Jae looked at her with a stoic expression and said, "You're drunk, that's why you're talking nonsense."
"I have certainly had some alcohol, but I am not drunk." She whispered.
"Go and take a shower," He pushed her away, getting off the bed.
As she sat up, she stared at him before extending her hand to the nightstand and quickly grabbing the bottle of liquor before downing it. Jae stood there, watching her actions with incredulity in his eyes.
Suddenly she groaned in frustration as Jae swiftly snatched the alcohol bottle from her hands after moving to her side.
Her voice was laced with irritation. "What are you doing? Give it back!" She scrambled to her feet, reaching out desperately, but he was faster.
With a quick motion, he hurled the bottle toward the corner of the room. The glass shattered loudly against the floor. Her eyes flickered briefly over broken shards before snapping up at him in disbelief, stunned silent for once by his action.
"Why did you do this? Y-you broke." She asked before attempting to move toward broken pieces, but Jae quickly grabbed her by the waist to stop her.
"You can't drink. Alcohol isn't good for your health." His voice was low and controlled, though hints of irritation were evident.
"How can you say this to me when you yourself drink? Isn't it bad for your health?" She writhed in his grasp, trying desperately to reach for the shattered glass.
"I can drink it because it's mine. And have you forgotten that you're my slave? You're not allowed to touch or use my things without my permission."
"Y-yes, I'm your slave... please... I beg you, let me have it." With wild desperation in her voice, clutching at his hands on her stomach, she pleaded.
"I told you not to have it. I won't allow it." He turned her to face him, an angry look in his eyes.
"No-no, I want it. Please, give me." She struggled to free herself from his grip but stopped as her hand landed on his chest. She stared at his chest for a few moments before suddenly unbuttoning his shirt, making him disconcerted. He grabbed her hands to stop her while she stared at him.
Bewildered, he asked. "What are you doing?"
She didn't answer, just twisted free from his grip and finished unbuttoning his shirt with rough urgency. His bandaged chest was exposed now, wrapped tight in white gauze.
Her fingers hovered over his chest before grazing it lightly, so softly that he barely felt it, but still stiffened in disbelief under her touch.
"It happened because of me, I have hurt you." saying this, she kissed his bandaged chest. He was frozen, stunned by her sudden words and actions, her lips so gentle upon his chest, almost reverent.
Suddenly she pushed him onto the bed before swiftly straddling him, preventing escape. Then in a flurry of wild affection... a barrage of rapid, delicate kisses rained down over his face except his lips.
He lay there, stiff and unresponsive, as she continued. Then—silence. She paused inches from his mouth, eyes flickering from his gaze down to his lips.
Just as she began leaning in—
His palm shot up, pressing firmly against her face to shove her back before he scrambled off the bed entirely, putting distance between them.
"Jia, you're drunk. Go take a shower." He buttoned his shirt hastily, frustration creeping into his voice.
She didn't argue, just pushed off the bed and stalked toward the bathroom without so much as glancing back at him.
His brow furrowed when she disappeared inside his ensuite instead of leaving. "Why are you using my bathroom?" No answer came, just the sharp click of the door locking behind her.
Left standing there, he muttered under his breath,
"She is Weird."
••••••
A few minutes passed.
The bathroom door creaked open slightly as Jia peeked out, her eyes scanning the room until they landed on the feminine clothes lying neatly on the bed.
A grin spread across her face before she dashed toward them, only a towel wrapped haphazardly around herself. She hurriedly began changing, completely absorbed in dressing, and didn't even notice that the door was open as Jae stepped through the doorway.
His gaze flickered to her for just one second, enough for him to freeze mid-step before sharply turning away.
"You're so damn forgetful, aren't you? Didn't even bother to lock the door before changing."
She flinched at his sudden remark, hastily pulling the white shirt tight over her chest to cover herself.
"You should've knocked," she protested, watching his back.
"The door was already open, and this is my damn house. I'll walk into any room I want without goddamn knocking." He retorted with mild anger.
"But now I live here too, so you should knock."
"Shut up, hurry up and get dressed." He snapped.
She obeyed immediately, dressing quickly before sitting on the bed's edge, eyes focused on his back. She studied him for a moment, a tiny smirk playing at her lips.
After a silent moment, he asked brusquely, "Are you done?"
