Ye Wenyu sat on the edge of the pool for a long time in frustration. When Yan Chen came back and asked if he wanted to keep going, he refused without hesitation: “No need, I think I’ve learned enough for today. Let’s leave it for next time.”
He couldn’t let Yan Chen get any more frustrated. That would only make things worse.
Yan Chen raised an eyebrow. “Giving up?”
Ye Wenyu denied it. “No.”
Yan Chen: “Really?”
Ye Wenyu tried hard to sound sincere. “Really. It’s just that I’ve been swimming for a long time. I’m getting a bit hungry.”
It was already afternoon, so he felt the excuse was reasonable.
Yan Chen seemed to believe it. He pushed himself up and climbed out of the pool, water dripping from his body in a puddle: “Then we’ll continue next time. Let’s go eat.”
There was definitely no food around the villa, so they took a taxi back to a commercial area near campus and picked a restaurant that served Jianghu-style dishes for dinner.
Most of the dishes on the menu were ones Ye Wenyu hadn’t tried before, so he left the ordering to Yan Chen, who seemed familiar with the place and quickly made his choices.
Only after his less-than-successful first attempt did Ye Wenyu realize that chasing someone was far harder than he had imagined. If not for Chi Dongting, he might’ve really fumbled all the way until graduation.
But now that he knew, what should he do?
He felt like a headless fly, no clue what to do, no plan, and just running around in circles in frustration.
The food came quickly, but Ye Wenyu ate without much focus.
“Is the taste not to your liking?” Yan Chen noticed.
“No, it’s really good.” Ye Wenyu kept his head down. “I just remembered the deadline for our group assignment got moved up. I’m not sure how to arrange my time.”
Yan Chen: “When is it due?”
There was no assignment deadline change at all, but Ye Wenyu just casually said the closest date he could think of: “This Thursday.”
Yan Chen: “Are your next few days packed with classes?”
Ye Wenyu: “I have Thursday afternoon free.”
“Then do it that afternoon,” Yan Chen said. “There’s no training then. I’ll go to the library with you.”
He said it so naturally, like it was the most normal thing in the world.
Ye Wenyu nodded in agreement before realizing he had stumbled into a perfect opportunity by accident.
“Okay.” He pursed his lips, and said as if making a promise. “I’ll call you then.”
Halfway through the meal, the drinks they ordered still hadn’t arrived. Ye Wenyu’s nose had turned red from a spicy dish, and Yan Chen frowned at the sight.
When eating something spicy, the more you drink hot water, the spicier it gets. Yan Chen pushed his own cooled tea over to him, signaled for the waiter, and turned his head to ask what was going on.
It wasn’t crowded at this time in the restaurant, and it was fairly quiet. Yan Chen’s voice wasn’t loud, but it was especially low and clear, drawing attention.
Ye Wenyu drank the tea in one go and felt a bit better. When he looked up, he happened to see a girl sitting behind Yan Chen lower her head. Her face was completely red…maybe she had ordered the same spicy dish as him.
After the meal, Yan Chen went up front to pay the bill.
Ye Wenyu thought this was fine. He owed Yan Chen this time, so he could treat him next time. Even if he didn’t have a clear next step in his plan yet, spending more time alone with Yan Chen definitely couldn’t hurt.
But just as they left the restaurant and took a few steps, a boy suddenly called out, “Classmate, wait!” and ran up to them. His phone lit up, and it was a WeChat QR code.
“Add one?” The boy shook his phone and smiled at Yan Chen. “My sister wants to be friends with you.”
Ye Wenyu had thought it strange when a boy came over to ask for Yan Chen’s contact, but after hearing that, he couldn’t help but glance behind the boy.
The girl who had been sitting behind Yan Chen just now was not far away, looking in their direction. When she saw Ye Wenyu looking at her, her face flushed even redder. She lowered her head and turned around, her back full of unease and shyness.
Ye Wenyu unconsciously tightened his grip on his phone and turned to look at Yan Chen.
“No need, it’s not convenient,” Yan Chen rejected him bluntly and led Ye Wenyu downstairs.
