Life Without You

Chapter 4 - Shocking News

"I can't believe this!" exclaimed Arnold as he popped his eyes at his mobile screen. "Did y'all know of this?"

"Duh, it's been all over the news since this morning," replied Vinny as she scanned her phone.

"Leon?" Arnold turned his attention to Leon, who was practising his dance moves in the studio. But he ignored him, so he raised his voice to catch his attention from afar. "Leon! Did you read the latest news?"

Leon missed a step at Arnold's loud voice and almost fell forward before one of his dancers grabbed his arm in time.

"What now?" Leon was visibly annoyed being disturbed in the middle of his dance practice. "If it's another fake news on me, I'm not interested!"

"No no, it's BIG news regarding someone we know that calls for your utmost attention!"

Rolling his eyes with a loud sigh, Leon dragged his feet towards Arnold. Who could this someone be?

Arnold played back the online TV advertisement on the sponsor Facebook post and showed it to Leon.

He froze, wide-eyed and almost breathless. He blinked again to have a second look and hastily grabbed the phone from Arnold's hand.

It was Ariel! And she's alive!

Her signature messy top-knot hair and chef uniform were now replaced with an attractive, smiling face that was model-like and framed within a shorter hair in toussels, dressed in luxury fashionable wear and high heels. The nerve-wrecking, stammering chef now exuded confidence and clarity, posing in style as she spoke a few words in Japanese and English while swiping Fujita's signature sauces, thanks to CGI effects. She was now the new face for Fujita's line of sauces!

So that's where she has been the whole time - hiding with Fujita!

A mixture of joy, relief and anger stirred within his pounding heart. Why did she even hide herself unnecessarily and cause him and her friends so much pain and anguish? But boy, did she look so hot! Leon could not help replaying the video again to recapture her captivating new look.

"Seems like Ariel replaced you," said Vinny as she scanned the news on her own phone, "She's on ads all over Japan and everywhere in the world. It's said that she's been living in Japan all this while."

Japan! How in the world did the private investigators not see this coming? And where did they get the fanciful idea that she went to India and China?

Whatever the case, Leon was keen to get to the bottom of this.

"I'm so gonna kill Fujita!" Leon erupted with a tightened fist.

"Forget it," Arnold calmed him down, "you're no longer their favourite face. And Ariel's not your chef anymore."

Leon's fist loosened. Arnold was right. What right does he have to claim Ariel back? She chose to leave on her own accord and now she seemed happier in a new country with a new life while his own life was falling apart.

Still, he needed justice - justice for his broken heart as to why she didn't want to be with him anymore. After all they have shared and done and almost died together, couldn't she at least give him her reasons? How about her friends? How could she be so callous to forget them?

Leon tossed the phone back to Arnold who caught it in time by surprise, "Careful with that, it's my new iPhone!" He hugged his phone protectively but Leon ignored him as he abruptly left the studio without finishing his dance practice.