With Xiao Zhi Ren's departure, Ru felt suffocated. Her heart was repeatedly squeezed while she couldn't even tell what was wrong with her.
Suddenly, the closed space made her feel entrapped. She shot up from her seat and went out the door. "Keys?" Extending her hand before Connor she asked for car keys. Connor was taken aback since everyone knew their master didn't like driving cars. But he still placed the keys of his Audi in her hand.
Ru was about to leave when she stopped and left her words behind, "No need to follow me. Go back to your positions." With that, she went out of the clubhouse and alighted the car.
In the next half an hour, she drove the car as if flying an airplane. She couldn't even tell herself how many traffic rules she had broken. But she didn't care at all. As soon as the bustling city was left behind, she pressed a button and the roof was let down making the cool night breeze to slap her face ruthlessly.
She couldn't tell how far off she was from the city but by the time she stopped the car, she was at the top of a mountain that looked over the beautiful city lights that lit up the whole night. She perched down on the bonnet of the car and leaned back to close her eyes.
Some people scare us and others confuse us. Xiao Zhi Ren managed to do both. Ru felt scared not of him but from his love.
Lighting up a cigarette, she let her mind wander off to an old memory...
*Flashback*
"This young master is so good at hiding. Who can catch me?" Ru's young self boasted before a beautiful lady in red robes.
The lady's fair and soft hands touched the young Ru's head and she said, "Dear son, there are certain things you can't hide from in life."
"Like what, mother?" Ru blinked her eyes at the alluring beauty before her.
"You can't hide from fate, love, and death. The more you run from these, the more they will entangle your soul." The lady's gentle voice answered while Ru's young face scrunched up in confusion. The lady ruffled her hair and said, "Fate likes to play the game of love but dear child, love likes to play with death. It either teaches you how to live or just pushes you down the road of a life worse than death."
"It went all over my head," Ru grumbled while wiggling her nose at her but the mesmerizing beauty before her only chuckled at her response with an adoring look in her eyes.
*End of Flashback*
She sat back up and pulled out her cellphone finally going through her contact list. Her finger hovered above a name for a long time and she finally pressed it with a long sigh.
As the call connected, she heard a raspy and a bit groggy voice, "It better be a matter of life or death."
Hearing this threat she smiled to herself and realized that it was already past midnight. She really was disturbing his sleep but whatever.
"What if it's a matter of love or life?" She asked trying to keep a playful touch in her voice.
She heard some shuffling from the other end which eventually ended up with a thud sound. Even from here, she could guess that he was so shocked to hear her voice that he fell down from the bed.
"Ru'er? Is that you?" The voice was cautious and careful.
"Why? Someone else can dare to call you at this time?" Ru retorted.
"Damn you moron! Where the hell have you been? I haven't heard from you for the past two years. Do you know how many scenarios came to my mind? I was so damn worried!" Ru pushed the phone away from her ear since she knew he was gonna go at it for a long time.
True enough, he kept going on and on without a stop button.
"Hello to you too, JieJie!" Taking advantage of his brief pause, she said.
"Go to hell! And shove that damn hello down your throat!" She heard his roar making her laugh out in amusement eventually.
"I'm already in hell. How far off are you planning on pushing me, my dearest soul-brother?" That did the trick, the line went silent for a moment.
"Where are you?" She heard his tired voice.
"Does it matter?" she retorted.
"I guess it doesn't really as long as you are alive, nothing else matters." Zhu Jie drawled his words a bit.
Ru couldn't help but smile at his reply. How weird that he could still make her smile! And it felt good knowing that someone was worried for her.