Chapter 12
Kai
W hat happened yesterday with Gucci still angers me.
June wasn’t poor. There was no reason for the Gucci staff to treat her like some second-class shopper. I wouldn’t have that.
After the Gucci crew left, I had a stern word with the New York manager.
Samantha had apologized and said it was unnecessary for me to make another scene with her boss.
Lucy’s family might have had a large retail account with them, but we had a business relationship with them. Not just New York but globally.
Pissing me off wasn’t something they would want.
People in the west don’t understand how Asian people think. We do not like to be looked down on. We have fought many battles over generations to be taken seriously on a global scale. And we are not about to back down when some sales assistant makes a stupid mistake like that.
With a few rounds of persuasion, June finally tried on the gown.
It was perfect for her, as I’d predicted.
I wasn’t one of those men that could just tell what size dress a woman wore.
Those kinds of men that buy perfect anything for their dates, they only ever exist in the movies.
But somehow, I could just tell what would look good on June.
It sounded creepy. It was almost like I was playing with her as my own personal dress up doll. First, I would slowly and carefully undress her. Then I would put those dresses on her, caressing her soft skin as I did it.
My sultry thoughts were abruptly disrupted as staff from Dior started to march into my home.
It seems Lucy arranged for Dior to come as well.
The women continued to have fun, but I was exhausted.
It was hard to pay attention when everything just seemed the same to me.
If it was up to me, I would have my personal shopper pick out one or two items as and when I needed.
June didn’t want anything from Dior. I had the manager pick up a few limited items for her anyway.
I still couldn’t tell if having Lucy there was a good idea.
Jenny’s mood seemed to pick up a little as her friend distracted her.
I was hoping that Jenny would open up and talk about her problem with Lucy.
Then again, they haven’t had a chance to have a private chat yet, so maybe later.
June had some food delivered to us over dinner with the app on her phone.
Pizza, fried chicken, burgers and chips.
Standard American Food – not the healthiest food for their bodies.
Sadly, the girls had the biggest smiles when the food arrived.
These smiles were even bigger than those they wore when they saw Dior’s exclusive off the shelf item.
Despite how unhealthy the food was, dinner was somewhat relaxing and it reminded me of my university days.
I smiled as I remembered the days when I could just sit with a bunch of my friends, eating in front of the TV while binging on pretty much anything from sports replays to popular sitcoms like The Big Bang Theory.
Those were the kind of memories I savored.
Dinners were never the same before and after those days.
Dinners now seemed to always be formal. It ranges from semi to very formal.
And I had to dress accordingly. On the semi-formal days, a well pressed shirt was essential, coupled with a pair of proper trousers, that means denim jeans were deemed rude and inappropriate.
Formal days on the other hand, were when my family had some kind of event, either at home, someone else’s, or some kind of ballroom in some five-star hotel.
Without a question, those were suit and tux kind of days.
Even when I was dining at home alone, when my parents couldn’t be bothered to come home to see me, I still had to dress smartly.
Which also meant being ushered to the dining table by the butler, Mr. Edwards.
The most ridiculous thing was that my mother would demand evidence that Mr. Edwards, the Englishman that he was, would follow all her rules to a T.
He would snap a photo of me holding onto the days’ newspaper at the dining table. Fond memories huh?
I had to say that I did have a little bit more freedom after I graduated from the university, especially when I was abroad.
Some days I would not eat, so that I could just skip the whole fuss.
Mom knew that I hated being bothered with stupid questions like whether or not I had eaten.
And she knew full well that I would simply just ignore her.
These days, she would pester my assistant instead.
And guess what? Having basic Photoshop skills was listed as an essential skill for my assistant. Whatever evidence or photos my mom received, it was all fake.
We had a somewhat relaxing dinner with the girls.
It was the kind that I had missed the most. We were surrounded with friends and joy.
It wasn’t a polite and civilized meal where we all sat around a table, using the correct fork and spoon kind of deal.
