Chapter Text
Xiang Fei huffs and puffs as he jogs his way through the sea of people crowding the streets, beads of sweat rolling down his freckled face. It’s too hot to be out in this weather!!
The streets are closed off due to the large carnival being hosted in his city. Out of shape and out of breath, Xiang Fei slows down, letting out a wheeze as he takes out his phone to check the time. “SHIT!” He pales when he sees the time.
Xiang Fei picks up the pace with renewed vigor, but he doesn’t get far before smashing his face into some
cold, hard tits blocking his way. His face bounces off a man’s chest, nearly sending Xiang Fei tumbling to the ground on impact. If it weren’t for the strong arms catching him and pulling him back to his feet, he surely would have had a nasty fall on the pavement.
Xiang Fei’s eyes sting with tears as he cradles his aching nose. He hisses, “Aaghh… shit. What the fuck—”
“Watch where you’re going!” A gruff voice admonishes Xiang Fei.
“You watch it!!” Xiang Fei glares up at the man and freezes.
A quick glance up reveals a tall, muscular man with the body of an athlete and the face of a model. His long, black hair is pulled back into a simple, tight ponytail that makes the man look elegant and refined. A far cry from Xiang Fei’s ruffled curls held together by a broken rubberband and the stubborn locks of hair flowing freely in the breeze after escaping the loose topknot bobbing up and down his head.
When Xiang Fei lets his hand drop from his nose he notices a bit of blood on his palm.
At the same time the angry-looking stranger furrows his brows, taking in Xiang Fei’s appearance and staring intensely at him as if the very sight of him was offensive to the eye. Which—kind of fair.
A warm droplet of blood rolls steadily out of Xiang Fei’s nose. The stranger reaches out to grab him but Xiang Fei’s survival instincts kick in. “What are you doing?!”
The stranger attempts to chase after him but Xiang Fei slips into the crowd and keeps his head low to avoid being seen by his pursuer.
Fuck that! No way! I’m not getting murdered today!!
He continues sneakily on his way to a particular hotdog stand with a row of tables lined up, filled with contestants who had entered the restaurant’s main attraction: a hotdog eating competition.
There is only one seat left empty at the table where the contestants sit idly, waiting for the last contestant to show up. Xiang Fei lets out a sigh of relief. He made it just in time!
Lucky for him it seems his pursuer is nowhere to be seen, so he takes his rightful seat at the table and slumps into his chair to catch his breath. On the table before him sits several waterbottles, a stack of empty paper plates, napkins, and an adult-sized bib with “it ain’t easy bein’ greasy!” printed onto cheap, thin fabric.
Xiang Fei swipes a napkin from the table and quickly rubs away the drying blood from his upper lip and his hand. The host of the event notices Xiang Fei and comes up to him asking with a look of concern if he’s okay. Of course he’s okay! A little nose bleed is nothing! Xiang Fei laughs it off. “Haha, yeah, this happens all the time! I’m used to dealing with these.” Xiang Fei gives a thumbs up. “I’m good to go!”
The host nods and continues on to thank the audience and each contestant who had shown up to their event. A brief yet clear explanation of the rules is read out loud for everyone to hear, which Xiang Fei finds completely unnecessary.
Eat the hotdog! Whoever eats the most within the time limit wins! Be a good sport or whatever-the-fuck. I don’t care, dude! Hurry up and let me eat this shit, I’m hungry!
Finally a hefty pile of hotdogs are laid out on the table while the contestants are made to equip their bibs, ready for battle. The hotdogs aren’t as big as he thought they would be. This might be easier than Xiang Fei thought.
The countdown begins.
“Five!”
Huh. The crowd is bigger than I thought it would be.
“Four!”
Xiang holds his breath and wipes his sweaty palms on his pants.
“Three”
Focus. Focus on the money. Think of the bills… Think of the ramen!
You can do this. You can—
“ONE!!”
Xiang Fei huffs out a puff of air and frantically shoves a freshly warm hotdog into his mouth. Chewing. Swallowing. Another hotdog! This being the first thing he’s eaten all day, Xiang Fei’s stomach rejoices. The rich, smokey flavors of the barbequed meat and the sweetness of the bun melt together and sing harmonies in Xiang Fei’s mouth. It’s nearly enough to bring a tear to his eye.
It’s good! So good!
