LUNA ☾

Phase Twenty-Three: Contrast

CRASH!

Plates and cutleries scattered on the floor. His mouth trembled in rage.

"How could his proposal got rejected?!"

He thought it was his best one yet.

"Damn The Shen's. Is it their hobby to ruin proposals now?!"

He rummaged in his own mind what really went wrong. He was pretty sure he did not overlooked every aspect of it. Or was it really not that good?

Pacing back and forth thinking of all the possibilities. This was a really big account and his father was furious. The last thing that he needed right now was his father knowing he failed again. He grew up in a household that the only thing that mattered was his father's commands. He grew up realising that it has became an obsession of his to follow all of his orders. His father's cold yet brutal presence has been haunting him ever since.

flashback

"I thought you had everything under control..?"

"I was! I did not know he would change his mind."

"Then solve it. I am not accepting any more failures, Ivan."

"If we lose them, our company will go down. We are hanging by the thread. We need that wedding asap."

"Yes, Dad."

"Pardon?"

"I meant..Yes..Sir..."

"And Ivan, if you fail again, forget that you were part of this family."

"Understood, Sir."

end of flashback

He cringed upon reminiscing his conversation with his dad earlier. He had to talk to Yue's dad as soon as possible. Maybe he can still change his mind. Henry treated him like his own ever since he got together with Yue. In between her parents, he was pretty sure he was closer to Henry more. He got his trust easily from the start. He even once said he reminded him of his younger days; a passionate and a hard working man. He couldn't make sense on what was happening. If everything was in place then why did her dad rejected it? He thought through his recent actions and he couldn't help but recalled their last encounter. There was a tinge of anger in his voice at first when he visited their house to check on Yue. Quite an off-putting on how they would usually interact but he shrugged it off that day thinking that perhaps Henry was stressed with his beloved daughter's unexpected comeback. However, now that he thought about it again, considering the recent happenings, he figured who was the possible culprit of this all.

"But was it really her? Tsk. Who am I kidding? It's definitely her doing. Fucking spoiled brat."

"Was it her scheme all along? To bring him down?"

Sweat formed on his forehead while imagining if these were true. His ponder turned into a vicious paranoia of all the probabilities.

"Or was it all planned out? What if it's not just her who is involved? What if her whole family plotted all of these? Were they having a plan to take his family down? Was this a game of chess?"

His fearful expression suddenly turned into a triumphant smirk.

"Two can play this game, Shens."

If there was one man who was most fitting to be an architect, that would be Ivan. Not just a normal architect but a great one. It came to him smoothly even during his college days. Taking up double major in Architecture and Business Management was not a child's play but to Ivan, it came on smoothly. His strength was to following templates and adapt to it immediately. For him, the safest path was to follow what worked in the past and knowing every single corner of it already has its own 'answer sheet' and one day if it goes wrong, he would know how to resolve it at the back of his hand. His architect side though does not only apply on his work, it also applies on a personal level. He plans his every move like plotting a great foundation of a home. Solid and spotless. Which was why when he was tasked by his dad to make the heiress fall in love with him, the execution can be considered a masterpiece.

He endured several years in order to reach his family's goal and that is get the Shen's Corporation by marrying her. It wasn't an easy approach but it was the most effective. Courting her to being the supportive boyfriend that anyone wished they had. He has foresee all these and he must admit that he enjoyed every bit of it. Ivan became the talk of the town being portrayed as the modern day prince charming and that he couldn't refuse. With all these acts and his interactions with Shen Yue, the biggest question of all was..

Did he ever loved her?

In any part of planning there would always be unforeseen circumstances. In his case, this was it. He has enjoyed her company secretly. Her simplicity and courage has awed him. It was so easy to get along with her. Shen Yue does not have the typical girl-next-door aura. Her naivety yet feisty attitude when challenged has attracted him to another level... but beneath it all... what really captured him the most was her known innocence and how it will be his when that time comes. Her lips and sighs was already enough to drive him crazy. He has been imagining her and in that moment for numerous times. His fascination has grown into an obsession.

Licking his lips while thinking on how long he had waited to claim her one day.

So to answer the question, Yes. Definitely. Even up to now, he is in love with her.

What about his current girlfriend now you might ask? She was just a temporary distraction. A very useful one that he often make use of with all her connections.

He walked over to his room and stopped on a particular wall. It was an wall full of her pictures in different angles. Some were shot by him but most were candids.

He smiled menacingly upon caressing one of her photos as if imagining that it was her in real life.

"You will be mine, Yue."

___________________________________________

Dylan was at his balcony, seated at the sofa with his hands clasped together, his head hang lowered miserably. That phone call with his Dad after Qinyang's press conference reminded him again that he was never enough for him. He was once again slapped back into the reality that he could never do the right thing in his eyes. He thought he was immune to this but he was wrong once again.

She stood by the door and peeped over him while waited for the right timing to go near him. Observing him from afar in full concern knowing that his phone call with his dad did not go well at all.

She stood there for a few minutes till she saw him made a slight movement. Taking that as her cue, she went nearer to him.

She squatted down in front of him, her fingertips touched his clasped hands. Lightly squeezing it to let him know that she was just there with him. He sighed in return and slowly raised his head to meet her gaze. The moment she saw his swollen eyes, her heart broke into pieces. She then caressed his face, wiping some trails of his almost dried up tears. He sighed once again with the contact of her fingertips.

He placed his other hand on her face, instinctively leaning towards his hands. She then hovered her free hand over and caressed his as they continued to stare at each other. Not bothering saying a word. Just the both of them knowing their presence was enough for comfort.

Author's note: Hiiii! Thinking that this story deserved a POV on Ivan's world. So that you guys would somehow get a glimpse or maybe just maybe taking a hint on what would happen next hee :) Oh and just a heads up for my next chapter, it MIGHT contain mature scene. Sweaty palms is at it again, thinking on whether or not I should include that scene because I feel that is needed for the next chapter. I am blabbering now nervously. But yes, if ever you feel uncomfortable reading it, please do skip it yes? :D