There’s Something Wrong With You, Brian

"Mary? How are you? Are you alright? Answer me, Mary, answer me!!" Brian grasped his phone and called out frantically, but there was no response. Only the cold beeping sound of a disconnected line echoed in response to his anguish.

With the remaining shreds of his sanity, Brian dialed 911 for emergency assistance. "Fire! Ambulance! Explosion! Send whatever is necessary, quickly!"

Meanwhile, he swiftly ascended through the fire escape, floor by floor. The 11th floor, she lived on that cursed 11th floor, an unimaginable height.

Though he knew the phone was disconnected, Brian didn't give up. He repeatedly dialed the contact number that he had secretly designated as an intimate contact. No response. Busy signal. Unreachable. He was filled with desperation, his mind searching for possibilities and dismissing them one by one.

No, this mission cannot end here. This is not the end; he refuses to accept it.

"Mary, wait for me, wait for me..." Brian murmured repeatedly.

Finally, he arrived in front of the room on the 11th floor, with a crowd of curious neighbors already gathered around the door. "Make way! Make way!"

Brian roared, pushing through the crowd. The door was slightly ajar, and he kicked it open, releasing a choking plume of thick smoke.

"Mary? Mary, where are you? Speak!" Brian covered his mouth and nose with his suit, squinting his eyes as he searched through the smoke for that familiar figure.

"Answer me!"

He kicked a soft obstacle on the ground, which turned out to be David, groaning in pain. Brian grabbed David by the collar and shouted, "Where's Mary? What have you done to her?"

"Brian?"

Brian froze. The voice came from behind him. He threw David back to the ground and turned around. It was unmistakably Marigold Allard herself, standing at the door of the bedroom behind David, staring blankly at him.

In the next moment, Marigold felt an unyielding embrace enveloping her tightly. Those muscular, sturdy arms held her with such force, as if afraid she would fly away or disappear in the next second. Marigold felt her ribs about to break, struggling to catch her breath.

"Brian, please, let go. I'm fine. The air here is toxic; we need to evacuate quickly."

Brian still refused to release his grip. It wasn't until the arrival of the ambulance that the medical staff separated the two of them.

The police and the fire department also arrived. Rescue personnel swiftly evacuated the crowd, extinguished the fire at the scene, and escorted the three of them downstairs. Marigold was unharmed, having only inhaled some toxic fumes, requiring oxygen. David, on the other hand, had the presence of mind to perceive the danger and instinctively jumped out of the bathroom, knocking himself unconscious at the doorway. After examination, he was diagnosed with a mild concussion and taken to the hospital.

Marigold lifted her hand and gently touched Brian's face, covered in dirt and soot. In contrast, Marigold's face remained clean and untouched. With her keen counter-surveillance awareness and experience in avoiding disasters, she immediately rushed in the opposite direction, taking cover behind an obstacle, completely unaffected by the blast.

"I'm fine, Brian, don't worry," she softly reassured him, giving him a gentle hug in return. He trembled slightly, holding her even tighter.

Marigold keenly observed that Brian's eyes were bloodshot, as if he were on the verge of madness. He breathed heavily, veins bulging on his forehead, and his grip remained strong, yet he remained silent. Something was deeply wrong with him.

"Brian? Are you alright, Brian?"

Her hand grazed Brian's icy cheek, devoid of warmth. He continued to stare at himself, as if he could devour his own being. A dreadful and eerie sensation arose from the depths of Marigold's heart. She attempted to call for medical assistance.

"I require a physician! Something is amiss with him!" she exclaimed.

In the next instant, her upheld right hand was tightly grasped and drawn into Brian's embrace.

Brian's heavy breath caressed her head, emanating an almost frigid and rugged aura.

"Stay still, I am unharmed," a hoarse voice resounded above her head. It was a voice she had never heard before. Once seductive and enchanting, it now carried a husky timbre, as if burdened with decades of age.

A young nurse approached them inquiringly. "Madam, are you alright? Does this gentleman require treatment?"

Brian's fierce gaze startled the nurse, and Marigold swiftly interjected, "No, no need, thank you. He was just startled. I require a blanket."

Soon, a woven woolen blanket was handed to her, and Marigold gently draped it over Brian.

"Are you feeling better now? Would you like some water?"

"Mary, promise me, never leave me..." His once captivating voice was now hoarse and trembling, as if subjected to the most severe punishment in the world.

Marigold lightly patted his broad back, as if soothing a giant baby, and softly replied, "Very well, I promise you. I shall forever be your secretary, toil for you throughout my life."

