The Closer, The Better

It was 11 o'clock in the Night Club.

Just as the club's name suggested, the atmosphere was hot and heavy. The DJ quickly pumped up some sick beats as a slender and attractive woman appeared on the stage.

She swayed her hips, posing in front of the crowd. They responded with a loud cheer, raising their drinks high in the air. Wearing a veil, the woman bowed to the audience and turned to a dancing pole, rotating her body to the beat.

Her body was as lithe as a snake when she bent around the pole, displaying her clear and luscious skin. Although her face was covered, the audience could see the seductive star beneath the veil. She was enchanting, like a nymph calling for the gods.

From the way she moved, it felt as if she owned the entire stage. All eyes followed the woman as she swayed to the beat. It seemed that the club had just grown hotter and hotter by the minute.

Arvin Xue sat in one of the special guest boxes of the bar. He took a cigarette from the table and placed it in his mouth. Just then, a man approached to light it up for him. "She's quite a skillful dancer, Mr. Xue," the man remarked.

Yet Arvin Xue shrugged, blowing a small cloud of smoke. He tapped the edge of the cigarette. "She's still too young to push it to the next level," he said roughly.

The pole dancing was over. Although the performance was short, the dancer was drenched with her sweat. Her body glistened under the colored lights as she took the microphone from the DJ.

She took off the veil, and everybody held their breath. "Thank you all." Her soft voice echoed throughout the bar. "See you tomorrow night!"

For a minute, the room had gone silent.

Under the veil was a gorgeous woman. Her face was definitely proportionate, with each aspect of her face ready to send any man to his knees. The curves that hugged her body added to the entire glamour. She really was a goddess in disguise.

However, the man next to Arvin Xue stiffened. He slowly craned his neck towards the man. "Mr. Xue... That lady..."

Arvin Xue shot him a cruel glare that rendered him silent.

As he saw who the dancer was, he immediately left the cigarette on the ashtray and stomped out of the VIP box. The man yelled his name behind him, but it was to no avail.

Given his height and his muscled stature, people were afraid to block his path.

Arvin Xue rushed to the first floor without another thought. Soon enough, he pushed his way through the crowd before he finally reached the main stage.

Belinda Qin was still flirting with the audience, shooting them winks and smiles every now and then. However, she froze when she saw Arvin Xue standing right in front of her.

"What are you doing? Hey!"

Before she could respond, Arvin seized her wrist and dragged her out of the stage. Belinda Qin tried resisting, but it was to no avail.

"Oh, God! Let go!"

She was dragged several steps from the platform, struggling. Her arm was already aching as the people stared, wide-eyed, at the spectacle unfolding before them.

"What are you doing, Arvin?" she yelled out. "You're hurting me. Let go!"

Finally, Arvin halted and turned towards her. They were in the middle of the bar now, and all eyes were on them.

She tried to pull her arm only for him to tighten his grip further. Belinda Qin glared up at him.

"Are you insane?"

He stared, before asking, "Who asked you to come here?"

"It's none of your business!"

Just as they were in the middle of a fight, some of the audience couldn't take the mistreatment anymore. Soon enough, a man jumped out from the crowd.

"Hey, man, what the hell's wrong with you? Let the woman go!"

Although the man was not as tall as Arvin, he was just as strong. It was no wonder he'd dare stand against him.

Arvin sneered. "What makes you think you can stop me?"

In a blink of an eye, Arvin already had the man falling to his knees. He gave him another kick right on the stomach.

The man doubled over in pain.

Arvin then turned his gaze to the crowd. "Want to join him?" he snarled.

The crowd immediately stepped back at the threat. Arvin held Belinda Qin's hand as he shouted at the crowd, "Then get the hell out of the way!"

As soon as he finished, the audience quickly parted, granting him a path to move out.

"Hey!" Belinda yelled, struggling against his hold. "Let go! We've already been over this! You have nothing to do with me anymore!"

Soon enough, the couple finally exited the club.

The onlookers gathered around once again, wanting to see what the deal was about. Gossip bounced off the walls as their questions flew out into the ceiling.

"Who are they?"

"What's their relationship?"

"Yeah, they seem to know each other."

The man who was with Arvin a while ago could only stroke his chin. "They're a couple," he spoke.

In the dark night, a black Cayenne sped down the road.

It was tense the entire car ride.

Belinda crossed her arms over her chest, staring out of the front window. "Are you insane?" she snapped for what seemed to be the umpteenth time that night.

Arvin sneered. "I'm insane? Have you seen yourself? Jumping up and down on the pole like some...like some prostitute? Shame on you."

"Oh, so now I can't dance?"

She turned to him, eyes shining with fury. "You're such an ass. This is my job. I earn my own money. What's wrong with that, Mr. Xue?"

