Chapter 21: Is this a prank show?
"Fil, I'm sorry! I was wrong!"
Fil looked down coldly at Vincent, who was begging her on his knees. His eyes were swollen from all the crying. He looked distraught and desperate, unlike how he usually presented himself to others.
"Pathetic," she whispered. "I feel disgusted that I loved you so much. How did I not see how pathetic you were sooner?"
"Fil…" Vincent crawled to her feet. "Please, give me a chance."
"No."
"Fil!"
"Vincent, I admit that I still cry whenever I think of you, but… I won't be fooled again."
Vincent's lips parted, looking at her listlessly. "Fil… please," he whispered. "Wake up."
"Huh?"
"If you won't wake up, then I have no choice," Vincent added, causing deep lines in between her brows.
When Fil blinked, Vincent was no longer kneeling in front of her. Instead, Jackson was standing in front of her with an annoyed look on his face.
"Tsk," Jackson clicked his tongue, arms crossed under his chest, eyes on her. "I told you to be prepared ten minutes before seven."
Jackson checked his wristwatch. "Six, five… three, two, one," after counting down, he snapped his naturally yet beautiful eyes back to her.
"Dragged her out."
"What —" Fil's eyes went wide as a few men suddenly came out of nowhere. They held her arms, making her look from her left and right in panic. "What are you doing to me? Where are you taking me?!"
Fil tried to fight back but to no avail. In the end, she could only scream for help as some people took her somewhere.
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"No…" Fil whispered in her sleep, turning her head sideways. Her eyes behind her eyelids flickered before they cracked open. She squinted her eyes at the light that flashed on her, blinking until she was fully conscious.
When her eyes slowly opened wider, the first thing she saw was Jackson's face hovering over her face.
"Huh?" she blinked and then blinked some more.
"Oh, you woke up," Jackson nodded, checking his wristwatch again. "Seven on the dot, but that's not what we agreed on."
"What are you…" Fil tried to move, only to realize her movements were restrained. Her mind instantly went into overdrive, gazing down, realizing Jackson wasn't the only person in her place! To make it worse, was she on a stretcher?!
Fil gasped as her brain went blank for a moment. She couldn't even count the people in her place, nor could she process why she was on a stretcher.
"???"
"You were sound asleep," said Jackson indifferently. "And I don't want them to carry you and accidentally touch you in places they shouldn't. We don't want to make a perfectly able man end up handicapped, do we?"
"Ah?" — times two.
"I would've gotten you a hearse, but I don't want you to panic." He smiled innocently and evilly. "Sleep some more. That bed might be small, but you can keep lying down."
"..." Fil was speechless, staring at Jackson blankly. "Is this a prank show?"
"Be careful with her," Jackson ordered, ignoring her.
The people carrying her stretcher then started moving in sync, taking her out of her apartment unit like a victim of some sort. Fil couldn't wrap her head around what was happening.
Was this a dream?
It must be, right?
There was no way Jackson would be in her place and all of these people. But just as they reached the parking space, Fil caught the ambulance waiting for them.
"No…" she breathed out in horror. "Help!!! Somebody help me!"
Since her body was restrained, she screamed her lungs out before they could take her into the ambulance. Even if this turned out to be a prank, she didn't care anymore.
"Please! Someone's trying to abduct me!" she screamed, looking around, only to see nothing coming to her rescue. "Please! They're trying to take my organs."
"Huh?" Jackson, who was following behind, raised a hand. As soon as he did, the people wheeling her to the ambulance stopped. He walked over to her side, looking at her in dismay while she screamed.
"Why would I sell your organs?" he asked. "You're so thin and I'm sure all your organs can barely keep you alive with your unhealthy lifestyle and diet."
"Help —" Fil almost choked on her own breath, moving her shaky eyes at Jackson. "What do you want from me?"
"Huh?" he cocked his head to the side.
"Where are you taking me in an ambulance?!" she panicked once more. "Let me go!"
"We're going to our appointment."
"App — what?"
"I called for them, thinking you might want to sleep some more," he explained. "Isn't that obvious?"
What kind of nonsense was this guy spewing?
"Are you crazy?" she asked in dismay. "This is kidnapping."
"Oh, is it?" Jackson cocked his head, showing the time to her. "Then I'd call for my lawyer."
"Help!!!"
"Hahaha!" he laughed, making her flinched.
Fil looked at him in surprise, almost mesmerized at how beautiful this man could laugh. Even in this situation, his face, his voice, and his laughter were distracting. She must be the one crazy for thinking this way in this situation.
"Release her." Jackson waved dismissively, and without a question raised, the men surrounding the stretcher unbuckled her. He took another step closer, wiping the corner of his eyes. "This is what you get for forgetting our agreement."
"Agreement?" Fil gulped nervously, looking at the men around cautiously. She kept her guard at an all-time high as she sat up.
"Didn't I tell you to get ready ten minutes before seven?"
"Uh… I forgot."
"I know." He smiled innocently which also looked evil. "That's why I'm teaching you a lesson."
"This is how you teach people a lesson?"
"Oh, no. I can do worse."
"There's worse than this?"
"You'd be surprised." He winked, making her scrunch up her nose in dismay. "Now that we are even, shall we go now? My friend is very famous and hence a busy person, you know?"
"You think I'd willingly go after pulling this prank on me?"
"Oh, sweetheart, this isn't a prank."
"What?"
"I only have your best interest in mind," he shrugged as if he was believing his ridiculous 'logic.' "I'd really let you travel in an ambulance so you can sleep more comfortably."
Oh, my goodness.
"Also, aren't we on a mission for revenge?" he tilted his head to the side, fluttering his eyelashes coquettishly. "Missing this appointment will be one of the biggest regrets you'll ever have."
"Compared to your questionable behavior, I don't think so." Fil clicked her tongue while his smile stretched even wider. "What makes you think I'd go with you after you crossed my boundaries? No way!"
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Fil closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she reopened her eyes, she glared at the man on the other side of the back seat.
"I'm not laughing." Jackson raised his hands in surrender. "I swear — I put my hand across my chest, I'm not."
Fil scoffed, shaking her head in dismay. After all that big talk she just made earlier, here she was, riding with the man who was trying to abduct her with an ambulance! Just because a hearse might make her panic!
"I hope embarrassing myself is worth it," she grumbled. "If not, I'm done with you."
"After this day, I'm sure you'll thank me for it."
Fil glanced at him and sighed one more time. "I hope so too," she whispered, setting her eyes on the window. "I really hope this day will end up with me thanking you."
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone