The fading light of early evening crept through the trees that lined the Jitsaki forest path, casting shifting shadows across the ground. Every now and then, sunlight would sneak through the leaves, bathing the area in a soft gold before vanishing into darkness again. Even the gentle sound of night creatures waking for the evening added to the dreamlike feel of the place... it was quiet, peaceful... almost magical.
Jia was trying to follow Jae secretly in the forest. While Jae was moving quietly through the trees. She kept a safe distance, carefully avoiding any noise that would alert him to her presence. Despite her best efforts to remain hidden, she felt a pang of guilt as she followed him in secret but the curiosity was more than her guilt.
Suddenly sensing someone's presence Jae paused and glanced over his shoulder, making her quickly hide behind the tree. Scanning the whole place like a predator he was checking if someone else was really there or any animal. Not seeing anything he shrugged off the feeling and continued onward.
As she continued to follow him, Jia's mind was consumed with worry and curiosity. She wondered where he was going and what he was up to. She couldn't shake the feeling that there was more than she knew. There were many questions in her mind, like does he occasionally visit the same house where he lived in his childhood, about which she still doesn't know? Or does he do his mafia work here too, which is possible. But despite every possible and logical reason, her curiosity forced her to investigate it.
Suddenly, the sound of branches snapped under her foot echoed through the silent forest, she looked down towards her feet then at him in fear before immediately hiding. While hearing the noise Jae Immediately stopped and looked around, a look of suspicion on his face. He glanced around, his eyes were darting from tree to tree, trying to identify the source of the noise.
But just as quickly as the sound had startled him, Jae shrugged it off and turned back around, continuing on his way.
Jia held her breath as she flattened herself against a tree trunk, hoping that he hadn't seen her. She couldn't deny the pang of fear that had coursed through her veins, but she quickly brushed it off as she turned her head to resume her pursuit. She didn't know if he found out that she was following him in secret then what kind of reaction he would give.
But as soon as she turned he was nowhere, making her quickly look around the area in confusion and surprise. She came out of her hiding position to check it properly but he had really disappeared, shocking her.
However, she didn't give up, she moved ahead. Passing through the long trees of the forest, there were many paths in front of her, but trusting her gut feeling she chose one of those paths and started moving ahead with curiosity in her mind and a determination to find him.
She kept moving forward without stopping, sometimes running and sometimes walking. Her eyes were alert to the forest environment around her.
It was taking a lot of time to reach her in any destination, almost an hour as now she was feeling tired. But finally, after walking a little more, she saw something that left her completely surprised.
There was a big, extravagant mansion surrounded by huge walls and asphalt ground with a beautiful boundary, her heart began to race. She could see the grand double doors of the mansion closed, guarded by a couple of stern-looking security guards.
Her mind was racing with questions, wondering who owns such a luxurious and huge mansion near this forest? And is it possible this is Jae's house? She held her position behind a thick bush just outside the mansion, battling in her mind whether she should go in front of the guards or not.
Looking intently towards the mansion and the security guards, she finally decided to go, she knew that her curiosity could put her life at risk, but she wasn't backing down.
Just as she moved to step out from the bushes, a rustling sound sent panic shooting through her, and then thud—a leafy branch tumbled down onto her head.
Her scream pierced the quiet forest, convinced some creature had pounced on her. She flailed wildly, arms batting at the harmless leaves tangled in her hair while stumbling blindly forward, only to lurch directly into the view of guards, making them alert.
But Jia was still too busy fighting off phantom claws to notice them staring at her. "Get it OFF! GET IT OFFF—!"
One guard swiftly reached her, plucking the branch away with a swift motion. She let out a shaky exhale, closing her eyes, one hand clutching her chest as she realised it was just a branch of tree, the fear slowly began to fade.
But the moment her eyes flickered back open... her stomach dropped. Two more pairs of eyes were trained firmly on her, with a straight expression.
She gulped, anxiety crawling up her spine as she clasped her hands together, forcing an awkward chuckle. "Aha... Um—I was just passing by, really! Got lost and stumbled upon this place..." Her gaze darted around nervously before landing back on the guard. "I don't know who you people are but this mansion looks quite majestic—w-who owns it, anyway?"
