Fragments

Believer

Meizuo had never been a believer in love at first sight. It was the stuff of fairytales, of wishful thinking, and he wasn't a subscriber to nonsense. He had always believed that 'love' was merely a chemical reaction caused primarily by physical attraction; he was more a believer of lust at first sight, not love. Love was a myth sold by the media, backed by the diamond industry, and after the debacle with Caina, Feng Meizuo would have no part in it. He had been burned, razed to ash by a woman he had thought he loved, and he was done with the whole romance thing. It had been a mistake laying all his cards on the table in the first place, he had failed to read the signs Caina was clearly exhibiting. He had acted like a foolish teenager, one who didn't know his ass from his elbow, and he really should have known better. He had watched far too many relationships fall apart (his parents included), and still he had fallen prey to the seductive bear trap that was love. Feng Meizuo was no fool. True love did not exist in his world.

Meizuo was admittedly slightly bitter as he recalled how easily Caina had left him, fallen into the arms of another man even though he had bared his soul to her. The heart wanted what the heart wanted, and she had decided that she didn't want him. No girl ever seemed to truly want him for him; no, they wanted to date him due to his wealth, his popularity, the material things he could provide. He had yet to meet the girl who didn't look at him and see a meal ticket, a plane ticket or just dollar signs in general. Maybe one day he would meet that girl who melted the ice around his heart, but for now, he was content to observe from a distance. Never, ever again would he put himself on the line like that, leave his heart exposed only to be torn to shreds. No, it was better to be alone than to be destroyed. However, even his cold, cynical, newly pieced back together heart couldn't deny it was warmed by one of his dearest friends as he anxiously paced about the room, worrying his bow tie and messing up his perfectly coiffed hair as he strode about, exuding reckless energy from every pore.

"Guys, I'm getting married today!" Ah Si exclaimed, his face taking on a strange greenish tinge as he peered in the mirror, restlessly picking at his hair and fiddling with his tuxedo jacket. He looked positively ill to the stomach, and he huffed loudly as he rested his head abruptly on the cold mirror, fogging the glass as he panted for breath. The almighty Daoming Si was clearly nervous. His voice was plaintive as he breathed "what if I'm forcing her into this? What if she feels pressured to do this because of my mother and her old fashionedness? What if she runs away and jilts me at the alter...." Ah Si was reaching the point of hyperventilation, his breath coming in short gasps as he gripped the edge of the glossy mahogany desk, desperation written in the lines of his rigid shoulders. Ah Si had spared no expense for his wedding, the suites he had booked were sumptuous, gilded and spacious, however, Meizuo felt the air being sucked from their surroundings as Ah Si circled the room like a caged tiger. Anxiety was rolling off him in waves, his tension palpable, and Meizuo considered knocking him out until the ceremony started to stop his friend talking nonsense. Pre-wedding jitters he remarked internally as he charted his friend's frantic progress around the limited space.

"Am I doing the right thing, should I call this all off?" Ah Si fretted, wringing his bow tie viscously between his fingers as he appealed to his friends. Meizuo sighed deeply, an action that Lei, sitting to his side and crisply suited and booted, mirrored in exasperation. The pair shared a look, their thoughts in synchronisation as the two only rational adults in the room. Ah Si had been head over heels for Shancai longer than he cared to admit and Xi Men was also as bad; he had actually caught his friend making kissy noises down the phone to Xiaoyou earlier that very day. The world had lost its mind, and it seemed to be affecting Daoming Si too. Ah Si never has been able to think clearly in regards to Shancai. Despite being the first of their group to get married, Ah Si could scarcely be considered an adult. Meizuo snorted as Ah Si wrung his hands in distress, ever the drama queen as he anticipated all the ways this could go wrong. Although, in fairness to his friend, he supposed it wasn't entirely unreasonable that Ah Si would feel insecure. After all, he had worked so hard to get to this day, overcome so many obstacles and literally almost starved to death just to prove his devotion; was it so strange that he would be worried to fall at the last hurdle? Ah Si threw himself onto the bed dramatically, dropping his face into his hands and groaning excessively, clearly skittish and on edge. It was entirely uncharacteristic for Ah Si to be out of sorts, only Shancai could possibly draw this reaction from their otherwise fearless friend. Meizuo sighed, about to call Ah Si out and call him an idiot, but Xi Men beat him to it, clapping the quavering groom bracingly on the shoulder as he plopped down next to him. "Relax, Ah Si," he soothed, giving his friend a little shake, "you have nothing to worry about - why are you getting cold feet?"