“No, Isaac. I don’t think she knows who I am. She did it out of kindness.”
That deep voice made me regain consciousness. I blinked slowly, only to discover that I was in an unfamiliar room dominated by gray and white.
“No. I destroyed the CCTV and kept my gloves on.”
I spotted a guy standing with his back to me. He was in jeans paired with a white shirt, its sleeves rolled up to his elbows. Even from here, I could see his toned arms and broad shoulders. Trying to pick up more of his conversation, I stayed as still as possible, ignoring the stinging pain in my shoulder. A thick blanket was tucked up to my neck, and while I was dying to toss it aside, I didn’t want Mr. Handsome over there to realize I was awake.
“Let’s just say I’ll be unlucky if it comes to that. You know I always slip past the cops.”
Wait—what? Cops? What’s he talking about? Oh no, what if I’m caught up in this? This is a literal nightmare. And what did he just say? “Always slip past the cops”? Does he have a history?
“I’m serious, Isaac. There’s nothing to worry about.”
I tried to look at him again. And for whatever reason, I was really surprised to find that the handsome man was staring at me. Don't tell me that he knew that I was listening to his conversation.
“I’ll call you later,” he said, hanging up his phone and walking toward me.
Oh my God, he’s coming over. I never thought I’d end up this close to him—let alone in his room. He stopped so close that I could see every detail of his jawline. “Do you need anything? Water?”
“N-no.” Damn, I stammered.
“I couldn’t take you to the hospital, so I patched you up myself.” He pulled out a chair and sat by the bed.
“I’m already feeling better. Thank you,” I said, trying to sound calm, even though my nerves were all over the place.
I shifted to sit up, and the blanket slipped down, revealing that I wasn’t wearing my flannel shirt anymore—just the tank top underneath.
“I should be the one thanking you,” he said. “Oh, by the way, I took off your shirt. Didn’t do anything except treat the wound.”
“What? Oh, uh, yeah, no problem.” I glanced at my shoulder, wincing at the sight of the bandage. “Why did you bring me here?”
“Because I owe you my life. Seriously, I’ll pay it back. Just tell me what you want.”
I want to be close to you. “No need,” I replied quietly.
“Alright. But if you ever need anything, let me know. I owe you big time,” he said with a faint smile. It wasn’t hard to feel that this wouldn’t be our last meeting. At least, I hoped it wasn’t. Maybe we’d bump into each other again somewhere—a café, the mall, or... wherever.
That’s when I remembered my bag and laptop, which I’d left at the café. Of course, I did. He must’ve carried me straight out of there. Oh God. Oh my god ... “Kim!”
“Hey, what’s wrong?” He looked genuinely puzzled as I tried to stand up.
“I need to get back.” But then I stopped mid-motion, looking at him. His brow furrowed. “All my future is in my bag.”
“Where are you staying?”
“Hyatt Regency Hotel.”
“I’ll take you there.” He grabbed a gray cardigan hanging by the wardrobe and draped it over my shoulders. “This belongs to a friend of mine. She won’t mind if you borrow it.”
She. Of course, he had a female friend who leaves clothes in his room. What did you expect, Corbin? A guy like him not having someone? My subconscious mocked me, probably smirking while doing so.
He put on a black coat—again—before guiding me out of his room. The house was quiet, minimalist, and painted in shades of gray that only added to its mysterious vibe.
“You live alone?” I asked once we were in his car.
There was a pause, long enough for me to count his breaths. “Yeah.”
For some reason, I got the feeling he wasn’t comfortable with questions like that. I fiddled with my fingers, debating whether to bring up what happened in the café—or the elevator. I kept glancing at him, wanting to ask,, but I immediately canceled it.
“You got something to say?” he suddenly asked, eyes still on the road.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Go ahead.”
Taking a deep breath, I turned to him. “Do you remember meeting me before the café?”
He glanced at me for a moment before answering, “No. Maybe you’ve got the wrong guy.”
“You sure?” I pressed.
“Where do you think we met?”