The guard didn't react at first. Just stared at her with that unreadable, stone-faced silence stretching between them until she wanted to shrivel up from sheer embarrassment. But the next thing she heard from the guard made her shocked and bewildered.
"You may go in, you are allowed by King Jitoku himself." His impassive tone words rang in her ear as she was looking at him in doubt and surprise.
"....Can I really go in? And does that mean, this mansion is Jae's?" She asked to confirm while the guard nodded affirmatively. And she looked intensely toward the huge door and the wall of the mansion.
""""""
Jae was standing facing a grand hallway with a massive door at its centre. The door was ornate, intricately carved, and adorned with symbols of wealth and status. He felt a strange mixture of emotions, remembering the rule that he himself had established years ago - no one was allowed to enter this room. But now, for reasons even he wasn't fully aware of, he had decided to go against his own rule and enter the room.
As he stood in front of the door, he couldn't help but feel a pang of extreme sadness and nostalgia. He thought back to the time that how he had sealed the room shut, trying to lock away the pain but in the present he realised that his tries weren't successful or he himself never allowed his years-old tries to be successful.
He clutched the key tightly in his hand, feeling the cool metal against his skin as he mustered up the courage to open the door. He could feel his heart racing and his palms sweating as he wondered what lay beyond the door after years, what secrets were hidden within which he never explored. He took a deep breath, before slowly inserting the key into the lock and turning it and after hesitating, placing his palm on the door.
The door creaked open slowly, making the sound and revealing a dimly lit room beyond. Dust particles danced in the air, illuminated by the sparse evening sunlight that crept in through the cracks in the curtains of the balcony and windows.
As Jae stepped inside, he was immediately hit with a wave of nostalgia - the old familiar smell of the room, the furniture scattered around, the memories that came back rushing to his mind.
He took a few steps further into the room, his legs were trembling, his eyes scanning the surroundings. It was like stepping back in time - the room was exactly how he had left it, a time capsule frozen in the past.
He walked over to the bed and sank down onto it, the springs creaking under his weight. He ran his hand over the sheets, feeling the material between his fingers with a heavy heart. He looked around the room once more, his eyes falling on the items that still lay scattered around. A book half-read, a shirt hung over a chair, a pair of shoes kicked off in a corner. These everyday objects now seemed to hold a certain reverential aura, like relics of a lost time.
His mind was filled with a jumble of emotions - sadness, extreme pain, regret, nostalgia, and guilt.
He stared at the empty bed again, he was breathing very deeply as if he was trying to suppress his tears which had not yet reached his eyes. He had come here hoping to find some closure of something, but all he found was a cold, empty space where a once-warm atmosphere used to be. He sat there for what felt like an eternity, lost in thought.
Then finally, he got up from the bed and slowly moved his steps towards the balcony. He stopped just before the balcony door, overcome with emotions as he slid the curtain, now the room filled with light streaming due to curtain removal and revealing the dust stirred up by its movement.
His hands were shaking as he grabbed the balcony door, and he opened it with a quick and eager gesture. As soon as he opened and took the sight inside, the memories of the past came flooding back, causing him to feel overwhelmed. He started to breathe rapidly, his chest heaving with each laboured breath. However, he lacked the courage to enter the balcony. Instead he stepped back immediately and moved towards the desk that had a half-open book and tried to compose himself.
Then he looked at the book before holding it in his hands and lightly caressing its cover page. The book was 'Man's Search For Meaning' by Viktor Frankl.
He kept standing there, lost in his memories when suddenly his eyes fell on a folded paper which was kept on the edge of the desk under a heavy object, but something of the kind that no one could see easily. However, perhaps it was not difficult for him to see such a hidden thing.
He immediately put down the book and quickly removed that heavy object and picked up that paper before unfolding it. That paper looked like some kind of letter but as soon as he started reading the words written on it, he was completely stunned. He couldn't believe what he was reading, his hands started shaking and there was an expression of disbelief and shock on his face.
Processing the words written on it in his mind, he quickly ran out of the room, clutching the paper in his hand.
••••••
Jae knelt on the soft earth, his hands immediately buried deep in the cool soil desperately. The tree towering above him was like a shield, and the peaceful sounds of the huge backyard of the mansion around him was trying to calm his racing heart.
