Fatal Enchantment: Lust Or Love

A car passed a viaduct at a fast speed. The flickering lights shone on the handwriting on a note in a girl's hand.

She was in the back seat of a taxi. The note said, "11 o'clock in the evening. Room 8888, 28th floor of Hilton Hotel."

A teardrop fell on the note, the wet spot blooming underneath it. She hurriedly wiped her tears away but the sadness and bitterness remained in her heart. Her shoulders shook as she cried silently.

"Miss, are you alright?" The taxi driver noticed her. He must be thinking how strange she was, wearing a fancy looking dress but looking like a spooked child. She tightened her hold on the note. It took her a while to even tell the driver the name of the hotel she was going to, as if she were a foreign tourist.

"I'm fine. It's just... my feet hurt," Nina Bai stammered in reply. She kept on wiping her tears as she pressed the already crumpled note on her knees.

It was Nina's first time wearing such high heels. Her feet were killing her but the fear for what was about to happen was even more painful.

"Remember, don't piss him off. He has a bad temper but he's very generous. He's the key to raising money for your younger brother's operation. You know how difficult it is to find a matching kidney donor. If you don't hand in the money on time, the hospital will not be able to secure the kidney. Don't expect to be so lucky the next time around."

Daisy's words rang in Nina's mind. Daisy was also in the hospital for uremia. But unlike Nina, Daisy wasn't lacking in money. She only had to wait for a matching kidney donor to appear. Leon, Nina's younger brother, already missed one kidney donor because they didn't have enough money. They managed to find another donor for him but Nina didn't have enough money to cover for the expenses. This time, Daisy told Nina she had to do everything to secure that kidney for Leon - including selling herself.

Of course, Nina was against it at first. But after looking at her younger brother's swollen face and limbs, she knew she had to make a difficult decision.

"I'm not forcing you to do something against your will. All the girls I introduced to the customers made the decisions themselves. I don't want to destroy what's left of your innocence. But... what can we do? This is how society works now. And you two don't have parents anymore. How else can you save Leon? To be honest, if it weren't for your pretty face, I wouldn't even of given you this suggestion. But think about it. You can get three hundred thousand overnight. There are few women who earned this much this quickly! And very few men could afford this payment, too. Little girl, this man I'm introducing you to is not an ordinary person. You can't wear these clothes to meet him. But don't worry. I'll get you some fancy outfit you can wear. Tsk, tsk. It's a good thing you're already eighteen years old."

Daisy's words continued to ring in Nina's mind. She crumpled the note in her hand and said to herself, "You can do it, Nina. Do it for your younger brother. It's just for one night. You can get through this. Just choke down the pain and bear it."

Creak... Nina pitched forward as the sound of brakes pierced her ears. She looked up just in time to see the commotion.

Bang! Clap! The car made a half turn after the impact. Nina's head hit the seat in front of her.

Fortunately, the car skidded to a stop. She also had the foresight to fasten the seatbelt before the trip. Otherwise... it would have been horrible. Still, the impact of hitting her head on the seat hurt a lot. She covered her forehead with her hand and took a peek at the driver. "Sir, are you alright?"

The driver shook his head to clear his mind. He muttered that he was fine before he opened his door to check the hit on his car. It turned out they bumped into a beautiful sports car. Nina didn't know much about cars but she could see how expensive the other car looked. From her seat, she could see the taxi driver's face pale.

Nina didn't have time to wait for the taxi driver to sort out his matters. She hurriedly opened the car door and got off. She only had half an hour to get to the hotel.

"Sir, here's my fare. I have something really urgent to deal with so I can't stay here with you..." Nina handed the taxi driver some bills just in time to see a very handsome man step off the sports car. He was tall and slim, with his long hair framing his sculpted face. As soon as Nina's eyes found his, all thoughts flew out of her head. "Bobby Teng," she whispered in recognition.

Bobby Teng was everywhere. He was on the TV, magazine, and even on the news. Nina never imagined encountering people like Bobby on the streets like this. For her, they existed on a different plane than her world. He looked more handsome and stunning in real life.

