"Kidnapping! Indecent assault! Help!" I screamed at the top of my lungs.
Yin Tianyu wasn't buying it at all. He rolled up the car window and blasted the car stereo at full blast. I had no choice but to shut up. Yin Tianyu grinned mischievously and lowered his voice, saying, "I have plenty of ways to deal with drunks. Don't pretend to be crazy. Tell me, why are you unhappy?"
I was startled, wondering how he had figured it out; I thought I had concealed it well. I leaned my head back in the seat, closed my eyes, and refused to speak. Yin Tianyu also fell silent, simply starting the car. The only sound in the small space was Power Station singing from the stereo: "No one can truly reach the depths of my heart anymore, you have long since parasitized my heart, not eating, not drinking, not sleeping, not breathing, unaffected by our sorrowful ending. Indulging myself, letting my body run wild, you have long since parasitized my heart. Adhering to the invisible birthmark in my heart, until there is nothing left to make my love continue."
"Are you pursuing me?" I asked casually, and after asking, I began to doubt whether I was really drunk.
"Yeah, you're only asking me now? I thought I'd made it obvious enough." Yin Tianyu's voice was as irreverent as ever.
"Why?"
"Because you're so interesting. I've never heard of a girl like you before. Now I've not only smelled it, seen it, but almost caught it. If I let you go like this, I'd be struck by lightning. Okay, I've answered your question honestly. Now it's your turn. You like Willson, right?"
"Why should I answer you?" I pretended to be calm, but my heart was pounding like it was going to burst.
"You're being stubborn. What's wrong with you? Will it kill you to be honest?"
"None of your business."
"Alright, just keep burying your head in the sand like an ostrich. You're still clueless. When Willson invites you to his full moon celebration, you'll still be secretly in love with him."
"What difference does it make whether I talk about it or not? There are plenty of people like me on the street: no pretty face, no figure, bad mouth, poor temperament, rude and unfeminine, I have no qualities that men appreciate..."
"I won't allow you to talk about yourself like that!" Yin Tianyu stopped the car with a screech, ignoring that it was in the fast lane, and glared at me angrily.
Fortunately, there weren't many cars on the road, so no traffic accident occurred. However, I was terrified and half-sobered up. This lunatic was actually using my life to show off. I was so angry that I almost wanted to grab a knife and chop him, but he was still holding the steering wheel, so I didn't dare to actually do it. Therefore, I decided to ignore him.
After he restarted the car, I felt dizzy, but my nerves were getting more and more excited, so I started reciting Verlaine's "The Sky Above the Roof": "Qu'as-tu fait,o toi que voila pleurant sans cesse, Dis,qu'as-tu fait,toi que voila, De ta jeunesse ?" (Why do you come here with tears streaming down your face, how do you squander your youth?). I was obsessed with Verlaine to the point of madness before graduation.
“Sous le Dont Mirabeau coule la Seine et nos amours Faut-il qu'il m'en souvienne La joie venait toujours apres peine Vienne la nuit sonne l'heure Les jours s'en vont je demeure” (The Seine flows gently beneath the bridge, yet the old love remains; why linger on with bitter memories? After all, there is sweetness in the end; let the sun set and the bell toll; though youth fades, the body remains). This is Apollinaire's "The Bridge Mirabeau." The fact that Yin Tianyu uttered such a pure Parisian accent surprised me and made me look at this playboy with a slightly different perspective.
"Don't look at me like that. There will be plenty of opportunities for me to surprise you in the future." Yin Tian was like a tapeworm in my stomach.
"We're here, get out of the car. You're not planning to invite me in for a drink, are you? I'm not one to stand on ceremony." Yin Tianyu looked at me, who was still in a daze, with amusement.
"Hey, have some manners, okay? In the movies, you should be here opening the car door for me at this point." I'm the typical "stubborn guy" type.
"Oh, I thought you wanted to stay in the car a little longer." Yin Tianyu made a move to get out. I pushed open the door and jumped out, not even knowing who I was angry with at that moment.
Yin Tianyu also came out. Seeing my unsteady steps, he rushed over to support me. I tried to push him away, but he held me firmly and I couldn't move him at all.
