Vivian sighed softly as she took out a muffin and crushed it with her hand before throwing it into the water.
A moment later, two little fish swam up and started eating the muffin crumbs.
It must be the happiest day for these two fish.
Vivian wished that she could just be a fish. She wouldn't have to worry about having human thoughts or memories and live her life however she wanted. All it would take was just a few seconds to forget everything she'd been through and see the world anew again. She was sure that even the waterweed would be very interesting then.
Of course, she would never be able to know how it felt like to be without a care in the world like those two fish. She could only continue struggling to stay afloat in this cold, cruel world.
Vivian smiled bitterly and continued to crush the snacks in the bag, throwing them into the water bit by bit.
The two fish had already left after eating their fill, but Vivian kept throwing food in.
"Oh, who'd have thought that I'd bump into such a pretty little girl feeding the fish on a beautiful day like this? Don't just feed the fish, feed us too!"
A disgusting voice suddenly appeared behind Vivian.
Vivian quickly turned around and saw two sinister-looking men walking towards her with a wretched smile on their faces.
"That's right! I'm also hungry somewhere else too," the one with green hair said with a laugh. "Little girl, since you're so kind-hearted, you're gonna take care of us as well, right?"
The other man with slanted eyes started laughing so hard that his eyes disappeared into tiny slits.
Vivian quickly threw the rest of the crumbs away and picked up her sketchbook, holding it in front of her while she took a few steps back.
Of course, that sketchbook was no match for two strong men like them.
"Who are you? Stay away from me!" Vivian said as she continued backing away.
But in the eyes of those two men, she was just like a little bird trapped in a cage. It didn't matter how big of a fuss she kicked up.
"We're your brothers, sweetie. Don't worry, we'll be very gentle. As long as you don't resist, we will make you feel really good," Slanted Eyes said, squeezing his sleazy hands rather obscenely in front of him.
Green Hair glanced at Slanted Eyes and let out a laugh. "Did you really think that she's as innocent as she looks? Girls are all like this nowadays, they look pure and innocent on the outside but they're really beasts in the sheets. Who knows, she might even be begging us for it too!"
Their vulgar words nearly made Vivian faint from embarrassment.
But of course, she knew that this was not the time to feel embarrassed.
Vivian tightly clutched the sketchbook in her arms and ran off in the opposite direction.
Knowing that the two men had come from the main road, Vivian's only escape route was into the woods behind her.
She knew that it was not a good place to hide from them, but there was nothing else she could do in such dire circumstances.
...
Vivian had barely eaten anything these days, so she ran out of strength very quickly. She had just run into the woods when the two men caught up to her.
Green Hair caught her by her hand. In a panic, Vivian threw the sketchbook at him.
Green Hair cursed when the sketchbook hit his face and let go of her hand, but just then, Slanted Eyes pounced on Vivian and pushed her onto the ground.
"Come one, sweetie, stop pretending and just play with us," Slanted Eyes said. "We'll feed you and take good care of you." His disgusting voice made Vivian want to puke.
Still, she was unable to free herself from him.
"No! Leave me alone! H-Help! Help—" Vivian's cries for help quickly got muffled as Green Hair covered her mouth with his hands.
Vivian's eyes gradually filled with despair as she stared at the two powerful men in front of her.
No, she didn't want this!
"Brother Chow, save me!" she thought.
There was nothing else she could do other than to silently plead in her heart.
Just as Vivian was starting to run out of strength to struggle anymore, she suddenly felt the weight lifted off from her back.
Thud!
Thud!
She heard the sound of two heavy objects hitting the ground.
Vivian opened her eyes and saw the two men lying on the ground next to her.
"What the f*ck? Who did that?" Green Hair said as he cursed loudly. He turned around to face his attacker.
The person was tall and slim, about a whole head taller than Green Hair and Slanted Eyes.
Even with short, boyish hair, the newcomer's face was clean, bare, and pretty, adding to the overall beauty of the person.
"Aww, it's another beautiful little lady," Green Hair said. "You must be a model with this kind of body. What's the matter? Did you want to play with us—"
Before Green Hair could finish his sentence, he was sent flying into the lake with a heavy kick.
Splash!
Green Hair disappeared amongst the splashes.
Slanted Eyes was shocked only for a while before the lewd glint in his eyes grew brighter. "Ah, feisty. I love feisty little girls like you."
The person's eyes darkened as soon as she heard how Slanted Eyes addressed her.
Vivian wasn't even sure what happened next because just a second later, Slanted Eyes had been punched to the ground once more.
Thud, thud! Slanted Eyes let out a muffled cry and spat out a mouthful of blood.
In the end, neither one of them managed to escape the fate of being thrown into the lake.
The lake was rather shallow in this part of the woods. The water was only up to their waist.
The man's lips curled up again in a smirk. It made him look extremely sinister.
He approached Vivian and said in a low voice, "Don't you think that it's an honour to be kissed by me?"
Vivian was so scared that she took a couple more steps back. It was obvious from her pale face that she did not think it was an honour at all.
The man's conceited smile suddenly disappeared and he let out a snort. "It seems like you don't agree with me."
This man was a very strange person.
Vivian grasped the sketchbook in her hand. "I-I'm really grateful for your help earlier," she whispered.
"Thank you? Is that all I'm getting? Just a simple 'thank you'?" A hint of playfulness appeared in the man's eyes.
Vivian was speechless.
How could she repay him for saving his life with just a few simple words?
But she had nothing to give him. She was even still a guest at someone else's house. What could she ever do to repay him?
Vivian's cheeks gradually turned red. She looked at the man at a loss. "W-what do you want?"
The man gave her a once-over and curled his thin lips in disdain. "Well, I believe the old way of repaying favours is by giving yourself to me in marriage. You're far beneath my level, but I will still reluctantly accept your offer."
As he spoke, he reached out and pinched Vivian's cheek. He looked into the deepest depths of Vivian's eyes with a sinister expression on his face. "Vivian, from now on, you are my girlfriend."
Giving herself to him in marriage to repay the favour?
Vivian widened her eyes in shock and looked at the man helplessly.
Did he even know what he was saying?
Wasn't this just the first time they met each other?
"Excuse me, sir, can you please stop kidding?"
"I'm not kidding," the man interrupted her quickly and laughed. "My name is Joker. Don't forget. You now belong to me."
While saying that, Joker put his hand directly into Vivian's coat pocket to take out her phone, typed in his number, and pressed the dial button.
Very quickly, the phone in his pocket started buzzing loudly.
Joker hung up the phone and put it back in her pocket. "I will bring you out for dates in the future, but I won't be sending you home today. I've got other things to do."
With that, Joker turned and walked out of the woods.
Vivian stared at him blankly. She really didn't know how she should respond to his sudden 'love confession'.
She just couldn't keep up with what the man was thinking.
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: I'm Your Sister, Brother Chow