Since She Met Lucian

Amelia noticed the silhouette of a girl wearing purple outside her room. She thought it was Courtney so she rushed to open the
door for her best friend. Amelia gasped in surprise. She was bewildered to see that it was Lily who stood there and waited for the
door to be opened.
"Hi, Miss Amelia. Were you asleep?" Lily asked when she noticed that Amelia was surprised to see her. She felt worried that she
had disturbed her in some way. She was visibly embarrassed, and yet in her heart she was really happy to see Amelia again.
"No, I wasn't. Please, come inside." Amelia stepped aside so that Lily could get inside the room. She wondered if Lily had an
urgent message for her.
Lily entered Amelia's room timidly. She turned around to Amelia and said in a soft tone of voice, "Miss Amelia, Mr. Lucian asked
me to come and check on you." Amelia suspected that Lily's visit had something to do with Lucian, but she wasn't sure exactly
what. She and Lucian hadn't cleared the air between them after what happened, so Lily was meaning to do something about it.
She motioned Lily to sit on the sofa then she briefly went to the kitchen to get some glasses and a pitcher of cold water. The
anticipation of what Lily had to say made her heart race. Her hand trembled as she poured water into Lily's glass. The memories
that she had of her time with Lucian flooded her mind and the rush of strong emotions almost overwhelmed her.
Lily noticed Amelia's shaking hand so she gently took the pitcher from her with a smile and said, "Oh, Miss Amelia! Please let me
pour water for the both of us." Amelia smiled back at her and nodded as she let the pitcher go. Lily took the pitcher with a steady
hand and then noticed that the wound at the back of Amelia's hand had not healed yet. She then poured water for both of them
with a smile.
Although she initially thought that it was Courtney who had visited her, Amelia was really happy to see Lily once more. Her visit
felt like the visit of a sister and she felt relieved that she came.
She suddenly felt so close and comfortable around Lily. She turned to Lily and then said just as she was putting the pitcher down
to the table, "From now on, just call me Amelia." Amelia smiled broadly at her after speaking. The care and love in their eyes at
that moment were exactly what sisters felt for each other.
Lily understood why Amelia wanted it but she couldn't find it in herself to agree to it. "I can't agree to your request Miss Amelia.
You're the young mistress of the Zhan family. You are the one that Lucian loves the most."
She deliberately said the last sentence slightly slower in order to emphasize it. She wanted to end the awkwardness between
Lucian and Amelia as soon as possible.

She did nothing to dissuade Lily even though she would very much prefer that Lily addressed her as Amelia. At length, she
became curious to know what message Lily might have for her. "So, Lily, to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit today?" Lily
smiled at her instead of answering her question directly. She talked about Lucian offhandedly that Amelia wondered if Lucian
sent her to talk about him.
After a few statements about Lucian, Lily smiled broadly and then stuck her tongue out mischievously. "By the way, Miss Amelia,
I remember that last time, you said that you would go out for a few days. What happened?"
Lily's smile faded slightly and she looked a little serious when she asked the question. Amelia thought that her previous actions
might have affected Lily more than she realized.
"I'm sorry, Lily. I didn't mean to lie to you. It's just...," Amelia started to say but her voice trailed off.
"Well, I'm not mad at you for what you did. I understand completely that you did all of it for the sake of Mr. Lucian and the
company. I actually admire you, you're a great woman!" Lily replied with a sweet smile. Lily raised one of her thumbs to express
how much she agreed with what Amelia did and her smile showed how much she admired her.
Amelia never expected that Lily fully understood why she had to divorce Lucian, not like many people who thought she did this to
avoid being implicated in the situation.
"Now, I don't mean to speak ill of Miss Shelly, but I think that she was just hoping against hope. Mr. Lucian had never really paid
her any attention at all since the beginning," Lily said in a tone of disapproval. Her face momentarily twisted into a look of
chastisement that slightly surprised Amelia.
"Did he really do all of these things that I've heard to Shelly?" Amelia asked. But this did not amuse Amelia at all. She felt that
Lucian's actions regarding the situation were a little extreme and inappropriate.
Lily nodded with a smile. "Yes, he did! Mr. Lucian's actions clearly show what he hates and what he loves."
Lily's confirmation left Amelia speechless. She didn't know how to react.
But as a woman, she could almost feel the pain that Shelly felt. Despite what had happened, she never felt hatred towards
Shelly. She understood her as only a woman could.
Shelly loved Lucian so much and wanted nothing else than to be married to him. But the fulfillment of her wish was met with
coldness and indifference from Lucian. She obviously never expected that kind of treatment from him.

