The Boxing Club

That night, Halia and Natalie both sat inside the hotel suite in silence. Halia was thinking about the boy that had saved her life and Natalie was thinking about the man she had spent the day with.

Natalie's first impression of Sean was Halia's clingy stalker-like friend, but now that she gotten​ to know him better, she realized he was a really kind-hearted person. Not only did he take care of her when she was drunk, he also took care of the 5 old people she met at the nursing home.

"My son died about 7 years ago and Sean took care of me like his own mother," one of the old ladies said to Natalie earlier that day while Sean was in the bathroom.

"Our sons went to jail shortly after Mary's son died and Sean also took us under his wing," another old lady said as she pointed to herself, the remaining two ladies and the old man.

"What happened?" Natalie asked curiously.

"They were all involved with the Hong Kong triads," the old man humphed. "I warned my rascal son that he would be sent to jail one day, but he was too greedy and didn't listen to me..."

As Natalie thought back on the conversations she had that day, she couldn't help but feel a little curious about Sean. So, she turned to Halia and asked, "Haili, did you know that Sean worked in Hong Kong before?"

Halia snapped out of her daze and looked at her friend, "No, I didn't know that."

"Then, did you know that his friends were a part of the triads?" Natalie probed further.

Halia looked at Natalie in surprise and shook her head. "He never told me about that either, but I can assure you that he's a just and righteous man."

"Maybe that's why he's not in jail with his friends," Natalie said softly as she felt pity for Sean. How hard would it be to lose so many friends like that?

Halia nodded and dazed off into her own thoughts again. Emerson seemed so strange when she mentioned his brother earlier. Where was his brother now and how could Emerson not know if he was dead or alive? What happened between them? Halia felt bad for her savior; he had saved her in the past but she never got the chance to thank him or repay him. What type of person did he grow up to be? How was he doing in this harsh world, all on his own?

At that moment, Halia suddenly received a message on her phone: [You returned one earring, but I think the other one's still at your place. Try searching under your sofa. I may have dropped it there.]

Halia looked at the message. It was from Emerson. She then walked over to her sofa with suspicion and checked underneath it. Sure enough, another earring was there.

How did he know it would be there?

Halia held onto the earring and shook her head. Did Emerson plant it there on purpose?

...

The next day, Halia met Emerson for a typical Hong Kong yum cha so she could return the second earring. But this time, she took Natalie and Sean with her as well.

Emerson was a little surprised when he saw the two extra guests, but he forced a smile and welcomed them.

The previous day, Emerson had taken Halia to a garden after visiting his home. He assumed Halia was a typical rich socialite woman who liked flowers, but she ended up staring unhappily at some rose bushes for quite some time. Of course, he had no idea that the roses reminded Halia of Jackson, he simply thought she was bored. So, he decided to do something a little more competitive and active today.

"Halia, my friend owns a boxing club nearby. Would you like to go there after this and do some boxing? I can teach you. It will be fun. You can also meet some of my friends and we can go visit some local bars later," Emerson offered.

Halia turned to Sean and Natalie. "Do we have anything planned for today?" she asked.

The two friend shook their heads.

"Let's go together then," Halia said as she turned back to smile at Emerson.

Emerson forced a smile. His intention was to invite Halia only, but somehow, Halia invited Natalie and Sean as well. How troublesome.

After yum cha, Emerson brought the trio to a fancy boxing club inside an exclusive building. Obviously, this was not a boxing club for the average person. The facilities were top class, there were floor-to-ceiling windows that looked out onto the city, air conditioning, a spa and sauna room and plenty of towels and gloves to use.

But, just as Halia looked around in awe, she spotted a familiar figure walking towards them. "Emerson!" the woman squealed as she strutted over in her bright pink sports bra and black shorts.

It was Marissa Qian.

The woman scoffed when she saw Halia in her loose t-shirt and jeans. "We meet again. Sorry about the accident at the ball," she smiled. She then waved for her assistant to hand over a pair of pink boxing gloves, "It's nice to see Emerson bring a friend, let's exchange a few moves," she smirked arrogantly as she pointed to the boxing ring.

Emerson immediately stepped in protectively, "Don't joke around, Marissa. We all know that you're the Women's champion in this club. Halia's new to this. She's not here to fight. I'm just teaching her some basics today."

But, to his surprise, Halia suddenly said, "It's fine Emerson. I've taken a few lessons before. We're just exchanging a few moves. Nobody's going to get hurt."

Halia was smart. She knew this woman had a thing against her, so she knew she had to teach her a lesson or she'd never back down.

As Emerson looked at Halia with concern, Sean and Natalie laughed to themselves. Halia was a highly trained SPU agent, both of them knew that. Sean had experienced her skills first hand and Natalie had heard about her adventures as an undercover.

She could knock-out this woman within a second if she wanted to.