Shoutout to Kari for the commission!
His gaze dropped, coming to rest on Le Cheng’s slightly blurry smiling face.
The next moment, his lowered palm lifted. He could no longer restrain himself. He pressed down on that slender waist and pulled the person tightly into his arms.
Le Cheng let out a small gasp. The force was so great that it almost felt as though Zhou Shirui were going to crush him. His chin knocked against Zhou Shirui’s collarbone, causing a slight ache.
“Le Cheng…” Zhou Shirui’s voice was low. Despite the curtain of rain between them, it was crystal clear in his ears. “You hugged me.”
“Hm?” Le Cheng paused. “Yes. I hugged you.”
Yet Zhou Shirui repeated again, “You hugged me.”
“Mm.” Le Cheng answered seriously. “I hugged you.”
You’ve hugged me, so don’t let go again.
Beneath the curtain of rain, cars sped along the road with their headlights on, illuminating the walls and night sky in flickering patches of light. Zhou Shirui looked at the shadows of the two of them holding each other tightly, appearing and disappearing beneath the reflected lights. It was so noisy around his ears, yet his heart was so quiet.
“Zhou Shirui.” Le Cheng quietly let him hold him for a while. “Should we go back?”
Zhou Shirui gave a soft “Mm.” “Do you want to eat cake?”
“It’s so late…” Le Cheng said this, but then added, “But I want some.”
He didn’t want to let go. It was an emotion resembling the fear of having a bubble of fear suddenly popped, and also like the moment was so beautiful that it was difficult to believe it was real. Zhou Shirui didn’t move.
Like an adult, Le Cheng stroked his back twice, then said, “Zhou Shirui, let’s go.”
“Okay.” Only then did Zhou Shirui release him, but he didn’t let go completely. His long fingers moved downward and clasped Le Cheng’s hand.
His palm was dry, except for one small damp spot. Le Cheng rubbed it twice, then lifted that finger in front of his face. It was a bandage. There was a bandage wrapped around his finger, but it had gotten a little damp.
Le Cheng looked puzzled. “How did your bandage get dirty?”
“But luckily, I brought some.” Le Cheng rummaged around in his pocket for a moment and pulled out several bandages decorated with line-drawn puppies. “Let’s take this one off and put on a new one.”
Zhou Shirui had no objection and softly said, “Mm.”
Le Cheng reached out and helped him peel it off, revealing the tender red wound that hadn’t fully healed yet. He lowered his head and blew on it, then carefully applied a new bandage.
Zhou Shirui stood there, watching the round crown of Le Cheng’s hair. His heart beat very slowly as he heard Le Cheng say softly, “I’ll give you these bandages. It’ll be more convenient for you to change them.”
But Zhou Shirui frowned and answered without hesitation, “I don’t want them.”
Le Cheng froze. “Huh?” He hesitated for a moment. “Do you think they’re too childish?”
These were not the bandages he had bought himself. He had gotten this particular style when the club had made a bulk purchase before.
Zhou Shirui pressed his lips together. “No.”
Then what was the reason? Le Cheng thought about it, but he had clearly misunderstood and said generously, “Oh, I have plenty of bandages anyway. I have two big boxes of this style… If you want to use some in the future, just ask me and I’ll get them for you.”
He half-forcibly placed the bandages into Zhou Shirui’s palm, then curved his brows and smiled. “Alright, let’s go buy some cake.”
He pulled Zhou Shirui along and picked up the umbrella that had fallen onto the ground earlier. “Hurry up, or we won’t be able to get back later…”
But in the next instant, his wrist was caught. He was pulled forward several steps, and Zhou Shirui looked straight at him. “If I want some, I just ask you for them?”
Le Cheng was slightly stunned. He hadn’t expected Zhou Shirui to still be hung up on this question. He nodded. “Of course! I’ll definitely give them to you right away!”
Zhou Shirui stared at him for a long while without moving, then very lightly curled his lips into a smile. “Okay.”
It was a very faint smile. Coincidentally, a sedan drove over from a distance, its headlights passing through the curtain of rain and breaking into hazy, gentle beams of light that illuminated Zhou Shirui’s features. His dark eyes were focused and calm, his long eyelashes lowered slightly.
