Bothered

"Absolutely not." Ariana's jaw drops, and she fumbles with Sammy's phone, dropping it in shock upon seeing the file. "This video is..."

She sinks down, utterly overwhelmed, her eyes welling up with fear once again. Hugging her knees to her chest, she curls up beside the bed, pondering what she has just witnessed.

"No way, how did he get this video? Has he been doing this deliberately all along? Brian, you're insane!" Ariana hurriedly deletes the message from Sammy's phone.

"What should I do? If Sammy were to receive a message like this, I'm sure he'd kill me on the spot." Ariana bites her lower lip.

Ariana closes her eyes, envisioning just how dire the situation is. She curses Brian for his insane behavior. And no wonder, because it turns out that Brian has been storing an explicit video of Ariana and him from when they were still a couple. Not only that, Ariana was entirely unaware of these actions. And now, Brian is wielding this as a weapon to destroy Ariana and Sammy's relationship. Oh, surely this isn't the only one.

It's not only Ariana and Sammy's relationship that will crumble, but her entire life will be turned upside down.

"What's wrong, Ariana? Why are you cowering like that?"

Startled, Ariana stares, unable to produce a sound. The question now is, what exactly has the man seen?

"Sammy, how long have you been standing there?" Ariana immediately asks, without thinking.

That's better than letting Sammy know what Ariana has just done. After all, if asked this way, Sammy's response remains inscrutable to Ariana. Who knows what's going through Sammy's mind right now?

"I've been here all along, why?" Sammy approaches Ariana and retrieves his phone.

Ariana swallows a dry lump, Sammy's answer feels hanging. Yet, repeatedly asking the same question would raise Sammy's suspicion. For now, let's assume Sammy hasn't seen anything.

"Is there something on my phone?" Sammy raises an eyebrow, curious.

"Ah! Well... I saw a threatening message earlier. It was terrifying, and I got scared seeing it." Ariana quickly fabricates an excuse to divert Sammy's suspicion.

"Really? Where's the message? Did he send it on WhatsApp or something?" Sammy immediately checks his phone's contents upon hearing Ariana's explanation.

"Yes, and foolishly, I deleted it out of fear. I'm sorry, Sammy." Ariana bows her head, clearly regretful.

It's all she can do to cover up her lie; she couldn't possibly tell Sammy that there was a message containing an inappropriate video Ariana and Brian had made. Ariana isn't entirely confident that Sammy would dismiss his anger due to his feelings for her.

"Is that so? What a pity. It could've been investigated by my staff if the message were still there. But it's fine, as long as you're okay. Next time, just hand it over to me if you find something suspicious." Sammy then leaves the room.

Ariana lets out a heavy sigh; Brian's recent reign of terror has truly been weighing on her. Ever since the birth of her baby, Brian has been relentless.

"Who informed Brian that I've given birth? Hasn't he been in the dark about my pregnancy this whole time? It's bizarre." Ariana monologues and ponders.

Just as she mentioned Brian's name, her phone suddenly starts ringing. She jolts and becomes wary, seeing an unknown number calling her. Ariana scans her surroundings to make sure no one's in the room except her.

"Hello?" Ariana answers the call, her voice tinged with uncertainty.

"I can hear fear in your voice. Where's my baby now?"

Ariana is more prepared than before; although Brian's voice still manages to make her heart race, she retains control over herself.

"What do you want? And stop referring to my baby as yours. Don't you already know that I have a boyfriend? The baby I gave birth to is the result of my relationship with my boyfriend," Ariana deflects, emphasizing the last sentence.

"Don't bluff. It's clear that the timing of your pregnancy aligns with the time we were together. You were already pregnant before you started dating Sammy. And you want to have fun and hide my child?"

"You're delusional, whether you believe it or not, it's not important. The fact is that Sean is my child and Sammy's." Ariana continues to evade, her facial expression turning angry and flushed.

"Sean? Nice name, but why use the same initial as your damn boyfriend's? Once I have the child, I'll change the name," Brian remarks with a wicked chuckle.

Ariana is about to end the call, feeling that the conversation is pointless. As she moves the phone away from her ear, a notification sound comes from her handphone.

Ariana's eyes widen, her mouth agape. Her jaw drops, and she's left speechless. Tens of millions of dollars have been transferred into her account just like that, with Brian's name listed as the sender. Ariana clenches her teeth tightly; Brian has grown bolder.

Actually, it's not that he's becoming bolder; he's becoming more insane. Because, in truth, this man has never feared anything. The fear switch in his brain was severed a long time ago.

Ariana abandons her plan to end the call; she's more interested in doing something else.

"Well, darling? The funds are just for consolation, really. You could make many times more than that if you were with me." Brian speaks as if he knows Ariana will respond after this.

"Shut up, you scumbag! What do you want? You tossed me away like trash, and now you're back with these ridiculous jokes. I don't even want to look at your face anymore. Why do you want to disturb me again?" Ariana explodes with uncontainable emotion.

"Hm, why am I doing this? Well, it's obvious because I want you and my child back with me. Isn't that a clear answer?" Brian huffs softly.

"Stop interfering with my life, Brian. Sean is not your child, and I have no desire whatsoever to be your lover. Please, just stop it." Ariana starts lowering her tone of voice, attempting to speak more gently.

"Fine, but I have one condition for you. You have to agree to it if you don't want to be bothered again," Brian states.

Ariana furrows her brows. "What's the condition?"