The timer and the contest gradually drift from Xiang Fei’s mind, instead focusing on the act of simply scarfing down the food offered to him until he’s full. But now that he’s full he must keep going! Xiang Fei is determined to at least try to win! And if not, he wants to eat enough for this meal to sustain him for the rest of the day.
Xiang Fei quickly grows tired of eating. What used to taste like a heavenly delight is now merely a pungent, greasy obstacle in Xiang Fei’s way of getting money and free meals. He begins to fear he may never want to eat these damn hotdogs for the remainder of his shit life. No matter how attractive a free meal is, Xiang Fei will never see hotdogs the same way again.
Feeling like giving up, he shoves the last half-eaten hotdog into his mouth, chews, swallows, takes his first gulp of water to make the slide down his throat easier— and wow! That water feels so good, Xiang Fei should consider drinking it more often.
DING DING DING DING!! The timer goes off. “We have a winner! Congratulations Xiang Fei!!”
Cheers erupts all around Xiang Fei. He jerks his head up and takes a look at the other contestants around him. Though they look pissed they all seem to be clapping for… him? He looks at the crowd and everyone is clapping for him! The host congratulates Xiang Fei on his win and makes a big show of patting him on his sweaty back and handing him a check! He also hands Xiang Fei a wallet-sized card that’ll gain him access to a lifetime of free meals.
Xiang Fei wobbles onto his feet and smiles, tears welling up in his eyes. He knows it’s silly, and yet, it’s been decades since the last time he won at something.
To his surprise, Xiang Fei gets pulled aside for a brief interview for a news report on TV! Though it feels anything but brief due to Xiang Fei’s nerves, fumbling through every question until he’s finally released. He returns to a restaurant filled to the brim with hungry customers, and a long line that spills outside the restaurant. The outdoor seating area is full too. Aside from a few congratulations here and there, everyone else seems to have moved on and forgotten Xiang Fei’s face. Which is fine. Good even. His boring, forgettable face is what allows others to underestimate him. And it’s also what allowed him to make a clean getaway from that terrifying man he bumped into.
Welp, that’s the end of it. Alone once again.
The sun shines cheerily in the sky. It feels nearly blinding to Xiang Fei’s tired eyes which normally don't see the light of day.
Children squeal as they run circles around their parents, begging to play one more game or go on one more ride. Young teens shout at each other, play-fighting amongst their friends. Some couples sit next to each other on the nearby tables and benches; some share a meal and engage in pleasant conversation while others shamelessly bicker about their relationship issues out in the open.
I don’t belong here.
The sweat dripping down Xiang Fei’s body gets absorbed into his t-shirt and the bib he still has hanging around his neck, creating dark, wet patches under his arms and around his neck. His mouth goes dry. Xiang Fei realizes he doesn’t feel so great all of the sudden and frantically searches for a bathroom.
Xiang truly lucks out when he finds a public bathroom that is indoors and has air conditioning inside. Xiang Fei locks himself in a stall. It’s quiet. The only noise in the room being the steady hum of the air conditioner. It’s a surprisingly tranquil environment that has Xiang Fei aware of how very not calm he is. He takes note of his rapidly beating pulse and chalks it up to anxiety or food poisoning and shakily whips out his phone with clammy hands. He wills himself not to be sick. Not to throw up. That would be like wasting two free meals! But the queasiness is so overwhelming he can feel goosebumps rising on his skin and the tension in his tongue and his throat.
It was inevitable. Kneeling down on the cold tiled floor in front of a toilet, Xiang Fei’s breakfast, lunch, and future dinner quite literally go down the drain. He can’t help but regret so many decisions right now…
After a few minutes sitting weakly on the floor, Xiang Fei hauls himself onto his feet, taking a moment to log into his Zhongdian Literature account for comfort. He scrolls through the recent comments posted on his new chapter.
A tired smile emerges on his face at the sight of Peerless Cucumber’s username. If there’s anyone he can rely on to be there for him it’s Cucumber-bro! Always the first one to comment his criticisms with Xiang Fei’s writing choices, and always the first one to attack other commenters who dare to speak ill of his beloved protagonist.
But Xiang Fei can’t stay here forever.
He fights the overwhelming heaviness in his body and shakily opens the door to the stall, typing out his response as he goes. A small smile returns to his face as soon as he hits send on his rage-baity response.
Distracted on his phone, Xiang Fei almost bumps into a tall, familiar-looking man blocking his way.
Oh shit.
He immediately recognizes him as the scary guy he slammed his face into from before!
Shit! Shit! SHIT!!