myremdreams

[myremdreams]

Numb pt. 1 - Zhong Chenle

FIRST post and FIRST FIC AHH sorry if its bad lol

i wrote this up while my power was out during the hurricane, its not proofread or like rlly thought out just thought it was cute ig lol. i wanna continue this so this will be a lil pt 1! i hope u enjoy!

☆ fluff (mentions of alcohol) ☆ female character (no name), no mention of hair, eye, or skin color!

                Being back from tour had been rough on Chenle. While on tour, he'd finally felt free. Each city brought something new that sparked life into him, something he desperately needed after the past few months of relentless work in a sterile practice room. The feeling of landing in a new place with so much to explore is like a drug to him… I guess he’ll have to wait to feel that life in him again. It’s funny, never in his 20+ years did he ever feel so addicted to something other than success. Once he achieved a certain status, he felt grateful for his dreams finally coming true, but regardless, a certain numbness followed. When he was touring though, he felt anything but numb. Tired? Yes. Out of breath? Always. Desperate for a drink after a 3-hour performance? Absolutely. But never numb. Now he can only relive his time through memories. Scrolling through the photo album on his phone has become a regular occurrence. Unfortunately, the 12-hour practice days with little to no sun or fresh air are back.

Normally, after a trip, he was quick to snap back into the regular routine. Wake up, eat, practice, eat, sleep… maybe… yeah probably not as much as he should. Something was different this time though. As much as he’d like to chalk it up to jet lag, he knew it was something deeper. That’s why when he found out about the 3 weeklong break coming up, he had a flight booked to Atlanta before he could check if he chose a one-way or a round trip. ‘One way huh?’ Maybe it's a sign. His trip left in two days, and he could not wait for these next two days to be over.

Landing in Atlanta, he let out a sigh of relief. 24+ hours and getting stuck in San Francisco was not on his original itinerary, but he decided to buy a Warriors jersey while he was there to make up for the stress. His journey to the hotel was per usual, the Omni Downtown was familiar to him but still felt fancy enough to enjoy himself. ‘Shit.’ ‘What do I do now?’ Yeah, maybe he should have thought of that before impulse-buying a ticket across the world. Well, the clock just hit 10:45 and it’s plenty dark out, nothing better than a quick trip to the bar for a drink and then heading to bed.

The bar of the hotel was anything but ordinary, the rooftop deck had prettier views than he had expected, and the music set the mood just right. He forgets that normal people are able to enjoy things like this. No fear of being seen, no fear of your life being ruined by a photo attached to an untrue rumor. He takes a deep breath for what seems like the first time in weeks. He feels alive again.

The bartender was busy working on what looked like an espresso martini for someone across the bar, so he decided to take in the scene around him again. The sky was dark but the lights from the buildings illuminated the area around him. The rooftop deck was filled with fluorescent lights, blues, and pinks dancing off people moving to the music the DJ played. Speaking of the music, he swears he’s heard this song before but can’t remember the name, it’s jazzy with a hint of R&B groove, and shit it works so well together.

His attention is brought back to the bartender as he asks what drink he was wanting to order. “I’ll have a Naughty and Spice, thanks.” Slightly embarrassing to say out loud, but it looked pretty good on their seasonal menu, and he’ll never say no to gin. As he waits for his play on words to be made, he looks across the open bar and zeroes in on the new owner of that espresso martini. She’s hard to miss now that the bartender’s moved out of the way, she’s incredible. He’s honestly not sure how so much beauty could be held in a soft smile and thin strands of hair escaping her clipped-up hair, gracefully being carried by the wind. For the first time in a long time, he’s captivated. He would have missed the bartender coming back completely if she hadn’t gotten up from her chair and walked towards the dance floor. “Oh sorry, here’s my card you can just open a tab for me.” As the bartender nods, as if in a trance Chenle found himself walking towards a table near the dance floor. Keeping a respectful distance he silently watched as she danced with a few friends. He’s never seen someone look so happy and carefree. When was the last time he felt like that before tonight? ‘Maybe this bar has magical healing properties’, he joked to himself.