"It's your job?"

Blue veins poked out of his forehead as Arvin gripped the steering wheel even tighter. "I never knew you were such a slut," he spat. "A disgrace to the Xue Family."

"Oh, that's right...the Xue Family, I almost forgot."

She gasped mockingly. "Oh, wait, that's right! I don't care! When have you actually treated me like I'm part of the family, huh?"

The car drove into a tunnel and everything turned pitch black. Belinda closed her eyes and thought back to the time she'd married into the Xue Family.

The guests were all toasting to each other in the reception. Crystal lamps hung over the ceiling, illuminating the bride's attractive features.

However, just as she was enjoying the party, somebody hurried towards her. "Belinda," she stuttered. "Mrs. Xue, Mr. Xue drove away with his friends and that they'd rest in B City for a while."

Arvin had just finished the wedding ceremony and left his bride behind. He'd rather be with his friends than be with his wife.

The gossip had spread like wildfire overnight. After that, everyone took her as a joke--a woman with nothing more than a title.

The next time she met him, they had a fight.

Arvin sneered at her.

"There are so many beautiful women surrounding me. I don't need you. If you really want to, you can pack up and leave the Xue Family. I can't be bothered being attached to a superficial woman like you."

It was the first time she ever felt so furious. She called him a bastard and stomped out.

But it wasn't as if she could walk out and divorce him.

It was her grandpa's last wish for her to marry Arvin, and it was his grandmother who had been preventing her from even thinking about the divorce. Belinda just couldn't hurt the old lady, so all she could do was swallow the bitterness.

Since then, they lived separately. Belinda didn't ask any financial support from the man. Instead, she found herself a stable job at the Night Club.

However, she didn't expect that Arvin would drag her off the stage!

The more she thought about it, the more furious she got. Out of anger, she kicked the front of the car.

"Fucking asshole!" she screamed.

"What the hell are you doing?"

he snarled. "Stop it. You're making a fool out of yourself."

"So what?"

Belinda just raised her chin in reply, giving it another kick.

"You!" He sneered. "You know what? Screw you."

Arvin stepped on the gas and sped to 120 miles per hour. In just a few minutes, the car drifted across the lane and stopped right in front of the Xue Family's villa.

Holding back his anger, he got out of the car and slammed the door.

Belinda loosened the grip she had over her seat. She shook the dizziness off as she took a deep breath. Once she calmed down, she got off the car.

She frowned when she saw Arvin smoking in the living room.

Belinda was about to pass him, when he called for her. "Stop."

She rolled her eyes. "What do you want?"

"You're not allowed to go to that bar again."

"And why is that?"

She scoffed. "From what I understand, this is none of your business."

"I said no,"

he stated, taking a long drag from his cigarette. "Do you really want to striptease? Do you really want to bring more shame to yourself?" His smile turned into a sneer.

"I'm warning you. If this happens again..."

"What?"

Belinda interrupted, raising her eyebrows. "What would you do? Divorce me?"

Arvin jumped up from his seat, glowering at her.

"You know my grandmother wouldn't agree with this."

"So what?"

She scoffed. "Do you really think I want to be with you? If it weren't for your grandmother or my grandfather, I'd be out of here!"

"You!"

He clenched his fists.

A part of him wanted to punch her, but he held himself together. She was a woman, and no matter how angry he might be, he'd never hurt a woman. "I won't allow such a shameful thing to happen again," he said lowly.

'If others were to find out about this, I'd be humiliated,' he thought.

However, Belinda wasn't finished. She raised her eyebrow. "Do you think I'm a disgrace?" she asked, shrugging. "Fine, I can divorce you."

'Divorce me?'

Arvin's eyes widened.

He had always followed his grandmother's orders. If he were to divorce Belinda, she'd be furious.

If not for his grandmother's request, he wouldn't marry her in the first place.

The china cup in his hand shattered into pieces, its shards decorating the carpets.

"Fuck off," he snarled.

They fought with each other that night, which ended with hatred sown into each other's hearts.

However, Belinda didn't care. Besides, this wasn't the first time they fought. In fact, she was sure that this would not be the last time either.

She woke up late the next morning. After washing up, she found herself wandering around the mansion.

As expected, Arvin wasn't there. Belinda snickered. Although Arvin was smart and handsome, he was a ruthless man.

In her eyes, he was just as bad as any of those greedy businessmen.

She spent most of the grumbling about Arvin as she prepared herself a simple lunch. In half an hour, she finished and hurried to the door to see if she could find any other part-time job to fit to her liking.

However, as soon as the door opened, a man's head poked in the opening.

"Mrs. Xue."

From the looks of the uniformed black suit and equally dark sunglasses, he must be one of Arvin's men. "Mr. Xue told me that you are forbidden from leaving the house."

