A Christmas Carol

The Spirit Of Christmas Past

After the phone call with He Jiong, Wang He Di turned off the television and crawled into bed, instantly falling asleep.
He didn't want to think. He only wanted to close his eyes and get out of bed when that silly time of year was over.
Yet, at exactly midnight, a strange noise coming from the kitchen made him wake up with a start.
He got out of bed, foolishly brandished a slipper to use as a weapon in case of danger, and advanced cautiously towards the kitchen.
"Connor?"
He was surprised to find his old colleague in his house, eating leftover pie from the refrigerator.
They hadn't seen each other for years...Wang He Di was sure it was a dream... He couldn't really be there.
"No, dear. For today, I'm the spirit of Christmas past. Um... I think this cake has gone bad... It tastes awful!" Connor Leong answered.
"The spirit of...Okay, it's definitely a dream," He Di laughed.
"It's not a dream. Simply, if you act like an asshole on Christmas Eve, you have to pay the consequences."
"Hey!"
"Sooo, let's not waste any time. You know the story, don't you? I'm here to show you your past Christmas. Come on, give me your hand."
Connor approached him, but He Di backed away.
"Hell! Now I'm going to wake up and..."
"You won't wake up until you finish this thing, you should know that."
"Look, I know all my past Christmases, I don't need to go on a trip with you."
"You know them, but I'm afraid you've forgotten how happy you were. Now shut up and follow me."
Connor grabbed Wang He Di's hand against his will and in a second they were outside a house He Di knew all too well...
"Take a look, they can't see us," Connor whispered, pointing to a lighted window.
Wang He Di listened to him and slowly approached.
As soon as he saw what was happening beyond the glass, his heart started pounding...
That was Christmas last year and there, in front of his eyes, was she, Shen Yue.

Christmas Past

As per tradition, Wang He Di and Shen Yue had spent Christmas Eve at his parents' house, while Christmas day at her parents' house.
Yue's entire family had dined together... Her uncles, cousins, grandmother, mother, father, and her beloved little brother were all gathered around the table.
Wang He Di's right hand was clasped under the table with Shen Yue's left hand.
It was all perfect.
He couldn't feel happier than that.
After dinner, the entire family moved into the living room, where Mr. Shen had moved the sofa and chairs against the walls to create a sort of dance floor.
Ms. Shen turned on her old record player and everyone started dancing to Frank Sinatra's tune, even Yue's grandmother.
In a corner of the room the Christmas tree created magical effects with its warm lights.
He Di took Yue by the hand and dragged her to dance.
He twirled her around a couple of times, made her do the casquet and other silly moves, intoxicated by her adorable laugh.
He loved her so much.
Shen Yue was his world.
His house.
Suddenly the music slowed down.
Yue's small hands rested on the back of his neck and he placed his on her hips.
The way she was looking at him moved him.
There was an infinite love in those big brown eyes of hers.
And he knew that she too could find the same kind of love in him.
They had been dating for almost five years and they were both sure, absolutely sure, that they were holding their soulmate in their arms.
"Shen Yue" whispered Wang He Di.
"Yup?"
"I want to be with you forever".
Yue's beaming smile hit him right in the chest.
"I'm not going anywhere," she answered softly.
He pressed her against his chest and gently rested his chin on her head as they continued to rock to the music.
It was as if there was no one else in that room except the two of them.
"I love you so much..."
"Me too".
"You are everything to me, you know that, right? Since I met you, you have filled my life, day by day, with meaning. You are the reason I wake up with a smile, the reason I work hard and never give up, the reason why at night my dreams are all rainbows and unicorns".
Shen Yue's eyes were teary as she listened to his words.
"What's going on, Didi? Why are you telling me all this?" she asked softly.
They had never been the type for long talks. In their "I love you" there was everything that twenty thousand words would never be able to say.
Wang He Di moved slightly away from her and smiled at her.
"Because, small idiot, I want to ask you something..."
Under the shocked gaze of Yue, and the moved gaze of her family, Wang He Di knelt down in front of her.
In his hands he had a ring... The ring given to him by his grandmother.
"Shen Yue... Do you want to marry me?"
And in tears, Yue threw herself into his arms exclaiming: "Yes, I do!"
As he watched the scene from the window, a few tears wet Wang He Di's cheeks.
"A marriage proposal on Christmas day...Extravagant," Connor commented.
"Christmas was our day. Magical things always happened to us at Christmas," He Di replied.
"You were so wrong, Connor," he said.
"Hmm?"
"I've never forgotten how happy I was."
Connor nodded and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Come, I want to show you more."
Again, the scenario changed.
Now they were in Wang He Di's apartment, but it was different from what it was in the present.
There were a lot of pictures hanging on the walls, some vases of colorful flowers, some ridiculous stuffed animals scattered on the sofa... And the scent of Shen Yue in every room.
He Di saw himself angrily yelling at someone.

