About the story

After a bad break up, all Lisa wanted was to find comfort in her career. She never wished for anything else neither did she expect for something to drop from the sky.

Or something to crash behind her. She never thought the crash would make her meet people whom she never thought possible. Never in the nearest time, would she ever thought of love again, until she met him. Until they kissed.

Now Lisa has to know. Is he Mr Right? Correction, is there such thing as Mr Right? She has every answer in her hand except .. this.

A Jay Chou fanfic that will guarantee you wanting more with each chapter!

* I don't own Jay Chou or his mother or any celebrities mentioned in the stories. I do however own the other characters =D

Chapter 24

I rushed back to the room and searched for my clothes. As I put it on, Tom came in and put on his T-shirt.

“Baby, I dunno how she managed to track me down. I dunno what she wants with me”

“What are you talking about?” he asked.

“That woman with the big LV bag from the store, the one you just let in”

“You mean Anita?”

“Anita?”

“My friend from the orphanage. She is here, two days earlier”

I sat down on the edge of the bed reality sank in. Tom’s friend is the bitch from the store.

“Come on. I’ll introduce you to her”

“She was mean to me in the store. I told you” I insisted.

“Honey, I think you got the wrong person. Anita is not like that”he frowned.

I frowned. Why does he made me sound like I’m a liar? Tom turned and headed to the bathroom.

“Lis, let’s go meet her k. You will see she is not like that. It was just a misunderstanding”

I gave in, giving Anita the benefit of the doubt. Also because I don’t want Tom to think I’m so childish and sulky. Still, I applied some eyeliner and the cherry gloss that I knew Tom liked. Then I followed him down the stairs to meet Anita, who was sitting on the couch with her shades placed above her head.

“Anita, this is Lisa, my girlfriend”

Well, at least he mentioned that fact. Anita smiled and extended her hand to shake mine.

“You seem familiar” she raised her eyebrow.

“Yes, I think I seen you too” I tried to drop her a hint.

She seemed to pause for a while and after a few seconds, she snapped her finger.

“Oh, I met you in the store about two weeks ago”

I looked at Tom with the I-told-you-so glance. He shrugged.

“I’m gonna go make some tea” Tom smiled.

“No, I’ll do it” I smiled and left the room.

I will show Tom I meant to be pleasant, just in case she decided to turn nasty again. When I carried the tray back to the living room, my ring from my fourth finger dropped. It was my promise ring, given by Tom on our first anniversary. Tom picked up my ring and slipped it back into my finger.

“Has it ever drop before?” he asked.

“No, this is the first time” I smiled weakly.

“You two look so sweet together. How did you meet?” Anita leaned forward.

“Accidentally” Tom chuckled and poured tea into three cups.

They sat down and talked, updating each other about their life. I noticed Tom didn’t mention he worked with Jay. Jay’s house has a few sections in his house. There is a door leading to the hallway where Jay’s room and studio is, perhaps that's how Jay keeps himself private.

Tom excused himself to the bathroom as Anita and I sat there, smiling at each other politely.

“So Lisa, Tom mentioned he took you to our old orphanage house for a look”

“Yes, I did. The kids there were very adorable”

“Time passed so fast. It was like yesterday the two of us were running around the playground”

“When did you leave the orphanage?” I asked, trying to be interested.

“About a year after Tom did. It was horrible without him. There was no one there who Listens to me or pays attention to me like Tom did”

“You guys were quite close” I nodded.

“Oh, very close. The aunties there thought we might even be a great couple when we’re all grown up” she smiled fondly at the memory.

I started to get uncomfortable with the situation. Luckily Tom came back and within 10 minutes later, I excused myself to go home and feed my dog.

Tonight I’m going out with Tom. Although we are just going to the seafood restaurant, I can imagine both of us exchanging food. I like crab and Tom prefers squid so we always end up exchanging food. As I hummed my way to the bathroom, my phone rang.

“How bout I order an extra plate of squid tonight?” I grinned.

Tom chuckled “I love you”

“I’ll see you in a while, right?”

“Oh baby, I dunno how to tell you this but my friend asked me for dinner tonight. He sounded really depressed”

“Is your friend gonna be okay?” I asked as I sat on the bed.

Then only the reality sinks into my head. If Tom had to go for dinner with his friend, then we won't have dinner together.

“I think so. I’m really sorry baby. I will take you to the restaurant tomorrow night k?”

“I know you are and if your friend needs you, go okay? I love you” I gave in.

“I love you too. Believe me Lis, I have been missing you for the past two days. Maybe tonight I will come over with some supper?”

I smiled “Go along now”

Tom sent me a kiss over the phone. Even though I am disappointed but I can see him tomorrow. I am not angry with him; its great Tom’s life is not revolved around me. I headed to the kitchen and grabbed my instant noodle cup.

My eyes scanned around the club. Since I’m not going out with Tom tonight, I have been invited for drinks with the girls from the office. I’m not usually a club person but tonight I’m gonna put the boyfriend aside and party with the girls. Usually I turned down their offer on Friday night but suddenly tonight my schedule opened.

“Look who is here! Where is the hunky boyfriend?” Barbara shrieked.

“The boyfriend has a life so I let him out for a night with the boys”

The other girls made way for me at the booth. We gossiped about the guys in the office when suddenly Jane dropped her voice to a whisper.

“I think a guy is checking one of us out” she pointed with her eye direction.

Instantly I turned to look at the guy when the other girls hissed at me.

“Lisa, don’t look” they whispered.

“Oops, sorry” I cringed.

I left the booth and excused myself to get a glass of coke. I don’t feel like getting tipsy tonight, just in case Tom decided to come over later.

“Hello, I’m Jim” when I turned I saw the guy from the other booth just now.

“Hello Jim. I saw you checking out one of my friends there” I pointed towards their direction.

He laughed “So I’m Jim and you are ..?”

I flashed him my ring for a second “Committed”

Jim smiled “Your other half must be quite secure, letting you out with the girls”

I looked at Jim. He was good looking. I would definitely flirt with him if I was single. I looked over the booth where the other girls were, wondering are they jealous that the handsome guy was talking to me, then I saw him. I saw my other half sitting on a high stool with a beautiful woman. I could hear her giggled all the way here. Anita. I ignored Jim and walked towards Tom’s direction. I stood where he could see me and I kept staring. He saw me and when our eyes met, I couldn’t help it. My eyes welled up with tears. Tom got up and when I saw him heading my direction, I ran. I ran in my heels.

How stupid was I to trust him, to misjudge and thought his friend was a male and Anita never even crossed my mind. I heard his footsteps catching up with me as I quickened my pace. I didn’t realize where I was heading until something caught my heel and I stumbled forward. In the dimly lighted car park, I caught a glimpse of shiny red blood on my knee. Before I could get up, Tom was all over me.

“Baby, you okay?”

I pushed his hands away and helped myself up. Without a word, I limped towards my car.

“It’s not what it seems”

“You lied to me Tom. You told me you were with a friend who had a problem and you have to cancel our dinner plan. You didn’t tell me it was Anita”

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you but I didn’t want you to misunderstand”

“Then now what? How can I trust you?”

It pained me that he didn’t tell me it was Anita. It felt like he was hiding something from me.

“She really had a problem. She and her boyfriend just had a huge fight”

“I guess she was more important than our dinner” I smiled sarcastically.

“At the last minute, she showed at my doorstep in tears. How do you expect me to throw her aside?”

I sighed and took a deep breath “I would have understood the situation but I don’t understand why you feel the need to hide the truth from me. Do you really think I’m really that insecure?”

“Aren’t you being insecure now? I just had a drink with Anita and talked to her about her problem. I did not cheat on you”

“You might as well have since you felt it was not necessary to tell me” I gritted my teeth.

Why?? Why didn’t Tom tell me he was going out with Anita? Why couldn’t he tell me the truth?

“I’m sorry. I was scared that I might upset you. I really didn’t want to”

I sat down on the ground and bawled my eyes out. Tom held me in his arms and I sobbed loudly, letting my tears wet his shirt. He didn’t tell me to keep it down, he didn’t pick me up. Instead, he just let me cry to my heart content, cradling me like a baby.