Food was just laid around the table, and people just picked up whatever they liked while continuing doing whatever they were doing.
The two best friends continued chit chatting about fashion while admiring and comparing their latest purchases. Soon after dinner, June made an excuse about work before going home.
I zoned out after she left.
The next day, Jenny and I waited at the reception area at Bennet Women’s Hospital.
The interior was mostly white – not hospital white though.
The floors and walls were decorated with different shades and patterns of white marble, which gave it a very sophisticated look.
It takes a lot of effort for things to look simple.
That clean and minimalist look was actually more complicated than anyone can imagine.
Especially when it comes to the upper-class way of simplicity and minimalism.
Simple often means expensive in our world.
A lady in a dark blue dress approached us with a nice professional smile.
“You must be Jenny.” She said, her eyes on my cousin. She didn’t seem to know who I was. It made sense though. I wasn’t the patient after all. And I wasn’t in China. “My name is Siti. Please follow me. Dr. Bennet is expecting you.”
Jenny wanted Lucy to come with her, but I insisted on coming instead.
Though I didn’t really have a chance to talk to June after the Gucci team left last night, I knew something was on her mind. She looked as though she enjoyed the rest of the day, but I wasn’t convinced that she was over the shock of how she’d been treated.
After dinner, she’d left in such a hurry I didn’t have a chance to kiss her goodbye.
I’d thought about leaving the best friends to catch up alone to go after June, but Lucy needed some help with her guest room. I don’t know why it didn’t cross my mind to leave David or Clare to handle those two so I could chase after June.
And… there were no messages from her.
Since yesterday.
So, I’d decided I might as well go to the hospital with Jenny.
We followed behind June’s assistant up the brightly lit elevator to the third floor.
That floor was dedicated to consultation rooms. I glanced at a sign on the wall that listed the doctors’ names and their specialty.
June’s name was at the very top, as head of department. That’s my princess there, so smart.
Soon we walked past a long corridor and entered a glass room at the end.
Inside the room, there was a waiting room that was much fancier than the one we walked past outside.
Two couples sat patiently. One of the couples was having a quiet and serious discussion.
The other pair were busy scrolling on their phones.
June’s assistant then knocked on a frosted door with a plate that read ‘Dr. June Bennet’ on it and led us in soon after it was answered.
Dr. Bennet was a little surprised to see us. Or me, that is.
She wore her hair in a neat bun today. No perfume or jewelry, apart from a smart watch. She removed the stethoscope from her neck and left it on her desk before standing up to greet us.
“Good to see you, Jenny.” Her smile was as formal as the bun on her head. She looked exactly like the woman she posed as on those posters plastering the hospital walls. I had no doubt that that woman was a good doctor. But she wasn’t my June.
“Hi.” It sounded a lot goofier than I intended.
“I wasn’t expecting you though, Mr. Li.”
I wanted to tell her that I missed her.
But it wasn’t appropriate with Jenny there.
Odd. I had been with my fair share of women before. Although there were a few that I had a somewhat close relationship with, I had never missed anyone before. Even when I really – how do I put this – feel the urge to get off, I never missed any of them.
“Have you made a decision about whether to keep the pregnancy, Jenny?” June asked without judgment.
“I have. I’m going to keep it.” Jenny answered with a firm nod, her eyes on the fingers clutched in her lap.
It surprised me that Jenny had decided to keep the baby. Perhaps Lucy had helped her to come to that decision. I supported her decision but had my reservations. We could have made an appointment with the best OBGYN in New York, but Jenny decided that she wanted June to handle her case.
Picking June was a great and obvious choice for Jenny.
It also gave me an excuse to see her whenever I wanted.
After asking Jenny a series of questions and performing the standard health related exams, June escorted Jenny to a private room.
Jenny followed June into a small room attached to the office, which could only be an examination room.
I sat there quietly on my own, knowing it would be rude to follow.
As much as I’d like to see more of June, I wasn’t interested in seeing the inside of my cousin.