"Yeah."
Hearing this, he spun around, turning to face her.
"Thanks for bringing the clothes."
"Now get out of here." Immediately, he commanded, ignoring her words.
"Since I'm your slave, why can't we share the room?" She spoke up in a small voice.
"You're my slave, so act like one. Don't get any ideas above your limits." His words were sharp, and her gaze was glued on him.
"If you'd wanted, you could have shut the door and waited outside while I changed... but you didn't.. You just stood there, so you..."
He cut her off mid-sentence.
"It's my choice, whether I stand here and wait for someone or not. It's none of your concern." He stepped closer, a frustrated expression on his face. "And get out of my sight immediately. If you disobey me again, you'll have to see my worst side. So get out of here." He clutched her wrist firmly, physically forcing her upright.
Pouting up at him, she whined, "But I'm not sleepy anymore! What am I supposed to do alone in my room–"
He quickly interjected, "Dance, sing, do whatever, but get out of her now!"
A sudden grin stretched across her face as she chirped, "Okay, Master!" Then in a flash, she wrenched her wrist free and bolted out of the room before he could react, leaving him standing there stunned by how quickly she switched moods.
●◇◇◇◇◇◇●
"Please don't do this Myung sir... .I beg you….leave me."
Bound to the bed in a dark room, dimly lit by a single lamp, the young girl pleaded and cried out in agony as a knife's tip seared against her skin—heated mercilessly by the lighter held in the hands of a man sitting next to her on the bed, unfeeling as he watched her struggle.
"You deserve this." Myung spoke in a cold and impassive tone, relentlessly assaulting her skin with the hot tip of the knife.
"P-please d-don't." Her voice trembled between ragged sobs, the words barely escaping between cries of pain.
"It's my rule that no one should come in front of me by bringing any bad news and you have broken this rule."
"I…i will not do it again p-please forgive me."
"Perhaps I would have, but because of the news you have brought, I will not forgive you at all."
"P-please have m-mercy on me."
"He made a fatal mistake….taking what's mine." His free hand roughly grabbed her chin, forcing her tear-filled eyes to meet his. "You want to know how I'll make him pay?"
Her muffled cries meant nothing to him as a humorless smirk curled his lips before he continued with eerie calmness. "Simple... I will take back what was stolen." Suddenly, his fingers dug into her skin hard enough to bruise. "That bastard had no right touching her first. I was supposed to break her. To ruin every inch of that body, then discard it like trash afterward! If any other man touches her after that, I don't care ... .BUT HE GOT HER BEFORE ME!!"
He suddenly shouted dangerously, st@bbing her throat several times with the heated knife like a psycho killer. Every stab brought forth a pained groan that echoed throughout the room. The bl00d splattered across his face and hands, leaving bl00dy marks.
K!lling her completely, a satisfied smirk appeared on his face before throwing the knife somewhere in the room. He stood up from the bed and made his way to the bathroom to clean himself up.
After a few minutes, he emerged clean and composed, making his way towards the window, his phone in hand as he searched for a specific contact. He dialed the number and waited for the call to connect.
After several rings, the call connected.
"Where are you?" His voice was sharp.
"Following the address that girl gave, I'm outside his house now." A reply crackled through the phone.
A slow grin curled his lips. "Good. Bring her to me, and make sure no one follows you."
He hung up without waiting for a response, already scrolling through his contacts again until another name appeared on screen—'My dear enemy'....and with it came a smirk of twisted evil.
""""""
Jae had just begun to doze off when the booming bass of party music jolted him awake. With an irritated groan, he sat up on the bed abruptly, glaring toward his room door.
"Of course she listens to nothing I say, but dance and sing? Oh yes, instantly obeyed." He ran a hand down his face in exasperation before muttering in annoyance, "And where the hell did she even find speakers? I told her not to touch my things."
Fuming now, he shoved himself off the bed and stormed toward the door. But froze mid-step, irritated, as his phone blared from the nightstand.
"Who the hell is calling at this hour?" Grumbling, he snatched it up, only to scowl harder at the unknown number flashing on screen. Not in the mood for talking, he rejected it and tossed it onto the bed before turning toward the door again—
Then the ringing started again.
Snarling under his breath, he grabbed it a second time and stalked toward the window, thinking that the person on the other line would not be able to hear his voice because of the loud noise of music.
