine, I have never been kicked out of any place before in my whole life! To compensate for the shame and bad feeling I will get, you have to kiss me. " Caspar lifted a large piece of chicken with his chopsticks and devoured it in one gulp, "That's just fair."

Damn, Finland thought to herself... She must win. Not only because she did not want to lose her first kiss to a bet, but also because she was really tempted to get a lot of money from Caspar.

Hmm... She must play this well and make sure that the marketing team can hone their skills in recognizing rich people. She still had a few weeks.

"It's a deal," she said later.

It's a bet.

Caspar was smiling smugly. He could already smell his victory.

Finland also smiled broadly. In her imagination, her savings would increase by at least twenty thousand dollars next month.