Autumn was undeniably the most beautiful season in Beijing. Just as the long summer days started to slip away slowly, the cooler, shorter autumn days came with the same slyness. But by the first week of September, the signs of autumn had become more apparent. Along every sidewalk and yard, the trees were ridding themselves of their usual green to gorgeous different shades of yellows, oranges, and reds. As for the sunshine, it was not harsh and not too weak, and had the perfect tender warmth completed with bright blue skies. The air was not as sharp as winter or as mucky as summer, it was crisp, refreshing, and just right.   

                It was a quiet, almost usual Friday at the Cai’s estates. There was not much to be done aside from dusting, the customary weekly changing of coverings, and t the trees that surrounded the house. Of course there were going to be some new arrangement of the furniture and decorations for the change of season, but that would take part in the first half of the second week in time for their young heiress’ seventeenth birthday.

                Yi Mu shivered slightly as she came back inside the house. She had gone to retrieve the mail from the personal mailbox (Mr. Cai had one for business purposes). There wasn’t much, but she did notice a manila envelope addressed to Ke Xin. At first Yi Mu thought it could be a bundle of letters from a friend, but Ke Xin’s English name, Kara, was printed on the envelope instead of her Chinese one. Yi Mu shrugged it off, thinking that it must have been an invitation from a second-rated American college. Still, she sent it with a maid to bring upstairs to Ke Xin.

                And then, moments later after the maid returned downstairs from delivering the envelope to Ke Xin, there was an ear-deafening scream that sounded like it was coming from upstairs.

                Like a reflex, Austin, who was lounging on the chesterfield sofa reading, sprang up and bolted up towards the second flight of stairs for Ke Xin’s bedroom.

                Ke Xin did not like to keep her French-styled mahogany door open and would always flip out on someone if they didn’t knock before coming inside her room. But Austin couldn’t care less if she did because right now, it was about whether or not she was okay that mattered.

                When Austin threw open her door, he didn’t see the worse that he was expecting. Like a creepy letter and pictures scattered on the floor or blood or something! But no, Ke Xin was jumping up and down in place hugging some papers and the manila envelope. She was still too caught up in her self-celebration to scold Austin to knock before he came inside her room. He sighed, letting out a breath of relief just as his mother and some maids came rushing upstairs right after him.

                “Ke Xin, what happened? We heard your scream all the way from the first floor.” Yi Mu put on hand on her forehead and blew out the breath she was holding.

                “Look, look!” Ke Xin turned the papers towards them excitedly, “I got my SAT scores! A nearly perfect score too! 2390! Perfect 800 in math, perfect 800 in the verbal section and a 790 in the writing section!”

                While the maids congratulated the girl, Yi Mu took the papers from Ke Xin, looking on with amazement like she did for almost every foreign document. Austin just shook his head, but in a light hearted, amused way of course. He just couldn’t believe the little girl that he and Justin were first assigned to take care of seven years ago was just one year away from college and becoming an official adult. He felt a pang in his chest when he realized that there is going to be a time where they would have to let Ke Xin take care of herself. One day she’ll be leaving, maybe for a new province — or maybe even a different country.

                “Congrats kiddo.” Austin ruffled her hair, knowing she didn’t like it when he did that. But this time instead of swatting his hand away, she grinned.

                “It’s like the best early birthday I ever got for myself.” She giggled.

-x-

                When Lu Han took one deep inhale, he realized just how much he missed the library’s peaceful atmosphere and its old book smell. He hadn’t set a foot in the library since well, forever. He had moved to Shanghai for about a few months with this family in high school, but after the huge argument they had about Lu Han’s dreams, he and Yi Xing had come back to Beijing even though Yi Xing had grown up in Changsha.

                Lu Han touched the spine of each book as he slowly traveled down the young adult novels aisle. With a soft smile, he recalled when he was still a little elementary schooler, his mother loved to hold his hand as he touched and the spine of the picture books until he was finally satisfied with one. His mother had always been patient with him, but cooed gently for Lu Han to hurry because she had to pick Lu Hee up from her ballet classes. Lu Hee never really minded if their mom was late because she always wanted to have more practice time to herself. Eventually, Lu Han would talk excitedly to Lu Hee about the most recent book he had read while she told him stories from that day’s dance practice, and their mom would contently walk behind her children. Those were happy and simple times.

Lu Han sharply sighed, trying to divert his attention away from the way things used to be.

                The reason he was at the library today was because Ke Xin kept talking and recommending this book by an English writer. The book had been translated to Mandarin and various other languages so he didn’t have to worry about not being able to read it. It was supposed to be inspirational or so as Ke Xin claimed. And since summer was beginning to end, no one really wanted to play soccer that often. So he thought, why not try the book?

