Episode 3

...XIE LIQIN- 谢立琴...

"No" she confirmed.

Was it too much to ask for my freedom in this freaking universe? - I thought.

"Don't tell me you're terrified?" she asked after which a faint smiled appeared on her lips. Her beautiful blue eyes focused on me. Her whole face expressing how she's interested in what I'm about to give her as an answer.

If I said 'No' it'll be a lie and if I said yes, it'll make me look *as timid as a rat. So, I kept quiet and stare at her as I felt the cool breeze brushing against my skin. It's not that I couldn't lie about it. I felt drained. My mouth felt dry and not to mention the painful headache.

"News flash, **Q-tip," she said, adding emphasis on the word- 'Q-tip'. "I. HATE. SILENCE." she then paused and adjusted her glasses by pushing it closer to her face using her index finger. "Answering my question prevents that" she had that British accent each time she spoke which made me assume she's British.

Earlier, I was terrified but for some reason, I don't feel that way anymore. It's not like I've been kidnapped before but I don't think kidnappers keep their hostages in a comfortable environment. Although I'm being tied to a chair, sitting in a well-ventilated living room with two individuals dressed in their PJ's is not what I would say is kidnapping. Looks more like a prank to me but then, who are these people?

I let out a sigh, look at the strange plant that stood beside her before averting my gaze back to her, and hopelessly questioned "What do you want from me?" then paused to gather enough energy to blurt out my feelings. I blew off the strands of hair covering my right eye and began.

" Tell me. I'm new here. Don't have a place to stay. Have an interview tomorrow at MSF (Millicent School Of Fashion)... "

"MSF?" she interrupted with a question, widening her eyes. Her eyebrows, almost disappearing under her bangs.

"Yes MSF" I quickly responded and proceeded as I don't like being interrupted while speaking " and... " I then paused when I realized that she was surprised when I mentioned MSF. "You know MSF?" I asked.

"Yes, I live here. Everyone living here would know about it. Plus, I school there"

Suddenly, the man sitting on the couch burst out laughing. His small oval eyes closed shot as he laughed.

What's funny? - I thought

"Quit laughing Bullet" she muttered, frowning at him.

Bullet? His name is Bullet? - I thought

He continued laughing till he was satisfied before he stood up and walks over to her, clapping.

"Congratulations, Hostage taker," he said, cupping her cheeks.

"You just gave the victim information about you instead of getting information from him"

The girl's eyes shot wide the moment he said that. She reacted by pushing him away from where he stood as she exclaimed "No way!"

"Yes way" he chuckled, staggering as if he was drunk.

"Now, let me kindly untie this gentleman and explain what's going on here"

After hearing that, I wondered if I should be jubilant or disturbed about it. Of course, I'm getting the freedom I've yearned for but where on earth would I go to? Secondly, I needed answers to a lot of questions churning and burning inside me.

I watched as he makes it towards me, unfortunately, In a matter of seconds, two hands were wrapped around his waist, forcefully dragging him backward.

"Wait! Give me five more minutes" she whined, groaning as she tried to pull him. Sadly, Bullet stood still, smiling as if nothing was happening.

I just sat there and watch both of them and wondered if I was dreaming. Who knows, perhaps I'm still sleeping at the restaurant and dreaming about all of this.

" You know what?" she said, breathing heavily at the same time struggling to drag Bullet away from me. She later let him go.

"Have it your way. I'm going to bed" walking towards the stairs.

Bullet simply smiled at her and said

"Good night Hostage taker!"

"Shut up!" she barked, hastily climbing the stairs.

"Well somebody's in a bad mood today" he muttered as he slowly squats down and began untying the ropes around my legs.

"Sorry about that. She's been throwing a tantrum ever since I got here." He explained. "For some reason, I'll rather not say, I had to let her do this to you. I'm Bullet and that angry bird who just left is Iris. She owns this house, I'm just the bodyguard."

Tossing away the ropes to one side, he knelt and started losing the ropes around my body. From the warm tones of his cologne to those of his voice, and the messy shaggy bangs hairstyle - he was so easy to fall in love with.

" I found you unconscious on the streets. Some thugs were about to abduct you so I played the role of a cop to scare them away." our eyes met but I quickly looked away. I usually felt uncomfortable making eye contact with people when this close. Most times, I find myself staring at other places.

"What's your side of the story? Who are you and why were they trying to abduct you?" His voice sounded stern and concerned.

I hesitated before finally narrating my side of the story. By the time I finished narrating, he had already finish losing the ropes and guided me to the kitchen.