She snorted. "So he's going to put me on house arrest? Does he have any respect for my rights at all?"

"I'm sorry. It's Mr. Xue's order."

Her eyes narrowed as she took a few steps back. Now, she had a better look at the several men guarding the area. She cracked her knuckles at ease.

"You know, since I've left the martial arts club, I've never been able to practice before," she mused,

stretching her arms and neck.

The guards shared a tentative look. "Mrs. Xue..."

Belinda placed a hand on her waist and cocked her hips to the side. "What? Didn't he tell you I was part of the martial arts club?"

Just as she said those words, she swiped her leg towards them.

The leading guard immediately dodged the hit. However, Belinda wasn't waiting for their next move as she threw in the second kick, forcing all the guards to step back.

A punch flew her way, but she quickly deflected it and threw a punch of her own. The guard stumbled back.

Her punches and kicks were smooth and continuous, each holding a force that could render anyone silent. Her heart pounded with adrenaline as she delivered strike by strike, while dodging their movements.

Belinda hadn't used these techniques in a long time.

Ever since she left the club, the days she spent hitting the sandbags were gone. She was no longer the arrogant and independent woman she used to be.

In fact, she was the complete opposite. Now, she was trapped by the high walls of the Xue Family's enormous mansion. Although this house might have protected her from poverty, it had stolen her freedom as well.

Did he really think he could stop her? She scowled, knocking a few guards unconscious. There was no way she'd stop fighting.

After knocking over the last man, Belinda observed the men lying on the ground. She smirked.

"Tell Arvin he could go fuck himself. This is for him."

She raised her middle finger and strode off.

It was night already and the Night Club was filled with sweaty bodies and dropping beats. The atmosphere stirred as the DJ started to switch up the music.

Belinda danced enchantingly around the steel pole. This time, she wasn't wearing a veil. Her beautiful face and seductive gaze were completely revealed to the lustful audience.

The crowd went wild as she bent over and wrapped her legs around the pole. In fact, some of the men even tried to hop on stage and dance with her.

Arvin finally arrived at the bar after a busy day of work. His eyes widened at the chaos and enthusiasm that erupted from the stage.

Just then, he saw Belinda dancing on the pole, being leered at by lustful gazes.

Arvin suppressed a snarl as he gritted his teeth. He quickly shoved his hand into his pocket. "Clean up the scene," he ordered.

A group of men stormed over the club. Given their built, the people quickly parted, running away with their tails between their legs. Soon, the pandemonium had turned silent.

However, Belinda did not stop.

The music turned even hotter.

Clenching his fists, he took a step forward.

Belinda turned around. She wasn't planning on stopping as the corners of her lips lifted up. She continued to sway and bend, like a snake twirling across the pole.

Although neither of them spoke a single word, the tension in the bar was unbearable.

The men left might have all been on Arvin's side, but Belinda showed no fear. In fact, she continued twisting her body along with the rhythm. The chandelier above them glittered, illuminating her beautiful face even further.

Arvin frowned.

This was the first time he watched her dance up close.

He had to admit that the woman was beautiful. Even with blurred eyes and sweat running down her collarbone, she still looked enchanting.

His heartbeat raced.

For regular dancers, he had always been immune to their careless seduction and their simple movements across the stage. However, this was different. She was his wife.

It shouldn't be like this.

Belinda smiled.

"Get out," he yelled to his followers

as he took another step forward.

The men quickly retreated to guard the outsides of the bar, leaving the room to the couple.

Finally, Belinda stopped dancing. She leaned over to the pole seductively. Her eyes were still flirty, glancing at him like how a dancer would look at one of her customers.

Before he could speak, she stomped over to him.

The affectionate look on her face, however, switched to a scornful one.

"Asshole," she snapped.

Arvin followed her gaze to his crotch. It was already erected after seeing her dance like that.

Arvin grabbed Belinda's wrist and pulled her towards him.

"Don't you see how dirty your dancing is?" he demanded. "At least thank me for being so polite about it."

"Polite? That's polite?"

Belinda scoffed. "I might as well greet it politely then."

She stretched her right hand to grab his crotch area. Out of instinct, he blocked it and pushed the woman away with a flick of his wrist.

Belinda quickly steadied herself and aimed for a second strike.

Although Belinda was born practicing the martial arts, Arvin wasn't bad either. They were equally matched as they reflected each other's punches and kicks, which were growing fiercer and stronger by the second. As they continued, they had turned over many tables and broken hundreds of bottles in the process.

Amongst the ruckus, the chandelier above them exploded. The two immediately stepped back as shards of glass decorated the entire floor. As the dust had settled, they continued, using the broken glass to their advantage.