Love Began with the First Meeting

"This is James Leng speaking. Who's on the line?" The voice that came through on the phone sounded as warm as the sounds of nature, but it stabbed into Ximena's heart violently like a piece of pointed ice, sharp and cold.

Her hand, in which the cellphone was held, was even trembling, while her throat was tight. Hearing his voice, which she had once been very familiar with, she felt her nose ache all of a sudden.

Hearing no answer on the phone, James frowned slightly and put down the scissors, which he was holding in his hand at that moment. In confusion, he asked again, "Excuse me... Who do you want to speak to?"

Hearing his voice again, Ximena's eyes turned red in an instant. She raised her head to prevent herself from shedding tears. Otherwise, she would feel she was too coward.

"Ximena? Is this you?" Out of nowhere, James guessed. While he looked at the potted plant he had just clipped, wild sadness spilled over his eyes. He could feel the unhappiness under the silence of the person on the other end of the phone. He opened his mouth slightly several times, intending to comfort her or ask her what had happened. The words were about to spill over his throat. However, what Aaron had said to him in the hospital previously kept resounding in his ears.

'James, she no longer has any relationship with you. Don't show your care for her and never come to bother her, unless you want her to go on feeling painful.'

With Aaron's words rolling in his mind, James closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and tightened his grip on the cellphone, so as to vent the bitterness in his heart. After a while, he had calmed down, in an indifferent tone, he asked, "It's so late now. Do you have anything to say to me?"

Hearing his plain and distant voice, Ximena felt her heart was shattered. All of a sudden, she felt that calling him was a ridiculous move. Regardless of the reason, she had become Aaron's commodity and she had no reason at all to be attached with James, that's Aaron's self-explanatory rule. With such an identity, how could she seek comfort from James? Besides, he no longer cared about the mutual understanding they had made under the sky in that romantic night several years ago, did he? "James..." feeling parched, Ximena opened her mouth. She opened her eyes wide in order to prevent herself from showing her sadness, even though the person on the other end of the phone could not see that. Taking a deep breath silently, she said slowly, "The jade seal is missing!"

Hearing that, James opened his eyes. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"I'm sorry," Taking a deep breath, Ximena tried her best to make her voice sound calm. "I always want to find an opportunity to give it back to you, but it happens that I've lost it because of my greed."

"You need not say sorry to me," James said with an expression of bitterness at the corners of his mouth. A moment ago, he had thought about how to hold it off to her. However, hearing what she had said, he found that perhaps she had not taken the past between the two of them to heart since the day he had turned his back on her. "In fact, when I gave it to you, I had no intentions of taking it back. Something without significance or function would only be an ornament to me; it's yours, and you can feel free to toss it away," he said. Hearing that, Ximena's heart hurt seemed to lurch out from her chest and the corners of her mouth twitched. Trying to wear a smile on her lips, she said in an indifferent tone, "If that is true, it could not be better." She paused and let out a breath of relief, yet deep inside she was shattered. "Then I'm not bothering you any longer. Bye," she said in a relaxed tone as if she didn't care a scrap about his attitude.

Without waiting for James' response, she hung up the phone as quickly as she could, just like a careless bitch, no buts, ifs and false hopes. Feeling even more desolate this time, she placed her face between her legs again. A bitter smile appeared at the corners of her mouth. Gradually, two streams of hot moist tears slid across her cheeks.

She was alone. She had always been alone.

Why had she excessively hoped James would come back to her?

Why did she expect something from Aaron?

Why had she wanted to keep that baby?

When there had been nobody else but herself in her heart, she had never felt so lonely. She knew clearly it was exactly because she had let them enter her heart and hoped that they would love her and care for her. But now she was left with all her whys. All she could do was ask herself, why did she let them touch her heart? Why?

Ximena had been through many types of sadness before, but this time, this was the saddest part of her life. She was so sad that she wished she was dead by now.

In the dark office in which there was only a table lamp on that gave out a warm light, Aaron was alone. The night was chilly and the lamp, however, could not light up an overcast life or a gloomy heart.

With a downcast look, Aaron gazed at the jade seal of the Leng Family in his hands. He had picked it up from the gap between the seats in the car when Ken had picked him up after sending Ximena to the villa. He knew that she had treasured the jade seal all this time. Even after she had ended her relationship with James, she had always taken it with her as a memoir of him.

Thinking of that, a glimmer of jealousy slid across his eyes. As he tightened his grip on the jade seal, its edge sank into the palm of his hand, making him feel a little painful. He had once thought of starting a family with a woman who had been thought of escaping from him day and night, who dared go against him and had said that he was dirty. How ridiculous and pathetic he was, thinking all this time that she loved him. But in fact, she was thinking of another man while she was in his arms. With these thoughts in his mind, his eyes were filled with fury. Gradually, the fury was replaced by some complicated emotions.

Slowly releasing his grip on the jade seal and unfolding his hand, he said, "Ken."

"Your Highness," sensing his anger, Ken answered while walking to him. He took a slight glance at the jade seal in Aaron's hand.

Without lifting his gaze, Aaron looked intently at the jade seal in the palm of his hand. James had given it to her, and she had always taken it with her since then. Did it mean that she would never forget the times in her life when she had been together with James? "Grind it!" he ordered.

Hearing that, Ken opened his eyes wide in surprise, but soon he didn't argue and answered yes. Then he took over the jade seal, intending to carry out Aaron's order and dispose of it as soon as possible. "Wait a minute..."

Just as he was about to leave Aaron stopped him. 00000000000