TangShi was tired but pensively watching the door and checking her phone and watch obsessively. It was almost seven thirty and YuZhi hadn’t been in touch since he left for the airport before four pm earlier in the day. She had no idea if he was delayed or stuck somewhere.
“Girl, I love everything you create but that one is coming home with me.” Linlin gave her a nudge, pointing at a large painting in the center of the wall, hushing her voice so nearby lurkers wouldn’t know TangShi was the artist. Another pond scene, only this one had multicolor fantail goldfish that looked ethereal and magical like underwater sirens. A palette of pastel colors that gave a warmth like a summer day.
“This one is my favorite in the whole gallery. I’m sure you may have to fight me for it.” Rong Cai cut in, walking up be
“Come on. I know of the perfect place that still serves until late.” YuZhi let go of TangShi and took her hand, walking them out in search of steamed dumplings without a backwards look at Rong Cai.They bid farewells to the doorman and walked out into the unusually warm dark evening. It seemed peaceful in this area of Shanghai, and they were far enough from traffic to enjoy some subtle sounds of nature and domestic life of nearby buildings. It was somehow serene and added to the glow of happiness emanating from both of them. Walking with their entangled fingers, arms swinging between them merrily, like children, TangShi couldn’t help but admiring YuZhi dressed like this. “I like this look on you. Casual and sexy.” She smiled shyly, eyeing him up.“It&r
“Good job, everyone. The show was a success and many of the pieces you guys were willing to sell, have sold.” Rong Cai stood in the middle of his group of students, raising a glass to them now the venue was cleared of all visitors and the doors were locked. Puffed up with pride that their annual event was another roaring success and had pulled in applicants for next term too. Sponsors were knocking down the doors at the school to get involved.TangShi quietly clapped her hands and looked around at her family of students, patting the nearest on the shoulders and giving them words of congratulations. Excited to see how happy they all were and sharing joy in their success. She had not put any of her work up for sale as most pieces had been personal favorites from her own collection, or from YuZhi’s study and she preferred to supply the print shop with the art instead. She didn’t need the money and was pleased to have just heard the praise for her wo
Rong eyeballed her moving off, unamused that she always seemed to put distance between them. He watched the way the students spread out around the oversized table that could sit sixteen and yet their party was only seven today with the extra students who came to help. The view out at this height gave an unobstructed view of the Oriental pearl tower, which seemed incredibly close and would be gorgeous when lit up as it got darker.Rong walked around after they were all seated and slid in next to TangShi, pulling some smirks from a couple of the students who could see the blatant obviousness that he had a thing for her, and passed raised brow glances to one another. TangShi was oblivious and too busy setting her napkin on her lap and surveying the huge amount of food before them. A nice array of dishes and sides and began helping herself eagerly as the center table slowly turned to give them constant access.The meal soon became relaxed, and chatter and time began to fre
The bang, bang, bang, of a severe thumping noise infiltrated into TangShi’s sleepy brain, pulling her out of a dreamless darkness as light hit her eyes and made her recoil in pain. Screwing up her face as her head pounded crazily and she couldn’t distinguish if the noise was her own headache or something else. Invading her senses and making her reach out to pull her cover over her face. Blinking to adjust to searing brightness and aware her throat and mouth were as dry as arid desert and she felt so nauseous and dizzy she didn’t want to get up.Rolling over in bed, squeezing them shut again and feeling around the sheets. She tried to find her bedmate, knowing he should have come home by now if the sun was dazzling through their bedroom curtains this strongly.“YuZhi? What time is it?” She mumbled, her voice hoarse due to a raspy throat that felt burned, as though she had swallowed fire or ground glass, and she lifted her heavy head to try
“Bit late for that isn’t it.” Rong laughed softly from his position, nodding at her sheet, leaning against the wall behind YuZhi. “It’s not like I haven’t seen it all now.” He boasted, making it clear this was exactly what YuZhi thought it was. So self-assured that this scene would be the start of being TangShi’s future and loving the dramatics.“You fucking asshole.” YuZhi exploded, his already frayed emotions had only held by a thread, and it snapped with vigor at that one remark. Turning on Rong and in the blink of an eye, ripping him from the wall he was languishing against and pounded a hard punch straight in his face that made his nose and lip explode across his features. YuZhi didn’t let him drop to the floor, catching him as he slumped down, Rong clutching his face and YuZhi delivered two knee blows to his abdomen with deathly precision. Pulling out oooft grunts as he bent double.YuZhi’s f
“Calm down, Tang. Please, just breathe, and calm down. Stop and look at me.” Linlin caught hold of TangShi who was racing from one room to another in the apartment, searching for YuZhi and despairing over the lack of him. She had called Linlin to come get her when she dressed and raced out of the hotel after him and couldn’t find him anywhere around. Freaking out and in a neighborhood she wasn’t familiar with and no idea what she should do. She had abandoned Rong in his beaten state without a second thought and ran after YuZhi.Linlin clung to her upper arm to restrain her, hugging her in with a struggle, and smoothed away her hair that was sticking to her clammy face in a bid to soother her. Her heart breaking for seeing her this way.“Take a second to be still and take a deep breath. This isn’t going to help you.”“He won’t answer my calls. He’s not at Leng group or home, he’s not with Zhe
“Stop it. She wouldn’t do this and that Rong Cai motherfucker is a skeezy letch who has done something to make this look this way. I thought you would be on her side in this, with an ability to think beyond what he saw.” Linlin snapped, full on anger as she stomped after him once more to a third trip to the cupboard, then walked into his back with a thud as he stopped dead and snorted. The ZhengLi she knew and adored was wise and levelheaded and could often see things other’s couldn’t. It seemed not this time.“Why did she get so drunk with him if he was someone so untrustworthy? Why go out for dinner in the first place? Why did she still appear to be walking around in her underwear when YuZhi showed up, and not hightailing it out the door if she was so innocently set up? She seemed pretty happy half naked around with him while he showered.” ZhengLi just couldn’t believe anyone would go to those lengths and hope the other party
YuZhi stumbled against the wall, tripping over nothing, putting his hands out to stop the fall he knew was coming and staggered onwards with intent. The world swaying back and forth, and his sense of realism was greatly skewed. It was late, past midnight and he had slipped out of Cheng’s bar while ZhengLi was in the bathroom. Needing air, to be alone and to clear his head now his drunkenness levels were extreme. He could barley see straight and had that surreal dopey mind of a badly intoxicated person.Booze hadn’t stopped the internal agony and splicing pain of discovering TangShi with that scumbag Rong Cai this morning, in the Ritz Carlton looking very much like the aftermath of a one-night stand. Instead it felt like it had taken away his ability to put it out of his head and focus on other things. Now it was torturing him alive and he gone looking for solace. The memory of it turned his stomach again, his head a blurry mess of chaos and confused thoughts as he