“I don’t want to lose you” I hiccupped.

“What makes you think that? Damn baby, I didn’t know you would get this upset” he talked to me softly.

“I’m not blind. Anita is gorgeous. You will be attracted to her” I looked at him.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about tonight. I promise I will tell you everything from now on. I didn’t know how much it will upset you and you cried your eyes out. I feel awful”

“Don’t ever lie to me again. I can’t take it” I sobbed as fresh tears threatened to spill down my face.

“I swear. Come on, I’ll take you home” Tom took my handbag.

“What about Anita?” I looked back at the club.

“Screw her” Tom scorned.

“Don’t you dare?” I pointed a finger at him, trying to lighten the mood.

He chuckled and helped me back on my feet.

I looked at Tom as he carefully cleaned my wound. How I love him so.

“I never meant to make you cry Lis, you must know that” he dabbed on some antiseptic.

“I felt threatened. She was a part of your life that I never was. She grew up with you”

“Doesn’t mean I would like her. She is a friend but you Lis, you are the present and my future”

“I mean, if I have a guy friend from the past who is super hot and both of us go out for dinner together, will you be okay with it?”

Tom seemed to ponder a while before looking up at me.

“Point taken” he smiled and his dimple deepened.

“Well, I would just like it when you are totally honest with me. Of course I might be uncomfortable with it but at least we are honest to each other”

“I promise, I totally promise. I will tell you the whole truth next time when I’m out with any girl”

“In turn, I will tell you who I go out with. In fact, right before I saw you in the club, a guy tried to flirt with me”

I could feel Tom’s body tensed. He cleared his throat and looked at me.

“What did you tell him?”

“I told him I have a boyfriend”

Tom smiled and gave me a kiss on my forehead.

“Tomorrow I’m going to see Jay for a while” I snuggled against him. Honesty starts now.

“You know what Lis? It’s tiring to be both actor and director of the movie”

“It’s Saturday. Why are you shooting today?” I asked.

“I want to get the movie done. I’m just having a quick lunch but between you and me, my back is killing me” he groaned.

I put down my sandwich “Is your back ok? Quit shooting for the day if your back is giving you problem”

“I can’t quit all of a sudden. The papz are outside there, taking photos and I need to finish shooting for the day. I don’t want them to know about my back right now”

“Come on Jay, your health is more important than those dogs around the area”

“I just have another 3 hours left. I just need to take my medicine” he reached out for his medicine.

I watched him swallowed two pills and I noticed how tired and exhausted he was. He even winced a little and I suspected he was suppressing his pain.

“Jay, come on. You should take a nap or something”

“No Lis, I need to finish this scene with the lead” he patted my arm and headed back to the set.

I sighed and took out my scribble pad. What to get for Jay? No 1 ..

I hate the newspaper. Today there was a small section where Tom was photographed with Anita entering the club that night. From the looks of it, they looked quite cosy with her hand on his arm. Even worse, I hate the content. The stupid media were speculating whether Tom and I are over and this ‘beautiful model’ is his new companion.

My hands were shaking. I don’t care what the media say about us. I really don’t .. but why am I so effected by it? The doorbell rang, interrupting my thoughts. Gail is asleep and I don’t want to disturb her so I rushed to the door. It’s so hard for her to get a good sleep now that the baby kept kicking. Anyways, when I opened the door, Jay was there in his cap and black jacket.

“Lis, I saw it in the papers. Is it true about what happened between you and Tom?”

I shrugged “No, but it does looks like it, doesn’t it?”

“Don’t worry. I’m sure it’s just some stupid rumour. Do you know the girl in the photo?”

We sat down and I told him about Anita, even the other day encounter when I met her outside the house gate.

“Oh, here to see Tom?” Anita smiled.

I nodded politely with a smile.

“We just had little chat just now. He’s still the same old great guy he used to be”

“Yeah , he is” I agreed.

“You’re lucky you got him. I would have snap him up if he’s single and out there”

“Oh well, I do consider myself lucky. He’s a keeper” I joked.

“Well, you cannot be too careful with a guy. No matter how great he is, he is still a guy”

“Tom and I trust each other a lot” I defended us.

“Of course, of course. Just watching out for us girls” she winked.

I smiled and excused myself. When I was about 5 feet away from the spot we were standing, she called out to me again.

“On second thought, Tom did have a crush on me back then. I wonder if he still does”

I swear I could see the smirk on her face as she walked away.

“She said that?” Jay asked.

I nodded and then shook my head.

“I’m being silly. I don’t know why I got all upset and clingy” I laughed a little.

“Hey, it’s normal. You must know something Lis, you are a beautiful woman yourself, don’t feel threatened by her. I know it, Tom knows it” Jay smiled.

It’s times like this that I am grateful to have friends like Jay. I don’t see him as a celebrity; he’s just my second brother. By the way, I did not tell Dylan any of these insecurities. No way am I going to give a bad impression of Tom to Dylan.

“I missed you so much!” Tom took me in his arms and swung me around.

I nodded. It’s been three days and I was away in another city, getting some work done, requested by the boss. I did miss Tom so much. Well, before I see Tom, I had been home to greet my brother, my girlfriends and my dog. Snooky is growing up to be a handsome dog.

“You know what I’m going to do to you?” he growled.

“Tian Zhi, its 3 in the afternoon” I laughed.

“So? It’s been almost two weeks since we made love” Tom grinned and pulled me to him.

We kissed for a few eminutes before we pulled the blinds shut. I climbed off the bed and headed to the bathroom. That’s when I saw it. A red bra. I picked up it with trembling fingers and walked back to the room. Tom was arranging the pillows on the bed.

“Tom, how come there’s this in the bathroom?”

He looked confused “Baby, that’s yours”

“No, it’s not mine. Why do you have a bra in your bathroom?”

“If it’s not yours, then whose is it?”

“I dunno, it’s a bra in your bathroom” I threw the bra at him.

I knew he brought Anita to the room for a tour the other day. He was on the phone telling me about it because he wanted to keep his promise to me.

“I dunno how that gets that. I seriously don’t” he shrugged.

“Weren’t Anita in your room the other day?” I asked.

“Gosh, Lisa .. nothing happened ok? I dunno how the bra got there. Can we just forget about it and come to bed?”

I was shocked “No! I’m not going to sleep with you, not now with the unknown red bra hanging in your bathroom”

“Look Lis, Anita did come up here, I called you remember? We went downstairs within ten minutes”

I was agitated. How come there’s a red bra in the bathroom then? It’s definitely not mine. It's not my size.

“Did you buy this or something?” I changed direction. Maybe Tom is a cross dresser.

Tom looked at me like I was insane or something.

“Lis, why are you being so difficult?” he groaned.

“You know I am this difficult, I just want to know how the red bra got here” I sulked.

“I don’t even know how it got there. I did not buy it and I did not have any woman up here in bed. Why are you being so insecure?”

“Hey, the other day you said you love me despite my insecurity” I snapped.

“Then maybe I shouldn’t love you after all” he threw his hands up in the air.

That was a slap in the face. I took a sharp breath and picked up my handbag, rushed out of the door. I passed Jay but I kept running.

“No, no .. Lis .. I didn’t mean it” I could hear Tom screaming.

This time I didn’t stop. I kept running and with every beat of my heart, I know I will never forgive Tom. I hate him!

Chapter 23

I could hear my ringtone blaring from the shower. Should I pick it up or ignore it? I took a second look in the mirror. My soapy hair had foam threatening to slide down my nose. When I stepped out of the shower, I noticed there were 2 missed calls. As I was about to return the call, my phone rang again.

“Hello” I smiled and flopped on my bed.

“How’s my girl?” Tom sounded cheeky.

“I miss you. I haven’t seen you for a week” I pouted.

“Me too. Sorry I been so busy with the security system and Jay’s promotion of his new album”

“He must be pretty busy then” I thought back on the day I last saw Jay. He left a kiss on my cheek, so tender and soft and left me stunned.

“Ting Ting, you there?”

