The lights in the bar were eerie and hazy, the people on the dance floor were dancing chaotically, the speakers were blasting deafening music, and it was making Egg Brother's eardrums ache.
Two girls wearing sleeveless black dresses and heavy makeup walked over with drinks in hand, asking him and the handsome guy next to him if they wanted to join them. Egg Brother pointed at Pei Hao, who was almost slumped over the table from drinking, waved his hand at the girls, and shouted loudly, "He's into guys."
In this place, you can't have a proper conversation; everything relies on shouting.
The girls immediately gave him disdainful looks, swayed their bodies while holding their glasses, and walked away.
It's so noisy, Egg Brother had been sitting here with Pei Hao for nearly an hour.
No, he had been watching Pei Hao for nearly an hour.
He couldn't hear anything anyone was saying, and it was getting boring.
Just after midnight, Pei Hao wanted more drinks. Egg Brother slapped his hand, which was holding up the glass, in sorrow and anger. He pulled Pei Hao out of the bar. Pei Hao was tall and sturdy, but he stumbled as he walked, and Egg Brother had to support him, panting heavily.
After finally getting him into the car, Egg Brother started the engine, planning to take him home. But Pei Hao, with his eyes closed like a grandpa, suddenly said, "I'm not going home."
"Damn it, then where are you going?" Egg Brother felt a bit angry. He had been accompanying Pei Hao like this for the past two days. What's more, he had postponed his date with the girl he liked just for Pei Hao. Finally, it was the weekend, a chance for him to relax and take a break.
"By the river," Pei Hao replied, his brows furrowing.
"Fine, by the river it is. I'll make a scene with you today, but if you call me tomorrow, I won't answer," Egg Brother angrily stepped on the gas pedal and drove to the riverside.
Perhaps because he was driving too fast, Pei Hao vomited as soon as he got out of the car. Egg Brother handed him tissues and sat on a bench by the river, waiting for him to finish.
It was early winter, and the wind by the river was stronger than in the city. It slipped into Pei Hao's sleeves, making his body, which was already getting warm from alcohol, feel cold.
"Speak up," Egg Brother saw that Pei Hao was walking steadily after vomiting and that his eyes had cleared up. So, he tossed him a cigarette and a lighter, then raised his head and asked, "What the hell have you been up to these past few days?"
"Nothing," Pei Hao said with a cigarette between his lips. He used one hand to shield the wind from blowing out the flame while using the other to light the cigarette. "Xiao Xi is going on a date with someone else tomorrow."
"Damn it..." Egg Brother was shocked. He thought that even if you really liked someone, with time, those feelings would fade away. After all, men were often fickle in love.
However, Pei Hao was constantly challenging his understanding. Over two years had passed, and he was still getting drunk for Mo Xi.
To be honest, considering Pei Hao's overall qualities, if he wanted to find someone decent to alleviate his loneliness, he wouldn't have any problems. However, after breaking up with Mo Xi for so many years, Egg Brother hadn't seen Pei Hao getting close to anyone.
Thinking about this, he realized that Pei Hao was an outright romantic.
"He came back for a while and stayed at my place for a few days," Pei Hao held the cigarette with his fingers and stared at the distant gray-black sky. His eyes lacked focus. "But as soon as he got back, he had a date with someone else."
"Wait a minute," Egg Brother's thoughts were in chaos; the information seemed too big. "He stayed at your place for a few days?"
"Yeah," Pei Hao lowered his head and spit out a mouthful of smoke. "His sister had something going on."
"Did anything happen between you two?" Egg Brother squinted at him.
"Nothing..." Pei Hao wanted to deny it right away, but when he thought back to all the things that had happened in the past two weeks, his words suddenly got stuck in his throat. Could he really say that they hadn't had anything?
Hadn't they done anything?
He had been rushed to the hospital and stitched up by Xiao Xi after getting cut with a knife,
He had been kissed by Chen Xu while drunk, and Xiao Xi had packed up to leave angrily,
He had slept with Xiao Xi in his arms all night and softly whispered his love in his ear,
...
The cold wind swept over the river, making the withered branches by the roadside rustle and the howling wind pass by his ears. Pei Hao was blown clear-headed, and suddenly, his mind was unusually clear.
He took out his phone, retrieved the chat history with Xiao Xi, and read it over and over again. His gaze finally stopped at the sentence "A friend wants to set me up with someone, so I'll meet them (crying laughing.jpg)."
A friend set them up, which means he wasn't the one initiating it? And what does that crying-laughing expression mean?
Maybe he had been traumatized by the rejections over the past two years. As soon as he heard that Xiao Xi was going on a date with someone else, Pei Hao panicked. For the past few days, he had been consumed by the fear of losing Xiao Xi, endlessly self-denying and conveniently overlooking many details.
They had breakfast together on clear mornings, hugged in the bustling hospital corridors, and slept until dawn on a soft, warm bed.
These gentle, delicate moments filled this otherwise dull late autumn. It was like a faintly spread-out watercolor painting, the brushstrokes eternally capturing the moment.
He refused to believe that it was all fake.
Pei Hao took a deep drag on the cigarette, clenched his left hand into a fist, and his heart started beating faster for no reason. It got faster and faster.
"Is there something or not?" Egg Brother saw Pei Hao holding his phone for a long time without responding and felt a bit speechless. What's going on? You can't even answer a simple question?
"There is," Pei Hao suddenly stood up, stomped the half-smoked cigarette under his foot, and the bright red ember quickly went out. His gaze, originally unfocused, suddenly lit up. He looked toward the horizon thoughtfully and said, "Let's go back."
"Ah??" Egg Brother was quite puzzled, completely unable to follow Pei Hao's train of thought. But a gust of eerie wind blew over, making him shiver with cold. When he heard Pei Hao say, "Let's go back," he almost cried tears of joy.
