Forced by fate – Destined to be his Wife

The click of the door opening had her turn back with a bright welcoming smile, reaching for her sunglasses to cover her obvious tear inflicted puffiness. Expecting to see the receptionist returning with a tray and froze mid task when two suited familiar men strode in, faces in files as they walked in unison. Mumbling details to one another as they read.

TangShi stood up abruptly, dropping her glasses back into her pocket, her heart hammering through her chest at the sight of YuZhi and yet it was ZhengLi who raised his head and spotted her first at catching her movement. Stopping in his tracks mid walk to the desk and tugged on YuZhi’s navy suit sleeve with a nodding gesture her way. His brow furrowed and his cheek flexed.

“What?” YuZhi looked to him on his right then followed his line of sight to the sitting area and froze too. His expression blanked out almost immediately and he locked eyes on a nervous trembling TangShi. Like laser beams being initiated and his previous calm expression hardened, and his eyes narrowed at her. He seemed to grow taller as he stood straight, and his posture became somehow intimidating.

“Leave.” His harsh single word was delivered in a cool and cold tone loud enough for it to echo around TangShi. The effect was that of being stabbed in the heart and her eyes pricked and misted over as she swallowed hard, losing her courage. His face betraying nothing of his inner war of emotions at seeing her, or the increase to his pulse and sudden compression of his chest.

“I’ll escort her out.” ZhengLi cut in, moving past him aware they didn’t need a scene up here that could be leaked to the press. He always ran interference in YuZhi’s life and work and didn’t want this to escalate.

“YuZhi, I just want to talk and to see you for a minute. I have some things to say, to explain….” TangShi blurted out, a mess and jumble of thoughts and desperate for just a few minutes of his time. Not sure what she could realistically say now she was faced with him.

“I have nothing to say to you, and I don’t want to see you. Sign the divorce papers and go home back to that family of yours. The contract was void the second you fucked someone else and you’re not my problem anymore.” YuZhi’s words bit at TangShi, and she dropped her head in shame, feeling his anger even if he sounded controlled and unaffected. Guilt wounding her and unable to deny his words.

“Come on, TangShi, this isn’t the place. I’ll see you out. Be a good girl and let’s do this without drama. We have a lot going on today.” ZhengLi had been with YuZhi all week and knew how close to flipping his switch and being extra cruel he was as this heartbreak dragged on. YuZhi’s patience worn thin at her invading his workspace and bitterness swirling at having to face his own agonizing feelings at seeing her.

“We’re busy. She can see herself out. She got herself in here after all. Go.” YuZhi nodded towards his door, talking as if she was an unimportant being, and TangShi hesitated. Panic rising in her throat.

“Please….” She began to beg through a mumble as tears broke and her voice trembled.

“Please? Don’t make me forcibly throw you out because I will, and I don’t care what others see or spread about us. They’re going to know soon enough that it’s done. I’m not in the mood for tears or begging so don’t lower yourself to that…. I have better things to do with my time today than watch a drama.” He waved her away, glancing back at the papers in his hand even though all the words seemed to blur together, and he gritted his teeth to stay unaffected.Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.

ZhengLi walked towards TangShi, his expression grim as he fixed his jacket and buttoned it up to somehow symbolize he wasn’t here to play nice or be the guy she once called friend. He was in bouncer mode and not going to soften. He hooked her by the upper arm with his hand firmly and tugged her towards the door with intent.

TangShi gasped through soft tears at the sudden lurch of movement, shaking her head at him as words died in her throat, then appealing to YuZhi with doe eyes aimed his way to try and beg.

“Wait.” YuZhi flicked a look at ZhengLi as something crossed his mind and for a moment TangShi saw a ray of hope and stumbled, her body shaking as she gazed at the love of her life stepping her way. Maybe he really did want to hear what she had to say, and she held her breath as he approached her, praying for a miracle.

“YuZhi…” She began to try and formulate words but flinched when he grabbed her wrist roughly and yanked her hand to his aggressively. Pulling his fingers over hers to straighten them forcibly, no love or care in what he was doing, until he located her engagement ring and tugged it off harshly in one fluid swipe. It hurt so that she winced and gasped, leaving red marks across her knuckle with the way he whipped it off and scrape marks down her fingers where the setting scratched her skin form being close together.

“This was paid for by my family and belongs to me. ZhengLi, here.” He tossed it up into the air, so ZhengLi caught it smoothly, a flicker of confusion crossing his face his face. YuZhi acting like it was an unimportant trinket. “Return it. She doesn’t deserve to keep it.” YuZhi clicked his fingers to motion them away, turning away from her startled wide-eyed expression with a hateful glint in his eye and TangShi broke.

“I didn’t do this on purpose…. I don’t know why this happened, YuZhi, please. I’m sorry and I don’t want this. I want to fix us.” She wailed reaching out to catch hold of him, but it triggered that same angry response in him from that morning and he spun on her, lurching forward and catching her by both shoulders with a strong jerk that rattled her brain inside her skull. His own hurt and temper getting the better of him and unable to control it.