He received the call. Pressing the phone against his ear, waited for the other person to speak but only silence greeted him. He pulled the phone away, checking the screen, the timer was still counting. No one spoke.
Frustrated, he ended it again with a sharp tap of his finger and turned back toward the door, only for that damned ringing to start a third time.
Jaw clenched, he whipped around and received the call once more, pressing it harshly against his ear as he hissed into the receiver, "Who the hell is this? Say something, or I swear I'll track you down and beat the shit out of you for wasting my time."
His teeth clenched as silence stretched on.
"Hello? Why call if you've got nothing to say?"
Suddenly, a chuckle. Low, deliberate. Familiar enough to make him frown. His grip tightened around the phone.
"Who are you?" His voice razor-sharp now with fury lacing every syllable.
"You forgot me so soon? My dear enemy."
After hearing his voice, Jae clenched his jaw and fist in a fit of rage as he recognised the voice of Kang Myung, his business rival.
"I think you have a relationship with luck that you survived even after william was sent to kill you and also luck was in your cousin's favour that you saved him at the right moment ... .even after sending the best sniper to kill him."
Jae's eyes turned bloodshot after hearing Myung's words.
"All your men were useless, spineless cowards, just like you who had come to k!ll us." His voice dripped venom.
Myung's chuckle slithered through the line again. "But this time? No mistakes." A pause, then dark amusement colored his next words, "You took my little obsession from me... Now I'll be taking her back."
Jae froze for half a second before snarling, "Whom are you talking about?"
The answer came sharp as a blade, slow, deliberate, "Princess….. Or should I say... Jia?"
"Don't you dare utter her name with your filthy mouth, don't even think of looking at her. I swear, I'll burn you alive." Jae's voice dripped with barely contained fury, while Myung only laughed, dark, unhinged.
"You can't do a damn thing now."
Jae's entire body tensed like a coiled wire ready to snap. His eyes burned crimson, his fists clenched so tight the veins in his arms and neck bulged violently under his skin.
"I'm gonna f*cking bury you alive." He heard Myung's psycho laugh echoing down the line as he gritted his teeth in immense anger. "I swear i'll make you f*cking regret for even thinking about her."
"My time to think about her is over." Myung's next words came in a dark, possessive whisper, "Now I'll do whatever I want with her. And whatever I do... you won't be able to bear hearing... because I'll make her all mine."
"I will cut off your tongue for calling her yours."
"You just wait to see her become mine." As soon as Myung said this, Jae's gaze snapped to the door as he realised the music abruptly cut out. In that split second, a chilling fear coiled around his heart.
"What are you goin–" A frustrated groan wrenched itself from his throat when he heard the sudden beep of Myung's call ending. Fury burned like fire in his veins as he hit the phone harshly on the floor, making it break.
"No one can take her away from me, no one." Saying this, he ran out of the room.
"Jia!....Jia!" he called out urgently, racing towards the ground floor, roaming his eyes hither and thither. He continued to call her, that's when his eyes zeroed in on the speaker lying on the floor. He ran to the speaker and saw a phone was nearby. Broken into pieces. And lying near it... a shirt's button.
Jia's button.
His breathing hitched as his trembling hand lifted the button, examining it with dread gnawing at him. Blood. Fresh blood covered it.
He quickly surveyed the scene, taking in everything more clearly now, the destruction he'd missed before in the dark. The fresh blood on the floor.
His body shook uncontrollably. He'd seen blood, too many times to count. But thinking whose blood it was... it made his blood run cold. Gripping the button so tight it dug into his palm, he raced for the stairs, desperation thrumming in every vein.
He burst into the CCTV control room of his house and immediately powered on every monitor. His fingers hovered over the controls, selecting footage from earlier, specifically the entrance hall.
Jaw locked tight, fists clenched so hard his knuckles whitened, he forced himself to watch every second unfold, unblinking, determined despite whatever was about to play out before him.
Jia swayed to the music, lost in her own rhythm until a shadow loomed behind her.
Feeling the presence of someone, she spun around only for a hand to clamp over her mouth, silencing any scream. The man yanked her backward before she could react, his grip iron-tight. The dim lighting blurred his features on the grainy CCTV footage, nothing identifiable except brute force as Jia thrashed wildly against him.
