25 50 Shades of Dorian Gray
When Zhe Chouhen opened his eyes, he was sitting in front of an easel, paintbrush in hand, his eyebrows furrowed. He was wearing round rimless glasses, a shirt with a splattered rainbow paint design, and black suspenders.
He knew immediately what world this was.
"Sigh..... My luck with picking doors has run low. Another manipulative bastard." He put down the brush into the water, watching the colors dilute in swirls. "But then again, there's no need for luck when all doors lead to a scum gong."
He stretched his arms and looked for his new character's phone. It was Monday, 7:24 a.m, 2016.
"At least we're in modern times now, and it's not fantasy or sci-fi too. I miss eating fast food or playing online games and normal stuff." He rushed to his bed with a plop.
He felt his stomach grumble. "Hey, Daoist Panda. There's food in the fridge, right?"
There was no answer in his head.
"What? Is this your way of telling me not to be a lazy lout and look for it myself?" Zhe Chouhen yawned. "I feel so tired to get it. It feels like this body has been painting non-stop and didn't eat or sleep for a whole day."
Still no sign of him.
"Oy! Stop playing with me! If you won't answer, fine!" Zhe Chouhen covered his head with a blanket. "You think I'm desperate for your presence just because I called out to you once? That was an emergency, it's not because I like hearing your whiny voice or seeing your fat ugly face!"
His phone buzzed, and he went to check it.
It was an app notification.
The icon of the app was a panda.
[I'm here.]
Zhe Chouhen opened his phone, but there was a password. The book didn't mention the password.
Another notification came.
[The password is 55678.]
"Why can't you just talk to me in person, bro? What's with the shady app?" He grumbled but entered the password anyway.
The cover of the phone looked like a picture of a famous model or idol or something. Its quality was exquisite, and the subject itself was no less than good-looking.
The boy in the picture had bright blue eyes, blonde hair, and a seemingly bubbly personality. He reminded Zhe Chouhen too much of Daniele, and his heart ached.
But he knew this wasn't Daniele. This was Ashton Florice.
A.K.A modern version of Dorian Gray.
[He's not!] Another notification popped up.
Zhe Chouhen rolled his eyes. "You think I wouldn't notice the similarities of the themes behind this novel, 'Painted Lies' and Oscar Wilde's 'The Picture of Dorian Gray'?"
[...Alright, alright. I yield to the oh-so-great Literature Master Zhe Chouhen.]
"Hey, it's part of the reason why I can still continue reading your books. Classic literature is my life, man."
Zhe Chouhen looked over the apps and clicked on the one with the Daoist Panda icon. "What are you doing in my phone, anyway? Why can't you just show up as that stupid avatar again with your holograms and sparkles?"
When he opened the app, Daoist Panda's icon was there like those 'Feed your Pet' games like Talking Tom and Pou. Except that the options were only 'Chat' and 'See Meters'.
[Er.... I just thought this would be convenient. Since you probably wouldn't like sharing your headspace with someone else and hearing voices because of... You know. The Leandro incident.]
"How very considerate of you." Zhe Chouhen said sarcastically. "But I don't need it. I prefer you here with me."
Daoist Panda on the phone blushed, and a text bubble appeared. [I thought you hate my guts. Are you turning soft over my cuteness?]
"No, I'm just too lazy to type on my phone every time I want to speak to you in secret." Zhe Chouhen said. "Come back here."
[Ah, I should have known it's because of your laziness.] Daoist Panda smacked his own forehead disapprovingly. [But I can't join you now.]
"Why?"
[Er.... Um.... It's another rule set in stone.]
Zhe Chouhen narrowed his eyes, but he really does feel too tired to question it. "So you're stuck in my phone, huh? Wait.... Let me try this."
He poked Daoist Panda's tummy, and the 2D panda immediately had smoke come out of his ears. [Hey, what was that for!?]
He poked his head again, then dragged him in the air and played around, chuckling. "This is the best payback ever! You can't even fight back, hahahaha! Look at your red face! I'm glad you're stuck on my phone after all, I can bully you all I want!"
[Utter scum! Put me down! Put me down!] Daoist Panda's speech bubbles were large and angry as Zhe Chouhen lifted him in one leg, dangling him in the air.
After a few more teasing, he had his full, and somehow felt more energized. He went up to look for some quick grub on the fridge.
"When's the MC going to come, by the way?" He opened a can of soda a chugged it, still holding his phone.
Daoist Panda frowned. [Don't drink soft drinks so early in the morning if you don't want to get a stomachache.]
"Pfft, you're not my mom." Zhe Chouhen rolled his eyes and ate a stale bagel he found on the back of the fridge. "Man, this guy doesn't have any food on him. What a pity I didn't even get to be the rich scum gong. I had to be the poor scum gong."
[Well, Henry Basildon is not a famous painter yet in 2016. Wait for 2020.]
