Chapter 1

It was nightfall. Thyme held two paper bags with a lot of groceries in them as he walked down the silent street. The cozy air brushed against his flawless skin. Coming back from work, he was so tired.

"Thank goodness, I'm almost there," sighed Thyme as he spotted a familiar figure. "Isn't that Tina?" He frowned when he clearly saw her face with the help of the street lights. She had just emerged from an expensive car, and a man came out as well. His heart skipped a beat when he saw the strange man hugging her waist. His heart began racing fast, and they both entered the clubhouse afterwards.

"No... no, it can't be what I'm thinking. Tina can't do this to me. We just spoke to each other this afternoon," he nodded his head negatively, not wanting to believe what he was thinking about. He walked to the clubhouse, and he halted when a tall, hefty man about 7 feet tall stopped him. They both gazed at each other, and Thyme could feel the tension already. Trying to gather his thoughts, he spoke.

"I came to deliver some things to my boss. He ordered for me to come here," he lied but kept his face a little cold. What flooded his mind in that moment was his girlfriend, who had just walked in with a man. After a few seconds, the man finally let him in.

The clubhouse was so noisy as they played music. People were seen kissing, while others were making out publicly without caring. His eyes scanned around and met Tina, who was already sitting on the lap of the strange man, kissing him intensely while he touched her sensitive body. Thyme walked towards them.

"Tina," his voice trembled as she slowly looked up to see who had just called her. "Do you know him?" The man raised his eyebrows, and Tina snapped off her thoughts. "Yeah, he's my poor wretched ex-boyfriend who won't leave me alone," Tina's voice electrified the room, which caught the attention of others. Chuckles were heard underneath. Thyme's heart broke into a million pieces immediately after those words flew out of her mouth. He couldn't talk. He closed his eyes tightly, folding his fists. He didn't realize when tears began flowing down his cheeks.

"Aww, the poor boy's heart is broken. Tina, why did you do that?" mocked a voice. "This shows this isn't her first time here," he thought.

"Tina, how could you?" he finally found his voice, wiping his tears. He couldn't believe he just cried because of this bitch. "Babe, are you going to watch this idiot humiliate me this way?" Tina faked a cry. Soon the security was called as they chased him out, beating the hell out of him. The hefty man he had lied to minutes ago injured him even more for lying to him. "Let's dump him somewhere, he fainted already," one of the men suggested as Thyme was carried. His clothes were already torn from the beating, and stains of blood were also seen on his body. He looked half dead.

The next morning, people passed the street. He had already woken up but was feeling weak and in pain, unable to stand on his feet. "Is he dead? Let's help him, he's still breathing," someone panicked, rushing up to him. The ambulance was called instantly.

Many hours later, Thyme finally opened his eyes. A white ceiling appeared before his face as he smiled. "Am I dead? Yes! I'm finally dead," he sounded really happy. "Thank goodness you're awake," he frowned hard after possibly hearing someone's voice. He was awake in this cruel world, again! He tried turning his head to see the person who had just spoken. A nurse held a tray of drugs and water as she walked up to him. "Sorry, the pain will be gone before you know it. Just take these drugs and take a nap," the lady's voice came out calm. "Hmph! A painkiller can't cure the pain I feel right now," he spoke with a pained face.

The lady didn't understand what he meant, but she knew he wasn't feeling good. "I really don't know what you're going through, but you'll be well, I promise," she gave out a heartwarming smile. "I'm Gorya, what's yours?" "Thyme," he replied without sparing her any glance. "Okay, take your drugs and have a nap, okay?" she stood up afterwards. Thyme stole a quick glance before sitting up to take his drugs after she had left.

A man in a black tuxedo and a nose mask on his face walked to a small underground house.

Two couples came into view. They were tied up on two chairs and their faces looked pale as they struggled to breathe. "I missed you too. It's been months. I hope you finally got treated. I wouldn't want you to die now. You're still useful," he spread his arms wide, sitting on a king-sized couch with hefty men on both sides.

"But I still don't get why I haven't killed both of you yet. Unfortunately, I still need you both. The outside world believes you're dead. You know it's been twenty fucking years, damn!" The man dramatized. Later on, a smirk was placed on his face. He wiggled his hands in the air, and his men got his signal and walked up to the couples. They were already frightened, but after seeing they were only just untied, they were relieved. "Why... why are you doing this?" the untied man tried speaking. "I'm really tired of hearing those words. It sucks already. Why don't you change it to... 'I'm going to kill you, Kel, you once loved calling me that?'" he laughed, shaking his head.

"Now I came for something very important. It's a matter of life and death, and I trust you wouldn't want your lovely brother dead, right?" Kelvin asked but got no reply. He shot the chair next to them, and the couples flinched. "Argh!" The man on the ground screamed. "When I talk, you answer me!" he glared. "Yes... yes... yes," he quickly responded. He sat back before speaking further. "I have a condition. It's either killing you both or tell me where the documents of my companies in France are. I need them already. We are hosting an opening ceremony party," he smiled. "Since it's your company, why are you asking me where the documents are?" he shot daggers at him. "I don't have much time to divert into that right now. I'm in a hurry to meet Mr. Alex." His face lit up immediately as an idea clicked in his mind. "Killing you both would be useless. Why don't I find your lost son and kill him if you don't give me what I want?"