chapter 10

Lay fidgeted uncomfortably in the black tux he was forced to wear, pulling his black tie around him tightly . If it wasn’t because both Henry and the superintendent had begged him to come in a tux, he wouldn’t be wearing the cursed thing. He scratched at his shoulder, the fabric making him itch.

“Where’d Henry go?” he muttered to himself as he looked left and right for any sign of his partner. “He said he was going to stay by my side. I am so going to give him the beating of a lifetime at our next match!”

“Who are you going to give the beating of a lifetime to, Mr?” said a voice to his left.

His eyes grew wide in shock as Lay spun on the spot to see the smiling eyes of Sehun. ‘What is he doing here?’ he turned away immediately and began walking away, covering his face. “Please don’t let him remember me…. Please don’t let him remember me…” he whispered to himself.

“You don’t have to cover your face, Mr. I happen to have quite a good memory,” said Sehun, still standing in the same spot.

Lay stopped walking away, readjusting his tie . he spun around, a haughty look on his face. “And so it seems,” he replied feebly.

Sehun let out a small laugh as he walked closer to Lay. “But I have to admit; I almost didn’t recognise you. I mean, you look… different.”

Lay wondered whether he was trying to complement him or not. “And you are here because…?”

“I think you already know who I am. Is it unusual for Sewoo’s son to be present at a welcome party for the son of Seoul’s most influential business man?” He smiled even more as he took another step closer to Lay. “No… the one who should be asking why the other is here is me.”

Lay began to grow flustered at how close Sehun was standing. he took a small fumbling step backwards. “That’s… that’s none of your business. I am here because of work.”

Sehun raised an eyebrow in amusement. “You are here working?”

“Yes,” nodded Lay. Bah, what was he saying? he was only here at Oh sehun’s party because his superintendent had threatened to suspend him without pay if he didn’t.

“Care to tell me what kind of work?” he continued to ask, enjoying how unnerved he was making him.

Lay finally pulled himself together. he stood up straighter as he stared defiantly up at Sehun. “I do not have to answer that. If you would excuse me, I have to go and find my partner.”

Partner? Sehun stared back at his in mild shock, feeling a faint sense of disappointment. As he watched her walk away, it took him a couple of seconds to snap out of his daze. “What is your name?” he shouted after him.

Lay paused on the spot, turning his head slightly to say over his shoulder, “Detective Lay zhang yixing.” he continued to walk off, disappearing into the crowd.

A small smile played across his lips as he felt strangely relieved. “A detective, huh? Very interesting indeed...”

Henry stepped out of the ballroom, casually making his way down the hallway to his left as he glanced at the large oil paintings that adorned the walls. Every now and then he would sneak glances around him in an effort to find a certain face, which he had not been able to find within the ballroom itself. He knew that she would be here, for he had spent the last few days staring at her profile in the police database, finding out that she was Lee soo man’s closest secretary. For some reason, he could not get his mind off her, feeling as if he recognised her but from what he had read their paths would never have crossed before.

As he rounded the corner to his right, he entered a small lobby area, the white curtains drawn shut along the windows, obscuring the view of the city behind. Three black leather sofas were positioned around a small oval glass coffee table, their seats facing a large grand piano situated on a slightly raised platform. Henry walked over to the sofas, falling into the seat with a small sigh. ‘Perhaps she isn’t here tonight,’ he thought. ‘It could be that she’s taking a night off or something.’ He closed his eyes, rubbing his face with his hands as he took in a large breath. What was he thinking? Why was his mind so consumed by that one woman? He hadn’t felt this way about someone in a very long time…

“Detective Xianhua?” asked a female voice suddenly, startling him from his musings.

Henry removed his hands from his face to reveal Amber standing nearby, peering at him with a mild look of curiosity. He suddenly leapt to his feet as he smiled at Amber, adjusting the white suit he was wearing.

“Miss Liu! I… didn’t expect to see you here,” he lied as he quickly tried to calm his rapidly pounding heart. Seeing her tonight, he couldn’t help but be amazed. She was stunningly beautiful in a sophisticated manner, different from the wreck he had seen the other night in the hospital.

A small amused smile touched Amber’s lips. “Nor did I.”

