Chasing You (Arc 8+)

Showstopper (XXXV)

Within a blink of an eye, those piercing eyes vanished and what remained was what the two of them were familiar with. It was only that the look of fatigue was more visible and there was a sharpness in his genial gray eyes. Just with this, it allowed the two of them to breathe easier and the tenseness in their bodies lessened.

He Xiao rubbed his glabella, closing his eyes, "Senior Xiao?"

Xiao Rui vigilantly glanced at him, only muttering a sound. "En."

He had already long known why the other was here as soon as he recognized the figure. He Xiao stood up, "I'll be right out, sorry for making you wait."

With that, Xiao Rui took his leave, standing outside of the closed door lost in thought. He was mulling over what he saw. The immense hatred and misanthropy he had seen in those eyes were not false and seemed ancient, as if it had existed as long as time itself. It was like a brewing storm, just waiting to destruct.

He leaned against the door and sighed heavily. Momentarily closing his eyes, he collected himself. Just for that brief interlude, he lost himself. Once his eyes were open again, Xiao Rui had regained his usual composure.

He Xiao readily exited the room and apologized once more to Xiao Rui before the two set off. In the room, he had found Bao Bao to be acting a little strange but his little system refused to say anything on it and departed for his mission with haste. And since he was resistant to speaking about it, He Xiao didn't push the subject.

Just like that, the problem was swept under the rug.

Xiao Rui and He Xiao got on the elevator and went up to the bottom floor, where they were told to meet.

The dormitory originally had eleven floors but they were only allowed access to eight of the floors, the other three weren't available.Two were the other residential floors while the last one was the basement. It was only when Jiang Man informed them that this is where they would meet after each major event did they finally realize what it was for.

The basement did not give off the feeling that it was underground, it was cozy and the sequences in the area matched up with the rest of the building.

They walked down the hall and finally saw where the other contestants were. Bai Taohua raised her brow as she spotted them making their way over. She was pondering on why they much later than expected. Even though she was a fujoshi, it never occurred that two zeros— No, just these two would hook up or attempt anything. It just wasn't possible in this dimension. Perhaps if it was in another reality... No. Toss that thought far away, it wasn't possible, ever.

During the entire time they were waiting to be called in, He Xiao felt someone's continuous gaze on his body and the corner of his mouth rose indiscernibly.

---

When it came time, they all entered inside of the double doors. The room was gorgeously done, looking very expensive. Inside, it had a stage right at the entrance, it was where they would all be standing and there were a set of small staircase with only three steps leading down to the ground. Besides that, there was a small runway connected from their stage and it led to a smaller circular stage that was towards the middle of the room and could hold about ten people easily standing side by side. It was where you would stand before the judges and be critiqued.

The judges' seats were located at the other end of the room. The three special judges were sat upon comfortable looking chairs and they had a table that resembles half of a circle with the words 'All Stars' in a fancy font hanging before it.

Their faces were all full of smiles as they were enjoying themselves with the refreshments before them.

They all lined up along the stage, there were three spots where they could stand. On the right, middle, and left side, each space could hold ten contestants. As for where they stood, it was told beforehand by Jiang Man.

Jiang Man was dressed in a ravishing silver and white suit. His hair was slicked back and there was a single thornless blue rose on the left side of his chest. He graciously acted his role as host, "Welcome to the Judge's Room. Here you will receive your fate as decided upon by the judges. For the first challenge, you were to conquer your fears and do a photoshoot that would bring out the courageous you, amazing yourself and the world."

He then started calling the names of the contestants one by one and going over the photo that was their best. The judges went over what they liked about the photo and what they thought that the contestant could do better, and once that was done, the contestant would walk back up to where they were standing.

Those who had been critiqued were all feeling a variety of emotions: excitement, smugness, flattered, disappointment, frustrated, joyful, discontent, and mortification. Half way through, it was finally the time for the main protagonists of the world to shine.

Jiang Man, "Xiao Rui, please come up to the center stage."

He stepped out, his long legs moved with grace as if he was born to walk these stages. Standing before the judges, he was not servile, and neither was he hubristic. His figure was tall and there was a sense of nobleness coming from within his bones.

Jiang Man gestured to the large screen on the left side of the room, "This is your photo. The decision was difficult to choose which picture had represented you out of the fifteen shots you had taken, but there was a special reason to why this was chosen as your best; because you showed that you dominated your fear and that was something that was under your control."

Everyone's eyes were glued to the screen. Those who thought that they were very good suddenly felt a punch to the gut. The photograph on the screen was strikingly beautiful. It hypnotized one and somehow you weren't able to tear your eyes away. The lighting in the shot was beautifully done as it seemed to capture a moment in time when the darkness had just taken over the light. You could see the receding at the edges of the photograph and it was as if this was from the light's point of view.

On the ground, you could make out silhouettes of broken rubble lying around but it did not make the scene look messy. They were meticulously placed to where it led to and highlighted the man in the photo. The man was shrouded with darkness, with an air of enigma and precariousness. It stroked the thrill in a person to want to be near despite knowing that he was a dangerous person.

His hair could be faintly made out with one's eyes, it was untamed and the front was slightly swept to the sides. His chiseled features were prominent and could be seen with a single glimpse. Donning a dark cape with gold and medallions and ebony fur collar draped over one of his shoulders, he resembled a monarch. The man's most striking feature were his cool eyes that seem to have a glowing ring around the irises. They were detached and proud, giving one goosebumps.

The feeling the photograph gave off was that the man owed the world; as if everything was at his fingertips and he did not even put light into his eyes. He was darkness; he did not fear the light because without him, it would not exist.