Le Cheng froze for a moment, and his heart suddenly gave a little flutter.
It was a difficult feeling to put into words. He stood there dazed for quite a while before stammering, “You… actually, you look even, even better when you smile.”
“Do I?” Zhou Shirui gazed at him.
“Mm.” Le Cheng answered seriously. “You should smile more. If you smile more, your luck will get better too.”
Zhou Shirui looked into his eyes. If he could cast aside the first twenty years of his life, then at this moment, he really was incredibly lucky.
After buying the cake, they took a taxi back. Just before returning to the dormitory, Le Cheng walked a few steps, then turned his head and saw that Zhou Shirui was still standing there holding the umbrella, as though he wanted to make sure Le Cheng got upstairs safely. Something stirred in Le Cheng’s heart, and he turned around again, walking back to Zhou Shirui.
“Zhou Shirui.” Le Cheng thought for a moment, then said seriously, “If you’re in a bad mood, you can call me.”
Before, he had always thought that Zhou Shirui possessed so many more things than he did. But after seeing him again tonight, he realized that Zhou Shirui also had so many things that he lacked.
He couldn’t explain what exactly had motivated him to do these things, the reason he had come today, for example, or this hug.
Maybe… at this moment, he simply didn’t want to see Zhou Shirui sad.
As though he had figured out the logic himself, Le Cheng nodded again. “Mm. Remember, if you’re unhappy, you can come find me.”
Zhou Shirui was a very good person. Le Cheng had always treated the people around him well, so he wanted to treat Zhou Shirui even better.
“Okay.” Zhou Shirui stared at him for a few seconds, then softly repeated, “Come to you when my wound hurts, come to you when I’m unhappy. What else?”
Le Cheng wanted to say that he could come to him for many things, that he would always be there. But he hesitated. Their relationship was too impure. It contained too many selfish motives of his own, from deliberately approaching him at the beginning, to distancing himself, to using him. And now, he genuinely cared about Zhou Shirui a little. At this moment, he couldn’t figure things out, nor could he promise forever or always.
“I’ll add more later.” Le Cheng curved his brows into a smile. “You should hurry and go to sleep. The dormitory is about to close.”
“Mm.” Zhou Shirui said, “Good night.”
“Good night.”
When Le Cheng returned to the dormitory, He Ziqing and Tan Xiaobai saw him come back and very skillfully asked, “What tasty food did you bring today?”
Le Cheng placed the cake on the table. “Dessert after dinner!”
The two of them immediately climbed down from their beds with their eyes shining.
While eating the cake, He Ziqing said very seriously, “I think the biggest beneficiaries of Le Cheng being in a relationship… are the two of us.”
“That’s true.” Tan Xiaobai nodded. “I agree.”
Le Cheng laughed twice, then heard Tan Xiaobai say, “So, Little Classmate Le Cheng, for the sake of our taste buds, I sincerely wish that you and Zhou Shirui can stay together for a long, long time.”
He Ziqing: “Same here.”
Le Cheng smiled. “Just because of this, you two are way too food-obsessed!”
Tan Xiaobai: “We don’t have a thing for beauty, and we don’t gamble. What’s wrong with being food-obsessed?”
The three of them burst into laughter.
After splitting one cake between himself, Tan Xiaobai, and He Ziqing, Le Cheng lay down on his bed to sleep. Then he suddenly remembered something. He opened Zhou Shirui’s chat window, wanting to take a look at his Moments.
He hadn’t paid attention to Zhou Shirui’s updates in a long time. He reached out his finger and accidentally tapped Zhou Shirui’s profile picture.
“Orange” nudged you.
[Client Senior Zhou: Hm?]
It was almost an instant reply.
[Orange: ! I tapped it by accident.]
[Client Senior Zhou: It’s fine.]
Le Cheng hadn’t expected him to still be awake so late. He tapped away at the screen:
[Orange: Alright, I’ll go to sleep then…]
[Client Senior Zhou: I didn’t tap it by accident.]
Le Cheng’s fingertips paused.
[Orange: Huh??]
[The other person is typing…]
Cancel.
[The other person is typing…]
[Client Senior Zhou: It’s fine, go to sleep.]
Le Cheng stared at those words, go to sleep, feeling a little dazed. He was about to reply when, with a “Ding-dong–,” another message popped up.