“Forget it,” I muttered. “I guess I was mistaken.” But deep down, I was sure it was him who kissed me. His black coat, the Terre d’Hermes cologne, his dark brown hair, and those intense eyes—it all lined up.
He didn’t remember me. Or maybe he was pretending not to. Either way, I couldn’t shake the feeling there was more to this.
He didn't remember me. But ... how could he? The incident had just happened and not a day had passed. Even the clothes I was wearing at that time were still the same as the ones I wore at the café. The assumption that I had misrecognized someone had been added to the black list. The other possibility was that he didn't remember or pretended not to remember. I didn't even have a good guess as to why he kissed me earlier. And yes, his thank-you note that was still ringing in my ears made it seem as if when he kissed me, I had saved him--who knows from what.
“Are you okay?”
I was startled softly when he asked so suddenly. I looked at him who was looking at me with a furrowed brow. “N-no, I mean yeah, I'm fine.”
“Are you in a lot of pain? I'm sorry you got hurt.” This young man said with regret, he said, sounding genuinely regretful. “I really owe you.”
“I’m fine,” I replied softly.
“Just tell me what you want, and it’s yours. I promise.”
“I don’t need anything,” I said, ducking my head, still wrestling with whether to ask why he kissed me.
He sighed and fell silent, turning on the radio. David Cook’s The Time of My Life filled the awkward space.
Minutes later, we were near the Hyatt Regency Hotel. I could see the Gateway Arch in the distance, but to my surprise, he drove right past it.
“You missed the hotel,” I blurted out.
“I know. We’re not going there,” he replied, calmly speeding up.
“What? Where are you taking me?” He didn’t answer. Frustrated, I leaned closer to shake his arm, mindful not to jostle my injured shoulder. “Tell me!”
“Calm down, there's a car following us,” he said. I canceled my intention to look back when he piped up again, “Don’t turn around! Just check the side mirror. I can’t drop you off at the hotel—they’d find you there.”
***
Edited. 17125, Anne Joyce
“Calm down, there's a car following us,” he said. I canceled my intention to look back when he piped up again, “Don’t turn around! Just check the side mirror. I can’t drop you off at the hotel—they’d find you there.”"Who the hell are they? Why are they following us?" I asked, my voice shaking with panic. My heart was racing, and I was gasping for air like I’d just run a marathon."Relax! Just think of them as people who don’t like me,” he replied quickly. He steered the car into a fairly quiet lane. I saw from the rearview mirror that the black sedan was still following this car. "What the he—AHHH!" I screamed as a bullet smashed into the back window, the sharp sound of glass shattering cutting through the air."Unbuckle your seatbelt!" he ordered."For what?!""Drive the car!""I can’t drive with one hand!""Can you handle a gun?""What?! Hell no!""Then drive—"Crack!"Now!"With shaking hands, I unbuckled my seatbelt, and he did the same. We clumsily switched seats as the car swer
"I need answers," I whispered. I finally looked at him as he turned to face me. "Tell me what’s really going on."He lowered his head, gripping the steering wheel tighter. "I can't tell you. I'm sorry. And now I feel even worse because you've saved me twice.""Then you owe me," I said flatly and quickly. He looked at me with an expression I couldn’t quite read. "Give me an explanation.""Other than that.""I don't want anything else," I retorted, not to be outdone. "Then be prepared for disappointment." The young man replied softly and coldly. "But you promised me."He ruffled his hair and growled, "You've turned my two principles against me." The man let out a long breath. "Fine, just know I’m not some guy with a smooth, problem-free life. I’ve got people chasing me, ready to take me out. You happy now?""I'm not really surprised," I commented in a coldly pretentious tone. Although inwardly I was thinking about what he had done to put his life in danger. The faint sound of a car en
For a moment, Marco looked caught off guard. But it didn’t last long—he quickly masked it with that annoyingly calm expression of his. “You serious?”“Dead serious,” I shot back, confidence dripping from every word. “Kiss me.”Without any rush—like he did in the elevator earlier—Marco's left hand grabbed my waist to bring me closer, at the same time as his right hand cupped my cheek. I had already closed my eyes when those thin lips touched mine. He didn't do it hastily, gently and carefully as if I was the most fragile creature in the world. I squeezed his coat, trying to prevent Marco from ending the kiss quickly. He was still gently sucking on my lips, and I didn't want to let him go so soon. The reluctance to separate from him was driving me crazy and I wished that Marco would always be near me. His lips movement stopped. I opened my eyes and was greeted by his dark irises. A feeling of deja vu came over me. Marco pulled away from the hug, but not the catch on my cheek. He rubbed