                As he turned the aisle, he saw the librarian, an elderly woman, struggling to pick up a book that had fallen on the ground. He quickly made his way over and picked it off the floor, handing it to the librarian with a smile. She smiled back gratefully.

                “Thank you, young man. Is there something I can help you with? You look a little lost.” She asked in a low voice. The library was nearly silent so even speaking in a normal indoor voice would be classified as too noisy.

                Lu Han shook his head, “I’m just looking for a book my girlfriend recommended by a British author, I think.”

                “Ah,” the old woman’s eye brightened, “Secrets of the Successful? It’s in quite high demand these days. I’ll see if we have a copy in.” She then went around the aisle with Lu Han following closely behind. As she came to the mid section of the bookcase, her face brightened with a smile, “Ah! Here we are.”

                Lu Han took one look at the cover and was surprised. A book with a name like that, he had expected it to be inches thick and boring-looking. But instead, it was a thin paperback with a simple blue cover with the title and author’s name printed on it.

                “Are you a high school student?” The librarian inquired properly.

                “Uh, no.” Lu Han shook his head.

                “Then you must be a college student?” The lady asked again, chuckling kindly, “You look quite young for a college student.”

                And that’s where Lu Han’s face grew hot.

                “Actually, I’m in cram school.” He embarrassingly admitted. Instantly, the librarian’s smile faltered a little, seeing she accidentally stumbled upon a sensitive topic.

                “Ah, well, are you planning to apply for college this coming winter?”

                “Yeah… sure?” Lu Han nodded not knowing if he was lying or telling the truth. He awkwardly scratched the back of his neck. Lu Han didn’t want to talk about it any further. Whether or not to continue his education was a touchy subject even with himself. He had always been a good student but he loved dance and singing too much to do something like an office job.

                “Well, I actually have some forms that a college representative from Korea gave me to pass out for those interested.” She smiled nicely at him once more, “If you’d like one, you know where to find me.”

                Lu Han nodded but couldn’t be any more thankful when she left to rearrange some books in the adult section. And even as he rushed to check out the book because he was supposed to be at the academy soon to meet the group for dance practice, the idea of college didn’t seem to leave his mind.

-x-

                Ke Xin wasted no time rushing to the dance studio after piano lessons. Lu Han always waited down the hallway for her. Since he knew his girlfriend’s schedule, he was able to walk her to ballet class every weekend.

Ke Xin wanted to show him how well she had done on her SATs. He was supposed to be one of the first people she wanted to tell, but yesterday when her results came in the mail, Father insisted to go out and eat with Yi Mu and the twins. She didn’t find the time to call Lu Han and by the time she got home, it was already late. 

                As she speed walked, she smiled when she saw Lu Han up ahead. Leaning against the wall, he looked straight out of a film. His wild long hair fell into his eyes and he was gazing off into space. He was daydreaming, thinking long and hard about something. She could tell because his eyes were a little unfocussed and his mouth was slightly opened, his usual dazed look. But when does he not look like he’s daydreaming, Ke Xin thought, giggling to herself.

                “Lu Han!” She called, but he showed no signs of having heard her, leading her to conclude that whatever Lu Han was thinking about was something out of the ordinary.

                “Lu Han?” Ke Xin tried again when she came closer. Still no response. She touched his arm which caused him to flinch. Lu Han blinked a few times, almost like he needed to be reminded where he was.

                “Oh, hey,” Lu Han smiled, pulling Ke Xin in for a hug.

                After they pulled apart, Ke Xin excitedly got out the manila envelope that contained her SAT scores from her gym bag, “Look Lu, I got my results from that American test I was stressing out about! An almost perfect out too!”

                She grinned widely, as she showed him the score card. The excitement of it all still hasn’t sunken in yet. 

                But then Ke Xin wondered what she did wrong when she saw that Lu Han’s face became unreadable. He looked at the score cards all right but contrary to what she expected him didn’t say anything. His dazed face came back.

                “Lu Han?” Ke Xin’s brow knit in worry, “What’s wrong?”

                “Huh? What? Oh, um, this is great! Really. Uh, congrats.”

                The smile he gave was fake. Ke Xin knew it was because it didn’t reach his eyes and his cheeks didn’t lift like they did was he was genuinely smiling or laughing.

                Just as she was going to continue asking him about what was bothering him, Lu Han interjected, “Hey, aren’t you going to be late?”

                “Oh my gosh!” Ke Xin slapped her forehead, just remembering about ballet class.

                Lu Han laughed, grabbing her hand, “C’mon, you’re gonna be late!”

                The two ran down the hallway laughing. Ke Xin kept jokingly that if she was late, she was going to tell on him to Lu Hee. Lu Han teased back saying that maybe she was just a bad student. Either way, Ke Xin forgot all about Lu Han’s weird behavior just a second ago.

