The music thumped, resonating loudly throughout the club. Ah Si felt the beat slicing through his whole body, the blue and red lights dazzling him as he downed his drink. He had been furious after his altercation that day with Shancai; firstly, she had kicked him right in the jaw, damaging his handsome face, and secondly, she had refused to succumb to his charms, damaging his previously unshakeable pride. He had been feeling bitter all afternoon, and the feeling was only exacerbated as he couldn't drive the tiny girl from his mind. Her eyes, sparking with rage, had been haunting him all day. It was because of this that he had allowed Meizuo and Xi Men to drag him out to the club night, and at this point, he was feeling decidedly worse for wear. The alcohol had been flowing, and Ah Si was not above drowning his sorrows by chasing the bottom of a bottle. However, he hadn't been having the best night; he had been dodging advances from love struck fans all night and his patience was wearing thin. He didn't want any of these girls. He could think of only one thing he wanted... He forced the thought from his mind as he tossed another drink down, the sharp liquid burning his tongue; he coughed loudly and spluttered. Meizuo managed to disentangle himself from his latest squeeze in order to laugh at him and Ah Si glared at him blearily, but was instantly distracted when his eye was caught by a short girl across the dance floor.
The girl was small and wearing a white dress that looked very familiar to Ah Si's drunken mind; her hair was styled in shoulder length curls which shimmered under the fluorescent lights. His eyes struggled to focus as he peered at the girl intently; is that Shancai? Did she follow me here? The Daoming heir staggered to his feet, and Xi Men surveyed him amusedly as he watched his friend sway drunkenly, his eyes fixed like a hunting dog on a girl across the room. "Shancai," he yelled suddenly, making them all jump and peer about in confusion at the object of Ah Si's attention. The drunken man attempted to make his way over to the girl he had been staring at, calling "Shancai, look over here!" Ah Si was attracting attention as he stumbled through the writhing crowd, intent on his mission, and Xi Men realised with a start that the girl he was headed towards was in fact decidedly not Shancai. He realised this because at that very moment, a guy who must have been her boyfriend had grabbed her around the waist and pulled her into a heated kiss, and Ah Si had given a hoarse shout of rage at the sight. Ah Si was clearly hammered, and if he actually managed to reach the unfortunate girl and her boyfriend, it was likely he would get arrested for assault before he realised she wasn't Shancai.
Xi Men leapt to his feet and darted after his friend; he narrowly managed to seize Ah Si's shoulder and wrench him back before he could land a punch on the innocent guy. Ah Si angrily attempted to shake him off, muttering "I'll kill him! Shancai's not his, I'll kill him!" He was still struggling violently and Xi Men was forced to shake him and punch him hard in the shoulder, succeeding in attracting his wrathful attention away from the couple on the dance floor momentarily. He glared at him balefully in his drunken stupor. "Stop it, Ah Si!" Xi Men snapped in exasperation. Sometimes dealing with his wasted friends felt like a full time job; Xi Men was the only one who never seemed to get black out drunk. Ah Si's blurry eyes focused on him with great difficulty, and he shot back, his voice breaking "what the hell, Xi Men! That guys got his hands all over Shancai and you expect me to just sit here?! I'll fucking murder him, no one gets to touch her!" He was breathing heavily, the smell of whisky on his breath, and his face was flushed with a combination of rage and alcohol. Xi Men wanted to laugh, but it would be unwise as it would probably only wind Ah Si up further at this point. He instead decided to grab Ah Si's face and point it towards the happy couple, forcing him to see whilst telling him sternly "it's not Shancai. And even if it was, what right do you have to stop her kissing someone she likes? You aren't her boyfriend, Ah Si." He knew his immature friend was hung up on Shancai, but even so, he needed to get it together. This was not how F4 acted.
Ah Si finally acknowledged that the girl wasn't Shancai, and he literally sagged with relief against Xi Men. He had been murderous with rage when he thought she had been kissing a random guy; how dare she turn him down and then flaunt her latest conquest in front of him! He felt lighter than air when he realised it wasn't her; the thought of Shancai with another man filled him with rage for reasons he wasn't entirely sure of. But of course, he should have known better. Shancai wasn't like that. Which was why she intrigued him so much. Xi Men's words cut him slightly; he knew he wasn't her boyfriend, Shancai had made that abundantly clear. Ah Si was only vaguely aware of Xi Men leading him from the club, his arm slung around his neck; he found himself asking mournfully "why doesn't she want me, Xi Men?" His friend almost dropped him in surprise; it wasn't like Ah Si to show emotional weakness. His tongue must have been loosened by the alcohol. "Of course she likes you," Xi Men told him placatingly, hitching him higher on his shoulder as he tried to hail a cab.