"I don't have time to talk nonsense with you. Here's the card of my lawyer. You can wait for him here." Bobby Teng handed the taxi driver a thin, expensive-looking business card. After, he glanced at Nina who was still gaping at him and had to take another glance. His eyes looked straight into hers in awestruck silence.

Nina lowered her head at his stare. The media prince was looking at her while she was wearing such a revealing dress. She felt her face burn in shame. To her surprise, Bobby Teng walked closer to her. He tilted her face up with cold fingers under her chin.

His eyes were the first thing she saw. His piercing grey pupils betrayed his mixed blood. 'Oh my God.' Nina felt like she was going to faint.

"What's your name?" he asked in a deep and gruff voice. Bobby Teng stared at Nina with a decidedly bored expression on his face.

"What?" Nina muttered. Her ears were filled with her own heartbeat. She could only see Bobby Teng's lips move but she couldn't hear what he was saying.

His fingers pinched her chin a little harder. She moaned in pain before she heard Bobby ask again, "What's your name?"

"Nina... Nina Bai."

The man looked her up and down before quickly taking her hand. "Get in the car!" Then to her surprise, Bobby Teng dragged her to his car.

"Ah?" After two steps, Nina's mind finally caught up to what was happening. She said hastily, "Why should I get into your car? I have somewhere to be."

The man stopped and looked back at her. He grabbed the note from her hand and asked, "Hilton Hotel?"

Nina lowered her head in shame.

"What difference would it make if you give yourself to someone else? I'll match whatever he will pay you!" Bobby continued to drag Nina to his car.

"No!" Nina protested. She didn't know what kind of man Bobby Teng was, but she also knew enough about him. She knew he could pay well. But she was doing this shameful choice because she needed to earn three hundred thousand quickly.

"What did you say?" Bobby Teng looked back again with a cold expression on his face. "No one could say no to me. Listen: tonight, you belong with me. You're mine."

They were conveniently by his car then. He only needed to give her a slight push to get her into his car. He got in and closed the door before he drove away with her. They left the scene with his headlights disappearing in the horizon.

Nina reluctantly pulled the seat belt across her. She bit her lips as she tried to digest the words that echoed in her mind. "You're mine!"

She stole a glance at the driver. Bobby Teng continued to drive with an angry expression on his face. She seriously doubted if he had hit his head from the accident earlier.

Bobby Teng had been a media character she had seen across different platforms for several years now. His life was something she had always dreamed of having. What he said earlier was something out of a dream, too. She couldn't believe he would say that to her!

But with her circumstances, she had no choice but to accept Daisy's idea. If she thought about it, it was probably so much better that it was Bobby who was at the other end of the deal and not some stranger. He was handsome and gorgeous. Surely, someone famous like him would be better than some random guy. Her only worry was that she would look funny and ugly in front of her idol. She really wasn't expecting this plot twist.

When she made this decision, she thought she would only have to see the person once in her life. She didn't expect it would be someone she would see often and her idol, no less.

'No way! I can't do this!'

her inner voice said. Outwardly, she turned to look at him. "Mr. Teng. About the thing you said earlier..."

"What? Are you worried I couldn't afford your price?" Bobby asked coldly, still looking ahead. His handsome profile made Nina dizzy. She bit her lips and encouraged herself again, 'No, you shouldn't let him get the better of you! Do you want to remember this scene in the future with regrets? Of course not!'

"I made this appointment with someone else. I don't think it's a good idea to break a promise." It was a lame excuse and she knew it. Finally, Bobby turned to face her with anger in his eyes. "You're really pulling the professionalism card right now?"

"What?" Nina answered back. She was stunned. She wanted to wave her hand to take it back but before she could, a buzzing sound filled the mostly silent car. She realized he raised his hand before her vision clouded and turned dark.

Before long, she succumbed to the darkness. Her seatbelt was the only thing that was keeping her upright.

Bobby placed a hand on her neck before tilting it to rest against the headrest. With her eyes closed, she looked meek and timid.

He withdrew his hand and pressed his earphone. "Go ahead."