Rendering her mute with shock he would be so physical and harsh towards her. Gripping her tighter than he intended to until his knuckles whitened and TangShi grimaced, flinching at the biting hurt but was too afraid to make any noise.

“I don’t give a fuck what you meant to do. It’s done. Get it into your head that WE are done, and I don’t wanna see you, hear from you, have you in my office, or my apartment, or my life. I wish I’d never met you and want you to go somewhere far where I’ll never think of you again. I don’t love you anymore. You killed that the second you got into bed with him, so do me a favor and get the fuck out of my way and don’t darken my doorstep again.” He shoved her back out of his grip, unable to stand the scorching feel of her gentle heat in his palms and dusted his hands off as though he had touched something dirty.

Hating her and himself for all the swirling agony building up inside of him like a pressure that was about to explode and needing her to go away. Cursing himself for grabbing her when it only escalated his inner dark heaviness. TangShi lost her footing as she stumbled backwards and went over her sandal as she crumpled. Reaching out to catch hold of anything to save her.

ZhengLi caught her halfway to the ground with his speedy reflexes, so she didn’t fully sprain her ankle, but it was painful enough to elicit a yelp as she struggled to right herself. YuZhi flinched closing his eyes and pushed it out of his head, ignoring her even if it clawed at his heart.

TangShi’s soul took a beating, and her pride was wounded at how he was being. Seeing this was a mistake and he was so consumed with hatred for her now he couldn’t see anything else. She was afraid of how far he would go to throw her out if she continued to stay here. It was like a sobering slap in the face and woke her up to the reality that she couldn’t go back to what they had. Being here only made it worse.

Despite the throbbing pain in her bone she pulled herself to upright and straight with determination, pasted on a calm expression and sniffed back her agony. The girl who had spent a lifetime of being downtrodden and abused, found that inner ability to pull herself together and display the undaunted and unaffected persona she had spent years perfecting. Clawing at what little self-esteem she could muster and accepting the fact he wasn’t going to ever forgive her or allow her to make up for any of this.

His words stung to the core that their love was dead and did something inside of her to numb it all down. Shock, maybe, a deepening heartache delivered as a final blow. She adjusted her dress carefully with purpose and poise, pulled her bag onto her shoulder, sliding her swelling hand and aching fingers into her dress pocket to hide the evidence of the wounds. Only ZhengLi and YuZhi both saw them and YuZhi glanced away hardening his expression as guilt flooded him.

“I don’t need you to walk me out. I know the way. I can manage. I won’t be back.” Her small quiet voice waivered, strained, and tear ridden, her tone husky and labored but she meant it and she looked him in the eye one last time. “I’m sorry. There’s nothing else I can say except that, and I never wanted to hurt you. Even if you never believe me. I’ll sign the papers and won’t bother you again.” She knew after that she should leave Shanghai for a while once the announcement hit the press, because her life would become a round of invasive reporters trying to get interviews. She knew she wouldn’t be able to cope mentally while nursing a broken heart, having his name thrown at her from all angles.

“We never met. Nothing happened between us, and if we cross paths again, we don’t know each other.” YuZhi sternly listed off his demands, walking to his desk, throwing down his files and yanking his chair out before unbuttoning his jacket to slide it off. His heart hammering in his chest, his throat aching with the way he was choking on his own growing pain and his lungs were struggling to inflate but he couldn’t let her see how much she got to him. He sounded indifferent to her ears and his manner told her he was over her.

“I understand.” TangShi replied with a soft whisper as little droplets rolled down her cheeks, dripping onto her dress and she limped away, flinching at the pain from her left foot with each step she took towards the door. Trying hard to leave with dignity, knowing she had to make the long walk back to the elevator. She held it all in knowing she could break at home, but for now she wanted to leave with a little dignity.

ZhengLi hesitated seeing the difficulty she had walking, softening a little and his compassion getting the better of him. He squeezed the ring in his palm and a sense of regret and heaviness caused him to flicker back to watching her walk out the door and disappear into the hallway. A moment of doubt, a slide in his anger towards her at her pitiful appearance and for a second he thought about following her. Linlin flashing into his mind and knowing he should text her to come collect TangShi and take her to the hospital to have her foot and hand checked over.

TangShi tried to pull herself together as she closed the office door, dabbing her cheeks and sliding her sunglasses back on before adjusting her hat to conceal her face. She breathed in heavily, pasted on a relaxed look of calm with a great deal of effort, and lifted her chin to leave the way she came in. Her body aching with the effort of not falling apart and her mind in turmoil with a thousand thoughts and feelings that were dragging her down. She knew just by this one encounter she had no way of ever pulling him back to her and she struggled to even her steps and hide her injury as she headed out of Leng group for the last time. Wincing with every step.

“Tell Linlin to come get her and to have her seen at the hospital” YuZhi mirrored ZhengLi’s thoughts verbally and ZhengLi blinked at him in surprise at the sudden return of concern. Eyeing him up and merely nodded although his expression was clear about how shocked he was.

“Don’t look at me like that. I never meant to injure her. I’m not an animal. Now get back to work.”