"Yeah, that's a fucking long time." Zhe Chouhen closed the empty fridge and just sighed on the plastics dining table. "I'm so hungry, I'm starting to want to try panda meat. You're so small now, it's like I can gobble you up in one bite!"
Daoist Panda ignored how dirty those words sounded. He's still feeling sorry for Zhe Chouhen, so he's trying to be nicer now. [Endure it for a while. Besides, Ashton will be coming soon from a modeling gig. He might buy you some cheap fried chicken or pizza.]
"Ayy, I don't want to live off someone's money, especially the MC's!" Zhe Chouhen grumbled. "The start of this book is so miserable, can't I just skip to the good part when we both start to become successful and rich?"
[Nope. All stories must start at the beginning. If you want, I could distract you for a bit while giving you a recap?]
"Nah, I'd rather play with you and poke you again."
Zhe Chouhen's pesky fingers were hovering above the screen, when Daoist Panda immediately spoke so text bubbles will appear and he can hide behind them!
[Henry Basildon is the male lead of 'Painted Lies'! He is based on both Basil Hallward and Lord Henry Wotton from Oscar Wilde's 1890 novella, The Picture of Dorian Gray! Therefore, he exhibits combined traits from the character!]
"Hehe, don't think you can hide in speech bubbles forever! They'll disappear the moment you stop talking!" Zhe Chouhen laughed maniacally, ready for the right moment to catch the panda with a few clicks and taps.
[You're evil! Don't touch me! A-Anyway, the main character of this novel, Ashton Florice, is an aspiring Hollywood actor but he still hasn't had his big break despite his good looks and great acting skills. He moved into a small apartment with his childhood friend, Henry, who grew up to be a painter.]
Zhe Chouhen managed to poke Daoist Panda's nose.
[Ow! Bastard!]
"Same as you."
The panda was drenched in sweat from all the running and hiding and immediately spoke again to conjure speech bubbles as a shield.
[Henry loved Ashton and decided to paint a picture of him, which he posted and soon circulated on the net as the 'Most Beautiful Boy in the World'. Because of this, producers gained interest in Ashton, and he had risen to stardom along with Henry.]
[But once he becomes a Hollywood star, more people fell in love with Ashton and so Henry wanted to find a way to make him only his and—]
"Henry, I'm home!" Said a sweet voice along with a knock at the door.
[Phew.] Panda sighed in relief. [Go meet with the guy.]
Zhe Chouhen lazily stood up from the chair. "Fine."
But before doing so, he still mischievously rubbed Panda's head.
He turned off his phone just as the panda cursed, and opened the door.
"Hey, what took you so long? Were you sleeping?" Ashton smiled at him. "I bought you your favorite! Double Graveyard Burgers and Curly Fries from BK!"
Zhe Chouhen was stunned and his mouth only gaped.
He's..... He's so much more beautiful in person. It's enough to petrify someone. But more importantly.....
"Hello? Earth to Henry?" He waved a hand over his face. "Did you stay up late again? I know you have a deadline to finish for the exhibit, but you shouldn't —"
"Daniele." The name escaped his lips before he could stop himself.
Ashton blinked. "Who's Daniele? Is she your girlfriend?"
Zhe Chouhen composed himself, and shook his head. "No, you just heard wrong. I was just mumbling from the daze."
He remembered Henry's characteristics and behavior from the book and picked up the plastic bag from Ashton's hand.
"You're really the best, Ash. You shouldn't have bought me this much, you're too kind."
Henry Basildon likes showering his 'friend' with praises left and right, like some kind of simp.
Ashton was long used to it and wasn't flattered, just chuckling it off. "I got a new gig today, it'll luckily keep us alive for a few days. But it's not enough to pay rent."
He hung his coat with a sigh. "I would have to rely on you and the money you'll get from the exhibit again. Sorry. I'll try harder to find more scraps of odd jobs in the newspaper ads or something."
The demeanor is different and definitely more casual..... But he still has that thoughtfulness Daniele has. It's throwing Zhe Chouhen out of the loop a bit.
His phone buzzed. Daoist Panda sent him a notification.
[Say something to lighten his mood so you can add your Love Meter.]
'Henry' cleared his throat, and approached Ashton to pat his head. "It's alright. One day, you won't be the one looking for hirings, people will be the one looking to hire you. I'm sure of it."
"Aww, thanks a lot, man." Ashton smiled brightly, the kind of smile that could steal the heart of millions. "That means a lot to me. Someday, we'll be the richest and most popular boys in West Hollywood, mark my words!"
Notification popped up. [Love Meter raised to 10%!]
As they ate burgers and fries, Zhe Chouhen couldn't help but be worried. He reminded himself again and again.....
(This time, I shouldn't fall in love. Daoist Panda is helping me now, I shouldn't waste his efforts and get back home quickly.)
But the more he looked at this man who resembled his first love..... The more he felt that his heart was in great danger.
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