There were a lot of people in the square at the bottom of the building. A row of claw machines was neatly arranged against the wall, with both adults and children playing.
Ye Wenyu stared at a couple among them, distracted, and it was unknown what he was thinking about. He didn’t even notice when Yan Chen stopped.
“Do you want to play?” Yan Chen asked.
Ye Wenyu came back to his senses and stopped. “What?”
Yan Chen directly led him over and gestured toward a few empty claw machines. “Take a look. Which one do you want?”
Each claw machine held different stuffed toys. Ye Wenyu casually picked one with a teddy bear. “This one, I guess.”
Yan Chen turned to exchange a handful of tokens, came back, and inserted them into the slot. The machine lit up with colorful lights, accompanied by childish and cheerful children’s music.
Ye Wenyu glanced back. The couple had just run out of tokens and were getting ready to leave.
Although they had only caught one or two toys, the girl looked very happy. She hugged the toys and skipped off while holding her boyfriend’s hand.
Ye Wenyu withdrew his gaze and looked at Yan Chen. He was focused on operating the machine, seriously trying to grab the teddy bear.
In a daze, Ye Wenyu suddenly felt that Yan Chen resembled the guy who had just played the claw machine with his girlfriend. If there had been a girl standing next to him…
Something soft was stuffed into his hands. Ye Wenyu caught it reflexively and when he looked down, he saw a brown teddy bear holding a lotus leaf, its eyes wide open, staring at him.
“Is there another one you like?” Yan Chen still had a bunch of tokens left. “How about the little green frog?”
His tone was gentle and the wording childish, as if coaxing a child.
Ye Wenyu hugged the teddy bear tightly, looked up, and met Yan Chen’s gaze. Words escaped his mouth before his brain could even form the logic: “Yan Chen, do you want to be in a relationship?”
Yan Chen had once said he didn’t have anyone he liked. Ye Wenyu had remembered that clearly and treated it like a calming pill, making him feel secure. As long as Yan Chen didn’t like anyone yet, he didn’t need to rush and he could take his time.
But now, he realized it wasn’t like that.
Just because Yan Chen didn’t like someone now didn’t mean no one would approach him, nor did it mean others wouldn’t like him.
He wasn’t quick-witted. He couldn’t come up with useful ideas in this area and was slow to react. What if someone else had been pursuing Yan Chen during this time? Yan Chen didn’t like anyone now, but who could guarantee he wouldn’t later?
The more he thought about it, the more uneasy he felt. He was afraid that before he could catch up to Yan Chen, someone else would get there first. He was afraid that Yan Chen would patiently coax someone else the way he coaxed him.
He couldn’t deny it. He really did feel a sense of crisis.
He was afraid of failing, afraid of being too slow, and that Yan Chen would end up liking someone else.
The laziness in Yan Chen’s eyes vanished completely when Ye Wenyu asked that question, like a starless night sky, dark and bottomless.
After a moment, he asked in a low voice, “Why are you suddenly asking that?”
His attitude of not giving a direct answer only made Ye Wenyu more uneasy, though he didn’t dare to show it. “No reason. I just got curious on a whim.”
Yan Chen gave a soft “Mm”, held the tokens without moving, but didn’t seem to want to continue the topic.
Ye Wenyu had never realized he was someone this impatient.
Realizing that Yan Chen was cutting off the conversation before the question had been answered, he couldn’t hold back anymore.
“I just meant, you don’t have to rush.”
He struggled to find the right words, trying to convey his thoughts without letting Yan Chen notice anything strange.
But just as he managed to get out a couple of awkward lines, Yan Chen hit back with a light, casual, “Why?”
‘Why?’
‘Why…’
“Because, I thought relationships were something you could take your time with.” He tried to think fast. “I hope you find someone suitable.”
Yan Chen did not miss any of his micro-expressions. The metal tokens collided in his palms, making a crisp clicking sound. “Then, Wenyu, what do you think counts as suitable?”
“Someone who likes you…” Ye Wenyu murmured. After he said it, he felt it was ridiculous.
Anyone who said it out loud…wasn’t it always because they liked someone?
