RKNDL chapter 35

As the year-end approached, their department decided to take a trip for team building before things got too busy. The plan was to have some fun and then return to work refreshed.

No work, all expenses covered by the company—it was enough to make everyone in the department overjoyed.

Well, almost everyone.

Take Xie Zhinan, for example—a person who couldn’t be bothered to go out.

Traveling was exhausting, socializing was draining, and even talking to people felt like a chore.

Compared to traveling, he much preferred curling up in bed with Caramel, staying cozy and comfortable for days.

Li Mo knew how lazy he could be. But it would be a waste not to take advantage of the company’s generosity, so she tried to persuade him, “It’s good to get out and have some fun. You seem so weighed down lately; this could be a chance to clear your mind.”

…At least he wouldn’t see Wen Yun for a few days.

Avoidance might just be the thing Xie Zhinan was best at in this lifetime.

He rarely had courage, and when he did, it lasted only for a moment before it was used up. Then he’d retreat back into his shell.

With a dazed expression, he quietly pondered for two seconds before nodding and giving a soft “okay.”

Seeing his poor state, Li Mo didn’t push further and left after a short chat.

….

The next day, the department finalized the travel plans. Everyone unanimously decided on an island getaway, scheduled for the following Saturday.

Before long, it was Friday, the week of the trip. This week had been grueling, with overtime piling up, and Xie Zhinan’s insomnia only made it worse. By the time he arrived at work in the mornings, he was practically a wandering spirit, drifting along in a daze.

That morning, he arrived later than usual and was in a rush. Not paying attention to his surroundings, he accidentally bumped into someone while waiting for the elevator.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to…”

A familiar woody fragrance wafted over, and Xie Zhinan’s words faltered as he looked up in surprise.

The person he had bumped into slowly turned around, revealing that familiar, cold, and distant face.

Wen Yun.

He didn’t seem to be in a good mood.

Since that afternoon, Xie Zhinan hadn’t seen Wen Yun again.

Wen Yun had left on a business trip that evening and hadn’t appeared at the office since. Their last conversation had been that afternoon, and everything had come to an abrupt halt.

Even though they hadn’t fought or argued—nothing had happened at all—their relationship had plummeted to rock bottom in an instant.

Their bond had always been fragile.

After days of not seeing him, Wen Yun suddenly appeared right in front of him. Xie Zhinan’s sleepiness vanished instantly, and he stood frozen for several seconds, his throat tightening as if someone had grabbed it, rendering him speechless.

It wasn’t until the elevator chimed that he snapped out of his daze. The employees waiting nearby began filing into the elevator, while Xie Zhinan remained motionless.

Wen Yun’s gaze softened as it lingered on him briefly. In a low voice, he asked, “Are you getting in?”

Only then did Xie Zhinan come to his senses. His sleep-deprived brain wasn’t functioning well. He nodded absently and hurried into the elevator.

Wen Yun stepped in after him.

Xie Zhinan was puzzled. Didn’t Wen Yun have a private elevator reserved for the CEO?

Why was he squeezing into the staff elevator?

He didn’t let himself think too deeply about it. His sleep-deprived, muddled brain couldn’t handle such complicated thoughts anyway. Besides, the elevator ride would only last a moment.

Nothing significant was going to happen.

There were quite a few employees arriving just on time, so the elevator was crowded. People were equally surprised to see Wen Yun in the staff elevator, but they all greeted him respectfully.

Xie Zhinan, blending in with the group, also mumbled a faint, “Good morning, Mr. Wen.”

Wen Yun heard it but didn’t respond. Instead, he tilted his head slightly and gave Xie Zhinan a glance.

Xie Zhinan couldn’t figure out the meaning behind that look. Like a rabbit startled back into its burrow, he metaphorically drooped his ears, covered his eyes, and hugged his head, refusing to peek out again.

Xie Zhinan initially wanted to retreat to a corner of the elevator, but the crowd was too dense. Unable to squeeze in, he had no choice but to stand next to Wen Yun, silently lowering his head like a statue.

However, through the reflection in the elevator’s mirrored walls, he discreetly glanced up and caught sight of a faint, helpless smile tugging at the corner of Wen Yun’s lips.

Then, he saw Wen Yun lift a hand and press a floor button.

The sixth floor—Xie Zhinan’s workplace.

Xie Zhinan: “…”

Only now did he realize the grave mistake he’d made.

He hadn’t pressed the elevator button for his floor, and no one else on that level had gotten on with him.

So now, his boss had pressed it for him.

He wasn’t even a workplace rookie, yet he’d made such a rookie mistake.

