~|confession #9 - there are different ways you can mess up and i am a pro in all of them|~

"If my life was a book it would surely be titled -101 Ways To Fuck Up Your Life" ~ Dr. Sang Tian

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The ride back home was uneventful except for the awkward and heavy silence that surrounded them and the anticipation of what was going to happen next. Grandfather Sang told his driver to drive him back to his place, a traditional style mansion in the suburbs. 

He did not ask Sang Tian anything, did not even get mad at her for hiding her "boyfriend". He just left and it kind of scared Sang Tian. She was worried that she had greatly upset her grandfather and wanted to talk to him but her father stopped her from doing anything.

Sang Rong knew his father the best. He knew that his father needed some time to think about the events of the day. He would also want to talk to his friend and sort things out before taking any step that's why he stopped Sang Tian from going after his father. 

After Grandfather Sang left, Sang Tian, her parents, and her brother sat in their car and were driven back to their mansion. Nobody said anything, they did not want to talk about it in front of the driver so the one-hour car drive back home was shrouded in utter silence.

Though the majority of it was over, still Sang Tian couldn't quite shake off the ominous feeling that gnawed at her insides telling her that it was only the start of it. A shiver passed through her body intensifying the nagging feeling.

Taking deep breaths, Sang Tian decided to distract herself by preparing a cover story to cover up all the lies that she had just told. She went through all the romantic stories that she had written so far, all those that she had read, complete or incomplete did not matter as she formulated a perfect romantic story for herself and Fang Haoran.

More lies to cover up her previously told lies.

Wonderful!

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"Who is this guy?" muttered Sang Yan as he loosened the tie that he was wearing. Her brother was never a fan of ties, Sang Tian mused, but he still wore them just for the looks.

A maid came over and served them glasses of water. Sang Tian picked one and quickly drank the cold water to soothe her parched throat and anxious nerves.

"He's the CEO of Fang Group." the answer came from their father, Sang Rong to which Sang Yan just grumbled in response. It wasn't that he didn't know the guy, he didn't have the chance to meet him before and he certainly didn't know that this Fang guy was dating his baby sister.

"Why didn't you tell us about him?" questioned Sang Rong, "Is he involved in something that you know we wouldn't like?"

Sang Tian shook her head in negative and opened her mouth to explain but was cut off by her mother before she could say anything.

"And weren't you dating that senior of yours from the hospital? Li Si Han, right?" Luo Lan frowned in confusion. The last time that she had talked with Sang Tian about her romantic relationship, her daughter had told her that she was in a serious relationship with a fellow doctor and senior surgeon Li Si Han. She didn't know about Fang Haoran.

"I was." Sang Tian added quickly, "He cheated on me."

"What? That bastard!" exclaimed her mother angrily.

"How dare he!", her brother looked ready to strangle Li Si Han to death but for the moment he settled on the glass in his hand.

"Just say the word and no one will know where he's gone." came the calm but cold voice of her father.

Sang Tian knew that the threat wasn't idle. She was very well aware of what her family was capable of but that doesn't mean that they have to do to.

"I have it handled, Dad. You don't have to do anything." told Sang Tian to which her father just nodded but he still had this murderous gleam in his eyes that worried her.

"Trust me, I dealt with it and he's received the appropriate punishment for what he did." she added to ease her family's concerns.

"Good." interjected her mother helpfully, "Why are we even talking about that idiot. Sweetheart, tell us about this Fang Haoran that you are dating now." 

Nervous laughter bubbled inside her as Sang Tian clapped her hands and started the fake story that she had crafted during their ride back home.

"Well, we first met on the day I found out that Li Si Han was cheating on me." that wasn't a lie, "I was upset and Inu, Silencer, and D suggested we go clubbing and party to forget about Li Si Han and there I met him." again, this wasn't a lie either.

"I was at the bar nursing a drink, lost in my thoughts when he approached me and asked why was I upset." and it was at that moment that the lies began.

"I didn't say anything because hey, stranger danger! But he insisted on saying that because he was a stranger so he would not judge me and would objectively listen to my story and give his opinion about it only, and only if I asked for it." smiled Sang Tian. She had a faraway look in her eyes which to others felt like she was reminiscing about those moments fondly but in reality Sang Tian was imagining how wonderful this storyline would be for her next novel.

"So I told him about what had happened and he told me that Li Si Han was a nincompoop, that I didn't deserve a person who could never love me for what I am, for who I am. He said that I should not waste even a second of my life for such a jerk like him." told Sang Tian.

