[C h a p t e r 2 3]

Henry slowly woke from his half-asleep state, his mind still whirling with the last thoughts he had since he last woke that night. It was morning now and even though his room was almost completely dark, the morning sun still managed to filter in around the edges of the drawn curtains. He stood up out of the sofa he had been laying on, having decided that he didn’t feel like sleeping on the bed last night. All night his mind had been consumed with thoughts of Amber and Josephine. Whenever he thought of the two, he found that he couldn’t really separate them, as if they were one and the same. He found himself growing confused and frustrated over the matter, wondering what was happening with himself. As his mind travelled back to the kiss on the mountain, Henry couldn’t help but feel a rush of guilt that he had betrayed Josephine’s memory. Yet within that guilt mingled a kind of happiness that he couldn’t quite explain.

He let out a frustrated sigh, rubbing his hands over his face as he wiped the sleep from his eyes. He was getting tired of walking in these mental circles. Standing up, he made his way over to the bathroom where he set about getting ready for the new day.

Fifteen minutes later, Henry stepped out of his room, closing the door quietly behind. It was still early in the morning and the resort seemed eerily quiet, the morning glow adding to its surreal atmosphere. Casually, he made his way out of the Orchid Wing, strolling over to the restaurant. He came to a stop at the closed doors, reading the sign which said that breakfast was only served from 7 am to 9:30 am. It was 6:35 am, so that meant that Henry still had another twenty-five minutes before he could grab something to eat.

Turning around, he decided to walk over to the lobby, taking a long scenic route through a tropical garden. When he finally arrived, he saw that the receptionist was already sitting behind her desk and he made his way over.

“Hi… I’m just wondering if you could tell me which room Amber Liu is in?” he asked. He had seen Amber return to this resort last night after their rendezvous, but at the time he wasn’t sure if he should approach her.

The receptionist smiled tiredly up at him and nodded, stifling a yawn as she turned to type on her computer. After a minute, she turned to look back up at Henry apologetically. “I’m sorry, Sir; that person has checked out already.”

“Oh… Thank you,” he said with a small, disappointed smile. He turned away slowly, his hands travelling to his pockets as he left the lobby. For some reason, Henry felt that he was probably the reason why Amber had left so suddenly. He mentally kicked himself for acting like a fool the other day, perhaps the hundredth time since. He wanted to apologise to her again but now he did not even have the chance.

Henry decided he would wait the remaining ten minutes before the restaurant opened on a bench near the restaurant door. Several other early risers were also waiting nearby and among them he spotted Donghae.

“Hey, Henry! You’re up early today,” said Donghae as he came to sit beside Henry.

Henry gave Donghae a tired smile. “Yeah… a lot of things are on my mind.”

Donghae raised an eyebrow, intrigued as he peered up at Henry. Henry noticed the look and let out a wry smile.

“I’m not going to dump my problems on you, Donghae.” It was a couple more seconds before he decided to change the topic. “You’re also up early today.”

Donghae turned away, leaning back on the bench. “Yeah, felt like an early morning jog.” He then seemed to grow quiet, as if he was mulling over something. “You know, henry… yesterday, I think I saw someone who looks a lot like… Josephine…”

The muscle in Henry’s jaw stiffened and Donghae immediately regretted bringing up the topic. He let out a nervous laugh, patting Henry on the shoulder.

“But how can that be? I think I was just hallucinating. Don’t think too much into it, okay, Henry?” he assured, glancing at Henry worriedly.

Henry continued to stare into the distance, the expression in his eyes unreadable. Donghae was beginning to grow very worried when Henry finally spoke. “So you think so too?” he asked in a quiet voice.

Donghae seemed shocked to hear that question. “You’ve seen her?”

Henry nodded. “Yeah… but she’s checked out already.”

“You know she left too? Did you also eavesdrop on her conversation with that guy last night?”

Henry turned to stare at Donghae, surprised. After he had seen Amber safely arrive back at the resort, he had returned straight to his room. “Eavesdrop? What conversation?”

Donghae peered at Henry in confusion. “You mean you didn’t hear some guy tell her that they had to return because of some new job or something?” As Henry shook his head, Donghae’s brow creased even more in confusion. “Then how did you know she checked out?”

At that question, Henry turned away, his earlier misgiving about the evening before returning. But something about what Donghae had said seemed to bug him. Who was that man she had been talking to and what was that ‘new job’? Suddenly, the door to the restaurant finally opened and Henry stood, smiling as he clapped his hands together.

“Why don’t we go get some breakfast? I’m starving!” he said as he then walked over to enter the restaurant.

Donghae watched him walk off, a curious look in his eyes as he soon followed. Once inside, he decided to drop the topic. If anyone was good at keeping secrets, it was Henry.

