The week flew by, and in the blink of an eye, the weekend was around the corner.
That weekend, Janessa decided to stay at home to carve out the time to write her proposal.
This proposal couldn't be the same as the ones she or her colleagues had presented before.
She had to push her limits and think out of the box to produce a fresh concept for the project.
Creating something new and original was so hard that Janessa found herself staring at her computer
screen thinking of solutions for two days in a row.
If this continued this way, she wouldn't be able to give Sally a decent proposal by Monday morning.
As she thought of her looming deadline, Janessa grew more anxious.
While she was busy pacing her room for ideas, her phone suddenly rang.
She took a look at the number on the screen and suddenly had a bad feeling about the call.
"Janessa.This man that I've been interested in will be singing at the Coco Bar tonight.Would you like to
go with me?" Alana was notorious for being man crazy.
She had a history of becoming obsessed with handsome men.
Janessa could see the look of anticipation on Alana‘s face at this very moment.
"Come on, Alana! You're already twenty-eight years old! Do you still think we're in high school? Why
are you always chasing after men? What would your parents think if they found out about this?"
Janessa was nothing like Alana.
Her friend had lived a life free of worries and could do anything as she pleased, but Janessa wasn't
fortunate enough to have that luxury.Janessa knew that she had a destiny to fulfill ever since she was a
little girl.
Ever since she was young, she had worked tirelessly to reassure her parents, but now, she was all
alone.
"Janessa, stop with that negativity! It's not doing you any good! You should try to live life as you
please.You need to go after what makes you happy!"
"Forget I said anything.I'm not interested in parading around handsome men.You can go alone tonight."
After Janessa ended the call, she sat down on the sofa and thought of her proposal.
As she fell asleep, vague images of her parents crossed her mind.She imagined her parents slowly
walking over to her with their hands intertwined.
"I've missed you both so much.I can't believe you're here."
When her father unexpectedly passed away, Janessa took on the mantle and became the backbone of
her family.
She was determined to support her mother and give her a good life.
However, after her mother had passed away, and Janessa was forced into having an abortion, it
seemed as if her whole life was falling apart. It had been difficult for her to carry on.
"Don't cry, Janessa.Be strong and keep going; you'll find a person who will always support you."
"There's no use in missing us.We wouldn't be able to rest in peace until we're certain that you'll have a
good life."
In the blink of an eye, the room was empty, and Janessa was alone again.
She tried to grasp onto the memory of her parents, but they were gone forever.
"Don't leave me!"
Janessa suddenly bolted upright.
Her forehead was misted with sweat.
It had only been a dream, but it felt real to her.
Janessa lit an incense when she approached the small shrine.
As she looked at the photos of her parents, she bowed as she said, "Don't worry about me.
I will live a good life.I will take the Qiu Group back from Aydin soon.
After Janessa had calmed herself, the doorbell suddenly rang.
When she answered the door, a cheerful figure came in.
"You don't look like you're doing anything special at home. Why won't you come with me to see the
man I like?"
"You'll be fine if you go alone.I won't stop you."
"Janessa, please! If you don't come with me, my parents will demand that I come home at eight o'clock
tonight! My Prince Charming won't be performing until nine o'clock!"
Alana pouted at Janessa, which made her look pitiful.
Janessa's face softened at her words, but she still pretended to be upset with Alana.
"I see.You're just using me as an excuse.I refuse to go along with this silly plan of yours!"
Alana was on the verge of tears when she heard Janessa's words.
The people she had convinced to come with her in the past all believed that her Prince Charming was
quite nice.
If Janessa refused to go with her, she couldn't find anyone in such a short notice; and she wouldn't
dare go against her mother and go to the bar alone.
She would never get the chance to see her prince perform.
"No, it's not like that! Janessa, I need your help.Just this one time, please! I promise I won't chase after
him anymore after this, okay?" Alana was speaking the truth.
This would be the last time she got wild.
Her family had arranged a blind date for her, and she soon have to play the nice girl they wanted her to
be.
So this would be her last chance to taste freedom.
Janessa finally relented and agreed to go to the bar with Alana after her pleading.
The bar wouldn't open until later that night.
Before they left, Janessa finally finished drafting her proposal.
She got dressed into a casual outfit and made her way to the bar with Alana.
Most bars were too loud, but Coco Bar was a place where they could listen to good music all night.
It wasn't too noisy inside the bar, and one could have conversations here.
At nine o'clock, the handsome man Alana mentioned appeared onstage.
His mellow voice was pleasing to the ears.
Everyone inside the bar was captivated by him.
"He sings well, doesn't he? This bar was worth the visit, am I right?"
Alana smiled proudly to herself.
It wasn't an easy feat to get Janessa to relax.
Her brother's idea had worked.
Janessa didn't say anything in reply.
She could feel the sense of loss and despair as the man sang his ballad.
The singer performed two songs for them, and he was an excellent singer.
Although his performance was coming to an end, the crowd inside the bar urged him to continue with
his performance.
However, he didn't perform another song before he had to leave.
Alana reluctantly left the bar after his performance.
Alana asked Janessa to wait for her as they walked out of the bar.
All of a sudden, Alana ran back inside.
Janessa decided to take a stroll around the bar.
Around the corner, there was a dark alcove where some people huddled.
When she followed the sound of their voices, she could vaguely see three men circling another man by
the side of the road.
"When will you pay back the three hundred thousand you owed us? It's the end of the month already."
"Peter, I'm trying my best to earn money.I get paid good money to sing at this bar.I'll be able to pay you
soon." The man's voice sounded familiar to Janessa.
It was the singer from the bar.
She couldn't just sit back and watch this scene unfold.
If Alana found out, she would do something as well.
However, she was only one person.
She couldn't fight these men alone.
After thinking for a few moments, Janessa took out her phone and played the sound of siren loudly to
drive the men away.
While running, she shouted, "Sir, I saw someone fighting here!"
As she ran away, she deliberately made loud noises.
Peter was too busy beating the young man.He didn't even notice if there were really policemen nearby.
Peter was so angry that he knocked the young man down with a swift blow.When he heard the siren,
he suddenly bolted from the scene.
Before he ran, he warned the man, "You know what you have to do.I need my three hundred thousand
tomorrow."
Out of fear that the police would catch him, Peter quickly ran off. Janessa walked out of the shadows
and patted her chest.
"It's a good thing they were too nervous to notice that it was all a ruse. Otherwise, I would be in
trouble."
"Thank...thank you.If it weren't for you, they would've brutally beaten me." The young man gave her a
grateful smile and sincerely thanked her.
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