Reborn: The Return of the Villainous Mr. Liu

"Are you ready?" The director asked from afar.

Chyou and Yating nodded.

"Good. Now action!"

The camera rolled at them and they took positions. It was the same scene where he was with the woman he loved and holding her cheek, he was supposed to say his dialogue.

He raised his hand and his fingers steadily approached her face.

'You are cute.'

He froze abruptly and his hand hung in the air in an awkward position.

Why did you suddenly think about that?

"Cut."

The director asked, confused. "Any problem, Gu Yating? You were doing just fine."

He cleared his throat. "No, I just…I just thought I saw something…"

"Okay. Let's do this again."

The camera rolled once again and at the director's signal, Yating got in position. He approached her face once again, staring straight into her eyes. His mind wandered off to their hug as she comforted him.

'You are cute.'

"You are cute," he ended up saying.

"..."

Chyou blinked and laughed. "That's the wrong line."

Yating could imagine himself being buried deeply into the Arctic.

What the hell am I saying!?

"Yeah that's the wrong dialogue, Gu Yating. You also didn't reach to hold her cheek yet," the director chimed in.

"I am sorry. I will try again."

The director laughed heartily. "No problem. I have safely recorded them as bloopers. The ad will be a double hit after I release them."

Yating blinked. "What are bloopers?"

Chyou answered. "Mistakes that actors make during their shooting. Many times we release those funny cuts to the audience for their entertainment and to grab their at attention~"

He looked incredulous. "You are planning to release these wrong cuts?"

"Yes!" The director and Chyou chirped together.

"No! It's so embarrassing…"

"That's the whole point~"

"..."

I will be finished if those cuts are released, he sweated.

"Okay, let's try again."

They got into position once again and Yating was determined to make this cut successful.

Focus, focus!

"Action!"

Yating took a deep breath and raised his hand. He gently held her cheek without any problem this time. "You are the most…"

From the corner of his eye, he caught Ma Dong's familiar figure in the background. He slightly stiffened. His gaze was focused on Chyou, but he could tell that Ma Dong was watching him.

"You…are the…"

His calm breaths began to go haywire and slightly shivered.

'Yating, I trusted you. But you let me fall.'

He froze. He began to hear voices in his head as the imagery swirled before him.

'Why did you let go of my hand, Yating? I was counting on you.'

'It was so painful when I crashed, Yating.'

'It was very painful…'

Chyou blinked and immediately caught his face becoming paler. His fingers touching her cheek were trembling. She knew it wasn't possible to do this take either. But she didn't want him to fail in front of the director's eyes once again.

"Ouch!" She exclaimed and caught her ankle.

"Cut. What happened, Zhu Chyou?" The director asked, surprised.

She sheepishly grinned. "I am sorry. I think something just bit me. The dress is a little prickly."

"Hmm. Well, the fabric does look a little uncomfortable. Let's get a new dress. Till then, let us pause the shooting."

"Thank you!"

Yating had also broken off from his daze and he worriedly asked, "Is it like a cut or something? Do you need first-aid?"

"I think it's fine! Anyway, we got a break so why not head outside?"

—

The fresh air was pleasant to breathe. Yating felt his stiff shoulders relaxing. "I am sorry, Chyou. I am getting such a simple ad commercial delayed."

"You don't have to talk that way. You are not an actor. It's understandable," she pouted. "But what I don't understand why your mood suddenly changed during the third take?"

He pressed his lips. "...Li Dong was there. I sensed him gazing at me and all of a sudden, I heard these voices in my head. Guess his presence just affected me…"

Chyou gave it a thought. "It's not your fault, Yating. Those bad memories would keep coming back to you again and again whenever you see Ma Dong. The only way to face them is to face Ma Dong."

"Face Dong?" He frowned.

"I mean you should talk to him."

His eyes widened.

She nodded. "The only reason why it's affecting you so much is because you never got a chance to talk things out with him since the incident happened. You are directly meeting him years later. It's natural to feel uncomfortable. That discomfort would only go away if you have a proper conversation with each other. I am sure he wouldn't be blaming you because it wasn't on purpose. But you need to personally listen that from him. It's important to you or else you would never be able to forgive yourself."

He spoke after a long moment, "I think you are right…"

She proudly grinned. "I am always right."

He clasped his hands together. "Do you think he would want to talk to me?"

She glared at him. "Hey! I won't allow you to meet him with that attitude. You look like you are already taking the blame. It wasn't your fault, Yating. You did whatever you could and that's the message that should go to him."

"What if he doesn't think the same way?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Then I question if really was your good friend. He should know you better than me and that you would never even begin to think of hurting anybody. There is no place to play the blame game here, okay?"

Yating coughed with her stern scolding. "Ye-Yes, Mam."

"Hmph. Men are so emotional," she shook her head helplessly.

"..."

Isn't it more applicable for women?

"And gullible."

"..."

Yating felt the need to defend himself. "I am not gullible."

"Then prove it to me by having the proper conversation with Ma Dong and sorting things out with him," she seriously said with a squinted gaze.

Yating sighed and tried to mentally prepare himself. "I will talk to Dong just like the way you want."