novelA Fool
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626 A Fool
*Flashback*
"Don't forget you have shooting at 8 in the morning, " he heard his assistant's reminder and looked at the number changing as he stood in the elevator.
"It's 4 already. Why did you even send me back for rest?" His voice came out sharper than he was intending.
"Brother Han, it's not like I can control everything."
"Whatever!" he hurriedly hung up while rubbing his forehead to ease up the headache. He had just come back to An City on this very day and had been so busy since then. He knew his assistant couldn't control everything but tiredness was getting to his mood.
*Ding!*
He massaged his shoulder as he stepped out of the elevator and looked at room numbers to find his own. While doing so, a very unusual scene caught his attention. 𝚏𝑟𝑒𝑒we𝑏𝙣ov𝐞l - 🅽🅽novel
*Thud!*
"Fool!"
*Thud!*
"Why didn't you pour that hot tea back at her face?"
*Thud!*
"Why did you walk away like a fool?!"
He saw a girl standing before the wall as she was busy knocking her head against the wall and kept mumbling complaints. Although she said a lot of things, he could barely hear a couple of things.
'Mind your own business!' Han Bohai kept repeating in his mind as he found his room and rummaged out the key card.
*Thud!*
From right behind him, he still heard the same sound. The hotel had a very good reputation and he knew that this specific floor only had guests of certain status. That's why it was highly secure and private. He didn't have to care about some crazy fans coming here. But that meant the person behind him was actually a guest here.
His hand had just reached over to open the door of his room when he stopped to look behind at the girl who was still mumbling something incoherently.
'Bohai! You can't have this nosy nature of Sister Xiu! No! Not happening!' Even if he kept reminding himself that he didn't want to develop his Sister Xiu's kindness that could be poured on any passing being. He was still failing miserably.
"Just this once!" he told himself and turned around. As he walked up to the girl's side, he noticed a bandage around her hand and frowned. Cautiously poking her shoulder with his finger, he asked with a touch of concern that he himself didn't notice, "Excuse me, Miss! Are you alright?"
"Nice and dandy, just like stupid cotton candy!"
Han Bohai heard a crystal clear voice but there seemed to be a tinge of melancholic undertone to it. With her disheveled look, he'd like to disagree with that answer. Her hair wasn't tied, her clothes had creases as if she had just rolled out of bed.
"I'm looking for a way, " came the reply that made him frown. He could tell that she had something to drink. Staying with an alcoholic like his Sister Xiu, his nose had become super sensitive to alcohol. So even though the girl before him didn't have much to drink, he could still smell it clearly. However, her speech wasn't slurred, neither did she seem tipsy and if he didn't smell alcohol, he'd truly believe that she was sober.
Shaking his head, he said, "The door is over there. Why are you looking for a way here?"
The girl stopped and leaned her forehead on the wall as she said, "Who said I am I'm looking for a door?"
As she was about to bang her head against the wall again, he placed his palm on the wall to cushion her hit. Not feeling the desired impact, she whipped her head around to glare at him.
Han Bohai was stunned for a moment. No, not because she was beautiful or anything which she was by the way. That had definitely nothing to do with his flustered look. There were two things that made him stunned; one, he could recognize her. Two, her eyes were just as clear and glossy as her voice had been. There was no red blush on her face or a bleary look in her eyes. In fact, he was questioning whether she was drunk or not? Because earlier, he had come to the conclusion that this was just a drunk act. Now, he was in doubt.
As for how he recognized her... He had gone to a convention with his Uncle and had seen her there. Dr. Yan Ying... Since his uncle had made the trip just for her, he was quite interested in knowing about her identity as well. After all, his uncle had kept saying how amazing she was. He was also wondering what was great about her. And when she stood at the stage, he finally knew what was so amazing about her. She had that presence that made one feel mystified. Her scholar like elegance was all it took for him to actually notice her.
But now that he met her for the second time, he couldn't find the same person. Although the person was the same, the aura around her was gloomy.
"If you aren't looking for the door, then what are you looking for?" he finally found his voice.
She slowly slid down against the wall and sat down on the carpet in the hallway. Leaning her head against the wall, she answered, "As I said earlier, I'm looking for a way. Is it that difficult to understand?"
Han Bohai sighed tiredly as he looked around the hallway but found not a single soul in sight. Just as he expected. First, it was so damn late, and second, the floor couldn't have unauthorized personnel roaming around; not even the hotel staff was allowed unless they were called by the guests. He didn't even know which room was hers or if she was here alone or not.
Feeling his headache getting worse, he crouched down beside her and asked curiously, "Dr. Yan, can't you tell me what kind of way are you looking for? Or at least tell me which room is yours?"
Since he called her name, Ying's mind instantly associated him with someone she was familiar with. Don't get the wrong idea, she was still very drunk. She had no prior experience of getting drunk.
It was her first time she drank such strong alcohol. Why did she ask Cali for a recommendation? That was a very bad idea! A regular drinker like Cali would have her heavy taste in drinking. But she had to choose such a person as her drinking partner.
This was the same day when she had first met Xiu at the Qiu family house. The same day, Qiu Meihui had scalded her hand with hot tea. The same day, she felt so lonely for the first time in a long time that she chose to visit a bar which wasn't very much like her. After taking those three shots, she had no idea what happened. She obviously fainted and was brought to Cali's suite. But somehow when she woke up, she crawled out of the suite and started rebuking herself.
She could do it inside the suite but she didn't want to disturb Cali. Even in her drunken stupor, she could clearly hold on to her sanity which was remarkable because, from her mannerism, she definitely didn't seem like a drunk person.
The real reason she was beating herself up like this was not that she was upset about not being able to beat Qiu Meihui up when she poured the hot tea on her hand, the real reason was that she was angry at herself for actually resorting to drinking to look for some peace of mind. She couldn't accept the fact that she had actually turned into such a weak person who needed the support of alcohol to get over her gloom.
This wasn't the real her. She was a strong person and she would never choose to escape her worries. She liked to face everything head-on, not hide behind the haze of alcohol. That was something only a weak person would do.
"I'm looking for a way to ease the pain, " she mumbled in a soft voice. Han Bohai didn't think she'd speak after such a long silence."I'm looking for a way to delete some memories to ease that pain. I'm looking for a way to free myself."
*Flashback, to be Continued*
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