“Sorry, was searching for something. What did you say?”

“I wanna come over tonight and cook you dinner”

“You don’t need to work tonight?” I put him on handsfree.

“I got someone else to cover me. So, what do you say about dinner?”

“Of course yes. Do you need me to get you anything?” I asked, searching for my green blouse.

“Rest your pretty little head babe. I will be there with everything by 6 pm”

“Can’t wait. My boyfriend is cooking me dinner” I clapped my hands together.

“That’s cause I love you” his tone was playful and lazy.

“I love you too” I smiled.

“I wanna come in” I whined, clutching at the door frame.

“No, you stay out there and wait for food to be serve”

Tom looked so handsome in t-shirt and khakis. He looked extra adorable with an apron and his newly dyed cut brown hair. So adorable that I tiptoed into the kitchen and reached out to touch his hair.

“Do you like my hair?” he grinned.

“I love it. Why didn’t you tell me about your hair?”

“It was a surprise for you” he pulled me close to him and kissed my head.

I love it. I absolutely love it. I love every moment Tom touched me, I love it that he cares.

“Honey, whatever you’re cooking, it’s burnt” I laughed.

He turned back to his cooking and I peeped over his shoulder to look at what is in the pot.

“No peeking. Go to your room” he pointed towards the door.

I smiled and pounced on him to kiss his cheek before leaving. My heart skipped a beat when Tom grinned.

After I cleaned the dishes, I went into my room to see Tom picking up my clothes from the floor.

“Baby, just leave it. I’ll get to it” I gestured to him.

“No, you won’t. Besides it’s just small stuff. I dunno how you could be such a messy bug”he grumbled.

I couldn’t help but to feel slightly annoyed with his tone. I snatched the clothes from his hands and dumped them into my cupboard.

“I’m done with it. Happy now?” I threw my hands up in defeat.

Tom looked at me and I could see he was feeling a little guilty.

“I didn’t mean to hurt you”

“Tom, I know I’m not perfect but to have the person you love call you childish name is not cool”

He pulled me into his arms and kissed my forehead.

“I love you despite everything k.”

“You’re lucky my brother and Gail are not in, or else you might have to cook for all of us”I tried to change the topic.

“Where are they anyway?” Tom looked up.

“Lamaze class”

It felt really good to know that my brother is out there, trying his best to be responsible and went with Gail for the class.

“I bought you breakfast” Dylan pushed a plastic towards me.

I unwrapped the plastic and smiled “Red bean pau! You’re the best big brother ever”

He poured me some milk in my glass and slides it across the table right into my hand.

“How was Lamaze class the other night?”

I didn’t have the time to talk properly to Dylan ever since two days ago. He recently got a job and I was busy with mine too. When Dylan didn’t answer me, I looked up to see him staring at his glass of milk. I kicked his leg under the table.

“The whole thing is kinda scary” he leaned back on his chair.

“The breathing technique?”

“No, the whole being a father thing. I just realized my whole life will change”

“Of course it will. Someone who is blood related to you exist and will be here in 5 months”

“I will be the person this baby looks up to. I have to guide him through his life”

“It’s a him? I’m gonna have a nephew?” I sat up straight.

“No, assuming the baby is a boy but Lis, do you know I have to be a role model from now on? I cannot screw up anymore”

“You are allow to screw up, ge. You are a father, not Mr perfect”

“The baby will be a fragile little human and I’m responsible for his upbringing. It’s like he’s a white flag and I’m suppose to colour him”

“I bet dad was like you when you were born. Maybe he freaked out even more”

Dylan sighed “This is all so sudden and unexpected”

“Think about Gail. She’s going through what you are going through plus she’s carrying the baby. You’re not alone and you are gonna be fine. You will get there when you hold your baby in your arms and your heart swell with pride and joy” I stood up with dramatic effect.

“How do you know that?”

I shrugged. “When I’m bored, Gail’s maternity books seems interesting”

“No, the eggs are not meant to be poured in first” Tom chuckled.

“I’m not even a quarter of a cook you are” I sat down in frustration.

“Not that terrible. Honey, can you help me get some sugar from the store?”

I grabbed my car keys and jogged out of the premise. When I drove out of the area, I saw a reporter sneaking around the bush. I put on my shades and ignored him.

When I reached the store, I grabbed the bag of sugar and walked to the counter, squeezing past this chick with a huge bag. She was wearing a skimpy blue top with micro mini skirt.

“What the hell are you looking at?” she scoffed at me.

Then she brushed her LV bag off invisible dust. I had the urge to slap the bitch right across her face but like always, I don’t have the guts too.

When I got back, I told Tom about the bitch I met in the store.

“Why are women so nasty to each other?” he shook his head.

“Including me? ” I laughed.

“You’re no woman. You’re an angel” he turned and smiled.

“I think the sugar is a little too sweet” I blushed.

Suddenly Jay’s head popped in the doorway.

“Hey you” I grinned.

“I’m bringing my mom out for dinner so you two can have your little candle light dinner here”

“Aww .. you guys enjoy your date” I teased.

Jay stuck out his tongue at me.

“We will clean up, don’t worry dude” Tom waved his spatula at Jay’s direction as he laughed.

My hands were wrapped around his neck and his lips were kissing mine. It felt intense, it felt warm and it felt good. I let go of Tom and he looked into my eyes, like he was reading my thoughts.

“Ting Ting, are you sure you want to do this?” he asked.

I couldn’t answer him. I reached out to touch his hair, and then I kissed him again. I reached over and dimmed the lights as Tom removed his watch. I watched him as he approached me and guided me to his bed. Sealed with a kiss, I slide his shirt off as he laid my head gently and the rest is history.

When I opened my eyes in the morning, I looked around to instantly recognize it was not my room. I looked for Tom and he was sleeping with his arm draped around me. Suddenly I felt self conscious in broad daylight. I slipped out of his arm and searched for my clothes on the floor. Where are they?

The nearest piece of clothing would be Tom’s shirt. I slipped it on and ran to the window to shut the curtains properly. I looked at Tom, peacefully sleeping and I started wondering. Will there be a change to our relationship now that I had given myself to him?

No, you know Tom is not like that, I told myself. I crawled back into bed and kissed my boyfriend’s cheek when he grabbed me suddenly and I let out a squeal.

“You thought I was sleeping eh?” he grinned.

“You were not?”

“I saw you checking me out so I continued sleeping”

He was looking at me so silently and I got freaked out. I sat up and looked at him.

“Don’t look at me like that” I got out of bed.

“How can you be so beautiful? Inside out, every way around”

He pulled me back to bed beside him and I noticed the scar on his chest. I traced it with my finger, trying to imagine how hard it had been on him when he was on the streets.

“Tian Zhi, last night umm.. we ..”

“My feelings had not changed one bit. In fact, I thought I could not love you more but after last night I was wrong” he held my hand.

I smiled as he touched my face and pushed my hair back. It felt good that we had reached another level in our relationship.

“I love you Angelisa Wang Zhi Ting, always” his eyes pierced into mine.

“I love you too. You are very hot” I bit my lips.

Tom grinned and kissed me. We giggled softly and I closed my eyes as I enjoyed Tom's embrace.

“No, you can’t wear this” I laughed.

“Why not? It looks cool” Jay laughed.

We were holding up this hideous red and black checker pants.

“Suit yourself. You’re the boss” I threw the pants on the floor.

“Would you like to come down tomorrow? I’m shooting a scene at the old school building”

Jay is shooting a movie called ‘Secrets’ and he’s playing a student, although I had laughed at how he is too old to be a student.

“I’ll try to drop in during my lunch time ok?”

“Oh yeah, I forgot to ask. How’s your brother?”

“Freaking out about being a father. I think as time goes on, I have to tie his legs together to keep him from running away from commitment” I joked.