" So, you're saying you met some random guy who told you he works at an apartment when you desperately needed one," he said, handing me a bottle of water. "Have this, you must be thirsty"

I collected it and swallowed greedily all the liquid in the container. I was indeed very thirsty.

"Yes, I did" I breathe out. " Now that I know I'm safe, I believe that shouldn't bother me anymore" I tossed the bottle into the waste bin. "What says the time by the way?"

" It's 1:45 am. You were unconscious for like two hours, thirty minutes " he replied, taking a look at his phone. It reminds me of having one too and also luggage.

I quickly dug into my pocket, knowing that it was the last place I kept it. To my dismay, it wasn't there.

"I'm guessing that you're looking for Your phone and side bag," he asked. I looked up at him and nodded. "it's in the leaving room let me get them for you"

I followed him, feeling relieved that I still had everything I owned but panicked when I recalled that I left my luggage where I got ambushed.

"Is everything alright?" Bullet asked after I've collected my belongings from him.

Frowning, as I sat on the couch, I muttered

"I wish"

He sat beside me and patted me on the shoulder "Hey, don't stress yourself about this. You can just lay a complaint at the police station later today"

"I'm more worried about my luggage I left somewhere on the streets. Besides, I'm planning on doing that " I sighed.

"thank you for the help. Bullet? Right?"

"Yes, and you're welcome. You know, there's a possibility that what happened to you was all planned" I look at him, arching an eyebrow.

" Yeah, you need to take this seriously." he stood up. "Anyway, for now, since I'm on patrol, you can spend the night in my room"

My eyes shot wide. I needed a place, but I didn't want to

"Oh no. You help me out this much already. I think they're plenty of apartments I could use for the night "

He tilted his head to the side, giving me a confused look. "By this time of the day?"

"They offer 24 hours of service here, right" I hopefully asked, forcing a smile.

He shrugged. "Okay, I won't force you to stay but whenever you decide, " he pointed at a door, right across the room. From where I sat, you could sight the elegant dining table standing few meters away from the door. "That's my room. See you in the morning"

I watched as he walks over to the door, picked up a coat from a wooden sturdy coat rack, and closed the door behind him as he exited.

I hope I'm not going to regret this.

The best thing about yesterday's journey was that luck was on my side. I would have been somewhere else by now, maybe dead but thankfully, I'm still alive and staying at a stranger's house. Yes, you read that part right. I agreed to stay. Who wouldn't? I wasn't ready to meet my ancestors anytime soon and I'm very certain that'll be where those thugs would take me to. If not, what could they have wanted from a foreigner? Money?

The shower water, hot and ample, awakening my skin in all the right ways. I wish I could stay there all day in its cocoon, but the day awaits.

The fact that Aquila knows Mr. Lu as well as, he's Chinese raised a lot of questions in my mind. I got lost in thoughts as I showered. It was very nice of Bullet to let me stay in his room for the night. Even though I still had unanswered questions, I concluded to get some sleep before thinking about anything else.

When I came out of the bathroom, I found a pair of cloth set on the bed and a small note on top stating;

' I don't know if these would do, but use this for the night'

I smiled and gently slipped into the sweats pants and shirt. It didn't fit perfectly. Oversized for my slim body, but I could still manage it.

I let out a sigh of relief as my body collided against the soft mattress and pillow. My head upon the pillow spoke to my soul of sanctuary and rest as my eyes closed. I'd always have a little sparkle of joy before falling asleep. I was that way from childhood. The bed was my sweet thing and it made me as happy as any other treat. I'd fall asleep in good time, either slowly or fast, either way, I enjoyed that feeling of relaxing.

There in the cozy blankets, snug and safe, letting the world of dreams come to me in its dancing way. Gradually, I began to drift apart from the conscious world.

Out of the blue, a voice came in, Calling my name. I didn't respond to the call as I was willingly ready to drift into sleep. I remain still, my eyes closed but yet again, my name was called. This time around, I felt a gentle tap on my lap after I heard the call.

I was sleepy but managed to lazily open my eyes to see Mr. Lu in front of a car seat, tapping my lap continuously.

"Wake up Sleep Head" he sang, in Chinese.

★★★

\*胆小如鼠 (as timid as a rat)

The idiom 'As timid as a rat' used by liqin in this chapter is often used by Chinese to express contempt for cowards. He was simply referring to himself being a coward if he told the girl he was terrified.

\*\*Q-tip: A nickname she allocated to Liqin.

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