“Wenyu.” The clinking sounds disappeared, and Yan Chen called his name out, his expression unusually serious. “What are you trying to tell me?”
“You can say anything you want.” He spoke slowly and calmly, and every word was clear. “Whatever you want, as long as you say it, I’ll agree to it.”
The lure in those words was so strong that for a moment, Ye Wenyu wanted to spill everything, or just straightforwardly ask him if he wanted to be in a relationship with him.
But impulse was still just impulse. In the end, reason prevailed.
“Nothing.” He briefly closed his eyes, then lowered his head in frustration, staring at the smiling teddy bear in his arms. “Just asking for no reason.”
The sound of metal clinking came again, but compared to before, it was fragmented, disordered, and without rhythm.
Yan Chen frowned, wanting to say something, but an untimely phone call interrupted him.
It was his father, who said his mother had returned from a business trip abroad. Along with her came an uncle who hadn’t been back to the country in a long time. He was told to come home for dinner tonight.
There was no way to turn that down. After hanging up, Yan Chen originally intended to take Ye Wenyu back to campus first, but Ye Wenyu didn’t want to trouble him. He made an excuse, saying he needed to find Chi Dongting nearby, and told Yan Chen to go ahead.
The taxi stopped briefly and then drove off, quickly merging into the traffic with Yan Chen and disappearing from sight.
Ye Wenyu turned and walked toward the school. With so much on his mind, his steps were slow.
His thoughts were a complete mess, but when he passed by a stationery store and saw the cups on the glass shelf, he suddenly remembered that Yan Chen had broken his cup a few days ago and hadn’t gotten a new one yet.
With a headache brewing, he simply tossed the things he couldn’t figure out to the side and turned into the stationery store.
–
Yan Chen’s uncle had come back this time for work, so he left shortly after dinner.
Once he was gone, Father Yan and Mother Yan got straight to the point about why they had called Yan Chen home.
Yan Zhan: “Your mother has a work partner whose job transfer recently brought her back to Xuan City. Her daughter’s school abroad is on break right now, so they came back together. Find a time to go meet her.”
Yan Chen: “No time.”
Yan Zhan: “Make time.”
Yan Chen curled his lips slightly. “Can’t make time.”
“Xiao Chen,” Lan Yu spoke up. “You should know what your father and I mean.”
She hadn’t even changed out of the clothes she wore off the plane. The crisp women’s suit jacket and her delicate, composed makeup made her look intelligent and calm, so calm it felt almost inhuman.
“I know,” Yan Chen met her gaze directly. “So in return, I should let you know what I mean.”
“I like someone. I won’t go meet your friend’s daughter, and you don’t need to waste time on things like this.”
Lan Yu’s brows moved slightly, not with displeasure, but more like an instinctive reaction to hearing something she didn’t understand.
“Who is it? A classmate?” Lan Yu asked. “From Xuan City or…”
“Not a classmate,” Yan Chen interrupted her and said calmly, “A roommate.”
‘Roommate?’
Even the renowned Attorney Lan was momentarily stunned by this answer. “Is it a boy?”
Yan Chen didn’t deny it.
Lan Yu asked, “Are you two together?”
Yan Chen: “Almost.”
Lan Yu and Yan Zhan exchanged a glance, then looked at Yan Chen again.
Aside from the initial surprise, she didn’t show any other emotions. After a moment of thought, she said to Yan Chen in a solemn voice, “If that’s the case, then your father and I won’t interfere. Think it through yourself and make your own decisions.”
Yan Zhan didn’t speak, which meant he had no objections to his wife’s words.
Yan Chen had clearly expected their detached reaction and felt no sense of gratitude. All they were doing was returning the freedom they had stripped from him since he was a child.
Before this calm family meeting ended, Lan Yu left Yan Chen with one last instruction: “Don’t go back to school tonight. Your uncle’s flight is early tomorrow morning. Your father and I have things to do…send your uncle to the airport.”
–
This was the first time Yan Chen had not come back at night since Ye Wenyu moved into 508.
Dong Xi and Yang Liang said they were used to it, and continued to play games and talk on the phone. Only Ye Wenyu kept staring at the empty bed across from him, feeling unaccustomed to the emptiness.
