Start today《Yizhan version》HIATUS

Chapter 10

Xiao Zhan's POV

"Yibo . . ." He throws me a sharp, brilliant smile, "no one has ever stood up to her like that before." He laughs, harsh and loud, "you're something else." I follow after him quietly until we reach the door to the street.

Yibo pauses a moment, speaking quietly, "those things you said about my music . . . Did you mean them?"

"Every word." Yibo smiled at me, his face soft with wonder, then his cell phone rings.

"Is it Karen?" Yibo looked up at me from his phone, "yeah." He shoves the door open.

"Let's get out of here." Yibo pulled me down the street after him at a brisk pace.

"Where are we going?"

"Away from here."

We cover two blocks, but he doesn't slow down, "I'm getting tired, and if you don't know where we're going . . ." Yibo didn't listen to me, just keeps pulling me along.

"Yibo! Stop! We can't walk all day!" Yibo rounds a corner and runs straight into.

"I thought I heard your voice, Zhan." Yibo glared at Louis.

"Oh, great, it's you." Wang Yibo rolled his eyes.

"Nice to see you too!" Louis laughed cheerfully.

"Louis . . . I think we need a place to stay." Yibo's glare shifts to me.

"Is something wrong?"

"Yibo's mother, Karen-"

"Stop talking, Wang Yibo." I stop, but Louis takes in Yibo's angry expression and nods.

"Your mother hasn't changed at all, has she?" Yibo says nothing, just scowls, "you can come to my place."

"What!? NO!" Louis grinned, "all right, then I can drive you home."

"We're fine," Yibo said.

"Stomping around the city isn't fine," I talked back.

"And something tells me you don't want to go home right now." Yibo turns away from us, crossing his arms tight across his chest.

"Please, Yibo? For me?" I tug on the hem of his shirt, "I'm really tired, I can't keep going on like this, and I don't want to go home without you." Some of the tension eases from Yibo's stance.

"Fine, let's go," Yibo said.

***

After an awkward car ride together, we arrive at Louis's mansion, "wow, Louis! Your house is huge!" He winks as he passes me, "mine's bigger than Yibo's."

Louis gives me a quick tour of the bottom floor before we settle in the living room, "you have a pool!?"

"And a hot tub," Louis answered.

I stare at the glittering water while the mood in the room turns solemn, "does Karen still talk to you like that? Critical and hash even when you're doing your best?" Yibo ignores him and stares out of the window, so Louis speaks to me instead.

"Karen's always been like this, even when we were kids, nothing is ever good enough for her." Yibo glances over at us but doesn't say anything.

"That must have been really hard growing up," I muttered under my breath.

"It hurts Sean the most, he couldn't handle that kind of treatment, day in day out. I don't think I could, either." Yibo . . .

I stare at him, imagining him as a little kid, having her say those things to him.