Chapter 2 – Accident
Qiao Huaiyao bought the nearest plane ticket. From take-off to landing, it was already broad daylight when he walked out of the airport. Glancing at his wristwatch, he didn’t go home but headed straight to Bai Jinyan’s place.
Before the college entrance examination, Bai Jinyan had moved out of his family home and bought a house near the school to balance work and study. Qiao Huaiyao used to come here often, but later, he hadn’t even entered this residential area.
When he first came back after being reborn, Qiao Huaiyao’s mind was filled with thoughts of finding Bai Jinyan and clarifying everything. However, now that he was standing in front of Bai Jinyan’s door, he inexplicably felt a bit nervous. His raised hand hesitated at the doorbell before he gritted his teeth and pressed it.
Ding-dong
Ding-dong
…
The prolonged doorbell rang several times before gradually fading away. Perhaps because the sound stopped, the corridor felt empty and extremely quiet.
Qiao Huaiyao blinked lightly, feeling as if he could hear the thump-thump of his own heartbeat. He nervously stared at the door, but… after waiting for a long time, no one came to open it.
Was Bai Jinyan not at home?
Qiao Huaiyao realized this and suddenly became stunned. His nervousness also dissipated at that moment. Bai Jinyan’s job was special, and most of the time, he wouldn’t stay at home. He traveled all over the world for his work commitments.
Previously, he had given up many outside jobs to focus on preparing for the college entrance examination. Now that the exam was over, it was normal for him to be busy with work again.
Qiao Huaiyao let out a sigh and completed the journey from buying the plane ticket to arriving at the residential area in one go. Now that he had stopped, exhaustion seemed to hit him instantly. For a moment, he didn’t know what to do next or where to go.
He picked up his phone but didn’t know whom to call. With low battery, he reluctantly put it away without rushing, sitting on a suitcase to rest.
Summer nights seemed to last forever. Qiao Huaiyao watched as the sun slowly set outside the window, the warm glow reflecting on half of the horizon, gradually giving way to the darkness as night covered everything.
…
“Jinyan, it’s your first time participating in a variety show. Is there anything you’d like to say to everyone? Introduce your family, your work routine, or whether you have any pets at home, and so on.”
The director followed Bai Jinyan’s side, stepping away from the camera while holding a microphone, playing the role of a host, and said with a smile, “Many fans have been waiting under your Weibo posts, eagerly anticipating our trailer.”
Bai Jinyan walked into the elevator without expression, pressed the floor button, and said casually, “There’s nothing much to film at home. I live alone, rarely going back while filming. My place is as tidy as a show flat, just a place to stay.”
The director followed him into the elevator and said, “You must not often come back because of work, but let me tell you, this home will be different from the outside.”
The cameraman held his equipment in his hand, standing in the corner of the elevator to ensure the entire scene was captured.
As the elevator ascended rapidly, the floor numbers on the electronic screen changed a few times before stopping.
Bai Jinyan walked out of the elevator and nonchalantly said, “This house is no different from a hotel, except that I bought it myself…”
His words came to an abrupt halt when he saw the person squatting in front of the door. A trace of surprise appeared on Bai Jinyan’s otherwise indifferent face.
The elevator door opening made the voice-activated lights in the corridor instantly turn on. After being in the darkness for so long, the sudden brightness was a bit dazzling for Qiao Huaiyao, causing him to squint.
When he finally saw the person walking out of the elevator, Qiao Huaiyao was suddenly stunned, his gaze fixed on the person standing in front of the elevator.
Qiao Huaiyao opened his mouth, with many words and questions in mind, but in that moment when their eyes met, all the planned inquiries disappeared.
For a while, he didn’t know what to say.
Memories of attending a funeral overlapped with the present, and tears welled up in Qiao Huaiyao’s eyes as he looked at Bai Jinyan before him.
He rushed forward, hugging him tightly with both hands wrapped around Bai Jinyan’s waist, fingertips exerting force to create creases in the fabric, and his voice choked with a bit of grievance, “Why did you take so long to come back? I’ve been waiting for you for so long.”
Bai Jinyan’s body stiffened for a moment, but by the time he regained his senses, his hands were already subconsciously protecting Qiao Huaiyao.
He didn’t expect to see Qiao Huaiyao here. Wasn’t he supposed to go to school?
He could enroll within seven days, but Qiao Huaiyao took a plane the night before the registration date, clearly showing that he was still feeling uncomfortable and angry.