“You’re lucky to have a brother. I wish I have a brother of my own. Too bad I’m an only child”

“Well, it’s not always fun all the time. My brother used to pull my hair when I was 5. I would cry and he would deny it, big hoo haa back then”

Jay laughed. “That sounds fun. Sorry, I have been so busy with the movie and the directing. We hardly talk anymore”

“Hey, don’t apologize. It’s your job. I have no right to drag you away from your job. I have been pretty busy too with mine. That’s why I seldom come by”

“My mom told me she misses you. Although she has her dog now, she often wonders when will you be coming around”

“I have been replaced by a dog? Don’t worry, next weekend I will have some spare time. I have wanted to go shopping too. Gail is getting too tired to walk too long and Cindy has been busy with her new man”

“How's things between you and Tom?” he asked.

“It’s normal. We see each other when we get some time “

“Sorry he has been working quite a lot lately”

“Give him more work if you have to. If you need him around, just call him” I felt like I was selling my boyfriend.

Tom stepped into the room and flicked my ear.

“My girlfriend telling my boss to give me more work”

“Well, you should be helping Jay when he needs to” I stood up.

“Jay, you have an interview about the movie tonight” Tom took out his blackberry.

“Oh yeah, I gotta go get ready. You kids have fun”

He patted our shoulders and left the room.

“Are you complaining to Jay about me?” Tom folded his arms across his chest.

“I was not. Baby, I just told Jaythat he can have you working anytime. I don’t want him to think our relationship might take your time off your work. You know how Jay is, he wants perfection and I don’t want him to think I’m your distraction”

Tom seemed to ponder for a while, and then he let down his defence and took me in his arms.

“Your mouth is better off doing something else” he kissed me.

“Breakfast in bed, what a nice treat” I took a sip of the orange juice.

“You look sexy in my shirt. I like “ Tom climbed in beside me.

Tom has prepared me a wonderful porridge breakfast. My boyfriend must be the best person in the world and probably a chef in the past life.

“Oh baby, my old friend from the orphanage would like to drop a visit for a couple of weeks”

“Will I still get to see you?” I was not very happy with it but of course, my boyfriend has other people in his life too right?

Tom chuckled “ Of course. The three of us can spend time together too”

“When will he be here?” I dropped the spoon into the bowl.

“Two days later and it’s a she” Tom leaned over to pick up his shirt.

I’m glad Tom couldn’t see my expression. I turned pale. A she. No, not like this. What am I thinking about?

“Is she staying here?” I asked.

“No, she’s staying at a motel”

Whew! I was instantly relief. After breakfast, we read the newspaper together and solved the Sudoku puzzle.

“Why are you so beautiful?” he asked me suddenly.

I laughed. “Ask yourself why you love me. Aren't those life's mysteries?”

I kissed his chin but he caught my lips on his. Last night, we made love the second time ever and we felt really good about it. Lest self conscious, more confidence.

As I drowned in Tom’s kiss, the doorbell rang.

“Ignore it” Tom looked at me, his eyes burning with desire.

The doorbell was pushed repeatedly.

“Who is trying to wake the whole house here?” he got up and put on his shorts.

I followed him to check it out. The door was directly facing the stairs and I stood at the top while Tom opened the door. I heard mumblings and then someone walked in as Tom turned to close the door.

I hid behind the wall and peeped. It was a woman, fairly attractive and when she turned, I gasped.

Shit! What did I do??

It was that bitch from the store two weeks ago!

Chapter 22

I opened my eye a little and I saw Tom sitting on my chair, going through his organizer. I turned to my left side, covering my face with the blanket. What the hell is he doing here? I don’t want to see him, not right now when I am .. wait, how come I’m in my jammies? I closed my eyes again to recall what happened last night.

I came home; half drunk and Jay had sent me home where Dylan had looked super worried. I don’t think he saw me drunk before. I shoved him out of the way and stumbled into my room. It all became clear to me. What time is it? It’s Saturday right?

I heard Tom turning pages of the newspaper now and a tear fell down my face. The alcohol numbed my pain last night but now in broad daylight, it came back. What am I to do now that he is here? I am not ready to settle things with him yet. I could make a run for it. I threw back my blanket and pulled myself off the bed. At least I tried to before my legs gave way and I slumped on the floor.

“Ting Ting .. “ he reached out to catch me.

I pushed him away “I can help myself”

“Ting, I wanna know what happen. You didn’t want to answer my call and you took off so suddenly. What happened?”

I looked at him. He seriously has no clue, does he?

“You are not someone I thought I could be with” I told him, straight looking into his eyes.

The expression on his face was clearly seen. He looked confused and hurt.

“Why is that, Lisa? You know I’m ready to commit to you. I didn’t think that we are ready for marriage yet. I promised you that.. “

I stopped him with a raised hand. “It’s not that”

“I will marry you and make you happy. We can have a house and a small little one for Snooky” he took my hand.

“A childless marriage” I stood up and fell back on my bed.

When I looked up at Tom standing beside my bed, he had been hit with realization of where our problem is. He looked stunned.

“You want kids?” his eyebrows raised.

“Not right now but someday and you told me last night you are not up for it”

“You never said you want kids” he looked at me.

“I always assumed that you do. You were so good with the kids at the orphanage and you seemed to love them”

“I do. I just didn’t want my own. Look what my parents did to me. I don’t want history to repeat itself”

“What makes you think you will be like them?”

“What makes you think I won’t?” he asked me back.

I stood up and turned towards the door when Tom pulled me back by the wrist.

“Ting, please don’t leave me. We can work this out”

The warmth contact of his skin made me burst into tears. Is this what I have to give up? I want to be a mother someday but I have to give up Tom?

“Tian Zhi, I dunno ..”

“No, don’t say anything” he grabbed me into a hug.

I gave in, for now. For a moment, I let myself be weak in Tom's embrace.

“So now you’re left with two choices. This got be hard” Cindy shook her head.

“I know. Now you have to decide between motherhood or true love” Gail popped a grape into her mouth.

We were having our movie routine but instead of chips, we have fruit salad to help Gail along with a healthier diet. It has been three days since I saw Tom and we had proceeded on our relationship like nothing happened. As though my heart had not been broken the night we were supposed to make love. It had been hard for the first week to recover from the disappointment and the pain but I think, deep within me, I held on to a shred of hope that hopefully someday Tom will change his mind.

“What would you do?” I threw the question to the girls.

“I pick hunky bodyguard. Where else are you going to find someone like him?” Cindy raised her hand.

“I would have to pick baby. It’s a wonderful feeling knowing that you are capable of giving life. I never felt so fulfilled and satisfied, in a way no man can fill” Gail rubbed her tummy.

Dylan came out of the room and approached me.

“Mei, did you get the ham that dad wants? You know the one he asked us to bring back for him last week? I put it in the kitchen in the red plastic bag”

“Yes, it is on the table and I will remember to put it in my bag tomorrow”

“You guys are going to China for two weeks and I only have Snooky for companion” Cindy sulked.

“Don’t bring bunch of guys up here” I wagged my finger at her.

“Don’t worry. I will protect the house and your dog” Cindy said reassuringly.

I leaned on my seat and made myself comfortable. On my left side was the window and I peeped at the clouds and closed my eyes. Gail and Dylan were sitting behind us and they both seemed to be enjoying each other’s company. I turned to my left and settled down for a nap. Tom was reading next to me and I could feel his hand stroked my hair for a while.

“You will wake me up right?” I turned to him.

“Of course. Do you want me to leave you sleeping here to the next flight?” he asked with a smile.

I smiled and Tom looked at me rather fondly.

“You are gonna be a great mother”

“Why you say that?” I sat up.

“I dunno. The kids at the orphanage loved you and you took such good care of Snooky”

He had to talk in a low voice because the guy next to him seemed to be reading intensively. Luckily no one really recognized us around. There was one or two glances but the sunglasses seemed to hide well. Besides, I think I only get noticed when I am with Jay. Still, I don’t like girls ogling at my boyfriend.

“Do you think you could be a good father?” I asked him.

He looked at me and opened his mouth but no words came out. Instead his look was just a mixture of guilt and heartache. I turned away to my right side and looked out of the window. Lisa, don’t get your hopes up. You just hold on to him and then when you’re ready, break it off to find a man who wants the same thing you do.

