Perfect Story

Despite all the pain, Grace got dressed in a very big hoodie and asked Mr. Li to take her to school.

She had to meet this "Mrs. Xu."

If indeed he was married, then she would better go live on the streets than be a mistress.

Mr. Li parked the car in front of the school, and Grace slowly walked down. She spotted Steph, who waved at her.

"Grace." She hurried to Grace and clung to her arm.

"Ouch!" Grace winced. 

"What's wrong?" Steph asked, and then she frowned, seeing that she had a big hoodie.

"You always come to school with a hoodie whenever your stepmom had an episode with you; that can't be the case now, right?"

"She didn't hit you yesterday, right?" Steph got worried, and Grace sighed. "Where is the lady?"

"Don't avoid the topic."

"I am not avoiding the topic; I am dealing with a more important topic first."

Steph rolled her eyes. Just then, a car drove towards them, and the window whirled down.

The lady with coffee brown hair stared at them. She took off her sunglasses and said, "You are Grace Chen, right?"

"It depends on who is asking." Grace folded her arms; if this was Mrs. Xu, then she wasn't going to shiver in fear.

"I am Nathalie; come in. We have a lot to talk about."

"I have school," Grace said, and Nathalie frowned at her. "Just get in."

"Let's go together; we will come back before lectures." Steph suggested, and Grace nodded.

"But we won't get into your car."

This made Nathalie angry, but she had no choice but to park her car and walk towards them with her 2-inch heels.

"Now, let's sit and talk."

They all walked to the nearest coffee shop and occupied a table. "I am Nathalie Xu," she introduced again.

Grace nodded. "I had no idea he was married," she said, and Nathalie stared at her, confused. 

"Who?"

"Your husband, Raymond Xu"

This caused Nathalie to burst out in laughter. "My husband?"

"Yes, she said you introduced yourself as Mrs. Xu."

Steph nodded in agreement. "She must have heard me wrongly; I said I was Miss Xu."

Nathalie was Raymond's sister, his sister from the Dom Republic. She was a 22-year-old elegant lady, and it had always been her dream to be a writer.

Hearing that her cold brother now had a girlfriend, she decided to come check for herself; after all, she had lost inspiration in writing a new book.

"Perfect story," she thought, then she took a plane back to China after she got all the information about Grace.

Grace frowned at Steph. "I didn't hear her well."

"You thought Raymond was married?" Thalie burst out in laughter. "No one will be so unfortunate to marry him," she added.

"What are you saying? Grace will marry him." Steph retorted, and Grace sighed. She had come this far, thinking she would meet Raymond's wife, but no.

"Why are you looking for me?"

Thalie sipped her coffee. "You are too young; don't fall in love with him."

"That doesn't concern you."

"It's advice; if possible, then go far from him. That's if you want; I won't force you to."

Grace picked up her phone and dialed Raymond's number. "Who are you calling?" Thalie became scared.

The call got connected as Raymond's voice came in. "Hm?"

"Nathalie Xu is here with me."

"At the mansion?"

"No, I…"

"You went out? I told you to stay in." Raymond said it with an angry tone, and Thalie chuckled. "So authoritative."

"And Nathalie, you have five minutes to get into your car and drive away," he warned, and she pouted.

"I only came to see her; I couldn't believe when Seb said you had a girlfriend."

"Four minutes left."

She stood up angrily and said, "You are so unfair." Then she hurried outside and got into her car.

Steph was surprised that the girl who looked so rebellious could follow orders and was scared of her brother.

"Go back home," he ordered Grace.

"I have classes," she said and hung up.

"Did you just hang up on him?" Steph questioned.

"Let's go to school."

She stood up and walked out of the coffee shop. Steph had now become worried about her.

*

On the other hand, Raymond stared at his phone, not able to believe that she had hung up on him.

"Wow," Ancaan, who was next to him, gasped. He had a teasing smile.

"Did I just hear a beeping sound? Don't tell me she hung up on you."

"Get out." Raymond frowned at him. He stood up and picked up his car keys.

Being disrespected made him angry. Then he turned to Ancaan. "Thalie is back in the country; stay away from her if you still want to live for at least five years," he threatened before he left.

"Thalie?" Ancaan called with a sad look; he didn't even have the guts to face her.

***

Mr. Li dropped Grace at the mansion; she walked inside while peeping. When she didn't find Mr. Xu, she sighed in relief. "He didn't call back when I hung up on him; is he not angry?"

In school, he occupied her mind, and she wondered if he was upset with her for disrespecting him.

"Miss Chen, Mr. Xu is..."

"I am tired; don't tell me about him, please." She folded her hand and pleaded with Nel before she walked upstairs to her bedroom.

"If he is going to scold me, then he should do it himself and not send a maid."

She pushed the door to her bedroom and froze on the spot. Mr. Xu stood by the window with his back facing her.

Slowly, she turned to tiptoe out. "Come here," he ordered.

Grace swallowed hard and smiled. "Umm, you are here."

He turned and faced her; she had a very thick hoodie. "You see, I felt better, so I went to school. I couldn't stay home alone; it gets boring."

"I didn't hang up on you; the problem is..." she stuttered. "My phone ran out of battery."

Raymond stared at her, explaining herself nonstop. "No, I am lying." She shivered.

"My phone didn't run out of battery. I am sorry for hanging up on you."

"Take it off," he ordered, and she was confused. Take what off?

"Take the hoodie off," he added, and she turned to walk to the bathroom. "Stop."

She stared at him. "Take it off, now!!!"

Was he asking her to take off her hoodie in front of him? She asked herself.

There was no clothing inside, just her bra.

"I…hum"

Seeing that he was serious, his gaze stuck on her. She closed her eyes and took off her hoodie.

Her fair skin and cleavage were exposed to him, but his gaze was focused on her bruised body. Now he regretted why he had only stabbed that woman.

"I should have done better," he thought before he took a step towards her, her eyes shut tight.

"You feel better?" he asked, and she nodded.

He held her hand, and she winced In pain, he smacked his lips and used a finger to raise her chin upward.

He brought his lips closer to hers, and she could feel his breath fanning her. "Is he going to kiss me?" she thought, contemplating whether to close her eyes or not.

Due to the impulse, she closed her eyes and clenched her fist. After some seconds, she heard the door closing.

Grace opened her eyes and discovered he had left. "Stupid." She cursed herself for expecting that he would kiss her.

She freshened up and slipped into light clothes, picked up her book, and sat on the bed, ready to study.

But then her mind was occupied with Mr. Xu again; he had been occupying her mind a lot.

After hours of study, she walked downstairs to have dinner when she spotted Mr. Xu by the wine bar.

"You are still here?" She was surprised; she thought he had left already.

"Do you usually eat dinner this late?" he questioned, and she shook her head in denial.

"I just have an exam next week, so I need to study."

"Hm, school, how is it like?" He wondered; he had never been to school before, and every time he sees her go to school every morning, he gets curious.

"How was your school life like?" she asked instead, walking closer to him.

"I didn't go to school."

She knew he was joking; he had so much wealth that she was so curious to know the course he studied in school.

"You are joking?"

"I can't use a computer or understand mathematics," he confessed. Every time he thought about that, he was slightly embarrassed.

But that was his life; that was how he was raised; school was never an option, no matter how much he loved it.