How.. how are you here so early?
Noah did indeed come to see Finn often, but he usually didn't arrive so early in the morning. For some reason, every time Finn saw Noah caught off guard, his heart would subconsciously skip a beat, he would first reflect on whether he had caused some trouble again recently.
In Finn's eyes, Noah's kindness toward him was truly beyond words.
He lent a sports car worth over two million dollars without hesitation; even when he crashed it, he only scolded him a few times for driving around aimlessly at night, never mentioned it again.
His birthday was approaching, Noah took charge of it directly, excitedly saying that he wanted to throw a grand enough birthday party for Young Master Osborn.
But for some reason, Finn would occasionally feel an inexplicable sense of nervousness when facing Noah.
"There's no need to be quite this meticulous, is there?" If Noah personally styled Finn, he would always look exceptionally striking, as if he could walk a runway at any moment. Finn thought that since he was going to work at the Osborn Group, he didn't need to dress so ostentatiously.
“Didn't you say you wanted to suppress Harry Osborn's aura?" Noah said. As Finn's personal OOTD designer, Noah always had very high standards for Finn's styling.
Elias was sitting by the sofa, watching Noah begin to seriously fuss over Finn.
When it came to dressing up Finn Osborn, Noah had always been more attentive than he was to his own boyfriend.
"Why did you suddenly think of selling the car?" Noah asked, feigning casualness.
Finn: ".." I knew it. The fact that you came to pull my hair so early meant it definitely wasn't that simple.
"Not enough money? Why didn't you tell me?" Noah had always been very concerned about Finn's movements; as soon as the news broke that he was selling cars in the circle, Noah knew about it.
"It's not that.. it's just not enough," Finn said hesitantly.
"Who told you to invest in some project again?" Noah raised an eyebrow. He naturally knew that for a period of time, many people had been trying to persuade Finn to invest. Finn had discussed many investment projects at the party, only settling down after all his liquid assets had been squandered.
Finn: ".." It counts as investing in a new project, I suppose?
Actually, it was about the Osborn family's genetic diseases.
After carefully studying the confidential data integrated by System PP regarding the reversal of cellular hyperplasia, Finn could see that the Osborn Group's research in this field had long been at a standstill—to be precise, it had been stuck in a bottleneck from the very beginning.
Even though the mechanism of the disease had been studied thoroughly, the team could never find a way to overcome it. His father, Norman Osborn, had led the top scientific research team to seek many breakthroughs, but every single one of them ended in failure.
Finn had considered having Peter, in his capacity as Spider-Man, ask S. H. I. E. L. D. if they had any relevant resources. However, he soon discovered that after his father's death, several core researchers from the Osborn lab had been poached by S. H. I. E. L. D. Finn figured that this method wasn't very reliable. Most of those people likely jumped ship to S. H. I. E. L. D. only after hitting a wall in their research here, hoping to start new projects on a different platform.
—He couldn't exactly send this research project back to them, only for them to continue struggling with it on a different platform, could he?
—That truly is the inescapable Osborn curse.
As it happened, one of his many well-connected friends, codenamed Black, was currently helping him handle Max's funeral arrangements to deal with Marcus. Finn took the opportunity to ask if he knew anyone capable in the field of gene therapy.
[Black] actually introduced him to one.
It was only stated that the other party's background information was strictly confidential and could not be revealed in the slightest, with repeated emphasis that the person was a top-tier genius doctor in the field of genetics. However, out of consideration for their relationship, it was said that a channel could be provided for an introduction, a special encrypted chat mini-program was even opened specifically for them, with special protections even applied to the transmission of information.
Such a mysterious channel made Finn feel that the other party was definitely a figure with a significant background.
That person's username was—[Scholar with Seven Doctorates].
And Finn's username was—Seven Major Sicknesses.
Finn took one look: "!!" Wasn't it a perfect match!
And just like that, Finn felt an instant connection.
It was a sense of destiny from the depths of the universe; Finn even felt a strange, absurd, yet certain sense of trust—
My sickness! You can definitely cure it!!
Immediately after, Finn had not the slightest doubt that he hoped this Scholar with Seven Doctorates, whose background he knew nothing about, could take over the research; he even specifically sought out Blake, asking him to give a push from behind to help facilitate the matter. Finn spoke with absolute certainty that money was not an issue, but in reality, money was a very significant issue.