"No, no!" Brian roared, perspiration streaming down his forehead, his disheveled hair clinging damply. He appeared utterly despondent. "Not a secretary, but, but..."

He didn't continue, instead pulling her into another tight embrace, burying his entire head in the crook of her shoulder, breathing in deeply the essence of her presence.

"I shall confine you, lock you within my abode, guarded by the world's finest security personnel. No one shall enter, and you shall not venture anywhere. Do you understand, Mary? I yearn to seclude you within my most secretive personal vault, where none can touch or harm you... Mary, tell me, should I proceed with such an action?"

He uttered these lines with a chilling calmness, and Marigold understood his sincerity. Even faced with such darkness in his thoughts, she surprisingly found his proposition reasonable.

"I have been held captive once before, and I don't mind being confined again. But in doing so, my heart can never truly belong to you. Can you accept that?"

Brian took a deep breath against her shoulder, seemingly releasing a rush of pent-up negative emotions. He trembled. This towering man, akin to a monumental tree, trembled. Marigold felt a pang of unease. Was this his reaction merely from witnessing her experience the explosion? His inner strength did not match the facade he projected.

After a prolonged moment, he lifted his head, released his embrace, and his eyes and demeanor returned to their previous lighthearted and playful state. "I was joking, you didn't take it seriously, did you? Come, let's go for dinner. I'm famished."

Half an hour later, the two of them arrived at the previously booked Charlie's restaurant. The entire establishment was adorned in vibrant shades of pink, even the burger buns and salad dressings were tinted pink, while the patties were charred black. Brian wasn't particularly fond of burgers, but this particular restaurant's offering was agreeable to him.

"I noticed your fondness for pink, so I chose this place. Surprised, my dear?" Brian propped his chin up, looking smugly at her. His soiled face had been cleaned, revealing his handsome features once more. The captivating Brian Bennett had returned. "Now, say that you love me."

Marigold playfully smiled, licked a bit of pink dressing, perfectly balanced in its sweetness and seasoning. She could almost envision his golden ears and tail sprouting from him, wagging incessantly.

"It is quite delightful, I adore you, Brian. chu~"

Brian was taken aback by her sudden frankness, hastily cleared his throat, and adjusted the cuff of his suit—there was a missing button.

"Let's be serious. How do you perceive this explosion? Was it intentional or an act of human error?" Marigold swallowed a French fry and dipped it into the pink salad dressing, bringing it close to Brian's lips. The dressing left a pink heart-shaped imprint on his mouth.

Brian extended his tongue and licked it off, his expression displaying a hint of impatience.

"Why even question it? It must have been Jenny's doing again. She lured you here through David with ill intentions, and then seized the opportunity to trigger the bomb—" He stopped abruptly. He couldn't bring himself to utter the words "blow you up." He couldn't bear the thought of any harm befalling the person before him, even if it was merely in words.

"I don't quite agree. I overheard the police mention a worn-out circuit in the bathroom's water heater. While it's a recurring issue with that particular heater, I happened to be in the bathroom during our call and noticed an abnormal red light on the heater—similar to the sound-triggered bombs I used to dismantle during my overseas missions. They only detonate when the decibel level reaches a certain threshold. So, I dashed out of the bathroom, tackled Dave, and dragged him behind an obstacle. Fortunately, there was a TV wall in the living room, and the explosion was directed outward, away from the windows. I was unharmed."

"Mary, you must never venture into such perilous places again..." Brian choked up once more. Whenever the topic of explosions arose, he would speak with a teary voice. "In that split second, I had already planned the exact location for our tragic end."

"Fear not, I am capable of protecting myself. My physical condition has improved from before, and as your bodyguard, I believe I am more than qualified. However, I have pondered and found a slight inconsistency. If Jenny intended to kill me, why would she risk blowing herself up along with her lover? And if the bomb was placed on the water heater, wasn't she afraid of accidentally killing David beforehand?"

"Don't dwell on it too much, it will keep you up at night." Brian stuffed the remaining burger into his mouth, wiped his lips, and signaled the waiter for the bill.

Subsequently, he drove Marigold back home. Before she went upstairs, Brian took hold of her arm, chuckled softly, and said, "You promised to do something for me if I reveal all the secrets I've been hiding, especially those related to us. In return, I will share some of my own secrets with you. If you can comply, we shall embark on a relationship."

Desire flickered in Brian's icy blue eyes.

"Very well, it's a deal."