Three days had passed since the incident and I had never once seen Marco again. However, the memory of him didn't want to leave my head, nor did the pain of the gunshot wound on my left shoulder.Thankfully, the shot only grazed the periphery of the shoulder, no deep tissue, no bones hit. That meant I didn’t need to go to a hospital, which saved me from having to answer awkward questions about how I got shot. And let’s face it, without me saying a word, any doctor would’ve guessed it had something to do with the cafeteria shootout. If that happened, the police would get involved. They’d interrogate me, Marco’s name would definitely come up, and the little “accident” I caused a few days ago would be dug up, too.I'm not safe. I've had almost two run-ins with the police in my day here. And both of them were related to Marco. According to what I heard at his house when he called Isaac, Marco is indeed a suspicious person. Ninety percent of me was convinced that Marco was a bad guy who was
"Marco?"He froze for a second. That mysterious look of his never seemed to fade. I swear he looked at my exposed waist for a good two seconds, then back at my face.“Leandra ....” His voice floated in the air.I smiled. He remembered me this time. My subconscious had the idea of getting into the elevator, but before my feet had even taken a step, MMy subconscious was already pushing me toward the elevator, but before I could take a step, Marco closed the distance, grabbed my hand, and pulled me out onto the balcony, away from the crowd partying inside."Hey..." I greeted awkwardly. "Didn’t think I’d see you again."What a lie. I spent three days just thinking about when I would see him again."How are you here?" he asked, not looking at me. Both of his hands were holding the bars of the balcony. His gaze wandered far into the unknown.I followed the position of his body. My face was hit by the cold night breeze. "This is a party for Kim's coworker. You know, the friend I called that t
I managed to get through the sex part just fine—at least for Fred—and thank God I didn’t screw things up by accidentally saying Marco’s name. If I had, I can’t even imagine how Fred would’ve felt.My reflection in the bathroom mirror showed someone more confident, fresher, and… happier. Sleeping with Fred helped me stop wallowing over what Marco did to me. It also made me feel less pathetic, like I’d proven to myself that I could kiss (and screw) someone right after Marco decided I was only worth kissing as a transactional debt—something for his gain. And definitely not an emotional gain. My cell phone rang from inside my bag. Absolutely it was Kim."Leanne, where are you?" I could hear her lowering her voice.I leaned against the edge of the bathroom counter. "I'm with someone, no need to worry.""Someone...? Oh...," I was one hundred percent sure she was holding back a giggle. "Alright, have fun!" And with that, she hung up. So unlike her. She’s usually the type to ask a million que
At nine in the morning, I was packing my suitcase, getting ready to head back to Chicago. Kim wasn’t coming with me; she’d be staying for another three weeks or so. After that, she’d officially move to Missouri. She’d bring all her stuff once she found a permanent place. Yep, Kim was settling down in Missouri, and we’d officially be living in different cities.I knew it wasn’t going to be easy for either of us, but life moves on, right? My study in Chicago was also coming to an end. Who knows? Maybe I’d end up working in Missouri and reconnecting with Kim. Heck, we might even share a place again someday.“Make sure you don’t leave anything behind,” she said as she grabbed her car keys.I rolled my eyes. “I’m not Kimberly Zhao Chan, you know.”She groaned, half-annoyed, half-laughing. Honestly, what would she do without me always picking up the stuff she forgets everywhere? Hopefully, she’d grow out of her scatterbrained ways soon—it’s not just inconvenient for her but for everyone arou
