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Yibo took a sip of his drink as his eyes scanned the room. He knew Xiao Zhan would show up at the party. It was, after all, the birthday of their common best friend - Ji Li. Xiao Zhan would not miss it, even if it meant bumping into his recently dumped boyfriend.
Yibo knew Xiao Zhan would come. Which is why he had decided to attend. He would take any opportunity to try to get Xiao Zhan to give him a second chance. People kept telling him to move on. They said it had been two months and that Xiao Zhan would never give him another chance. But they didn't know Yibo. Yibo could carve a window of opportunity and snatch it.
Yibo’s sip froze midway as his eyes suddenly caught the familiar figure of Xiao Zhan walking into the room. His eyes narrowed as Xiao Zhan entered arm in arm with another tall man. Yibo didn’t recognize the new person. And he didn't care for the way the man held Xiao Zhan close as they smiled and made their way across the room to greet Ji Li. With a frown, Yibo threw back the last drop of alcohol in his glass and left the corner he had been occupying as he waited for Xiao Zhan.
“Ah,” Ji Li reacted when Yibo joined the trio. “Yibo…” he smiled nervously.
“Hello,” Yibo bowed slightly as he acknowledged the group.
Xiao Zhan and the tall stranger bowed back and Yibo noticed the way Xiao Zhan didn't pull away from the man.
“Hello, Yibo,” Xiao Zhan gave him a tight, polite smile. “This is...uhh...this is Peng Chu Yue,” he introduced the man beside him. “A-Yue, this is Wang Yibo.”
The two men greeted each other and an awkward silence settled on the group. Eventually, Ji Li and Peng Chu Yue picked up a conversation and Xiao Zhan and Yibo nodded along. When Ji Li finally stepped away to mingle with the other guests, Xiao Zhan glanced between Yibo and Peng Chu Yue nervously.
“I...I’ll get us some drinks,” Xiao Zhan muttered as he took his leave and walked to the bar.
Yibo watched as his ex-boyfriend headed to the other side of the room and disappeared into the crowd. When Xiao Zhan was no longer in his line of sight, Yibo turned his attention to Peng Chu Yue.
“How did you two meet?” Yibo asked, blunt as ever.
“Through a common friend,” Peng Chu Yue gave him a knowing smile and maintained a calm demeanour.
“So...are you two...dating?” Yibo raised an eyebrow.
“Yes,” Peng Chu Yue nodded with an impassive expression.
“Hmm,” Yibo responded before remaining silent for a few moments.
“I should get going,” Yibo spoke after some time. “It was...nice meeting you.”
Peng Chu Yue nodded and shook Yibo’s offered hand as Yibo placed his other hand on Peng Chu Yue’s shoulder. After saying their goodbyes, Yibo took one last glance in the direction Xiao Zhan had gone and then left the venue.
“Are you okay?” Peng Chu Yue asked Xiao Zhan softly as they drove back from the party.
“Mn,” Xiao Zhan nodded quietly.
“I’m glad you asked me to come,” Peng Chu Yue sighed and smiled. “I...I had fun…”
Xiao Zhan glanced at Peng Chu Yue and smiled back.
“Thanks for doing this,” Xiao Zhan leaned back against the seat. “You didn't have to. I know it must have been awk-”
“I wanted to,” Pen Chu Yue assured Xiao Zhan. “I was happy I could give you some company, even if just as your fake boyfriend,” he chuckled.
“Oh god,” Xiao Zhan groaned and ran a hand down his face. “It sounds so silly when you say it out loud. I shouldn't have...I should have just gone alone...it’s been two months but I still can’t-”
“Do you still have feelings for him?” Peng Chu Yue asked gently.
Xiao Zhan nodded silently and sighed.
“Why did you break up with him then?” Peng Chu Yue probed.
“It’s...it’s complicated,” Xiao Zhan replied meekly as he stared at his hands. “Yibo is...complicated. He-”
But before Xiao Zhan could finish his sentence, a sharp inhale drew his attention. When Xiao Zhan looked at Peng Chu Yue, his eyes widened in alarm as they landed on his distorted face. Peng Chu Yue’s lips had melted and fused together, leaving him unable to speak. His eyes had turned black and were bleeding red.
Xiao Zhan screamed, covering his mouth with the back of his hand as he retreated from the horrid sight. His screams grew louder when the car lost control and skidded off road, plummeting down the gentle slope and straight into the water they were driving by. Xiao Zhan braced himself for impact as the car crashed into the river bank and the silence of the night was shattered.
When everything stilled again, Xiao Zhan opened his eyes and looked around in disbelief and fright. His seatbelt had saved him from crashing through the windshield but he had still hit his head against the side window. He trembled as he turned slowly towards the driver’s seat and gasped in horror as he saw Peng Chu Yue’s ghastly form seize and shake, still bleeding from the eyes and sealed shut at the lips. His skin had turned a deathly pale white and his limbs seemed to flail about as if in a fit.
Xiao Zhan’s breathing grew heavy as he scrambled to unhook his seatbelt. He struggled to open his door and crawled out clumsily when it finally gave way. Xiao Zhan struggled to stand up on his feet with the way his entire body was quivering and his mind was racing. Suddenly, he felt something hold him up and pull him away.
“Zhan-ge!” A familiar voice tore through the blizzard in Xiao Zhan’s mind.
Xiao Zhan felt his vision clear and his senses return to themselves as he grounded himself in the familiarity of the deep voice.
“Zhan-ge...it’s me...are you okay?!” The voice asked worriedly as Xiao Zhan was held close.
Xiao Zhan blinked until a familiar face came into focus.
“Yi-Yibo…?” Xiao Zhan whispered.
“Are you okay, ge?” Yibo checked Xiao Zhan’s body for wounds. “What happened?”
“I...I don't know…” Xiao Zhan shook his head, still trembling like a falling leaf.
Before Xiao Zhan could think or say anything else, he felt himself being led away from the damp cool bank and into a warm space that smelled familiar.
“Wait here,” Yibo instructed as he sat Xiao Zhan down in the passenger seat of his car. “I’ll check on your...friend.”
Xiao Zhan managed a nod as he wrapped his arms around himself and watched Yibo go down the slope to the wreck again.
Yibo took a few more steps to cover the distance between him and the wrecked vehicle. He knelt by the driver’s side and stared at the mute, blind, and struggling figure.
“I made sure you could still hear,” Yibo whispered in a low, deep voice, “so you can listen to what I have to say,” he smirked.
The ghostly figure of Peng Chu Yue stilled for a brief moment on recognizing Yibo’s voice. With a careful movement, Yibo pulled out a doll figure in his hand and eyed the hair he had plucked from Peng Chu Yue earlier at the party. He smiled eerily at the pins in the doll’s eyes and the thread that sowed its mouth shut. He glanced at the sorry man that lay at the steering wheel and took out another pin and placed it on the heart of the doll.
“Xiao Zhan is mine,” Yibo growled before he stuck the pin deep into the doll’s heart.
With one final glance at the lifeless form that lay fallen, Yibo stood up again and tossed the doll into the car as well. He dusted his jacket and pants before walking back to his car where a traumatized Xiao Zhan sat quietly.
“I’m sorry, Zhan-ge…” Yibo spoke sadly when he was by Xiao Zhan’s side again. “Your...friend...he didn’t make it.”
Xiao Zhan’s eyes turned red and he began trembling all over. Yibo knelt down beside him and reached for the disturbed man. He pulled Xiao Zhan into his embrace and whispered soothingly.
“It’s okay, ge,” Yibo consoled a bewildered and shaken Xiao Zhan, “I’m here….I’ll always be right here.”