Chapter 41 – I Like—
The late-night breeze was refreshingly cool. Two figures stood in the alley, not far from each other, their distance stretched yet shrunken by the streetlights.
Ji Wei, already mostly sober, walked along the street.
His wrist was caught by someone. The temperature that night wasn’t particularly cold, nor was the humidity unbearable, yet Yin Sijue’s touch felt as cold as his own.
All of Ji Wei’s senses converged on the point where their skin met. Blood rushed to his head, and his heart threatened to leap out of his chest.
Perhaps, from Yin Sijue’s perspective, he was simply holding onto a drunk, fulfilling his duty as a teammate.
But Ji Wei relished the feeling of being led along, as if he had finally found a place to rest.
After thinking this over for a while, the now-sober man decided to keep pretending—at least until this moment of solitude ended.
There weren’t many convenience stores open near midnight, so Yin Sijue wandered until he found a 24-hour shop.
He noticed the drunk behind him had been silent for quite some time.
In the light spilling from the shop, he saw Ji Wei’s red nose had faded a little. Ji Wei stood straight now, his eyes no longer dazed but instead darting around.
Caught peeking, Ji Wei instantly lowered his head, guilty, then raised it again for another glance.
After two seconds, he swayed in place, rubbed his temples, and muttered, “Oh, my head’s dizzy.”
Yin Sijue: “…”
Receiving no response, Ji Wei peeked in again and asked hesitantly, “Aren’t we going in?”
Yin Sijue lowered his gaze, a sly glint in his eyes, as if to say: I’ll just watch you act.
Ji Wei endured the burning stare, a tingling sensation spreading from his spine to the top of his head.
When Yin Sijue still didn’t move, Ji Wei steeled himself and asked, “Aren’t you buying honey water?”
“Yes.” After staring at him for a moment, Yin Sijue turned and walked into the convenience store, finally letting go of Ji Wei’s hand.
“…”
Ji Wei’s slender wrist lingered in the air for a moment before drooping dejectedly.
…
“Hello, WeChat or Alipay?”
Yin Sijue handed the honey to the cashier and scanned the QR code to pay. “Do you have hot water and disposable cups?”
“Yes. Would you like me to make you a cup?”
“Yes, thank you.”
Just as he finished speaking, Yin Sijue noticed someone outside the door approaching.
Ji Wei took a moment to mentally prepare himself. With a flushed face, he walked over to Yin Sijue and rubbed his arm.
Yin Sijue lowered his eyes to look at the boy’s fluffy head and his hands, frozen so stiffly that he didn’t know where to put them. A pang of pain welled up in his heart.
“Still dizzy?”
“Still dizzy.” Some people lied so succinctly that even their necks turned pink.
Yin Sijue handed him the prepared honey water. “Drink this, then.”
The cup was still a little hot to the touch, and Ji Wei stuck out his tongue to test the temperature.
“…Drink properly,” Yin Sijue said.
The tip of his tongue instantly retracted, and Ji Wei obediently gulped down the honey water as if he were completing homework.
…
The convenience store cashier was a female college student, not yet twenty, working part-time during summer vacation. She had been slacking off and had just texted a friend:
Cashier: [Fuck, working the night shift is so tiring. It’s so hard to make money.]
Friend: [It’s okay. No one comes this late at night. You can just sleep a bit.]
Cashier: [Damn, you’re such a pessimist! I just said someone’s coming, so I’m going to close the store.]
Fifteen minutes later—
“Ah… Just as I was about to take out my phone to check the time, someone grabbed my sleeve.”
A certain daring drunk pretender was doing everything he could to stay close.
Yin Sijue curled his lips and reached out to pinch the back of Ji Wei’s slender neck. “Still drunk?”
How unfair! Ji Wei, caught by the neck, felt his mind go blank. He could only nod frantically. “Yeah, yeah!”
“We’re almost to the club,” Yin Sijue said indifferently.
The footsteps beside him suddenly slowed, dragging along at a snail’s pace.
Seeing him like this, the man couldn’t help but tilt his head and chuckle.
Ding-ling-ling— The sound of an alarm broke the silence.
Ji Wei instinctively reached for his pocket, only to realize it wasn’t his. Turning, he saw Yin Sijue beside him, pulling out his phone to silence the alarm.
The screen displayed the time: midnight.
Accompanied by the summer night breeze and the chirping of cicadas, Ji Wei stared at the phone, puzzled as to why Yin Sijue had set an alarm for twelve o’clock sharp.
