Xue Guangxi exhaled sharply in an attempt to dissolve the unwanted lump of sadness that started to build up in his throat. "Going back to the topic, that"s why I prefer that you take necessary precautions in your interactions with those strangers. What will you do if I"m not around anymore? Wait a little longer when Xu-Jie and brother-in-law are here already.""Promise me you won"t take this matter on your own."
The Second Young Master extended his right hand, his pink protruding from it, gesticulating for Kang Sola to do a pinky promise with him.
Kang Sola also heaved a heavy sigh, feeling helpless. Nonetheless, she entwined her pinky with his. "Promise."
Afterward, she lifted her face towards the heavens in extreme sadness.
Sensing her emotional state, Xue Guangxi added, "Don"t worry, I will come back here. Promise me, too, that we would not lose contact. In this digital age, even if there is a considerably huge distance between us, there"s no reason not to be updated with each other. There"s enough technology to support us."
"En. Promise."
"It"s still a few months away anyway. Let"s savor the time that we have." The boy added, trying to alleviate the gloomy atmosphere.
"But when that time comes, I"ll be sure to check your vlogs regularly. Don"t you know I"m your avid fan." Xue Guangxi casually confessed. His ears turned red.
"I know, x.x.x_misskangsnumberonefan_x.x.x." She chuckled. Her eyes twinkled in delight.
"!!!!"
"How did you - ?"
"I figured it out. Hehehe." Kang Sola giggled teasingly. "Your comments gave you away, x.x.x_misskangsnumberonefan_x.x.x. It"s not too difficult to connect the dots."
Xue Guangxi rubbed his head in embarra.s.sment. His cover was blown. All this time, he was confident in his comments in her vlogs because he was hiding behind a username. "Should I just create another dummy account? LOL."
"Some of your comments are hilarious! Hahahaha!!!" Kang Sola dug into her bag to retrieve her mobile phone. "Want me to read some out loud? Take it as a shout out to my fan."
"Wow, it"s like a mini meet-up today. I"m flattered, Guangxi! Hahaha!!"
The turn of events was quite candid.
Burning in more humiliation, Xue Guangxi tried to grab Kang Sola"s wrists and hands such that she would not be able to successfully find her mobile phone from the inside of her bag.
In the middle of their laughter and playful plight, they did not notice that a wandering beggar had gotten near them.
Ominous enough, the man in beggar clothes gave out unsolicited warnings. "Beware of that girl!"
"You!" He pointed at Xue Guangxi. "If you value your life, you will distance yourself from that girl!"
"That girl will lead you to your doom!"
At first, the two bantering teenagers paid him no mind as they didn"t even notice nor hear him. However, the man bellowed his warnings and had gotten too near for them not to discern.
He was shouting at the top of his lungs like a lunatic prophet.
The man became aggressive and pushy and shook Xue Guangxi by his shoulders.
"Hey!" The Second Young Master exclaimed, shock evident in his features as he was caught off-guard.
Xue Guangxi"s bodyguards that were hidden from a distance came rus.h.i.+ng to aid and protect the Second Young Master.
Kang Sola, being the nearest to the two men, grabbed the beggar"s forearm to stop him from hara.s.sing Xue Guangxi. "Let go of him! Let go of him!"
"It"s you who should let go of him! You are bad for him!" He hollered. The sight was beginning to capture spectators" attention.
Kang Sola"s heated face turned purple from the unwanted attention of the onlookers some of which had faces which showed confusion, contempt, and questioning glare. Some even looked upon them condescendingly. In an instant, she was judged baselessly.
In a few minutes, the situation was controlled by the bodyguards. Some of them blocked and guided the two teenagers into safety, some dispersed the building up crowd, and the other guards seized the beggar for questioning. The head guard contacted Butler Lee as soon as the commotion was settled.
Xue Guangxi and Kang Sola was led to the car and were now resting at the back seat. They were on their way home.
"Are you okay?"
Still trembling, Kang Sola answered, "Yes. Don"t mind him. Have you been hurt? Has he hurt you?"
"No. I"m fine. Don"t think too much about what he said. But… Do you know him?" His face, paled by the recent incident, was scrunched and contorted out of worry, shock, and incredulity.
"I don"t know him. How about you? Do you know him?" The girl was equally lost.
"I think I"ve seen him before, but I cannot recall where…" He leaned his head on the seat"s cus.h.i.+on and crouched a little bit more. "I"ll sleep for a bit. Try to get some sleep, too. Don"t think about it anymore."
"Okay."
But Kang Sola wasn"t sleepy. She stared at the pa.s.sing sceneries beyond the car"s window, heart perturbed by the ill words of the beggar.
Though her façade looked calm, her heart had not calmed even for a second. She could feel fear, but of what, she had no idea herself.
"Why did he say that?"
"Does he know me?"
"As for me, I really don"t know him. Who is he?"
She tore her gaze from the sceneries and landed it onto Xue Guangxi beside her. "Why would I be bad for Guangxi?"
"Should I believe his words?"
"Someone, help me."
As the picturesque views outside in hues and orange, pink and purple moved past hurriedly and the setting sun bid its final goodbye, the day ended and turned into night. No matter how silent and calm the night appeared, it did not bring comfort to weary souls, two of which were Kang Sola and Xue Guangxi who each went to separate corners of the Chen dream house and did their individual silent processing of how the day went. When they had dinner together, each wore a mask of optimism, and maintained the status quo, never discussing the anomalous incident earlier in the day.