Luhan gradually stirred awake, his head pounding slightly as he slowly opened his eyes. Wondering why he was having such a horrible headache, his hand went to his head and there he felt the coarse fabric of a bandage. He sat up, glancing around him to see that he was still in the niche. His eyes then came to rest on Krystal, who lay sleeping upright against the wall with the first aid kit he kept in his car by her side. He realised that he must have injured his head when he had fallen backwards after saving Krystal. A small smile crept onto his lips and he shuffled over to sit by her side, studying her sleeping face closely.

He didn’t know what was wrong with him. He had known her for only two days, yet Luhan found himself drawn towards the small woman. True, he had originally thought she would be like all the other women who came to work in his bar, but he realised that he had made a grave mistake the instant she had slapped him. It was then he had decided to check up on her story, finding out that she had indeed told the truth and he instantly regretted his actions. Deciding to make amends, he went to visit her home early in the morning, coming across her mother. He then told her that her debts were cleared, throwing down a wad of cash which the woman immediately claimed greedily. Luhan watched the way she counted the bills with disgust and was about to leave that instant when Krystal’s mother had begun to grow suspicious. She ignored all of Luhan’s excuses that he was just doing a favour when she suggested that she would sell Krystal to him. Luhan was appalled at the idea and was about to immediately refuse when he had second thoughts. He realised that if Krystal continued to remain with her mother, she would definitely be forced into ion eventually. And so, he had conceded.

Subconsciously, Luhan raised a hand to back the stray fringe that had found its way onto her eyes. Krystal stirred at the touch and Luhan immediately pulled his hand back, shuffling away slightly to give her some room. She opened her eyes and saw Luhan seated a small distance away, smiling back at her.

“You’re awake,” she groaned, stretching slightly on the spot. She covered as she yawned widely, before flexing her neck from the stiffness.

Luhan continued to smile as he watched her. “Yeah… I’ve been awake for a while now.” He then pointed at the bandage on his head. “Is this your work?”

Krystal gave Luhan a sarcastic look. “I had no choice. You were too heavy to carry back up the cliff and I couldn’t seem to get a signal with our mobiles. Luckily, you had a first aid kit in the back of your car.”

Luhan let out a soft chuckle. “Yeah, I like to be prepared for dire situations.”

“And I suppose you have quite a few of them?” asked Krystal, still peering at him sarcastically.

“More than you know,” replied Luhan, his voice suddenly gaining a bitter note.

The change in his tone surprised Krystal a little and she sat up straighter against the wall. “Are we going to get out of here, yet? It’s all because of you that I had to sleep on hard rock.”

Luhan nodded and stood, leading Krystal out. “Alright, but watch where you tread. I don’t want another bump to the head from trying to save you.”

Krystal glared at his back as she followed, this time taking careful steps as she climbed back up the cliff. Every now and then, Luhan would pause to turn and lend Krystal a helping hand but she would always ignore him. The way up was easier than the way down and soon they emerged back beside the Roadster.

“Hurry up and take me home,” she said as she went to open her door. “Mother will probably think I’ve finally decided to become a e and ask me for some money.”

Luhan frowned as he then went to sit behind the steering wheel. He started the engine, reversing back away from the cliff. “Who said anything about going back to see your mother? From what I can recall, you belong to me now.”

As he finally reversed far enough and was about to turn the car around, Krystal leaned in to grab Luhan by the collar, glaring into his eyes dangerously. “Didn’t I tell you that I refuse to comply with that stupid agreement you made with my mother, the one you made WITHOUT my consent?”

Luhan then smiled calmly back at Krystal, prying her hands off his shirt. “It does not matter whether or not I have your consent. Even if you were to return home, I’m sure your mother would immediately kick you out. After all, it was her idea in the first place.”

Krystal then stared back blankly at Luhan, shocked by this revelation. “It was mother’s idea to sell me?” she said quietly as she returned to sit in her seat properly, a crestfallen look on her face. Just seeing her look so shocked and sad seemed to stir some troubled feelings within Luhan’s heart. He then reached out a hand to comfort her.

“Krystal…” he said, trying to think of something he could say. “Try to look on the bright side – at least you were sold to someone around your own age and not someone who could be old enough to be your father,” he joked. Krystal sent him a deadly glare and he smiled back nervously. The smile slowly faded from his face as she turned to stare ahead and he let out a small sigh. “Look Krystal, I have to admit that I never liked the idea of buying you if you weren’t willing to come with me. But I thought this would probably be the best thing for you.” He stared at Krystal, wondering what she was thinking. He then shifted in his seat, holding up three fingers on his right hand. “How about this: I swear to you that I will never lay a finger on you, unless you decide that you want me to. I’ll give you your own room in my house and treat you like a sister until you decide otherwise.”

Still, there was no response from Krystal and Luhan let out another sigh, turning back into his seat as he rubbed his temples. After a few minutes he then heard Krystal finally say, “Aren’t you going to start driving? I’m starving here!”

tbc.

Man... Henry's part was hard to write... I think it came out a little confusing. I'm not sure how I want him to be feeling after that kiss. Ah well...

From the next chapter on, things should begin to get more intense (hopefully -_-||).

Next Chapter: Back to ten years ago and an emotionally intense scene...