Finn had long since run out of liquid assets, but he wasn't panicking. The things he had impulsively bought before out of curiosity were still there; at worst, he could sell them at a discount. By pulling everything together, he could always scrape up a significant amount of money.
But when Noah asked, Finn did not dare to mention that his family had hereditary diseases.
"It's just, isn't a birthday coming up soon?" Finn could only push the subject toward his birthday.
“Want to buy something big?” Noah didn't suspect much, assuming Finn had simply set his sights on something expensive, his hesitation clearly indicated it was beyond his current means. "What do you want to buy? How much more do you need? I'll make up the difference for you."
That's so embarrassing." Finn was naturally reluctant. "I had already bought a lot of things blindly before, now I feel like I can't use them, so I might as well just sell them.
When he had just turned human, Finn wanted to buy everything out of curiosity and squandered a lot of money.
Listening to these words, Noah actually felt somewhat gratified. In his view, the fact that Finn could realize his previous spending was irrational could be considered a good thing.
“If you're short on money, you can borrow from me.” Noah certainly knew that Finn had already spent almost all of his money; following Finn's usual spending habits, thirty thousand US dollars a month really wouldn't be enough for him. "And then, I'll go ask Anthony. Doesn't he still owe you a blank check?"
"Anthony is going to be furious," Finn couldn't help but laugh.
What's there to be angry about? He promised to give you a share of the money anyway." Noah met Finn's bright green eyes and pinched the young man's cheek with a smile. "Don't worry, his project won't fail.
"Anthony even said he would teach me how to play the piano, but in the end, he was so busy he was nowhere to be seen." Thinking of this, Finn felt a bit of a grievance, but since he also didn't have the money to hire a piano teacher, he simply decided to teach himself.
Why don't you have Elias teach you?" Noah suggested casually. "He's in a band; there isn't an instrument he can't play.
"He's busy too." Finn naturally knew that the OVERSTEP Band's schedule was also very full.
The reason this hot band would come to his party every week without fail to liven up the atmosphere was, ultimately, because of Noah's reputation.
He isn't busy," Noah said with certainty. "I'll find some time later to bring Elias to teach you the piano.
".. Right, just treat Noah as my manager and do whatever he says," Elias said after a moment of silence, his voice tinged with helplessness.
After helping Finn with his styling, Noah naturally pulled open the drawer of Finn's nightstand and looked down to check the medicine inside.
Elias sat on the sofa, his brow furrowing almost imperceptibly.
Noah was extremely good to Finn, supporting and indulging him almost unconditionally. It wasn't that Elias would feel jealous because of it, it was just that sometimes—
He felt that Noah had a sense of controlling interference toward Finn.
Elias knew that Noah once had a younger brother.
This made Elias feel at times that Noah had naturally stepped into the role of Finn's "older brother." He was very involved in Finn's life, unconsciously doing things that crossed the line.
This included unilaterally filling Finn's wardrobe with clothes from the brand [METAL] under his own name; coordinating outfits every morning and sending them to Catherine so she could prepare them for Finn; and frequently messaging Catherine and Wilson to inquire about Finn's daily routine.
And just like this, opening Finn's drawers without asking, rummaging through his medicine..
These actions had clearly crossed the line. No matter how close the friendship, such an excessive and tactless intrusion was absolutely unacceptable in Elias's eyes, could easily provoke the other party's resentment.
But as it happened, Finn was completely unaware of this.
The young man accepted everything without any bottom line, seemingly feeling that there was nothing wrong with being told what to wear every day.
Finn even actively approached Noah at this moment, his eyes curving into a smile as he acted quite well-behaved, saying that he had been taking his medicine properly.
System PP: 【.. Is the Host really taking his medicine properly?】
System PP has now discovered that his Host often just acts well-behaved on the surface.
Finn: [I don't have schizophrenia, so why would I take medicine?]
Sometimes Elias felt fortunate that Finn Osborn was an excessively carefree and good-tempered young man; facing Noah's almost "arranged" care, Finn had never once felt dissatisfied because of it.
