"Y/N!" Your roommate Xuanyi called out your name, snapping your attention to your bedroom doorway. She was standing there with her arms crossed over her chest, leaning against your doorframe with a judgmental look on her face.
"Yeah, Yi?" You replied absentmindedly, turning back to your computer screen where you had an empty word document open.
It had been taunting you for the past few weeks, your unfinished—or rather, not even started—final project for your grad school journalism program. And not only was it your final project, but your professor would choose one piece to publish in the rather popular journal she was editor-in-chief for, and offer an internship with her as well, meaning that it could be your ticket to breaking into the business.
"Have you eaten breakfast?"
You gave a noncommittal response, fingers hesitantly typing out half a word before furiously deleting it. Suddenly the top of your laptop was slammed shut, and a short string of expletives came from your mouth. Xuanyi was looking down at you with that same look, and you glared back up at her.
"You could've broken my damn fingers, Yi," you spat out, to which she rolled her eyes.
"Have. You. Eaten. Breakfast?"
"No."
Xuanyi yanked you up from your desk, unceremoniously dragging you out to your small kitchen where your other roommate already was. Chengxiao looked up at you with mild amusement as the other girl forced you down into a chair.
"When did you go to sleep last night, Y/N?" Chengxiao questioned, taking a sip of her coffee.
"Two? Three maybe."
"And how much have you written?"
"Nothing," you mumbled, rubbing the sleep from your eyes.
"Do you even have a topic for your piece?" Xuanyi asked from where her head was in the fridge momentarily.
"No."
Chengxiao shook her head, "You need to take a break, staring at your computer screen isn't going to force the words to come, you know."
Xuanyi set a plate down in front of you before plopping herself down at the table as well. She picked up a magazine sitting on the table, skimming through the contents. Chengxiao perked up, snatching the magazine from your friend's hands.
Ignoring her protests, the other girl continued on excitedly, thrusting the cover into your face, "Maybe you could do it on him!"
On the cover was Dong Sicheng, a young actor who had recently shot up into stardom, being dubbed the Nation's Heartthrob by many. Despite his immense popularity and nearly rabid following, there were very few interviews with him. Even this magazine could only boast that they might have discovered his favorite dish. There was nothing substantial about him anywhere.
, "Xiao, thank you, but there's no way I could get an interview with him. Besides, I'm trying to do a really hard-hitting and meaningful piece, not sensationalize somebody even more than they already are."
She relented, pouting as she handed the magazine back to Xuanyi. The three of you continued your breakfast in silence, with nearly falling asleep in your food as Xuanyi skimmed the magazine and Chengxiao scrolled her phone. You had just lifted another bite to your mouth when the magazine was thrown down in front of you. Right on top of your food.
Annoyed, you went to move it off your food when you saw that it had been flipped open to a specific page. Eyeing Xuanyi, you gave a brief once-over, "'Qian Enterprises is unveiling a new building... first three-hundred people... open invitation to the party... raffle to win a pass... exclusive VIP lounge.' Why did you throw this at me?"
"It's tomorrow night. We're going," she declared, and Chengxiao immediately lit up.
"Yes!"
"I'm not," you retorted, pushing it back to the center of the table for Chengxiao to snatch up.
You were locked in a staring contest with your equally hard-headed roommate, who narrowed her eyes slightly as she spoke again, "You need a break; I need an excuse to wear the dress I wore to my cousin's wedding last year again; and Xiao has tomorrow night off work for the first time in a million years. We're going, and we're going to be one of the first three-hundred people."
With a scoff, you were about to deny this again, but you glanced over at Chengxiao. She looked so ecstatic and hopeful, you couldn't crush her dreams. And also, though you would never admit this to your roommates, they were right; you needed a break.
"Alright, fine."
"Yes!" Chengxiao squealed, eyes hungrily scanning the page again to drink in every last detail.
