EVERGLOW

XXXII. How it ends and begins

"Oh good, she's awake."

Yue rubbed the sleep from her eyes with one hand, and tried to pat down her hair into some semblance of order. She didn't want to get up yet. Jet lag, among other things, really could mess up her body clock. And so, though normally an early riser, Yue was now squinting at the weak midday sun peeking between the gap in her drapes.

But the endless ringing made going back to sleep impossible and when she saw it was their group chat, she gave up. Zi Wei was the only person she knew who never got tired of the redial button. She stumbled out of her room as quietly as she could, though the ruckus from the other end of the line rendered all her efforts worthless.

"First of all, Yue, I feel bad for even thinking the guy was decent." Her friend declared before sticking a toothbrush into her mouth.

Yue felt the frown pull at her face. What did she miss while she was in New York?

She blinked furiously a couple of times and tapped her own cheeks.

"Hey, we don't even know his side of the story yet." Caesar wasn't in their group but she saw Jiaqi turn her head as her husband shouted from somewhere behind her.

"Babe, please? This is girl talk. Little privacy?"

"No. The guy needs a lawyer if Zi Wei and Xiaowen are gonna fry him."

"Somebody has to fry him! Look at her! She doesn't look like she got any sleep at all," Xiaowen didn't need to do any more than stay still while coating her lashes with mascara, and yet everyone could tell she meant business. "Yue, you poor, poor thing," she cooed through the screen.

"What's up?" Shui's face popped up covered with a face mask.

"Xiaowen and Zi Wei decided to check on Yue after that scandal broke out," Jia explained, the worry on her face betraying the fact that it was her intention as well.

"And make sure that she knows full well that he's not the only option out there." Zi Wei's words were surprisingly clear even though she was brushing her teeth vigorously.

"I know you have a soft spot for him Yue," a toothbrush pointed in the air to emphasize her point. "But you don't have to feel obliged to stay on with a...cheat!"

"Hey!"

"Shut up, Caesar." A make up brush was raised, this time by Xiaowen.

"Oh, you mean that news. Isn't it nothing new? I mean, we've all had stuff like those written about us that are completely off the marker. Has anybody asked Didi about it?"

"Thank you, Shui!"

"Wu Xi Ze! You're his friend. Why don't you go ask him and leave us to talk in peace?"

"I've been trying to call him since last night, Xiaowen. He's not answering."

"Pfft. Typical," Xiaowen managed an eyeroll before continuing. "Now I know you're worried about Cai Hong. But I think we can fight for custody, I'm not sure. I need to call a few lawyer friends. My point is, honey, don't fall for his charms. He will try to explain his way out of this, but you will NOT let him."

"Uh Xiaowen, I don't think that helps. Not talking got them in big trouble last time."

"Jiaqi, if I know anything about Dylan, from the years that he pined after Yue, it's that he would hardly try to explain anything. And just try to seduce her," Zi Wei was waving her toothbrush in the air. "That's what you should watch out for Yue. Now if you're not ready to...resist that, you can stay on in New York for a bit."