Don't Mess with the Girl with Candy novel Chapter 1617

"That concludes my explanation."

Zavala handed the microphone back to the judges and returned to his seat.

He sat with his back perfectly straight, looking straight ahead, acting as if none of this had anything to do with him.

William had wanted to argue back, but Zavala had spoken way too fast.

And every single point he made was flawlessly accurate; William couldn't even get a word in edgewise.

Furthermore, everyone in the audience was either a computer science expert or a top-tier student.

Zavala's explanation was crystal clear to all of them.

"How did this happen..." William muttered, frustratedly running a hand through his hair.

When he first got the prompt, he was ecstatic, thinking he'd scored the easiest task in the room.

He had completely lowered his guard, entirely missing the minefield of traps hidden within the code.

This absolute blockhead had played him.

"William, do you wish to file an appeal?" the judges asked.

William desperately wanted to, but he knew a review wouldn't change anything.

He had simply been too cocky for his own good.

"No."

He shook his head and walked off the stage in total humiliation.

As he passed Zavala, he stopped and sneered, "It's a long road ahead. Our paths will cross again. We'll see about this."

"Hm?"

Zavala had been thinking about something else entirely. Hearing this, he blinked in confusion for a few seconds before replying, "I'm taking a car back later, I won't be walking."

"Arghhhhh!"

William was so furious he wanted to slap himself. He stormed off in an absolute fit of rage.

If he stayed there a second longer, he was genuinely afraid this blockhead would give him a fatal aneurysm.

After that, the competition resumed as normal.

Although Zavala didn't break into the top three, his meticulously designed program secured him a solid fourth place.

The wedding was the day after tomorrow, and it still felt incredibly surreal to her.

"On the day of the wedding, after I pick you up, the staff from City Hall will be there to help us process our marriage certificate." He walked her through the itinerary. "Then we'll head to the venue for the ceremony, and after that, we'll go back to the villa in North Borough."

That was the marital home the Schwartz family had prepared for them. It was massive.

Big enough to comfortably house both of their families combined.

"Oh."

Juniper didn't seem all that excited; in fact, she looked a bit deflated. "Who even invented weddings? It's so much trouble."

"It is a bit of a hassle."

Noticing her sudden drop in energy, he gently cupped her face, his eyes filled with overwhelming adoration. "If you really don't want to go through with it, we could always just elope."

"?"

She blinked, staring at him curiously, and mumbled, "Aren't you afraid my parents will kick you out, or your grandmother will break your legs?"

"Terrified."

He leaned in, pressing a kiss to her cheek, and comforted her softly, "But I'm far more terrified of my girl being unhappy."