How am I ever gonna break it off? I love this man. Can I really give up children? Will I wake up one day; realize I’m 40 and childless?

“Lisa, can we talk about this? I don’t want you to look at me like I’m some evil child hating man”

I turned to him. Maybe it’s time I should listen to him instead of shutting him out and drowning myself in my own misery.

“Ting, you knew I was raised in an orphanage. They found me in a box, three hours after I was born by the road side. My own parents did that to me. My own flesh and blood did that to me, they just left me with a tag with a surname for me. I don’t even know if Yuan is my real surname or not. I was abandoned by the people who were supposed to love you the most” he held my hand as he talked to me slowly, like he was talking to a child.

I listened to him and tried to recall my own childhood. I had a lot of toys when I was little and I had a big brother who won’t hesitate to share his toys with me. I had little cute dresses to wear and I was never hungry.

“I’m sorry baby” I stroked his hand with my thumb.

“I grew up, disliking myself so much because I thought I must have been a burden to my parents. I must be hated, I was unwanted. When those guys stabbed me and I was rushed to the emergency room, I thought I would be better off dead. I felt really depressed when I saw kids in the playground, being pushed on the swings by their dad” he looked down.

I rubbed his hand gently and I was shocked when Tom looked at me, he had tears in his eyes.

“I was afraid I would turn out to be like my father, that I would naturally hate kids. I kept thinking it might be in my blood that I would hate kids”

“Tian Zhi, you were great with the kids at the orphanage. They love you”

“Yeah I know and I love them too. I love the bigger ones like they are my own siblings and well, I love the little ones like how a father would, I guess?” he shrugged.

“Tom, I don’t want to force you to feel what you don’t want to” now it was my turn to speak slowly

“Lis, I have been thinking for the past week and I think I can give it a shot” his voice went lower

I blinked and looked at him “What? Seriously?”

He nodded “Only if you are the mother. I don’t want my kids to be brought up by anyone else. Kids love you, your dog love you, your friends love you, your brother wanted to break my neck when I made you cry”he joked.

“What about your past? Your history?”

“Like you said, it’s the past, the history. Besides, I think I could teach the little boy how to play basketball and I’ll buy him some really cool robots. Did you know they have those talking one now? I will get him those black bike which a nice horn so that everyone would know he’s coming. Then I can buy him those little tiny kid vest, he will look so cool”Tom explained.

I was surprised and quite amused by his sudden enthusiasm.

“What if you get a girl?”I wondered.

“She will have the best dolls, I assure you and I would buy her everything pink and red. I would take her to the swings and get her those little shoes with the bows, then she can go for ballet classes when she’s older and I could get her a bike, with a flower basket in front and ..”

I got scared. Tom looked so excited, way too excited.

“Sorry, I know I got carried away but I figured instead of being scared, might as well give them everything that I was deprived off”

"How come you changed your mind?"

"I love you and I want a future for us" he held my hand.

My shred of hope came true after all. It also made me understand Tom better and he looked at me, suddenly shy with the tears still in his eyes. I leaned my head on his shoulder, suddenly so grateful to have him in my life. Tom planted a soft kiss on my head and I slept off with a smile.

I knocked on the door repeatedly.

“Ge, open up!” I yelled.

Instead Tom opened the door, drying his hair with a towel.

“Hey, it’s time for dinner. Where’s the brother?” I looked over his shoulder.

“Showering”

Our parents had been receiving well of Tom and Gail so far although dad was slightly stern when it came to addressing Tom. Normal, I guessed, to be extra protective of the daughter.

Tom put away his towel and we went downstairs together.

“Remember, Gail is suppose to be resting so you offer to help with the dishes ok”

He nodded. I never seen Tom so submissive before and he’s doing it to please my family. When we reached the living room, mom was sitting there with Gail.

“So Dylan was with Sarah when you got pregnant?” mom asked.

I didn’t know was it an accusation or was it a question. Plus Gail looked really caught so I interrupted.

“Mummy, can we bring the dishes out right now?”

“Yeah, the fish is done. You can bring the cabbages and the chicken in too. The potatoes will be done in a minute. Oh, there’s the big pot of hot soup at the stove”

“I’ll get it auntie” Tom volunteered.

Mom nodded with a smile and Tom walked with me to the kitchen. I had given Gail the ham earlier to hand to mom hoping that it would bring some good thoughts of Gail.

“Mom seems to like you” I smiled as I laid out the chopsticks and the bowls.

“Your dad is still cautious of me, just like Dylan was”

“Well now you’re staying in one room with Dylan right? Don’t worry, dad will eventually like you”

Tom is staying in Dylan’s room while Gail shares mine.

When we finally settled down to dinner with dad at the head of the table and mom at the end, leaving me and Dylan facing each other, we told them about our life and how we are coping out there in the big bad world.

“So Tom, I heard you are Jay Chou’s mother bodyguard” dad asked.

I looked at Tom as he put down his chopsticks and told dad that he is not only guarding but also running the whole security system for Jay.

Then there was the question of how the job was. Gail was not spared from the questioning too, how was her photography work and lots of other questions were thrown in. Luckily Dylan was there to crack stupid jokes to lighten the atmosphere. Once dad lightened up, everyone relaxed. Although the situation was better but I could still sense my parents hesitation hanging about.

After dinner, Gail decided to follow me to the kitchen to wash up the dishes. I pulled Dylan to the side and told him to take care of Tom. When we had the dishes in the sink, Tom came and advice Gail to take a break. She nodded and went back to the living room to join my parents.

“How’s the day so far?” I looked at Tom.

“Pretty well, I hope your dad likes me”

“He hasn’t been ill mannered to you, I take it as a good sign. Besides, I made sure Dylan had put in some good words for you and since dad always told him to take of me, I’m sure dad take his words in account” I reached for the first dirty dish.

“What about Gail? Does your parents accept their situation?”

“They can’t be that mad. I mean, after all they are going to have a grandkid” I smiled.

We washed the dishes together and Tom helped me put them away. When I finally put the last one away, he pulled my hand into his.

“I was curious when I was drying the dishes just now, your hand looks super smooth and I was right. It was” he grinned, just like a cat that got its milk. Man, that line was cheesy.

Somehow it made me blushed like crazy and I pulled away to motion him to follow me to rejoin the others. I managed to catch several words that Dylan mentioned.

“Shopping? We’re going shopping??” I exclaimed excitedly.

“No, me and Gail are going baby shopping” Dylan wagged his right index finger at me.

“Oh, come on. I wanna go baby shopping too!” I pouted.

As soon as that sentence slipped out from my lips, I could feel dagger stares from my parents.

“I wanna go baby shopping for your baby. I’m the aunt!” I said quickly.

“Lisa, remember just buy what you need k?” Tom turned to me.

“It’s not for me, it’s for the baby” I smiled.

I’m telling you, Dylan and Tom had never looked so bored before in their life. Gail and I kept browsing through the same rack of clothes over and over again.

“No, get this one. I think this bottle looks cuter” I pushed the bottle in her face.

Gail laughed “It’s not big enough. Bigger is better”

I looked at my brother and pushed him forward.

“Maybe I ought to leave both of you to buy your stuff” I stuck out my tongue childishly and bounced back to Tom. I grasped his hand and clung on him, all spoilt rotten.

“I thought you were lost in baby land, going awww at every single little thing you see. I don’t understand the diaper aww .. that is where baby poop”Tom tried to imitate me.

“It’s cute! Imagine a cute little adorable baby wearing a diaper and walking around”I smiled.

Tom smiled a little and kissed my head. It’s like as if the world belonged to us.

“Zhi Ting!”

Oh right, the world has mom and dad too. I let go off Tom’s arm and turned around to see mom approaching us.

“How come you’re not helping Gail with the baby stuff?”

“Let ge help her. It’s their baby, I’m just the auntie “

Just then Dylan called mom over and we escaped to walk around the whole store. We walked towards the prams. There were so many different types of prams. I ran my hand briefly through them.

“Which one do you think is suitable for Gail’s baby?” I asked.

“Which one is perfect for our future baby?” Tom asked me back.

