The Assistant's Prisoner: Love on Hold

On the day of our engagement, my girlfriend, Jean Sullivan, is nowhere to be found until late at night.

Beside myself with worry, I, Seth Lloyd, frantically reach out to our mutual friends and even consider calling the police.

Suddenly, I come across a post about her from her assistant, Callum Cox.

"My manager came over to discuss some plans, but the door lock suddenly broke. Does this mean we're going to be stuck in the same room tonight? I can't help feeling a little excited."

When I like the post, Jean immediately calls me, furious. "Don't you have any idea how much I earn in a year? Just one day of my lost income would cover what you make in a whole week.

"All I did was skip that stupid engagement party, and you start acting all snide. I don't have time to deal with your stingy relatives."

My mom, Teresa Whitfield, stays silent, her eyes sweeping over the gold, eight sets of haute couture jewelry, and several property transfer deeds in the private room.

With a forced smile, she asks, "Seth, have all these wedding gifts we've prepared embarrassed you?"

I sneer, caressing the keys to the luxury car I'm about to give Jean. "No, it's me who's being too generous to her."

When my girlfriend, Jean Sullivan, got back, I, Seth Lloyd, was in the living room playing video games with my friends.

She ignored their enthusiastic greetings, gave me a fierce glare, and clomped up the stairs in her heels. Even with the game volume turned all the way up, I could still hear her door slam upstairs like thunder.

One of my friends scratched his head, hesitated, and said, "Maybe we should head out. Why don't you go calm her down?"

I scoffed. "Who the hell does she think she is?"

They stared at me in shock, then silently gave me a thumbs-up. "Way to go, Seth. Finally, you're standing up for yourself."

Jean used to really hate it whenever I played games with my friends. In her words, we were a bunch of stinky guys who couldn't hold our own and had no ambition.

Because of that, I hadn't even touched a game console for almost two years. Tonight, I had been gaming with my friends until well past midnight.

I cast a glance at the tightly shut bedroom door and headed straight to the guest room.

Later, just as I was drifting off into a slumber, Jean suddenly burst in, frantically rummaging through the closet. Normally, I'd have sprung up to help her, but now, all I wanted was to lie there in peace.

After a few minutes of clattering around, Jean fell silent. I heard her rapid breathing behind me and felt her burning stare fixed on me.

Then, she flicked on the light, and a blinding beam hit me. I instinctively shielded my eyes.

She yanked the covers off me and glared at me, furious. "Seth, do you know where you