บท 2: There is No In-Between!

"Nngh..."

Shu Xian felt her head aching. She slowly opened her eyes, and the moment she did, she heard Wan Wan's bark, completely waking her up as she sat up abruptly.

"Wan Wan?"

The dog barked once and had already slobbered her face with licks, making Shu Xian giggle as she embraced her dog, tears escaping from her eyes.

"Oh, Wan Wan! I thought I'd lost you last night!"

As Shu Xian was cuddling her dog, at that same moment, she started scanning the room. She saw her university bag and, at the same time, her luggage.

She furrowed her brows when she noticed that she is inside an unfamiliar room, panic already rising from the girl.

"Where am I?"

Shu Xian stood up. The moment she did, she saw her slippers on the floor while her eyebrows connected, wondering why her slippers were out when she made sure that it was in her luggage.

It was as if someone prepared or fixed everything for her.

She wore her slippers, and then she slowly walked out the room, Wan Wan following her. The moment they went out, Shu Xian smelled the fried onions and garlic and heard the cracking of the eggs.

With the scent inviting, Shu Xian could not help but to go into the kitchen.

The moment she did, she saw a man in a suit frying eggs, Shu Xian hiding behind the door frame as she watched him put the eggs on the plate.

Remembering the event before she passed out last night, Shu Xian recalled that she saw a glimpse of a man saving her.

Could he be the one?

With the man turning his back, his eyes widened a bit when he surprisingly saw Shu Xian. He gave her a small smile as he put the plate of eggs on the table, gesturing her to come in and sit.

"Come and have breakfast."

"What?"

It was indeed awkward for Shu Xian to be invited by a stranger.

She scratched the back of her head, her brown hair hanging low as she gave her savior a small bow. When she raised her head, she was still standing in her place, her eyes cautious as she remembered that she is in a stranger's place.

"You're suspicious of me?"

The man then got another plate. He put one cup of rice on it, and then put it on the table, his warm gaze still on the girl that he saved.

"Eat. You must've been hungry."

Even though the man treated her nicely, Shu Xian didn't find the comfort to move. She reluctantly met the eyes of the man who saved her, opening her mouth to say something.

"Thank you for saving me last night," she thanked him first, "but I think I have to go," she added, touching Wan Wan as if to signal their departure.

The man raised a quizzical brow at her as he cocked his head to the side, a worried look plastered on his face.

"But your belongings are here, you know?"

"I'll take them."

"Do you have a place where you could stay? Based from the things that you had, I think you don't."

Shu Xian turned quiet when she heard what he said. Her lips then turned into a tight line as the man heaved a small smile, gesturing for her to sit down in front of him.

Her answer was already enough for him to know that Shu Xian is alone and that she doesn't have a place to stay.

"You were spunky. You're alone. You should not have attacked those men. Especially, you're a girl."

Shu Xian rolled her eyes at him as she felt that she was being scolded by a stranger. With him still motioning for her to come sit down, she hesitantly did so, her movements still stiff and cautious.

"I can't help it," she mumbled, almost in a whisper. "My dog, Wan Wan, is all I have," she added, the man slowly nodding as he now understood why she attacked them.

"Still. What if I wasn't jogging near the area? What could have happened to you?"

Shu Xian bit her lip. She nodded as the man slightly chuckled, handing her over chopsticks so she could start eating.

"Eat. Based on your belongings, you're a student?"

Shu Xian embarrassingly got the chopsticks from his hand, her movements still stiff as she kept her guard up.

But she had to admit that due to her hunger, she would want to shamelessly accept this man's offer…

"Y-yes..." Shu Xian looked at him, wanting to at least introduce herself to show respect. "My name is Shu Xian. I'm so sorry for the trouble," she said, the man smiling as he sipped his coffee.

"Nice to meet you, Shu Xian. The name's Pan An."

"Pan An…" Shu Xian mumbled, "Like Pan Yue, the prominent Chinese poet during the Western Jin dynasty?"

Pan An grinned at what Shu Xian had said. He nodded to acknowledge what she said then his expression turned serious when a question popped in his mind.

"If I may ask, Shu Xian…" Pan An trailed off as he got a toast and bit it, chewing before he spoke again, "Why were you at the park, and why do you have your luggage?"

"Oh..."

