Dear Ex-wife Marry Me

Abner was gathering the stack of bills, ready to make his getaway, when suddenly he felt the cold barrel of a gun pressed against his side.

"Kid, seems like you don't know the rules of the game. Winning this big on your first go? Not so easy to walk away from here."

Abner stood frozen, the night's surreal events spinning in his head. Mountains of cash and now, out of nowhere, a man with a gun. Maybe because he had prepared for the worst, panic didn't even touch him. "You guys dragged me into this game, and now you're the ones holding me back. From the start, it looks like I never really had a choice, did I?"

The gunman seemed taken aback by his calm. A kid raised in the backwoods, oozing composure, daring to negotiate with seasoned hitmen.

Abner slowly turned around, ignoring the gun at his side. "It's been you tailing me these past few days, hasn't it?"

Every late-night trek home, he felt eyes on him. He first thought it was Mark's crew, but if it were them, they'd have made a move already. The man's gaze tried to pierce through Abner, searching for a hint of panic. But Abner was just too collected.

Minutes later, the man holstered his gun, seemingly impressed by Abner's reaction. Had Abner shown any sign of fear, he wouldn't be leaving alive tonight.

"Your father wants to see you."

Abner thought he was hallucinating. His father? The felon? The man who, for all his sins, was supposedly executed years ago, now wanted to see him? Disgust flickered in Abner's eyes. Every misfortune in his life stemmed from that man.

"No thanks."

"You might think you know your father, but I believe it's worth your while to meet him. You're in need of cash, right? To us, money's just paper."

"Still, no thanks."

He had struggled to build his current life, just started something with Shirley. He wasn't about to throw that away for anything.

"Oh? Don't care about your Shirley, then? If my gun was aimed at her how many lives do you think she'd have deft? Listen to us, and not only will Shirley live, she'll thrive

A dark glint finally surfaced in Abner's eyes. His hand, hanging by his side, clenched into a fist, then slowly relaxed.

Returning home, he had barely

opened the door when Shirley

rushed out to meet him. Shirley

looked a bit worn but her gaze omet

him was as tender as ever. Seeing him, she sighed in relief and couldn't resist pulling him into a hug.

"Trying to give me a heart attack? I called Mr. Thompson, he said you left hours ago. I was about to call the cops. Don't you dare stay out this late again."

Abner stood still, his hand inching towards her waist before he hesitated. His hand paused mid-air, then obediently retreated.

"Shirley, I'm not a kid anymore. You don't need to worry about me."

"How can I not worry? What if someone cornered you like last time?"

Her face clouded over with fear at the memory.

"Are those guys at school still bothering you? Are you sure you don't want to transfer?"

"No, they're not bothering me. Mr. Thompson has handled everything."Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

Seeing the faint dark circles under his eyes, Shirley's heart ached. She brushed his hair back gently.

"Are you overworking yourself with studies?"

Abner stiffened, a warmth surging from his feet to the top of his head. Suddenly, he ducked his head,' resting his face in the crook of her shoulder, "Yeah, really tired