Bab 95: Her Anger

December 21, 20XX (Friday)

Studio Near East Park- Downtown

Black cars surrounded the high rise but low-class condominium at downtown that had studio units and one-bedroom units only. The people outside of the building had looked at the 8th floor of the building had caught on fire, and the firefighters were busily blasting water to douse the raging flames that were spreading fast into the next rooms.

Zhao Yang together with Xue Chang Min had arrived the fastest amongst their friends that had the pin that Chang Min had made for their group specifically. When they arrived, the guard with the codename Tai, who was one of the Xue family's trained people had carried Mei Li out of the building. Chang Min had wanted to carry his sister in his arms but was pushed aside when Yang had forcefully taken the woman from Tai's arms and princess carrying her as if she weighed nothing.

"She was probably drugged. She had not responded to being carried while running down the stairs." Tai said after shifting nervously for a while. The fury that was written on the two CEO's faces was scary enough to make him want to hide under a rock for his whole life. Chang Min had a hand inside his suit, which Tai knows where a gun was hidden. He felt as if the CEO would murder him any second. Tai was happy to notice that the rest of the two CEO's friends had arrived. Guard Tai signaled Dr. Zhang Li Xi with his eyes to the woman in Yang's arms that was sleeping as if nothing was happening around her.

"Do you have an antidote?!"Yang demanded loudly with Xue Chang Min blatantly pointing at Mei Li as he stared at Dr. Zhang Li Xi.

The world-renowned doctor had hurried to check on Mei Li; he saw her chest rising and falling as she breathed; that alone was proof that she wasn't going anywhere, "She'll wake up! It's probably a sleeping pill grounded into fine powder. She might not have noticed it so it might be just a small amount. She'll wake up soon."

Dr. Zhang Li Xi stared straight into Yang's eye, "I'll check her lungs more thoroughly with the proper equipment soon. She is sure to have inhaled dangerous smoke. Bring her to the hospital as soon as possible."

Yang nodded and had turned to the guard that had brought Mei Li out; he spoke his command after pressing a small button on the lion pin that he always wore in his left breast pocket, "I want the person who had done this; tortured then killed. I want it done as soon as possible."

Yang knew that all of his guards would hear his commands so be turned his scary meter all the way up, " If you don't know who had done this then all four of your lives will be forfeit. You have 10 minutes to report to me here outside and 5 hours to investigate. Time starts now."

Yang's friends, Chang Min, and Dr. Zhang had stood on the side to support him as they too have received the distress signal from Mei Li's guards and had responded as fast as they could. Alexandre had called Ru Shi to inform her of the events and had stayed on the car to monitor the street cameras while looking for anyone suspicious together with Hao Chen. It was Hao Chen that noticed Mei Li's Ex's mom had been part of the crowd staring at the burning building with lips lifted and a large cellophane bag while between her pointer finger and middle finger was a pink cigarette.

Hao Chen and Li Alexandre looked at each other with a grin; most first time criminals are so easy to catch.

Meanwhile, Yang stared with fury as he watches Mei Li's studio condo being engulfed into flames. Moments later, the three other guards had arrived which he immediately sent away from his a sight as they had not fully protected Mei Li! They had fucked up and actually let the fire touch Mei Li's beautiful long hair! He fumed when he saw her hair again; what was longer than her waist had shortened to her neck and some pinkish second-degree burn littered the back of her small and fragile neck.

"Yang?" Mei Li finally woke up. The first thing she said was his name. Chang Min fumed in anger on the side.

"You're awake!" The anger in Yang's eyes vanished as he grinned her way. He didn't want to worry her nor did he want to make her remember the events that happened so fast.

But Mei Li's mind had immediately remembered her painting that had just arrived from Milan, "My painting.."

"You still worry about a blasted painting when your hair is burnt?!" Yang scoffed at the ridiculousness of her person. Her beautiful brown hair destroyed, and she had the gall to worry about anything else?

"painting... important... love it." Mei Li's voice cracked as she coughed again. Dr. Zhang Li Xi knew she needed her lungs to be checked out, fast!

