Standing there with two gla.s.ses of chilled Rosé wine, he had a worried expression on his face . Not managing to catch the attention of the busy servers, he had personally gone to the bar to get the drinks for both of them . When he came back, he saw her covering her face with her hands . Was she crying again?

"Yes, yes… I just felt, uh, dizzy for a moment . But I am fine now," she tried to cover up .

"I was wondering if it would be alright that I excused myself now . It has been a long day today and I find myself extremely tired," she continued speaking before he could respond to it .

Hui put the gla.s.ses down immediately and said contritely, "of course . I am sorry . I should have not agreed to this plan of Eric's . You have barely recovered . "

Jia Li felt guilty because of using her health as an excuse but she really didn't want to stay put at the place any longer .

"I will quickly settle the bill and we shall leave," he said immediately .

"Nooo, there is no need for that . I shall take the tube . My flat is really close by . It would take you way longer to go around the area and drop me . I will see you at work tomorrow . Please say bye to Eric for me . Thank you and g'night," she blabbered and hurried away before Hui could even form an appropriate reply to stop her .

She sat in the nearly empty train, head leaning against the window . Was her behaviour this evening a reflection of her suppressed emotions, her escapist att.i.tude? Was she a coward as well, running away from herself? Why couldn't she simply enjoy what had been a good evening? It was as if every time she let her guard down, the feelings which she thought she had exorcised long ago, came to the surface again . She got down at her station and walked towards the exit, lost in her muddled thoughts .

"Jia… Lin Jia Li? Is that you?" he stood in front of her, shock visible on his face .

She froze, looking at the familiar face of her dear friend .

"You… you are in London . You are here . All this while, have you been living in London? " Wei still couldn't believe it and uttered the first incoherent words which came to his mind .

Some inner voice of Jia Li mocked her for asking that question to self a little while ago – am I a coward? It seemed that G.o.d had sent her the answer in form of a living example of that . She had run away in the middle of the night from Wei's house, leaving nothing but an apology letter . After all that he had done for her, the least that she had owed him was an explanation in person . But she had instinctively chosen the path of least resistance . The only person who had seen her was Mrs . w.a.n.g that night . Clutching her bag in her hand, Jia Li had descended the stairs of the w.a.n.g house in wee hours of the morning and run straight into Wei's mother .

She had thought that she would have to offer an explanation but the older woman had simply said, "thank you . Please ensure that you never come back . "

Recalling that, she didn't know how to react right now . Standing in front of him, her eyes felt heavy with guilt and remorse . She was unable to look into his excited ones .

Wei had been in a good mood post his father's successful surgery and had decided to step out to grab a celebratory meal while his mother kept him company at the hospital .

"I am going to start looking for Jia Li the minute I reach Shanghai," he vowed to himself during a solo meal at one of the eateries in Covent Garden .

The place had been full of colour, music and he had thought that Jia Li would have liked this dinner place . He couldn't find a cab to go back to the hospital and ended up at the tube station . And there she was, climbing up the stairs towards exit . It was as if he had conjured her up from his thoughts .

She looked like a vision in an off-white dress, her hair all mussed up, the colour of her cheeks high . Wei couldn't believe his eyes as she kept coming towards him, her usual expression of being lost in her own thoughts . Before he knew it, she had reached right next to him, without looking up even once . He called out her name…

"Hi Wei… this, this is a surprise . Yes, I am living here in London, currently," her voice faltered .

She didn't know what to say . He couldn't hold back for even a nanosecond anymore and closed the distance between them .

Umm… are you alright? Huis concerned voice reached her ears . Standing there with two gla.s.ses of chilled Rosé wine, he had a worried expression on his face . Not managing to catch the attention of the busy servers, he had personally gone to the bar to get the drinks for both of them . When he came back, he saw her covering her face with her hands . Was she crying again? Yes, yes… I just felt, uh, dizzy for a moment . But I am fine now, she tried to cover up . I was wondering if it would be alright that I excused myself now . It has been a long day today and I find myself extremely tired, she continued speaking before he could respond to it . Hui put the gla.s.ses down immediately and said contritely, of course . I am sorry . I should have not agreed to this plan of Erics . You have barely recovered . Jia Li felt guilty because of using her health as an excuse but she really didnt want to stay put at the place any longer . I will quickly settle the bill and we shall leave, he said immediately . Nooo, there is no need for that . I shall take the tube . My flat is really close by . It would take you way longer to go around the area and drop me . I will see you at work tomorrow . Please say bye to Eric for me . Thank you and gnight, she blabbered and hurried away before Hui could even form an appropriate reply to stop her . She sat in the nearly empty train, head leaning against the window . Was her behaviour this evening a reflection of her suppressed emotions, her escapist att.i.tude? Was she a coward as well, running away from herself? Why couldnt she simply enjoy what had been a good evening? It was as if every time she let her guard down, the feelings which she thought she had exorcised long ago, came to the surface again . She got down at her station and walked towards the exit, lost in her muddled thoughts . Jia… Lin Jia Li? Is that you? he stood in front of her, shock visible on his face . She froze, looking at the familiar face of her dear friend . You… you are in London . You are here . All this while, have you been living in London? Wei still couldnt believe it and uttered the first incoherent words which came to his mind . Some inner voice of Jia Li mocked her for asking that question to self a little while ago – am I a coward? It seemed that G.o.d had sent her the answer in form of a living example of that . She had run away in the middle of the night from Weis house, leaving nothing but an apology letter . After all that he had done for her, the least that she had owed him was an explanation in person . But she had instinctively chosen the path of least resistance . The only person who had seen her was Mrs . w.a.n.g that night . Clutching her bag in her hand, Jia Li had descended the stairs of the w.a.n.g house in wee hours of the morning and run straight into Weis mother . She had thought that she would have to offer an explanation but the older woman had simply said, thank you . Please ensure that you never come back . . Recalling that, she didnt know how to react right now . Standing in front of him, her eyes felt heavy with guilt and remorse . She was unable to look into his excited ones . Wei had been in a good mood post his fathers successful surgery and had decided to step out to grab a celebratory meal while his mother kept him company at the hospital . I am going to start looking for Jia Li the minute I reach Shanghai, he vowed to himself during a solo meal at one of the eateries in Covent Garden . The place had been full of colour, music and he had thought that Jia Li would have liked this dinner place . He couldnt find a cab to go back to the hospital and ended up at the tube station . And there she was, climbing up the stairs towards exit . It was as if he had conjured her up from his thoughts . She looked like a vision in an off-white dress, her hair all mussed up, the colour of her cheeks high . Wei couldnt believe his eyes as she kept coming towards him, her usual expression of being lost in her own thoughts . Before he knew it, she had reached right next to him, without looking up even once . He called out her name… Hi Wei… this, this is a surprise . Yes, I am living here in London, currently, her voice faltered . She didnt know what to say . He couldnt hold back for even a nanosecond anymore and closed the distance between them .