Nina was startled as she felt water wash over her. The sound of water flooding her ears was enough to wake her up from her deep slumber. She opened her eyes, only to close them again from the onslaught of water.

"Help! Help!" Nina shouted instinctively. She waved her hand in front of her, as if that could stop the burst of water targeted at her face. When she calmed down, she found a smirking man standing beside the bathtub.

"Help you? Are you afraid I will eat you?"

His deep voice sounded magnetic as it usually did. His past interviews flashed across her mind. At the moment, the usually soothing voice did nothing to ease the rising anger in her chest. She tried to remember how she got into the bathtub but she came up with nothing. And now she was soaking wet!

Unconsciously, Nina covered her chest and shrank back under his intense stare. Her sparkly white gown had grown transparent as it soaked with water. She could feel Bobby's heated stare burn through her damp and clammy skin.

"Catch!" Bobby threw the showerhead at Nina. "Wash yourself before you come out. I'll wait for you outside." He turned and went to lie down on the bed. There was only a translucent wall that separated the bathroom from the bedroom. She could see him clearly through it.

Her heart was pounding hard against her chest. She tried to swallow the ball of nerves on her throat and looked away. 'How can I wash myself when he could see me from the bedroom?'

She had never felt as helpless as she did at that moment.

Thinking back, she had been through a lot. Typically, she could boast her endurance and resilience. And she should consider herself lucky. It was a handsome man who would spend the night with her, not someone ugly and sleazy. It was just... the see-through bathroom was making it difficult to gather her courage.

"What are you thinking about? Do you want me to help you clean yourself?" Bobby's voice broke through Nina's thoughts. She was startled and twisted the showerhead. Immediately, it rained hard on her body. Her tears immediately welled up on her eyes as she felt like the minor inconvenience was the last straw.

Bobby's eyelids trembled, and then he used the TV remote control to change channels.

From his periphery, he could see that Nina was sitting in the tub, looking like a wet kitten. The corners of his mouth twitched. "Still wearing that dress? You impressed me."

Hearing his words, something fired up inside Nina. She stood up and took off her wet clothes. She took several calming breaths, bracing herself for the night.

Bobby's fingers tapped aggressively on the buttons of the remote control. Finally unable to control his desire, he threw away the remote control and went to the bar counter in the room. He took out a bottle of red wine and poured two glasses.

He walked towards the French window with his own glass in hand. The city skyline looked like glittering diamonds from his view. It all looked beautiful from his cold, unfeeling eyes.

Finally, Bobby heard the sound of the bathroom door opening. He turned his head slightly to see Nina all wrapped up in fluffy towels as if they were her armor for the night.

Something in Bobby's eyes flickered before he asked. "Is this your first time?"

Nina blushed and nodded in embarrassment.

Pointing at the wine glass on the bar counter, Bobby said, "The wine helps with the nerves. Drink some."

Nina followed his hand and saw the wine. "I don't really drink alcohol."

Bobby smiled at her innocence. He took a sip from his own glass before putting it down. He strode towards her and pulled off the towel wrapped around her head.

Nina was scared shitless. It felt like her facial muscles were twitching uncontrollable. One more twitch and she was about to burst into tears.

"Do you dislike me that much? Why are you feeling so aggrieved?" She felt the wind knock out of her at his words. "No, not at all! I'm just..."

"What?"

"I'm not ready..."

Nina saw Bobby's body stiffen in surprise. Before she knew it, a pair of hands framed her face. He moved away some errant strands of hair from her face and gently wiped her tears. He was looking at her with greyish-green eyes. "You want me to let you go, right?"

His voice sounded full of tenderness. She wanted to nod but she had to remember why she was here in the first place. She tried to swallow her fears.

Something shifted behind her eyes. And with a trembling voice, she said, "No. I just want to ask you to be gentle with me."

"Be gentle," Bobby repeated her words to which Nina nodded. He tried to smile charmingly but it didn't reach his eyes. "I'm sorry but I can't."

As soon as he finished his words, he moved closer to her. His eyes burned at a patch of her shoulder before he took a quick sniff. "Very good. There's no trace of that cloying perfume now."

