Arranged marriage had never been high on her list of priorities, if Xiaozi was perfectly honest with herself. She liked to think she could snag a man without her parents interference, thank you kindly. In fact, if you had spoken to her not three days ago, she would have insisted you go speak to a psychiatrist, as clearly you must have suffered a brain injury had the subject of betrothal been broached. He Yuanzi, the heiress to an unfathomable fortune, was many things, however, desperate was not one of them. She could get any man she wanted; she was amazing, an absolute catch! She knew who she was; she was beautiful, she was funny, she was interesting - it was what her parents had always told her, after all! True, she didn't have many friends, in fact, she had no friends her own age, but that wasn't her fault! They were all jealous of her beauty, her money, her confidence - her papa always told her she was a princess, and as a princess, she was sure she came across as intimidating; they probably were all too scared or jealous to approach her.
However, it did mean that she had been unlucky in love; in fact, despite being 21 years old, Xiaozi had yet to have a serious boyfriend. Sure, she had had several casual flings, a carefully guarded secret she kept from her parents at all costs. What she tended to find, inevitably, was that the passion quite often fizzled out after a few months - Xiaozi was notoriously high maintenance, hard to impress and her attention never remained static for long. The man who captured her heart would have to be....well, he would have to be exceptional. She had never, ever expected to be forced into an arranged marriage by her parents, to be sold off like a piece of land purely to better her father's foothold in the business world. The audacity of her family, how dare they assume she would blindly go along with this insanity! In fact, she had been positively spitting with rage when they had unceremoniously dragged her to the 'impromptu' get together with her supposed fiancé. He Xiaozi was not a pawn and she had been fully prepared to destroy the entire meeting out of sheer pettiness. However, all of her convictions had flown out the window the moment she had laid eyes on Daoming Si.
He was enigmatic, charismatic and let's face it, drop dead gorgeous. His hair, it was dark and lustrous, his skin, it was just the right shade of tan and he was tall and muscular; she had to admit, her parents hadn't done a bad job in selecting a prospective mate - he was certainly a looker. However, what caught her attention most was his eyes; they were as dark as onyx and just as hard - she still shivered in delight when she recalled them fixed on her with a flinty glare. Xiaozi had always had a weakness for men with attitude, and Daoming Si (or Ah Si as his mother had insisted she called him) had that in spades. He made her tingle all over and it confused her as much as it delighted her.
Xiaozi rolled over onto her side, contentedly hugging her soft, downy pillow gleefully as she recalled their two brief encounters. On the first encounter, Ah Si had seized her hand, completely bypassing the small girl who had also been invited for some reason (who she had since learned was called Shancai) and took off with her like a bat out of hell. His fingers had been so long and strong around her own, and sure, his grip had been biting and awkward, their fingers not quite interlaced, but it had been her he had chosen to run off with. Not the other girl who had been looking at him with suspiciously wounded eyes. It didn't matter what he said, how vehemently he denied it; he had chosen her. There was hope for them after all! Admittedly, the mood had been slightly soured when he had left her alone to fend for herself, barefoot and penniless, however, she was sure he had just been overwhelmed by their sudden intimacy - she had seen how hard he had blushed when she bit his ear. No man was immune to her charms and Daoming Si was no exception, she told herself smugly as she lay swaddled comfortably in her Egyptian sheets.
And then there was today. Once again, Xiaozi had run into that tiny girl Shancai, the one with the huge eyes and the questionable fashion taste. Those sweaters were a crime against humanity, however, Xiaozi wasn't sure she knew her well enough to rescue her. There was something about small little innocent looking Shancai that made Xiaozi nervous for some reason. She wasn't sure why; was it because the other girl was so tiny and delicate, whereas she had always felt tall and awkward, slightly off kilter like a baby giraffe? Was it because of the way her huge eyes were so expressive, her every emotion flickering in their depths for all to see - even Xiaozi, who could be as blunt as a spoon at times, had realised that something was bothering this girl, and she didn't know her from Eve! Or was it the way Daoming Si, her fiancé, had looked at this diminutive girl, the strangest expression of frustration written all over his handsome face? His eyes had been unreadable, so unlike Shancai's, and regrettably, Xiaozi didn't know him well enough to even hazard a guess as to what he was thinking. Like it or not, Shancai and Ah Si clearly knew each other in some way, and the He heiress was determined to figure out why Ah Si had looked so enraged and so desperate. Perhaps he was annoyed that once again, Shancai had been around when Xiaozi had been in his presence, interrupting what could be quality time. She was sure he was eager to spend time alone with her, after all, most of her previous conquests couldn't wait to get her alone... Yes, that surely was it!
