Zhao Lifei listened with open ears and a patient smile, waiting for Yang Ruqin to speak again. Ever since the na was ntioned, there was a long pause. She turned to her side and rested her face upon her hands. She could see Yang Ruqin’s conflicted expression, moist eyes rimd with red. She had a vacant stare.
Zhao Lifei spoke up, "You don’t have to talk about it if you do not want to."
"The first step of moving on is to acknowledge it." Yang Ruqin responded. She breathed in through her nose and let it out through her mouth. Breathe in. Breathe out. The words of her therapist rang inside of her thick skull. No one knew about this, not even Zhao Lifei, but Yang Ruqin had signed herself up for therapy when she began to realize the dark thoughts manifesting and harboring themselves into her head.
"We...we weren’t supposed to ever run into each other." Yang Ruqin could feel her heartstrings being tugged when she rembered the day of their first encounter. She could recount the brief conversation they shared, the awestruck expression on both of their faces. Love at first sight was an understatent.
"He’s one of Feng-ge’s most trusted n. I am the younger sister he babied." She grimaced at how cringey that sounded, but it was true. She opened her mouth and began to recount brief snippets of her relationship with Yu Pingluo.
When they bumped into each other in the hallway, he asked, "A-aren’t you Boss’s baby sister?" When she nodded her head, he surprised her by dropping onto one knee and bowing like that of a knight.
He was so cute back then, with his profuse apology and stamring. Where did it all go wrong? When did alcohol and cigarettes co into the picture? Was it because her modeling career that was kicking off and she was beginning to get gigs with male models? This part did not make sense to her. She had brought up the topic on many accounts and told him that if he wanted her to, she would stop posing with n. She was willing to put her career to a screeching halt for him.
He reassured her by telling her it was fine. One minute he was calm, the next he was angry, and before she could register what had happened, he was back to normal. His rapid mood swings should’ve been the first warning sign. When her brain had waved a red flag, her color-blinded heart saw a green colored one.
One thing happened to another and the lovey-dovey trance in their relationship shattered. Argunts after argunts, endless arrays of smashed furniture. Screaming that woke up the neighbors, red and blue light of police officers, and cheating accusations. A ssy break-up and an eternity of loathing. These were only the beginning of their self-destructive stages.
Then it happened.
Accusations turned into reality.
He was in the shower after getting into a heated argunt and his phone buzzed on the nightstand. It wasn’t a cliche "I miss you inside of " text. It was a mission that required his imdiate presence back to the headquarters.
She didn’t think much of it and placed the phone back down. Shortly after he ca out of the shower, he saw the text, and left without a word, disappearing into the night. They were too prideful to speak to each other.
Then, she received a text. From an unknown number.
Yang Ruqin was already in her bed by then, ready to sleep, buried in the scent of Yu Pingluo’s blankets when she saw him entangled in another blanket. The picture seed to be taken in the angle of a cracked-open door, but she could see the features perfectly. The ripple of his muscles, the black tattoo creeping to his forearm, she knew exactly who it was. His face was beet red, a sign that he had been drinking.
A drunk mind speaks a sober heart.
That was her argunt when she confronted him the very next day, when he ca ho, exhausted from his "mission." He didn’t even seem apologetic. He waltzed through the door, ready to start a new day. He had the audacity to say, "Hey babe, I missed you last night. I’ll tell your brothers to stop assigning things in the middle of the night."
Missions? Was his mission being a f*ckboy?
Yang Ruqin didn’t want to argue in the house. She didn’t want to argue in front of their adopted puppy, because it was the equivalent of arguing in front of their child. She took him outside, to the backyard of their cute, little house. She was eerily calm about the ordeal and had he told her the truth instead of using alcohol as an excuse, perhaps that sunny morning, she wouldn’t have snapped. Perhaps she wouldn’t have slapped him, perhaps she wouldn’t have stord out.
He tried to stop her from leaving by blocking the front entrance and seizing her wallet. She couldn’t go anywhere. "You’re not leaving." He dangerously growled, grabbing her thin wrist. If he wanted to, he could break it on the spot. His eyes flashed with warning when she persistently tried to push him away. "We’ve brought a house, got a dog, and I plan on starting a family with you. You’re mine now."
