The day finally came. She dressed up in her mullet-fitted dress; she sported minimal makeup with her hair tied in a waterfall braid. She took a pair of silver cluster earrings and wore them while fixing her pumps.
Glancing at her reflection in the mirror, she let out a sigh of relief.
"Best of luck, Rong. You can do it." Putting a smile on her lips, she walked out of the house.

...............................................

As they reached the venue, he grabbed her hand and stopped her in front of the entrance gate.
"Anything?"
He opened the box in his other hand and took out a heart-shaped diamond pendant. He reached out his hands around her neck and tried to put the necklace on. His warm breath hit her cheeks, sending chills down her spine. She clenched her fist firmly, trying not to overreact.
Just then, he moved back; she glanced at the pendant and giggled. "Thank you. I'll return it after the party."
Her soft smiles somehow melted his heart. Even he seemed unaware of this feeling. When he saw her smiling, he naturally felt cheerful.
"You can keep it."
"Huh?"
"Ahem! I mean, I don't take back things I gave away. Keep it or throw it away. It's your choice." Gulping, he headed inside while she remained there to behold the pendant.

..................................................

As they entered the hall, her jaw dropped over the view. It gave off an expensive feeling just by looking at it. No doubt, only the rich could afford it. While walking, they approached a group of people. A lady standing there stepped forward to hug Shaoqing, but he stepped back and extended his hand for a handshake.
"I have someone to introduce to you, guys." He shifted his eyes to Rong and flashed a smile. "Meet my girlfriend, Cong Rong."
She nervously waved at them. The second she exchanged gazes with Ruby, she rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Wait, aren't you a writer?"
"Oh, yes, I am." She showed excitement about befriending her, but she shrugged it off.
"How do you know?" Another lady asked. She put a hand over her mouth, laughing sarcastically. "My company received a fantasy script, and they couldn't stop laughing. The storyline was childish, as if a kid had written the story." She curled her lips, hiding her tears behind them.

Just then, she felt a hand around her waist. He pulled her closer and smirked confidently. "I'm pretty sure it's the company's loss. I did read her works, and I found them unique. Of course, not every company can look after a real masterpiece. They love to pick sh*t and spend millions to promote it, right, Ruby? You know it better than me." She had no words to reply as she lowered her head when others laughed.
On the other hand, when everyone was engrossed in laughter, Junho was in his own world. He was unable to take his eyes off Rong. Occasionally he would look at her shining legs, and other times his eyes would get stuck on her cleavage. Rong had started realising his stares. She could do nothing but fix her dress again and again.

Bidding them farewell as they turned from there, Junho's creepy smile startled her.
A few steps further, Shaoqing asked her to remain there while he left to greet someone. She immediately came out to the hallway to call Ming.
She was not even able to call her as the network was poor. Taking advantage of this chance, Junho approached her.
"Are you looking for Shaoqing?"
She sidestepped his stare and tried to walk away when he grabbed her hand from behind.
He threw her against the wall and encircled her. The frightened look on her face made him laugh.
"Aren't you going to greet me? I'm Shaoqing's friend."
"You're making me uncomfortable. Please, move away."
"And you're making me feel uncomfortable by saying this. Come on! I became your friend too."
He moved his face closer to her and glanced at her lips. She struggled in his grip while his other hand touched her cheek.

"Be thankful. You're his friend, or otherwise I could have killed you already."

"Shh! Shaoqing and I shared many things. I know he'll be okay to share his girlfriend too."
He was one inch away from smacking his lips when a phone call interrupted his plan.
As soon as he got engaged in the call, she freed her hand from his grip and ran away. Turning, he laughed and shouted, "Babygirl, where are you going? You'll regret not kissing me."

................................................

While walking, she reached the road. She wasn't conscious of anything, nor could she hear the noise of the cars. It didn't make any difference to her when it rained and lightning struck.
Her hands squeezed into fists when tears rolled down her cheeks. She kept wiping them, but it made no impact.
A car kept coming at high speed, yet she didn't notice it. When the car reached him, Shaoqing pulled her hand and brought her to the safe side.
She landed on his chest and raised her head to meet his eyes.
"Do you want to die? I told you to wait for me."
Her silence worried him. Still, he chose to remain quiet and not ask anything. Watching her drenched in the rain, he took out his coat and put it around her arms.
He glanced at her feet. The heels weren't fitting her right. "Why did you wear this when you felt uncomfortable?" Squatting down, he gently removed the heels, and while carrying them in hand, he asked, "Hop on. I'll give you a ride to the car."
Remaining muted, she hopped on his back, and he walked ahead.

.........................................

As she reached home, Ming approached her, bouncing in excitement. "Rong, you need to tell me about the party in detail. We aren't sleeping early today." She smiled at her until she noticed her moist eyes. Quickly, she held her hands and asked, "Rong, is anything wrong?"
She reached the limit when she could not hide her tears any longer. Bursting into tears, she clutched Ming. "Ming Ming! I-"
"I'm here. Say?" She put a hand over her back, caressing it.

..............................................

The next morning, it was burning like boiled water. Despite air conditioning, it was searing in the office. Who knew it was Ming's boiling rage?
Lifting her head, she quickly headed towards Wen Shaoxing's cabin when Xiaomi, who was standing there, stopped her.
"Wait! Wait! Where do you think you're going?"
"I want to meet Wen Shaoqing." She firmly called his name.
"Wen Shaoqing? It's okay to call me by my name, but he's the CEO. Watch your mouth."
"As if I care. I want to meet him. NOW!"