5 years ago
 

Xiao Zhan, Mianmian and Ziyi landed on France almost 10 hours after their departure. After that, they went straight to Hearst Cancer Research Center. They've already had appointment there. Ziyi was still in coma, and they whisked her away in an helicopter ambulance. They arrived at the hospital just 15 minutes later, and the doctors asked for Xiao Zhan's consent to do the operation. He gave it right away, and then all they could do is wait.

Another 5 hours, and there's still no news about Ziyi's condition. Mianmian however, she went outside and brought back cold sandwiches, coffee, snacks, and most important one, a French sim card.

"Oh, thank God for you, Mianmian, you're a life saver." Xiao Zhan grabbed the sim card and he changed his chinese sim card into the french one. He then opened his phone, and called Yibo's number. It won't get through. He frowned, but still thought that maybe he's busy and haven't had the chance to check his voicemail. He then left another voicemail.
 
'Hi, Yibo, it's me, this is my temporary number, I had an urgent business in France, heh, in case you're wondering, yes I am in France now, haha, so, yeah, this is my number, call me anytime soon, I missed you...'
 
"Boyfriend?" Mianmian asked casually.

"It's complicated..." but his eyes looked soft.

"Mm, aren't they all."

They ate in silence.

"Say, Mianmian, how long have you been Ziyi's assistant?"

"Almost three years, why?"

"So you knew Mingjue, right?"

She scoffed. "Who do you think owned the plane?"

"Did he know about Ziyi's condition?" Mianmian is silence now.

"Why did she want me to do...this?" He waved his hand around, "Instead of Mingjue?"

"I think, you should asked her yourself. It's not my place to explain to you about her decision." She answered carefully. "By the way, you should take a rest, I've already prepared the apartment for you, it's just a stone throw away from here."

"Thanks, but maybe in a while?"

"Xiao Zhan, you should take whatever rest you can get, from now on it's going to be an uphill battle, and I'm here to share your burden. So please, just rest. Okay?" Mianmian patted his back.

After thinking for a while, he finally agreed to rest.

"I already prepared everything for you, there's clothes, toiletries, shoes, anything that I missed, you just let me know."

"Whatever Ziyi's paying you, I'm sure you're worth a lot more, Mianmian." Xiao Zhan flashed his megawatt smile, then left.

-----

It's been a week and Xiao Zhan didn't receive any message or voicemail from Yibo, and it really made him feeling down.

'Hi, it's me again, are you still busy? Do you have any phone reception over there? Please just take care of yourself, I don't want anything bad happened to you, I promised I will be back soon, will you reply to this? I missed you so much...'

He felt very discouraged, after each voicemail and each message that went unanswered, and although Ziyi's getting better, he felt worse. He didn't know what else he should do. 

"Ziyi, you should tell Mingjue."

Ziyi looked at him, resigned. "I don't want him to see me like this..." she let a tear drops on her cheek.

"Ziyi, he loved you, much more than I did. I just realized it now, I've loved you, but I've never been in love with you. But Mingjue? He was in love with you, from the first time, with all of his being, why don't you give him a chance?"

"Yes, Ziyi, why don't you give me a chance?" 

Xiao Zhan jumped, surprised upon hearing the voice of one and only Nie Mingjue.

He came inside the private room, and put the huge flowers bouquet he brought, in a vase near the bed.

"Mingming, how did you..." Ziyi looked astonished.

"Other than you're using my jet without telling me, Xiao Zhan here called me. And I rushed here straightaway. Baobei, what have you been thinking in that pretty head of yours? Did you think I will leave you? Not a chance in hell." He kissed Ziyi's crown.

"But...I'm so ugly now, and also, maybe...they will do a mastectomy on one or both of my breasts. I can't have you see me like that, Ming..." she sobbed quietly. "I'm not worthy of you..."

Xiao Zhan walked outside slowly, to give privacy to both of them.

So, Ziyi could be that insecure, she never showed me that side of her before. Well, I guess love could changed anyone. He smiled sadly. I wonder if it has changed him too? 

-----
 

6 months has passed, and Ziyi's getting better. They did have to remove one of the breast, but Mingjue encouraged her, and always be by her side.

Meanwhile, Xiao Zhan, although he's working as a chef now, which was his lifelong dream, was getting worse. There's still no reply from Yibo, and he felt like he's going down the rabbit hole from missing him too much. He still left voicemail, altough not as often as before, only once a week.

'Hi, it's me again, I know, I know, maybe you don't want to hear my voice again, maybe I made you angry by leaving you just like that, and I'm sorry. I'm really sorry... I don't know what else should I say, I just want to let you know that I have my answer for your question. Yes, THAT question, and I know maybe it's too late for me, for you, for us, but I just want you to know, that I recognized you as my soulmate. Cheesy right? But what else do you call this kind of connection? I can still feel it, deep inside my soul, ingrained in my bones, and how could I forget about your kisses? I just want to say, I love you, even if you don't love me back. This kind of love? They only appeared once every few lifetimes, and I know that you are my one and only love. I will see you again, even though it will take me another lifetime to do so.'
 
-----

 
A year later...

He came to see him race. He didn't say anything, didn't contact anyone. He's just gone home, and first thing he did was seeing him again. Before he had to decide.
 
He was at the race track, standing near the finish line. And when it was announced that he won the race, he felt proud, very proud, and happy. He saw his happy face, clutching the trophy, and shooting out the champagne. And he felt that he had no right to interfere again with his life. Because he was happy, without him.

He turned around, and left, unaware of the piercing gaze on his back, uncertain if he's the person he dreamt about every night or just another hallucination in the middle of the day.
 
-----
 

"So, that was really you then, I thought I was going crazy, hallucinating you in the middle of the day..." Yibo caressed Xiao Zhan's cheek. "I wish I could hear all your voicemail, I still want to hear them, if not because that goddamn scalper, we would already be together since 5 years ago.."

Xiao Zhan kissed his big hand, amazed of how he still remembered every lines and shape of his hands. "Let bygones be bygones, we're here, aren't we?"

"With my help, anything can happen." 

"Huaisang!" Yibo looked at him, "I'm sorry I ruined your brother's wedding." He stood up and bowed his head to him.

"Nah, s'okay Yibo, it's all according to the plan, the original plan was to make you meet up with Zhan ge here all along. That kissing show just now? Just cream on top, you guys were really made for each other, by the way. Congratulation!" He clapped his hands like a sea lion.

"What did you mean by original plan? Did you just trick me?" Yibo frowned at Huaisang's cryptic words.

"All in all, Yibo and Xiao Zhan lived happily ever after, isn't that the end game? After all, the magician will never reveal his trick..." he opened his fan elaborately, and walked away, smiling mysteriously.

"Just let him be, he's always cryptic like that. But I admit that he's super smart, like genius smart." Xiao Zhan pulled Yibo back to the grass. "Now tell me, did you really spend the last 5 years searching for me all over Europe?"

"If only you knew how broken I was, Zhan ge, did you know I composed Bu Wang because of you? I sang it, hoping that somehow my words reached you, to let you know that I missed you, and I will always remember you..."

'The world passes by but I remember only you'

"Of course I knew about Bu Wang, I meticulously followed and documented your career, in hope someday when I grow old and senile, I can brag to Ziyi's and Lulu's kids that I have had kissed Wang Yibo, the asian superstar, when I was young and beautiful."

"And now we can grow old and senile together."