"What happened to Rika?"
"She ran away!"
"What? Why?" Blair couldn't believe her ears. Erica and Matthew's wedding was supposed to be held tomorrow, and the private plane Matthew had sent to pick them up was waiting on a private airstrip outside their house. But the bride-to-be had fled!
"Yes, here it is. Check this out!" Gifford shifted his cradle hold to one hand, Feb's head still resting on his shoulder. The man dug into his pocket to find his cellphone and showed Blair the text.
The message on his phone wrote, "Gifford, I'm not going to marry that guy. Please let Mom and Dad know! Thanks!"
Blair was completely floored. She became so knock-kneed that she almost fell to the floor. S
he rushed to call Wesley, who was busy preparing the dowry for their daughter. "Rika ran away again! Hurry!"
Wesley flew into a rage when he heard that. 'How could she cut and run like this? She's gonna get it when Carlos finds out!' he thought to himself.
At the airport
An "old" woman waited at the arrival gate. She fidgeted with her scarf, and tapped her foot anxiously. She craned her neck as the crush of passengers disembarked, hoping to find a familiar face.
She waited a bit and finally saw her old friend. She waved so her friend could see her more clearly. "Rhea, Rhea, over here!" Erica, the "old" lady, called out and waved at a girl in brown casual clothing.
"Hi, Erica!" The girl with purple hair immediately saw through Erica's disguise and ran towards her, carry-on bag rolling behind her.
Rhea Yue was the type of girl to brag that she was the most beautiful and kindest girl in the world. And the most modest, as well. She was Erica's best friend. They'd been hanging out since she was 14 years old.
"Shhhh! Not so loud!" Erica shushed Rhea Yue at once when the latter called out her name. She looked around warily, but fortunately, she didn't see anyone following her.
Rhea Yue acted like a spoiled child and held Erika's arm. "I missed you so much! But, dear heart, why the wig? Rika, I—"
"I'm serious, don't say my name!" Erica wished she could gag her friend. She suddenly regretted sending Gifford that message before she was out of the country. She should have waited until she was safely hidden, and then sent the message.
Rhea Yue finally figured out something was wrong with Erica. "What's going on?" she asked. Sensing her nervousness, she looked around, trying to figure out why Erica was so anxious.
When she found a particular guy, her eyes lit up. She pointed at him and excitedly yelled, "Erica, look! Your hubby!"
As Erica's best friend, Rhea Yue knew Erica and Matthew were supposed to get married tomorrow. She made a point of saving the date and hopped a plane to be with Erica. From here, it was off to Y City with Erica. She was a bridesmaid, after all.
'My hubby?' Erica, who was not accustomed to hearing that yet, followed the direction in which Rhea Yue was pointing. The man who walked out of the VIP passage flanked by two bodyguards was none other than Matthew.
Many women began to scream excitedly because of how handsome he was.
Coincidentally, as if their hearts were linked, their eyes met across the airport.
'I'm done for!'
Erica thought to herself bitterly. Turning around in a panic, she clenched her teeth and complained, "Dammit, Rhea. Now you've done it! Run!" She grabbed the luggage from Rhea Yue, and made her way to the exit.
"What are you doing? Aren't you going to wait for Matthew?" Rhea Yue didn't know that Erica was running away from her obligations. Being pulled by Erica, she still looked back at Matthew from time to time.
"No! No more questions, okay?" Erica spat. She didn't look much like an old woman now as she wasn't focused on disguise. She needed to escape. Judging from her wig, it looked like she was 80 or 90 years old, but she was like an Olympic class sprinter.
After running out of the airport, Erica went to flag down a taxi immediately. Unfortunately, there were many people waiting for taxis at the moment, and none of the cars were even slowing down.
"Erica Li!" said a cold voice behind her, devoid of emotion.
Erica didn't respond or turn to face him, and was wondering how she could flee. Rhea Yue, however, turned around and waved at Matthew, saying excitedly, "Nice to meet you, Mr. Huo. I'm Erica's best friend, Rhea Yue. Erica, your husband's here."
This was the first time that she'd met Matthew in person. He was so handsome. Erica must have saved the whole universe in her previous life to get a guy like this. She was so lucky she could marry Matthew.
Erica tried to run. However, Rhea Yue grabbed her wrist, stopping her from running away. She was still angry her friend wasn't listening to her. "Hey, Erica. Where are you going? Didn't you hear me? Your husband's here! What's wrong with you today? You're acting really weird."
With no time to explain, Erica shook off her hand and the suitcase and ran away. If she had known Rhea would slow her down, she would not have tried to escape with her ID card.
However, two men in military uniforms came out of nowhere and blocked her way. "Miss Li," one of them said.
Erica turned around, and behind her stood two bodyguards in black suits.
She didn't give up and darted left. Rhea Yue, ignorant of the whole situation, tried to stop her. "Erica, are you sick? What's wrong with you today?"
And that was when Erica realized all her happiness was ruined by her best friend.
She then put on a sad face and announced, "Diarrhea, we're not friends anymore!"
"Oh come on. I haven't had that nickname in years! Say my name right, Miss Troublemaker!" Rhea Yue corrected her for the 888th time.
"Too late! You pissed me off! Diarrhea, Diarrhea, Diarrhea..."
Matthew walked up to them and stopped in front of Erica. "Uncle Wesley already took a plane to Y City. I have some work to finish up. We'll go after that."
He knew Erica ran away. Just as he got off the plane, he got a voicemail from Wesley. After he called him back, he got the whole story.
But in his wildest dreams, he hadn't expected to find Erica so quickly.
The moment he saw her, he texted Wesley and told him that he found Erica and would take her back to Y City.
Erica was irritated. She grabbed the wig on her head and pretended as if nothing had happened. "Hey, what a coincidence! I'm here to pick up my best friend. Why are you here?"
This time, Matthew said nothing. He glanced at his bodyguards, and one of them led her to their car. "Mrs. Huo, please!" the bodyguard said.
'Mrs. Huo?' Erica rolled her eyes when she heard that. She reluctantly took Rhea Yue to the same car. When Matthew made sure both of them were belted in, he got in the car behind them.
The cars parted after leaving the airport. Erica raised her head and asked the driver, "Where's Matthew going?"
"Mr. Huo is going to the branch office to deal with some business. He'll be at your house by evening. Then you'll fly back to Y City together." The driver carefully answered her question.
Erica was speechless. 'What a chatterbox! It was just a simple question.'
When she returned to the Li family manor, there was no one at home but a private plane nearby.
"Thanks a lot, Rhea, I'm screwed because of you!" Erica threw the wig on the table.
"What's the matter with you? You're acting really weird." Rhea Yue had no clue what was going on. She felt a little uncomfortable that Erica tried to run away from her wedding.
Lying on the sofa listlessly, Erica pouted her lips and complained, "I don't want to marry Matthew. I'm trying to run away!"