But despite the tranquil atmosphere, Jae was anything but calm. As he kept digging hurriedly and desperately, his mind flooded with a mix of nostalgia and sadness, and his heart felt heavy and more heavy. With each scoop of earth he removed, he prayed that he would find what he was looking for. As the hole grew deeper, Jae's mind raced with memories and questions.
With a final effort, he finally revealed a big metal box on the hole. He was breathing heavily and he pulled out the metal box. His heart raced as he held it in his hands, a mix of anticipation and anxiety stirring within him. He wiped away the dirt and opened the box, revealing some folded pieces of paper. But he frowned when he noticed something else other than papers.
There was a Dictaphone but as far as he remembered, this thing shouldn't have been here. However, he felt 1% relief as he was already expecting something here. Trembling with anticipation, he picked up the dictaphone before putting the box down on the ground. He took a deep breath through his trembling lips before pressing the play button on the Dictaphone.
The moment the dictaphone was turned on, a smooth, resonant male voice filled the air, rich and magnetic, effortlessly commanding attention. The sheer warmth of it wrapped around Jae like velvet.
Jae's body went rigid, then collapsed inward as if struck by an invisible force. His breath caught violently in his chest, his pulse stuttered to a stop before roaring back to life at twice its usual pace. Every muscle in him locked tight, not in fear or anger, but something far deeper… far more devastating.
"Oh hey everyone! How are you all? Do you miss me, hm?" A chuckle, light and warm. "I too miss you all a lot..."
A pause, playful yet weighted.
"If you're hearing this... then years must've passed already." The tone softened slightly. "I hope you're all successful now... especially sister—bet she has a baby by now!" A laugh again. "Tell me… do fistfights still happen? They do, don't they? Good. Hmm…"
Another beat of silence, almost deliberate.
"...Let me come to the point. That you all are very close to my heart and don't worry, I am very happy here. Now don't even dare to be sad over my happiness.." The command was firm yet fond before shifting to that confidence only he could pull off so effortlessly. "And whatever happened to me happened as per my wish. Do you people think that anyone can do anything to me? I am Invincible... right?"
"Okay, enough praising for myself!" A chuckle, bright and unapologetic. "Now... I need to speak to Martin alone. So the rest of you?" Dramatic pause. "—Shhh! Shhh! Go away quietly, no eavesdropping!"
Another deliberate hush of silence before the voice softened into something intimately fond.
"...Hmm, they're gone now? Good." A breath, lighter this time. "So…Martin… How are you? Are you happy?" The question lingered in the air like a plea disguised as demand. "You better be. And if not? Fix that quietly. Understood?... Well….Can I tell you something?" A pause. "Every moment with you was very special… . Now I can't say more words to explain that because I know you feel the same as me so you already know."
"By the way… I don't want to say this." A quiet laugh, half-hesitant. "It'll sound strange, but when you come to me here? I'll introduce you to the many fairies. Real ones." The words dripped with childlike wonder. "Well it reminds me whether you found your Fairy?...If you have… then listen carefully. Keep her safe like a queen. Cherish her like a child loved for the first time." His voice dropped lower, rougher at the edges now. "—Love her like she's your own heartbeat. And Martin? That would make me happier than anything else."
Silence stretched again before his tone shifted abruptly back to levity, but it rang hollow this time. "Last question now, no more after this." A beat of hesitation so faint it might've been imagined. "...Are you at peace?"
The dictaphone turned off automatically as the recording ended there. And a deep sense of melancholy washed over Jae. He could feel his heart cracking, the pain of loss crashing through his soul. He was staring at the Dictaphone in his hand as he felt drained, emotionally and physically. The simple act of uncovering the box had brought forth a tide of memories, emotions and revealed some deep secret that had completely overwhelmed him.
"No…no…." Jae's voice cracked and the dictaphone fell from his hands as he placed his one hand on the trunk of the tree while another one on his forehead and eyes to control his tears which was now eventually dropping.
"He didn't just die but was martyred." His sobs were echoing all over the place, he grabbed his front hair in helplessness.