I stopped in my tracks “You’re already thinking of having a baby so soon?”

Tom chuckled “Nope but we sure are having one someday right? We could just look around, get some tips from Dylan and Gail”

To be honest, I am not ready for a future with marriage and children yet. Although I’m very sure I want that but at that moment, I just want us to be just the two of us. I look forward to take our relationship up to the next level when the time comes.

“Tom, the other night when before I ran out on you after we fought, I really mean what I said and now I'm thinking back how cheesy I sounded when I said I wanna be a bad girl”

I covered my face against his chest in embarrassment and when I looked up, I saw Tom trying his hardest not to laugh.

“Why do you look so constipated? Don’t laugh at me” I couldn’t help blushing again.

“It was cheesy but I ignored that because I love you and I was also thinking of that night too. I must have freaked you out when I said I didn’t want kids”

“Well, for what it’s worth at least that incident had brought out the issue for us and we managed to solve it together. Isn’t that what our relationship is about?” I held his hand.

That’s all we did. We don’t display any other affection in public. I have always believed in keeping our moments in private.

“What are you doing?”my eyes were blinded as the sunlight streamed across the room.

“Morning sleepyhead” Tom put down the jar and came over to give me a kiss on the cheek.

“Hey, none of that in the kitchen” Dylan appeared from the toilet, wiping his hands on his pants.

I was embarrassed to be caught as I wriggled away from Tom, then I saw the table was filled with breakfast. There were porridge and pancakes on the table with a jar of orange juice.

“You guys made breakfast!” I turned to them.

“Your boyfriend’s idea” Dylan pointed to Tom.

“Is this a way to dig into my dad’s heart?” I whispered.

“You could say that. Plus, I know you like pancakes” he smiled.

“Mei, where’s Gail?” Dylan took out his apron.

“I think she’s still asleep” I pointed up the stairs.

Dylan went upstairs leaving me and Tom alone in the kitchen.

“What are you gonna do today?” I asked as I pulled out a chair.

“What are you gonna do? I’m here on vacation and you’re supposed to be my tour guide”

“Well, we can go have a look around, let you snap a few photos, buy some souvenir for auntie at home and then we can go dinner with mom and dad” I smiled.

“Sounds like a wonderful plan and it’s fair that we spend dinner with your parents since I am going to have you for myself the whole day” he took my hand.

Just then, my house phone rang and I turned around to grab it.

“Lisa!! I heard you are home”

Shit! Miley Chai.

“Oh hi Miley” I tried to force enthusiasm.

“I heard you’re in town and you got a new man in tow. You have to let me see him! How long have you been going out? “

“Miley, I am just home for a few days. Nothing major and it’s nothing serious yet”

“Oh don’t be silly. You must see me. I’m like .. what .. your best friend ever? I’ll see you at the old place for lunch k? At 1 pm and you must bring your new man ok”

The phone line got cut off. I stared at the phone before putting it back on the table. I looked at Tom with distress as he looked at me with a concerned look.

“An ex friend of mine, Miley wants to meet me today for lunch”

“Oh, you can go to meet her. We can still have dinner” he shrugged.

“No, she heard I have a boyfriend and she wants me to drag you around”

The realization sunk in and Tom let out a soft oh.

“Ting, you don’t sound like you like this Miley girl much”

“Clever observation, honey. I don’t like her because she gossiped like crazy. Last time, she told everyone in class that I liked this other guy in the neighbour class. I didn’t know how she found out. She then told everyone in the whole two classes and the guy actually liked me but then after the whole ugly confession, he freaked out and I freaked out” I sighed.

“Why did she do that?”he frowned.

“Cause she’s a witch” I lowered my voice.

Tom let out a chuckle and pulled me closer to him.

“Let’s just meet her and charm her. Let’s show her how successful you are right now”

“Are you sure? I can’t stand the way she laughed. It sounded exactly like a witch crackling” I cringed.

“Honey, don’t exaggerate. Come on, it will be okay” he smiled.

I sighed. Poor Tom does not know what is going to hit him.

“How do I look?” I asked Tom for the tenth time.

“You look great” Tom squeezed my hand tightly.

Just then this bubbly woman in purple dress swayed her way over to our table. She was wearing very little make up with huge chandelier earrings and tall heels.

“Lisa! I haven’t seen you for so long. You look so radiant! This is the fella? He is so cute! Where did you find him? Point me the way to Hunkyville” Miley laughed.

“Hi Miley, this is my boyfriend Tom. How long will lunch be?” I couldn’t resist asking.

Tom nudged me a little and I just smiled back at him with a glare.

“Don’t mind her Tom. I known Lisa my whole life and she is always like that. That’s what I like about her” Miley waved a hand to dismiss me.

“So how have you been? What are you working as now?” I asked her with a fake interested smile.

“I am an insurance agent. I am working full time and I am single. Ah, you know how it is like to be single. You were single before you met this hunky dude. Last time in school, remember how you liked Andy and then he liked you but you scared him away”

I gripped Tom’s hand under the table and put on my fake smile again.

“Yeah, I did, didn’t I?”

“Actually it’s kinda a good thing because with the Andy fella out of the way, Lisa is mine now” Tom patted my hand.

Miley smiled and sipped her orange juice as I smiled fondly at Tom.

“Lisa, remember that time when we went to the bar and you jumped on the bar top ?”she exclaimed.

I took a deep breath as Tom glanced at me.

“That was you” I rubbed my forehead.

“Guess who is back!” I exclaimed loudly.

Several heads turned towards my direction. Oops! Jay’s working crew. I mumbled my apology ,turned around and there was Jay.

“You’re back! Where’s my souvenir?” he held out his hand.

“I didn’t buy any for you, only your mom. I’ll come back later when you are not working”I whispered.

“Oh no, I was on a break. Just recorded a new song”he looked embarrassed.

We walked downstairs to the living room where auntie was looking at the small porcelain vase I bought for her.

“Oh yeah Jay, here’s a little something for you. I don’t know if you would like it and you could get anything in the world so I hope you would not .. “

“Just hand me the stuff Lis” he poked my side and held out his hand.

I threw his t shirt at him. He held it open in front of him and there it was ‘I’m a hot dude’

“I’m declaring to the world now that I’m a hot dude?” he raised his eyebrow.

“Aren’t you?” I teased.

Come on, Jay should know he look hot.

“Do you think I’m hot?” he asked with a smile.

“Oh come on. Millions of girls around the world are worshiping you every day because you have the talent and the looks” I nudged hi. Jay laughed and went back to the studio.

“We miss you while you were gone. How was your parents reaction to Tom?”

I talked to auntie a while about how things were back home. She on the other hand, has a surprise for me.

“I got a dog”

“I wanna see !” I jumped up.

Auntie went to the back yard and came back with a little shiba dog. I got so excited and that made auntie excited that I went home to get Snooky over for a little play time.

“Hey, how come your mom bought a dog all of a sudden?” I asked Jay while we were in the kitchen.

“I guessed she got lonely when you were not around”

“How come she got lonely? She got you right?”

“Lately I have been a bit busy with the new movie coming out and the album” he shrugged.

“Well at least her little doggie is keeping her company now”

“Yeah, that little guy is putting a big smile on her face. How was home?”

“Home’s great. My parents are fine and they were cautious with Tom at first, especially dad but I think they got along just fine”

“What would your parents say if I come over your place?” he smiled.

“Well, no offense but I don’t think they know you. They know you're Jay Chou but that's it” I poked him.

“Really?” he looked a little offended though.

“Oh, but this old bitch friend of mine is a huge fan of yours. She keeps rubbing her nose into my life and I have to resist telling her I knew you” I poured myself a glass of water.

“You were in the papers with me”

“That was ages ago and besides no one can really tell it’s me. Plus, I don’t think she even cares about the news, even about you”

I turned around to hand Jay his glass and I noticed he had a faraway look in his eyes.

“Why you look like that?”

“Nothing. I just thought of a song, need to run it with Vincent and make it a duet”

“Oh, what is it about?” I asked.

“You will hear it first. I gotta rush upstairs before I lose the thought” he turned and walked out.