Until his arm was grabbed again.
Ji Wei looked up, as if sensing something, and met the man’s deep gaze, lingering longer than the bottomless night.
In the dim light, Yin Sijue lowered his eyes and whispered:
“Happy birthday.”
“Eighteen, Ji Wei.”
“No need to lie about your age on forms anymore.”
…
A gentle breeze lifted the strands of hair on Yin Sijue’s forehead. The streetlight cast down a glow, revealing eyes soft and tender.
Ji Wei felt the warmth of his arms, and it became hard to breathe.
He forgot his act, swallowed the bitterness in his throat, and asked hoarsely:
“When… when did you know?”
Yin Sijue blinked slowly. “I’ve suspected it for a long time.”
“Ji Wei, you didn’t hide it very well.”
He looked into the boy’s now-moist eyes. “Do you remember the tryout résumé you submitted?”
“What tryout résumé?” Ji Wei always forgot what he had lied about the moment after.
“You wrote that you were a brave and passionate esports player.” Yin Sijue’s eyes gleamed with amusement. “That was the profile I copied for you three years ago.”
“That’s outrageous, Unique. After three years, you still can’t write your own profile?”
Ji Wei: “…”
It was just a gaming ID! Why was this guy making it sound so… so…?
He closed his eyes in shame. “I was just a low-ranking streamer back then. I couldn’t possibly describe myself as someone who loves to hide!”
“Well, it’s a good thing you wrote it.” Yin Sijue smiled faintly. “Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been able to find you.”
Ji Wei’s ears tingled. He didn’t know what to say—only that the other man was being far too affectionate.
Moonlight spilled across the narrow path, the trees silent. No matter how slow the pace, they would eventually reach the end.
As they neared their destination, Ji Wei suddenly realized something.
Could it be that everything Yin Sijue had said to him before—the way he pushed him away when they were in danger—was all because he already knew his identity?
Knowing he was a long-lost friend, had he been taking extra care of him?
The thought made Ji Wei stop in his tracks, his heart aching like slurry.
He stood frozen at the clubhouse entrance, where blasting music and the roar of cheering spilled out. The joy of victory filled every molecule of the air.
He knew that once he pushed open the door, he and Yin Sijue would be teammates—nothing more than friends. Perhaps they would play duos every day, just like three years ago. Their relationship would remain unchanged, except now he could finally use his microphone.
But he didn’t want that.
Sensing the boy’s unusual mood, Yin Sijue stopped, puzzled. “What’s wrong?”
Ji Wei took a deep breath, stepped forward, and grasped Yin Sijue’s wrists with both hands.
“I have something to tell you.”
Yin Sijue’s gaze dropped to their linked hands. “What is it?”
“I’ve been thinking about it for a long time. These past few days, it’s all I’ve thought about.” Ji Wei’s voice trembled.
“Of course, I didn’t miss the game. I wasn’t thinking about it during the match—I played very seriously,” he added quickly, then went on.
“Yin Sijue.”
Ji Wei spoke his name for the first time in three years. “I know this is strange. You can refuse me, but… please don’t hate me, or find me disgusting.”
The man’s casual expression gradually faded. Ji Wei could no longer hide his own. His face flushed red, and his breath grew ragged as he spoke.
Yin Sijue leaned closer, lowering his head to look into Ji Wei’s evasive eyes, and gently urged him: “What are you thinking about?”
Ji Wei bit his lower lip and forced out the words with difficulty. “I think… I should be, I…”
“I—I like—”
Buzz!
A piercing roar of heavy metal burst from the club. The DJ’s set crashed in, leading the crowd inside to scream and sway. Those two crucial words were swallowed by the cacophony.
Ji Wei froze, on the verge of tears. He was certain Yin Sijue hadn’t heard a thing.
After a while, someone seemed to step forward and say something. The clamor ebbed, and silence settled once more.
“I…” He tried again, but only a faint whisper slipped from his throat.
For Ji Wei, some words—once spoken—were enough to drain every ounce of courage.
He let go, then clutched his thigh instead, his nails digging into the flesh with an almost self-tormenting force.
Yin Sijue looked at him, sighed softly, and took Ji Wei’s trembling hand into his own. A trace of heartache flickered in his eyes. He hadn’t heard clearly, but that didn’t matter.
He pulled Ji Wei closer, leaned in until his lips brushed the boy’s ear, and whispered gently, coaxingly:
“I like you.”
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
Mwhehehehhe