It took Penny a while to regain her composure as she looked away and rubbed her tears away furiously. "Who are you?" Penny shot back at him as she forced herself to swallow her overwhelming emotions.
He scoffed at himself, wondering if it was an act to not know who he was or if was she genuinely not recognising him.
"Wayne. Your ex-classmate. The boy who used to live opposite there. Now, a famous singer. Haven't you heard?" He introduced as Penny scoffed in return before laughing.
"If you're a singer then I am a dancer…" Penny retaliated which intrigued Wayne at her hostility.
"You could be whatever you want here…" Wayne tapped on the right side of his forehead and smiled.
"What are you doing here?" Penny asked in a little annoyed tone with a raised eyebrow indicating she clearly wanted to be alone.
"Looking for happiness..." His innocent and simple answer made Penny blink back her sudden tears forcefully once again.
Penny blamed Pei Li's chaotic feelings as though one's mind may not remember but one's body and emotions would always remember. Penny finally felt how alien it was to be a part of Pei Li but not share this part of her memories.
"And you?" He asked without expecting an answer.
"Freedom…" Her unexpected answer hit him by surprise as well. He forced himself to keep his emotions under control as his eyes reddened.
Noticing his somber mood, Penny prompted him to talk more as she felt a sense of familiarity from Pei Li's lost feelings. It intrigued Penny to want to get to know him.
"Don't you have plenty of happiness for being an idol to so many people since you claimed you're a singer?" Penny asked while he sighed heavily but with a smile noticing she still did not believe in his career.
"What's the point when it's for other's expectations? Do you know what it feels like to be in the center of a live volcano? You have no idea when it will explode. It feels good to be so high on top with a great view but… You don't know how long all these could last. Once the volcano erupts, everything just melts away in a blink of an eye." Wayne explained calmly as Penny sighed lamenting at her and Pei Li's tough life.
"You have the freedom too… It's your life? You're no longer that young girl. So why aren't you chasing that freedom?" Wayne questioned in return.
She kept quiet for a long while and Wayne knew the answer. She was always worried about her mother. When they were in school, whenever there was news of her father's return, she would immediately rush home to ensure her mother was not badly harmed. He just could not believe that today, she was still doing the same. He admired her perseverance and endurance. He envied her determination and wished he had such will to live on but he did not.
"Nobody really cares in today's world. Everything and everyone is all about money. You can't save everything if they don't help themselves." Wayne hinted as she was looking even more down.
"Do you really not know about my fame or are you pretending not to?" He tried to change the topic to keep her mood liven up a little when she lifted her head slightly and turned to see him.
"I don't. How would I have the time to care like you said? Everyone has got their own issues whether it's wide in the open or covered up. Why would I even bother when I…" Penny paused.
Can't even decide whether to continue living for the sake of Pei Li or not now… Penny sighed at the thought.
"I'm surprised but I'm glad too… At least I could speak with you freely and not be judged." Wayne smiled looking up at the glittering skies.
"I wish I could buy you the freedom you long for…" He concluded as his smile grew wider that he finally could be at ease with someone who was once familiar to him and yet now she was genuinely just talking to him without any motives.
"I wish I could buy you the happiness you long for in return…" She smiled and turned her gaze to the glittering skies.
That's enough for me to leave here happily knowing someone genuinely wished for my happiness… At least this life was worth living coming to this. Wayne thought to himself as he was more at ease with his decision to suicide while Penny felt the same and could only wish Pei Li would live a better life in the next one.
It was a chilly night at Kung Tap when Sebastian and Violet finally sat by the beach after a day of roaming around the town. "Just how could you sit around so coolly with me though you knew who I am?" Sebastian asked while she sipped her beer.
"You know we are all human after all. And I don't fangirl. All I hope is I don't get into the tabloid news as your new scandal. That would definitely be horrible for either of us." Violet joked as he chuckled.
"Well, Kung Tap is very small and I have been keeping my profile low. Not an issue. After all, I am the King of Mystery you see…" He joked but Violet could sense a different level of hurt from his voice.
She could tell that it was probably not his genuine self and seeing him hiding his face the whole day under his mask, must be so tough. Fame and money do have a huge price tag to it after all.
He caught her staring at him once again as he smiled, trying to tease her. "And you said you don't fangirl? But what's with all this staring the whole day since the tattoo? Did Gerald put a spell on you?" He laughed as she blushed in embarrassment again recalling her mumbles earlier.
"It is tough to live in the eyes of the public isn't it?" She asked and it took him by surprise as he blinked trying to sort his thoughts out.
"It's alright. You don't have to lie. I know many artists do. What can a girl who had so much fear of needles do to you right?" She shrugged as he snickered.
"That's why I don't fangirl. It's either strangers or friends." She declared with conviction and Sebastian was drawn by her different perspective.
"What do you work as?" He asked and Violet did not want to bring up her depressing past.
"A travel blogger! Plus some gigs to pass the time and have some money…" She shrugged again at her random answers though she actually had been toying with the idea for a long time. If back then it was not for her father insisting she head down the traditional pathway of getting a human resource degree which was the last option and easy way out to fulfill his wish to gain a qualification, she would probably have enjoyed her pathway in the entertainment industry.
It was all thanks to her mother who had cultivated her confidence in public speaking when she was young since she was a very talkative little girl. However, that all changed when her mother passed on from a road traffic accident when she was only seven. She had to become the obedient little girl of a traditional Chinese family and even had an arranged marriage which she had just bravely ditched.
That was another hurdle she was going to face soon.
All these years, she was grateful for her older brother, Sam Chu who was always rebellious against their father. To survive, he skipped tertiary education and had been in the entertainment industry locally back in Lagopool. It would not be that hard for her to step in either with his connections. The only problem was their father would be left unattended since now both of them had rebelled against him.
"Are you filming this trip then?" Sebastian asked eagerly as she smiled and nodded.
"Let me volunteer to help! I can hold the camera while you introduce the street foods and you know what, tomorrow we could head to more attractions!" It was the first time she ever saw him getting all worked up. She knew this was who he truly was as people would put their guard down when their feelings are overwhelming.
"But I can't afford to pay you…" She smirked as he laughed heartily.
Violet was beginning to see a very different side of the Mystery King and she wondered what his fans would have thought of him.
"Do you really think I need the money?" He asked noticing she was staring at him again as she chuckled realising her stupidity.
"You are very different from who you are in the eyes of the public… How could someone so fun and cheery end up in such a propaganda divorce and be called the King of Mystery?" She teased as his frowns returned.
'I'm sorry… I asked too much. It wouldn't be appropriate. Please don't tell me." Violet instantly retracted her questions noticing his uncomfortableness.
However, his frowns were slowly turning into smiles when his gaze fell on her flabbergasted self. "Because of disagreements and immaturity. You know she is a lot younger…" He explained.
"Really? Well I mean you all lie about your details to some level so I don't think I know what's real anymore. Besides, she looks quite mature." She praised his ex-wife as he snickered and sighed.
"Plastic surgery…" He made a simple reply and said nothing more as she quietly said "Oh".
"And you? You must be single to be able to roam around on such an auspicious day?" He asked in return as she chuckled.
"On the way to divorce…" She was amused at the coincidence which caught him by surprise as he was the first person other than those who were in attendance at the reunion dinner whom she had ever told what had happened.
"Wow, good job man!" He clapped at the end of her storytelling as she laughed, finally feeling proud of herself.
"I'm very impressed. Really. You did well standing up for yourself!" He continued to clap for her when the clock struck midnight and fireworks were on display.
They both took a little breather from their life issues and enjoyed the pretty sight together, just living life as it was.