He took a deep, deep breath. Strong brows creasing ever so minutely. Concentration. It was vital for the air to leave his chokingly constricted lungs. Slow. The tick he could feel scratching at the base of his skull was hovering, waiting. Irritation dug its claws in. Long fingers clenched tightly into fists.

Ben watched a pair of broad shoulders that were slightly too lean on bones that made up a six foot frame. Shoulders that were held stiffly, even a touch agressively. Readying for battle. He let himself an inward sigh. Chaos was without a doubt, waiting for them in large douses once they landed at the Hong Kong airport. For a spilt second, Ben wondered again, what certain things were worth. How certain lives were lived. And at what cost.

The moment past. As many had gone before. It was a job requirement. Bodyguards do not possess the luxury nor leisure of contemplative thoughts. Catching Kay’s eye, he let the slight tilt of his head direct her needed attention.

Kay nodded. The notes in her hand were given another efficient once over. Four days in Hong Kong was going to be gruelling. More so under the latest… circumstances. Wrapping up fliming of the latest drama project wasn’t the toughest part. It was the production and promotions that come after that bore everyone to the ground.

The captain’s announcement ambled almost carelessly over the audio system. Descent in twenty minutes. She let a small sigh escape. A shuffle of papers went into an elegant briefcase. It had been a gift from the brooding man seated next to her, his mood tense. So palpable one needed a knife to cut through. She turned to study lean, chiseled features. High cheekbones. Strong lines. Soft, jet black hair fell in careless short layers and parted heavily down the right profile, stopping short at length around the base of his neck. Stormy midnight eyes stared unseeingly into the inky landscape beyond. The city’s bright lights laid an ethereal scene of sparkling wonder for any beholder but Kay knew, he saw naught a thing. This man who just sat there, beside her, surrounded by dozens of others and yet, looked as always, alone. Her employer. Her cousin. Her friend. Megastar. Jerry.

“Jerry,” it was a quiet word. It wasn’t time to push. “We can’t avoid the crush that will greet us later. I have to let her people know how we’re moving on this.”

Silence. Deafening. The air thickened impossibly more. Kay waited. Wearing patience like a soothing cloak.

Finally, he turned. Blank eyes finally pulled to the present and came into focus. Jerry looked at the giant built of a man seated opposite him. Ben nodded ever so slightly at the unspoken question thrown at him. Kay noted the exchange. Had expected no less.

“I would like to see her the minute we land,” Jerry found his own voice rusty sounding, a strum lower than usual. A moment’s hesitation.

Kay found Jerry’s hand on her arm. A silent plea.

“Since Ben thinks security is ok…” Jerry’s voice trailed off. The quiet once again roared to the fore.

Flaming red hair bobbed as Kay shook her head, a touch of smile quirking the corners of her lips upwards. Even now, she knew, he was thinking of everyone but himself. Of the career. Of who he was. What he was. Of what they’d worked so hard for. She placed her own hand, small in comparison to his, over the one that was placed on her arm.

“Of course. I care about her too J.”

Jerry looked at the pixie like features of his little cousin sister. Not so little anymore. Where had the pigtails gone? Where had the gap between her teeth gone? Long gone. Along with the rags they had to grow up with. Before him was Kay. Cousin. Friend. Assistant. And a strong, capable woman. Small in stature did not mean small in strength and heart. Kay could kick as well as Ben could. He knew she’d defend him to the grave if she had to. But he could never allow that. The road to the present hadn’t been an easy one. So he had never made it difficult. Till now. He looked at her small hand covering his own. An unbreakable bond. He thanked the great powers that be once again, for life’s treasures.

“All right,” Kay’s twinkling voice chirped. “Let’s go get them Big Ben. We have an airport to crash.”

* * * * *

Ella stared as tiny blinking lights beckoned enticingly against the dark. Lights that signalled life. Life that goes on, even after death. Even when it hurts. The inky heavens beyond the airplane’s windows blurred.

I miss you grandpa.

Tears streaked fresh scalding lines down her face. She soaked in the sensation. Wanted to believe the tears could wash away some of the pain. The tears burned. Like the hurt that was still so raw.

I know you said, to live without regrets. To live loud, laugh loud… but Grandpa I’m so sorry. You don’t know how much… I wish I had spent more time with you Grandpa. I’m just… so sorry…

Time marched on. Relentlessly, unerringly, it marched. As great a healer it was, time could not, for the moment, dent the sorrow wrapped around this tiny girl who had just lost a beloved grandfather. The abyss of sorrow was too deep. Nothing was getting through. Not yet. But time was many things. Among of which, it was patient.

Charlie and Ken exchanged worried glances. Their little charge is suffering and they knew not how to rescue her from the well of sorrow she had gone hiding in. But they had to do something. In the two short years that they have come aboard the S.H.E. phenomena as managers and all round handlers for the trio, each girl had stolen a special place in their hearts in a grip as mighty as steel. Now, one of them was hurting. They had promised Hebe and Selina and Mama Chen and Pops Chen and even Tubs the cat that Ella will be cared for. She had been especially close to Grandpa Chen. The two men exchanged another worried glance.

Long moments passed.