[Client Senior Zhou: Line-drawn puppy goodnight.jpg]
Huh?
Le Cheng’s eyes widened as he looked at the adorable line-drawn puppy.
Zhou Shirui actually used stickers?
It wasn’t that he didn’t know how. It was just that Le Cheng had never seen him send one before.
And besides… seeing this familiar-looking sticker, Le Cheng couldn’t resist teasing him.
[Orange: Our super-cold Zhou Shirui, Senior Zhou from university, actually knows how to use stickers now?]
[Client Senior Zhou: Cold?]
[Orange: And you even stole mine!]
[Client Senior Zhou: Mm.]
[Client Senior Zhou: Don’t like it?]
[Orange: I don’t dislike it. I like it.]
[Client Senior Zhou: I like it too.]
Le Cheng was slightly stunned.
He stared at those words, I like it too, and for some reason, his mind wandered.
“Ding-dong, ”
[Client Senior Zhou: Cute.]
[Client Senior Zhou: Go to sleep. Good night.]
Le Cheng felt as though his heart had been unexpectedly poked in a small spot. He tapped at the screen and blinked somewhat unnaturally.
[Orange: Good night.]
***
The next day, Le Cheng received a call from Xu Yuan.
Xu Yuan happily told him over the phone, “Le Cheng! The school leaders saw you go on stage yesterday and thought you had a good image, a good temperament, and that your Mandarin was also very good. They’ve decided to have you be the host!”
Le Cheng: “???”
He was a little dumbfounded. “Huh? But, but I’m not a professional… and I’m pretty busy too…”
Xu Yuan said, “It’s fine. Didn’t you do a great job during the rehearsal? It just so happens that the original guy had something come up at home and can’t make it. We were going to have to find someone to fill in anyway, and you’re perfect for it.”
Le Cheng still wanted to politely decline when he heard Xu Yuan say earnestly, “This gives you credits, you know. How many are you still short this semester?”
Le Cheng suddenly fell silent. This semester, he’d been completely occupied with working on his manuscript, grinding himself to death. Aside from his major courses, which he attended without missing a single one, he basically hadn’t gone to any other activities or lectures.
“Suddenly, I feel like being a host isn’t so bad.” Le Cheng was instantly full of enthusiasm.
“Hahahahaha, alright then.” Xu Yuan was amused by him. “I’ll call you over again later and help you get more familiar with it, so you don’t make any mistakes on stage.”
Le Cheng readily agreed. “Okay! Thank you, President.”
***
In the blink of an eye, the Cultural Festival gala began. Right before going on stage, Le Cheng was a little nervous.
He hadn’t been nervous during the rehearsal because at the time, he had only wanted to complete the task, and there had been no audience below. He had merely been going through the motions.
But now it was different. He really was going on stage as the host. Below him sat a vast sea of people, so dense it seemed to stretch endlessly. The lights shone down on the red carpet. Le Cheng poked his head out from backstage and took a look. It felt so formal, and so grand.
Xu Yuan and Tan Xiaobai comforted him, “It’s fine. Once you go up there, just talk your head off. Don’t worry about whether you do well or not. Once you’re done talking and come back down, close your eyes and open them again, it’ll all be over in no time!”
Le Cheng: “…………”
Seeing that he was nervous, Xu Yuan and Tan Xiaobai patted him on the shoulder and left first, letting him memorize his lines for a while and calm down.
Le Cheng lowered his head and read through them another two times. It wasn’t that he was particularly socially anxious; he was just a little afraid of embarrassing himself.
“Click.”
The doorknob turned. Hearing the sound, Le Cheng looked up and unexpectedly met Zhou Shirui’s gaze.
“Hm?” Le Cheng was a little surprised. “Weren’t you sitting out front? How did you end up backstage?”
Zhou Shirui looked at him. Le Cheng was wearing a formal outfit that outlined his slender waist, while the legs wrapped in his dress pants were long and straight. Zhou Shirui walked closer and asked, “Nervous?”
“Mm, a little.” Le Cheng nodded. His fingertips drifted to his lips, and he somewhat wanted to bite his nails. He had this habit whenever he was nervous.