☆
Outside the doors of a lavish hotel, you stood with your friends in a line that was probably more than three-hundred people long. And there were still people behind you too, all hoping for a chance to get inside. The amount of time you'd taken to get ready and had been standing in a pair of heels was grueling. You were about to suggest that the three of you just hit up a club or something instead so you could at least maybe have fun tonight, when the line started moving. Slowly but surely, the three of you inched up to the front.
Chengxiao clutched yours and Xuanyi's hands tightly in anticipation as you got closer and closer. Finally, you were at the bouncer. You expected him to tell you that you were too late, but instead he handed a golden ticket to Xuanyi, then Chengxiao, then you. Yours had the number 300 clearly printed across the top.
And with that, he turned to the rest of the line behind you, yelling, "That was three-hundred! Please, go home!"
You were suddenly pulled completely inside by a giddy Chengxiao, and the smile on her face was contagious. She had let go of your hands to hold her ticket with both hands, squealing, "299! These are our tickets for the raffle, right? Oh and we just barely made it! I was afraid we'd have to leave Xuanyi behind."
"Hey!" Xuanyi gently smacked her arm, earning a giggle from your other roommate.
Looking around the ballroom you had entered into, you felt very out of place. Everyone in there seemed so regal, put together, and practically at-home in the scenario. Women with glittering dresses and stunning makeup were poised beside men with suits probably more expensive than your student loans, and all you could think was that you needed a drink.
"I'm going to get a drink, are either of you coming with me?" You asked your friends, but Chengxiao still seemed starstruck.
Xuanyi had her own amused smile across her face, "We'll stay here. If you're not back in ten minutes should we assume the worst?"
"Yep."
With that, you took leave of the girls and made your way to the open bar off to the side. You didn't want to get drunk, more than anything your mouth was just parched from standing in line for so long. The bartender took your order of a martini and a glass of water before turning around to fulfill it.
You were leaning patiently against the bar when you saw someone approaching from your peripheral vision. The man offered you a dazzling smile, nearly distracting you from the emerald velvet suit jacket he had on. Your eyes glanced over his handsome face to the earrings that were sparkling along his ears, his entire being screaming luxury. You almost thought that he was someone accustomed to the high-class lifestyle, who belonged here and had gotten an actual invite, until you saw a golden slip flash between the multitude of rings along his fingers. He was like you, he'd gotten in by chance.
"Hi," he spoke, joining you at the bar.
"Hi," you replied, deciding to entertain this for a moment. After all, you gave Xuanyi a ten-minute limit, you had time.
"So what number did you get?"
"I was the last one, actually. 300."
"Oh that won't do you any good. Here..." he held out his ticket to you. "Switch with me."
"Excuse me?"
"Our tickets, switch with me."
"Why?" You were still eyeing the ticket warily as the bartender came back with your glasses.
"Why not?"
You had no good comeback to this, and relented, handing the man your '300' ticket. He swapped it with his own '10' ticket, eyes glistening with mirth as that bright smile came back to his face, "Thanks! See you around!"
"Weird," you muttered under your breath, absentmindedly tucking the ticket into your clutch. Grabbing your glasses, you turned to find your friends again.
☆
"Excuse me, excuse me," a man's voice came over the speakers in the ballroom, catching everyone's attention.
Your eyes went to the grand staircase across the room from you, where a small stage of some sorts had been set up. A few people were standing there, and you spotted a man with a microphone, probably the one you were supposed to be paying attention to.
"The raffle will be starting in just a few minutes, so please make sure that you have your tickets ready."
A buzz erupted in the crowd at his words. Chengxiao hadn't let go of her ticket since you arrived and immediately started pushing through the crowd towards the stage. You and Xuanyi exchanged a look before following her, muttering 'excuse me's and 'sorry's to everyone you had to worm your way past.
You were nearly directly in front of the stage when you caught up to Chengxiao again, out of breath and cheeks tinted pink partially from exertion and partially from embarrassment. Murmurs of excitement washed over the people again as the man came back onto the stage again. From this distance you could recognize him as Qian Jian, the head of Qian Enterprises, the company who owned this building and many in the country and across the world.
