“Why am I so unlucky today? Just met a female fox, now have to meet a male fox,” muttered Emily, her voice trembling with pent-up frustration.
“What are you saying?” asked Sean, his brow furrowed in confusion.
“Get out of my way. You’re blocking my path,” said Emily.
“I didn’t expect it. I thought you were a nice, innocent girl. Turns out you can be this wild too,” Sean said in a sarcastic tone, his eyes sweeping over Emily’s body with a measuring gaze.
Emily felt gaze like a physical touch, making her skin crawl in discomfort. She clasped her arms over her chest, trying to shield herself from Sean’s gaze that felt disgusting. However, Sean, in his ignorance, grabbed Emily’s glasses and pulled them off slowly.
“Hey, what are you doing? Give me back my glasses!” cried Emily, her voice rising in panic.
“You’re pretty enough without them,” said Sean, his voice full of unconcealed satisfaction.
Emily shouted in a voice full of desperation, “Give me back my glasses!” However, Sean only chuckled, the sound of his laughter echoing, as if challenging Emily to reclaim what had been taken from her.
“Stop playing games! It’s not funny!” whimpered Emily, her frustration mounting. She jumped up and down, trying to grab the glasses that were her shield, but to no avail.
“If you want me to return this, beg me,” Sean said in a teasing tone.
“Beg you? Don’t expect me to do that. Give it back!” Emily insisted.
With her eyes focused on the glasses swinging in Sean’s hand, Emily jumped up determinedly, trying to grab them. Sean, who continued to walk backwards while raising the glasses, did not realize the danger behind him. Sean’s shoulder bumped into some passersby, lost his balance and fell backwards.
Emily, who was still in a jumping motion, couldn’t stop her momentum. In an instant, she fell towards the slipping Sean. Reflexively, she closed her eyes, waiting for the inevitable impact. However, instead of a hard floor, she felt something much softer.
Emily’s eyes opened wide as she realized she had landed on top of Sean, their breath mingling in the sudden silence. Their faces were only inches apart, and Emily could feel Sean’s rapid heartbeat beneath her. He was breathless, not only from the sudden fall but also from this unexpected closeness.
Emily immediately realized her glasses were still in Sean’s hand, grabbed them, and stood up. After that, she checked the glasses to see if there were any scuffs.
“You’re crazy! I won’t forgive you if this gets broken,” Emily said, her voice trembling with a mixture of anger and deep worry.
Sean, who was still sitting on the floor, looked at Emily with an innocent expression. “They’re just cheap glasses. I can buy you more expensive ones.”
Emily looked at Sean with teary eyes. “This was my father’s gift. You may buy more expensive or more glasses, but nothing can replace the memories in it,” she said, her voice full of wistful tone, showing how precious those memories were to her.
Sean burst out laughing, his voice almost drowned out by the thumping bass of the nightclub. “Your father’s gift? And there are memories in them?” he said, wiping away his tears from laughing so hard. “You really make me laugh. Memories? They’re just inanimate objects.”
Emily stared at Sean, her eyes radiating the fire of anger, which contrasted with the colorful lights flashing around them. She raised her hand and delivered a hard slap to Sean’s cheek. “Memories are important to someone who still has a heart. They are meaningless to someone like you,” she said, her voice trembling with strong emotion, challenging the noise that surrounded them.
An enraged Sean pulled Emily’s hand with a force that made his heart skip a beat. “You fucking woman!” he shouted, his hand raised high, ready to slap, but suddenly a voice broke the tension.
“Sean, there you are,” called one of Sean’s friends from a distance.
Emily, who got the chance to escape Sean’s clutches, immediately ran without looking back. She calmed her racing heartbeat, wiped away the tears that had flowed, and entered the VIP room filled with Mia and her followers.
“I thought you had escaped. Where have you been?” asked Mia in a scornful tone, but Emily did not answer. Her gaze fell on the glass filled with alcohol, and without hesitation, she gulped down the contents.
The bottle of alcohol in the room was still spinning. The game continued, but Mia raised her hand, stopping all movement. “I’m bored. Can we play something else?” she asked, a sly smile etched on her face, her sharp eyes catching Emily’s figure, who already looked quite drunk.
“What game?” asked one of Mia’s followers.
“If this bottle spins right into that person, then that person has to do whatever we say. How about it?” suggested Mia.
“Who’s scared?” challenged Leah, one of Mia’s followers.
The bottle was spinning slowly. Every second felt like an hour to Emily. She really wanted to get out of this situation now. And when the bottle finally stopped, it pointed at Emma, one of Mia’s followers.
“You should call your ex-lover and tell him you still love him,” Mia said.
Emma stared at them, incredulous. “What? There’s no way he’s going to pick up my phone since I got caught cheating on him.”
Mia smiled widely, taking out a few bills from her bag. “If you can do it, this money is yours,” she challenged with confidence.
Emma bit her lip, trying hard to compose herself. “What if I don’t succeed?” she asked in a trembling voice.
“Then the money won’t be yours and you’ll have to accept our punishment. How about it?” Mia challenged, her eyes flashing with game spirit.
Emma let out a long sigh, trying to gather her courage. With trembling hands, she picked up her cell phone, dialing a number she hadn’t touched in a long time.
“Hello?” the voice on the other end rang out, and Emma swallowed.
“Listen, I… I just wanted to say that… I still love you.” the words sounded bland, but Emma said them.
For a moment, the room was silent, all eyes on her. Emma hung up the phone, looking at Mia and the others with a challenging gaze. “The challenge is over,” she said firmly.
“This means the money is mine, right?” asked Emma, and Mia nodded.
“Thank you,” Emma said, her voice soft but triumphant, as she kissed the bill she had earned.
“Alright, let’s get on with the game,” said Leah, trying to bring some excitement back into the room.
The bottle of alcohol spun again, and Emily closed her eyes tightly, hoping that fate would not choose her. She felt her heart racing, as if it wanted to jump out of her chest. Fear ruled her mind. She didn’t know what Mia and her followers would order her to do if the bottle stopped on her. And like an answer to her fears, the bottle slowly stopped, pointing right at Emily. Her heart beat like a war drum, awaiting the fate that would decide the course of the night. Meanwhile, Mia smiled with satisfaction at the outcome.
“So, did our little friend successfully complete the challenge, or did she end up getting punished?” asked one of Mia’s followers, named Zoe.
Emily stared intently at Mia. “What do you want from me?” she asked in a challenging voice.
Mia stroked Emily’s hair gently, her eyes thoughtful as she revealed her challenge. “How about you kiss one of the club goers tonight?” she suggested eagerly, her eyes sparkling.
“But not a normal kiss, but a French kiss,” Mia added in a challenging tone.
“What? Are you crazy?” asked Emily.