Damn, finally going home!
"Hurry up," Egg Brother stood up, wrapped in his clothes, and quickly ran to the car to sit down.
Pei Hao stood outside for a while, lost in thought. When he got into the car, a chill followed him in. Egg Brother shivered and turned to pat Pei Hao's shoulder, warning him, "Don't bother me tomorrow. I have a date."
Pei Hao glanced at him, his expression full of disdain. "Tomorrow, I'm going to the United States."
Qin Ziran had made a reservation at a Chinese restaurant on the edge of Chinatown. It was an old restaurant that had been open for decades, and its flavors were quite authentic. So, regardless of the day, you had to wait for a table.
When Mo Xi arrived, Qin Ziran was just about to get called. So, the two exchanged greetings briefly and went inside. Mo Xi rarely ate out, partly due to lack of time and partly to save money. Qin Ziran was more familiar with the place; he didn't even need to look at the menu. He swiftly introduced a few signature dishes to him.
Mo Xi wasn't picky; he agreed to all the dishes. So, within five minutes of sitting down, they had already placed their orders.
The seating in the restaurant was divided by sandalwood screens, providing a quiet atmosphere. A small brazier on the table was slowly brewing tea in a purple clay teapot, and a fresh aroma of tea wafted from it.
The environment was quite elegant.
Qin Ziran was also a Ph.D. student from their school, specializing in quantum physics. He was a genius among geniuses.
Geniuses usually wear glasses, right? Qin Ziran also wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, looked refined, and had an elegant and gentlemanly demeanor. He was different from what Mo Xi had imagined a genius to be. Qin Ziran was down-to-earth, easy to talk to about daily topics, and even when talking about his field of expertise, he didn't go into too much detail, humbly stating it was a personal interest.
Mo Xi couldn't help but feel a liking for such a modest person, but it was limited to that.
In the first half of their dinner, they exchanged some basic information, getting to know each other a bit. Qin Ziran was dressed casually that day. The sweatshirt he wore was quite similar to the one Mo Xi saw Pei Hao wear on the day he got cut in the hospital. They seemed to be from the same brand, just different colors.
Mo Xi stared at it for a long time, then closed his eyes and recalled the bloody wound Pei Hao had after being cut, and those three scar marks that looked like centipedes. He couldn't help but furrow his brows.
"Mo Xi?" Qin Ziran noticed Mo Xi's distraction and stopped to call his name.
Mo Xi snapped back to reality, lifted his hand to pinch the bridge of his nose, and smiled apologetically, "Sorry, I've been busy these days and haven't been sleeping well."
Qin Ziran didn't take it to heart. He chuckled and continued the conversation. Mo Xi felt like he was possessed, as whenever he looked at Qin Ziran's sweatshirt, he thought of Pei Hao. He kept drifting off, but luckily, they had ordered a bottle of wine. Qin Ziran talked more after drinking, propping up the conversation, so it wasn't too awkward.
The dinner of just over an hour quickly passed. Mo Xi sighed with relief and yawned as he sat on the chair, feeling a bit sleepy from the meal.
Qin Ziran should be no fool, seeing that he wasn't mentally present, yet he continued to smile. After returning from the restroom, Qin Ziran volunteered to pay the bill.
His temper was too good. Mo Xi sighed inwardly. He hurriedly went up and insisted on splitting the bill. How could he accept the other person's kindness for no reason?
He wasn't Pei Hao.
If it were Pei Hao, he wouldn't bother about one or two meals. After all, he'd have plenty of opportunities to pay him back.
Pei... Hao...
Ah, he was thinking about that person again.
After settling the bill, the two walked out together. Qin Ziran asked Mo Xi how he planned to get home. Mo Xi was pondering this when suddenly, a honking car horn sounded from across the street.
Mo Xi turned to look, and a flashy purple sports car was parked across the street from the restaurant where they had eaten.
He touched his nose, oh, a Maserati.
The person in the car got out and walked over. He was a young Asian guy in his early twenties, wearing a baseball cap. He was quite tall, about as tall as Pei Hao. It was too dark to clearly see his appearance, but Mo Xi could see that his jeans had a few holes in them. He wondered if the guy was feeling cold.
Most likely another rich second-generation international student.
The young man leaned against the car door and looked Mo Xi up and down. He then smiled and turned to Qin Ziran, "Professor Qin, I'm here to give you a makeup lesson."
Qin Ziran's previously cheerful face darkened instantly. He said coldly, "No classes today."
Mo Xi felt the temperature drop suddenly beside him, and he was startled. So, this is how a genius gets angry.
"I have a few questions I don't understand," the young man tilted his baseball cap, tilting his head and smiling, "If you don't teach me, how am I going to pass the exam next week?"
"I'll teach you tomorrow," Qin Ziran's words clearly suppressed some anger.
"Tomorrow won't work, I'm busy." The young man's aura also lowered. While Qin Ziran was still thinking, he quickly came over, grabbed the person's wrist, and headed toward the car. He didn't even spare Mo Xi a glance.
Actually, Mo Xi was afraid that Qin Ziran would suggest they go home together or something. But now, he didn't need to come up with an excuse to decline.
Hurry up and leave with that rich second-generation!
Mo Xi hurriedly waved at Qin Ziran and smiled in a way that couldn't hide his relief and joy, "It's okay, you guys go ahead. I'll be fine on my own."
Qin Ziran: "..."
The young man also seemed a little surprised. After putting the person he was holding into the car, he turned and waved at Mo Xi with a smile of gratitude.
The sports car raced away and soon disappeared from sight. Mo Xi touched his chin and felt that the relationship between those two was far from ordinary.