He had underestimated her. She rembered the arrogant words of a spoiled brat, "Who do you think I am? If I want to leave, I can go anywhere I desire. So what if you take my credit cards? I have helicopters, private jets, yachts, and luxury cars at my beck-and-call. You cannot prevent from leaving." She let out a cruel laughter. "I’m yours? Since when? You never popped the question, never gave a ring. Hell, you never even asked out! You assud we were together and perhaps we were. But now we’re not."
Remorse. Guilt. Regret.
Agony. Heart-break. Deceit.
These were simple adjectives to describe the ending of her world and blissful dream.
"You’re not leaving." He commanded her.
"On what grounds?" Her face twisted into a sickening smile. She finished the final blow by drawing the clear boundaries between them, "I am a Yang. You are a Yu. Now obey the words of your Master and step aside." When the words rolled off of her tongue, she wanted to yank it back. She didn’t an it. She had slapped her hand to her mouth, her eyes wide in horror, "No. I take it back."
He left.
She stayed.
The irony of the situation was glaring red, double-underlined. For his sake, she swallowed her pride and stayed in the house, taking care of it. She tried to be good and attempted to place a hiatus on her job. Cold dinners. Hours of sitting in the dining table chair, waiting for his return. Many nights, she would find herself asleep on the table and ho alone with the untouched dinners.
When he never returned, she saw it as a sign that he had moved on. And when he finally regretted leaving, she was long gone.
- - - - -
"Man, you’re hella creepy." Yu Shiyan grumbled from beside his older brother that was watching a hospital window through a sniper rifle. "How long have we been here anyway?" He checked his imaginary watch.
"I can’t believe you’re using a thermal vision scope just because she closed the curtains on you. That’s an abuse of power and resources." Yu Shiyuan continued complaining. He was slumped on the rooftops of a fairway building after breaking into the office. Boredly fiddling with the knife in his hand, twirling it for the thousandth ti, he pleadingly glanced at his older brother.
Yu Pingluo didn’t respond to his younger brother’s stupid complaints. "I can’t see her. The lady-boss is in the way."
"You’re watching the lady-boss too?! Our Boss will kill you!" Yu Shiyan hopped to his feet. He felt a shudder passed through his body and sothing crawling up his spine. He was that paranoid.
"The Big Boss always assigns people to watch her."
"It’s to watch OVER her, not watch her like the stalker you’re being." Yu Shiyan rubbed his arm. He felt goosebumps rise all of a sudden and a chill passed through the air. He was breaking out in a cold sweat...This sensation... It was too scary for his preference.
"It’s been two years and you’re still like this. Why can’t you move on? I understand she’s one of the most beautiful won—WOAH THERE!" Yu Shiyan held up his hands in defeat when Yu Pingluo whiplashed to his direction with a pistol, the gun cocked and loaded. He flicked the safety off.
"I-I ant beautiful in a sister-in-law way okay? I-I do not see her as a woman, okay?" Yu Shiyan hurriedly explained himself.
Yu Pingluo relaxed, put the safety back on and holstered his weapon. Then, he went back to observing Yang Ruqin. "Don’t use any adjectives to describe her anymore. Or else I’ll shoot you."
"Aw, co on, I’m the only brother you have—"
"I don’t need a brother." Yu Pingluo scoffed. The sudden movent caused the scope to be a bit blurry. He began to slowly adjust the scope’s focus.
Oh hell no.
Yu Shiyuan finally saw it. He finally understood why his senses were on high alert. Red dots. FREAKING RED DOTS. As in laser dot of a sniper.
"Brother, brother—"
"Shut up, I’m trying to adjust the scope."
"N-no, listen to ." Yu Shiyuan tried to act calm, but when you have a red dot directly pointed at your forehead, how can one remain calm?
"What is it?" Yu Pingluo snapped, raising his head. Sothing flashed in his eyes. Oh. A red dot. "It’s just a red dot, idiot. Why are you scared of that? They’re at ten o’clock. Hanging off of the radio tower. I saw him a long ti ago."
A-a long ti ago?! And he only said this now?! Yu Shiyan wondered if it was possible to disown an older brother.
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