From his eyes, it wasn't just the drop of water but extreme pain-filled tears were coming out which were causing pain to his soul as well.
""""""
As guards opened the door for Jia, her heart skipped a beat. The sight that met her eyes was beyond anything she had imagined. The mansion was grand and opulent, she was immediately struck by the grandeur of the place. The high ceilings, intricate decorations, and luxurious furnishings all spoke of opulence and wealth, and she couldn't help feeling awestruck by the beauty of the surroundings.
But as she continued to survey the surroundings, she noticed that there were no other people in sight, just servants and guards moving around discreetly in the background. As she made her way through the different rooms of the mansion, she was thinking that this is the place where Jae would usually come.
While the servants and guards were respectful and kept their distance, giving her a sense of privacy and seclusion. She couldn't help but feel a bit lonely and isolated, but there was also a sense of excitement and anticipation about the unknown.
Finally, after exploring most of the mansion, she found herself standing in front of a door that led out to the terrace. As she stepped out onto the terrace, she was taken aback by the breathtaking view of the surroundings. It was like a scene straight out of a movie, with the forest surroundings and the time of the sunset adding to the air of mystery and romance.
As she took in the view, she suddenly caught sight of Jae sitting at the edge of the terrace, his legs dangling over the side. His appearance looked lost in thought, his back was facing her as his gaze fixed on the horizon.
Her heart fluttered as she watched him, feeling a mix of affection, desire and curiosity. She slowly made her way towards him, her footsteps heavy with anticipation. As she approached, he immediately sensed her presence behind him. But he didn't react nor bothered to look at her.
Jia took a deep breath before climbing to the edge and sat down next to him carefully, their thighs touching lightly. She could sense the weight of the unspoken words between them. She had an Idea that there were so many emotions and secrets that he was hiding.
They both gazed out into the distance of the long trees of the forest. No one was uttering a single word. Suddenly she noticed the dictaphone and a folded paper placed next to him.
Without his consent, she extended her hand towards the folded paper and picked it up before looking at his face. He didn't react, didn't even flinch, his gaze fixed on the horizon where the dying sun painted streaks of amber and gold between the towering trees surrounding his estate.
Hesitant but unable to resist, she unfolded the paper carefully, her lips forming each word silently as her eyes traced the ink. With every line read, something cold coiled in her chest, confusion spiraled into something sharper, heavier.
"Jae listen to me carefully, my son! You go very far away from here and never come back. You know about the omnipotent mafia group, right? They gave your father two options to complete their revenge. The first option was you and the second option was all the children of our family, and whichever option your father chooses, whoever is in that option, those people will not do anything to them, and whoever is in the second option, they will be killed. And your father has chosen you. But I don't trust the omnipotent because they can't spare anyone for their revenge. So son, you are too special for me, please go away from here, I will make arrangements for you to stay, but please don't come back here, if you want then you can keep Jay Martin as well with you. But Jae, you go from here, your mother loves you very much."
Whatever Jia was able to understand by reading the words written on that paper was that it was something very deep where a war was drawn between a life which was very precious to everyone and the lives of others children. And some such relationships which were selfish and focused only on saving their loved ones. Seeing the yellowish colour and decreased strength of the paper, she understood that the words written on it were many years old.
She wanted to know more deeply about what happened to Jae in the past. And every moment she was spending with him in the present was making the cruelty done by him on her disappear, because she already had love for him in her heart but now she wanted to have his pain as well.
She was about to fold the paper back with a deep breath when a strong wind blew and the paper slipped from her soft hands and started flying into the distant sky with the wind, making her immediately forward her hand to catch it in apprehension but failed. She immediately looked at him and saw there was still no expression on his face but his eyes, which were clearly reflecting his empty soul at that moment, were still focused on the late evening sky.
Seeing his no reaction, she looked down at her lap before dragging herself closer to him and wrapping her hands around his arm, putting her head on his shoulder. Both of them sat there silently; a silence that wasn't saying anything but was still audible.
"I never left you."
Jia's sudden voice broke their silence as she spoke in a slow and low voice. His eyes moved to the side but not directly at her.
"At the age of eight, I had happiness along with all the necessary things to live a perfect life, but I didn't realise how my happiness was taken away. Everything happened suddenly."