Her chest heaved against that suffocating palm until, with one desperate twist of her elbow and a shove, she broke free! The man stumbled back from the impact. While she lunged for the stairway, the sudden collision with a table sent her staggering.
The table crashed to the ground, vase shattering with it. She whipped her head up to see the man closing in. Desperate, she clutched a shattered shard of glass from the broken vase, standing up and swinging it wildly to strike him as he approached. But the man immediately grabbed the sharpened piece of vase, blood instantly welling from his palm.
He yanked the broken piece of glass from her, tossing it aside before taking measured, deliberate steps towards her. Backpedaling, her legs soon hit the speaker, nearly toppling her backwards.
But one of the man's blood-stained hands rudely grabbed her white shirt collar, preventing her fall. At the same time, due to her collision, the speaker and the phone placed on top of it crashed to the floor.
His fingers twisted into her collar, dragging her forward with enough force to pop the first button clean off. It clattered onto the floor.
Jia lashed out, kicking him square in the shin hard enough to make him grunt and release his grip. She scrambled back, grabbing whatever was within reach, vases, decorative statues, hurling them at him with frantic strength. But he dodged every throw, weaving effortlessly like this was some sick game to him.
Then she seized a heavy iron object. With both hands raised high above her head, she flung it at him... only for him to duck at the last second as it slammed straight into her phone lying near the speaker, utterly crushing it beneath its weight into broken shards of glass and circuitry.
His patience snapped. Snatching up the heavy iron object lying in front of him, he lunged forward and swung it hard against her head.
Her body dropped like a stone, unconscious before she even hit the floor. He rolled his shoulders with a sickening pop of his neck before hurling that same iron weight straight at the still-blaring speaker. The music died instantly under its crushing impact.
No hesitation, he seized her limp wrist and dragged her toward the exit without so much as glancing back at the wreckage behind him.
Seeing all the scene Jae's entire body shook with uncontrollable fury as he hurled the button across the room. His fists clenched, tight enough to draw blood from his own palms before slamming them down onto the table with a deafening bang. Chairs toppled under his violent kicks, one sent flying across the room in a rage-fueled throw. He grabbed fistfuls of his hair, yanking sharply as an animalistic scream tore from his throat.
"I was too late! I should've been there! Despite my presence in my house, they took her!" A guttural roar ripped through him, raw and unhinged. "I'M A F*CKING LOSER!! I COULDN'T PROTECT HER!"
Suddenly he frantically fumbled through his pockets, searching for his phone before a frustrated groan escaped from his mouth when he realised that he had broken his phone. Grudgingly, he made a mad dash for the telephone, picking up the handset with a trembling hand.
He dialed a number quickly, heart hammering as he waited for the call to connect. Finally, a few heartstopping beats later, the connection clicked on.
"Daniel….find Jia, now. She's been kidnapped. Myung took her. Find her right away!" He gripped the receiver so tightly his knuckles went white as he spoke, voice hoarse with barely restrained alarm.
"Jae, first you calm down. And how was she kidnapped?" Daniel asked from the other side of the call.
"DON'T QUESTION ME, JUST FIND HER WITH YOUR TEAM, QUICKLY!!" He shouted, kicking the chair in anger.
"Alright, alright, but we have to make a plan first. We can't just rush in blindly without any preparation, because you already know he is a psycho."
"That's why I'm saying start finding her immediately and I'm coming there." Saying this, Jae Disconnected the call and ran towards the exit door.
●◇◇◇◇◇◇●
Bella sat on the bench of a street open park, arms crossed, her gaze fixed with deadpan intensity on Jackson as he powered through his workout in front of her.
Her bored tone cut through the quiet. "3:30 AM... and this is when you're thinking about exercising, seriously?"
He didn't even pause, just kept moving like she hadn't spoken.
"I'm not thinking, I'm doing, can't you see?... And what should i do instead of this, i'm getting very fast sleep so i have not got any other option other than this to drive away the sleep."
"I can't understand how I'm supposed to believe that you have been making me travel for so many hours but still we have not reached Jae's house ... .and did both of them themselves take the same amount of time to reach?" She asked in a tired voice.
"They both must have gone by Jae's private jet." He answered, while her heavy-lidded eyes locked on him, it could be clearly seen that her eyes were getting heavy due to sleep.