"The winner of this raffle will receive a lifetime pass to our exclusive VIP lounge and free use of the facilities here anytime they please."
A woman brought an elegant wooden box to him, and he took his time to gracefully reach into it before plucking out a small card.
"The winner is..." he unfolded it, pausing for dramatic effect before bellowing out, "Ten! Ticket number 10!"
Various groans of disappointment could be heard as everyone checked their tickets. You let your blood pressure return to normal, your ticket was '300.'
Wait.
No, it wasn't. The man at the bar had traded for your '300' ticket. With his '10' ticket.
"Ticket number ten?" Mr. Qian repeated, scanning over the crowd. "Ticket ten are you out there?"
"Me!" You called out, shooting your hand up with your ticket. Your friends gazed at you with wide eyes as Mr. Qian's face broke out into a smile.
He motioned for you to approach the stage, your roommates giving you a shove to start walking. You accepted his polite hand to help you up the stairs, feeling even more uncomfortable now that you were the object of everyone's attention at the moment. Some were looking at you with disdain, but you kept your focus on Chengxiao and Xuanyi's bright smiles and thumbs-up of encouragement.
"What's your name?" Mr. Qian asked you, your throat nearly closing up as he directed the microphone towards you.
"Y/L/N Y/N," you somehow managed to choke out.
"Well congrats, Ms. Y/L/N, you're our winner tonight," he handed you a small card that reminded you of a credit card, only the same dazzling gold as your ticket, with the words 'VIP Member' across it. "I'll show you to the lounge now."
And before you could protest, he had whisked you further up the staircase and away from your friends. The two of you stepped onto an elevator, and he pressed the button for the top floor.
The elevator buzzed in reply, and Mr. Qian swiped a gold card similar to yours on the panel, the elevator coming to life as he turned to you with that same business smile, "The only way to access the VIP floor is to swipe one of the VIP access cards. The only people that have them are myself, the head of security, the other members of the lounge, and yourself now too."
'The other members of the lounge.' Who else would be in the lounge? You couldn't possibly imagine who could be considered more VIP than the people who were down at the party. Just the thought of what would come next made you queasy. You had no clue what to expect as the elevator stopped and the doors opened.
Mr. Qian let you get off first, following you through the entryway. The doors had opened to a very lavish lounge. A TV screen took up almost an entire wall across from the plush couches and armchairs that held six well-dressed and breathtaking men. They were around a center table with glasses of champagne, their easy conversation coming to a stop as they noticed your presence.
The man beside you didn't seemed fazed at all, while you could feel your blood freeze in your veins at the attention that felt even more suffocating than when you had hundreds of pairs of eyes on you.
Mr. Qian spoke up brightly, "This is our VIP lounge, Y/N. Gentlemen, this is Y/L/N Y/N, she's the winner of our raffle."
Nobody said a word, and he continued on, gesturing to one of the men perched on an armchair, who didn't look exceptionally thrilled at what was happening, "That's my son, Qian Kun, and these are the other VIP members. Please, make yourself at home, and let me know if you need anything."
Then Mr. Qian disappeared from your side, and you were a statue under the men's unrelenting gazes. You caught the eyes of one of them, and your awkwardness turned to confusion as a familiar smile was focused on you.
"Hey! I told you I'd be seeing you again!"
It was the man from the bar, seeming very relaxed in the corner of a couch, taking a delighted sip of his champagne.
"Ten, you did this?" Another one spat out, the coldness of his voice setting you even further on edge.
"And what about it?"
"You can't just rig things because you think a girl is pretty!" A different—but startlingly familiar—man argued this time, but 'Ten' didn't seem put off at all by Dong Sicheng chastising him.
Unlike you, who was getting the feeling that you were very unwelcome here as they continued.
"Oh so you think she's pretty?"
"Ten, that's not—"
Taking a step back, you sputter out, "I-I'll just go, sorry."
"No, stay with us!" The man in the armchair closest to you protested, large brown eyes holding your gaze almost pleadingly. "Don't listen to them, Hendery and WinWin just have sticks up their asses."