Kim knew.Kim knew I had that dream again last night.For the past ten years—ever since my dad left me alone with my mom—I’ve been having these dreams about him. And honestly, he wasn’t even that great of a person for me to keep dreaming about him after he left. It’s not because I miss him or anything. No, these dreams are just... leftover scraps of bad memories that he didn’t bother taking with him when he disappeared.Dante wasn’t a good dad. He wasn’t a good man. Heck, he wasn’t even a decent human being. Whenever he got the chance, he’d hit Mom, forcing me to hide under the bed, clamping my own hands over my mouth, listening to the sounds of things breaking and Mom screaming.Whenever he came home drunk, it was a nightmare—for her and for me. The next morning, I’d always find Mom bruised all over. One time, I saw blood streaming down her head, and on the floor, a shattered bottle of liquor. I cried hysterically, but instead of crying with me, Mom just hugged me and told me not to w
"Here we are ...." Marco said as he steered the car towards the park. I looked at him from where I was sitting. He looked back at me, a small smile on his lips."What place is this?" I asked, feeling quite curious.Marco's smile seemed to grow more enthusiastic. "It's my favorite place in the whole world. Want to come in?" he asked as he opened my door.I nodded, infected by his enthusiasm."Come on, then." He extended his hand to me, which I gladly took.I stared at him for quite a while, unconsciously showing him a hesitant face."Wonder what's wrong?" he asked.I shrugged my shoulders. "Nothing... it's just that I think the words "your favorite place" and "park" are not something that can be combined."My heart throbbed as he laughed very softly. "Trust me ...."As we walked towards the park, I started to feel my body warm up with excitement. It felt like I was stepping into a different world."Do you like it?" Marco asked, rubbing my hand with his thumb."Yeah... I've never been t
The sound of the curtains opening followed by the blinding light made my eyes flicker."Rise and shine ...."I groaned, ignoring the voice by turning my back to the light source.The bed I was sleeping on swayed gently, indicating that someone was on it. The blanket I had pulled over my body was now slowly unfurling. Someone pulled it until I felt a touch on my bare arm. "You want to waste the day off I promised you by sleeping?""Do you have a bucket list of things to do today?" I asked, not quite clear due to yawning.He laughed lightly. "Yeah... I do," he said, and I was a hundred percent sure he was talking nonsense.I turned around again, facing him who was also looking at me. "So, what's the first thing we're going to do today, Mr. 'I-Have-a-Plan'?""Take a bath together. Good idea?" He didn't let me answer and immediately lifted me off the bed. "Considering you always wake up when I'm all dressed up."I smacked his chest, he laughed loudly. He walked me to the bathroom, still
"Tell me what you imagined back then!"It was an order, and instantly my body stiffened. "I was upset that you didn't kiss me at the party. I touched my lips, wondering if you didn't want to kiss them.""Demonstrate. Continue."From my lips, my hands went down to my breasts, twisting the nipples. I sighed, looking at Marco from the mirror. "Did Marco not want to touch this?" My fingers went down to his waist, rubbing it. "I wanted your hands here." Then I bit my lip, slowly my hand went to the pubic
"Marco ... I want to ask you something," I said, my voice soft. The man placed the book he was reading onto the sofa side table.Marco looked at me, his eyes filled with concern. "What is it, darling?"I took a deep breath, trying to figure out how to phrase my question. "Do I look like your mother?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.Marco looked surprised and confused. "Why do you ask?" he asked, his voice laced with concern.I felt my cheeks flush and I looked down. "Your father told me this morning," I said, my voice barely above a whisper."I will answer on one condition that you tell me the truth about why you want me so much, as you said a while ago," he said, his voice full of teasing."Alright," I agreed."My mother was beautiful, but you're more beautiful than her."I felt a warm feeling spread through my chest at his words. But I still wasn't satisfied. "But you said I remind you of your mother," I said, my voi