 Looking back at her he realized this woman was the type of beautiful you almost felt ashamed to be in the presence of. At the same time, something you couldn’t look away from, you’d curse yourself for missing a single second. Her beauty wasn’t loud, and it wasn’t overbearing, it was almost like when you’re driving home from work and maybe you took a different route home this time, maybe the long one, but on that road, you see a sunset that takes away all of your focus, all of your worries. A sunset you’ve never allowed yourself to look at before. Most days you try to race home, wanting to escape the confines of the company building. Thinking of the duties of work or thinking about everything you must do once you get home, not recognizing the painted sky surrounding you. You’ve been missing something so beautiful, so incredible, and hey maybe it was right there, and you never noticed. But maybe you weren’t meant to notice until you took that different route home.  Chenle took a different route this time and finally noticed.

She glanced up at him noticing his gaze and let out a laugh, as if she was amused by the spell she’d put him under. Feeling embarrassed and slightly creepy, he looks away trying to focus on anything but the most beautiful view in front of him. Shifting between the bar, the patrons, and the city lights, his eyes eventually found their way back to her. Her drink was half full, her nails neatly painted red, lipstick carefully put on to match, the dress he wonders if she got tailored to her measurements, it somehow fit just right. He’d looked at women before and felt the burn of lust, but this wasn’t just lust, he was in awe of her energy entirely. He craved to know her. Craved to have a simple conversation with her. Or at least just let him learn her name. Even if all he ever got was one more look, he’d do anything… please.  

As if she heard his plea, she looked over at him again, this time with a more inviting feel. Was he supposed to go over there? He would hate to read the situation wrong. The last thing he would ever want is to make a woman uncomfortable with his presence. He sat in thought for a few more minutes, not able to bring himself to look at her. Now he’s really wondering if he’s being a creep who just burdens a woman by staring at her all night. Maybe he should go back to his room. If he’s being honest with himself, he would hate to leave without the promise he would get to see her again. Suppose you can’t have what you want all the time.

He picked up his empty glass and turned to go back to the bar to close out. A faint smell of vanilla and cherry found him as he turned around. “Excuse me.” He attempts to pass but feels a hand on his arm which instantly knocks him out of his self-pity. He’d been so in his head that he failed to realize the person now grabbing onto him was the person he’d desperately needed all evening. His eyes widen and he steps back feeling the rush of adrenaline coarse his veins, complete and utter shock. She was even more gorgeous right in front of him. He took another deep breath, steadying himself. “Hi, I’m not sure if this is weird but I noticed you looking over earlier and wanted to give you my number before you left. I didn’t have the balls to ask you to dance earlier, but maybe this will make up for it?” She holds up a small napkin, still with a visible ring around it from a drink, but he doesn’t care about that. Her number was carefully written in black ink and a kiss mark the same shade of red adorning her lips sat right above it.

He stared down at her, simultaneously brushing the soft skin of her fingers while he tried to transfer the napkin into his hands, if he died right now, he’d feel like his life was absolutely one well lived. He took in all of her. She had little freckles across her collarbone, they led to her neck that led up to her perfect face. Her eyes were expectantly waiting for a reply, he took a mental image of her lashes fluttering up at him. She had looked nervous, but it made her sexier somehow. “Thank you, yeah I noticed you over there, you looked beautiful, I wasn’t sure how to approach you, so I decided to just give up.” He put his hand through his hair frustrated with his “uncool” honesty. She threw her head back and laughed and he’d felt alive once again. He followed her gaze behind him as she started to shush someone, her friends who obviously had too much to drink, freezing as if they’d been caught. “I think my very inconspicuous friends need to be brought to bed, thankfully it’s only a floor down so I won’t have to carry them too far.” A part of him felt relieved he might get the chance to see her again so soon. “Oh, I’m staying here too, maybe I’ll see you around?” She laughed once more, sending a rush through his body, “Maybe use that number I gave you and we’ll find out.” She turned away and while she walked back to her friends, all he could do was stand there. He’d come to this city to feel alive again, and my god did he already get so much more.