"YOU HID IT FROM ME, SHEN YUE!"
"I ALREADY TOLD YOU I'M SORRY!" yelled Yue.
It was rare to hear her raise her voice.
That day, Wang He Di had found a contract proposal hidden inside a book of Yue.
It was a job offer... For both of them. For the first time since "Meteor Garden", someone was finally willing to risk making them act together again in a drama, as protagonists.
He Di had discovered that the producer, a close friend of him and Yue, had asked the girl to talk to Dylan and let him know their answer as soon as possible.
They were at such a point in their careers that their respective agencies now allowed them the freedom to choose their own projects without meddling too much.
"I don't understand..."
Wang He Di felt hurt.
It had been nearly a year since the producer handed Yue the contract proposal.
And she never said anything to He Di.
"Didi, listen to me. I didn't tell you about it because I knew you would accept the offer," sighed Shen Yue.
"You... You wouldn't have accepted?" he asked sadly.
"No. Not now. We are getting married and we have to do it secretly!"
"You decided to do everything secretly, remember?! I'd be willing to shout to the whole world that I'm getting married to you, Shen Yue!"
"Because you are reckless, Wang He Di! Can't you see it?! At every tiny mention of the two of us a fandom war breaks out!"
"Who cares?! Let them fight! We've been together for years and everyone thinks you're with someone else and that I fall in love with everyone I work with! That's ridiculous!"
"It's ridiculous. But I'm not sure I can handle all the hate I get whenever it comes to you." Shen Yue looked exhausted.
"And I'm not sure I can handle our love having to remain hidden like it's a mortal sin. And I'm not sure I can handle my future wife not trusting me enough to keep me in the dark of something so important."
He Di waved the job offer in front of Yue's eyes, then threw it on the floor.
"You still don't understand. We have to keep it hidden, Didi... Just for now. If you prefer, we can wait to get married when we're free to do as we please."
"And now you're asking me not to marry... Great!"
"Didi... You're not listening to me..."
"But yes, you're right, let's not get married at all. It doesn't make any sense anyway."
This hurt Yue deeply, Wang He Di saw it clearly in her eyes.
The girl took off her engagement ring and handed it to him.
"I was wrong not to tell you about that job offer and I'm so sorry. I was hoping to save our relationship by doing so, because people can be mean and I know it all too well. I would have loved to work with you again, but this It's really not the best time for both of us... Our career and our relationship are at stake. But you're just being stupid, you know? You don't want to listen to me. Whenever you get angry, you stop thinking. I wasn't asking to cancel the wedding. I was asking you if you would prefer to postpone it, since you can't bear the idea of ​​hiding it. Ours is not a normal situation, it's no use pretending it isn't so... We are not the first in our world of work having to do everything privately and we won't even be the last. Anyway ok, let's end it here. As you said, it doesn't make sense".
That was like a slap in the face for Wang He Di.
"Shen Yue..."
"See you when you're calmer," she whispered, giving him a kiss on the cheek.
She grabbed her things and left the apartment.
"YES, GO AWAY! KEEP RUNNING! THAT'S ALL YOU CAN DO!" he yelled at the door.
He believed she wouldn't hear him, that she was already too far away.
And she, on the other hand, heard it very well.
"It didn't end well, huh?" commented Connor, who had watched that scene together with He Di.
He lowered his head, the pain still sharp in his chest.
"Now I understand why you hate Christmas so much."
"Take me away, please."
Connor nodded and finally Wang He Di was back in his apartment, in the present.
The photos were gone, the flowers had withered, and Shen Yue's scent had vanished.
He wondered what she was doing... How she was spending Christmas... If she was all right.
Every day since they'd broken up, he forced himself not to think about her.
He never succeeded, but he tried as hard as he could.
And he tried it too in that moment, as he went back to bed and prayed that this ridiculous dream was over and that some other spirit would not come.