Tong Xuan ignored He Jin, He Jin also couldn’t participate in the girl’s gossip, so his mind slowly began to wander and think about his own problems.
He thought of his seemingly down-to-earth but boring college life these years. Not to mention a decent love, he did not even have friends he could talk about feelings with. He never played until late at night, nor went out and got drunk like others…
He envied Hou Dongyan and his love for playing games, envied Zhao Xibai and his girlfriend’s bickering, also envied the youthful blood of the tennis club members , Shang and Qin Yu…
Thinking of the imminent end of his own freedom, He Jin’s heart was filled with unwillingness and regret. Honestly, he still felt curious about the world outside, he wanted to take a break and explore it with his own eyes.
But he knew, that woman would never agree, and he had no courage to die by the hand of his own mother.
He Jin looked up at the vast blue sky in deep thought, as if he was looking at his future path which had been arranged for him, his expression dull and lifeless.
Inexplicably, He Jin’s mind turned back to Fire, thinking of the eight years Fire had spent waiting.
Although this occurred only in virtual world, it was also the only unusual thing that He Jin had experienced in his ordinary filled days these past few years.
Deep in the bottom of his heart, a small fire had already been lit, fluttering and impossible to be ignored. Its warmth invited him to explore this unreasonable affection feeling that had been brewing inside him. However, he was held back by his uneasiness over the truth of his gender which had yet to be brought to light.
“Cold?” Hearing Fire’s voice so close to him jerked He Jin’s back from his day dreaming. He looked up and found out the person talking to him was actually Qin Yu, whose gaze was fixed on him from under that dark hair of his. His stare somehow created a false illusion of affection in He Jin’s mind.
“Ah…?” He Jin tried to speak, but his voice trembled, causing his ears to turn bright red out of embarrassment.
Truthfully, Qin Yu was just looking casually at his way, and when he saw He Jin’s shrinking neck, he spontaneously asked that question to him.
He Jin quickly straightened himself, and tried again: “Well, a bit. When I went out this morning, I thought the weather looked good today, so I only wore light clothes. I didn’t expect it would be this cold at the lake.”
Qin Yu gently let out an “Ah” sound, and looked past He Jin’s head. Late autumn’s weather was still better than winter, but the sparkling water of this lake did give off a chilling vibe. Qin Yu didn’t really feel cold though. His proportional and healthy body somehow made him quite immune to it.
“You were thinking about something before.” Qin Yu still didn’t look at He Jin as he uttered this sentence faintly. The tone of his voice indicating that it was not a question, but a statement.
He Jin was surprised, and maybe because Qin Yu gave off the same aura as Fire, or because his mind was still distracted, but he actually blurted out: “Yes, thinking about what I’d do after graduating.”
Qin Yu: “You are still a junior, but already thinking about this?”
He Jin smiled: “Yeah, if you wait until you are a senior to think about this, then it might be too late. You still have to think whether to go to graduate school or go abroad. Time is needed to prepare for this decision. In fact, most of our school students already have clear goals when they entered university…”
Qin Yu: “What about you? Have you decided? ”
“My family wants me to work right after graduation,” He Jin answered.
Qin Yu glanced at him: “You don’t want to?”
He Jin freeze. He was sure his tone didn’t reveal anything, yet Qin Yu was able to rightly guessed what he was thinking.
He soon got over his surprise and smiled softly, “Yes.”
Following this, silent fell between them for a moment, before it was finally broken by Qin Yu’s faint voice, “Whatever you want to do, just do it as soon as possible. The longer you hesitate, the less daring you will become, then you will end up never doing it.”
Hearing such words coming from Qin Yu, He Jin was once again surprised, because the taller guy didn’t just give a simple “If you don’t want to, then don’t do it” answer, but instead followed it up with a perfectly sound reason.
The flame in He Jin’s heart began to burn a bit more brightly, like something was pulling at it.
***
As they were nearing the shore, the previously blue sky unexpectedly began to get layered by grey clouds. They quickly got off the boat and ran, covering their heads as drizzle had started to fall.
They stopped outside a food court area, and hurriedly went inside the nearest one. Fortunately the rain was still small, so they weren’t that wet. The girls began wiping their face while complaining, “Didn’t you say the weather would be nice today!”
Tong Xuan “The weather forecast said it’s going to rain in the evening, so I thought if we just went a bit early then there would be no problem! ”
A moment later, Zhao Xibai suddenly sneezed, which distressed Guo You. She hurriedly handed a paper towel to him, “You guys also don’t forget to dry yourself, it’s so easy to get a cold when it’s raining. Don’t let the chill sipped into your scalp.”
Soon after she said this, they heard a gentle female voice asking, “Excuse me, are you a party of eight?” A uniformed waiter stood at their side, smiling, “do you want to sit in the box or the lobby?”
‘Oh! What are we doing here?’
Only then were they realized that the restaurant they’ve rushed into was actually a pretty upscale one, ‘Won’t it be very expensive here, ah?!’
While the girls were still worrying about the food price, Zhao Xibai suddenly said, “Let’s go in, we will lose even more face if we go out now.”
Guo You glared at him: “You are one to talk! Think about it, in case the prices here are around four or five hundred yuan, we won’t be able to eat for at least half a month ah!”