Finally, Ken plucked an ever-ready post-it pad out of his black hole of a bag. Charlie watched as Ken’s excellent penmenship scrawled one word.

Jerry.

* * * * *

Ella knew her feet were on auto pilot, one in front of the other. She let Charlie and Ken take the lead, numb to her surroundings as she was maneuvered through the airport to the next wherever on the schedule. The flashes, the pushing and shoving of human bodies trying to get close, the chatter and shouts of various voices seemed muted. Like a movie with bad audio recording. The colours of the world seemed washed out. The matching pink shirts Charlie and Ken wore looked a faded shade of gray.

“Baobei,” Charlie quipped. “Chin up please?”

Somehow, Charlie’s concerned voice was heard. She looked up, trying to smile for Charlie. Worried Charlie. Worried Ken. The swirl of muted sounds and colours of the aggressive bustle around them at the Hong Kong airport meshed and jostled for attention. Her fans. Lots of them. Vyving for attention. Extending well meaning wishes. She tried to respond. Tried to manage more than the watered down smile she hung on her face. But Ella knew she fooled no one. And yet, they would’nt leave her be. She wanted to slink away. To disappear. To wave the wand of silence. To be left alone. To just be.

Her feet continued to function as they should. Charlie and Ken continued to cast searching looks around and the occasional glance at Ella between them. When they eventually spotted a tall, lean man heading towards them, baseball cap pulled low, their relief was shortlived. The screaming had escalated. The flashing cameras had doubled furiously.

The moment he spotted her, his eyes never left her tiny frame. It was easy, with the shock of thick, short cropped royal purple hair acting like a beacon.

Kay knew the moment Jerry spotted Ella. Ella remained in her little cocoon. Jerry’s movements had been slow, languid even. But each step had a purpose. Determined steps. A destination, whether he knew it yet or otherwise. Kay kept her strides a pace behind Jerry. Keeping close but not huddling. From across the approaching crowd surrounding Ella, Kay spotted Charlie and Ken. They raised their hands in acknowledgement. Kay raised her own hand – a greeting from one industry veteran to another.

There was a slight shift in the air. A frission of awareness that coated everyone within vicinity.

If he put his mind to it, Jerry could part crowds like Moses parted the red sea, Kay mused, watching as this mega star cousin of hers made a straight line for Ella. The entire scene played out to collective held breaths as the crowd awaited in quivering anticipation the unfurling of the next few moments.

A pinprick of awareness playfully nicked at Ella’s mind. It whispered for attention. Something was afoot. Someone was waiting. She lifted tired eyes and tried to find the one drawing her attention. A sea of faces came into focus, colour flooding back onto them as though someone had just remembered to turn on the colour. As with the colour, so did the sounds come rushing back. Then, among the chaos, her world found its center.

Ella fought to keep the tears that had threatened to burst forth when her eyes found Jerry’s own hooded ones. She couldn’t let the tears blur her view of him as his tall, silent form approached with deliberate intent. She turned to look at her wonderful, caring managers. Charlie held a pink hanky matching his shirt and was sniffling rather loudly. Ken was nodding and making shoo-ing gestures. She managed to flash them a watery smile. The most heartfelt one she could. Then, she turned to close the gap between this step and a much needed hug.

It was but a blink later but Jerry felt time playing tricks on him. Could a few paces last a lifetime? One more step and she would be within reach. He wanted to snatch her away from the world.

Ella willed the tears to stay at bay. But Jerry was so close…

What felt like interminable moments later, Jerry opened his arms as Ella walked into them gratefully. It didn’t seem to matter anymore that they were in the middle of a thronging airport. That they were surrounded by a mass of people.

He needed it as much as she did. So he held her close, surrounding her with as much as his strength as he could.

She held on. Breathing in his scent. Soaking up the comfort of strong arms and unspoken words. A brush of lips near her temple, fleeting and light. Had she imagined it? It didn’t matter. The firm band of his arms engulfing her was real enough. She lost the stranglehold on the tears. She buried her face deep into his shirt.

He wanted to sooth her with words. To share her pain. Wash away the tears. Take away the hurt. But those were private, came the fierce thought. He would not belittle them by shedding them to light in such public glare. Holding her right now was already, a breach of that privacy.

As if on cue, Jerry felt Ella draw in her scattered composure. The slender arms clasped tightly behind his back loosened. He shielded her for a heartbeat more and felt the slightest of nods from the bowed head resting securely beneath his chin. A pair of small hands were now pressed against his chest ever so lightly. He took his own cue from the light pressure they caused and took that step back.

Ella’s senses protested keenly against the loss of Jerry’s warmth. She didn’t raise her eyes. She clutched his shirt to let him know her thanks. The last squeeze on her arms as he stepped truly away from her let her know he understood. As he always had. Ella felt yet another piece of her treacherous heart slide away to the man standing before her. She wondered if he knew, for all that he’s always saying she gave him, that he gave her even more.

Together, they turned to face the crowd that circled around them. The flashes from numerous photography equipment rained upon them like lightnight bolts thrown by Zeus on a bad hair day.

Kay, Charlie and Ken moved into action. Special agents with a mission they mean to accomplish with utmost efficiency – to get their charges out of the airport.