In fact, Amber had been wondering whether she should have approached Henry after entering the room looking for a quiet place to relax. It took her several minutes to recognise him, but once she had she could not resist the urge to at least say something to him. She felt that she owed him that much at least.

Amber went over to the sofa opposite Henry and they both sat at the same time. Adjusting her dress so that it spread out properly around her, Amber felt him study her, just like he had on their first meeting all those years ago. She wondered whether he recognised her as that same little girl but it seemed that he didn’t. After all, who would believe that someone could return from the dead after all these years?

Henry was the first to speak when Amber looked up. “You never told me that you were Lee soo man’s secretary.”

“I see you’ve been reading my profile,” smiled Amber. Henry’s cheeks tinged slightly red in embarrassment as he averted his gaze.

“I didn’t mean to intrude on your privacy,” he apologised.

“You have every right to. After all, you are a police officer, Detective Xianhua.”

There it was again. She had called him by his Chinese name on purpose, just like… her.

“Why do you address me by my Chinese name, Miss Liu?” he asked, peering at her suspiciously.

Amber smiled again in that aloof manner of hers. “Because that was the only name I saw on your ID the other night.”

“Oh.” Henry felt somewhat disappointed at her reply but then he realised how foolish he was being. He suddenly let out a small laugh. “Then you can call me Henry; that’s what everyone calls me, Miss Liu.”

Amber bowed her head slightly in acknowledgement. “Then call me Amber, Detective Xianhua,” she replied with a small mischievous smile.

“You still called me by my Chinese name,” pointed out Henry as his mouth curved in a small smile.

“That is because I think it sounds better.”

= Flashback =

“Why do you always call me by my Chinese name, Josephine?” asked Henry as he glanced at Josephine from his spot next to her on the porch of an abandoned hut.

 stared off into the distance before she replied silently, “Because I think it sounds better.”

= End Flashback =

Henry continued to stare at Amber, his face blank. He then turned away, bringing himself out from his daze. It must be a coincidence, that both Amber and Josephine had said the same thing to him. The thought that they could be the same person entered his mind but he immediately dismissed the foolish idea. Josephine was dead. The Amber who sat before him was alive, had grown up in California only to arrive in Korea seven years ago into Lee soo man’s custody after her parents died in a car accident.

“You must be a highly regarded detective if you were invited to Master Sehun’s party, Detective Xianhua,” said Amber suddenly, cutting across Henry’s thoughts.

He peered up at Amber, trying to register what she had just said. “Oh… I wouldn’t say I was exactly invited but rather… um… dragged along by my superior, Superintendent . He wants me and my partner to become more acquainted with upper class society. That reminds me…” Henry hung his head, rubbing the back of his neck with a small guilty smile. “I left him hanging all alone in there after promising that I would stay talk to him. he definitely won’t forgive me for that.”

Amber glanced down at the ground, smiling softly in amusement. “Then you’d better go find him.”

Henry looked up at her and their eyes connected before they both let out a soft laugh. “I guess I should.” He stood up, Amber following suit. “It has been nice talking with you, Amber.”

“And you, Detective Xianhua,” replied Amber with a slight bow of her head. Henry nodded with a smile and walked off, feeling her gaze on his back all the while.

Amber watched him until he disappeared from sight before walking over to the windows, drawing back the curtain. She stared out at the view in front her before switching her focus to the reflections in the glass.

“Must you eavesdrop on all my conversations, Kris?” said Amber as she calmly closed the curtain before turning around.

Kris let out a little chuckle. “Actually, this time it truly was an accident. Lee soo man is looking for you.”

“Oh.” Amber strolled past Kris, only to come to a halt as he grabbed her arm.

“Josephine Liu is dead. Make sure it stays that way.” He squeezed her arm firmly before releasing her.

Amber stared back up at Kris, her eyes hard. “No one can return from the dead.”

tbc.

 Henry and Amber met again. So now you may kind of know why she didn't tell him her Chinese name before and why Henry doesn't recognise her, even though she continues to by reminding him of Josephine, perhaps a little sadistically. And you'll also know why I said Kris likes to pop out of nowhere in my last footnote. i hope you guys won't get mixed up.