"I want to sleep but I don't want to sleep."
Jackson stopped, standing properly in front of her, panting lightly. "How am I supposed to interpret your statement that you want to sleep or not?" He asked, a quizzical look on his face.
She propped her chin on her hand. "I think I will grow old before I reach Jae's house and even before I get married." She muttered to herself, ignoring his words as if she was talking not to him but to herself while Jackson just stared at her like she'd grown two heads, wondering what happened to her behaviour.
"What happened to your behaviour? And one second, are you interested in getting married? I am surprised to hear that a girl like you is interested in getting married."
"Everyone shows off and doesn't accept but the reality is that everyone is interested in getting married. But what they are searching for is the right time and the right partner." Staying in the same posture, she said.
"You are exposing all the girl's secrets."
"I'm not exposing anyone's secret, it's natural and I'm not talking about all the girls. This is the condition of most of the girls."
Curiosity piqued, as he sat beside her on the bench, asking, "Okay, so do you have any boyfriend whom you want to marry?" His eyes were locked on her to hear her response as his heartbeat was increasing for some reason.
"No." She simply replied while Jackson heaved a sigh of relief then looked at her for a few seconds, admiring her beautiful face.
"I have never told you before but you are very gorgeous."
Hearing his unexpected words, her eyes jolted up at him and for some moments their eyes locked in an intense stare.
Suddenly Bella rose to her feet and started shouting at him in a mild anger, making him shocked at her sudden changed behaviour.
"You son of Jack! Why are we still here? You are very clever, you stuck me here by trapping me in your words, you don't want to take me there deliberately, don't you?"
Jackson shook his head in disbelief before letting out a deep sigh.
"Now I understand why people say that we should not expect anything from anyone. And from a woman like you should never expect good behaviour." Annoyed expression on his face as he spoke, while she shot him a glare.
Suddenly the phone rang, attracting their attention.
Jackson quickly took out his phone and immediately received the call after looking at the caller ID before speaking.
"Hello?"
"Jackson, come fast to the casino." Daniel said from the other side of the call.
"At this hour? Is everything alright?"
"No…..Myung has kidnapped Jia."
Sudden concern appeared in his expression. "What!! That psycho??"
While a perplexed frown took place on Bella's face.
"Yes."
"Where was Jae when she was abducted?" The words made Bella's expression change from confusion to concern.
"I don't know, you just come soon."
"O-okay i'm coming." Saying this, he disconnected the call and quickly rose from the bench.
Concern lacing her tone, as Bella asked, "What happened?"
Finding himself the center of her questioning gaze, Jackson hesitated for a while, then finally decided to tell her.
"Jia has been abducted."
The words were enough to make her shocked.
"What?"
"Yes, and please don't ask me any questions at this time, we've got to get there quickly."
"Where?"
"Just come with me." Saying this, he made his way towards his bike before sitting on it.
Noticing her unmoving figure, he urged, "Don't waste time, now come quickly."
After listening to his words she finally, immediately ran towards the bike and sat on the seat behind him. Soon they left the place.
●◇◇◇◇◇◇●
Jia was able to open her eyes a little but all she could see and feel was darkness and tightness around her eyes. Her heart raced as she realized her hands and legs were tied with something, while her eyes were covered with cloth. She frantically struggled to free herself until a deep voice interrupted her.
"Don't try to escape from me." A man was sitting on the edge of the bed beside her prone form and as soon as he spoke, Jia's brow furrowed. There was something familiar about his voice - she was sure she had heard it before.
"W-who are you?"
As soon as she asked, the person immediately removed the blindfold from her eyes. Her eyes slowly adjusted to the dim lighting in the luxurious room, revealing a high-end interior adorned with lavish furnishings. As she turned her attention to the figure sitting next to her, she was surprised as she recognized his unmistakable features, his piercing dark brown eyes, a sharp nose, a perfect jawline, and a distinctive wolf haircut. He was charming. Suddenly she began laughing uncontrollably, her laughter filling the room. The man, however, remained stoic, his expression unchanged as he silently watched her antics without blinking.
Holding back her laughter, she stared at him for a while before starting to speak
"Myung aka Liam!"
A smirk placed on his face as soon as she called his name.
"It's nice to see you again."
●◇◇◇◇◇◇●