His closeness made her uncomfortable. She wanted to shout at him to take a step back but she remembered why she was here. So she kept the urge in. She didn't know why she was being so moody. It was her first time to interact with someone from the upper class. She didn't know how to read their movements and their thoughts. The only thing she knew was that she couldn't provoke him, not when he was the only person who could save her brother.

Nina might not know much about what usually happened between a man and a woman, but at least she knew she had to stand obediently and let him see his fill.

The only reference materials she had about what was about to happen were a few books and short clips from movies. The reality couldn't be any more different from all of them.

In an instant, Nina realized the alcohol was messing with her brain. Because she had low alcohol tolerance, she couldn't comprehend why Bobby was looking at her with cold eyes.

She was confused. Unconsciously, a frown made its way to her face. Bobby chose that moment to move slightly away from her. Nina was so nervous. She held her breath as her heart continued to pound in her chest. Bobby raised his eyebrows at her and noticed the light purple fabric underneath the towel. Angrily, he said, "Did you put it on again?"

She bit her lip nervously. She didn't know what to say. She thought she wouldn't need it but without it, she wouldn't have the courage to walk out of the bathroom.

"It is wet. Don't you feel uncomfortable?"

"No." Nina blushed as she closed her eyes nervously.

"So how much was he going to pay you?" he asked her.

"Three hundred thousand..." The tension between them made Nina even dizzier. She seemed to wait for his reaction but Bobby only smiled softly at her. He didn't share what was funny or satisfying to make him smile like that. He looked like a playful boy taunting her.

He raised one eyebrow at her before he pressed a button beside the bed. The curtains began to close automatically. Darkness began to blanket the entire room except for the neon lights that passed through the thin curtains.

The next morning, Nina felt her head was splitting in half. She was sure she was experiencing an out of body experience. She clutched the quilt tighter against her body as she squeezed her eyes shut.

She had woken up a minute ago but she didn't dare open her eyes. She couldn't even remember what had happened last night. The last thing she remembered was she only had a sip of the red wine. It was terrible for her because she didn't have any decent alcohol tolerance.

Beep! Beep! Beep! Nina's phone began to ring, which made it impossible for her to pretend she was still asleep. She hurriedly threw off the quilt and went to rummage in her bag for her phone.

She turned off the alarm clock and turned back in embarrassment. She didn't know if that would piss Bobby off. To her surprise, there was no trace of him on the bed.

That made Nina straighten her body.

She blinked and relaxed at once. She looked around the room to make sure he really wasn't there before she climbed back to bed.

'He left...'

She couldn't tell if she was saying that in her mind in disappointment or relief.

She rubbed at her temples, which were still throbbing from the alcohol last night when she remembered something. Hurriedly, she threw off the quilt again and saw the blood on the sheets.

She looked at the spot in a daze and reached out a finger to touch it. Unconsciously, tears began to fall down her cheeks.

"Why are you crying? This is your choice. At least, he is an excellent man, right?" Nina wiped her tears as she remembered the reward he had promised. She stood up again and looked around. This time, she noticed the paper and pen on the bedside table. She leaned over and saw it was a check and a business card. Bobby's name was printed on the card with three words written as a note: compensation for you.

Compensation.

Nina bit her lower lip as she picked up the check. The numbers he had scrawled on it didn't make sense in her brain.

"One million?"

She scratched her head and picked up the business card. After hesitating, she picked up her phone and sent a message to the number on the card. "It's three hundred thousand. You gave me too much."

A minute later, his reply came. "Take it all."

Nina had to read his reply thrice to make sense of it. "Thank you. You're a good man."

Bobby looked at Nina's message in confusion. 'A good person? Is she being sincere or sarcastic?'

He sighed before putting his phone away. With his hands encased in a pair of gloves, he picked up the high-powered telescope in front of him and looked into the distance. He could see the curtain of the opposite room was still closed.

A faint smile appeared on his face. Bobby dropped the telescope, took a few steps back, before opening the gas tap. He turned around to leave the room, leaving behind two corpses lying in eternal slumber.