A Stranger in the Club

"That's your boyfriend?" Lillian asked Hannah, referring to a pink haired skinny musician who was singing on the stage. The club was crowded with people that night, dancing or cheering at the band. Lillian and Hannah sat at a table near the stage, enjoying the music. Above them, the disco light was glittering lights of different shades all over the club.

"His name's Jeremy!" Hannah told her. "He prefers to be called Jim though."

Jim was now covering an old Elvis Presley song to which the audience let out a loud cheer. Lillian also cheered for him as he began to play the guitar.

"We've been dating for only a couple of weeks!" Hannah sighed. "But he's been so busy with his band and all. We didn't get to go on a date for days!"

She pouted while staring longingly at her boyfriend. Lillian smiled and turned her attention back to the band.

The club had amped up by then with large crowds beginning to gather around the stage. It seemed that Hannah's boyfriend was a popular musician among the patrons of the club because they were all cheering for them.

"They're an indie band," Hannah informed her. "They're quite popular around clubs and even got some offers from music labels. One contract is underway. Let's see what happens."

"Dating a popstar, I see!" Lillian teased her but Hannah only blushed and turned her attention back to her boyfriend.

Suddenly, Lillian felt a strange feeling. She stiffened and glanced around.

"What happened?" Hannah asked.

"Nothing…" Lillian said but she could not fight off the strange feeling. It was as if someone was watching her. She stealthily spun around but a large number of people had blocked her way. All of them seemed to be focused on the music and were dancing heavily on the dance floor. But she could not see anyone suspicious nearby.

Am I imagining things? She wondered.

But she felt it strongly. It was as if someone was staring at her with very intense feelings as if wanting to choke her with a glance alone.

It's probably nothing, she told herself and tried to concentrate on the band on stage.

Meanwhile, Thomas was talking on the phone with his informer.

"Are you sure that he'll not come today?" he asked. Listening to the person on the other end of the line, he finally said, "I understand. We'll track him down later."

Thomas hung up the phone and turned back to his boss.

"Sir, Alexander's client had moved the meeting to two days from now-" he was saying but to his shock, Lucas was still staring at a woman who was sitting at a table near the stage. Thomas frowned at his boss' inscrutable expression. There was an icy demeanor to him as he stared at the green dressed woman. Lucas' eyes were flared up as if he wanted nothing more than to throttle the woman sitting across the room.

"Sir…" Thomas called out to his boss. But Lucas waved him off.

"Go back to the mansion and deal with tomorrow's meetings," Lucas ordered. "Get information on all the details of the shipment we will be receiving next week. Leave the car here."

"Understood, sir," Thomas said with a bow. He was still curious about his boss' reaction to that woman, wondering what their connection might be. But Lucas Hao was a complicated man. It was impossible to read his mind. The only thing Thomas knew was that Lucas never showed any interest in any woman before. He was too busy working his way up the underworld to care about anything else.

Then why was he so intently gazing at a stranger?

He did not ask anything but quietly walked away, leaving Lucas to his own thoughts. Lucas took out a pen from his pocket and picked up an unused tissue paper. Hesitating a little, he began to draw on the paper.

…..

"Lillian, let's go and dance!" Hannah insisted. Before Lillian could even put down her drink, Hannah grabbed her arm and dragged her to the dance floor.

"I'm a lousy dancer!" Lillian protested.

"Who cares?" Hannah laughed. "We're all lousy dancers! I just wanna shake my booty to make my boyfriend jealous!"

She turned her back to the stage, shaking her butt for her boyfriend to see. He did not miss her provocation and almost missed a tune. Lillian laughed with Hannah, swaying to the music. A fast tempo had picked up and they were dancing to it. A while later, Lillian's boyfriend took a break, letting his friend takeover for him. He dashed towards Hannah and grabbed her for a dance.

Hannah was sticking close to her boyfriend, kissing him in the middle of the dance floor while Lillian randomly swayed, moving away to give them privacy.

I think I'll get another drink, she decided but a few people blocked her way. They did not seem to have noticed her and kept on dancing. One guy was sticking close to her, making her uncomfortable as he tried to grab her arm.

"Come on, babe!" he exclaimed. "One dance-"

"I'm not interested," she said, turning him down but the guy was either not hearing her properly or ignored her. He was trying to touch her, making Lillian slap his palm away.

"Let me go!" she protested.

"Come on-" the guy insisted, grasping her arm but she stepped back and almost tripped.

"AH!" she yelped in fear but she bumped against someone's sturdy chest and a pair of arms hugged her from behind.

"If you wanna get out of the crowd, then follow my lead," a deep voice whispered in her ears.

"Huh?" Lillian was startled and was about to turn around but the man had kept a firm hold on her, locking her arms to her side to restrict her movement. She could not see his face but his aura was intimidating her.

Panicking, she looked around for Hannah but she was nowhere in sight. The music was so loud that no one was going to hear her scream.

Her heart was beating loudly against her chest. What if he was a criminal? Or worse? Would he hurt her? Was he armed?

"Follow my lead and I won't hurt you...for today," the man warned. Calm, stay calm, Lillian told herself.

She felt his cheek press against her temple. His hoarse breath grazed her neck, sending a chill down her spine. The man was larger than her and undoubtedly very strong. She had no chance against him but was looking for a way to escape.

"Sync your movements with mine," he ordered.

"Why?" she asked.

"Do you want to be freed or not?"

Lillian pursed her lips and began to slightly sway her hips to match his movements while still looking for Hannah. The crowd had thickened,making it hard for her to breathe. No one seemed to notice the duo who were seemingly dancing. But Lillian was trapped in his deathly grasp, unable to escape.

"Please don't hurt me," she mumbled. The man was silent. There was a strange warmth to him, almost like a blazing fire and she was overwhelmed by their proximity. She could not see his face but the intensity of his gaze on her was burning through her veins. Her heart was thumping wildly in a mixture of fear and curiosity.

Lucas felt her trembling under his touch. She was fearful of him, desperate to get away like everyone else was. He did not know why he was holding her. It was as if something snapped in him when he saw her that night and he could no longer resist her. He hated her. She was the reminder of the past he had long tried to forget and buried deep inside with his dead heart.

And now that she was in front of him, those nightmares had returned. Yet, he was drawn to her, burning both of them in the fire which had been lit again.

Lillian felt him slowly moving them away from the crowd, his body blocking anyone else from touching her. His hands were still wrapped around her, not moving anywhere else. She felt his lips hovering near her bare neck but was careful not to touch her skin. Her face reddened up when he safely pulled her out of the crowd.

"Don't venture into the crowd again," he purred into her ears. She shivered when his breath tickled her skin and retaliation dawned on her.

Huh? Was he trying to help me escape the crowd?

Before she could ask him, she felt his right hand pressing something into her palm.

"W-what's this?" she stammered, her insides still stiff with fear.

The man did not reply but the grasp around her loosened and she was freed. For a few seconds, she was too stunned to react.

"Who…"

She spun around to see that the man was gone. Her heart was erratically beating and she held her chest to calm herself. Looking at the object in her palm, she realized that it was a paper. She unfolded it and gasped.

It was a portrait of her!