                As they neared the dance studio’s doors, Lu Han pulled her in again for a quick goodbye hug, giving her a kiss on top of her head. Ke Xin smiled against his shoulder, loving his clean linen smell. She gave Lu Han one last wave good-bye before entering the dance studio to find that she was safe because Lu Hee was not yet there so she still had time to change and stretch. But she also found that when she came inside, all the girls suddenly turned away, evident that they probably witnessed the whole exchange between her and Lu Han.

                They began murmuring amongst themselves. Some of the whispering sounded jealous, others judgmental. But Ke Xin didn’t care, she really didn’t. She had to get change so she didn’t have to stick around to be the subject of their gossiping. But as she tried to get into the changing room, she was blocked by MiMi.

                Her expression was serious, not livid with jealousy like Ke Xin would have expected. When MiMi spoke, she sounded like a different person, not like her usual, whineier self.

                “I need to talk to you.”

-x-

                Sitting in the park nearby the Beijing Performing Arts Academy was Lu Han, twisting and turning his Rubik’s Cube in his hands.

                “But, you know, it’s not just any Rubik’s Cube.” Her voice grew all misty and dreamlike. “That rose seal on red promises protection and luck. Don’t give me your skeptical eyebrows , mister.”

                “What if it doesn’t actually work?”

                He watched as Ke Xin tapped her index finger against her chin in thought. She shrugged than suggested, “Give it back to me if it doesn’t work. But still, use it as your good luck charm.”

                Lu Han’s smile was faint. If it could really work as a good luck charm, could it help him with things like say, college applications?

                Ugh, Lu Han thought to himself, what the hell was he thinking? Was he seriously still on that whole college nonsense? It’s was stupid, the very thought of college. Didn’t he want to be a performer? And yet…

                He couldn’t help but notice just how happy Ke Xin was when she received her SAT scores. And while he watched her gush excitedly, Lu Han felt a bit jealous. How did it feel like, being one step closer to doing what you want? When could he feel happy like that?

                “Ey, boy. What’s wrong with your face?”

                The husky voice startled Lu Han. But when he turned his head to his right, he finally took notice of an elderly man sitting on the other end of the bench. Wow. He was so immersed in his thoughts he didn’t even realized some dude sit down on the other end. Oh wait, Lu Han mentally rolled his eyes to himself, why was that even a shocker to him?

                “I asked you a question, boy.” The man might have been old, but his voice was still gruff and his eyes seemingly steely.

                “B-but there’s nothing wrong with my face, sir.” Lu Han stammered. And then he wanted to punch himself in the gut for sounding like such a girl. Maybe that was it. Maybe the old man was going to call him out for his feminine looks.

                “That’s the problem with you young people these days,” The man shook his head, giving a shallow sigh, “Thinking that the old and wise haven’t gone through what you’re going through now. Uh-uh.”

                “Oh c’mon,” Lu Han snapped, “Don’t they always say ‘you know back in my days blah blah blah blitty blah’. It’s a bunch of bull! I mean seriously, why the hell do they always try to relate when times have changed?!”

                Only when he was done speaking did he realized that he actually gave a mini rant. Lu Han was afraid that the man was going to rebuke him for being disrespectful  to his elders. But the man looked like he was trying to stifle laughter.

                “I’m not even sorry to say this, but son, you got to realize that even if ‘times change’ some things in life will never change.” The man chuckled. It was a deep chuckle, the kind that sounded like it was coming from the bottom of his feet. Soothing. That was the word to describe it. 

                “You don’t know who you are. What you want to do. What you’re going to do. What the hell the future will bring. But most importantly, you’re scared of chasing after your dreams.”

                Lu Han’s jaw went slack. He couldn’t even argue against what the man had said. Everything was on point. Everything. The man smiled, knowing the effect of his words.

                “But listen closely to me because I will not repeat it.” He smiled again, this time not smug, this time with a gentle reminiscing expression. “Be fearless. Chase after those dreams like a madman. Trust me, life will be over before you know it. There’s no room for regret.”

                Suddenly, he got up from the bench just after he offered Lu Han an encourage pat on the shoulder. Lu Han watched his back start to get smaller as he ambled away.

                “Wait!”

                The man did not fully turn around to look at Lu Han. He just stopped, glancing slightly over his shoulder.

                “How did you know that I was feeling that way?”

                Finally, he turned his whole body towards Lu Han, giving him a mysterious smile. He didn’t even answer his question, and just simply said, “You’re gonna go far, kid.”

-x-

                “Mimi…” Ke Xin shook her head slowly. She had to process it slowly or she was going to end up with a killer headache. “You can’t be serious about this…you just can’t…”

                Mimi’s lips twitched in an attempt at a smile, but all that she ended up with was a sad line. “I am, Ke Xin.”