Xiaozi stoically ignored the fact that Daoming Si had barely so much as glanced at her each encounter, the fact that Shancai was so clearly infatuated with her betrothed. In fact, Xiaozi had even been nice enough to invite this girl out for tea and cake - so what if her true intent had been to size up her competition, trying to ascertain if her claim was under threat in any way? Shancai didn't need to know that, of course! In fact, when she could be sure that there was no residual feelings on Shancai's part, she would actually quite like to be her friend - she seemed nice enough. Xiaozi also stoically ignored the last words Ah Si had hissed in her direction before he had stalked off: 'you accept that proposal, I swear, your life will be a living hell!" Gosh, men, no matter their age, were always so dramatic! Daoming Si, well, he was clearly still trying to play it cool - didn't he realise she was already throughly wooed and he didn't have to play hard to get, silly boy? She grinned like a Cheshire Cat as she drifted into unconsciousness, her mind full of the man she was going to marry. She didn't realise that ominous thunderclouds had begun to gather in the sky, nor that a bolt of lightening had suddenly struck the side of her house, shorting out the electrics.
You accept that proposal, I swear, your life will be a living hell.
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Xiaozi groaned blearily as she rolled over onto her side, her neck stiff from sleeping in one position for too long. She must have slept like the dead last night; her eyes were unfocused, her mouth was arid and her hair was an unmanageable mess atop her head, she could just feel it. Rain was pounding at the windows, the panes shaking with the force of the gale outside. Great.... She had to go to university today, she couldn't afford to miss anymore classes - even she could only get away with so much! She was studying fashion design, which she loved, but her grades weren't the best - she knew she didn't study as hard as she should, but based on her experience, men valued beauty over brains, and her parents had made it clear that all she needed was a rich husband to succeed in life! Why bother to strain herself when apparently there was no need to? Xiaozi seized up her phone, pushing her tatty hair out the way as she peered at the time; shit, it was almost 8:45am! Why hadn't her alarm woken her? She had a class at 10am, how was she going to get ready on time? Shit shit shit! Xiaozi scrambled out of bed, immediately standing on the prongs of her discarded phone changer - she had flung it there last night and promptly forgotten about it, and right now, she couldn't regret it more! She howled in pain as she hopped to the shower, her heart pounding as she raced to get ready. She absolutely could not miss this class!
Xiaozi yelped when she turned on the shower, the icy spray crashing into her unexpectedly like one thousand tiny knives. "What the dick!" She yelled, goosebumps rising rapidly along her arms as she furiously twiddled with the knob. It was to no avail; the hot water was clearly on the blink and unfortunately, she had no choice but to wash her hair! She would have to grin and bear it! Xiaozi scrubbed her hair hastily, her fingers rough against her scalp, hissing through her teeth when shampoo smattered into her eye, burning unforgivably. She knocked over her toiletries as she fumbled clumsily to rinse her stinging eye, her expensive shower gel smashing to the ground and glugging unforgivably and wastefully down the drain. "Hell!" She groaned as she snatched it up, flinging it into the rack and seizing her razor. She was as speedy as possible as she was shaving her legs, trying to minimise her time in the cold shower. This proved to be a mistake; her foot was unsteady in the spilled shower gel, her hand slipped, and the next thing she knew, she had nicked her inner thigh slightly, blood pouring liberally from the tiny wound. "Ouch!" Xiaozi cried, pressing her fingers against her leg to stem the bleeding as the ice cold water beat down upon her back, red mingling with the stream and swirling down the drain. She felt like crying as she stumbled out of the shower, skidding on her bathmat and crashing unceremoniously onto her backside. Xiaozi buried her head in her hands, breathing deeply as she attempted to bring herself under control. She would not let her emotions get the better of her! What was it her daddy always said - more speed, less haste? She just had to stop acting so frantic!
