Xie Lian's artistic side| Colors of the Heart ~ Hualian AU

Chapter XXXVI

Public opinion consultation! See link at the end of the chapter.

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"I wonder if he will find it." Hua Cheng entered the elevator and pressed the button several times.

He was jittery and still fighting the urge to slam his head against the mirror. So much for trying to show himself strong and reliable to his Gege. Yesterday Hua Cheng almost dismantled himself in front of the actor's mother. Today, in one single comment he seemed emotional again, when talking about his home like that. It was supposed to sound more like a joke, but the look in Xie Lian's face was alarming. "I'm so pathetic."

He exited the building and exhaled hot air into the fresh night. He really thought his past was nicely abandoned at a shadowed corner of his mind, fading until it became forgotten. He thought that would hardly show up ever again, no matter what He Xuan told him. Hua Cheng actually only wanted to keep nourishing memories that came after Xie Lian found him, and not even all of them. However, with one glimpse of light all colors from his childhood gushed out, crimson like blood. Vivid, alarming, pulsating. It was all still there. He Xuan always said something about how "fading does not mean erasing, and old colors could be restored into haunting ghosts".

"Annoying, as if he's any better." Hua Cheng brushed the thought away.

He entered the convenience store and went to the fridges. Baijiu, soju, wine and milk-tea, he grabbed one of each. Not that he thought they would drink it all, he just wanted to make sure something would please Xie Lian. He also got dark chocolate as dessert and blueberry muffins for breakfast.

Breakfast, oh yes. Gege was staying over. And they were done with the first week of performances, three more to go. Tomorrow the critics would publish reviews on the play and probably by Tuesday calls for interviews would start coming. Many of them to Shi Qingxuan, naturally, because Gege was about to skyrocket into fame. But himself as the director would be highly requested as well. That was why tomorrow he would hire a personal assistant. CVs were piled on top of his table in the office since the week before, but that task got lost amidst the chaos of the earlier week.

He paid and pushed the door open on his way out.

What about now? Could Xie Lian have found it already? Maybe it was not so obvious. Hua Cheng pondered if he should quickly go and try to move it somewhere more obvious, but gave up. Maybe Xie Lian was done showering already.

Hua Cheng stopped in front of the building and leaned his back over the glass door for a bit. Once putting his restless thoughts aside, he breathed in and out deeply.

Dammit, he was thrilled.

***

Xie Lian heard the front door closing. The actor was still immersed in what San Lang had just said before going out. He never really gave much thought to having a home, he always took for it granted. He had this place to go back to; a place where people cared about him and where they would always be waiting for him. Sometimes it was suffocating. He grew up, he was an adult now. Still, those people thought they knew better and tried to manipulate him into doing whatever they thought was best.

"Those people" sounded a bit too cold, but his parents became annoying for a while. His father not accepting his professional choice, not going to his performances or being supportive. It has been stressful for a long while. Suddenly, his father almost had a heart attack, and Xie Lian felt responsible. He actually started denying who he was in order to avoid causing his father more health problems. Family love works in mysterious and complicated ways. Many colors, many textures, not all clearly distinguishable.