"Don't worry, although I have a weak will, I'm not interested in drunkards—even though I said I was going to pursue her just ten minutes ago," Yin Tianyu said as he helped me walk inside.
This made me feel a little guilty: "I'm sorry," I said hesitantly.
"If you really feel bad, you'd better go to bed right now and remember to wear the dress I gave you on Monday."
"You're trying to raise the price on the spot! No way, there can only be one condition." I don't want to wear that expensive dress. It makes me feel awkward, not knowing whether the dress is wearing me or I'm wearing the dress.
“If you don’t wear that dress, I’ll call Willson right now and tell him you have a crush on him.”
"You despicable scoundrel! I just categorized you as a good person, and you've already shown your wolfish nature!"
"I don't want you to treat me like a good person, I just want you to treat me like a lover." This is the second time I've heard this bitterness in Yin Tianyu's voice tonight, though it's only a little bit.
Even though I knew he was just playing along, my heart still stung, as if someone had poked a nerve in my most vulnerable spot. But I still said nonchalantly, "Are you just naturally good at sweet-talking girls?"
"If you're ever in a bad mood and want to drink, remember to call me. I'll take you home when you're drunk."
"No way, lest I give you the opportunity to take advantage of me in my vulnerable state." I continued with a grin.
Yin Tianyu stopped, grabbed my chin, stared into my eyes, and said with a stern face, "Listen to me clearly, I'm not joking!"
I was so intimidated by his fierce appearance that I couldn't utter a single word—Mr. Werewolf.
Part One, Chapter Six
On Monday morning, after hesitating for ages, I finally put on the skirt that cost me several months' salary. Finding a matching top and shoes took me more than half an hour. I couldn't help but curse Yin Tianyu from head to toe in my heart, for making fun of us poor kids.
Back at the office, I was immediately overwhelmed by reports from the Shanghai and Beijing branches. I had to organize these reports into a coherent document and submit it to Willson before 10:30 AM. By 10:10 AM, I had finally made some progress and was just waiting to print it. I breathed a sigh of relief, only to realize that I hadn't been to the restroom in so long. I stood up to leave, just as Aunt Zhang was walking towards me with a freshly brewed cup of coffee. Neither of us noticed, and we bumped into each other.
"Ouch!" we both cried out at the same time. I looked down and saw that all the coffee had spilled, covering Aunt Zhang's hand. My first thought was that Aunt Zhang must have burned herself. I quickly took Aunt Zhang's hand in my hands, blowing on it and asking, "Are you alright? Are you burned? Are you burned?"
Aunt Zhang, however, only pointed at my new dress and said, "Oh no, oh no, your dress has been stained with coffee! Oh my god, how are we going to wash this off?"
I looked down and sure enough, the white dress was stained with a large coffee stain, making it impossible to tell that it was expensive. It turns out that when a designer brand is down on its luck, it's not much different from a cheap street vendor's item.
"It's alright, it's just a dress, bought at the night market. Are you alright?" Aunt Zhang seemed relieved to hear that the dress wasn't expensive.
"I'm fine, the coffee isn't too hot."
"What are you two doing shouting like that during work hours?" Joyce suddenly appeared behind us, scolding us. I stuck my tongue out at Aunt Zhang and quickly slipped away. Turning around, I saw Willson standing there too, with a tall girl next to him with extremely delicate features. She was wearing a perfectly tailored white dress, and a sheer scarf was casually wrapped around her slender neck. If it weren't for her pale complexion lacking a bit of luster, I would almost give her a perfect score. A beauty—that was my only conclusion.
The girl looked at me with great interest, and even took Willson's hand and walked over. Willson's movements were very gentle, as if he wanted to hold her in his arms.
“This is Ruby, this is Choi May.” Willson said, not looking at me, but only at May.
Cui Wuyue!? I felt like I'd been punched in the face, my head was buzzing.
"Hello, you can just call me May. I hope we can be friends." Her Cantonese was a little awkward, but her voice was soft and suited her temperament.
"You're too kind, I'm not worthy of your presence," I said with a wry smile.
"You're out of my league? How could you be out of my league? I like you very much."