Side Story (5) : Jealous Fox (2)
He thought that this matter had ended.
Unexpectedly, there was more to come.
After he officially started his graduate school life, for a long time, Mu Ye wasn’t quite himself.
For instance, Mu Ye had never restricted his returning home time in the evenings before. Now, if he stayed too late at school, Mu Ye would definitely go there to pick him up.
Furthermore, whenever he had voice calls with his advisor at home, Mu Ye would occasionally pass by his study, quietly taking away books he usually never touched. If the voice call with his advisor exceeded thirty minutes, Mu Ye would appear behind him approximately every ten minutes, bringing some red tea snacks and silently hinting for a hug.
Although they had discussed this before, Song Jianchu couldn’t figure out why Mu Ye would still act like this. This time, he was completely clueless about the reason.
He suspected it was because he was too busy with his studies, neglecting Mu Ye, which made him feel bored.
This kind of behavior continued for a whole six months.
As the year-end approached again, Song Jianchu received a notification from his advisor that they were going abroad together to attend an international academic conference for six days, starting from Sunday.
Song Jianchu was currently Professor Lu’s most valued student. Whenever Professor Lu attended various academic conferences, he would take Song Jianchu along, providing him with more opportunities to broaden his horizons.
The day before departure, while packing their luggage, Mu Ye started again.
Standing beside the suitcase, Mu Ye looked down at him and said, “Can I come along? I won’t cause trouble, I’ll just wait for you at the hotel.”
“The schedule is tight, I don’t have time to accompany you.” Song Jianchu placed neatly folded shirts into the suitcase.
Mu Ye came up from behind, wrapped his arms around his neck gently, and smiled, “It’s okay, it’s been a while since I went to Europe. During the day, I can go out by myself.”
His ears were brushed by the soft strands of Mu Ye’s fringe, and Song Jianchu felt a bit swayed. “But…”
“Darling, you’ve gone so long without taking me out.” Mu Ye said, “These past few months, you’ve spent more time with your advisor than with me every day.”
Song Jianchu caught the implication. He turned his head, meeting Mu Ye’s eyes, “Brother, you’re not still bothered by that, are you?”
Mu Ye looked bewildered.
Song Jianchu stared at Mu Ye’s puzzled expression for a couple of seconds and felt he might have overthought things.
Even if Mu Ye were immature, he was about to turn twenty-nine, how could he possibly be jealous because his advisor was handsome?
He turned back to continue packing and laid down the rules: “I’ll ask the advisor first. If he agrees, then I’ll help you book the ticket. It won’t be a private plane, so our seats won’t be together. You have to keep a low profile and can’t ask the advisor to switch seats with you, nor cause any disruption on the plane.”
“Understood.” Mu Ye kissed his cheek, rested his chin lazily on his shoulder, contentedly saying, “It doesn’t matter where I sit on the plane, just staying in the hotel room with you is enough.”
That night, Song Jianchu reported the matter to his advisor and received approval.
Song Jianchu postponed their return flight tickets.
Mu Ye’s next round of world tour concerts was about to start, so taking this opportunity to accompany him and relax for a few days seemed like a good idea.
Early the next morning, they set off for the airport together to meet Professor Lu.
Mu Ye politely greeted Professor Lu, who remained as cold and reserved as usual, and there was no further interaction between them after boarding.
Song Jianchu and Professor Lu sat together, while Mu Ye’s seat was across the aisle. Professor Lu gave a simple glance, silently asking if he should switch seats with Mu Ye, but Song Jianchu declined. Professor Lu turned his head away, closed his eyes, and didn’t speak again.
Song Jianchu glanced back at Mu Ye.
Mu Ye noticed his movement, looked up, and smiled at him, behaving very well-behaved.
Feeling slightly relieved, Song Jianchu took out his tablet and headphones, preparing to review the academic materials required for the conference. Just as he was about to put on the right earphone, a late-boarding passenger accidentally knocked it off.
A fashionably dressed young man with sunglasses picked up his earphones and handed them over, saying, “Sorry.”
With his movement, a fresh and bright men’s perfume scent filled the aisle.
Professor Lu’s brow twitched slightly as he hesitated and turned his head.
Song Jianchu didn’t notice Professor Lu’s subtle reaction and took the earphones, saying, “Thank you.”
The flight attendant continued to guide the late passenger and the gentle female voice followed, “Your seat is over here.”
The young man’s voice carried a hint of friendliness, “Thank you.”
Song Jianchu’s hand, about to put on the earphones, paused for a moment as he subconsciously turned back.
The person sat in the empty seat next to Mu Ye. Both of them didn’t look at each other.
It was a coincidence that both individuals were wearing sunglasses and scarves, and despite sitting separately, they didn’t take them off.