The waiter covered her mouth and smiled: “It’s not that expensive, only up to one or two hundred.” ”
Everyone: “…” (= _ =)
As ordinary students, usually they only eat dishes sold in the canteen, which cost no more than 10 or 20 yuan. Therefore, one or two hundred meals were still deadly for them!
All of them reacted badly, except for Qin Yu. The tall guy just stared blankly at the waiter before saying “box.”
All of them was startled, handsome boy you answered way too quickly ah…
“Yes, please follow me!” The waiter led them inside enthusiastically while saying, “the box has the ordinary and the lake view options, but since there are not many people in the shop right now, I will arrange for you to sit in the lake view box at the price of the ordinary one. ”
Li Yao exclaimed “The box has different prices?”
Waiter smiled “Yes, and the average minimum consumption here is 1000 yuan. You have eight people though, so it should be fine.”
The girls immediately covered their chests. They would have to order some of the cheapest dishes ah! But… the one who made this decision was the school idol, wouldn’t he like those expensive dishes instead!
They soon arrived at the box, and sure enough, it was facing the Kun Lake. The room was decorated exquisitely, with an expensive looking, glass-covered, mahogany round table placed at the center.
They sat down courageously, and was handed a menu by the waiter. The menu was also decorated with copper, with four words written on the cover 'Kun Lake Ya Tong' .
“We are finished…” Li Yao Yao was too afraid to open it.
He Jin looked at the cold dishes menu on the first page, and indeed it was a little expensive. On the other hand, Zhao Xibai still acted carelessly, and said “We are already here, whatever you want to eat just order it ah. If you can’t afford it, well don’t worry, we have seniors here who can cover for us…”
One of the seniors, He Jin: “…..”
The second senior, Shang: “…..”
Qin Yu opened the menu: “Just order, I’ll pay.”
Hearing this, the girls’ eyes turned brighter, but they also felt embarrassed, “How could we let you pay ah, this is a 1000 yuan meal… too expensive.”
Qin Yu glanced at Shang: “I owed him a meal.” Meaning, he would treat them because of Shang, so if they wanted to thank someone, they should thank Shang.
Shang smiled and looked at the menu: “Let him pay, he has money.”
The girls’s faces instantly became excited, they did not expect that the normally low-key school idol was actually a rich second generation ah! This fact added a lot of extra points to his charm!
Zhao Xibai also said: “One person order one dish, just hurry ah, I didn’t eat breakfast, so I’m starving.”
The crowd finally no longer argued over the cost of the dishes. When it was He Jin’s turn to order, he habitually picked the sweet and sour pork ribs. Hearing this dish name, Qin Yu subconsciously glanced up at him, staring at He Jin who was still looking at the menu. Like his hand, He Jin’s face was also smaller than those of average boy’s, he looked clean, and more childish than others his age.
If “Ah Jin” is a boy, will he look like this?
…… If this was the case, I don’t seem to dislike this.
During dinner, the girls once again started gossiping about Qin Yu. It’s because he was usually too dazzling ah, so they rarely ever had the chance to talk to him openly. That’s why, they had to seize this opportunity to learn more about him!
Li Yao Yao: “Shang Bai Jian, isn’t your relationship with Qin Yu really good?”
Shang: “Eh? It’s fine. ”
Guo You suddenly said: “Seniors, do you know there are rumors spreading around that you and Qin Yu are a couple?”
“Pooff …” Shang Bai Jian sprayed out a mouthful of soup, “what?”
Qin Yu also stopped picking at his dish, and looked at Guo You, prompting her to explain further.
Guo You: “Because Qin Yu doesn’t deal with girls ah. And he usually hangs out with you, so some girls begin speculating that maybe both of you are gay…”
*Cough cough* …Shang Bai-Jian’s face was red. He quickly wiped his mouth with a small towel and complained, “what is this nonsense…”
“Wow, you girls are so wicked!” Zhao Xibai couldn’t hold back his laughter, and turned to look at Shang and Qin Yu, “then, between the two of them… Who attacks who?”
Although homosexuality was not yet fully accepted by public in this time, it was pretty natural for young people to talk about this.
“Zhao Xibai, you have been completely influenced by your girlfriend ah…” Bai-Jian said with indignation, “And of course I’m the attack!”
[T/N: Attack = gong = seme, while shou = uke]
All of them laughed, including He Jin.
Guo You covered her mouth and giggled: “No eh, everyone said that senior Shang is the shou!”
Shang: “…”
Zhao Xibai let out an “ouch” sound and covered his eyes: “I can’t imagine the president as the one attacked ah. But still, no wonder I’ve always felt amazed by president Shang’s ability to endure suffering …”
He Jin: “….” (=_=)
“OK, OK, let’s stop this topic,” After laughing madly, Tong Xuan came out to calm the situation, “but Qin Yu, you seem to be too unaffected by girls ah. You are so cold, that’s why people started saying things about you.”
Li Yao Yao: “Yes, normal boys this age usually would have showed their color already.”
Qin Yu took a piece of rib, and said solemnly: “That’s just because you haven’t seen me showing my true color.”
Li Yao Yao could’t help asking: “Oh, so when will you show your ‘ color ‘ ah?”
Qin Yu squinted at her, stretched out his tongue, and with a slow action, licked the top of his chopsticks: “Of course … it’s only in front of the person I like. ”