A few steps and he walked back in the kitchen, made a beeline towards me, leaned forward and kissed me right on the cheek. When he pulled away, I had to fight the urge to kiss him back.

“Lisa, you are special” he whispered as I closed my eyes.

Chapter 21

I put the dolls into one cloth bag. I think I bought enough for the girls. After that, I arranged the plastic soldier toys into another bag. Tom is taking me to the orphanage this afternoon and I could distribute these to the kids. Luckily Saturday is an off day for me so I don’t have to dress up. Instead, a T-shirt with shorts would do. Snooky was watching me loading those presents into the bags.

“Here, baby” I threw him a brand new ball.

He leapt up, so excited and jumped around, pushing the ball to and fro with his front paws. Suddenly, the door opened and Dylan walked in. Snooky ran between his legs, chasing the ball and both of them rolled out of the door.

“What’s with your hyperactive puppy?” he asked.

“New toy. Snooky seems to love it “I smiled.

Dylan sat down in front of me with his legs crossed.

“How are things with Sarah?”

“Now I know where Santa Claus hid for the rest of the year” Dylan grinned, looking at the bags.

“Don’t change the subject. Have you told Sarah yet?”

“I didn’t tell her yet. How am I supposed to tell her that I knocked up my sister’s best friend?”

“Sheesh, such harsh word, knocked up. You should have thought of it before you slept with Gail”

“So abortion is not an option huh?” he glanced at me.

I stood up, my hands on my hips with mock anger. My brother is the worst judge of character in the world.

“If I was the one who got pregnant and Tom wanted an abortion, how would you respond?”

“I would have beat him up and thank you for that disgusting image” he cringed.

“So says the brother who slept with my best friend”

“Fine, you win. I guess I would have to break Sarah’s heart”

He couldn’t hear it but I was cheering deep in my heart. So long, you bitch!

“The kids loved you” Tom smiled.

“Really? They really love me or you’re just saying that to make me feel good?”

“No, you know I don’t lie to you. They love you but not as much as I do”

We were in the kitchen, at Jay’s house making cookies after the visit from the orphanage. Auntie is gardening right out of the window so Tom is keeping an eye on her. Strangely though, now that Gail is pregnant, she craves for lots of weird food. Today, cookies. Chocolate chip cookies. As I bent forward to look for the tray in the cabinet, Tom went out of the kitchen.

“Aren’t you helping me with the cookies?” I called out.

He came back with a small box in hand. “Got something for you”

“What is it?” I placed the spoon down and opened the tiny box.

It was a very thoughtful gift from Tom. A heart shaped bronze locket where he had inserted one of our photo together.

“Is it okay?” he looked nervous.

I smiled. Looks like this is the first time he bought a girl something.

“I love it. Thank you” I couldn’t take my eyes off the shiny locket in my hand.

Then I reached up and kissed his cheek, just a quick one to show how much he meant to me.

“I was hoping you would say that. See, I was thinking of buying the silver one but then it was more expensive and I thought maybe I could trade this bronze one with the silver one on our wedding day because .. “

“Wait, wait .. you wanna marry me?” I looked at him with astonishment.

His lips curled into a small smile “What do you think?”

“Are you sure?” I whispered, as though as I was afraid it would all be just my imagination.

“Well, not right now but someday, when we are ready, I wanna marry you”

I kissed him right on the lips. This guy wants to marry me! He wants me to be his wife. He wants me to be there until death do us part. Wow, that was overwhelming. Tom kissed me back and suddenly I felt like we been pronounced husband and wife. What a silly thought!

“Those cookies won’t bake themselves, you know” I smiled.

Tom smiled and turned to the fridge. I turned around to grab a bowl and at the corner of my eye, I saw Jay standing there. When our eyes met, he smiled a little and walked away.

“I wanna talk to the paparazzi” I folded my arms and laid back on the chair with a pout.

“The more news you feed them, the more they will come after you” Jay gestured.

“But this is complete rubbish! What a stupid lie to come up with. They didn’t even ask me why was I at the clinic”

I am fuming mad. The paper this morning, in the entertainment section was a photo of me with Cindy and Gail the morning Gail found out she was pregnant exiting the clinic. Instead of asking me the truth, these sneaky paparazzi suspected I was the one who might be pregnant because I am the one in contact with Jay. The article continued to say that if I am pregnant, the baby might be Tom’s or Jay's.

Oh my God, I am pissed off. I am furious at them for defaming me, for misleading news and also because I am ashamed that Jay’s name had been dragged on to this. Jay however, sat across me, his face grim and serious. I softened my tone.

“Jay, I’m sorry. This is entirely my fault. I should have never let your name to be printed in this article”

“No, it’s not your fault. This is what the entertainment business is like” he nodded.

“I’m sorry I always dropped by here and made them suspect stupid possibility. I’m sorry you took me out for meals and got caught in the news”

“And are you sorry for being my friend?” he asked me, his eyes piercing into mine.

I was taken aback “No, of course not”

“Then don’t apologise. I should be the one who is sorry that because of me, your name is tangled up in stupid news. You are my friend, Lis and you make my mom happy. She finally has a friend who is always around, who is willing to listen and talk to her”

He patted my arm and I couldn’t help it, but I smiled back at him. Jay is such a sweetheart, it felt like light years away when we first met and had the wrong impression on each other.

“Then what are we going to do with the news?” I asked.

“It will die down eventually. You’re not pregnant; sooner or later it will show”

It felt comfortable, sitting here in the studio, talking to Jay. Although it was nice to talk to auntie, it was a warm change talking to Jay. Of course I can talk to Tom, he’s my boyfriend but with Tom, there are still some subjects where I felt like I should let him learn slowly because that is what makes this relationship grows.

On the other hand, with Jay I could be who I want to be, he is not someone I need to look pretty for, not someone who I need to feel coy around. I am being truest to myself with Jay. I think he felt the same way.

“I wanna see the white windmill video” I grinned.

“I can’t believe we miss our stupid movie” Cindy grumbled

“Is there such thing as wrong timetable? The timetable stated the movie is at 8 pm but it started at 7 pm? “I whined.

“Well, at least they gave us free tickets for the movie tomorrow” Gail waved the tickets in her hands.

“I asked you girls where you wanna go and you can’t make up your mind so I’m taking you home” Dylan grinned.

From the back seat, I could see my stupid brother grinning. He was ‘forced’ to accompany us for a movie which was postponed due to the mistake the cinema people make. I made Gail sit next to him because secretly I knew Gail would be much better for him rather than Sarah. Plus, they are having a baby together. Speaking of Sarah, I’m so glad she made other plans tonight or I’m sure she would want to tag along.

My gutless brother had yet to break up with her so I still have to see her prancing around my apartment, not knowing that Gail is carrying my brother’s baby. So far, the evening had been pleasant and they had gotten along well. I swear, I could feel the sparks between both of them in the front seat. It was almost like there’s no Sarah. I do feel slightly annoyed that my brother had cheated on a woman because it shows how weak he is but I’m trying not to ruin my image of him as the stable and trustworthy role model.

“What are you smiling about?” Dylan spotted me from the rear view mirror.

I rolled my eyes and flashed him a big grin, just to annoy the heck out of him. When we got out of the car, I saw Dylan held Gail’s arm and helped her out of the car. That’s my brother, although he might be dumb enough to make my best friend pregnant, he is still a responsible man.That's the brother I looked up to my whole life.

We joked all the way into the lifts and made plans for the night. It’s Friday night after all and I planned to spend time with the girls and the brother rather than Tom. We needed to have time for ourselves after all.

“I will fry the sausages and Lisa, you call the pizza” Cindy grinned.

“What about me?” Gail asked as she turned to us.

“You rest and let them do the work” Dylan turned to us.

“I’m not sick, just carrying a baby” Gail said softly.

I think it’s been only two months but you can see Gail has a slight bump on her tummy or maybe it's my imagination.

When we got home, Dylan opened the door and the three of us walked in just to see a man in our living room, standing there .. naked.

“What is this?” Cindy’s voice dropped.