Zhou Shirui reached out and gently held his chin. “Don’t bite.”
Le Cheng raised his head to look at him, following the force of his hand. Zhou Shirui said, “Close your eyes.”
Not understanding why, Le Cheng still did as he said.
The next moment, he felt himself being hugged. It was a very light hug. Le Cheng was slightly startled as Zhou Shirui’s voice clearly entered his ears. “Le Cheng, take a deep breath.”
Before he had time to think, Le Cheng did as he was told. After taking several deep breaths, the restless tension that had been knotted in his chest really seemed to dissipate. Only then did he feel a belated sense of embarrassment. He gently pushed Zhou Shirui and said softly, “I don’t feel nervous anymore.”
“Mm.” Yet Zhou Shirui didn’t let go of him. His voice was low as he instead asked, “…Did you change your body wash?”
It was a rather personal question. Before Le Cheng could answer, the bridge of Zhou Shirui’s high nose lightly brushed against the skin at the back of his neck, bringing a brief, tingling shiver.
He trembled and let out a quick laugh. “…Ah, that tickles! Don’t rub against me…”
Le Cheng couldn’t help tilting his face upward, laughing as he squirmed around. “I changed it… I changed to a new body wash!”
As he rubbed against him like that, something seemed to crawl up from Zhou Shirui’s lower abdomen. Zhou Shirui pressed down on his waist with one hand. “Don’t move.”
The back of Le Cheng’s neck was especially ticklish. Being touched normally was fine, but he was afraid of the sensation of someone blowing on it. He shook his head, laughing so hard that tears were almost coming out. “Don’t do that… I’m really ticklish…”
This was backstage. Zhou Shirui’s Adam’s apple bobbed. He closed his eyes, then gripped Le Cheng’s hips with both hands and pressed him against the sofa. He brushed aside the slightly messy black hair over his forehead and asked in a low voice, “What scent is it?”
Le Cheng was being stared at by him. He looked upward as he thought. “I think it’s fruity…”
He couldn’t really remember. He always bought body wash casually, but he had a particular fondness for fruity scents. He had opened a new bottle while showering last night and hadn’t looked closely at it.
He sniffed his own wrist, but there was no scent at all. So he simply leaned closer and lowered his head. “Do you really like it? Then smell it and tell me what scent it is. I forgot too.”
Zhou Shirui stared fixedly at that fair, slender neck. Just moments ago, Le Cheng had said he was afraid of being tickled, but now he was exposing his vulnerability without any reservations. Le Cheng was always like this, seemingly completely defenseless, yet also as if he were boldly tempting him.
It had already been a long time since they had last kissed.
Zhou Shirui was not a saint. It was easy for him to react to Le Cheng. The only reason he had endured until now was that Le Cheng was very busy, and they rarely got to see each other.
Even when they were alone in the same room, Le Cheng showed little desire, as if simply holding Zhou Shirui’s hand or hugging him was enough to make him completely satisfied.
Le Cheng had a simple nature, and his affection was equally pure, carrying a bit of the student-like innocence he had retained from high school. He didn’t even dare to openly play games during class.
That was what Zhou Shirui had observed.
Zhou Shirui didn’t want to show that impatient, lustful side of himself in front of Le Cheng. Le Cheng hadn’t taken the initiative to kiss him, and Zhou Shirui had hidden his desire very well.
Previously, Le Cheng had patiently taken things step by step, waiting for him to slowly fall in love. So now, Zhou Shirui was also willing to patiently take things step by step, waiting for Le Cheng to get used to it and then take the initiative himself.
Besides, although Le Cheng hadn’t taken the initiative to kiss him during these past two weeks, he had done many other things that represented intimacy on his own initiative.
They had only officially been dating for a month. He shouldn’t be so anxious.
Zhou Shirui looked at that stretch of delicate skin and lowered his head slightly, gently sniffing it.
Le Cheng felt as though something soft had touched the back of his neck.
Clearly, it wasn’t the sensation of a nose.
It was very ticklish and very light. Just as he froze slightly and was about to reach back to touch it, that sensation came again.
Twice.
At this moment, Zhou Shirui raised his head with a perfectly normal expression. “It smells like white peach.”
“Oh…” Le Cheng felt a little inexplicably strange. “Just now… just now, did you touch me?”