Realising that she was talking about her past, he again started looking into the distant sky, fully prepared to listen to her words. His ears and mind were completely open to take in her words.
"My mom Hana had just one-year-old adopted son Liam when her husband died. They had an adopted son because my mom's husband could never father children.... . So when her husband died, to give a good life to her younger son, she married my dad Jongsu who was single. My dad was a gangster and he was from Korea but he worked under a huge mafia organisation in Japan. He hid this from my mom before the marriage because he loved my mom very much and was afraid that he might lose her."
"But after the marriage, when my elder sister Aera was born, mom came to know about his truth. And she ran away with both her children. After two years of continuous efforts, he found them back and tried his best to make everything right between them…... After staying away from his wife and children for two years, he was in a lot of pain and after he got them back, he got the peace he needed." Jia paused with a bitter smile before continuing.
"When I was born, it was as if I was born with a golden spoon; I had everything, whatever I asked for, I got it. And in the meantime my dad came to know about my maternal grandparents who, like him, worked under the same mafia organisation and that is why my mom didn't live with her parents as she wanted a peaceful life. But when my maternal grandparents died, my mom felt guilty that she didn't spend enough happy moments with her parents which she should have spent. And then she decided that she would often visit her dead parents' house.….We were all living a pretty good life. But then it all ended—."
She paused and let out a shaky breath, tightening her grip on his arm. As she was narrating it, she felt as if she was re-living the scenes that were causing her pain.
"At the age of eight, my mom and dad were shot dead in front of my eyes here, in my maternal grandparents' house." Jia bit her lips to control her emotions. "I–I didn't know who the people were, who killed them and why but since my dad was a gangster, he had a lot of enemies. Those people wanted to kill me too but before that could happen, my mom's best friend Mia shot them dead in front of my eyes.That was a very scary scene from which I still haven't been able to recover. My step brother Liam was saved because he was in Korea, but my sister had been missing since that day."
"From that day on, Aunt Mia took my mother's place and became Kang Mia. She decided that I would never come back to Japan where my life was in greater danger.... . Never coming to Japan meant never meeting you, I didn't have the courage to face you for the last time, so I just left a note of goodbye forever for you. I was not from here but it was difficult for me to leave whatever was mine here." Jia chuckled in pain.
"Later, aunty told me that my sister had died. My last hope of being with my family was also shattered. Liam was also separated from me and there was no love left between us like brother and sister. I don't know why but he started hating me, maybe he didn't like the fact that how did I escape death from where our parents died. From here I was taken not to Korea but to Italy. My ten years passed there and I completed my high school there. There I met Sarah and Samuel as well. Sarah came into my strange life like the definition of love, happiness, comfort; whatever I had was Sarah and even now she is the same. After completing high school I was finally brought back to Korea."
"Aunt Mia has done me a great favour, the way she saved me and took care of my dad's business in Korea. But as I grew up, I started feeling suffocated because my life was not in my hands, Aunt Mia was taking every decision of my life .... . I never wanted to become an actress but aunty wanted me to become one ... .I call her mom and she loves me too, but I don't know why I don't feel the warmth in her love which I need." Jia shakily inhaled a deep breath.
"My life was not worth living. I had no reason to live. But then, I felt I was alive only to repay aunty's favour. I thought of committing suicide many times, then I remembered that I shouldn't kill the life which aunty saved by making herself a murderer. But then every day started feeling like my last day. I felt like whatever moment I am alive in, I am alive in that very moment and that moment is my last. This feeling made me yearn to meet you. Two years ago I tried to find you but I didn't have that much authority to find you."
Jia scoffed. "Is my life even mine? Because Aunty is taking care of everything." She paused. "It was only a year ago that I learned from Liam that my sister was alive and that he knew who and where she was. But to reveal it, he made a deal with me, a deal which would be disgusting among any brother and sister, which made me hate him to death. However, I accepted that deal only for my sister…I was selfish here, I accepted the deal but I was not going to work on it. But in this case I was lucky that he didn't get what he wanted from me but when you shot him, he gave me what I wanted and then he died." Jia paused again before continuing.