                If anyone had saw the two girls right now, Ke Xin clasping MiMi’s hands tightly in hers, they would have that it was either a crazy dream or the two of them were out of their minds. They weren’t supposed to like one another. But after all that MiMi had confined in her, Ke Xin thought the bad blood between them was absurd. And now, she felt like she was going to lose a sister that all this time she always claim to dislike but secretly cared greatly about.

                MiMi let out a shaky breath, like she was trying to hold in the tears. “I’m going to quit ballet.”

                And that sentence alone had to sit a while in the air to sink in for the both of them. Ke Xin was waiting for the ‘aha! just kidding!’ while MiMi was waiting for someone to walk her up and tell her that she was just sleep talking again. But neither one happened. It was real.

                Ke Xin couldn’t imagine walking into ballet class without the smaller girl and herself exchanging their look, the one where they were determined to be the better of Lu Hee’s star pupils. Even though Ke Xin always came out as first and MiMi second, Ke Xin had a quiet admiration for her competitor. While the other girls had given up trying, Mimi still danced with spirit. And that’s the one reason why she couldn’t fully dislike MiMi. Even with the Wang twins, Ke Xin didn’t have that silent understanding as she did with MiMi for ballet. It was hard to understand, let alone to explain to others.

                “I’m sorry, Ke Xin…” MiMi tried to turn away so Ke Xin wouldn’t see the tear rolling down her right cheek. She quickly took a wipe at it with her finger, trying to save her tears for later so she could cry alone.

                “It’s alright,” Ke Xin patted MiMi’s hand, “You’re having a rough time and you have get away. I understand.”

                MiMi nodded, her eyes narrowly and her voice becoming bitter, “I can’t stand those people anymore.”

                ‘Those people’ were her family. MiMi told her that they wanted to marry MiMi off to some rich old man and how they were embezzling funds from the charity that her father was working with. Disgusting, MiMi had described them. Her only escape would be a scholarship that she hoped she could secure with a university in London.

                “Hopefully I’ll be leaving in April.”

                “That’s still months away can’t you possibly…” Ke Xin started off but stopped when MiMi shook her head slowly.

                “No, I have to use those months to try my best to do well on some entrance exams and filling out the application to the best it can be.” MiMi hung her head, and then looked up again to Ke Xin, “Can I ask you a single favor? Like one last wish as a long time rival?”

                Ke Xin smiled at MiMi’s attempt at a humorous poke. “Sure.”

                “It’s about Lu Han.”

                Ke Xin stiffened, starting to regret that she answered so soon.         

                “Please, try to get him to make things right with his family.” MiMi shook her head when Ke Xin looked she was going to protest, “No, I’m not saying for you to try to convince him to go back to the family business. Lu Han’s parents, although they don’t show it, still worry about him. And so does Lu Hee, she just does a really good job at hiding it.”

                Ke Xin slumped a little. Family was a touchy topic with Lu Han but she found sincerity in MiMi’s words. Maybe she could suggest it to him? Yeah, she could do that. If his family really cared for him, she didn’t want his family relations to be strained just because they couldn’t come to agreements on their life decisions. She saw what that did to her own family.     

                “Can you promise me that?”

                At first she was hesitant but then Ke Xin slowly but confidently nodded, “Ballerina’s honor.”

                MiMi snuffled and the two pulled in for one last hug.

                “Good-bye, Ke Xin…”

                No one was ever plain bad, and neither was MiMi. Sometimes, there’s always the good in people we never see because we focus too much on their flaws instead. And sometimes, when we finally come to truly see a person, it’ll be too late to appreciate them.

                Ke Xin closed her eyes tightly, burning this memory into her mind to keep for times when she’ll miss MiMi. It may be too late to appreciate her, but Ke Xin will keep the memory of her frenemy in her heart.  

                “Good-bye, MiMi…” 

(A/N)

Miss me? Heh. 

Well, I know I broke my promise but to make up for it, expect an update sometime next week! Writer's honor! LOL.

Sigh, kinda sad to see MiMi go. I never really planned to make her like one of those evil girls in dramas who seem to have no heart whatsoever. Like I said, there are good and bad in everyone. It's just which one you choose to show is that one that everyone else will see, and the side you choose is what you've decided on to see in a certain person.

Also, I really like the new poster and background. It gives off such a romantic vibe, doesn't it? I owe to my AFF bestie, Angela ♥

Btw, we started a writing workshop together. It's under the Tokki Berry (which Ang owns btw) network and I'll most likely be posting there when I'm not being productive with ABD. It's called Nabi Notes! If you're curious about our name, what we offer, or if you're just plain bored...  

COME TAKE A LOOK!♥