176 Absences Makes Everything Clear

March 29, 20XX (Friday)

Various Places

In the midst of shopping last minute for souvenirs, Mei Li was walking around town to look for something not too expensive and practical. She even finished buying every Zhao family member one souvenir each and had also bought keychains for the Xue family. Mei Li had easily bought Ru Shi and Trisha some leather goods too. The problem she had was that she could not find buying suitable for Yang.

What would a man who have everything needs? It seems that no matter what she would buy, it'll be something he already has. Yang was someone she knew before Ru Shi or Trisha yet she can't just seem to find the right souvenir! She wanted to convey her appreciation to him too. Yang had given her his time and had almost given his life too. After spending the days without him, Mei Li realized how boring her life is without Yang. Although perverted and so shameless, he could be so amazingly handsome and sweet.

Mei Li went out of the store again. For the nth time, she was sighing loudly in frustration. Ready to give up, Mei Li randomly turned a corner that she was not meant to go. In her haste to find Yang a gift, she had not realized she had ventured into someplace she shouldn't.

Milan was a safe place, most of the time, but some areas were not. Mei Li scrambled to trace back her steps, but because of her nervousness, her efforts made her more lost in the desolated alley. She cursed her brain for being bad at directions. Mei Li looked around for her hidden guard that should be shadowing her, hoping to see La, the bodyguard she brought with her.

"Hello Miss," someone drawled in Italian from her right. Her nerves were tingling a bad sense of feeling.

Jumping away from that person, Mei Li tried to ignore him and walk away with giant strides. The man followed after her with a smirk. Mei Li suddenly started to panic and began to run, somewhere, anywhere as long as it's safe!

"Stop running around," the man yanked her right arm, catching up to her fast.

She desperately tried to pry his hands off of her person, but men's strength was different.

"Get your hands off of me!" Due to her panic, she had spoken in Mandarin. She, hysterically, looked for her hidden guard. Where was the guy when she needed him?

The man, who had brunette hair, dark eyes, and a malicious grin on his lips, began to take hold of both her arms and said, "You would make a wonderful gift to master Fool."

When all hope seemed lost, La appeared and twisted the man's arm into his back, pulling and restricting hard enough to pop the joints out of its sockets. The man screamed in pain. Mei Li grimaced at the sound of cracking bones. La then grabbed her wrist and made a run for it, this time in the proper direction. They left behind a surprised Arcadia member clutching his right shoulder in pain. He would have to report his failure back to his master. The man cursed his luck.

La had been a bodyguard for the Xing Family almost all of his life, but being Miss Wu's personal guard was the toughest days he had. First, it was an arson, and now, it was attempted kidnapping. He needs to be on his toes every day.

When Mei Li had turned into the alleyway, he had planned to stop her but was surrounded by large foreign men. Thankfully, these men were not as proficient in martial arts as he was or they would have brought enough time to kidnap his charge successfully, and then he would be dead by the hands of the Zhao family.

When they arrived at the hotel, Mei Li was gasping air like she had no more tomorrows. The adrenaline in her blood slowly losing as the events dawns on her like an arrow hitting the bullseye. Mei Li slumped in her bed and shuddered when her thoughts remembered the touch of the man in her arms. She quickly excused herself and went to her bathroom to shower, desperate to scrub the feeling of disgust that lingers in her skin.

La nervously reported the events to CEO Zhao and had told him the immense possibility of Miss Wu being traumatized by the stranger's touch. It might not be a severe trauma, but the fact that it can develop into one means it might give her more nightmares and cause her more distress.

When Mei Li went out of the bathroom, her bodyguard was gone, and her phone was laid on top of her bed and in speakerphone. Mei Li scanned the room nervously and cautiously approached the bed. She heard the sound of Elvis Presley's 'Can't help falling in love with you' playing from the other line of the call. Mei Li immediately knew who was on the line.

"Yang?" Her voice was the same soft and sultry tone, but it sounded nervous.

"I heard about what happened..." Yang carefully uttered the words one by one as if he was afraid he would say something insensitive to her.

Mei Li choked up as she remembered the shock, surprise, disgust, and fear when the man had her arms held in a right grip. Confirming it was him, she wailed, "It was so scary! I don't want to come back here. Why did it have to happen to me? He had me on a tight grip. The feeling of his hands still lingers. I don't want to remember. Yang, I need you."

"I will be there. I am going to the airport now. We will come back to Beijing together, alright? Be strong for me alright?" Yang started to comfort her.

Slowly, Mei Li's eyes began to close with the sound of Yang's deep voice and the love song on the background.