Yixing sat down on one of the benches that were facing the sea and heaved a sigh. Even though the seagulls were cawing noisily beside him, he couldn't hear a thing. All he could hear was what his professor said, "Yixing, I hope you are ready for the final folio submission. I'll be anticipating your work!" Sheepishly, he smiled at the professor before he made an exit from the lecture. 

He had hit a slump. 

Even though he hates to admit it, it had been apparent that he had hit a slump in his course. He used to be able to compose as if he was breathing air, but the talent had gone under hiding. Many compositions were brought together but to him, all of them felt mediocre, unimpressive, and mainstream, which is what he does not want his work to be seen as. He wants all of his work to have a unique sound that will remind the listener that it is indeed him behind the tunes. 

In an attempt to seek inspiration to compose music, he decided to visit the beach out of a blue by buying a train ticket without much thought. He let his feet take him and they brought him to a secluded part of the beach, where seagulls roam. Letting his mind drift away into the endless horizon, he kept staring at the deep blue ocean, lost in his own sea of thoughts. He didn't know how long he had been staring until he felt something poke his arm. 

"Excuse me," a voice said, "are you alright?" 

Yixing snapped out from his trail of endless thoughts and looked at the owner of the voice. It was a girl, who was standing nearby him. 

"Oh, hi," he replied hastily, "yeah, I think I'm all right." 

"Oh good, I thought you are lost," the girl giggled. 

"What made you think I was lost?" 

"I don't know," the girl frowned, "you had this really blank look on your face," she immediately changed her facial expression into a blank canvas. Yixing couldn't help but let out a laugh at the girl's friendliness. 

He stood up from his seat and stretched out his hand, "Hi, sorry if I was rude before. I'm Yixing," the girl took his hand and shook it firmly, "Call me Mei," she smiled and her eyes crinkled into crescent moons. 

"Are you from around here?" Yixing asked. Mei nodded, "I live in that neighbourhood," she vaguely waved towards a direction, "I'm here to walk Kiki," she held up a strap of leash she was holding and looked away. Yixing followed her gaze and found a husky playing rolling on the bank of sand. 

"Are you new? I have never seen you here before," she asked. 

"Yeah..." Yixing sighed, "I just took a train out of the blue and somehow ended up here..." 

"Well," Mei gathered up the seams of her skirts to the front before sitting down beside him without hesitating, "looks like you're stressed out. What happened?" 

Just like that Yixing ended up pouring out his stress and worries unto a totally unknown stranger called Mei. 

Several hours later, after Yixing has let out pretty much everything that had been bugging him, the girl nodded and listened, "you just need to get away from what bothers you and let yourself be free." 

"How?" 

"The more you worry, the more it will restrict you. The more frequent it happens, it will restrain your creativity," she shurgged nonchalantly and replied, as if it's an easy thing to say. Yixing turned away from her and rolled his eyes, nobody dares tell him that. 

"Anyway," the girl stood up, "it's getting late. I'd better go back home. It was nice meeting you, Yixing. Kiki~ let's go home," she clipped on the leash back onto her dog's collar and smiled at Yixing. 

"Bye~" 

~~~

Yixing made another trip back to the same beach a few days later, half-hoping that he'd get some more inspiration from the sea again, while half-hoping that he'd bump into the same girl again. 

"Oh!" he heard a surprised exclaim, "Yixing!" Mei greeted him. Like the last time, she was walking her husky, Kiki. 

They spent the whole evening talking about random things of their lives. Yixing learned that Mei had lived here all her life, and due to her poor healthy she never had the opportunity to go to university. 

"Story of my life, huh" she spoke sadly with a faint smile, "but I don't regret it though. I get to read a lot of books so that's a win," she added while chuckling a little. 

Yixing told her about his double life as an entertainer as well as a university student; how he flies to different countries in a week and how hectic his schedules is. Mei is an extremely responsive and good listener, who reacts appropriately to what he says - exclaiming where she should, smiling where she should, and pulling faces whenever she hears about his company. Her final verdict about his company was, "I don't like your company, Yixing. Do they even see you as a human?" He laughed at her statement.

As usual, they bade farewell at dusk and returned to their homes, respectively.

~~~

Several weeks passed, Yixing was still unable to write the folio he was supposed to submit in a few weeks. Panic bells have started to ring in his ears from stress. The more he stresses out, the more he couldn't write. It became a vicious cycle that repeat itself every other day, to a point that it has infected some members in his band, especially Luhan.