"Yes, Myung is Liam. His last words were that my sister is none other than Bella. I still can't believe that my sister was with me for the whole two years and I didn't even know it. I am longing to meet her very much." Saying all these words, she closed her eyes, letting the silent tears roll down her cheeks, before opening it again.
"How strange is this life?" Her voice was quiet, threaded with something between resignation and weary wonder. "No one knows when—or what
—secrets it will reveal." A bitter laugh slipped out as she stared at nothing in particular.
"Life gives you... a thousand reasons to die," she murmured. "...But only a handful of reasons worth living for. Right now? I found one. A reason to keep going… but there's still something missing. Like life isn't just about breathing… but meant for some grander purpose I can't even name yet." Her lips twitched into that same joyless smile again, practiced enough that it almost looked real if not for the tremor beneath it all.
"...And this is the reason that though at present I have a reason and a lot of people around me whom I love but still life seems meaningless.…" She exhaled sharply through her nose, trying to stop her tears but failed.
"But what can one do, this life will end one day no matter how much one runs after happiness or painkillers." Her words petered out, leaving nothing but a heavy silence… and the subtle sound of quiet sobbing as tears continued to trace down her cheeks.
Jae didn't say anything. Didn't even look at her. But his arm encircled her shoulders, tight and warm and gentle all at once, as if telling her he was there, letting her cry without an ounce of judgement.
She could almost feel the pain ebbing away, replaced by the strange, bittersweet warmth of having bared her soul to someone unflinchingly.
Both of them were sailing in the same boat of pain; one tried to share his pain and the other still kept his door closed.
The evening sky had now turned dark, calling the night. The moon had made its place in the dark sky, the stars had begun to awaken. The night breeze was touching their skin as they kept sitting together on the edge of the terrace for a long time and had included the time in their pain and silence.
●◇◇◇◇◇◇●
Jia leaned back against the headboard of the bed, a quiet contentment in her posture as morning sunlight streamed through the window. She was very happy to get her phone back which Jae had kept with him for many days and it was not returned to her even when she asked for it. But now when she got her phone back, her fingers moved eagerly across the screen, checking notifications, scrolling through messages, refreshing apps she hadn't accessed in days.
"It was too much, I couldn't pass time without the phone." A hint of complaint laced her voice, but the underlying excitement was impossible to miss as she navigated her phone. She opened the Crunchyroll app, and an eager smile spread across her face as she found the anime she'd been waiting for.
"I was so eager to watch the next episodes, I haven't been able to watch any anime since meeting Jae," she confessed, a slight pout to her lips. "But now I'm feeling relieved." She clicked on episode 25 of Season 1 of a popular anime series named Spy x Family.
Adjusting herself comfortably against the pillows, she settled in to enjoy the show with a quiet, blissful contentment.
As she was watching, the scene of Male protagonist Agent Twilight came in which he was in disguise. And she didn't know why, as soon as she saw him, his name started ringing in her mind. Loid Forger~~.
Suddenly something hit her mind and she immediately paused the video before looking forward to nothing in particular, trying to connect the dots of something with a shocked, suspicious and bewildered look.
"Forger?" The word fell from her lips in a hushed whisper, tinged with disbelief. Her head shook in a fierce denial, her brows furrowing as a myriad of warring emotions played across her face. "No, this can't be right…" Doubts and questions tumbled through her mind, her voice a quiet murmur to herself. "What I'm thinking can't be right... but it's not impossible either...I still don't remember at all whether I signed those papers, so can that be possible?"
Her hands let go of her phone, the device sinking quietly onto the sheets. "No, it is not possible. Instead this is the truth. I can't believe he can do this…no, no, why can't I believe it? Rather he can do this."
As she tried to comprehend further, she remembered something strange about the signature at the bottom of the contract of her being a slave of Jae. It looked distinctly different from her own handwriting. Her mind began to race, trying to make sense of what her mind was saying to her. Her heart raced with a mixture of anger and disbelief as she realised the truth: Jae had used a forger artist to create a copy of her signature, tricking her into thinking she had signed the contract with her own hands.
