LuQi Dream High (ish) AU.
❀ we were strangers, kids with heads full of dreams and stars in our eyes. we stumbled through countless obstacles as we raced towards our goal. in the end, i saw that you were right there with me through it all. your prese...
Song Yuqi blinked, then squinted, lifting her hand to her forehead to block the setting sun from her eyes, as some long-legged adolescent boy on a bicycle zoomed past her and into the distance, his shout of excitement fading around the corner.
What the hell?
She shook off her bewilderment and continued along her path, looking up and down from her phone frequently to ensure she was going the right way. She had never visited her cousin after he moved to Hong Kong but now was as good a time as any, right?
She just hoped he and his family would be able to take her in for the night, without prior notice and without her parents' permission. She faltered in her steps slightly at the thought of possibly having nowhere to stay the night. What would I do then? Beg? Cry? Sleep on a bench?
... Go home...?
After a moment of consideration, she decided, I better bring them a gift, at least. Satisfied with this solution and clearing the negative thoughts from her mind, she continued to a nearby fruit stand and engaged happily in conversation with the vendor over her selection of fruits.
Don't worry. Everything will work out in exactly the way it was meant to.
❀ ❀ ❀
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{The next morning...}
"十七号，请到前面来。十七号。" "Number 17, number 17! Please come up to the front. You're up next, number 17. "
Yuqi glanced down at her ticket again:
#149
She would be going last. Well, second to last, but it was basically the same thing.
She sighed. She got here early in the morning, but she'd be stuck waiting her turn well into noon.
It was just her luck, randomly being assigned this number. Being among the last of 150 people—the judges were sure to have seen it all by then. And since she had essentially snuck away from home, she couldn't bring her guzheng, which had been her trump card.
She was feeling immense pressure growing in the back of her mind, but firmly stamped down the anxiety and self doubt from entering the forefront of her headspace. She needed to maintain focus. Now was not the time for hesitation. Now was the time to think positive, do her best, and let the results of her labor shine.
She got up from her seat. It would be a while until her turn, and though she had wanted to check out the competition (so to speak), it was probably better to squeeze in a little more practice.
But first—(her stomach grumbled loudly)—Where the hell is the bathroom?
Her cousin and his family may have been a little too welcoming last night, having insisted on making all her favorite foods for dinner, and it was starting to take its toll on her body.