"Yixing," Luhan spoke to him at one of their rare dinner together, "you look really stressed out and looks more and more dazed out everyday." Yixing just replied with a nod and a promise that he'll sleep more and practice less, while crossing his fingers under the table.

~~~

He made a trip to the beach again. This time with the sole purpose that he wanted to talk to her. He went to that spot, sat and waited for her.

Mei appeared like a clock work, always appearing around 4.30pm. She smiled until her eyes crinkled into the usual crescent moons and sat beside him, after unleashing Kiki to let it roll on the sand.

She listened to all of his worries, as usual, tilting her head to the side, showing that she's listening to him attentively, reacting when she thinks she should and asking question here and there. 

"You know," Mei spoke after he ended his long-winded rant, "I think you should take up my suggestion." 

Yixing echoed, "your suggestion?" 

She nodded, "yeah, I've been telling you to let go of yourself and write what just come into you. Let the spirit roam free. Like a true artist. Don't let yourself limit your boundaries. Live free." 

"All right, I'll try it next time. Don't mind me asking, why don't you live free?" 

She looked away into the horizon with sheer sadness on her face "I have my own limits that were set," she smiled feebly. "Anyway, it's getting dark. I'll talk to you later, maybe," she stood up and lost balance as she did, "oh my," she recollected composure and regained her balance. 

"Are you going to be fine?" 

"Yeah, don't worry. It happens," she replied and walked back home. 

After she left, Yixing realized that he still hasn't asked her where she lives nor what her number is. 

"Maybe next time," he told himself on his way back to the dorm. 

~~~

Yixing was kept busy for several days before he could finally bring himself to visit the beach again. He went to the same spot and plopped himself on the ground this time, waiting for the willowy figure being dragged forward by a husky dog. 

Hours have passed, dusk arrived and there was no sign of Mei, which was very much to his dismay. He left the beach with a heavy heart. 

~~~ 

Over the next few weeks, Yixing travelled down to his beach but Mei didn't appear again. He thought about venturing into the nearby district to explore her whereabouts but after finding out that the district has more than 3000 households, he gave up the thought of tracking her down. With his heart filled with gloominess and hopelessness, he went back to the same spot where they usually talked to each other and sat. It was already dusk, much later than the time she goes back home. 

The beach was deserted, even the seagulls have given in to slumber. It was just him and the sound of ocean waves splashing onto the shore, calming his stormy nerves. He closed his eyes and lay on the sand to listen to the waves, then her voice rang in his mind, "Yixing, let your spirit roam free." 

Yixing smiled and closed his eyes, letting himself drift away into the deepest part of his mind and let himself be washed away in his own thoughts, but this time, without worries. Very much to his surprise, he felt lighter and his mind has gotten a lot sharper. Abruptly, he took out his iPad, which he carries around and started scribbling on his music score sheet. The night got deeper and he was still at the same place. After realizing that the last train was about to leave in a quarter of an hour, he hastily gathered all his things and dashed back to the dorm, where he belongs, but he has left all of the worries at the beach, for he has completed his assignment. 

~~~ 

"Yixing," his professor asked him to stay behind after their last lecture of the year, "I really like that piece that you did. It portrays multiple emotions in such a short piece; despair, hopelessness, discovery, happiness, sorrow. It's such a great piece." 

"Really?" Yixing smiled until his dimples deepened, "I'm glad you liked it." 

"I'd like you to play this piece at the faculty's annual concert, would you be willinging to do it on a piano?" 

"Of course!" he happily replied and headed out. In his mind, there is one place that he wanted to head out to, the beach where Mei walks Kiki. 

He waited for hours and hours but Mei was never to be seen. He returned to the same spot on days when he has no schedule, but she was nowhere to be found. 

~~~ 

Day of the concert. 

"Ladies and gentleman, the next performer is our honoured student, who passed his classes without highest honours. Please give a round of applause to Zhang Yixing!" 

His body stiffened with nervousness as the host finished introducing him. Yixing fixed his tie and straightened out his tuxedo coat before he step onto the stage and took his seat in front of the grand piano in the middle of a stage. The auditorium was dark, except for that one spot he was sitting on the stage. 

He took a deep breath to calm himself down before placing his fingers on the ivory keys. The auditorium was absolutely quiet, to a point that you could hear a pin-drop. He smiled a little as he started playing, his fingers flying across the ivory and onyx keys in rhythm. At this moment, his mind was not there in the same auditorium. All he could think of was one person, that one person who pulled him back up from the slump by giving him moral support, when no one else around him would. 

It's Mei. 

~~~