You felt about ready to puke when you recognized him as well. Wong Yukhei, a model whose visage could be found across every billboard, in any shop, or strutting down a runway.
"You guys are scaring her. She doesn't even know our names," a smaller man spoke up, shaking his head at the others. His almost playful smile relaxed you just a little as he gestured to himself, "I'm Liu Yangyang, welcome to the lounge."
The one who had already been introduced by his dad rolled his eyes, "I'm Kun. But it doesn't matter if you remember that or not, you'll probably never see me again."
"Kun!" Ten gasped dramatically, "Your dad would kill you if he found out that you made a guest feel unwelcome, right?"
"You really think I care about what my dad thinks?"
Yukhei interjected again, trying to smooth over the situation, "What Kun meant, was that because he's a pilot, he's not in the country a lot and you might not see him around as much. I'm Wong Yukhei, by the way."
The model looked expectantly at the couch that held the other three men who hadn't formally introduced themselves, but you knew their names, nonetheless.
'Ten' decided to take the lead, "I'm Ten, I'm a doctor—"
A chorus of protests erupted at his words, Yangyang's voice the loudest over everyone's, "You're not just a doctor! Ten here, is a freaking hero! Head of surgery at the best hospital in Hong Kong. He's saved dozens of lives and hasn't lost a single patient yet."
Despite trying to play himself down earlier, Ten didn't argue with this grand introduction of himself, practically basking in the praises from his friends. He was grinning as he then gestured to the younger boy previously introduced as Yangyang, "Yang's an F1 racer from Germany. Nearly impossible to beat."
Next, he focused on the other man beside him, "And this is Dong Sicheng, he's an actor. And as Yukhei said before, he does, in fact, have a stick up his ass sometimes."
The man smacked Ten's chest indignantly, only making the smaller man giggle and pinch his cheek, "Our WinWinnie's also a little shy too."
"And the giant," he pointed to Yukhei. "Model by day and... uh, what do you call it?"
"Explorer," Yukhei called out.
"Explorer by night. Well, not really night, just whenever he's not doing his real job."
Yangyang took over, pointing to the one on the other side of Sicheng, "And that's Wong Kunhang. Kid genius, robot builder—"
"Specialized robotics engineer, Yangyang."
"Then I'm an automobile operating engineer, Hendery."
Kunhang—or Hendery, you weren't sure what to call him—scoffed, "You race cars."
"And you build robots."
"I don't just fucking—"
A door being thrown open from the other side of the lounge from you interrupted the squabbling. The man seemed about the same age as everybody else, sharp features looking rather irritated as he sighed, "What are you arguing about now?"
He paused as his eyes fell to you, giving you a hard stare that only made you feel even more unwelcome.
You shifted your weight to your other leg, about to try to excuse yourself again when he spoke up, his intense gaze still on you, "Y/N?"
"I—" You stopped, a sudden realization and utter disbelief hitting you like a train when you looked at him again. "Xiao Dejun?"
Sicheng seemed about as surprised as you, "You know each other?"
"Well then it's settled! You're staying," Yukhei exclaimed, jumping up to guide you further into the lounge with a gentle but somehow persuasive hand.
Despite your protests, you found yourself between Ten and Sicheng on the couch, cheeks burning as you tried to make yourself as small as possible, avoiding any physical contact. Dejun was still frozen to his spot, his face turned curious as he kept looking at you.
"So how do you know Xiaojun, Y/N?" Ten questioned, the man whose name had just been called moving to take a seat beside Kun.
"Uh, we were neighbors like forever ago."
"It's been what, like—" Dejun took a moment to think, "Ten, eleven years? Before I went to boarding school and met all these asshats."
A small smile flitted across your lips momentarily at the others' mixed reactions to his statement, "Yeah, I think so."
"How'd you end up here, Y/N?"
Kun decided to explain, sounding much less venomous than before, almost amused as he spoke, "Ten rigged the raffle somehow so Y/N would win."
