On Valentine's Day, Niko told me he had to work overtime and wouldn't be coming home for lunch.
I stayed at home, where Niko usually came back to keep me company almost every noon.
Niko lied, he was going to accompany Skyla to pick out engagement rings.
His expression was earnest with a hint of regret. If I hadn't overheard the phone conversation, I would have trusted him completely.
I showed some signs of being wronged, which made him happy. He pinched my cheek and said, "Desi, wait for me."
After Niko left, I got dressed and followed behind him.
Niko locked the door, but it didn't matter—I knew how to pick locks.
I followed him to the luxury mall, where I saw Skyla get out of her fancy car and naturally put her arm around his.
Standing outside the store, through the clear glass, I saw Skyla choosing the ring while he sat on the leather sofa by the window with a cold expression, gently tapping his arm as if trying to brush off some dust. But when Skyla turned to look at him, he wore a loving smile.
I carefully approached the glass in front of him.
Niko's pupils widened instantly, his eyes filled with shock, surprise, and other complex emotions. He looked instinctively towards Skyla's position, but she had gone to another counter—a blind spot that obscured Niko's location from view.
I reached out and slowly drew a heart on the glass.
Niko's hand unconsciously pressed against the glass.
This was a game we often played in middle school.
Whenever winter came, I would playfully write on the glass, and Niko would call me childish, but he always joined in.
We stood on opposite sides of the glass, our palms touching, and I drew a crying face.
Niko wrote two words: "Go home."
I shook my head. Niko glanced in Skyla's direction, gritted his teeth, and stood up.
Then he walked out of the luxury store with long strides and, ignoring the stares of others on the crowded street, suddenly embraced me.
Warm breath hit my neck, and his voice was low and hoarse.
"Go home, I'm coming right back."
While Niko hugged me, I saw Skyla emerge from the luxury store behind him.
Then, he abruptly pushed me away, and I quickly put on my mask and cap and left.
Within half an hour of my return, Niko rushed back home, looking weary.
This was certainly unexpected, an "accident."
But the accident surely planted a seed in his heart.
That evening, Niko placed an engagement ring on my ring finger. The ring featured a butterfly engraved with sparkling diamonds on its wings.
He put his ear to my chest to listen to my heartbeat.
He said, "I used to hate you, for not choosing me."
Listening to my heartbeat, he closed his eyes, his eyelashes long like butterfly wings.
"It turns out that it wasn't resentment, but love."
Niko called me a little rascal, and now he had a tough situation to deal with. He sped up the process of sending me abroad.
I'm certain Skyla saw me.
Once I'm released from prison, Skyla will definitely come after me again, she won't let me go.
In her mind, I once seduced her brother, stealing his affection, and now I'm shamelessly seducing her fiancé.
Skyla hired some people to kidnap me and send me overseas.
When the emperor yawns, someone immediately offers a pillow.
The person Skyla arranged to kidnap me was Mia James, whom I met in prison.
Later, I stopped getting beaten because I was with her.
I still remember the day before my release from prison, when Mia held my shoulders, her red lips as bright as roses.
She twirled a strand of my hair and said, "Desi, leave a bit earlier and wait for your sister."
Mia's men bound me and took me to the beach, where they awaited Skyla's inspection.
When Skyla saw me, she pinched my face and said, "Desirae, I've never seen someone so shameless.
"Do you really think Niko likes you? He's just playing with you—it's just a lingering infatuation from his youth.
"Since you like being toyed with, we'll send you abroad where you can have plenty of fun. That must be more excited."
She smiled sweetly, showing a cute expression.
I wasn't angry. I smiled and said, "Skyla, Niko has never touched you, has he?" That one sentence infuriated Skyla, and she pulled out a knife to slash my face.
The knife was snatched away by Mia's subordinate.
Skyla was disappointed and could only pinch my face and say something menacing.
I calculated the time, Niko should be arriving soon.
When Niko saw me being held captive, he nearly charged forward.
In the night, he moved as agilely as a black panther—no, a blue panther, because of me, he started wearing blue.
I jumped in front of him.