She felt a mix of hurt and frustration, realising that why Jae always tries to make her remember that she was his slave. But he actually manipulated her own signature and forced her into a situation to believe him without her consent. She felt angry, hurt, and confused, wondering how she had missed the signs all this time.
As she sat there, staring at nothing in particular, part of her wanted to confront Jae right away calmly, but another part of her wanted to show her anger on him.
And she immediately got down from the bed and hurriedly ran out of the room to go to Jae.
••••••
The villa's private gym was a spacious room with high ceilings and natural light streaming in from the large windows. The walls were lined with various workout equipment, including free weights, resistance bands, and a punching bag. There was also a boxing ring in the centre of the room. The room's floor was covered in a thick, padded mat for safety. In the corner, there was a water dispenser and some towels.
The air was heavy with the smell of sweat and determination. The only sounds were the grunts from Jae's workout and the loud thuds of his fist hitting the punching bag without gloves. He was only in black board shorts while his other body parts were on display. Despite the intense workout, there was a focused and peaceful atmosphere in the room that allowed Jae to clear his mind and concentrate on his practising.
As Jia entered the room, the energy in the air shifted immediately. Her footsteps echoed through the room as she was coming towards him aggressively before standing right behind him.
While his movements increased, sensing her presence. But despite his attempts to focus on his workout, he could feel her eyes on him, burning into his back. He tried to ignore her, but the next words escaped from her mouth echoed in his ears, reminding him of the truth he had tried to hide for so long.
"Did you use a forger artist to copy my signature on the contract? And forced me to believe that I signed them because of which you made me your slave." Her voice was laced with anger and hurt.
He continued to punch the bag. The sound of his fist hitting the bag became louder and louder, a reflection of the turmoil he felt inside that how she came to know about it.
"I asked something!" The seriousness and rage were audible in her tone.
While he was punching the punching bag so hard that the bag was swaying and vibrating with the intensity of his punches, each one landing with a loud thud. Suddenly, with one particularly powerful punch, the punching bag burst open, sending sand and pieces of material flying in all directions. The sound of the bag tearing apart was loud and sharp, echoing through the room like a gunshot. Hearing that, Jia flinched.
She was shocked at the outburst. She glanced up at the ceiling with her slow eyes, where the remnants of the punching bag remained suspended, attached to the ceiling by a frayed cord. She looked around the room, surveying the mess he had caused, the area of the punching bag was now in disarray, with sand and shreds of material covering the floor and scattered around the room.
She clenched her fist, feeling a mixture of anger and frustration. There was a stunned silence in the air, broken only by Jae's heavy breathing, his back still facing her.
"You can't always bury my questions by showing your anger." Her voice was sharp, as she stepped right in front of him and without hesitation, shoved him hard, both palms against his chest, sending him stumbling back a step. His eyes darkened with fury and disbelief, but before he could react, she struck again.
"ANSWER ME!"
This time, when her hand slammed against him, he didn't budge. Not an inch.
"What difference does it matter now?"
Jia's anger boiled over at his response. "IT DOES MATTER!!" Her voice ripped through the air, raw and furious. "I never signed those damn papers—and you knew it! Even though it is good that the contract was false. But you tricked me, using a forger to forge my signature. You manipulated me into becoming your slave against my will!" The word tore from her throat like glass, each syllable heavy with betrayal and disgust.
"THE MOMENT YOU MADE ME YOUR SLAVE, I FELT SUFFOCATED! SO IT DOES MATTER!!" Her raised anger voice and the sight of her hurt and rageful eyes were making him feel a little bit guilty which he immediately hid as his expression was of furious because of her behaviour and disrespectful manner.
He took a step closer, towering over her while intimidating her. "So what do you want now? Should I apologise to you?"
She held his gaze defiantly, chin lifted in challenge. "Are you having to think about it?"
Silence stretched between them—heavy, suffocating. He just stared back, unflinching, giving her nothing but that infuriating calm of his.
Her temper flared hotter at his ego, at his stubborn refusal to speak.
"Fine," she snapped suddenly, stepping back. "Stay trapped in your damn ego then." Without waiting for a reply, she turned on her heel and stormed out of the room, leaving him standing there alone.
He dragged a hand through his hair with rough frustration before growling under his breath.
"...How the hell did she even find out?"
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