“I wasn’t drinking—I was just washing my face.” Zhu Lianzhen casually pulled a few tissues to wipe his face. “What are you doing here?”
“Just looking for a quiet place to be.” Tan Qing glanced at Zhu Lianzhen and put the lighter back in his pocket. “Go on, keep washing. I’ll find another spot.”
He turned to leave, but Zhu Lianzhen, without thinking, called out impatiently, “Why are you avoiding me?”
As soon as the words left his mouth, Zhu Lianzhen froze, startled by how familiar the question sounded. His reaction didn’t go unnoticed by Tan Qing. The two stared at each other in silence.
With a barely audible sigh, Tan Qing replied, “I wasn’t avoiding you. I was just afraid of upsetting you again.”
Zhu Lianzhen didn’t get it. “Is my temper really that bad? That I’d get angry just by looking at you?”
As they spoke, they noticed someone else approaching. In tacit agreement, they turned and walked away from the brightly lit area, concealing their identities as idols.
The conversation was cut off, and neither brought it up again. As they passed a dim corner, Tan Qing came to a stop ahead.
“Xiao Zhu, after trying to see things from your perspective, I could understand you.”
Zhu Lianzhen was a bit slow to react. “Hm?”
Tan Qing turned around and said, “A few days ago, when I realized you were avoiding me, all I could think about was how to interact with you normally. But then I wondered if the closer I got to you, the more I might make you dislike me.”
Zhu Lianzhen frowned. His cheeks were burning from the alcohol and cold water, and after hearing Tan Qing’s words, he started to feel dizzy again.
“Why are you overthinking it?”
Tan Qing lowered his gaze. “Because I don’t want you to keep hating me.”
I knew it.
Zhu Lianzhen pressed his lips together, a complicated look on his face.
He knew that pretending to be deaf and mute last time hadn’t been a smart move. As expected, Tan Qing hadn’t let it go. Now, he was playing the pitiful card, trying to win sympathy and force an answer out of him.
So annoying. This ex-boyfriend was just so damn annoying.
“It’s not that I hate you,” Zhu Lianzhen said, almost angrily.
“I used to avoid you because I was afraid it’d be awkward if we ran into each other. Then after doing it a few times, it just became a habit.” His face was practically burning now, and he forced down the frustration in his chest to explain. “I won’t avoid you anymore… We still have to work together, after all.”
Thanks to the mild effects of the alcohol, Zhu Lianzhen finally managed to give a straight answer.
The beat of nearby music pounded against their eardrums, muffling their voices. Tan Qing said something, but Zhu Lianzhen didn’t catch it. “What?”
Tan Qing stepped closer and lowered his head near Zhu Lianzhen’s ear. “Then do you mind a job with just the two of us?”
I already said I don’t hate you. Why are you still asking like you don’t know?
Zhu Lianzhen turned his face slightly, his lips nearly brushing the rim of Tan Qing’s ear, and shouted, “I don’t mind!”
Probably because he’d yelled right into his ear, Tan Qing frowned, but he didn’t move away. The scent of their colognes mingled in the air. Zhu Lianzhen felt a warm breath against his neck and guessed that Tan Qing had just let out a quiet laugh.
Suddenly remembering something, Zhu Lianzhen reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. He tapped the screen forcefully with his fingertip and, after a bit of effort, showed it to Tan Qing.
In the “Moments and Status” section, the setting [Hide from him] had finally been unchecked.
“There. Okay?” Zhu Lianzhen mumbled, holding up the phone. “I set that ages ago and totally forgot. I only realized it was still on after you mentioned it… I wasn’t trying to block you on purpose! I even wondered why you never liked any of my posts.”
The corner of Tan Qing’s mouth curved into a deeper smile. He reached out and tapped a few times on Zhu Lianzhen’s phone screen.
Zhu Lianzhen took it back and looked at it but didn’t notice anything unusual. “What did you do?”
Tan Qing shook his head calmly and changed the subject. “It’s enough for me to know you don’t hate me. Honestly, I was upset about it for a while.”
Seeing him act pitiful after getting his way, Zhu Lianzhen snorted and gave him a light punch on the shoulder, urging, “Let’s go back. Don’t just stand here.”
Just as they were about to leave, Zhu Lianzhen felt the alcohol kicking in again, making his head spin.
He suddenly remembered something and couldn’t help but call out to Tan Qing, “Give me back my stuff.”
A flicker of confusion crossed Tan Qing’s face.
“My earbuds,” Zhu Lianzhen clarified, holding out his hand. “Weren’t you looking for the owner? Well, the owner’s here.”
“So it really was you who lost them.” Tan Qing gave a knowing smile. “I forgot to bring them. I’ll give them to you next time, okay?”
Zhu Lianzhen immediately sensed something fishy in those words. The way Tan Qing said “really” made it obvious he had known all along.
Then why act like he didn’t, even posting in his Moments looking for the owner?
Noticing that Zhu Lianzhen had frozen in place, Tan Qing gently patted his shoulder and said, “Weren’t we heading back? It’s windy out here. Don’t just stand there.”
Zhu Lianzhen’s brain could only process one thing at a time. A second ago, he’d been thinking about the earbuds, but now that Tan Qing was talking, his thoughts jumped straight to him.
After thinking it through, he spoke slowly. “I’m just saying, we’ve known each other for so many years. We’re at least friends. If you’re short on money, you can borrow from me.”
Tan Qing paused and turned to look back.
After a few seconds of confused silence, he showed a polite smile. “Do I… look like I’m short on money?”
Of course you do.
Zhu Lianzhen’s mind was sluggish, and he started to wonder if his words might’ve hurt Tan Qing’s pride. He quickly backtracked. “No, I mean—just… I’ve got more money than I can spend. How about I give you some pocket money during the holidays?”
Trying to make it sound more appealing, he added, “Uh, like, the kind in the millions.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, Zhu Lianzhen realized how drunk he was. What a terrible excuse! He wasn’t someone’s elder handing out red envelopes!
Tan Qing couldn’t help but laugh. He deliberately leaned down so their eyes were at the same level and patiently asked, “Then what would I need to do to deserve that kind of money?”
Zhu Lianzhen panicked, worried he’d be misunderstood as having ulterior motives, and quickly took half a step back to draw a clear boundary. “Don’t overthink it, I just…”
“—just felt like showing off how rich I am, that’s all!”
