"Uncle I want you to draw this on her lower left ribcage. Draw it nicely~" Tang Yiyi instructed the middle-aged artist. They were inside a small henna[1] shop. There were lots of stalls near the shore, most of them were souvenir shops and food stalls, the henna shop was one of them. Tang Yiyi and Zhen Wei were walking on the beach after eating at the restaurant when Tang Yiyi saw the stall. Just like earlier, she drags Zhen Wei with her to get matching henna tattoos. Zhen Wei can't decline because Tang Yiyi was the one who invited her. She paid all of her expenses and thinking of declining her offers would be rude to do so.
Tang Yiyi was actually her boss at the coffee shop. She's was Zhen Wei's childhood friend and they only got separated when they were in college. Zhen Wei's aunt who was residing in Japan offered her to go and study for college there. Even though it was against her will, she couldn't do anything but to agree because she doesn't want to bother her grandmother for her tuition fees. Her parents died when she was 9 years old and her grandmother took care of her after the accident.
When she learned about her grandmother's state and that she was admitted to a hospital, she immediately told her aunt that she'd go back to Beijing to take care of her. Thought it took two months before she could fly over to China because she still has to settle everything back in Japan. When she arrived she was not able to visit her right away and kept in touch through calls. She needs to find a job first so she could support them both and settle her bill at the hospital and for her medication. Luckily she knew about Tang Yiyi's business and asked her if she could work for her for the meantime before she could find a suitable work for herself which she happily considered.
They spent their day walking, checking out the stalls, taking photos and swimming at the beach. Tang Yiyi told Zhen Wei that she doesn't need to go to work tomorrow but instead, she should accompany her later at the rooftop which is the 30th floor and has yet another impressive pool and a bar counter. Tang Yiyi heard that there would be a live band playing later, she thought it would be nice if they could go and spend the rest of their night getting drunk while listening to music. Even though Zhen Wei was hesitating, in the end, Tang Yiyi won over her.
By the time the clock struck 11, both Li Shen and Liu Feng decided to go and have a drink on the 30th floor. "Good evening Mr Li and Mr Liu." The guard greeted which Li Shen answered with a nod and Liu Feng with a grin on his face. When they reached the bar counter, once again, the bartender greeted them and asked what he can make for them.
"The usual." Li Shen muttered.
"Got it!" Andrei exclaimed. You can say Andrei is one of Li Shen's trusted friends. Andrie Chua is a half Canadian, half Chinese whom Li Shen met during his vacation in Canada. Andrei was an excellent bartender and had competed in a lot of competitions. When he heard Li Shen was going back to China in a few days, he offered to work for him at one of his hotels as his bartender in exchange for letting him stay in China for free. Andrei who hasn't stepped in China yet wanted to go for a change. Although he offered to work for free, Li Shen didn't agree and still paid him at the same time gave him a suite to live in with all accommodations for free. Despite Andrei being his employee they still keep things around them casual. After all, they were brothers.
"Bro, I think you've gone far earlier." Liu Feng started, referring to the manager he lectured because of the lapses that happened earlier at the pool area.
Li Shen's brows furrowed. "Gone far? If it had gone critical, it'll affect our business." Some of the staff were scolded especially the manager who was present at the scene. Li Shen wouldn't tolerate lapses as much as possible. He was furious earlier because of what happened, the thing is, two of the lifeguards weren't around that time making his head ached.
"Alright alright, sorry, you have a point." Liu Feng said lifting his arms in defeat.
"Here's your drinks." Liu Feng gave Andrei a you're-my-savior look when he arrived, serving them their drinks. "I heard about the incident earlier, was everything fine?" Liu Feng pouted when Andrei opened up the topic once again. He didn't want to see Li Shen being possessed by King Yama[2].
"I've already talked to them earlier. I just hope there wouldn't be a next time." Li Shen's eyes traveled the whole place, his eyes landed at the entrance after he saw someone walked in.
A very familiar woman wearing a black body-hugging dress and a pair of black sandals with her hair done in soft curls and endearing make-up.
He was quite hesitant if he guessed right. "Wait here." He told Liu Feng. Feng followed Li Shen's gaze then slowly, a teasing smile crept up in his face
"Wow bro, I didn't know you would be drawn to a woman after all these years!"
"Idiot." Li Shen frowned and gave him a menacing glare.
"Scary King Yama!" Liu Feng shuddered in fear.
Li Shen walked swiftly across the room towards the table the two girls were occupying. He knew he was right, although at first glance you wouldn't instantly know it was her. He thought she was different from earlier. When he encountered her earlier she was quite different, she had that natural look and casual clothes. But now, seeing her, he can't deny that she's gorgeous. She was already beautiful in her natural state, now that she's put an effort in dressing up her features got emphasized. She had a sexy body, curves at the right places. Porcelain-like skin and eye-catchy face. He didn't think that she could pull off this kind of get up because she looked innocent and wasn't the type to go out for parties.
"Miss Zhen Wei, am I right?" He asked when he reached their table. Zhen Wei glanced up to meet his gaze and a tint of pink flushed her face when he saw Li Shen's face. She can't help but blush upon seeing a handsome man in front of her. Thankfully the lights were dimmed so he couldn't see her flushed face.
"Yes." She answered in a low voice. She was still flustered about why a handsome man would know her name.
Li Shen didn't hear her answer because of the loud music but it was enough to tell she said yes when he read her lips. "Can I?" He asked if he could sit across her which Zhen Wei answered with a nod.
Tang Yiyi gave her a light nudge and asked if he knew the man across them. Tang Yiyi was eyeing the man, he was wearing a dark blue long-sleeved shirt, the sleeves were folded just to reach three-fourths of his arm and a pair of dark-colored pants. His hair was done in a neat but attractive way. He had thick eyebrows, a sharp nose, cold yet intriguing eyes, and perfectly shaped lips. He looked dashing making Tang Yiyi fawn over him despite having a stern look.
"I'm sorry for what happened earlier. Is there anything I could compensate you?" Li Shen said sincerely. Zhen Wei gave him a questioning look. She was clueless as to what Li Shen was pertaining. "Li Shen." He stretched out his hand which Zhen Wei shook with a perplexed look.
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[1] Henna is a temporary body art resulting from the staining of the skin from the dyes
[2] In East Asian and Buddhist mythology, Yama is a Dharmapala (wrathful god) said to judge the dead and preside over the Narakas ("Hells", "Hell Realm" or "Purgatories").