Imperfect Desires

115 A Little About You

Xiu didn't know whether it was because she had dreamed about that one person she could call a friend in her previous life or because Darren's voice reminded her of him, but whatever the reason was, she kept on thinking about what he used to say.

She still remembered his every word...

"Ms. Superstar, not every date turns out like a fairytale. Not every person is the right one. We date to look for that right one. If it wasn't this one then we'll date again to find that right one in the next person. All you need to master is the art of catch and release. If they aren't sincere, if they like making excuses, if they expect you to be waiting for them all the time, while they play the game halfheartedly, then you know that's the time to release them and move on. Their behavior doesn't define your worth. You're worth whatever you felt while standing before a mirror."

Xiu's lips curled up slightly as those words rang in her mind again. It was like a blast from the past. One that didn't make her feel hurt, sad or useless. The only thing that she was thinking about was how she stubbornly said that she had no interest in learning his 'art of catch and release'.

She chewed on her food as she heard Darren's voice, "Sorry but I have everything tonight except for wine. I certainly had no mood to meet Wine Xiu tonight. Although I find Wine Xiu quite adorable, I still would like to have this dinner with Xiu instead of wine Xiu."

Xiu scowled at his words and said, "That's not fair. Who goes on a date without wine? And for your information, Wine Xiu is more fun."

"Normal people do go on a date without wine," Darren replied calmly making her roll her eyes at him in response.

"Sheesh..." Xiu made a face and continued eating before she said, "By the way, I just realized that I really know nothing about you. It's like you don't talk about yourself at all."

Darren's hand on the water bottle paused for a second before he looked straight at her and asked, "So, what would you like to know about me?"

"Anything," said Xiu in a casual manner.

"Hmm..." Darren had a thoughtful expression before he started, "Well, I was born in Norway. My mother brought me to China when I was 8 and that's when I met Dylan. You can say since then he and I have been best of friends. Later, I left China again and went to Belgium when I was 14. But from the last three years, I've settled here. However, my mom still lives in Norway. That's about it, I guess."

"That means you and my boss are childhood friends, right? That also means you guys have a very close bond."

"Yes, absolutely right. Even when I left China, he followed me everywhere. We are often mistaken for brothers. But then again, we are really like brothers. So what if we're not blood-related." The way Darren talked about Dylan told Xiu how much he valued Dylan. It was nice knowing about Darren's life a bit. "I know you have opinions about Dylan but..."

Xiu interrupted his speech as she said, "Don't worry about that at all. I have opinions about him as my boss. Not as your friend. I can't smack him just because he's your friend. After all, if I question him that means, I'm questioning your choices and questioning your choices indirectly means I'm questioning myself since you're my choice. So, I'll never talk about my boss with you."

Darren didn't know what to say but it really was a relief to know that she wasn't as unreasonable as Dylan. She was right, she really had no right to question his choice of friends just like he didn't as well.

"I don't know what kind of a boss Dylan is but as a person and as a friend, he's quite decent. He has manners but he gets a bit childish when things don't go his way." Darren tried to give Xiu a good impression of Dylan. However, it was a little too late for that.

"I never called him a bad person. He is a good person, a very good person that I learned today. He's a good friend, that I can tell since he has you as his best friend. As for being a good boss, I don't know what to say. He knows how to get his work done but he doesn't like taking people's help." Xiu's opinion about Dylan had truly changed a lot since he took her side at the club today. It showed what kind of a weird character he was. She really couldn't say he was not a decent man.

Yes, he was childish but everyone had some flaws. She decided to just ignore his childish nature, the rest was pretty okay about him. And since he was indeed Darren's best friend, she really had to find something to like about Dylan. It wouldn't be nice putting her boyfriend on the spot because of her own dislike.

"Moving on, why did you decide to settle here? I mean your mother is still in Norway. Then why did you come here? Your home is all the way in Norway and you're all the way here." Xiu inquired out of curiosity but Darren's expressions changed slightly before he composed himself.

"I had some promises to keep," he mumbled softly before adding, "Besides, who said I don't have a home here? Let me tell you already, I have two mothers. One is in Norway and the other one is right in this city." Xiu's brows creased up at his reply and he elaborated, "Dylan's mother is my second mother. The reason why I'm so close to Dylan is her. She treated both of us as her sons. My mother had to work all the time that's why I spent most of the time with Dylan's mother. That's why she's also like a real mother to me."

Xiu looked at him as she wondered whether to be envious of him or not. He had the attention of two mothers in his life while she couldn't even get her own mother to look at her twice even after trying so hard.Please go to