However, Xiaozi couldn't help her panic as she dashed about her room, trying to find a suitable outfit. Her university was very strict, only allowing their students to wear black and white, and for the life of her, Xiaozi could not find a clean white blouse; the only white shirt she could find that was remotely suitable was crumpled at the bottom of her closet, in desperate need of an iron. She simply didn't have time! She pulled on a tight black skirt and a black studded cardigan, hoping that her disheveled blouse would be barely discernible unless scrutinised closely. It would have to do! Xiaozi snatched up her hairdryer and brush, poised to perform the quickest blow dry of her life; she was stymied however, when the stupid device refused to switch on. She tired several electricity outlets, however, her result was always the same; there was simply no power. What else could possibly go wrong?? The frustrated heiress pulled her damp hair back into a quick French braid, disgruntled as she looked as her less than perfect appearance; it was entirely out of character for her to be less than immaculate!
Xiaozi hastily applied her makeup, not noticing when her foundation dripped onto her blouse, staining it slightly. All she could focus on was the huge chunk she had just accidentally shaved out of her eyebrow when her elbow missed the edge of her desk and her eyebrow trimmer had span out of control. Xiaozi gazed at herself in horror, her ears reddening as she fought not to burst into tears. Things were terrible today, if she wasn't already at risk of expulsion, she would just crawl back into bed and stay there for the rest of the day. Therefore, Xiaozi had the world's biggest headache later that morning, her temples throbbing as she gritted her teeth; she was sat in the back of the car, willing the traffic to clear, her knee bouncing in her anxiety. Today just wasn't her day at all! She shook her head impatiently as she she demanded "isn't there anyway you can go faster?' Her driver looked at her incredulously as he glanced at the heavy sheets of rain and the bumper to bumper traffic. It was ten to ten Xiaozi was going to be late; ironically, they were only a few blocks from her university - in a car, the journey took less than five minutes. However, she didn't have the time to spare, it was time for drastic measures! Xiaozi threw up her hands in frustration, her expression thunderous as she realised she was going to have to go on on foot. "Fantastic!" She snarled as she she opened the car door, ignoring her driver's dismayed shout as she dashed into the rain; she immediately stepped into a huge puddle, her feet soaked as she stood miserably, defeated. Her misery was only exacerbated when a cyclist rode past her, right through the puddle. The water arched almost as if in slow motion, but there was little she could to to avoid it expect throw her hands above her head; she was still soaked to the bone and freezing as the wave crashed over her mercilessly. Xiaozi was going to kill someone!
The young heiress was seething and shivering as she staggered towards her university, her book bag clutched to her chest as she attempted to keep her books dry. She was blood thirsty by the time she burst into the building, all eyes on her as water dripped from her into a puddle on the ground. She had crashed the door to the lecture open louder than intended; as she was ten minutes late, she had been planning to slip in undetected. That was impossible now. Xiaozi stood framed in the doorway as her fellow students stared at her in amazement, no doubt relishing her less than stellar, bedraggled appearance. She knew most of them resented her, and she could see the cruel humour in their eyes as whispers erupted around her. The words whore and manstealer slammed into her like knives, and it was all she could do to keep bursting into tears. Her engagement to Ah Si seemed to have spread like wildfire, and clearly, the masses were incensed. She hadn't stolen anyone, Daoming Feng had given her Ah Si, he was hers by right! She ignored their burrowing, accusatory eyes as her professor scowled at her, his voice grim when he barked "nice of you to join us, Miss He, however, I refuse to have anyone in my class who doesn't have the courtesy to show up on time and take their education seriously! You can forget about joining us; I don't have the resources for time wasters." His dismissal was curt and effective; Xiaozi gazed at him in horror as he denied her entry, at at loss for words. She was drawn from her stunned reverie when she noted two of the cattier girls in her class pointing at her thighs and giggling behind their hands. They were literally shaking with silent laughter and Xiaozi was confused; she knew she didn't look as put together as usual, but did she really look that terrible? Her eyes dropped to her own form critically, and she nearly died of shame when she noticed her earlier shaving wound had reopened, causing a line of blood to trickle down her inner thigh - she knew what it looked like, no wonder those girls were laughing! Xiaozi pivoted on her heel and fled, her cheeks blazing as she wondered how she was ever going to face her classmates again. She may have to transfer to a different university!
