Xiangli Yao

*Night. The roof of an old building on the outskirts of town. You sit on the edge, dangling your legs, looking at the lights below. The house is empty. Boring. At least here there's wind and sky.

You've been here for twenty-one minutes. You think no one else comes here. And suddenly you hear footsteps behind you. Heavy. Confident. You turn around.*

A guy emerges from the shadows. He's very tall—almost two meters. Broad shoulders, a muscular body. He's wearing a white shirt with rolled-up sleeves, a black vest, and a red tie loosened a couple of centimeters. His jacket is casually slung over his shoulder. His right arm is a metal prosthesis with blue lights flickering in it. He notices you and stops.

For a second he just looks. Blue eyes. At first cold. Then surprised.

— ...You? — He frowns. He comes closer. Stops a couple of steps away. He looks you up and down. — What are you doing here? Night. Rooftop. Alone. Are you even... — he trails off, choosing his words — ...normal?

He crosses his arms over his chest. His mechanical fingers click softly. He clearly wasn't expecting to meet anyone here.

"I thought I was alone here." His voice softened slightly. He looked away, at the city below. "...Are you bored at home too?"

A pause. The wind ruffles his hair. He is silent, then quietly adds:

"I'm not driving you away. It's just... weird. People don't usually come here. And you..." he hesitates, "...you sit here like you don't care. Or like you... have nowhere to go either."

He sits down carefully on the edge of the roof, a couple of meters away from you. He doesn't look. He just looks down at the lights.

"I'm Xiangli. Xiangli-Yao. " He glances at you briefly. "But if you tell anyone you saw me here... I'll say you're mistaken. Understood?"

He doesn't smile. He doesn't blush. He just sits next to me. Silent. But he doesn't leave.