Filed to story: Loving You In My Final Days
Abi suddenly remembered what Kelly said before she left with Mr. Black Leather Jacket.
“Kelly… You said that that man who fetched me is a prince.”
“Oh yes. You know about Country G, right?”
“That secluded kingdom in the south…”
“Mm. When I was eighteen, my father brought me there with him. It is a nice, rich country. I heard it only has less than a million people living there. My father said that the royal family of Country G is one of the richest monarchs in the world but they remain very lowkey. The monarchs have full control over country G. The country prospers under them and the citizens of Country G love them but we don’t hear much about them at all. Country G is a very private country, most especially their royal family. The media don’t come near them because of that. Their king and queen are the only ones who show their face to the public. No one has seen the princes’ faces, unless you work in the palace, which is why the world only knows the princes’ names. But when I was in country G, I saw that man and I heard one of his companions call him Prince Kai. I couldn’t confirm it but he resembled the king and he had such an aura. I could never forget such a good looking face… Anyway, I believe that that man is none other than Prince Kai. But then, how the hell did a prince become someone’s chauffeur?!”
“Could it be that you’re wrong, Kelly? Maybe he’s just his doppleganger?”
“Ugh! That’s not possible. I trust my memory.”
“What if that person who called him prince was just bluffing?”
“… Argh! I don’t know. But… but… ah, never mind. Anyway, what’s Mr. Qin’s name again? I’m curious about such an ultra rich being.
“Alexander.”
“Alexander, huh? Alexander Qin. Hmm… why can’t I recall any big fish with that name? I know all the big fishes in this country but his name doesn’t ring a bell… this is strange…”
Kelly grabbed her laptop and browsed on the web, searching for an Alexander Qin. She even asked some people but her brows knotted when she came up with nothing.
“This is strange; I can’t find anything about him. There’s no way that someone that rich… don’t tell me he’s related to some underground syndicate or something? But even underground bosses are widely known.
“Abi, are you sure that’s his name?”
She nodded.
“Hmm… that’s weird. I’ll see if my dad knows anything about him.”
The next night, Kelly brought Abi to a bar, as promised. Kelly was a party girl so she was well acquainted with what went on inside these bars. She was reluctant to take Abi but the girl insisted, so there they were, in a dark, smoky bar, about to join the crowd of people who were there mostly looking to have a good time.
They walked through the corridor, their shoes sticking to the ground with every step – the remnants of alcohol spilled on the floor from the night before. As they waded their way through the sticky path, Kelly couldn’t help but ask her friend again. “Abi, are you sure about this?”
“Yes.” Abi’s response was quick and to the point. There was no hesitation.
Kelly sighed. She had never seen her friend be this stubborn before! “Make sure to stay beside me inside the bar, okay?” she could only warn.
“Okay.”
The corridor opened into a large double storey area. The place was already quite crowded with about the same amount of women as there were men. Most of the people were leaning over the bar, which was situated on the left side of the room, trying to catch the bartender’s attention to purchase some much needed alcohol.
Abi’s first impression of a bar was that it was quite dirty, but after a few drinks in them, people probably wouldn’t care too much about hygiene, she guessed. She looked around and saw that the place attracted all sorts of different people. There were some wild looking people, with lots of piercings and tattoos, but then she looked up to the second storey and that seemed to be filled with more mature guests in business suits.
“Come here, Abi. It’s too crowded down here. I’m afraid some bastard will grope you,” said Kelly, as she grabbed Abi’s wrist.
Kelly had looked around and determined that the ground floor was too crowded for her to protect Abi. The second storey looked less chaotic than the ground floor, so she dragged Abi through the crowded dance floor and up the stairs.
Abi could only follow her best friend’s lead.
The upstairs area was definitely quieter with people mostly minding their own business or looking down at the chaos on the ground floor with interest. Abi felt that these people who were watching the goings on the ground floor were looking for their next prey and she couldn’t help the slight shiver of repulsion that came over her.
Kelly found a quiet corner for them to sit in and it looked clean as well – a rare find indeed. She walked over to the bar – yes, there was another bar on that level – and bought them a couple of drinks.
Unbeknownst to both of them, there was a certain male sitting in his own secluded corner, who immediately recognized Abi. He took his cellphone from his pocket and started to dial a number.
The receiver picked up after just three rings.
“What is it?” the person on the other end of the phone sounded impatient.
“It looks like a little lamb just walked into the wolves’ den,” he cryptically said knowing full well the other person on the line would know exactly what he was talking about. He hung up straight away not bothering with farewells and continued to nurse his drink, all the while, keeping an eye on the little lamb and her hooligan friend.
Meanwhile, at the corner booth, Kelly was giving her friend some advice.
“Abi, you’re not used to this place so I think for now, why don’t you just observe first, okay? If you don’t like being here, just tell me and we can go, alright?”
“Okay, don’t mind me, Kelly. Go and I’ll watch from here.”
Kelly ventured out into the crowd and made her way to the bar to buy them some drinks. The bar was full of people and there was a huge line, unfortunately, so Kelly would have to wait a while to get their drinks. While she waited, she glanced in Abi’s direction and was relieved that she followed her advice and just observed. She turned her attention back to the bar menu and thought about which drink Abi might like and if she should get some nibbles too, so she didn’t see a waiter approach Abi and give her a drink.
Abi, not knowing how things worked, thought that Kelly must have asked him to give her the drink, so she took it without question. She sipped at it and she threw a disgusted look at the drink bottle. ‘Really? This is what people like to drink?’ she thought.
