Silently fuming, Xuemei did not say anything to the maid who opened the door for her and ignored her parents as she walked passed the living room. Everyone looked rather surprised as this was the first time Xuemei showed signs of her past attitude. Walking into her room, she still calmly placed her shoes away and properly put her dress away before changing into her pajamas. If it were not for the stiff expression on her face, one would have trouble realizing the terrible mood she was in.

For Christian, Liuwei was the only semi-friend or even acquaintance that he made after waking up from the coma. For him to react without any signs of supporting Christian’s thoughts and hopes, it made him upset. Less because of the rejection, and more because of what type of rejection it was. He acted as if he was in charge of Christian’s actions like a parent more than a friend. This type of controlling attitude did not sit well with Christian who saw himself as an adult and wished to be treated as such. During this time, he forgot his mental age did not match up with his appearance. He felt that he connected with Liuwei well because their age range was more similar, however, maybe this entire time Liuwei was looking at him like he looked at a child or younger brother. In the end, it seemed that he was shutting himself in too much. Thankfully, college would start soon and he would try to audition to join a company and his world would grow much larger. New people to meet and friends to make. Those who could help him really start up his new life. Not the old Xuemei’s friends, not his old friends, but new friends of the Xuemei now that was a mix of the past. Ultimately, his military life made this transition easier. In a sad sense, he did not have many attachments to his past life. Yes, there were his military buddies, but that was it. No family, no wife, no kids of his own, not even a girlfriend. All the missions really took a toll on his personal life and how he handled social interaction. Who wouldn’t close themselves off after everything he saw and went through? For a while, he was also going through counseling. It was a secret to everyone else because he did not want anyone to see his weakness. However, paranoia and PTSD were real struggles for him. Hard to know who to trust when you are keeping secrets from almost everyone.

So many black ops that no one knew about, the assassinations pulled off as accidents, being in the line of fire during wars. In the moment, it was the adrenaline that kept him going. Once he returned, though, everything haunted his mind during the night. Apparently, even now, he would wake up screaming at night. His new parents were extremely worried, but the doctor said that it was not unusual for people who went through traumatic events. Ironically, it was true that Christian had been through traumatic events just not the ones that they were obviously thinking of.

“Ugh, let’s not think about it. This is ridiculous. That is no longer my life.” Groaning into his pillow, Christian flopped onto his bed while stuck in his thoughts. Right about then was when he heard a knock at the door.

“Come in.” He called out. The door swung open to reveal both his parents wearing concerned expressions.

“Mei-er, is everything alright?” His mom swooped in and grabbed onto his hand.

“Yes, everything is fine.” Christian rubbed his temples, trying to calm himself down.

“Did that boy do something? Is that it? Did he say something to you? You just let Daddy know and he will make sure that surnamed Gu will regret it!” Evidently heading in the wrong direction with his assumptions, Mr. Tang shouted angrily.

“Wait… What?”

“Well, was this not a date? Your father and I thought that he might have done something inappropriate to you. We approved the date only because he showed himself to be mature and responsible when we saw him before. Only, seeing you so upset, we thought that maybe it was fake.”

“No, no, no! You have completely misunderstood. This wasn’t a date. He just said he was going to take me out to celebrate my score. He was my tutor after all. Plus, with all my martial arts training, do you really think he could one-up me so easily? Your daughter is not so weak.”

“Not a date?” Looking visibly relieved, both the parents let go of their tension.

“Then, why were you so upset?” Father Tang asked after realizing their original assumptions were incorrect.

“Dad, don’t worry, it’s nothing. I’m already over it.”

“Mei-er, there’s nothing you cannot tell your father and mother. We just worry, you know? We will only get anxious if you bottle up your feelings.” Insisting on pushing for an answer, Father Tang did not give up. One really could not blame them for being busybodies. Their child had committed suicide last time due to her grievances. The counselor had said that they needed to be more present in their child’s life and try their best to make sure she would never feel alone or unloved.

Christian could spot their thoughts a mile away. Inwardly sighing, he knew that these two had been through enough for a lifetime. Plus, it was not like he could leave his aspirations a secret forever. If he really wanted to become a celebrity, then they would find out sooner rather than later due to the manner that news spreads in the entertainment industry.

“Dad, Mom, it was really nothing. I just told him about my future dream job and he disapproved. I was annoyed because it felt like he was trying to dictate my life as a parent instead of hearing me out like a friend. It made me feel as if I did not really have a friend in the first place. Therefore, I was upset. But I already don’t care. I will be starting university soon and will make tons of new friends. There is no reason for me to dwell on someone that will just be a passerby in my life.” This statement was true. He really did give it some thought and realized that this Gu Liuwei was just his tutor. Once he moved away and went to University, there would be tons of new people he would meet and this person would fade away to a past acquaintance. The only reason he felt hung up about it in the first place was because Liuwei was about the only person who Christian spoke to outside of the Tang Family.

“Well, we are glad you can think about it like this.” Although worried that his daughter sounded a little too cold and rational, Father Tang was more relieved to see her like this than her past easily influenced self.

“Meimei, you never told us what you wanted to do. I saw that you want to be a finance and business management major. Do you want dad to set up a job for you at the company in your spare time as a type of internship to gain experience?”

“No, I don’t want to help with the business. I’m really only learning in case of emergencies if the family needs my help. My dream is to become an actress!”

“Actress?” Mother and Father Tang looked unsurprised as the old Tang Xuemei used to go on about wanting to be a celebrity. They did assume, however, that with her recent changes, her dream would change as well. Slightly old-fashioned, the parents were not completely comfortable with their daughter entering a deep and dirty cesspool that is the entertainment industry while almost selling her body and face. Only, they already almost lost her once. If they lost their daughter once more due to something small like outdated values and thought processes, then they were not qualified parents. What was wrong with being an actress anyways? They were pretty, successful, and loved by many. There were also tons of branches that one could go into through becoming a celebrity. The thought of their pretty daughter being on TV lightened their moods.

“Well, Mom and Dad will support you no matter what route you go. Just let us know if you need the money. Don’t be too embarrassed. Your parents have mucked around enough in the business world to know that most things in this world will not happen without greasing the palms of those in power a little. Our Tang family may disdain accepting bribes, but that doesn’t mean we are going to make life harder for ourselves by avoiding using bribes on others. If others are evil, then what do we get in return for trying to stay righteous?” Mother Tang grabbed onto her daughter’s hand and hinted accordingly.

Smiling warmly, Christian suddenly felt that this life might end up better than his last one. At least, he already is starting out ahead with a family who is still alive and supports him. Making up his mind at that moment, Christian knew what he needed to do. From now on, even in his mind, he should stop referring to himself as Christian. No matter what, that name was his past and was no longer a part of his future.

He was now a she. And she was Tang Xuemei.

Author's Note:

From this moment on, I will only refer to Xuemei as "she/her" and stop mentioning Christian's name. This is for the sake of character development and also ease of reading to prevent confusion.