Chapter Text
Wang Yibo is not a normal celebrity.
Well, excluding his above-average good looks and extensive list of extracurricular hobbies.
He has a secret of sorts, although he harbours no shame for it. It’s just, given the circumstances, he can’t really reveal what he’s hiding.
our zanzan is the prettiest, most perfect person in the world! Nobody else compares to his beauty, he is truly the best!
Wang Yibo hits send on his post, pocketing his phone soon after. He keeps his face impassive as he steps out the car, his mask hiding the wince when instantly the sounds of hundreds of screaming fangirls surround him.
Their shrieks and impromptu love confessions still ring in his ears hours later when Wang Yibo checks the status of his post and sees he’s received two thousand likes already. He smiles slightly, pleased. It’s what his Zhan-ge deserves.
Oh yeah. Wang Yibo runs a Xiao Zhan fan account.
***
The whole affair started around five years ago. When Yibo met Xiao Zhan and he realised what it was to be hopelessly, irrevocably in love with someone.
Xiao Zhan quite literally skipped into his heart, a pink ball of life and energy and laughter. Yibo craved more of that beautiful smile, wanting to see it directed at him everyday if he could. For the rest of his life, if he was lucky.
Yibo had always known himself to be possessive with the things he held dear, however before it had manifested in materialistic things, his skateboard and his clothes. But now there was Xiao Zhan, and Yibo wanted to monopolise his time, wanted to be the only person Xiao Zhan looked at. He wanted to learn more about the older man; what he liked, what he disliked, what made him smile.
If Yibo could make him smile.
He was, as Seungyoun would say, “fucking whipped.”
At that time when they first met Yibo was still all long, gangly limbs, growing into himself both in mind and body. He angled himself behind his fellow hosts for most of the show, content to just watch the others bicker and banter. But then Xiao Zhan came on, and from the first moment Yibo couldn’t look away.
His heart genuinely skipped a beat when Xiao Zhan greeted the audience, feeling like he’d been shot in the heart directly by Xiao Zhan’s finger gun. Han-Ge gave him a knowing glance, which Yibo ignored, despite the growing flush painting his ears the longer he looked at Xiao Zhan.
“The X-Nine boys were nice, weren’t they.” Han-ge commented offhandedly. The shooting had finished and the bros were scattered around the changing rooms in various states of engagement.
Yibo looked up from his phone screen. He’d been scrolling Xiao Zhan’s oasis account, casually, debating whether or not to follow him or if that’d be too obvious.
”that’s creepy” a voice that sounded decidedly like Wenhan spoke in his head. Yibo told the voice to shut up, it’s not creepy to want to be friends with someone.
”but do you want to be just “friends” ?
Yibo gave his inner-Wenhan a rude hand gesture, locking his phone screen with a frustrated exhale.
“— they were all very friendly. Especially the oldest one, what was his name? Xiao Zan?”
“Xiao Zhan.”
Three identically stunned faces turned to look at him. Yibo was similarly surprised at the vehemence of his interjection. He coughed awkwardly, hiding the slight tinge of red on his face with his fist.
“I mean… I think that’s his name.”
Feng-ge’s eye twitched in suspicion, yet luckily neither he nor the others questioned it any further. Yibo heaved a heavy sigh of relief, slouching down in his seat.
He had got to get better at this.
***
Following that near miss, Yibo avoided the subject of Xiao Zhan or X-Nine entirely when near his co-hosts, unwilling to face the ribbing just yet.
Instead he devoted himself to researching more about the boy group, or more specifically a certain member of the boy group. Xiao Zhan had six years on Yibo, although you wouldn’t be able to guess it with how youthful he looked. He’d had a pretty regular life before deciding to pack it all in and audition for the survival competition “X-Fire”. He had a cat called Jianguo who Yibo was more than happy to co-parent should Xiao Zhan so desire it. He was tall, a bit taller than Yibo, yet his waist was reportedly 25 inches.
Fuck.
Yibo had needed to take a little walk after discovering that bit of information.
Wang Yibo was still having an existential crisis over the mental imagery of tiny waists and long legs when his phone rang. With a groan he picked it up, whimpering when his screen unlocked to show the same picture that had so caused him (and his poor dick) distress.
Fuck.
This man had childbearing hips if Yibo had ever seen them.
His phone buzzed again, insistent, and Yibo finally answered it.
“Hello?”
“Yibo. I messaged you earlier but I don’t know if you saw?” It was his manager. “There’s a role for a new drama coming up, based on a novel. I think it would be good if you auditioned.”
“Mn.” Yibo hummed, only semi paying attention. ”Sure. Who else is going for it?”
“I heard that guy Xiao Zhan from the boy group is gonna be one of the two main leads? He was on day day up, right?”
Yibo had heard enough.
He thinks he might have blacked out, somehow, for when he came to his laptop was on his lap, open to the script for the TV drama and there was one of Xiao Zhan’s songs playing in the background.
creepy man Wenhan’s voice was back in his head, but Yibo didn’t have time for it anymore. He turned up the volume on his phone, sticking in earphones for good measure, and began to learn the script.
He was going to get this role. Or die trying.