"Oh, how sweet!" her mother gushed while her father and brother spoke only one word in unison, "True." they said.

"He made me smile, and then we talked about random things. One thing led to the other and by the time we were to go back home he asked me out on a date." with every passing lie, Sang Tian was getting excited in her story-telling.

"I was thinking of denying him but then thought why not?! I mean, I shouldn't waste my time and energy on that cheater, right?! So I said yes." she told with such conviction that it sounded truer than the truth.

"He took me to Four Seasons for dinner and I genuinely had a great time with him." for no reason, Sang Tian felt shy and a light blush colored her cheeks, "After our dinner, we went for a long drive and spent some peaceful time at the beach where I asked him out on our second date."

"That's my girl!" cheered Luo Lan but she got no reaction from her father and brother except for identical smiles.

'Like father, like son.' she thought before continuing, "We went to an amusement park. It was his first time, you know. He had never been to an amusement park and I had him go on all the rides. It was such a fun day!" Sang Tian exclaimed.

"We greatly enjoyed each other's company. Our dates became more frequent and soon we were chatting through messages day and night, our phone calls became longer than usual and we just gradually became seriously involved." explained Sang Tian.

By now her mother was surely convinced of her story and it looked like that her father and brother believed it as well.

"He was really upset when I told him about the arranged marriage promise situation. But I had to do it for Grandpa and the rest you all know." Sang Tian ended her story with a sigh of relief and a wide smile curving upon her lips.

For the moment she had convinced her parents but she hadn't thought of the future. She wasn't prepared for the repercussions of it until she received that phone call from her grandfather a week later.

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It was on the evening of Thursday when she received a phone call from her grandfather after about 5 days of silence.

"Bring him to meet me this Sunday afternoon." her grandfather had ordered her, "Bring him with you to my place. I want to see what my granddaughter saw in that boy."

That was all her grandfather had said and that was enough to send her into a frenzy of panic. Sang Tian spent the whole day thinking about what she was going to do. She talked to her friends and the four of them then began to arrange an urgent meeting with Fang Haoran.

They knew who the man was but they had not thought about how hard it was going to be able to meet him. Fang Haoran was not someone with whom anybody could go and meet with or without an appointment.

He was the CEO of a multi-billionaire company who had a very busy schedule. There was no way he was going to push away all the other important things on his schedule to meet up with her to sort out her personal crisis.

She wasn't really his girlfriend after all so there was no way she was going to get any help from the man. Sang Tian had decided that she would make up an excuse saying that Fang Haoran was busy with work and had some prior arrangements that he could not push forward which is why he could not come with her on Sunday.

The said excuse worked and Grandfather Sang agreed and it was decided that Sang Tian would accompany Fang Haoran to Grandfather Sang's mansion the next Sunday.

It took them some time to try and use other methods to get Fang Haoran's attention (only through legal means despite Yu Xin's tempting offer of simply hacking into the Fang companies' systems to send him a message) but nothing seemed to be working.

Sang Tian's last and only option was to come clean and tell her family the truth. Knowing Zhang Ri Shan and Qin Lan's story, her family won't force her to get married to Zhang Ri Shan but telling the truth meant invoking the ire of each and every member of the Sang family after all she had lied to them. Not once, not twice but multiple times. 

Sang Tian had lost all hope but it seems that luck was in favor. After wasting the whole week trying to get in contact with Fang Haoran, it was on Friday morning that Sang Tian received a call from none other than the man of the hour.

"Hello, Miss Sang." he greeted, "It was brought to my notice that you wished to have a meeting with me on an urgent basis."

"Yes!" the relief could be clearly heard in her voice, "I apologize for causing you disturbance but it was really urgent. I wouldn't have asked -"

"I can understand." he replied interrupting her mid-sentence, "Even I have a few things to discuss with you. If it's alright with you we can meet for dinner tonight to discuss things."

"That will be perfect." Sang Tian grinned widely and showed a thumbs-up to her friends.

"Okay then, let's meet at Four Seasons at 6 in the evening. Will that be okay for you?" asked Fang Haoran.

"6 P.M., yeah, that'll be fine. I'll be there." confirmed Sang Tian, "Thank you." she added in a soft, gratitude-filled voice.

"See you there. Bye."

"Bye." she said before ending the call.

"OH MY GOD!! YAAASSSS!" Sang Tian started jumping and screaming in delight causing her friends to laugh at her joyous display of success.