" We have varieties of jewelries, ma'am. Anything you can imagine then be sure to find it here" The wide-eyed attendant said. Chang Yang was smiling back at her with so much interest and Lu Shen on the other hand, stood like a statue, his hands stuffed in his suit trousers and his face set in an unchangeable frown.
" Well… I need a matching chain for my fiance and I. It has to be perfect, yunno. Eye-catching and alluring, yeah! That kind of stuff. Do you think you have something like that?" Chang Yang said as she locked his hand in between Lu Shen's. Lu Shen glanced at her daring hand and unwillingly did nothing about it.
" Yes, why not? Would you prefer a gold chain or ice?" The lady asked, her smile not fading off.
" Ice would fit better with my wedding dress, what do you think Shen?" She turned to see a different Lu Shen. He was lost in thoughts and you could tell from the way he furrowed his brows that the thoughts were very disturbing. His body went tense as goose bumps crawled through his skin making Chang Yang withdraw her hand impulsively. She looked worriedly at Lu Shen and tried to touch him again.
" Lu Shen… honey, what's wrong?"
His muscles were all tensed and his veins were almost popping out. What was wrong with him?
" Sir… if you don't like ice, we could always go with gold. We have a lot more gold chains which would still go well with a wedding dress" The attendant offered with the thought that he was angry with their choice.
Lu Shen himself didn't know what was wrong with him. It felt like a part of him had just vanished into thin air. The goose bumps sent shivers down his spine, the type he had been so accustomed to while growing up. His instincts kept screaming danger at him but he couldn't figure out from where. Something was wrong. Something was wrong somewhere and he had to figure it out. He hated this feeling. It made him helpless and more than anything else he hated being helpless. He had so much history of helplessness stuffed in a dark place in his mind and he wasn't ready to go in there. Reason why he strived for so much power so he would never have to be helpless. But this feeling, it weakened him. He had to find out what was wrong.
" Lu Shen, you're getting me really worried. Are you okay?" Chang Yang's voice broke through his thoughts and only then did he remember that he was in the room with two other people. He turned to her and then to the attendant who looked terrified out of her wits.
" Pardon me, please go on with… whatever you were saying" Lu Shen said as he tried to push his guts down and focus on the situation. Whatever it was, it wasn't gonna get the best of him. He'd handle it, just like he always did.
" Umm… Sir, the ummm… we were talking about the chain. We have many gold chains you'd like sir. I could show you pictures and anyone you choose would be brought to you sir, in less than 24 hours" the lady said. She was obviously trying to collect herself and mask the fear Lu Shen's change in attitude had caused her.
" Anything she chooses is fine by me" Lu Shen said simply.
" No! You'll have to choose something. It's a matching chain, it has to be picked by two of us so it depicts our love and…"
The loud vibration of Lu Shen's phone against the table cut Chang Yang short. He felt grateful for a while as he picked up his phone but then his eyes fell on the caller and his body tensed. Chang Yang saw his eyes darken and she couldn't help but get worried. Why does these kind of things have to happen when she and Lu Shen were together?
Lu Shen on his own part, didn't think about the people around him, instead he stormed out of the room with his phone placed in his ear. Chang Yang didn't try to stop him, instead she turned to the alert attendant and tried to fake a smile.
" Is…is everything okay ma'am?" The attendant asked in a shaky voice.
" Yes! Everything's okay. I'm sure it's just some business call or something, it's nothing" Chang Yang said rapidly. Her hands were all sweaty. She quickly dried them on her dress and went into the same room as Lu Shen. He was on the phone and his voice alongside with the atmosphere in the room told her that something was definitely wrong.
" What do you mean by that? You can't fucking let them do that" Lu Shen growled over the phone. He was oblivious of Chang Yang's presence but even then he was visibly trying to stay calm.
" I want them. All of them. Find them, every single one of them" He said again. The person on the other side said something and Lu Shen clenched his fists angrily.
" Fuck it! I don't care how you do it. Just fucking find them" He hung up almost immediately, not ready to hear any more upsetting news. It took a lot in him to not throw his phone angrily. Turning around, his eyes fell on Chang Yang. His stare darkened even more and she unconsciously stepped backward.
" What did you hear?" Lu Shen growled.
" Nothing!" She blurted out as her palms got even sweatier.
" Good!"
Without waiting for a response, Lu Shen walked past her, brushing her shoulders roughly.
" Where are you going?" Chang Yang said daringly and he stopped.
" It's none of your business"
" It's every of my business. You can't just leave…"
" I said it's none of your fucking business" Lu Shen snapped. Chang Yang could feel the fear rise in her but she had to be bold.
" Lu Shen, it's almost 10 at night, you can't just fucking leave the house like that…" She could barely finish her statement again when Lu Shen walked right to her with heavy strides. He gripped her shoulder tightly and she winced.
" I can and I will. When I say it's not you fucking business, I fucking mean it" He said, drawing each word out to make sure she understood. When he saw her nod, he let her go and stormed out of the room, past the shaking attendant and out of the room.
" At least take a coat!" Chang Yang called after him. Her response was the sound of the door being slam shut. She sighed heavily and turned to the attendant. Again, she masked her emotions with a fake smile which the attendant tried to return but couldn't.
" Please don't be bothered. You know, gotta respond when duty calls" Chang Yang tried to joke. It was futile as the atmosphere was all tensed up.
" Umm… I can come back tomorrow or… anytime convenient for you" The lady said, desperate to leave.
" Sure. That'll be okay" Chang Yang said. She watched as the lady walked out of the house with shaky steps. She sighed again and ran an angry hand through her hair. That wasn't enough to soothe her anger so she roughed her hair with her two hands and let out a stifled scream. She sighed again and closed her eyes, trying to calm herself.
" It's okay" she chanted to herself. " It's okay. He'll be back, it's okay"
Taking another deep breath, she walked into her room and prepared herself for when he'd return. Little did she know that it was gonna be a long wait, a very long wait!