The next few days were spent working hard. Apart from studying for upcoming exams, Zhong Ji Yi Ban and the rest of the school were preparing for the school festival. A single minute wasn't wasted. Lunch break and after school was spent practicing. But somewhere in that busy schedule, Da Dong had found time to tell Ya Se about Xiao Yu's financial situation and together they helped him pay off the rest of his debt. Whenever Xiao Yu would ask how they knew about his debt, his two brothers would just shrug and start singing and change the conversation topic.

However, the situation with Yu Yan wasn't so easy to solve. Despite Yu Yan's confessions the night after Xiao Yu's competition, Da Dong couldn't persuade her to physically join their side. Although she was no longer loyal to her father at heart, she still remained obedient to him as she did not want to risk harming her friends. Da Dong had no choice but to inform Hong Guang about everything Yu Yan had told him.

"The next time we see her may be as enemies," Hong Guang had said.
"Do you really think things will get to that stage?" Da Dong had asked which earned him a firm but slow nod.

Not only did Yu Yan become distant with her friends as a result, she also moved out of Xiao Yu's flat without telling him beforehand which had greatly shocked him when he had found all her things gone when he returned home. Too much was happening all too fast and suddenly.

"Don't forget that your performance tomorrow will be at 1pm. I wish you all good luck!" Tian Xin exclaimed on Friday, "Jia you everyone!" she beamed. "Class dismissed!" she smiled at all her students before walking out of the classroom.

Once she had left, Xiao Yu leaned over his desk and tapped Yu Yan on the shoulder. "Yu Yan, do you wa-" he was cut off when she stood up and walked out of the classroom with her bag. Xiao Yu retrieved his hand and sighed.
Da Dong, who had seen their poor interactions over the week, sighed too.

Tian Xin was packing her things away in the teachers' office when someone approached her. She looked up and smiled, "Oh, Yu Yan? What are you doing here?"

"Ban Dao, I want to leave Zhong Ji Yi Ban."
 

~*~*~
 

"Why did you call me out, Ugly Jiang?" Sha Jie snapped at Yu Yan.
Yu Yan exhaled, "I need a favour, Class Weed," she said, earning a snigger of disbelief from the class flower.
 

~*~*~

Ba Le High School was filled with people the next day - it was the day of the Winter Festival.

So far the performances had consisted of acts like magic shows, plays and comedy acts. There were many stalls of food and games and it was just a day of fun and joy. Now it was time Zhong Ji Yi Ban to take the spotlight!

"ZHONG JI YI BAN JIA YOU, JIA YOU, JIA YOU!" Everyone screamed in excitement as they put their hands in the centre and then waved. They cheered as they went onto the stage.

The first song and dance, 'KO One', had the crowd screaming and cheering really loudly and the next song, 'Superb', had the girls in the crowd falling in love with the four boys. They were just too handsome and cool. Their final group song, 'The Mystery of Immortality', was a big hit. The boys' sword dance had the crowd in awe and admiration - it was amazing. The next part of their performance was Xiao Yu's duet with Yu Yan and they had planned to sing 'Ti Amo' (I Love You) by Aaron Yan and Jade Liu. But when Xiao Yu waited for Yu Yan to step onto the stage, he was given quite a huge shock.

In place of Yu Yan was Sha Jie who walked onto the stage, wearing the white dress Yu Yan was supposed to wear. She held the microphone in her hand and smiled at him. But he was too shocked to even react.

"Yu Yan? Where's Yu Yan?" he asked Da Dong, who had returned backstage, through telepathy.
"She pulled out," came Da Dong's reply, "She sorted her replacement out yesterday."
"Why? We worked so hard on this duet!" Xiao Yu replied but before their telepathic conversation could continue, the music began to play and Xiao Yu had no choice to sing.

"I don't know where she went but she's still at school somewhere," Ya Se's voice came in.

Xiao Yu took in a deep breath and looked out to the crowd before singing. His eyes searched for one person and that was Jiang Yu Yan.


"Although it appears simple, although it's repetitive,
Because of you everything strangely changed."

He sang as his heart pounded.

"I really want to become one with you, not just by holding hands, but also in the heart, a kind of binding that cannot be broken.
Me accompanying you, breathing the same air as you, is happiness."

He then jumped off the stage in front of the crowd who screamed wildly. He ignored the fans and span around, searching for Yu Yan.

"Ti amo (I love you). Te quiero (I love you).
Every day I want to love you. I am missing you in my dreams.
Even sober, the first thing that I think of is you," sang Sha Jie from the stage.


"Saranghae (I love you) and I love you
Every day I must love you,there are few days I can regret." he sang with all his heart.

He then saw her. He saw Jiang Yu Yan. She was walking away, further and further away from his reach.

"Accompanying you in the sunlight, I cannot think about your imperfections."

He then dropped the microphone and ran.

Sha Jie's eyes widened in surprise but she still continued to sing while Da Dong quickly ran onto the stage to replace Xiao Yu with half his costume peeling off his body. Although the duet was now between Sha Jie and Da Dong, it didn't affect Xiao Yu. He pushed past the crowd and ran and ran to reach Yu Yan, whilst Da Dong tried to fix his clothes as he sang onstage.

"YU YAN!" he called out, finally catching up to her. Yu Yan continued to walk. "Yu Yan!" he called again, grabbing onto her wrist. She stopped and turned around.
"What?" she snapped impatiently.
"Where are you going?" he asked, breathlessly.
"As far away from you as possible," she hissed, turning back around.
Xiao Yu held onto her wrist tightly, "Why are you avoiding me? Do you still feel guilty about my wrist?" he questioned.
A scoff escaped Yu Yan's lips, "I'm leaving Zhong Ji Yi Ban," she told him, "This is probably the last time we'll meet as friends."
Xiao Yu's eyes widened in surprise, "Y-You're leaving? Why?" he asked.
"You can ask the Golden Monkey," she replied in a less aggressive tone and then she pulled back her wrist.