Bai Jinyan had accompanied Qiao Huaiyao to the airport, but for some reason, he didn’t show himself and left only after the plane took off.
Why did he come back so soon?
Before Bai Jinyan could ask what happened, he was interrupted by a long beep.
The elevator door had been open for too long and couldn’t close, emitting an irritating protest.
Qiao Huaiyao looked up and saw two people slowly walking out of the elevator before the door finally closed.
“…?!”
In an instant, Qiao Huaiyao’s expression was dumbfounded.
He never thought there would be someone else there!
His fingers instinctively clenched, realizing that he was now completely leaning against Bai Jinyan’s embrace. He hurriedly straightened up, about to step back, but felt a warmth on the back of his neck, pulling him back into Bai Jinyan’s arms.
Bai Jinyan shielded Qiao Huaiyao in front of him and whispered, “Cut this part.”
Qiao Huaiyao was confused, what part should be cut?
The director had already sensed that something was wrong and had quietly stopped approaching. Hearing this, he explained in a hurry, “This, this part can’t be cut… The program was changed to live broadcast. I sent the details of the changes to your agent before, and he said he informed you.”
Almost hopeless, the director weakly asked, “You… you knew, right?”
Qiao Huaiyao was completely at a loss.
Live broadcast?
Was it the live broadcast he had been thinking about?
His face flushed, and he closed his eyes. His nervous heart thumped and bumped against his nerves one after another.
What should he do now?
Qiao Huaiyao buried his head in Bai Jinyan’s arms, trying to hide from the camera. As long as the camera didn’t capture him, then maybe the problem wouldn’t be that big… right?
But upon careful consideration, this reason couldn’t even convince himself.
Qiao Huaiyao pinched the back of Bai Jinyan’s shirt with his fingertips, feeling embarrassed and regretful.
He shouldn’t have been so hasty. He should have found a way to contact Bai Jinyan first and know about his recent work schedule. He should have waited for Bai Jinyan to have time to come over.
The corridor remained silent until Bai Jinyan spoke up and broke the tense atmosphere.
“Let’s go inside and talk.”
…
The director held the microphone as if holding a hot potato.
This variety show turned out to be unexpectedly unpredictable, without a script, and relied on the guests’ on-the-spot reactions as the main theme. During post-production, they wouldn’t cut much.
Now, with the unexpected occurrence of a live broadcast issue, if they ended the live broadcast, the credibility of the show would drop significantly, and it might even affect the entire program. It could also potentially impact Bai Jinyan, whose popularity was crucial for the show’s success.
The director was torn and didn’t know what to do. As a result, he decided to insert a commercial break in the live stream, hoping that some viewers would leave during the ad, causing a temporary drop in viewership, which might reduce the problem.
However, to his surprise, the viewership in the top right corner increased instead of decreasing.
The director: “…”
Please, everyone, stay calm!
Qiao Huaiyao sat on the sofa, looking through the semi-transparent glass door of the kitchen, observing Bai Jinyan heating the milk.
He then turned to see the director fiddling with his phone, and decided to step into the kitchen. He had originally intended to make some tea to serve the guests, but he realized that apart from cutlery and cups, the whole kitchen was practically empty, except for the filled refrigerator.
There were no tea leaves or anything else in the cabinets. The only thing on the shelf was an empty wine bottle.
“Uh… Can I take some shots?” The director cautiously stuck his head out of the kitchen door. “The live stream has been idle for too long and received a warning. I won’t film you, just some random shots of the kitchen, is that okay?”
Apart from the kitchen, the only other places were the bedroom and study, and without the owner’s presence, he couldn’t randomly film there.
“It’s okay.” Since he couldn’t make tea anyway, Qiao Huaiyao didn’t linger in the kitchen.
He came out and said, “You can go ahead.”
The director hurriedly waved to the cameraman behind him, inviting him in.
The supermarket downstairs was close to the entrance of the building.
Not long after, Bai Jinyan came back with a large bag of groceries. It seemed like he bought quite a lot, as the bag was bulging and should be quite heavy.
Qiao Huaiyao put down the half-filled cup of milk in his hand and stood up to reach out for the bag. “Why did you buy so many things?”
Looking at the outstretched hand with five fingers spread out, Bai Jinyan instinctively took out a bag of potato chips from the grocery bag and put it into Qiao Huaiyao’s hand.
Qiao Huaiyao’s fingertips trembled. “Huh?”