Flustered, Xie Zhinan lifted his head abruptly, his eyes wide with panic, wanting to say something. But with so many people around, he opened his mouth only to falter, unsure of what to say or how to explain himself.

What could he say to make this situation any better?

Or perhaps this situation shouldn’t have happened at all.

What kind of superior presses the elevator button for an employee?

Xie Zhinan’s face turned red with embarrassment. He couldn’t shake the feeling that his current relationship with Wen Yun shouldn’t be like this—this… lingering closeness.

Hadn’t they already stopped communicating?

After agonizing for a while, he still couldn’t think of what to say. Ultimately, he opted for self-deception, clamping his mouth shut and choosing to avoid the situation entirely.

But his eyes betrayed him, instinctively glancing toward the narrow mirrored section of the elevator buttons. There, he unexpectedly locked eyes with Wen Yun.

Wen Yun’s gaze didn’t waver or show any intent to look away, even after realizing Xie Zhinan was watching.

Xie Zhinan found that ever since their reunion, there was always a moment—a brief glance—when their eyes would meet.

It was as if Wen Yun had been watching him all along.

The thought made Xie Zhinan’s mind heat up, and a buzzing filled his ears.

He felt as if he were falling again—half into a soft, fragrant cloud, and the other half—

Into a bottomless, icy black abyss.

That voice echoed in his mind once more:

—Do you really think Wen Yun would be with someone like you?

Ding.

The elevator arrived.

In a daze, Xie Zhinan exited without a moment’s hesitation. Wen Yun watched his fleeing figure for a long time, standing still until the elevator doors closed, cutting off the view entirely.

…..

Xie Zhinan spent the entire morning distracted and absentminded.

He had thought that their lack of contact and absence from each other during this period was Wen Yun’s tacit agreement that they should put an end to the inappropriate closeness of the past two months.

So why was this still happening?

He stared at the message displayed in the chat window on his phone.

At 10:43 a.m. The message sent was:

[Y]: Come to my office at noon.

It seemed as if Wen Yun didn’t consider that day’s lunch to be of any significance. Just like before, he was sending subtle, almost imperceptible invitations.

Strangely, Xie Zhinan found himself feeling… something.

His heart twisted in a sour ache, his throat swelled painfully, and a rush of heat and bitterness surged to his eyes and nose. For a moment, it was so overwhelming that he nearly cried from the pain.

How could emotions be this strange?

He didn’t want this, yet he did.

During these days without contact, he kept telling himself that this was how it should be. This was the right thing to do.

He and Wen Yun were never meant to get closer again.

But in a small, hidden corner of his heart, he couldn’t help but feel… disappointed.

Not much, just a little.

So he worked very, very hard to bury that disappointment deep within, pretending that it truly didn’t exist.

Yet when Wen Yun’s message arrived once more, that disappointment, buried as it was, resurfaced with an unprecedented clarity.

It forced Xie Zhinan to confront his own weakness and helplessness.

And it made him feel miserable all over again.

He had already resolved not to let this continue.

Wen Yun hadn’t reached out to him during this time, and Xie Zhinan thought Wen Yun understood as well.

So how could Wen Yun call him up so casually, as if nothing had changed?

And why couldn’t he control himself?

He rubbed his eyes, then rubbed them again, over and over until his vision cleared and the storm in his chest finally calmed. With trembling fingers, he forced himself to reply, saying he already had lunch plans that day.

And for the foreseeable future as well.

Wen Yun replied quickly.

[Y]: Come up to report on your work.

It was a reason Xie Zhinan couldn’t refuse.

Every word he wanted to say got stuck in his throat.

Even though he had no idea what work-related matters needed to be reported to Wen Yun.

His chest felt even heavier, as though a massive stone was pressing against it. He couldn’t find any relief and could only stare at Wen Yun’s message, blinking furiously in an attempt to suppress the sting in his eyes.

…..

At noon, Xie Zhinan made his way to the CEO’s office once again. This time, he didn’t even lift his head to see how others were reacting. He walked straight in and pushed open Wen Yun’s office door.

A male secretary, observing the scene, rubbed his chin and discreetly asked Lin Jing next to him, “Did the two of them have a fight?”

Lin Jing smiled and tossed a file into his arms, replying, “Don’t ask what you shouldn’t.”

The male secretary shrugged and made a zipping motion over his lips.

….

Inside Wen Yun’s office, Xie Zhinan stood before Wen Yun’s desk.

Neither of them spoke. The office was quiet, so quiet that Xie Zhinan’s breathing seemed unbearably loud. He instinctively lightened his breaths, as if afraid that any louder sound would unleash the overwhelming emotions building inside him.

