Chapter 14 A Year’s Agreement

Myles talked to her as if they were conducting a business agreement and coaxed Annie into the Civil Affairs Bureau with just a few words. Inside the bureau, there were several new couples sitting together all lovey-dovey. When Annie saw them, she thought about how ridiculous Myles must look with her. "Myles..." "It's our turn." Before Annie could finish her sentence, Myles pulled her by her sleeve and sat them down in front of the notary. She stared blankly at the notary who was looking over their documents and handed over a thin piece of paper. “Do both of you voluntarily agree to these terms? Sign here if you acknowledge and declare that you understand." The notary was a young girl. She was entranced by Myles and asked everything like a robot. She could not think of anyone who would not want to marry such a handsome man. Myles signed his name neatly. His strong signature almost ripped through the paper. He had to sign countless documents every day. For the first time, he felt that signing was a very solemn thing. "Annie, you won't regret marrying me." Just when Annie hesitated, she heard a calm voice and was shocked by it. Even so, her heart was still turbulent. Myles made it very clear that they needed each other. He needed a pretend wife while she needed him so that she would not be hurt by other people. All of that sounded like a very good deal for Annie who had nothing, but... To take marriage and make it into a deal, Annie could not help but feel something was amiss. When she thought about it, Annie gritted her teeth and looked straight into Myles's burning eyes. She said solemnly, "Why don’t... we sign an agreement for a month... Er, how about half a year? Fine, a maximum of one year. Then we’ll divorce after that. What do you think?” Annie frowned as she thought about it over and over again. That was already her biggest concession and she would have to bear the title of a ‘divorced woman’ in the end. No matter how she thought about it, she would end up being the one with the shorter end of the stick… However, it was not just Annie who was in a complicated mood at that moment. The people present, including the notaries, were stunned. ‘Discussing divorce even before they get married? What kind of a great guy is he?!’ The calmest person in the entire room was Myles. He looked at Annie who was overthinking everything with that frown of hers. However, it did not make him angry. Such a woman was the real deal to him and that was what he wanted. "Okay. If you want to divorce after a year, I’ll let you go." Myles nodded affirmatively. However, it made Annie misunderstand that all he wanted was a pretend marriage. She thought that it did not matter who it was to him and he only took her because she just so happened to be around. That confused Annie even more. She kept quiet and signed her name without thinking further about what Myles said. He said that he would let her go. Letting her go did not necessarily mean divorce. When Annie walked out of the Civil Affairs Bureau with the little red book in her hand, the midday sun shining directly on her head made her a little dizzy. Suddenly, she found herself falling into the arms of the man beside her. Myles embraced the situation. "Calm down, my wife.” His words scared Annie and cold sweat seeped out of her. "You... what are you talking about?" Annie pushed Myles away and her scared little heart thumped loudly. ‘Is this the same cold and cruel man? Why does it feel like he’s a changed person?’ When Myles saw Annie’s reaction, he could not help but smile wickedly. "I’ll send you back and pick you up at night." Myles did not explain himself. She pulled Annie by her arm into the car while Annie's heart was still beating as loud as ever without the chance to collect herself. "Uh… you can send me to Nanjing Road. I told a friend that we would meet there.” Annie ignored the last thing he said. By nightfall, she would find herself in a complicated situation… "Alright.” The person Annie had told to meet was her good friend Ethan. He was also the man that Mason thought Annie was cheating with on him. However, he was in reality a homosexual, or gay in layman terms. Annie arrived at the cafe some time before the time they agreed to meet. However, Ethan was all dressed up flamboyantly, sitting at their booked table. When he saw Annie, he ran over to her with orchid fingers and hooked his pinkies with hers. "Oh, Girly. I’ve been waiting the whole day for you. Honey, was I anxious to see you.” Girly was a nickname Ethan gave to Annie. He had a really close and revolutionary friendship with Annie. In Annie's own words, she and Ethan were best girlfriends and sisters. "Honey, what’s the occasion today?” Annie sat down and smiled at Ethan, her nerves suddenly relaxed. Even though Sophie photoshopped the photos of Ethan and Annie to frame her, it did not affect Annie’s friendship with Ethan. "Girly..." When Ethan saw how brightly Annie smiled, he suddenly stopped smiling and gave her a serious look as he held her hands emotionally on the table. Annie was taken aback by Ethan's sudden change in behavior. She looked at him suspiciously. "What's wrong? Did you fall out of love again?" Every time Ethan broke up with his boyfriends, he was very dramatic and would always look to Annie for emotional comfort. ‘Did he break up again?’