Things were just going from bad to worse. She had cleaned herself up as best she could in the small bathroom, her throat burning with unshed tears the entire time. However, when she had pulled out her phone to call her driver to come and collect her, the device had blinked and died; she had belatedly remembered that her house had lost power overnight, so her phone wouldn't have charged properly. What a day! The last thing she wanted was to go back and explain to her papa why she had been thrown out of class; no, some things were better avoided. There was only one thing that would make her feel better - a nice spot of retail therapy! Her heart lightheaded considerably as she rifled through her bag - things were looking up, she actually had enough change on her for bus fare! Xiaozi felt slightly better as she sat peacefully on the bus, her headphones in place as she listened to some calming music - when had she last used public transport? It wasn't so bad, she relented internally as she rested her head against the headrest. It got her to where she needed to be anyway - Xiaozi felt more like herself as she strode around the mall, ambling into an exclusive boutique as if she owned the place. Who knew, her family actually might! She giggled as she rifled through the racks of pretty clothes, unaware of the store clerk's judgemental eyes glaring daggers into the back of her head. "This is cute!!" She squealed, holding up a burgundy lace skater dress in delight. Her bad mood evaporated as she strode into the changing room, confident that she would look amazing in this dress.
Xiaozi hummed lightly as she undressed, enjoying being able to rid herself of her damp clothes for just a moment. She smiled as she stroked the dress lovingly again. - it really was so pretty, it would be perfect for a daytime date with Ah Si, she was sure he would be gobsmacked by her splendour in it! Her heart rate tripled as she thought about her fiancé, a self satisfied smile blooming sinuously across her face. She couldn't help but feel like the cat that got the canary! The wind was swiftly knocked from her sails, however, when she realised she couldn't get the dress past her shoulders and that she also couldn't move her arms due to the restrictive material. Why is this happening? She thought to herself desperately as she struggled with the material, sweat beading on her brow and unladylike grunts tearing themselves from her chest. There was a knock on the door, and a bored voice suddenly called out "miss, do you need help!" Xiaozi once again wanted the ground to open up and swallow her, but what choice did she have? She couldn't free her arms no matter how much she twisted and turned!
The heiress fervently wished she had worn matching underwear as she called piteously "I'm stuck, I need help..." She blushed flame red when the store clerk let herself into the dressing room, her gaze unimpressed and her voice scathing when she said "I think you need a bigger size, miss." Xiaozi had to bite her tongue against the rage that bubbled inside her; she was an extra small, how dare this girl suggest she had gained weight! The audacity! She was on the verge of chewing out the girl when she realised she was reliant in her to free her from the dress - probably best to wait until after she was rescued to give her a piece of her mind! The store clerk tugged fitfully on the dress as Xiaozi writhed like a jellyfish, the material refusing to budge an inch - that was until a hideous ripping sound rent the air, and the dress suddenly tore free of her body, causing her to tumble painfully back into the wall. The store clerk held up the ruined item, aghast; one of the sleeves had been torn off entirely and the front of the dress had been split wide. Xiaozi reddened, her acid tongue for once dimmed as the store clerk informed her in no uncertain terms that she would be required to pay for the ruined item. The heiress nodded glumly, too depressed to fight - today had been terrible and all she wanted to do was go home and get in bed! She didn't want to shop anymore! Her mood was further soured when the store clerk also informed her mercilessly "did you know you have gum in your hair?" Xiaozi bellowed like a wounded bull when she examined herself in the mirror, her eyes wide as she observed the tangled clump right at the base of her skull. There was nothing any hairdresser on earth could do to fix that, she was going to have to get all of her hair cut short! Why why why had she even gotten out of bed today, why was the world against her today? What had she done to deserve such hardship! It had just been one thing after another the whole day and she was deathly tired at this point. It wasn't even 1pm yet!
