I Was Pampered By The General

Hannah's POV

I stared at my beautiful face in the mirror. My colleagues always praise my beauty. They admired my almond-shaped amber eyes with especially long and thick eyelashes, while Emily, my best friend, liked my tall, delicate nose matched with my natural pinkish lips. However, there was an explicit sorrow in my eyes as I looked at the white gown I was wearing.

Right at this moment, I was trying on the bridal gown that I would wear for my wedding next week. I would marry Robert Shaw, my long-time suitor, even though it was against my will. He's the son of the gambling lord in the city and known as an asshole. I was not able to pay my father's debt to his father, so I was forced to marry him.

"You look beautiful, Ma'am. The fit was perfect for your slim figure." I heard the bridal shop assistant say. She's smiling at me, but I couldn't manage to smile back.

I noticed that she felt how depressed I was as her smile faded. Then, she looked around before she handed me a small piece of paper. I was confused, especially when she gestured to me to stay quiet and read the note written on the paper.

My eyes gazed at her with a questioning look after I read the note. I couldn't believe what it said.

'Run to the 3/L Parking Area. Black car.'

She nodded at me, and we quickly changed my dress. Then, she secretly led me to the other exit of the bridal shop.

"Thank you," I uttered softly before I swiftly ran to the elevator. I wanted to ask her a lot of questions as I didn't understand what's happening, but I knew that she was trying to help me.

When I arrived at the 3rd level of the building, I immediately ran to the parking area as stated on the note. As I was about to reach the exit towards the parking area, I heard a man shout.

"She's there!"

My heart raced as I looked back and saw Robert's men. They already found out that I escaped. So, I continued to run.

"Black car, black car," I whispered as I gasped for air, searching for the black car in the parking area. However, there's a lot of black cars parked. I didn't know which car, so I hid behind a black SUV before they were able to catch me.

Then, I heard running footsteps. I was catching my breath. My heart was pounding so hard in my chest as I crouched behind the SUV. The footsteps suddenly halted.

"Search everywhere! She has not gone far yet." I heard the leader ordered his men.

"Yes, Sir!" The four men answered as they searched the parking area.

I crawled to the other side as I peeked to see where the men chasing me were. Unexpectedly, the door of the black BMW opened as a hand quickly covered my mouth and pulled me inside the car.

My eyes widened in shock when I recognized who the man was.

--------

One month ago.

It was Friday evening. I left the office at exactly nine o'clock. It was my daily routine. Going to work in the morning and going home at night.

Sigh. It's very tiring, but do I have a choice? I need to earn money for my family, so I have to work hard. My salary as a Secretary in this small firm was just right for our daily expenses. I was doing the job of others so that I could spend overtime as I needed to earn extra. Sadly, still not enough.

I felt so exhausted with my life. They said hard work pays off, but why am I still broke?

I took a walk as I didn't want to go home yet. I continued walking until my feet led me in front of a pub. I made a turn. I went inside to drink. At least, I could say that I treated myself even once in my entire life.

I sat down in the corner, far from the crowd. I called the waiter and asked for a bottle of vodka. I started to drink alone. My face turned sour as I took the first shot, but nothing could beat how bitter my life was. Then, I took another gulp until it reached ten.

My tears slowly dribbled down my face. They said that drinking alcohol would make you forget all your problems and wash all the pain. But why do I still feel as though my heart was being stabbed?

My tears continued to flow. Thinking that I only have a month to pay all the debts of my father. I was feeling hopeless and helpless. Because if I failed, I should marry the son of the gambling lord in the city. Should I give up and accept that it's my destiny?

No, you shall continue to fight. Do not lose hope. Do not give up. My competitive self said. I asked, is it worth fighting for? Of course!

I looked around. I saw a couple cuddling on the other table. I felt jealous. At the age of twenty-five, I never entered into a relationship, even though I had a lot of suitors. I never had time as I was busy struggling to become successful. Funny, as no matter what I do, I'm still broke.

Moreover, I'm waiting for my first love, Lance. He'd been my pen pal when I was twelve. He became my crying shoulders for almost two years. We promised that if we met someday, we would marry each other. However, we stopped writing when he went abroad. Since then, I had never heard anything from him.