Thus, it was no surprise that when Amelia stayed in Jonny's villa, Shelly begged her to tell her how she could win Lucian's
affection. It was a very awkward situation that still made Amelia cringe whenever she remembered it.
"Mrs. Amelia, what's wrong?" Lily asked when she noticed that Amelia suddenly became quiet and stared blankly at nothing. Lily
reached out to Amelia's hand and shook it a little.
Amelia came back to herself and then smiled. "Oh, it's nothing. I'm fine," she said as she turned to Lily who started to look
worried.
Lily looked relieved instantly. She smiled and then took the first aid kit from the side table and then said sweetly to Amelia, "Let
me clean your wound and apply medicine to it."
Amelia did not find it in her to refuse Lily's kind offer. She watched as Lily gently cleaned her wound and apply medicine to it.
"Didn't you mention before that you wanted to go back to your hometown and have business with your boyfriend?" Amelia asked
with a concerned tone as she watched Lily.
Lily frowned slightly and then sighed. But she quickly recovered and smiled back at Amelia. "His family doesn't agree with it. He
thinks my family is poor and that I am bound to be a maid," Lily replied. She forced herself to sound cheerful as she spoke
although the tone of disappointment and sadness could be heard from her voice.
"Thus, I was really left with no other choice," Lily added. Amelia felt a little angry. But she decided to push her anger aside and
comforted her instead, "Don't be sad. You are still so young! You will eventually find the right person for you!"
"Just like you, when you met Mr. Lucian!" Lily replied back cheerfully. Amelia felt that the story of her and Lucian was an
inspiration to Lily.
But remembering the time they met brought bittersweet memories to her. She felt a little embarrassed so she tried to change the
topic. "We haven't spoken for a few months and it feels good to talk with you again!"
Courtney never returned that day. Amelia called her but she never answered her call. She sent a text message as a reply to
Amelia's call that said that she had to stay at her house that night. She then reminded Amelia to go to bed early.
The next morning, Lucian came to pick her up as he promised. Lily hailed a taxi and went back to SJ Garden. Lily approached
Amelia and whispered something to her just as she was about to ride the cab. She told her to go back soon.
"What did Lily say?" Lucian asked Amelia as Lily's cab drove away. Amelia kept quiet and went into the passenger's side of
Lucian's car instead as Lucian held the door for her. He made sure that her seat belt was fastened before he wore his. He then

glanced at her flat abdomen. The thought of Amelia being pregnant with their child brought a smile to his face that he was unable
to conceal.
Amelia blushed because of what Lily said but also because she was sitting close to Lucian once more.
Because of this, she barely moved nor turned to Lucian. Her whole body felt stiff.
"Do you disapprove of my actions?" Lucian asked. He looked straight at her pretty face and he suddenly felt self-conscious of
what he said to her.
Amelia noticed the anxiety in Lucian's face and wanted to say something. She wanted to say no but no words came out of her
mouth.
Although Lucian always listened to her, he still got angry especially when he felt annoyed about something. She realized that
even though she could ask Lucian for help, she thought it best not to say anything that would affect his mood in any way.
Amelia immediately noticed that the door had already been repaired when they arrived at her apartment where she was
attacked. It was kicked open by her attacker who forced himself into her apartment.
They approached the door and Lucian knocked on it. A young man opened the door and greeted them. Amelia was immediately
confused why it was not the landlady who opened the door. Lucian noticed Amelia's confusion and said to her, "He's the
grandson of the landlady."
"Grandson?" Amelia replied in amazement. She remembered Mrs. Chen mentioned that her husband passed away a few years
ago and that they never had any children. She wondered how they could possibly have a grandson if they never had a child.
Amelia asked where Mrs. Chen was. The puzzled look on her face never went away even after Lucian's explanation.
"When Granny heard that you'd be back today, she went to the market to buy some food," he explained. The young man looked
like he was seventeen or eighteen years of age. He looked charming whenever he grinned and his two tiger teeth showed.
'What is going on?' Amelia asked herself. She looked at Lucian as if some of the answers that she sought was on his face.
"Come on in," the young man finally said. Lucian stared back at her with his gentle eyes but said nothing.
Amelia walked slowly into the apartment and looked around as if it was the first time that she saw everything. It was all the same
as before. It had only been a day and two nights but the place felt strange and alien to her. Like there was a darkness that hung
over the place.