“Mm.” Zhou Shirui thought, Was he talking about those two kisses that didn’t really count as kisses? It wasn’t anything worth making a fuss about. “What’s wrong?”
He looked genuinely calm and completely justified, which slightly suppressed that strange feeling in Le Cheng’s heart. “Nothing…”
“Are you still nervous?” Zhou Shirui asked.
After all that fuss, Le Cheng truly wasn’t nervous anymore. He shook his head. “I feel much better. I’m not nervous anymore!”
Zhou Shirui helped him straighten his slightly turned-up collar. “Alright. Go.”
As the music slowly began to play, Le Cheng nodded at Zhou Shirui. “Then hurry and get back to the audience.”
Le Cheng walked onto the stage toward the light. His gaze fell upon the crowd below, quickly searching. Finally, when he spotted Zhou Shirui’s deep, handsome face, he smiled.
At the same time as the host beside him, he began, “Respected teachers, dear students, good evening, everyone…”
The first round of opening remarks went very smoothly. After stepping offstage, Le Cheng surprisingly didn’t feel nervous.
Perhaps because he knew that someone in the audience was watching him intently, regardless of whether he did well or poorly, it instead lessened that anxious uncertainty.
The Cultural Festival gala lasted a full four and a half hours before finally coming to an end.
Le Cheng collapsed onto the sofa and let out a sigh of relief, he had definitely secured those credits.
He sat backstage while the students outside were being organized to leave in an orderly manner. Zhou Shirui sent him a message, telling him to wait where he was.
Not long after, Zhou Shirui pushed open the door and walked in. Someone followed behind him, it was Cheng Yufei.
Cheng Yufei greeted him. “Le Cheng!”
“Mm, good evening.” Le Cheng looked at Zhou Shirui. “Are there still a lot of people outside?”
“A lot.” Zhou Shirui handed him the water he had bought. “Drink some. Soothe your throat.”
“Okay.” Le Cheng took it. Zhou Shirui then handed him a pack of throat lozenges. “Have one. Your throat might feel uncomfortable tomorrow.”
Le Cheng nodded. Zhou Shirui unwrapped one and placed it in his mouth, his fingers lightly brushing across Le Cheng’s lips.
“Holy sh*t, seriously…” Cheng Yufei couldn’t take it anymore. “So I came in here just to get force-fed dog food?”
Le Cheng’s tongue had only just touched the lozenge when the cool minty flavor caught him off guard. He blinked. “Hm?”
Zhou Shirui showed no reaction at all. He glanced at the bag in his hand. “I still haven’t gotten the cups. I’m going out for a moment.”
Cheng Yufei said, “Please hurry up and leave. Otherwise, I won’t need to eat dinner tonight.”
Zhou Shirui gave a snort of laughter, seeming to be in a good mood as he lazily asked, “Your appetite’s that bad?”
“Hey!”
“Click.” With the soft sound of the door closing, Zhou Shirui left.
“Le Cheng, when you went on stage just now, I didn’t even react at first.” Cheng Yufei was a seasoned chatterbox and immediately started chattering away at Le Cheng. “You looked really good in that outfit. You probably didn’t notice, but Brother Rui was staring straight at you, hahahahaha!”
Le Cheng had actually noticed, but he thought Zhou Shirui was simply encouraging him.
“But honestly, I think Brother Rui really likes you,” Cheng Yufei said. “I’ve never seen him be this attentive or this good to someone. Even though he doesn’t say it himself, he’s definitely fallen hard.”
Hearing those words, Le Cheng finally reacted. That strange feeling that had previously been slightly suppressed surged up again. He paused, unable to stop himself from asking, “Zhou Shirui… isn’t good to other people?”
“Huh?” Cheng Yufei was a little surprised. Although he thought Zhou Shirui treated Le Cheng excessively well, so much so that it was almost out of character, Zhou Shirui’s character and conduct were genuinely beyond reproach in everyday life. He immediately said, “Hahaha, I’m joking. How could that be? Brother Rui just looks cold on the outside, but he’s actually very good to the friends around him. If you ask him for help, even if he puts on a cold face, he’ll most likely still help you. If something happens, he’s always the one who handles it…”
Cheng Yufei kept talking without pause. Le Cheng listened in a daze, and the heart that had just been left hanging gradually settled back into place.