Elias had tried to advise Noah, of course, he had also wanted to advise Finn Osborn not to continue fighting with Harry Osborn over shares.
—But is there any way?
Noah and Finn are good friends, they are currently fellow patients seeing the same psychiatrist.
Elias was the one caught in the middle, not daring to say a word to either of them.
Noah didn't think anything was wrong, Finn didn't think anything was wrong either.. then it must be me who is wrong, both of you are right.
"What about those investment contracts you made before?" Noah asked suddenly.
"Huh?" Finn didn't react for a moment, blinking blankly.
"After you finish investing, are you just going to throw the money at them? Aren't you going to check on their progress?" Seeing Finn's indifferent attitude, Noah felt both exasperated and helpless, continued to press him.
“Hasn't it only been a short time?" Finn indeed didn't care much. "Projects take time to progress."
Noah looked at Finn with a speechless expression, thinking that he looked so easy to fool that if he were a fraudster, he would definitely be the first to scam Finn.
He couldn't help but wonder now if the reason Norman Osborn didn't leave Finn any shares in the Osborn Group, including the monthly limits on the trust fund, was ultimately to prevent Finn from being swindled.
"What about Harry Osborn?" Noah could only ask again.
I've spoken with Harry." At this point, Finn looked at Elias with a hint of excitement and admiration. "He gave me a figure, it's actually quite close to your estimate, Elias! But I feel that if I were to ask for a bit more, Harry would be perfectly willing to accept it.
Moreover, Finn currently holds leverage over Max Dillon.
"And then?" Elias raised an eyebrow and followed up on his words.
I didn't agree." Finn shook his head. "However, Harry has seemed to be in a bad mood lately, so I didn't argue with him either.
Noah paused, his eyes fixed steadily on Finn. "You two brothers have made such a scene, you're still worried about his mood?"
No, no." Finn thought this explanation did indeed contradict his persona of a defiant informant, so he hurriedly tried to make up for it. "I mean, my birthday is coming up soon. I don't want to ruin the mood, so I didn't argue with him; I'll wait until after my birthday.
True, once your birthday passes, you'll be twenty. Stop acting like a child all the time," Noah said with a sigh. "There's an Osborn Group press conference on the afternoon of your birthday, right? Are you going to attend?
Of course," Finn said, his eyes curving into a smile. "In such a formal setting, how could I not attend?
Noah watched Finn's expression, sensing something was slightly off.
"You're not planning on doing something at the press conference, are you?" Noah asked with a slight frown, looking somewhat worried.
How could I?" Finn shook his head. "I'm just a low-level employee; I'm not needed at the press conference.
When Finn was getting ready to go to work at the Osborn Building, Peter had already arrived at Finn's home to corner him.
Even Finn truly felt that Peter had become extremely familiar with his home.
But Peter must have had something important to do to come so early; he brought Max Dillon.
How are you still such a pervert!?
Finn looked at Max in shock. The man was dressed in cool black, wrapped tightly from head to toe, so much so that it could be said he was covered completely. Yet that blue face remained dazzlingly bright, making it impossible to hide at all.
Who is it?" Noah asked, looking toward the person standing at the door. "Peter?
“Yes, it's Peter, and.. another friend.” Finn's heart skipped a beat as he hurriedly pushed Max toward the door in a frantic scramble; he really couldn't explain such a blue-glowing person to Noah and Elias.
"Who is it?" Noah saw Finn stammering again and knew there was definitely something wrong, so he strode toward the door.
Seeing that Noah was approaching, Max Dillon feared that his blue-glowing face would be seen by Finn's friend. He made a decisive move, his blue light surging as he instantly transformed into a bolt of electricity, vanishing from his spot in a flash.
Finn: ".." You really are a genius! To avoid revealing your face, you'd rather just expose your superpower?
Noah and Elias, standing in the living room, froze completely in place, their pupils dilating slightly. They had only caught a glimpse of the scene in their peripheral vision just now: the tall figure wrapped in a black trench coat had suddenly transformed into a streak of blinding blue electricity, vanishing into thin air before their very eyes.
Finn forced himself to turn toward the two of them, his voice carrying a clear hesitation: "I say this is a magic show, do you believe it?"