Charmaine woke up in the middle of the night but didn't find Leo sleeping beside her. Last night, she remembered he slept prior to her. She wondered when he got up. Worried, she rushed out of bed ready to search for him downstairs but she was stunned when she saw him sleeping on the couch, a couple of meters from the bed. His tall figure curled up on the three seater sofa and he didn't look very comfortable at all.
Charmaine sighed and picked the blanket up from the bed. She carried and strolled towards the sofa before kneeling in front of the sleeping man. Even in his sleep, she could still see his brows furrowed.
"I must be crazy to take you back when you have already hurt me more than a hundred times." she mumbled. Leo has been very nice to her lately that she forgot how he was when he's jealous. The time she spent inside her dream, she has almost forgotten the painful feelings after being away from him for five years. But why.... why does her love for this man lived on?
He never loved her before, yet he could destroy heaven and earth when he gets jealous. It has always been a mystery to her. He cheated on her with countless women but he wouldn't let her befriend the opposite gender. She lost friends and lost her heart in loving him.... until she met Xiao Jin during a business trip to Shanghai.
Xiao Jin... she wondered how he is right now. He's a young man younger than her by a few years. She was twenty four when she met him and Xiao Jin was nineteen. She became fond of him as he was very cheerful and had a good sense of humor. But Leo Ji found out about their friendship and destroyed it. Not only that but also Xiao Jin. He destroyed him in every possible way. The last time she saw him, he was already crippled, and the young man couldn't even smile anymore. A few months after that incident, Leo Ji divorced her and her life ended right then and there.
Charmaine sighed. How can she forget Xiao Jin's suffering? Although the Leo before her was not the person who has already commited that abomination, he is still Leo Ji and is very capable of executing those acts. What can she do to change what's to come? She didn't want to cross path with Xiao Jing anymore in this life time. In two years, her time on earth could expire just like Jienna's. She didn't want to leave the world full of bitterness anymore.
Charmaine stood up and covered Leo with the blanket in her hands. She reached out and touched his hair. "Two years.... If I only have two years to live, I hope I can spend it with you in peace." she muttered before standing straight and walking away. She left the room and didn't come back.
Slowly, Leo Ji opened his eyes and got up from the sofa. He glanced at the close door and then at the blanket covering him. Two years to live? Is Charmaine ill?
***
When Luke woke up, he was surprised to see Charmaine sleeping beside her. He was very thrilled until he noticed her cuddling a pillow and curled into a ball. Who bullied his mom again? The boy frowned and carefully climbed out of the bed.
Leo had just finished taking a shower when he saw a boy sitting on his bed right after he went out of the bathroom. He's sitting there with his legs crossed and also his arms on his chest. He looked like an angry girlfriend ready for a comfrontation!
"What's up, buddy?" Leo greeted as he rubbed his hair with a towel.
"Are you the one who bullied my mommy? How did you upset her?" the boy asked.
"What did she tell you?", Leo probed. He walked closer and sat on the edge of the bed.
"She didn't tell me anything. She's still sleeping in my room, but I know she's upset. What did you do again this time?", he inquired.
Leo sighed. "I caught her talking to a man on the phone... and I lashed out on her." he admitted. "I lost control."
Luke's eyes widened in an instant. "Did you hit her?"
"Of course not. How could I hit her!" he hurriedly denied with furrowed brows. "I was just upset and I said some unneccessary words, I guess."
Luke sneered. "You're keeping your ex-girlfriend next room and you have the audacity to lash out on my mother for a phonecall? My mommy trusts you so much but you couldn't trust her?" the boy remarked. How foolish his daddy is.
"I know what I'm doing. You won't understand because you're still young. You just need to keep out of it." Leo responded.
Luke narrowed his eyes. So stubborn? He's the kind who think he's alright huh? Very well. If that's what he wants!
Luke slowly left the bed and then turned to Leo. "Was it uncle Drei who called? Tell you what. I'm the one who called him and asked him to check up on my mommy because she was sad lately. Just keep upsetting my mommy until she gets tired of you. I don't care about you anymore. Who needs a stupid daddy." he mocked him before living the room.
Leo furrowed his brows at his son's comment. He suddenly remembered Charmaine's words post midnight. "I must be crazy to take you back when you have already hurt me more than a hundred times." --Was she beginning to regret her decision? She's getting tired of him so soon?
Leo expected Charmaine to coax him some more but the woman refused to pamper his ego. She avoided him instead and go about her day. Still suspicious of her actions, Leo sent someone to follow her thinking she will secretly meet Andrei but reports proved him wrong. She went to her office in the morning and went home to accompany Luke in the afternoon. He didn't let his guard down so easily though. He still insisted that Charmaine's movements should be monitored.
***
"Hey, Min... wanna go out with me tonight?", Laura told Charmaine while they were enjoying some sweet desserts in the garden hut.
"Where are we going?", she asked.
"In a bar.... to watch a show..." she replied. Earlier, she asked a common friend to mention something to Ivan: that there's a woman who frequents his favorite bar who looks like Jienna. She wanted to know if Ivan would come to look for her. She wants closure to her five years of a dream.
***
"Luke, where's your mother?" Leo immediately asked when he came into the child's room. But the boy didn't even look at him as he continued playing with his puppy.
"No idea." he replied.
Leo's eyes darkened. "I already know that she and Laura went to a bar in Chelsea. I want you to tell me why they went there." he demanded with a threatening glare.
"Aunt Laura asked her to accompany her. But don't worry. Since I'm a bit worried about both of them, I already asked someone to look after the girls." Luke responded before looking his father's way and raising a brow. His eye tooth showing as he foxily smiled.
Leo suddenly felt worried. Who did this boy called for his mommy?