Individually, there was nothing unusual, but together, they became the two most suspicious passengers on the entire plane.
Song Jianchu felt that the person looked oddly familiar; he should have seen him somewhere.
But after just a moment’s glance, Song Jianchu withdrew his gaze.
Long flights were dull and boring. Most passengers chose to eat and sleep to pass the time. All the reading lights above the seats were mostly off, except for four lights that remained on continuously.
The flight attendant came again to serve meals, while Song Jianchu and Lu Yingchuan were earnestly studying materials with their glasses on.
Song Jianchu felt he had just eaten and declined the meal.
Lu Yingchuan also raised his hand to refuse.
The flight attendant approached the two suspicious individuals who appeared to be celebrities. These two hadn’t slept either; they were boredly playing games on their phones—one was playing a puzzle game, and the other was playing a popular mobile game.
Eating could kill time, so the two suspicious individuals accepted the additional meal.
After the flight attendant finished serving, the plane suddenly experienced turbulence.
Song Jianchu stood up to go to the restroom but lost balance momentarily. Lu Yingchuan quickly grabbed his arm, frowned, and said, “Sit down and fasten your seat belt.”
The two suspicious individuals, who were about to start their meals, simultaneously looked up, relaxed their shoulders, and resumed eating.
Lu Yingchuan didn’t let go of Song Jianchu’s arm until he sat down, fastened his seat belt, closed the tray table, and the computer, advising softly, “Stop reading and get some sleep.”
The two suspicious individuals, holding their utensils, frowned simultaneously.
After landing, Song Jianchu had already pre-booked a car to pick them up and take them to the hotel. As they left the airport, Lu Yingchuan looked back several times, seemingly searching for something.
Song Jianchu asked, “Professor, is everything alright?”
Lu Yingchuan suddenly stopped, took out his phone with a stern expression, furrowed his brow, and said, “You go ahead, I have something else to do.”
Song Jianchu nodded, didn’t ask anything else, and got into the car to the hotel with Mu Ye.
As soon as the car door closed, Mu Ye suddenly pulled him into an embrace and ran his fingers through his hair a few times.
Song Jianchu: “?”
Mu Ye pressed his head down with his chin, not allowing him to move, and spoke seriously, “Chu Chu, tell me the truth, does Professor Lu usually care about you a lot?”
“?” Song Jianchu was forced to lower his head against Mu Ye’s chest, overwhelmed by the warm scent of his coat, looking confused. “What do you mean?”
Mu Ye’s sixth sense about recognizing similar situations was strong. He held Song Jianchu’s head and warned seriously near his ear, “Listen, don’t have physical contact with Professor Lu in the future.”
Pausing for a moment, Mu Ye added, “Except for those special situations just now.”
This time, Song Jianchu finally understood.
He remained silent for a while, sighed, and said, “Mu Ye, are you being too sensitive? Is this why you insisted on coming along?”
“Seeing is believing.” Mu Ye let go of his hand, smoothed his hair, and worriedly advised, “The more someone looks like a gentleman, the more cautious you should be.”
“Brother, you’re really overthinking.” Song Jianchu chuckled helplessly. “Professor Lu—”
He had a stable relationship long ago, something known throughout the school.
“You’re young and can’t judge people.” Mu Ye interrupted, crossed his arms, and with an air of mystery, squinted his eyes, “Believe in your brother’s intuition.”
Song Jianchu: “…”
Mu Ye gazed at him seriously, then with concern, complained, “It’s all your fault. The older you get, the more attention you attract. If I don’t watch out, it’ll be even harder during the seven-year itch.”
Song Jianchu was even more confused, “???”
Who exactly was attracting more attention as they grew older? Why was it him who should be worried?
As if afraid that Song Jianchu wouldn’t understand, Mu Ye gently patted his head, sighed helplessly, and said, “Chu Chu, you’ll understand later. Our relationship is so stable, all thanks to brother’s efforts.”
Song Jianchu suppressed a smile, indeed.
If it weren’t for Mu Ye being so well-behaved, he, a person completely unfamiliar with romance, wouldn’t have managed to maintain this relationship so steadily.
In fact, up to now, Song Jianchu didn’t understand why Mu Ye liked him so much and was willing to do so much for a terminally ill patient with fake affection.
He was just an arrogant ordinary fan, going crazy trying to take care of his idol.
If it were someone else, they would have been beaten up by now.
“Yeah.” With a tender light in his eyes, Song Jianchu complied, “You’ve worked hard.”
Mu Ye stared at Song Jianchu for a few seconds, unable to restrain himself, grabbed Song Jianchu’s hand, placed it on his thigh, and slowly leaned in.
Just as their lips were about to touch…
“Yes.” Suddenly, Song Jianchu opened his eyes, remembering something, “It’s him.”