Dylan’s hands automatically covered my eyes and I struggled to push his hand off.

“Ge, I’m 24” I whined, wanting to feast my eyes on the fine young man in my living room.

Gail had turned around, feeling embarrassed while Cindy seemed to be stunned. Just then, Sarah walked out of the kitchen with a bottle of champagne. As soon as Sarah saw us, her face turned white and her arrogance crumbled.

“Dylan, how come you’re home so fast?”

The naked man had covered himself with his shirt. Bummer. Dylan looked at me and I understood. I took the girls hands and tugged them along.

“Come on, let’s go to my room” I lead them into my room.

Upon closing the door in my room, Gail broke out in tears.

“Babe, what’s wrong?” Cindy asked, alarmed.

“It is all my fault. Look what happened between Dylan and Sarah. I shouldn’t have been so weak and fall in bed with Dylan. I feel so guilty now. I am the third party who probably will break them up”

Cindy comforted her. Usually Gail is the easy happy go lucky girl but I guessed hormones blew everything out of proportion. I opened the door slightly to watch the showdown between my brother and that bitch. That naked man was nowhere to be seen, I guessed he left. Sarah looked nervous and I saw Dylan turned to her, his face expressionless.

“Dylan, it was a mistake. I forgot what I was doing and I was weak”

Dylan nodded “I understand. You can pack your bags and leave, Sarah. It’s over between us”

I was surprised at how calm he sounded.

“Dylan, I’m sorry. I never meant for you to .. “

Dylan raised his hand to stop her “its okay. Just leave, I don’t need any explanation”

I watched as Sarah went into the room and chucked her belongings into the luggage. She didn’t look sorry, hurt or sad, just rather relief that Dylan did not give her a hard time. After that, she walked out of the apartment quietly. Dylan sat down on the couch. I glanced back and noticed Gail had fallen asleep on my bed, all cried out. Cindy was reading a magazine so I walked out and sat next to my brother.

“You okay?” I asked, even though it sounded stupid but that was the first thought that crossed my mind.

“Yeah, I am. Like you said, it is the best solution for all of us”

“That was the simplest break up I ever heard”

“Well, I cheated on her too. It is not right if I yelled at her like she is at fault when I too did the same thing” he shrugged.

I nodded in agreement.

“Oh yeah, mom called today”

“Why? What happened at home?” Dylan asked.

“Mom’s pregnant” I looked at him straight in the eyes.

That was the best expression I have ever seen on Dylan’s face. Shocked, disgusted, terrified, surprised all in one go.

“She is? That is .. err .. gross” he cringed.

“Oh, gross. You are not imagining stuff, are you?” I groaned.

“How can she be pregnant? She’s going to be a grandma!” Dylan looked upset.

“Nah, she’s not pregnant. I’m just pulling your leg” I shrugged it off.

“You are so dead for giving me a heart attack” Dylan flicked my ear.

“She did however request that we spend next weekend at home. Fly back to China”

“Oh, now she misses her handsome son eh?” Dylan grinned.

“There’s a catch. She wants to meet Tom and Gail” I cringed.

I yawned and walked to the kitchen, dragging my feet. That’s when I saw Gail sitting at the dining table biting a piece of cookie.

“How come you’re up?” I pointed at her.

“Morning sickness, then I couldn’t get to sleep. The baby wants cookie” Gail rubbed her tummy.

I scratched my head and wrapped my arm around myself. Tom’s shirt is so comfy to sleep in. It’s long and I don’t need to wear pants. Plus, it’s thick to protect me from the cold.

“Thinking about those times eh?” Gail smiled.

“What times?” I sat down beside her and poured myself a cup of juice.

“Those romantic nights making love with Tom”

“Well, to be honest. We haven’t make any love yet”I confessed.

“What? You guys are nearing your one year anniversary” Gail looked at me with disbelief.

“I know, it’s just not the time yet”

“Don’t tell me he is not interested in you. Unless he is gay” her eyes widen.

“He’s not gay and I know he is attracted to me. I just don’t feel ready and he don’t want to push me to it” I swatted her playfully.

“Lisa, trust me. There’s never gonna be a right time, right place. Just close your eyes, trust your love and dive in”

“Easy for you to say. You already dove in and you found treasure” I gestured at the baby.

Gail laid back with a smile, obviously agreeing with me.

“I hope your parents won’t tear me apart” I heard Tom said through the bathroom.

“Mom , no. Dad, maybe” I shrugged.

He emerged from the bathroom, drying his hair and half naked top up. Suddenly, I felt so shy. Luckily he didn't seem to notice that I was turning red.

“Do you think Dylan will help your dad to tear me apart or will he put in good words for me?”

“Why do you need him? Aren't my good words enough?” I pretended to look hurt.

“You’re my girlfriend; you are supposed to say good stuff about me. It would help to have someone to back up that statement” he smiled as he kissed my head.

“Sheesh, we are meeting my parents, not a court room drama” I put down the magazine and stood up.

I glanced at my watch.

“Tom, you better hurry up. Our dinner reservation is in 15 minutes time and we need at least 7 minutes to get there. You’re not even dressed yet”

“How much must I dress up? You look cute in that blouse and jeans”

“Then just put on a shirt and slacks. I love to see you in slacks” I grinned.

“You are such a fussy fashion advisor. Also, such a good girl waiting for me” he smiled and kissed me.

I dunno where I got the courage to but I kissed him back, in a whole new way I never did. The shirt in his hand dropped.

“What if I don’t want to be a good girl anymore?” I mumbled against his lips.

Whoa! Where did that come from?

“Ting, are you serious?” his eyes were huge, looking at me.

There’s never gonna be a right time, right place. Just close your eyes trust your love and dive in.

I nodded and Tom kissed me again. We climbed into bed and my heart was racing. What am I doing? On the other hand, it felt right. I closed my eyes and anticipated the sensation of being loved.

“Wait, let me get protection. Derek bought me a box of it as a joke” he got up and walked towards the drawer.

“Do we really need protection?” I sat up and looked at him.

“What if we end up like your brother and Gail?” he asked, searching through his drawer.

“How bad would it be?” I teased.

“Very bad. Children are a big no no”

My blood froze, I swear. Suddenly it felt like there’s sand in my mouth where Tom had just kissed me. I felt numb, expressionless. I stood up slowly; Tom’s back facing me while he was still searching. This must be some mistake.

“Are you sure Tom? No children? You love those kids at the orphanage”

“Yeah but I don’t want any of my own. I never want to have kids” he chuckled, as if it's something funny.

“Ever?” I held on the last shred of hope.

“Ever” he nodded, not realizing he had just smashed my heart into a million pieces.

My heart stopped feeling and my body only listened to my brain now. I ran out of the room. I need to be at somewhere safe right now. I ran to the studio and Jay was in there, writing some lyrics.

“Please take me home Jay” I literally begged.

Jay stood up, surprised to see me.

“Ting! What’s wrong? ” Tom had put on a shirt and he looked really puzzled.

“I cannot do this right now Tom” I shook my head and turned to Jay.

“Please Jay. Please, I beg you” I tugged on his sleeve, near tears.

He nodded and we basically ran into his car. I was quiet for a while in the car and then it hit me as tears rolled down my face. Every time Tom called, I cancelled it. After 7 times, I sobbed loudly.

“Lisa, what happen?” Jay stopped his car by the roadside.

“Jay, do you want children?”

“As many as possible” he looked concerned.

“Tom doesn’t want children” I sniffed.

“Are you pregnant? Did he ask you to get rid of the baby?” Jay sounded alarmed.

I smiled a little. “No, I’m not pregnant, which is a good thing”

“Hey, you guys will sort your problems. Every couple have their problem”

I shook my head “I dunno, I feel so hopeless, hurt and lost right now”

My head tilted and Jay lent me his shoulder to lean on. It felt good to have some warmth right now since my heart felt so cold.

“Your make up is ruined “he grabbed a tissue and dabbed my face.

I closed my eyes and calmed myself down. Jay patted my shoulder gently and covered me with his coat.

“It will be okay Lisa” he said.

Strangely enough, I believed him.