Suddenly, the adrenaline rush that was in her system burnt out. She slumped into Yang's arms and cried. Her tears are flowing out from her eyes like a stream that had turned into a river because of a flood. She buried face on Yang's tuxedo and wailed like a baby. What she had just experienced was the scariest in all of her 26 years alive. She had been on death's door waiting for it to open and that was not something she does not want to repeat.

Yang could not take watching her sob her heart out. Her tears had always been his Achilles' heel. He had always turned putty in her hands when those little droplets of water stain her cheeks, "Here, " Yang deposited Mei Li to Chang Min's arms and said, "take care of her for a while.

The painter was horrified when Yang had doused himself with water, ruining his tuxedo and then running inside the building against the insistence of the firefighters for him to do the opposite.

"Yang! NO!" Mei Li called out as she watches his back disappearing from her sight.

"YANG!" Mei Li screamed his named raw.

"Stop him!!!" Mei Li tried to stand up, but Chang Min's grip on her had stopped her tries instantly.

"Big brother! Stop him please!" Mei Li changed her tactics and begged Chang Min who immediately shook his head.

Mei Li began to sob helpless and scared again while calling out to, "Yang!"

"Shhh, he'll be back." Chang Min and Dr. Zhang Li Xi tried to comfort her. Honestly, Chang Min did not worry about Yang at all; he knows how capable Yang was in these situations. He had trained himself with the worst case possible. This was just an adrenaline rush for the black market CEO.

Every second of waiting was torture to Mei Li yet at the same time she felt her strength slowly returning with every ticking of the clock. It had taken Yang more than 15 minutes to come back in a hurry with a disheveled face and a large painting in his hands.

Yang immediately gave the painting to Mei Li, "Here, the painting you-" "I told you to stop! It was an important painting but why would I sacrifice the original for a cheap copy of you!" Mei Li grabbed the painting and throw it to the side with so much force that the wooden frame, which was already worn down by the fire, crashed and was in pieces. Yang's eyes scanned the painting and his eyes widen when he saw himself on his favorite blue sweater that he had worn on the first day of their meeting in that old cafe in Paris.

Mei Li's face reddens in anger as she poked Yang's chest near his heart fiercely with her pointer finger, "Do you know how worried I was, you foolish man?!"

She smacked his left arm with the same hand that had poked him, "I liked the painting, but it doesn't compare to you! You are such a dumb person! I don't know why I like you!"

She poked him in his chest again with a snarl, "If you do something that foolish as to risk your life again, I will kill you myself! You stupid man! How can you even manage your companies when you don't even treasure yourself!"

Yang had stood still, dazed, confused, and in disbelief. He had not expected to be lectured for rescuing her favorite painting. Yang had not assumed that her favorite painting was a painting of himself. He had not expected the words that came out of her mouth. He had not expected her to say she likes him indirectly. Present tense, meaning she likes him now.

"If you died! Do you know how much I would suffer, huh?! I would bring you back to life and kill you my-hmm ahmm Haff" Mei Li's spouting mouth muffled while her eyes widen in disbelief.

Zhao Yang had taken action.

His hands held her two shoulders to stop her from moving needlessly as his lips occupied hers. The painter had awkwardly tried to continue her rant, but it had come out nonsense as the lips that meet hers moved to attack. His lips had smelled the same as hers, strawberry, and it is not chapped nor did it feel rough. It was smoother now; way smoother than before.

Her bare feet, that were seen by everyone, had begun to tiptoe while her toes had also started to curl. Yang did not just graze his lips to hers; he had wholly moved his lips to make war with hers. He even bit her lower lips and dragging it to separate from her upper lips. The stilled painter blushed as her eyes closed embarrassed at seeing Yang's blazing eyes. She thought that kissing always makes people close their eyes, but he didn't. Instead, his eyes bore into her soul as if their eyes too were making love with the passion burning between them.

Mei Li breathed through her nose as Yang licked her lips as it had started to bleed from the cruel bite he had done. She whimpered as his warm and wet tongue connected with her lower lips to lap at the small red blood that had gushed out. Her knees weakened when Yang had stopped to lean away and stare at her speechlessness and embarrassed red face. After a few seconds, he leaned closer again to trail soft and short kisses from her lips to her left ear and softly whispering, "I like you too so much."

The people at the side watched with awe as the CEO had been chastised and had been cruelly admonished, but at the same time, they watched with helplessness as they were forced to eat dog food.