two players; lin yanjun

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She knew her father had his plans for her. They were clear ever since she could remember. What she didn't know, was that he was going to bring it up so quickly and in this situation. She knew it made Justin feel bad, but when he looked at her she made sure to give him a smile.

I'm sorry, he mouthed to her just like he did when they were kids. She replied like she did back then, by crossing her brown eyes and waving him off. It made him smile which made her smile.

Scarlett loved her brother, like she said, she loved him no matter what.

Soon, their dinner came out and the whole time Scarlett was thinking about her father's plans for her. She would zone out of what was going on, but shook it off every time she realized what she was doing.

It had always been hard for the girl to balance herself with all that she had going on. She had so many problems in her life, but she never asked for help. Not even when she was younger and struggled with little things. She would always lock herself up in her room and wouldn't come out until she could do it.

In the end of dinner, Scarlett excused herself to go to the restroom. Her hands shook as she walked down the dark hall where the women's and men's rooms were. When she pushed the door open she saw the fancy chairs and the walls that were mirrored. She immediately collapsed into one of the chairs, trying her best to relax. She felt herself become anxious during dinner, her father's eyes watching her for the majority of the time.

She could feel him crushing her with pressure. He expected a lot out of her due to an agreement she made with him when she was young.

For a long time she watched as her father grew away from his children and how cold he would act at times. She remembered how her father would push Justin at a young age and try to teach him the fundamentals of business. It was always what he talked about with him and Justin would always struggle with it. He wasn't allowed to have friends and he was always following their father to try to get him to accept him. It aggravated Scarlett. She didn't want to see Justin grow to be like their father.

When Justin turned nine, Mr. Huang decided that Justin would study abroad in America. He planned for him to attend a private all boys school and live in a dormitory in a year. Scarlett overheard the conversation and confronted her father. When she did, Mr. Huang suddenly made a deal with his young daughter. He knew Scarlett was with no doubt an intelligent girl who was usually silent, but when it came to her beliefs she was very powerful.

Though, while Scarlett was an intelligent girl, she was also human. As the years passed her, everything began to pile up. Even though everything seemed to be so easy for her it wasn't. She had problems that she didn't talk about and there were little things that held her down.

She could smile. She could laugh. She could joke around. She could act like everything was okay, but it wasn't. Scarlett had her moments of happiness, but the truth was it wasn't in her reach but this had been her choice.

In her and her father's deal, after Scarlett finished College and got her degree, Justin wouldn't be the successor of the company. Scarlett would.

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Scarlett looked at herself in the reflection of the walls and fixed her dress. When she was pleased with her look, she pushed the door open and walked out and down the hall.

As she rounded the corner she saw a figure leaning against the wall in the middle of the hallway. As she grew closer she knew it was a tall man with short black hair. His eyes moved onto her when she was only a couple feet away and he pushed off the wall.

"Hey, Little Miss," he smiled, blocking her way. In the dim hall, Scarlett saw his dark eyes move over her and his lips pull at the corner. A scar was on his bottom lip, like someone cut him with a knife.

"Excuse me," she said trying to side step him, but he didn't move. Instead, he came closer to her.

"Listen, you're going to-"

"Babe, is there a problem here," a familiar voice cut the man off as an arm wrapped around Scarlett's waist, pulling her body against a lean one. Scarlett looked up to see her saviors brown eyes staring down at her before moving to the man. "What were you saying to her?"

"N-Nothing," the man stuttered seeing the fire in the younger man's eyes. Although he gave off a tough look, he was gently holding Scarlett, who didn't notice how fast she had been breathing.

"Well then, I think you should be on your way," the later replied with a stern tone.

"I-Of course. I'll be off." With that, the man turned and quickly left the scene.

Scarlett watched in silence, her heart pounding in her chest and her hands intertwined in front of her.

"You should be more careful," the young man said pulling himself away from her. He fixed his suit and ran a quick hand through his hair, his eyes avoid hers that were watching his movements. "Anyways, they're going to bring Justin's cake out soon so we should hurry back."

"Yeah. Okay," she muttered tucking a strand of hair behind her ear after calming herself. The older boy watched her for a moment to make sure she was okay. When he decided she was okay, he began to walk away, but her voice made him pause.

"Thank you...Yanjun."

"...No problem, Crimson."

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When the cake came out, the waiters and waitresses along with everyone else began to sing Happy Birthday to Justin. Scarlett smiled brightly as she watched her brother close his eyes, making a wish. When he blew the candles, Scarlett made a wish too.

She wished all the happiness for her brother since she knew she could never have happiness for herself.