He couldn’t say whether he felt relieved or something else. Le Cheng didn’t realize that he wasn’t one hundred percent happy.
After hearing Cheng Yufei’s explanation, he understood. Zhou Shirui was just as he had imagined, one of those people who looked cold but had a soft heart.
Le Cheng was annoyed at himself for overthinking things. He felt a little embarrassed. How could he possibly have thought that someone as cold and straight as Zhou Shirui would have any other kind of feelings toward him?
“And besides, I think Brother Rui is the kind of person who….”
“Click.” Zhou Shirui pushed the door open and walked in, casually carrying the cups. “What are you talking about?”
Le Cheng immediately answered, “I was listening to Cheng Yufei praise you.”
Zhou Shirui glanced at him. “Really?”
“Of course!” Le Cheng gave a light cough. “Alright, let’s go back!”
The three of them left the room. Cheng Yufei didn’t want to be a third wheel, so he carried his things and left first. Le Cheng and Zhou Shirui slowly took a walk through the campus at night.
This was the first time Le Cheng was dressed in formal attire, looking neat and meticulous, while Zhou Shirui was dressed casually. Le Cheng turned his head and saw Zhou Shirui’s black jacket, his high nose bridge with half-rim glasses resting on it, and his sharply defined jawline,
Yet for some reason, it made him feel that Zhou Shirui was gentle.
A strange thought suddenly popped into his mind. “Zhou Shirui, what prescription are your glasses?”
Zhou Shirui said, “One hundred and seventy-five.”
It wasn’t too serious, but he still couldn’t see clearly from too far away. Le Cheng tilted his head. “I never noticed before, but wearing glasses is really inconvenient.”
Zhou Shirui finally glanced sideways at him. “What’s inconvenient about it?”
“Think about it,” Le Cheng said. “When you eat really hot food, the steam fogs up your glasses. Or when you’re really hot, the steam can fog up your glasses too.”
Le Cheng’s thoughts began to wander. “Thinking about it this way, doesn’t that mean you can’t wear glasses when you exercise? Can you even see clearly?”
Zhou Shirui seemed to think for a moment. “That depends.”
“For example?” Le Cheng was eager to learn.
“For example.” Zhou Shirui stared at him. “If you don’t want me to wear them, then I can take them off.”
Hm?
There was something strange about that. Le Cheng didn’t quite understand. “What?”
“Because.” Zhou Shirui lowered his eyes, his expression calm, as though he were discussing something perfectly serious. “There are indeed certain moments when wearing glasses is rather inconvenient.”
For example, in bed.
Le Cheng looked at him, unable to react for a moment. Just then, his phone went “ding-dong.” He stopped walking and took it out to look.
[Alipay payment received, 4,678.00 yuan]
When Le Cheng saw the number, he froze for a moment, followed immediately by a wave of joy that swept through his entire body.
This was the payment for his previous commission.
For some reason, the client had delayed the payment by two days. Including this money, he opened the remaining credit-payment app on his phone with trembling fingers and selected repayment. As the words “Payment Successful” appeared, all his debts were completely cleared at this very moment.
It was an indescribable sense of accomplishment.
He jumped up happily and, without any hesitation, hugged Zhou Shirui beside him.
Although momentarily stunned, Zhou Shirui still caught him steadily. Their chests pressed close together, their hearts seeming to beat in sync. Le Cheng’s waist was so narrow that it could be encircled with one hand.
“What happened?” Zhou Shirui asked.
“I… I…” Le Cheng really wanted to tell him, but he couldn’t, because he couldn’t say, I’ve finally paid back all the money! I’ll never have to be tied to you because of this again!
“I, I’m just suddenly happy!” Le Cheng smiled so brightly, his eyes curving as his arms hooked around Zhou Shirui’s neck. “I’m just… inexplicably happy!”
Under the moonlight, Le Cheng’s eyes were like obsidian, gleaming with captivating light, as if tempting someone to fall into them. Though Zhou Shirui didn’t understand, his heart softened from being infected by that happiness. Wanting to receive those feelings, his Adam’s apple bobbed.
“Mm,” he said quietly. “I’m happy too.”