A nonchalant expression appeared on her face. She remembered that she was kicked out by her landlady when Pan An asked her a question.

She sighed as she told him what happened, thinking that it is okay to share this with her savior.

"I live on my own, and I also pay for my tuition. Without paying my rent for months, the landlady told me that I have to move out because she already accepted a tenant who is willing to pay."

"I see."

Pan An's lips turned into a tight line. He wanted to ask her about her parents, but he felt like it wasn't a good question to ask someone when she told him that she had been living on her own and paying for her tuition.

With her voice snappy as well, who would be comfortable to ask such a question?

After Shu Xian spoke, Pan An gave her a pink wallet, bulky as if it had a lot of money inside. Surprised, Shu Xian widened her eyes, looking at the wallet that was placed in front of her.

"What's this?"

"I got the money from those men. Did they take it from you?"

"No." Shu Xian shook her head, "I threw it at them at first because Wan Wan and I felt threatened."

Pan An sighed. He seriously looked at Shu Xian, his words surprising her as her mouth suddenly opened in shock.

"If you have no place to stay, then stay here with me until you could move out."

"What?" Shu Xian's eyes widened, not believing what she just heard. "I can't accept your offer. I know you saved me but we're both strangers."

Pan An shrugged, "Then how are you to pay for your tuition and rent at the same time if you were to look for a place, hmm? It was lucky that the landlady where you stayed at was kind, and you're lucky enough to meet a person who's willing to take you in."

Pan An was right. Shu Xian bit her lip as his words traveled in her mind. She then internally started weighing the pros and cons as Pan An waited for her decision while he was eating his breakfast.

If Shu Xian were to stay, she would earn money from her part-time job for her tuition, and Wan Wan would get to stay. If she was to decline Pan An's offer, then she would have to desperately make both ends meet for her and her pet to survive.

Shu Xian looked at Pan An. She really wanted to take up the offer since she is desperate to make both ends meet. However, with them being strangers, she somehow wanted to shamelessly ask him a question.

"You're not going to attack me… are you?" she asked, Pan An, blinking his eyes a few times as he leaned in closer, whispering:

"I am the serial killer they are looking for. But don't worry… I am a changed man. I want to make up to all of my sins and do great deeds."

Shu Xian's eyes widened, her mouth opening in surprise. "You… what?"

Seeing her reaction, Pan An laughed out loud. He shook his head as Shu Xian raised a brow at him, realizing that she was being teased by a stranger.

"I'm joking. I'm messing with you."

Shu Xian scoffed a bit, ignoring this irksome trait of his as she spoke, telling him what she has to offer.

"To not make it seem like I'm a freeloader, I could cook and do the chores of the house. It won't be a problem," she suggested, Pan An, nodding as he extended his hand to pat Wan Wan, who was near him.

"Then I'll leave the house in your care. The room where you slept is a vacant one, so it's yours."

"Thanks." Shu Xian nodded, still uncomfortable in moving around him as Pan An started looking at his watch.

"I have to go and head for work, then," he said, already standing up from his seat as he put on his blazer. "Don't forget to lock the house before you leave, alright? There's a spare key on the bowl near the door."

"Oh…"

As Pan An quickly left the house, Shu Xian stared at her breakfast with disbelief in her eyes.

The events that happened to her seemed to move up and down like a nightmarish roller coaster!

She was kicked out, she was almost assaulted, then she was saved by a stranger.

It hurt her pride to actually accept a stranger's offer out of whim but because of her desperation to at least make things better while she was being offered something, Shu Xian thought that she should take the opportunity.

She will make sure to repay him back one day…

With her eyes landing on the wall clock on the kitchen wall, her eyes widened as she remembered that the first day of the semester was today and that her first class starts in an hour!

"Oh no…" she mumbled, "I'm going to be late!"

With that, Shu Xian rushed a few bites of her breakfast. She then put the dishes on the sink and decided to wash them later when she got home.

She quickly went inside her room and had rushed to put on the clothes that she first got from her bag. She tied her brown wavy hair into a ponytail, and then she wore her jeans, removing her shirt from yesterday.

She put on a simple red tint on her lips, sprayed some light perfume on her that she got from her bag, then looked at herself one last time in the mirror as she groaned, talking to herself.

"After one event over the other, I always find myself being lucky or being unlucky! There is no in-between!"