"Got it," your old friend nodded, features softening into a gentle smile. "Well, I'm guessing everyone's introduced themselves, right? I'm a director now, and I'm actually directing Sicheng's new drama."
You didn't miss the noise of dissatisfaction Sicheng let out from beside you at this, and you briefly wondered what their relationship was. But Dejun engaged you in conversation again, "What have you been doing?"
"Oh, uhm, I'm in grad school right now. Journalism, specifically."
The man on the other side of Sicheng snorted, and you snapped your focus to him. Kunhang didn't offer up anything past that, but Yangyang did, "He got his doctorate a couple years ago, so he thinks it's lame that you're still in school."
Judging by Kunhang's silence, he was correct. This just brought you back to the same unwelcome feeling you'd gotten when you first walked in here. You had no right to be in here, with these people.
With a frank smile, you went to excuse yourself for the final time, "I should be going—"
Some of them protested this again, but this time you held your ground, "No, really. My friends are downstairs, we're supposed to be going soon."
"Then we'll walk you out!" Ten offered, standing with you.
Others also got to their feet, Yangyang yanking on Kunhang's arm until he begrudgingly stood up as well.
"All... seven of you?" You asked warily as Yukhei started guiding you to the elevator, everyone else following behind.
"My driver's downstairs," Sicheng mumbled, explaining his own tagging along.
"And the rest of us are just true gentlemen," Yukhei flashed you another heart-stopping smile as he pressed the 'down' button.
Kun snorted at this notion, "Sure."
The eight of you loaded onto the elevator, uncomfortably close as it descended from the penthouse. You emerged from the doors still encircled by them, Ten and Dejun each offering you a polite hand to help you down the staircase. Well aware of all the eyes following each and every step you took, you felt your face flush a terrible shade of cherry red, every inch of exposed skin heating up.
You spotted Chengxiao and Xuanyi a short distance away from the bottom of the stairs. And they had definitely seen you. Either they were starstruck or holding back whatever they actually wanted to say, as they were silent when you approached. Still swarmed by the other VIP lounge members.
Coughing awkwardly, you turned back to the entourage of men who had followed you down, "Uh, thank you. It was nice meeting you all."
"You too Y/N!" Yangyang yelled out from somewhere you couldn't see. You were pretty sure he was behind Yukhei.
Someone plucked up your hand, and you were startled to see Kun bending ever so slightly to press a chaste kiss to it, "See ya, Y/N."
When one of the other men had whistled, Kun hissed back, "My dad's watching, I had to use proper manners."
"I thought you didn't care what your dad thought," Kunhang retorted, and as they started bickering, Ten stepped forward.
He was so bold as to give you a tight hug, "You'll be back, right? We didn't scare you off?"
"Oh, I don't know," you chuckled lightly as he let go of you, having already made up your mind. "Maybe."
"Not maybe!" Yukhei objected. "Please say you'll come back."
Dejun thankfully saved you from making a promise you couldn't keep, stepping to the front while shaking his head, "She's clearly trying to leave, guys. Bye, Y/N. It really was good seeing you again. I hope you do stop by, but only if you want, don't let these buffoons pressure you into it."
The ones who had heard the end of his statement replied indignantly, while you slowly tried to take a couple steps away from them and back towards your friends. Sicheng broke away from the group, offering you a short nod and what you were pretty sure was a mumbled 'goodnight' before taking off towards the exit.
"Ah, uh, bye guys," you gave them all a wave before latching onto your friend's arms and physically dragging them away from the group of men.
"Holy shit, Y/N," Chengxiao breathed out after you had shoved the two of them into a taxi. "Were those the other VIP lounge members?"
"Yeah."
Xuanyi seemed intrigued too, "Well, how were they? Stuck up rich guys?"
"I don't know, the two short ones and Wong Yukhei seemed pretty sweet to me," Chengxiao interjected from her other side.
"Oh, Ten and Dejun? Yeah, I guess," you shrugged noncommittally.
"Okay, two questions: can you bring a guest of your own? And, when are you going back?"
"Don't know, and uhm, let me think, yeah, never."