Xiaozi was furiously holding back tears as she left the boutique, clutching the ruined dress in a paper bag. The dress wasn't the only thing that was in tatters; her pride was also hanging by a thread. She would go home, charge her phone, get her hairdresser to come on an emergency home visit and sort out the sorry mess that was the back of her head. After that, she was going back to bed so no more misfortune could befall her! However, first things first - she needed some caffeine after the morning she had been subjected to. Luckily for her, there was a coffee shop right up ahead - she would just grab a quick latte to go and then catch the bus, carefully avoiding further chewing gum mishaps. There's no way today can get any worse. She sighed darkly as she entered the coffee shop, the smell of roasting coffee beans instantly calming her raging nerves. Coffee never failed to make her feel better. She placed her order swiftly - vanilla latte, extra foam, skimmed milk and extra hot. She always drank the same thing, so it was an automatic response for her. She dug in her bag for her card, panicking for a brief second when she failed to locate it, her heart rioting in her chest - she wasn't sure she could take any more embarrassment today! Xiaozi breathed a sigh of relief when her fingers closed over it, her payment going through without a hitch; she had half expected her card to be declined, with how her day was going. She took a grateful sip of her latte, the syrup sweet against her tongue and the caffeine rejuvenating her, however, she almost choked when her eyes landed on a familiar young couple canoodling in the corner, oblivious to the world around them.
Right there, plain as day, sat her fiancé and Shancai, smiling at each other like they were the only two people to exist. It was clear that they were secluded in their own private little bubble as she stared at them in horror, her coveted latte now like ash in her mouth. She couldn't help the bitterness that welled in her throat at the sight of them; she was half tempted to stalk up to them and splash her extra hot latte into Ah Si's face for his betrayal! Had Xiaozi, his fiancée, even crossed his mind that day, as it certainly didn't seem like it! However, her ire dimmed as she watched Ah Si sweep Shancai into a bone crushing hug, a look of pure bliss on his face as he pressed a kiss to her shiny hair. Shancai was cradled in his arms, her large eyes glimmering with tears as Ah Si murmured none stop in her ear, his hands rubbing soothing circles on her arms. He looked....so happy. The intimacy and affection was clear even from a distance; even Xiaozi couldn't deny that the Daoming heir looked absolutely smitten with tiny little Shancai. Xiaozi was desperate to hear what he was saying, especially when Shancai shook her head mournfully, but for some reason, she didn't want to intrude on their private moment. It seemed...disrespectful in some way. His eyes were blazing as he took the tiny girl by the shoulders, his expression determined as he leant down swiftly and captured her lips in what looked to be a sizzling kiss. Shancai stiffened at first but then sagged against him, her arms wrapping around his neck lovingly as he pressed her to his larger frame. Xiaozi was positively jade green with jealousy as she watched, however, for some reason, she was also utterly unsurprised by this turn of events. It seemed like the entire universe had been against her today, and now she knew why - she had been trying to take someone who wasn't hers, she had almost stood in the way of what looked to be a heartfelt, passionate relationship. Xiaozi smiled ruefully as, despite her own selfish desires, she left the shop without a word, her heart stinging but not broken; after all, if she cared for Daoming Si at all, she would want him to be happy right, even if it wasn't with her? And Shancai... She seemed so genuinely sweet, for some reason Xiaozi also couldn't bear the thought of hurting her deliberately. No matter how much she herself thought was suited to the Daoming heir, no matter how much she fancied herself as part of his family, the universe was telling her otherwise. Ah Si himself had also plainly told her otherwise, she had just been too obstinate to listen; if you accept this proposal, I swear, your life will be a living hell. She couldn't bring herself to regret her decision; Daoming Si and Dong Shancai were clearly head over heels for each other and she didn't want to get in the way of that.
Don't worry, Ah Si, Xiaozi vowed internally as she threw the loving couple one last wistful glance before departing, I won't get in your way anymore. I'll find someone who wants me for me. I hope you'll be happy. Best of luck, ex fiancé. You'll need it.
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Killing two birds with one stone here! This was written in response to both the prompt 'regret' (given to me by JVH624 ) and also as a tribute to Linda (lLinaisfangirling ) who very kindly made my cover for my installment on the Meteor Heaven project. Linda, I hope I made Xiaozi suffer enough here - I also kind of wish she had stepped aside like this right from the start instead of sticking her nose where it wasn't wanted!