"My granny regretted what happened very much. She couldn't understand how she was able to get herself to do what she did,"
the young man revealed to Amelia. The grandson introduced himself as Mond as they walked in. He apologized to Amelia
several times for what happened and in behalf of his grandmother.
"Can you tell me everything you know about what happened?" Amelia demanded as she turned towards Mond. Lucian stood
beside her but said nothing. He wanted Mond to tell what happened. Amelia found herself at a loss as to how to adjust to the
situation. Part of it was because she didn't know all the details of what happened and why it all happened in the first place.
"My grandfather died almost five years ago. Before his death, he accumulated a large debt from gambling. Because of this, my
grandmother used up all of their savings to help pay off some of my grandfather's debts after he died. It was because of his
uncontrollable gambling that my parents decided to abandon my grandparents. But I can't stand not to see my grandmother
anymore so I always come to visit during my vacation."
"So what happened that night wasn't an accident? The man who attacked me colluded with the landlady...your grandmother?"
Amelia asked in disbelief. She looked stunned. Her eyes became wide as she briefly shook her head.
What made it even harder for her to believe what she just heard was because the landlady was always so kind to her and treated
her like she was her own granddaughter. She could not believe that she would collude with people who wanted to hurt her.
"Even though my grandma was involved, there was someone else who was pulling all the strings behind the scene. At first, that
person bribed a fruit dealer and then got my grandma to agree with the plan with the promise of money," the young man narrated
with a sad tone. Tears rolled down his cheeks when he was about to finish speaking.
Amelia felt something grip her heart as she found her hands tightly clenched to each other. Different strong emotions bubbled up
inside her that she fought hard to conceal but was unable to.
"Amelia, I made a further investigation of the matter. I came to you because I did not want you to worry and be sad," Lucian
confessed to her. He knew that everyone felt bad about what happened. And he knew that he had to bring Amelia back so that
she could have some kind of closure. He knew that she'd still feel involved and tied to it unless she had that closure. He also
knew that it was very hard to convince her to leave the place even if it was for her own good.
Amelia stared at the wooden floor and smiled bitterly. "What she did was not decent at all. I'm sure you understand that, don't
you?"

"Miss Amelia, please don't be angry with my grandmother. She was overwhelmed by my grandfather's debt, especially since my
parents have also abandoned her. She had no one else that could help her. That's why she was forced to do it. And I know for a
fact that she is suffering inside because of what she did," Mond explained to Amelia. He felt like he should kneel down and plead
for her forgiveness for his grandmother.
Amelia walked to her room without saying another word to Mond. She opened her suitcase and started to arrange her clothes
inside one by one.
Lucian held Mond's shoulders tightly with his right hand to comfort him as Amelia started to fold her clothes inside her suitcase.
"This has nothing to do with you. Do not worry, I will handle it."
Folding her clothes suddenly made she realized that she didn't live here long and yet she had to pack more than she had
expected.
Lucian approached her quietly from behind. "Just put everything you need there and leave it. I will have Frank come over and
pack it up for you," he suggested in a casual tone. He reached out and gently held her busy hands. She did not resist his
advances. She could feel the love from Lucian's touch and it made her weak. "I know how kind-hearted you are. And the true
reason why you now feel disappointed and sad was because you treated the landlady as family. It's OK, that's perfectly normal to
feel that way. Now, I want to do something that could make you feel better and put this unfortunate event behind you for good,"
said Lucian.
"I'm just a little sad and disappointed regarding what happened," Amelia said as she nodded. She started to sob as she spoke.
"While it's normal to feel sad about what happened, it wouldn't be a good idea to be too emotional right now. You're pregnant. It's
not good for you and the baby to dwell on something like this," Lucian explained in the same gentle voice. Lucian's words
soothed her and comforted her. She felt her sorrow and worry faded away as she listened to him.
Amelia stopped crying and wiped away her tears. She then asked Lucian to just let it go.
She knew Lucian well and she knew that he would not stop investigating the matter and would even take it to court.
"I already paid for the debt that she owed, but she has to apologize to you. Her actions made it possible for you to get hurt in this
incident," he said to her as he rubbed her shoulders to make her feel comfortable. Amelia noticed that Lucian still looked
depressed and angry about the incident.

"I wonder where they took that wretched man?" she asked. The memory of the bearded man made Amelia shiver and made her
heart beat faster.
"When I see him again, I will eat him alive!" Lucian said angrily slamming his fist against his open palm.
Amelia thought that he looked childish and it made her want to laugh but she decided to hold her laughter back and smiled
instead. She agreed that her attacker needed to be taught a lesson.
"Don't worry, I have people who would make sure that he rots in jail. And there are people in jail who are waiting to teach him a
lesson or two," Lucian declared coldly.
Lucian's sudden seriousness chased Amelia's smile away.
"What about the man behind the curtain?" Amelia wondered who could be so cruel and wicked to frame her using such a
despicable method.