Mu Ye halted with lowered eyelashes in front of him and then withdrew, asking, “Who?”
“I just saw the professor’s wife…,” Song Jianchu hesitated for a moment on the term, then skipped it, “the person sitting beside you on the plane.”
Mu Ye was stunned for two seconds. “The professor’s wife?”
“Yeah, I’ve seen her once before,” Song Jianchu affirmed. “It should be her.”
Mu Ye was immediately relieved and asked cheerfully, “Wearing sunglasses, how were you certain?”
“Pretty easy to recognize,” Song Jianchu replied.
Recalling, Mu Ye added, “Indeed, she looked younger than Professor Lu, probably the same age as us.”
“No, they’re the same age,” Song Jianchu corrected.
Mu Ye raised an astonished brow.
Song Jianchu’s expression turned complex as he explained, “Every time she comes to the school to see Professor Lu, everyone thinks she’s a student from our department. Even when she covers her face while walking, students would still confess to her. It felt a bit miraculous, so it left a deep impression.”
Mu Ye smirked, “There are good things like that? How miraculous!”
“Really,” Song Jianchu took the opportunity to praise himself, “If you’ve seen her, you’d know what really attracts attention.”
Mu Ye understood instantly, thinking back to the serious expression Professor Lu had earlier when looking around and not finding someone.
That night, Song Jianchu went to Professor Lu’s room to deliver items needed for the next day’s meeting. A handsome man in a bathrobe answered the door, raised an eyebrow, and smiled at him, “We meet again, Richie Rich.”
The young man had bright and gentle eyes, and his speaking manner easily evoked a favorable impression in others.
Song Jianchu was taken aback, “Hello, where’s Professor Lu?”
“I came to find him for fun, but he found me annoying and switched to ‘freeze mode,'” the young man joked in a relaxed tone, as if it were routine. He wiped his wet hair with a towel, stepped aside, and welcomed him, “Perfect timing, help me unfreeze him while you’re here.”
“…”
After helping unfreeze Professor Lu, Song Jianchu returned to the room with a look of wonder.
After the academic conference, Song Jianchu and Mu Ye went on a short trip without any plans; they went wherever they wanted.
A few years ago, when they went to see a volcano, Song Jianchu promised to let Mu Ye experience flying a plane he piloted. This promise was fulfilled during this trip.
Song Jianchu piloted a helicopter to show Mu Ye the famous snowy mountains. Mu Ye held a camera, taking pictures of him and the scenery outside to use as material for his vlogs. Since they were together, Mu Ye appeared in almost all of Song Jianchu’s vlogs, mostly filmed from the perspective of a boyfriend.
Mu Ye pointed the camera at him. “Let me introduce you, the pilot of this flight, Captain Song.”
Song Jianchu’s eyes reflected the snowy mountains and sky, his gaze calm.
“Captain Song,” Mu Ye asked, looking at the screen and casually praising, “Were you born knowing how to fly? Why are you so steady?”
Song Jianchu only smiled without replying.
Mu Ye glanced up from the camera screen, straight into the eyes of the person in front of him. The sunlight outlined Song Jianchu’s features, and he squinted slightly.
“Chu Chu,” Mu Ye suddenly said, “My heart is beating so fast.”
Song Jianchu immediately asked, “Are you scared?”
Just as he was about to decrease altitude, he heard Mu Ye’s gentle voice over the headset, accompanied by a faint electric current, saying, “As long as you’re by my side, I’m not afraid of anything.”
Song Jianchu was taken aback, feeling his heartbeat distinctly pulsing in his ears.
Mu Ye leaned back in the clear sunlight, gazing at the seemingly endless sky ahead, lazily squinting, relishing the freedom that Song Jianchu had brought him in this moment.
Suddenly, a faint voice sounded through the headset.
Then came Song Jianchu’s calm and firm voice, “Alright.”
Mu Ye slowly turned his head, feeling a breeze of awakening spring in his eyes.
In the depths of his eyes, the hazy and pale mist that had been frozen on the lake’s surface all year round dissipated. The setting sun reflected golden light on the lake’s delicate ripples.
He chuckled softly, “Fly higher, Captain Song.”
Song Jianchu adjusted the altitude above the snowy mountains, thinking to himself.
Although he didn’t know the true endpoint of “forever.”
He would make it happen.
As long as he thought of this person in his heart, it felt like he could reach anywhere.
And was invincible.
-End Of The Story-
ry’s note: Finally, First Love Behavior Art is finished~ (´｡• ᵕ •｡`) ♡
Thank you to all the readers who have patiently waited for updates and supported it. (*/ω＼)
I hope you enjoy reading it. (人´∀`)
See you in the next translation~ (〜^∇^)〜