My heart was beating loud,
It's as if I was in a cloud,
In the heavenly noise of the crowd,
Should I say I'm proud?
***
THE YEAR 1904, a century away from the present time.
Qing Long halted abruptly from what he was doing as the robes on his ankles flowed. He licked his lips a little as he fastened the blow on the candle before clearing his throat. Althea furrowed her eyebrows a little as she was waiting for an answer.
Qing Long tilted the corners of his pinkish lips a little and said, "I need to protect you, that's all."
He was calm as he said that, no tone of malice and doubt was heard in his voice. She swallowed as she raised her eyebrows while Qing Long pocketed in the candle inside his robes. He doesn't want to take a step forward while he connected his gaze towards Althea.
