Chapter 26 - Are We Close?

"Ms. Bai?" Bo Jiu was the only one outside the Spa and as soon as she saw Xiu, she came up to her. "What took you so long?"

Xiu heaved a long sigh, not wanting to disclose the fact that she lost her way and ended up like a soaked cat; dripping with water. "Oh, nothing... I was just admiring the peach blossoms." Xiu thought that was one crappy excuse. Actually, a crappy slap on the name of all the crappy excuses but at the moment, she could only come up with this. Well, don't blame her! The poor girl was under pressure. Or maybe, too much water went into her head. A reasonable voice in her countered which Xiu decided to disregard.

Bo Jiu narrowed her eyes at Xiu, suspiciously. "Really? I thought you got into a fight."

"Huh? What gave you that idea?" Xiu asked with a frown since she was certain that nobody knew of her encounter with that strange stranger. Hold on a second, she didn't even ask his name. Oh, well... Forget it, it's not like they were going to see each other again. And she was very pleased with that thought. After all, in this world of sadistic and hedonistic male chauvinists, he was an anomaly who actually accepted his mistake and acted like a chivalrous person. To be honest, the fact alone that he actually looked at her as a human and not just a woman who was below him, was already hard for her to digest.

It was safe to say that Xiu's experience with men wasn't something to brag about. Life of a Superstar is lived with thorns under your feet. You can't possibly move forward without letting your body pierced. The men who respected her wholeheartedly in her previous life could be counted on one hand but the ones who tried to trample all over her pride and use her for pleasure were countless. And she didn't even have to think twice to confirm this fact. According to Xiu, with her experience of two lives, she could be said to be quite well-versed with male egoism. And it was quite easy for her to read a man like the back of her hand.

But Darren didn't give her a chance to read him. Just when she thought he was just like any other man, he took a 180 shift in his attitude and apologized to her sincerely. Since she couldn't figure him out, her mind only had one conclusion that was to stay as far as humanly it was possible to do so. The things you can't figure out should be avoided at all costs. Especially the ones who make you question; Was she being biased when it came to men? Just because of her own worst experiences.

She was quite satisfied with that surmise to avoid him. It was better for both of them.

Bo Jiu had seen her pupils contracting as if she was zoning out and her assumption was proven when she touched Xiu's shoulder and the latter was startled a bit. "What were you saying?" Xiu asked with a cough to hide the fact that she had really zoned out right before her eyes.

"I asked who managed to get you involved in a water fight?" Bo Jiu questioned a bit lightheartedly. A big mistake on her part though.

"Ms. Bo, are we close?" Xiu's eyes wore the cloak of ice which seemed too sharp for Bo Jiu's young self.

"No, Ma'am!" Bo Jiu replied seriously.

"Then I wonder why are we having this conversation?" Xiu's question made Bo Jiu want to shrink back in her cocoon just to avoid looking into Xiu's eyes. She might have not agreed with her peers before but now, even she had the urge to jump down a building. How could someone's eyes make someone feel all this? Weren't her words just enough that she even had to top it up with an overwhelming aura.

"I'm sorry for saying too much," Bo Jiu took a step back from her and apologized sincerely.

Xiu left her there and went inside. She asked for some dry clothes and the staff was very attentive and active since they were ordered to take care of every single employee with the utmost care and attention.

On the other side of the things, Darren had only taken a couple of steps on his way back when he saw his security team running his way.

"Sir, are you okay?" The head of security inquired with his stern face but his furrowed brows gave away his anxiousness.

"Don't ask--it's still too early to tell," Darren replied ambiguously. "Anyway, what's the rush? Why do you look like the time I almost..."

"Darren!" His chief of security; Shota interrupted him mid-sentence, not letting him go back to the memory of that time. Sometimes, Darren wondered whether he was the one still chained to that memory or Shota was. However, he never voiced it out. Shota was an ex-Special Forces officer who had been with him since he was a teenager. So, it was not hard to tell that Darren meant a lot to Shota and the same went the other way around.

Darren raised his hands in defense as he said, "Okay, I won't finish that thought. But really, why do you look so worried?"

"When I didn't find you at the pool, I thought..."

"That someone kidnapped me?" Darren finished his words for him and earned a glared in response. "Relax! I'm not a kid. I can very well take care of myself."

Shota was surprised to see Darren in a playful mood. What happened to this iceberg? But he knew that he won't be able to hear a word from Darren even if he asked directly. "Where did you go?" So, he used indirect manners.

Darren looked at the forty-something security officer of his who still could shame youngsters with his fitness and vigor. "I was learning the art of change and acceptance." He replied solemnly.

"Huh?" Even at his age, Shota could say that Darren loved to give him a hard time with his mysterious way of talking. Why did this boss of his never understand that he was the guy who loved using his fists to solve the problem, not his brain? Well, not everyone could find pleasure in mind games anyway.

"You won't understand even if I tell you," Darren said as he put a hand in his jeans pocket while the other was raking through his dark hair as he started walking again. The rest of his security team also followed suit in silence.

Darren really wasn't in the mood to explain his encounter with Xiu to Shota. He knew that Shota would overreact. Because for Shota, nothing was a coincidence.

As for the art of change and acceptance, he had learned it very well today.