Maybe it was because he had stared at Yan Chen’s bed before falling asleep, but once he dozed off, he quickly dreamed of Yan Chen.
It was in the dorm too…Yan Chen came back, and he gave him the cup he had bought, asking if he liked it.
Yan Chen couldn’t put it down, said he liked it very much, and even asked if he had any requests, that he’d agree to anything.
In the dream, Ye Wenyu was oddly bold. He blurted out “Be my boyfriend” without even stumbling, and Yan Chen agreed without hesitation, saying it was to repay him for the cup.
Overall, it was a bit bizarre, but everything went so smoothly that the real Ye Wenyu outside the dream couldn’t help but feel jealous.
Dong Xi and Yang Liang left early for training, leaving him alone in the dorm, idly fiddling with the cup in disappointment.
If only he could really find something that Yan Chen truly liked. As long as it could break the current deadlock, no matter what it was, if Yan Chen liked it, he’d find a way to get it for him…
Creak!
The sound of the door opening interrupted Ye Wenyu’s train of thought.
“No classes this morning?” Yan Chen walked in, tossing his keys onto the desk.
Ye Wenyu’s gaze followed him. After nodding, he added in case Yan Chen didn’t notice, “All in the afternoon.”
Yan Chen turned back to look at him, naturally noticing the brand-new cup in his hand. “New?”
“For you.”
Ye Wenyu stood up with the cup and walked over to him, handing it over. “I remembered you broke your last one, and I happened to see this when I passed by the store yesterday. I thought it looked good, so I bought it.”
It was made of ceramic, with a pure black body. It was indeed very similar to the one that was broken before.
Yan Chen leaned over the table and asked him, “You’re giving me a cup?”
Ye Wenyu said yes.
Yan Chen raised an eyebrow. “Did you know that giving someone a cup sounds like the words ‘a lifetime’?”
***The word for “cup” is “杯子” (bēi zi), and it sounds very similar to “一辈子” (yí bèi zi), which means “a lifetime.”
Ye Wenyu was stunned. He really didn’t know there was such a saying.
Of course Yan Chen knew he didn’t know. He’d just brought it up on a whim. Ever since he walked in and saw Ye Wenyu in a daze, he felt the urge to tease him.
But just as he was about to explain that he was joking, Ye Wenyu pushed the cup forward a little and asked seriously, “Then are you still going to take it?”
The slight smile on Yan Chen’s lips faded completely.
His gaze shifted from the cup to Ye Wenyu’s face, staring into the reflection of himself in Ye Wenyu’s pupils. His deep eyes contained emotions Yen Wenyu couldn’t understand, and he didn’t speak for a long time.
Ye Wenyu waited for a while, feeling uncertain. He clutched the cup tightly and asked in a soft voice, “Is it… that you don’t like it?”
“It’s not that I don’t like it.” Yan Chen finally spoke, but his tone was no longer the relaxed and casual one from earlier. It was like a hunter who had set his net, whispering to the prey about to fall into the trap: “It’s just that, compared to this, there’s something I like even more.”
Ye Wenyu quickly asked what it was. But before the words even fully left his mouth, his left hand was wrapped in a warm, large palm, and the steady heat from Yan Chen’s touch flowed from his palm into the cup in his hand.
Yan Chen: “Your hands.”
Ye Wenyu, who was already prepared to receive an expensive answer, instantly looked confused. “My hands?”
Yan Chen gave a lazy “mm”, and as if he were touching something precious and fragile, the pads of his fingers slowly rubbed the knuckle at the base of Ye Wenyu’s finger. “Wenyu, your hands are very beautiful.”
It was… his hand?
How was he supposed to give that?
Was he supposed to…
The bloody thought was cut off just in time. In the blink of an eye, he suddenly realized something, and the light in his eyes brightened.
His fingers curled up slightly, and he decisively stuffed the cup along with his hand into Yan Chen’s hand.
“Then I’ll give them both to you.”
“The cup, and the usage rights of my hand. You can do whatever you want with them.”
