Imperfect Desires 243 Shawty, Let's Party Till The Sundown!

If one asked Xiu what it felt like being a celebrity, she'd quote what Megan Fox once said, "I've learned that being a celebrity is like being a sacrificial lamb. At some point, no matter how high the pedestal that they put you on, they're going to tear you down."

And if these words didn't reflect the life Chen Xiu lived, then Xiu didn't know any other words for it. People say being a celebrity sets you free but Xiu could say that being a celebrity was the real hindrance in her life. Being a celebrity is also a dangerous job. One day, the fans shower you with a lot of love but the very next day when you try to do something for your own happiness, those very fans turn their backs on you. 

What fans never realize is that if they put their trust in the celebrities, the celebrities also put their trust in their fans. Because for a celebrity, fans also become a family but do you realize how it hurts when that said family tries to tear you apart?

Staring at Dylan's face under the dim lights of the bar, Xiu was going through a surreal experience. She had to do a lot of convincing to get Dylan out of the office in the afternoon when the office hours weren't even over now. She had heard the term, 'Die-hard fans.' The ones who are willing to be there till the very end no matter how the wind has changed its course. But it was her very first time being an acquaintance with that said 'die-hard fan' and that too of herself. It that wasn't surreal, what else could be?

Dylan felt really uncomfortable being at the end of her piercing gaze. He swirled the whiskey in his gla.s.s while trying to look anywhere but Xiu. But her aura was so d.a.m.n strong that he could feel her gaze even at the back of his head. He gulped down the bitter drink and asked, "Are you even allowed to drink? I thought Dazi asked you not to drink with others."

Xiu took a sip of her drink saying, "He said not to drink with others. You're not others. Or are you?"

Dylan brows knitted together at her reply. She didn't seem drunk since her eyes were still focused and alert. Then why was she talking so differently? 

Meanwhile, Xiu had already had enough drink down her throat to make her tipsy. "Oi, Didi!"

"Eh?" Dylan looked at her with a raised brow.

"Reporters tarnished Chen Xiu in every way possible to the point where even all her fans went against her. You should also give up on her like she gave up on herself," spoke Xiu while tracing the top of the gla.s.s with her index finger. "People still blame her for things she didn't do. Why don't you try hating her as well? Perhaps it'd make your life easier."

"My mom says that sometimes people pretend you're a bad person so they don't feel guilty for the things they did to you. And I believe the ones who still don't want to accept her goodness are only those people who knows that they are guilty of her suicide." Dylan's reply left Xiu in a stumble.

She leaned back in her chair and laughed out like a crazy person. She laughed to the point where even her tears started falling. However, only she knew those weren't the tears from her laughter, those tears were because of the idiot sitting before her. There was a limit to how much a celebrity could mean to a fan. But Dylan seemed like someone who really crossed all those limits and borders.

She wiped the corner of her eyes saying, "Man, you're really a dysfunctional person."

Dylan looked at her eyes for a moment longer. Even under the dim lights, he could see that her eyes held a bit of hurt. What he couldn't put his finger on was... Why? Why was she hurt? However, since he didn't want to take the blame for her tears, he tried to joke, "I know, I'm dysfunctional. After all, I put that 'fun' in 'dys-fun-ctional'."

Xiu's brows raised slightly before she laughed at his face again, "Bro, I put the 'hot' in 'psyc-hot-ic' as well. You can't compete with me."

Dylan narrowed his eyes at her thinking when did they start competing but soon he realized that they had been only competing since the first time they met. Whether it was for noodles or it was to prove oneself right, they just never stopped competing. 

"Didi, do you believe in reincarnation?" asked Xiu as she supported her head with her hand.

"Reincarnation?" Dylan seemed unsure when she asked the question. "I do."

"Huh? Why?" retorted Xiu curiously.

"Because I believe in miracles," replied Dylan with a shrug of his shoulders as if he said it very casually.

"Miracles?" Xiu repeated his words with a skeptical look palpable on her face. "What miracles have you seen in life to look so certain about miracles?"

Dylan propped his elbows on the table and joined his fingers as he said, "Isn't it a miracle that there are hundreds of stars in our country and yet I fell for only one?" Xiu looked up at him in surprise. "Isn't it also a miracle that Dazi and I were born in different countries, had different family backgrounds, had completely different languages and yet, we became brothers for life? And if I talk generally, isn't love itself a miracle as well?"

"For someone heartbroken like you, it sounds weird to know that you still think love is a miracle," said Xiu making Dylan stare at her with a bit unpleasant look in his eyes. Xiu flailed her hands saying, "Calm down, Didi! What I mean is that you lived with a delusion and you still believe in a miracle. It's not easy to have this belief."

"Huh? What do you mean that I lived with a delusion?" asked Dylan, showing interest in her drunk talk.

Xiu stretched her arm and ruffled his hair saying, "Aiyo, my dearest fan... There are two ways to love. It either turns into a delusion or it turns into a miracle. I've lived with a delusion once, I know what it feels like when that delusion is broken." She took a pause before adding, "But don't worry, I found the miracle of my life. I believe you'd too." She leaned closer to him and whispered as if telling him a top-secret, "Let me give you a piece of advice from my personal experience..." she hiccuped and went on, "Sorry about that. But coming back to the topic, from my personal experience I can tell you that the love we call a miracle is often closer than we think. However, being the dumb humans, we spend a lifetime looking for that miraculous love elsewhere."

Dylan listened to her attentively and even nodded in agreement before slapping her hand away from his hair saying, "I'm not your fan."

Xiu pinched his cheeks making his eyes go-round as she said, "That's what you think, sweety."

'Sw-Sweety? What? What the h.e.l.l?' He glared at her and held her wrist saying, "I think you're quite drunk now. Let's leave now."

Xiu didn't move as she whined, "Why? I still have a lot to tell you. We just started? Shawty, let's party till the sundown!"

Hearing her singsong voice, Dylan gaped at her in horror and shock. "That's it. Now, we're definitely leaving!"