Chapter 25: NightCap

Tokyo, The Aman Lounge

Rich and Shu Li sat at the bar chatting with drinks at hand. Seeing that Shu Li was in an exceptionally great mood, Rich commented, "Didn't expect you'll leave those two up there together."

"Gave your friend a prize since I got to see Irene's rare crying face today," Shu Lin answered before downing the contents of her martini.

"She becomes especially cute when she's drunk. I like the usual cold Irene but the emotional Irene is definitely a treat," Shu Li continued as she popped an olive in her mouth.

"Stella, You really have sick hobbies," said Rich with a shake of his head.

"Heh. Whatever. I'm surprised they let your owner run around for so long." Shu Li said with a hint of sarcasm.

"Come on. Don't be like that. Jesse's working hard right now. He was so serious back in New York too," Rich explained with surprising earnestness.

"Well he has such a good guard dog, the Evans Family must be quite pleased," Shu Li fired back.

This true nature of their friendship may come off quite surprising to others but Shu Li is most comfortable with Rich Taylor in this manner when they both interact without their masks on.

"So? Su Tian and Qing Ruhe, what did you get on those two. I must be losing my touch letting those two rats run around for so long," Shu Li said casually with a click of her tongue.

"Ruhe is your typical jealous rival. She apparently went through fashion school under your shadow and has been holding a vendetta since then. She believes her designs aren't getting the recognition they deserve and your popularity is simply as a result of your high birth.The small mishaps you've been having at your shows and line launches were caused by her." (Rich)

"Hnnnng… She has a pretty nice face too. It's too bad. Her way of retaliation is too childish." (Shu Li)

"Well I don't know about that. She intends to out your relationship with Anissa when you become president of Le Ciel. You've got to admit, she's nothing if not patient." (Shu Li)

"Ohhh so our little Ruhe wants to play big? Ah, I'll have to deal with her sooner than I thought. Such a waste of a pretty face." (Shu Li)

"Your obsession with faces is really something." (Rich)

"Oh shut up. So? Who was it you slept with to get the info? Ruhe, her assistant, or her boyfriend?" Shu Li asked, her voice tinged with a hint of sarcasm.

"Take a guess?" Rich fired back with a smirk.

"Well, your ability to eat both men and women definitely has its uses." Shu Li answered, swirling her new drink.

"And...Su Tian?" (Shu Li)

"That one… would take a bit longer. There's a backer covering her tracks. So far, she hasn't taken any drastic action against you, aside from placing you and Irene on surveillance." (Rich)

"Irene?! Why would she put surveillance on Irene?" Shu Li exclaimed.

"No clue. On the surface, it looks like they met the first time at your birthday party. You think she's planning to use Irene to bring you down?" Rich responded with a shrug of his shoulders.

"I'd like to see her try. I'll bury her and her entire family if she so much as touches a hair on Irene's head," Shu Li spoke with a cold glint in her eyes.

"Hey, hey, let's keep our cool alright. Was it the same person that provided you with these names?" (Rich)

"Yep. I really dislike these lowborn rats that don't know their place." (Shu Li)

"Hey real talk. Why is it that you treat Irene so differently? Objectively speaking, an orphan with unknown parentage isn't much different from those low born.." (Rich)

**CRASH** The sound of a broken whiskey glass startled the handsome bartender on standby. He began to quickly clean up the shards on the counter and floor. At this time there was only Rich and Shu Li in the lounge, the latter having requested bar service with full privacy from the establishment. Not losing any composure, Shu Li gave a polite apology in fluent Japanese before dropping her icy gaze back to her companion.

"Watch your words, Rich Taylor," Shu Li's firm voice carried a strong hint of warning.

"Alright. Alright. I was just honestly wondering why you like Irene so much. You don't seem to be in love with her like Jesse. So I don't get the possessiveness," Rich's tone was somewhat helpless.

"Irene is not any less precious to me than my family," Shu Li spoke coldly.

"[Sigh] So you never felt wary spending so lavishly on Irene?" (Rich)

"What?" (Shu Li)

"I don't get it. Are you trying to buy her loyalty? Or are you trying to make it hard for her to leave once she's gotten used to luxury? What is it? I mean you've spent more on her than I've spent on everyone I've slept with." (Rich)

"Don't be crude, Rich" (Shu Li)

"Come on I just gave you all that info on Ruhe. You won't even let me satisfy my curiosity? Irene is also my friend, it's not like I'll do anything bad to her." (Rich)

"I just wanted to do these things for her. That's all." Shu Li answered with a slight smile on her face.

"...Seriously? Your intentions are that pure?" Rich asked with a look of unmistakable surprise on his face.

"Of course, if I can use money to tie her to me, that works as well," Shu Li answered slyly.

"Christ!" (Rich)

Shu Li simply smiled as she sent a text to Lu Minzhe.

**text message**

[TheStar_Stella]: Ge, you were right about Ruhe. Need your help on Tian.

[Minzhe]: Mm. I'll have Cheng Yan look into it.

[TheStar_Stella]: Thanks! You're the best.

[TheStar_Stella]: By the way, we'll be in Tokyo for 2 more days. Stop by when you have time.

[Minzhe]: Alright.

........................

Aman Luxury Suite, Tokyo

On the other hand Jesse, who felt that he had been given a task of utmost importance, was busily taking care of Miyeon. The latter was not an unruly drunk; she was however a sticky and affectionate drunk. Poor Jesse had to recite the National Anthem several times as he tried to fix the loosely tied robe that kept slipping off her shoulders caused by her moving around the bed in her sleep.

After the movie, Jesse had to console Miyeon that Jenny was just a character in the film and she had not actually died in real life. He made sure Miyeon drank another glass of water before deciding that it's best to tuck the sleepy girl into bed. Miyeon was resistant and wanted to watch another movie with a glass of bubbly.

Sitting on her knees, she had tilted her head and stared at Jesse with watery eyes, "I can't?" she asked with a slight pout.

It took all of Jesse's willpower to deny her request, "Irene, you should sleep now. It's pretty late."

"..." Miyeon just continued to look at him silently, her lips quivering as tears began to well in her eyes.

"Ah I am going crazy," Jesse muttered to himself as he tenderly wiped the wetness that spilled on her cheeks.

"If you drink another glass. You'll wake up with a headache," Jesse explained.

He was suddenly startled as Miyeon leaned into him as he spoke mid sentence.

"Mm, you smell nice" Miyeon whispered snuggling against him.

"..." Jesse was frozen solid as he slowly lifted his arms to pat the girl's back comfortingly. Perhaps it is better this way, if she had kept on insisting for another drink, Jesse didn't know how much longer he could resist her. After several minutes, Jesse noticed Miyeon's breathing had evened out and he slowly laid her down on one side of the bed. He pulled the blankets all the way up to Miyeon's chin and prepared to turn off the lights and leave the room.

However, Miyeon slept fitfully and soon she began tossing and turning on the bed pulling down the sheets around her. As a result, Jesse decided to stay with Miyeon until Shu Li returned from the lounge, carefully rearranging her robe and fixing the blankets around her. After an hour or so of waiting and repeated 'recitations', he eventually fell asleep beside Miyeon on the bed.

Shu Li came upon this scene and left the room with an unfathomable look on her face, deciding to spend the night in the other suite instead.