A Portion of an Angel

[Complete! My next book is a sweet entertainment-industry romance, coming to my author page. If it's not sweet, you don't pay! (Rolling up my sleeves.) Blurb at the end~]

Part One

After taking care of her father's affairs, Gan Ting found a job as a bartender near home.

On opening day, she ran into an unreasonable customer.

"We have a promotion today, ma'am: trade in an old item for a drink." Gan Ting had a pair of unusually light-colored eyes, clear as day beneath the lights.

They seemed completely out of place in the dim surroundings.

The elegant woman tossed down her leather handbag, rested her chin on her hand, and lounged lazily, but kept her gaze fixed on Gan Ting's face.

"An old thing? What about me? Will I do?"

Gan Ting paused in the middle of wiping her fingers, lowered her head, and smiled helplessly. "Sorry, ma'am, we don't have drinks that expensive."

Just a few hours later...

She drained the drink the other woman held, then lifted her head to catch the lemon slice between the woman's lips.

Gan Ting thought it was the strongest drink she'd ever had in her life.

Part Two

Gan Ting had met plenty of strange customers. Lin Lie was the strangest of them all.

She never missed a bar event, but rarely drank. On the last day of every month, she'd sit at Gan Ting's bar for the whole afternoon. After every passionate encounter, she'd bury her head and kiss the tattoo on Gan Ting's wrist.

They hid under the bar, kissing in the dark, ignoring the hubbub of the other customers. They shared the same glass of nonalcoholic soda or passed each other the last sip of strong liquor.

But back then, Lin Lie never looked Gan Ting in the eye.

Until the last time, when Gan Ting pinned her against the sink. Lin Lie's unsteady breath and cool fingertips both brushed Gan Ting's lower lip.

"That's enough. I've got a blind date in a bit." Her tone was as lazy as ever.

For the first time, Gan Ting met her gaze in a moment like this. In the mirror, all she saw in her own eyes was an empty void.

Part Three

It was just a fling. Once it was over, they could go back to their normal lives. Lin Lie once thought that if she told that lie a thousand times, it would become true.

But Gan Ting really did disappear, without leaving a trace.

The banquets and blind dates that had once been tolerable became suffocating for Lin Lie. Looking back, she realized Gan Ting had given her from the very beginning the very thing she'd longed for in her dreams.

She went mad, ran away from home, and spent years keeping watch at the bar, searching for someone who had vanished without a trace.

When Gan Ting returned to the city, the tattoo on her wrist had been filled in, and her expression had grown even colder.

But as soon as she opened the door, she found a drenched woman leaning against it, eyes closed as she murmured:

"I'm sorry..."

A loveless heiress from a wealthy family × a bartender with an upright background

Also known as: Flirt All You Want, You're Going to Get Married Eventually

Both are each other's first love and have only ever been with each other

Must include: groveling for forgiveness, sex before love, a little melodrama.

May include: status differences, a breakup followed by a chase to win her back, unrequited love.

Preorder: My Favorite Actress Qi Is So In Love!

Gentle, flirtatious actress × sweet rich heiress and fan

Young Miss Xia's idol is Actress Qi.

She makes no secret of being Qi Xue's biggest fan: she draws fan art of Qi Xue, uses "Qi Xue's dog" as her Weibo profile picture, and runs around in a T-shirt in her idol's fan colors...

Xia Yu's daily must-dos:

1. Check for news about Qi Xue.

2. Post gushing praise for Qi Xue.

3. Chat with her close online friends about Qi Xue.

Over time, only one gentle, wealthy fan of Xue remained unblocked by Xia Yu.

The other woman was busy with work and couldn't reply right away. But she'd read every long message Xia Yu sent and at least leave an "Mm" in response.

It was basically an "I've read this" acknowledgment.

Xia: Come watch this Qi Bao edit! She's such a great actress! What kind of event makes my divine wife show up in person? No wonder my page is so blessed today, I came across an angel! (Sends eighteen messages in a row praising her idol.)

Gui Yun: (Three hours later) Mm. I got you an autograph at the roadshow. Remember to pick it up in a couple of days. Signed poster.jpg

Xia: Do you have any of the materials from last week's charity check-in? I'll send you a whole box. No, wait! Just a little? I accidentally blew all my allowance... Puppy crying.jpg

Gui Yun: (The next morning) I already have a set. Tell me if you're short on money for food. Selfie without showing her face.jpg

Xia Yu guiltily put her phone away, completely unaware of the corner of a script visible in the background of the selfie.

Until one day...

After attending an event, Xia Yu found someone she never in her wildest dreams expected to see in the hotel hallway.

The lights were dim and yellow, and the corridor was lined with crimson carpet on both sides. Qi Xue stood in the middle, her long, ink-black hair spread out like seaweed. She glanced over with her phoenix eyes, then without hesitation fell into Xia Yu's arms.

"Hold me tight..." A faint smell of alcohol mingled with a sweet fragrance, enveloping Xia Yu, whose arms and legs had both gone stiff.

She had no time to wonder what that soft touch brushing past her ear had been.

Gui Yun: And then?

Xia: Of course I pushed her away as fast as I could!

Xia: An idol is an idol! How could an idol ever become my wife?

Xia: By the way, Sis, didn't you say we'd go on a trip together once things calmed down? I'm free anytime! Puppy holding a rose.jpg

"..." Qi Xue put down her phone and sighed softly.

She'd spent so long trying to get the kid to catch on, but somehow... had she pointed her in the wrong direction?

Theme: Respect love, cherish the present, and treasure the person right in front of you instead of exhausting your heart and dreams.