"I need a cab. Think you can help me find one?" Jia Li said.
"I can do one better. Take the cab that we hired in the morning and I shall find another one later," Hui replied with an easy smile.
Jia Li looked at him in gratitude, "are you sure? I don't want you to be inconvenienced."
"Don't worry about me. I think your need is currently greater than mine," he replied, his hand coming up to pat her shoulder in comfort.
Pat had managed to get Tang in the wheelchair and they had come upto the exit path where Jia Li stood with Hui.
Tang typed furiously on the screen, "tell that bas**** to take his hands off her."
Patricia looked at him in disbelief, "really? What is it with you men? Irrespective of the circumstances, the testosterones never cease to calm down, do they? The woman just bared her heart to you and you are worried about the guy's harmless hand on her shoulder. It is clearly visible to me that he is comforting her. Why can't you see that?"
"Why does she need any comfort from HIM?" he typed back, sulkily.
"Well, from what I have gathered in the past ten minutes, it seems that some jerk deserted her just because of a 'small' physical ailment and that too without informing her. If I was her, I wouldn't even see the guy's face ever forget chasing him. She is clearly the better person and here you dare to cast aspersions on her character," she breathed fire.
"I am not doubting her. It is the guy that I am worried about. Having a beautiful girlfriend comes with a constant fear of having to protect her from the wolves. You won't understand," he typed back.
"Huh, what a show off! Are you the only guy who has a pretty girl? Let me tell you, my Joanna is no less stunning. But I am not worried about her. She is capable enough to handle herself and the situation around her. See, this is why men put me off. You all are such a narcissistic, pig headed lot. In fact, I am tempted to tell your girl to rethink her choice right now," she threatened him.
Tang held her hand. His eyes had a mute appeal in them.
"I didn't mean to show off. It's just that she is too precious to me. And yes you are right that I am not worthy of her but then neither are any of the men hovering around her. All I know is that I love her like crazy, almost to the point of insanity," Pat read the message which he had written.
"Duh! You need to tell her that, not me. Seriously, you are really slow witted!" she teased him.
"Oh, you are here. Come, our taxi awaits," Jia Li turned around and told them.
Hui also walked with her and inclined his head towards Tang, "we meet again, Mr. Xie. I know it's not my place to say anything but I can't help myself. In my limited life experience, I have realised that if you try hard enough, you can overcome anything. You just need to want it bad enough."
Tang bowed his head slightly and wrote, "thank you" on his screen.
Pat helped Tang get into the taxi.
"Do you want me to come along? How will you manage?" she asked Jia Li.
The car couldn't take in the wheelchair and Pat was worried that Jia Li wouldn't be able to take Tang's weight while getting down.
"I can. Don't worry. And thank you. Let's meet soon again," she replied with a smile.
Tang was sitting with his phone in his hand by the time Jia Li bid farewell to Hui and climbed in.
"Where are we going? I think we should have taken Patricia alongwith," he typed and showed it to her.
"We are going to the hotel where I am staying. I have requested them to arrange a wheelchair at the entrance. It won't be as fancy as this one but you can adjust for a little while, no? Unless you want her to witness our fight," she told him, sarcasm in the voice.
"Fight? Are we going to fight? No, no, no, can you please ask the driver to turn around. I am clearly not in a condition to defend myself. Why would I knowingly walk into an ambush?" he wrote and ended with a sad emoticon.
"Too bad. It's too late now. You are clearly at my mercy henceforth," she whispered the threat in his ear.
But at the same time, she slipped her hand to grasp his fingers. Holding them tight, she scooted towards him, closing the distance between them.
My dear darling readers, today Xie Tang and Lin Jia Li have started to walk on the path to reclaim their love. This marks the beginning of the end! We will be bidding a goodbye to them in the coming few days. This journey of 'The Gorgeous Ex Girl Friend' has been nothing short of an emotional roller coaster ride for me. When I started the book, I had not expected this kind of love bond, affection and association with you people, coming my way. You have been so generous with your support that I have been undergoing withdrawl symptoms already for the past couple of weeks. I will be penning my thoughts to you everyday henceforth, till we wrap the book up. So please share your thoughts, feedback, criticism and ofcourse, youe love as we head towards the culmination...