He didn't know what was going on. Why was Yu Yan acting so casual as though she didn't care? Why was she leaving?! "You're joking, right?" he asked her in disbelief.
"Do I look like I'm joking?" she responded. He gazed at the emotionless face of the girl he liked - she indeed was not joking.
"Can you tell me why? Why is it so sudden? Why didn't you let me know?" he continued to ask, feeling his heart pound. Why did this situation feel too serious?

"I'm going back to Japan," she lied, "My flight's in a few hours from now."
Xiao Yu's eyes widened. "H-Huh?" he stuttered.
Yu Yan sighed, "Well believe whatever you want, I'm leaving," she said and then walked away.
"Stay!" Xiao Yu called out to her, "Yu Yan I'm so confused! I don't know anything anymore! I don't understand what's going on, I'm having all these confusing dreams and visions and so many things are happening and I really don't know anything. Yu Yan, please don't leave me," he rambled uncontrollably with pleading eyes, just letting all the words pour out of his mouth.
Yu Yan scoffed and crossed her arms, "Do you know anything?"
"I do," Xiao Yu replied confidently before taking a deep breath, "I know that I like you Yu Yan," he confessed, "No, I love you," he corrected, feeling as though a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

Yu Yan gulped and stepped a few steps backwards after hearing his confession. Fireworks were going off in her heart and her stomach was jumping up and down. Her heart pounded and her face softened and a smile was forming on her lips. But then she forced down all her happy emotions. If she wanted to protect the man she loved, she had to sacrifice this love of hers.

A chuckle escaped her lips, "You don't," she denied.
He grabbed her hands and held them tightly, "I know what I feel and I could never mistake my own feelings. Yu Yan, I love you. I really do," he told her, staring intently at her.
Yu Yan bit her lip, "How can you like someone you don't know?"
"What are you saying Yu Yan? We've spent so much time together and we've lived together for so long already-"
Yu Yan cut him off, "That doesn't mean anything. You don't have the right to love me when you don't know who I really am," she snapped, "What you feel probably isn't even love. Maybe it's just sympathy or a strong brother-sister relationship. There's no way it's love."
Xiao Yu frowned, "Yu Yan, you don't have to accept my feelings and you can even reject me... but you can't say what I feel isn't love!"

Clenching her teeth, Yu Yan pulled her hands free from his grasp and back to her sides. "It doesn't matter because I don't love you," she exclaimed, "I don't even like you!"
Xiao Yu ignored the stabbing pain in his heart, "Yu Yan... I don't understand..." he trailed off, "Aren't we good friends?"
Yu Yan laughed, "You don't understand anything at all!" she yelled, "You lived with your enemy who blew her cover long ago and yet you still haven't noticed. You don't even know that I am your enemy, that I am responsible for the yi neng muggings, for the death of Little Blue, for everything that's gone wrong in your life!"
Xiao Yu's eyes widened in shock.
Yu Yan then decreased the volume of her voice, "You don't even know that your own brothers knew about me this whole time and hid my secret from you. You don't even know that my father is the one who murdered your father and that he is the reason you were in debt. You don't know that I joined Zhong Ji Yi Ban because it was my mission to get you all to trust me so that I could steal your yi neng!"

"Y-You're lying..." Xiao Yu stuttered, feeling a surge of different emotions. This revelation was just too sudden for him. "Yu Yan you're lying," he repeated, "You're Jiang Yu Yan, my best friend, my brother, the girl I love - you can't be my enemy!" he exclaimed, feeling his heart start pounding rapidly which began to hurt him.
"Open your damn eyes!" Yu Yan barked, slapping him across the face.
Xiao Yu just blinked in shock at Yu Yan before touching his now reddening cheek. Yu Yan clenched the hand she had slapped him with and turned around.

"Tell me..." he muttered, "Did you ever have any sincere feelings towards me...? Towards any of us...?" he bit his lip hard, trying to control his overwhelming emotions.

She did. She did have sincere feelings. She loved them all. She loved him. But she couldn't tell him that. It would cost her his life.

"No," she replied firmly, "I never liked any of you. Nothing I did or said was sincere," she lied despite her paining heart.
Xiao Yu felt his heart just break into two halves and then shatter into small pieces.
"I'm sorry but you've been living in your own bubble this whole time," she whispered, "Any ideas you got were just all in your head," she continued.
The more she spoke, the more his heart broke and the harder he tried to push back the lump in his throat.

"Everything... everything between us... meant nothing to you...?" he asked but his voice broke into barely a whisper.
Yu Yan shook her head, I'm sorry. They mean everything to me. But I can't tell you that. "I've already forgotten everything between us. They were just insignificant moments in my life," she told him.
Xiao Yu clenched his fists by his sides as the tears already started falling silently.

"If we ever meet again, we'll be fighting each other," were her last words before she walked away, leaving him in her fleeting shadow.

He collapsed onto his knees. Everything had happened so fast and everything had ended so fast. Today was a day that was supposed to be fun and filled with celebrations... but he wished this day never came. He had lost everything he believed to be his: his father, his mother, the girl he loved. The girl he loved turned out to be a double agent - his enemy - who he had fallen so hard for. He couldn't tell what was going on around him anymore. His heart was hurting him - it was so painful. He couldn't remember the last time he felt this much pain. He couldn't stop his heart from breaking nor could he stop his tears falling so he remained there, crying. He felt betrayed, rejected, sad, angry... he didn't know what he felt anymore. All he knew was that he was alone.

So he just cried.