Chapter 3 - Life Goes On

Leo just laid there on his bed, curled up in his position, not even so much as moving and he's pretty sure that he needs to or else his body is going to hate him for being so sore.

But Leo still doesn't move. His tears have long since dried and now that he's not drowning in his tears, screams, and sobs anymore, he could still hear his manager outside from the living room.

He wanted to sleep, heck, he needed to sleep this off and be ready for work tomorrow (If he didn't cry his eyes out for the rest of the day until the next day, he isn't even really sure what time is it now, or what day is it now for that matter), it felt like he had been crying for a long time and he wanted to at least get some sleep before he has to be up and moving again and if he doesn't want to look like a bug had bitten his eyes out. What's annoying though, is that sleep didn't come for Leo. The scene of Wen-ge and Song Joo making love and telling each other that they loved each other kept replaying on his mind like a fucking broken record.

He was way past the stage of denials and anger already, he had finally accepted that Wen-ge -- he loves the guy so fucking much -- cheated on him. With his fucking best friend behind his back. No, he's definitely not angry anymore. He thinks he's also passed the depressed stage, although he couldn't be sure. How does one get over their boyfriend who cheated on them? How does one ever get out of the clutches of depression after that? He doesn't really know.

"Leo-di?" A quiet voice said as he heard a knock on his door.

"What is it, Jie?" Leo sighed, he might as well talk to his manager before he loses his sanity thinking about Wen-ge and Song Joo's betrayal. He couldn't even begin to muster up the strength to pretend to be asleep so his manager wouldn't bother her.

"I tried to negotiate with the people from the awards night, but they said you have to be present to receive your awards or you'll be donned as disrespectful," His manager said, sounding upset at those people she talked with so she could make his excuse.

Leo was surprised. Has it really only been a few hours? Strange.

"Okay," Leo said, starting to untangle himself from his position on his bed. His bones had thankfully not cracked despite hearing some creaks here and there from being stuck in that position for long.

"Are you really okay with attending?" His manager asked, surprised.

"Yeah, I mean even though I'm hurting right now," Leo's voice had shamefully cracked. "Life goes on, right? I seem to have heard you saying that, Jie."

"Yeah, life goes on. Doesn't make it hurt any less though." His manager said softly.

"I'm going to drown myself with work, Jie. I just wanted to forget even for a bit." Leo said.

Leo was then led downstairs and they boarded the car again.

"Laoban, use this. Helps with the swelling." His make-up Jie said, handing Yibo a towel with ice cubes wrapped inside.

"Thank you," For the first time that day after Leo had broken down, he finally managed to pull a small smile. It was enough to reassure his team who felt very worried about his well-being.

Because they only have a little time, Leo's team rushed to get him ready. He was so grateful to his manager and his make-up artist Jie for being able to pull this off even though his eyes still look quite puffy.

They also didn't have enough time to sift through numerous outfits just for this night so they opted for a simple get-up with a three-piece suit.

Leo isn't really listening to the person who was talking on the stage. His mind is still somewhere far away and his bodyguard and manager are always there to snap him out of his reverie and plaster a carefully practiced smile on his face whenever the cameras are pointing at him.

Then came the time for him to receive the award.

He walked up the stage, that practiced smile still plastered on his face and when Zhao Sean handed him his trophy, he bowed and took a deep breath, preparing to face the crowd.

"Are you okay?" Leo was surprised when Zhao Sean had asked him quietly, barely a whisper as he was being handed his trophy.

"Thank you, I'm okay." Leo had whispered back, Zhao Sean nodding once--not even really noticeable to the audience.

Zhao Sean let go of the trophy and clapped his hands, holding the red microphone again before speaking.

"Congratulations, Wang Leo! Ladies and Gentlemen, the Model of the Year," Zhao Sean said. It was obvious he was used to presenting awards to artists as he doesn't even look at the cue card.

"A warm of applause for our Model of The Year," He said again and everyone had cheered and clapped. Zhao Sean then gestured to Leo to face the crowd and speak before them.

Wang Leo smiled again but facing the crowd this big, looking at each and everyone's faces, looking at the people who once supported him and hated him for winning awards after awards this year and the last, his lips wobbled a little.

This is what he's been working his butt off for.

He had once again proven that he's deserving, contrary to what the antis and haters are saying.

He had poured his blood, sweat, and tears to achieve this.

"First of all, I wanted to thank my parents. They have been with me and supporting me from the sidelines since day one, and I couldn't be more grateful for them. I also wanted to thank my team who had also been there every step of the way despite how tiring it is, how hard it is to put up with me, thank you so, so much," Leo took a deep steadying breath. He doesn't want to cry, not on this awards night where there are people waiting for him to trip and make a mistake so they could judge him more.

He isn't even going to think about how despite disobeying his parents by dating Wen-ge, they are still making their presence felt, supporting him. They don't need to speak with each other to know that even though Leo doesn't have anything or anyone to fall back on after everything that had happened to him, he knows that his family is still there for him.

"I also wanted to take this chance to thank my ever-supportive and loyal fans, to my MTJJs, and everyone who had liked me enough to support me in this and for those who had voted me for me to receive this award, thank you. I wouldn't be here without you,"

"I promise to work even harder and strive to become an artist that my fans could say my name proudly. Thank you very much!"

Wang Leo bowed again, he faced each and everyone and bowed for two minutes, showing everyone how grateful he is. The fact that everyone noticed Leo not mentioning YH Entertainment speaks volumes.

But nobody commented on it, they just speculated on it.