He kept suppressing his emotions, swallowing hard, forcing the turbulent storm within him to settle, trying to push it down to the deepest corners of his being.

The soft creak of the chair broke the silence as Wen Yun stood up from his black executive chair.

Xie Zhinan’s heart raced, pounding so hard it felt like it might leap into his throat. A sense of impending danger made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end.

Unable to help himself, he took a step back.

The office was so quiet that even the sound of a pin dropping would be audible. Each step Wen Yun took toward him felt like the prelude to a judgment, slow and deliberate.

Xie Zhinan kept his gaze downcast, staring at the floor. A pair of black leather shoes entered his line of sight. Instinctively, he retreated another step.

But the leather shoes stepped forward again.

One step back, one step forward. This game of pursuit continued until Xie Zhinan found himself cornered, his calves bumping against the edge of the office sofa. Off balance, he nearly fell when a strong, warm hand reached out, grabbing his arm and pulling him upright.

The grip was firm—almost too firm. It wasn’t the kind of touch meant to steady him but rather felt like it was tearing him out of his shell, exposing him mercilessly under an unforgiving light.

“Why are you avoiding me?” Wen Yun’s deep and detached voice rang in Xie Zhinan’s ears.

“…I’m not,” Xie Zhinan muttered, turning his face away.

Wen Yun let out a low, ambiguous chuckle, his mood unreadable.

The atmosphere between them became thick and stifling once again.

It shouldn’t be like this.

Xie Zhinan was struggling to maintain his composure. Wen Yun’s proximity made him feel hunted, like he had fallen into a carefully laid trap with no way out.

A wave of panic swept over him. He worried that he would once again lose control and be led astray by Wen Yun. Summoning all his willpower, he forced himself to break the tense silence. “Mr. Wen,” he said hoarsely.

Wen Yun had been studying Xie Zhinan closely—his furrowed brows, red-rimmed eyes, and damp eyelashes.

Xie Zhinan kept his head down stubbornly, unwilling to meet Wen Yun’s gaze.

And once again, he called him “Mr. Wen.”

“Mm,” Wen Yun responded softly. Even that simple sound carried a faint tremor.

“What work do I need to report?” Xie Zhinan’s head remained lowered, his voice barely above a whisper.

“What do you think?” Wen Yun asked.

“…I don’t know,” Xie Zhinan replied, his throat bobbing as he swallowed. His voice was hoarse and faint.

Wen Yun’s gaze lingered on Xie Zhinan’s face, tracing it inch by inch. His eyes paused on the faint redness of Xie Zhinan’s eyelids before slowly drifting downward, finally settling on the trembling Adam’s apple that Xie Zhinan had been trying so hard to suppress.

“What’s been going on with you lately?” Wen Yun asked softly.

Xie Zhinan’s fingers twitched.

It seemed as though he didn’t understand the question. He didn’t respond, standing there in silence.

This wasn’t the kind of conversation that should exist between a boss and an employee.

“Xie Zhinan, why aren’t you saying anything?”

This clearly didn’t feel like a work report. Xie Zhinan dug his fingernail into his palm and blurted out, almost without thinking, “You tricked me into coming up here today.”

“Mm.” Wen Yun admitted it openly. “If I didn’t trick you into coming up, I thought you might never come up again.”

“…”

“You’re avoiding me.”

“…I’m not.”

“It’s only because I was away on a business trip that you didn’t need to avoid me.”

Xie Zhinan didn’t respond, because that statement was true.

“Are you upset right now?” Wen Yun asked.

Xie Zhinan wasn’t sure when Wen Yun had started speaking so straightforwardly.

He pressed his lips tightly together, refusing to speak, but his body betrayed his will. His tightly sealed lips parted slightly, and in a faint, nasal voice, he repeated, “…You tricked me into coming up.”

“I’m sorry,” Wen Yun immediately apologized softly, then added, “It’s just that I’ve thought about it for a long time and still don’t know the root of the problem.”

It seemed as though he feared his gaze carried weight that might burden Xie Zhinan, so his eyes were gentle, his voice light, as if he were afraid of scaring him. “I thought that maybe if I stayed farther away, it would make you less upset.”

“But you seem even more upset than before.”

“So I wanted to ask you.”

“Why, Xie Zhinan?”

 

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[Author’s Note]

This chapter shouldn’t be too angsty… right? (peeks cautiously out of the trash bin)

They need some kind of catalyst to push their relationship forward!

But don’t worry, I’ll sweeten things up soon! Trust me—I’m a writer of sweet stories!

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