The sun was shining brightly, casting a warm glow on the garden. Mr. Montgomery was tending to his plants with care, his wrinkled hands expertly pruning the leaves. I approached him quietly, not wanting to startle him. He turned around and smiled when he saw me."Good morning," he said, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. "Did you sleep well?"I nodded. "Yes, I did. Thank you for letting me stay here."Mr. Montgomery waved a hand dismissively. "It's no trouble at all. I'm glad you're here. And I have to thank you, too."I raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Thank me? For what?""For convincing my son to stay here for a while," he replied, his eyes twinkling. "He's been so busy with work lately that he hardly has time to stop by."I smiled at the thought of Marco coming here often. It was nice to imagine him taking a break from his busy life and spending time with his father. "I'm glad I could help," I said, feeling a sense of pride.Mr. Montgomery then turned to me and looked
Are you going to talk to me again if I tell you I haven't told her?***This morning I woke up to the sound of Pedro's message notification. Last night I asked him if he had told Kim that I was in Missouri. And the answer I got this morning was a relief.I sat on the edge of the bed, stretching. Marco's side of the bed was cold. That meant he'd been up since earlier, and there was no sign of him in the room. The clock still showed eight in the morning. Had Marco left already? Did he leave this early?I finally just decided to go to the bathroom, clean myself up quickly because today I was going to surprise Kim. I can already imagine how cute Kim's slanted eyes will be when she's bulging with surprise and excitement. She would tease me like crazy and bombard me with questions if I told her what brought me to Missouri again.While passing by the window, my eyes accidentally caught something. I immediately approached the glass and looked down. There I saw Marco on his morning run with so
"Tell me about your nightmare."My heart rumbled in my chest. Apparently this would be the time. I thought Marco had declined the offer of a drink with his father because he wanted to do something with me, a continuation of what he'd done earlier that afternoon in the limo and a few minutes ago at the dinner table. My lips curl downward, slightly disappointed.We sat facing each other on the long sofa by the window. Marco's right elbow dug into the back of the sofa, supporting his head. He tilted his head, searching through his eyes. My jaw hardened slightly, not liking the way his gaze seemed to be able to pry into anything. What Leandra was hiding? What Leandra's past was like? Or, what was wrong with Leandra?"It's a long story," I squeaked, pressing one finger into my palm until the nail felt almost through the skin."We have plenty of time." His expression was so flat, so clear, like the calm water of a lake. However, at the bottom of that lake I knew there was a monster ready to
My heart pounded incessantly as Marco led me out of the room. His thumb rubbed the back of my hand, probably trying to calm me down, but it wasn't enough. I had absolutely no idea what a host was like in a mansion of this size and luxury."I'm afraid of meeting your father," I whispered, squeezing Marco's hand as we turned into another room."Are you afraid of me?""No.""Then you'll be fine meeting my father."I frowned, wanting to ask him what he meant, but I quickly dropped it when we turned another corner and the scene in front of me was a dining table with a large number of chairs and four people sitting there.Starting at the head of the table was a middle-aged man who looked so authoritative, powerful, and seemed to have so many things in his hands. One hundred percent sure it was Marco's father, the owner of this place, the master of this mansion. He had black hair, combed neatly back like Marco used to do. I now know where Marco's dominant attitude came from. Apparently he ha
I began a room tour, looking for a spot where I should store our belongings. My eyes lit up at the discovery of the walk-in closet, and my lower jaw hit the floor again when I found that there were already tons of clothes inside, even women's bags and shoes.I flipped through all the hanging women's clothes, which were dominated by mini dresses, both casual and formal. Bags, shoes, and some jewelry were also neatly lined up here. All colorful, various trinkets, most of which I wouldn't be able to afford.This is crazy. Could we have entered the wrong room?I hurriedly got out of the walk-in closet, walking towards the door. Maybe Marco was still around. However, the first person I met was a man in a black suit (again). He had cropped hair and was well-built, but not much taller than Marco."Do you need anything, Miss?" he asked, noticing my surprise.I tried to act as normal as possible. "Is Marco still here?""He just left. Is there something wrong?"I muttered under my breath. Reali