Xia Ruyun ended up reshooting the scene about seven times to satisfy Zhang Jingsong. She nailed it after a few seniors spoke up with some helpful tips, to which she nodded in thanks. Once out of the shooting area, she brushed herself off and glanced over to the schedule for the rest of the day. After scanning the document and failing to find her name, she smiled and did a subtle fist pump. Unsure in how to spend her time, she took a few cautionary glances towards the rest of the cast.
Huh.
Deciding to copy some of the cast members, she wandered back over to the costume booth to pull off her costume. In the private changing area, she hunched over like a gremlin—while still half-naked—to fold it up before changing back into her own clothes.
Bundling up for the March weather, she pulled the coat tighter around herself before trudging to the cast chairs. She plopped down onto one and let out a long sigh. Craning her neck back and staring at the sky, she laid there like a salted fish for a few moments.
Prickled by the curious gazes of the nearby cast members, she propped herself back up. Her squirming came to a halt though when Wu Linjie sat down beside her. Hesitant, she gave him a slow wave before continuing her actions—but, this time, with the caution of a soldier trying to avoid landmines.
Once upright, she folded her hands on her lap and crossed her legs. She looked over towards Wu Linjie who seemed like he wanted to talk.
“Good afternoon, Xia Ruyun,” Wu Linjie smiled while giving her a double thumbs-up. He hesitated for a moment before leaning in and whispering, “Sorry, this is just a curiosity, so feel free to not answer, but you seem close to Li Feiling, do you two know each other personally? Again, sorry if this is just a little invasive, I just randomly thought of it...”
Xia Ruyun froze up for a moment before hitting her own chest with a fist and coughing. A polite smile appeared on her face as she pondered it over for a moment. To avoid misunderstandings, she decided to just shake her head to answer his question. To her dismay, even after she turned away and tried to pull out her phone, he began talking once more.
Sliding her phone away, she began a mental timer for how long he went without taking a breath. He had a way with words, for sure, an underutilized talent if anything—after all, it disappeared when Li Feiling was in the vicinity. After a starry-eyed retelling of his first encounter with her music, he offered a handshake. “Anyway, I must say, your performances are quite dazzling, truly befitting a senior as established as you are! Would it be possible for me to address you by sister?”
34 seconds. Quite impressive. The content though...
A moment of hesitation later, she returned the handshake with an exasperated shake of the head. “... Sure...”
“You talked! I’m beyond honored, Sister Xia,” Wu Linjie cheered before doing an awkward shuffle. He leaned forward to embrace Xia Ruyun before having second thoughts... before returning to the first thoughts and leaning forward again.
He was, however, stopped mid-lean as a palm pressed against his forehead, keeping him in place. Li Feiling, after glancing over, had walked up and kept Wu Linjie at a respectable distance from Xia Ruyun. Holding a hot bottle of water in her other hand, she offered it to Xia Ruyun. “I got this for you, you’ve been rubbing your hands together for a while now, so use this to warm yourself up.”
Xia Ruyun took it with a smile and pressed it against her cheek. A sigh left her lips as her shoulders relaxed. Nodding, she pulled Li Feiling into a half-hug as thanks.
Grinning, Li Feiling winked at Wu Linjie. A faint smile danced across her lips after she let go of Xia Ruyun. A moment later though, her expression softened. “Don’t just push yourself onto her, Wu Linjie. I’m sure you have innocent intentions, to thank her from what I overheard, but your approach was a little too... intimate almost, so it might get misinterpreted. Especially since you’re young and not as established. A rumor here and there could turn a picture of this into Xia Ruyun accepting your confession. In this industry, where people latch onto actors just standing next to each other, it's important to think carefully. Though... maybe if you changed your look you wouldn’t get put in rumors... I have a personal barber I can refer you to if you want. He specializes in bowl cuts.”
“I-I uh...” Wu Linjie stumbled over his words before deciding to join the spar and reply with a verbal jab of his own. He struck a half-pose and swept his blond hair back. “I don’t think the world is ready for how handsome I’d be with a bowl cut.”
A second later though, as both Xia Ruyun and Li Feiling chuckled, he took a deep breath and pushed himself up and out of the chair. Though a tad uncomfortable, he did a half-bow. “I understand your point though, senior Li. I just lost myself for a moment. I apologize, sister Xia. I’ll strive to be better.”
Getting a couple pats on the shoulder from his two seniors, he thanked them again and walked off to rejoin his group of friends.
With Wu Linjie leaving her alone with Li Feiling, Xia Ruyun felt her heart rate accelerate just a hair. A deep breath later, she felt fine once more. She straightened up and whispered a “thank you for the bottle,” into Li Feiling’s ear before reclining back into her seat. Not sure if she should say anything else, she decided to keep her mouth closed. Instead, she fidgeted with the cap as Li Feiling just stood there with a smile.
“You’re welcome, and take care of yourself,” Li Feiling coughed after a half-second. Patting Xia Ruyun on the shoulder, she hesitated for a second before pulling back and walking off. As she walked off, she pressed a hand against her face.
What an absolute dumbass she was.
She’d stared at Xia Ruyun for a few too many seconds... She hoped her mesmerized gaze hadn’t been obvious.
She shook her head. Why did her head sometimes go blank when looking at Xia Ruyun? Did she really admire her so much? Massaging her eyebrows, she chalked it up to her younger self being... young and emotional with her admiration, and moved on. Returning to the makeup artists, she smiled, but kept quiet as they touched up her makeup for the next scene.
Nearby, Xia Ruyun was also zoning out. Her notebook sat open on her lap, but her pencil sat idle in her hand. She watched with a half-interested gaze as the day marched to its close.