Flashback, 2018

Shanghai, China

Jun Hao was taken aback. He had never seen the girl before in his life.

However, one thing was certain-she was very beautiful.

Almost like an angel.

She glared at him, causing him to straighten his posture.

"What was that?" he asked, feeling a bit lightheaded although he didn't even drink a drop of alcohol.

He also felt his heart rate rising inside his chest, so he placed his hand over it, hoping to calm it down.

However, it persisted.

Just then, his sister's voice rang in the back of my mind.

"Why do I like him so much when we don't even know each other?" Mei Ling exclaimed as she looked at a photo of a new idol group. "Is this what you call love at first sight?"

"How do you know my name?" she asked, her arms wrapped around her body.

Jun Hao pursed his lips. "I don't know your name," he deadpanned.

"You do," she insisted. "Angel-you called me by my real name. They don't even know my real name here."

Jun Hao's mouth went agape after her statement. "Ah," he said. "It suits you well." "What?" Angel frowned. However, she shook her head and continued guarding her body.

"If you came here for THAT, then just know that I won't do it with you," she said. "They may have tied me up and kept me in this room, but that doesn't mean that I still can't break a man's jewels."

Jun Hao's eyebrows raised in surprise as he glanced down at his crotch.

Then, unconsciously, he covered it with both hands.

He stepped forward, but Angel screamed before he could take another step.

"I'm telling you! Don't come closer!" she screamed.

Jun Hao clicked his tongue and continued advancing toward her. Angel's eyes showed horror as Jun Hao sat on the bed.

She tried to break free, but she was shackled to the bed, unable to put up a fight.

With that, she closed her eyes and held onto her body as tightly as possible.

Then, when she felt the man's breath brushing against her skin, she harshly turned to the side.

Jun Hao clicked his tongue and held onto her face before gently brushing away a piece of fluff in her hair.

"It's been bothering me since a while ago," he softly said.

Angel opened her eyes, feeling breathless, as she looked into a pair of intense yet kind eyes. For a moment, she found herself attracted to the man's face.

However, Jun Hao moved away before she could internalize what was happening.

Angel sat there for a while, dumbfounded at what was happening. "You're not going to do anything?" she asked.

"Why?" Jun Hao chuckled. "Do you want me to do something?"

Angel furiously shook her head. "No," she said. "I don't want that."

"Then, I won't do anything," Jun Hao said. "Simple as that."

Angel stayed silent for a while, wondering if she should trust the man's words. However, then again, he hasn't tried anything even though she was shackled.

"What brought you here?" Jun Hao couldn't help but ask.

"What do you think?" Angel scoffed. "Do you think girls work here out of their own accord?"

Jun Hao turned to look at the broken girl before shaking his head.

"No," he said. "But, everyone has a story to tell, don't they? I'm sure you have yours, too."

Angel's gaze softened as she turned to the side.

"Why do you want to know?" she softly asked.

Jun Hao shrugged. "Well, my precious colleagues locked me here to have a good time. I'm assuming we'll be here for a while, so we might as well make the most of it."

"And why should I tell my story to a stranger?" she asked.

Jun Hao chuckled. "Isn't it better to tell your story to a stranger? The less you know about a person, the fewer prejudices you have against them. And, the best part of it is you don't have to worry about them sharing your story."

"You're strangers in the first place."

For the first time in the night, a smile made its way to Angel's lips.

"You know, for someone who comes to places like this, you seem pretty smart."

"Why?" Jun Hao asked. "Do you think I also came here out of my own accord?"

Angel stayed silent for a while before shaking her head.

"No," she said.

"You're right," Jun Hao said, his gaze focused on the wall before them. "I'm probably doing this for the same thing as you are."

"Money?" Angel asked.

"Exactly," Jun Hao smirked. "I told myself I would leave if I had enough money; however,

I've come to realize that there's no running from this place."

"The moment you sign up for money, you sign your soul away. The moment you choose to leave? Then, your life is on the line."

Angel pursed her lips and nodded. "Exactly," she muttered.

"So, now that I've told my story, are you willing to share yours?" Jun Hao asked.

Angel chuckled in disbelief. "That was barely a story," she said.

Jun Hao merely let out a small chuckle but didn't say anything more, not even bothering the

pretty lady to expound her story.

However, after a while, Angel broke the silence.

"I want to become a singer," she said, capturing Jun Hao's attention.

He didn't say anything, only waiting for Angel to continue her story.

"Believe it or not, I came from a family who made a decent income," she said.

"It's not hard to believe," Jun Hao said as he looked at her beautiful face.

"Thanks," she muttered.

She looked down at her lap and played with her fingers before continuing her story.

"However, I also came from a family with strict traditions. Be a lawyer. Be a doctor. Be an accountant," she continued. "All of my siblings conformed to it, and they made my family

proud."

"However, I didn't want to lead that path. I wanted to lead one of my own."

"At the end of the day, it was my life to live. I would be the one living my life, so why was it

that they wanted to hinder my dreams so much?"

Then, she let out a deep sigh.

"Looking back on it, though, maybe I should have listened to my parents."

"Then, maybe I wouldn't end up here."

"What happened?" Jun Hao asked.

"I told these things to them. I told them that it was my life to live. So, they told me to live my

life but to not expect them to be a part of it."

"I was disowned by my parents when I chose a music major in university. I was stripped off of everything I was used to, and before I knew it, I grabbed onto countless opportunities."

"And this is one of those opportunities?" Jun Hao asked.

Angel nodded. "I thought it was a regular bar," she said. "But then, I had signed up my whole

life before I knew it."

Jun Hao frowned.

"How long have you been here?"

"Three months," she muttered. "And probably for the rest of my life."

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