Chapter 39.2
He sighed heavily, troubled by the complexities of love, a knot forming between his brows.
An abstract description: a pink bow tie.
“Le Le.”
A female voice interrupted his tangled thoughts. He looked up to see Su Hui not far away and smiled, “(Elder) Sister Su Hui, good morning.”
“Stop calling me (elder) sister.”
Su Hui tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, smiling sweetly and gently. “I’m only a year older than you. Calling me ‘sister’ is not too much, right?”
Yu Le was momentarily surprised but quickly understood and smiled, saying, “Sister Su Hui.”
“Hey,” Su Hui asked, “Where’s Wenyan? Has she gotten up yet?”
Just then, Wang Wenyan came downstairs, and before Yu Le could speak, she said, “I’m here~ What’s up?”
Su Hui hurried over and gave her a warm hug.
Wang Wenyan was momentarily stunned by the hug and raised an eyebrow: “?”
Su Huican smiled as she held Wang Wenyan’s hands: “Let’s share the good news. I’m about to break off the engagement with him.”
“Oh, congratulations.” Wang Wenyan yawned and allowed Su Hui to pull her. “But what do you mean by ‘about to’? Are you too embarrassed to say it right now?”
“Of course not.” Su Huican said, “I’ve informed my parents, and they are in the process of canceling all collaborations with Cheng Xiwu’s studio. Once I leave, he’ll have double happiness.”
“Not bad, that’s quite impressive~” Wang Wenyan said lazily, curling her lips. “When do you plan to leave?”
“My dad sent someone to borrow my car, so I’m leaving soon. I came to say goodbye to you all, and also…”
Su Hui was a bit embarrassed but couldn’t resist her curiosity. “How did you find out?”
Wang Wenyan: “Since I was born, my mom has been with no fewer than five men. Her taste in men is terrible, and with such constant exposure, what kind of trash haven’t I seen?”
Su Huican’s smile stiffened. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to…”
“There’s no need to apologize. It’s not your fault.”
Wang Wenyan was indifferent. “What about you? Do you know who your ex-fiance’s real love is?”
Su Hui glanced in the direction where Yu Le was and smiled again, looking at Wang Wenyan. “I’m happy with Le Le but I think someone else is a match for him.”
Su Hui left, and before parting, exchanged contact information with Wang Wenyan and Yu Le, agreeing to have a meal together when they returned to Xuan City.
Yu Le didn’t know that after Su Hui left, his senior brother started to be in a mess, not only becoming too busy to visit him but also quickly checking out of the inn without delay.
Yu Le only cared about why Lu Yao hadn’t returned after a whole day.
He had even searched through all major disaster events that required rescue operations in the year Lu Yao retired.
After 9 p.m., Lu Yao finally came back.
Hearing the noise, Yu Le immediately ran downstairs to greet him. The first thing he blurted out was, “You said it would be quick, but it was too ‘quick’.”
Lu Yao chuckled and handed a Q-version fire truck plush toy to Yu Le, “When did you start being so sarcastic?”
The fire truck was very cute. Yu Le hugged it and decided to forgive Lu Yao for the sake of this fire truck.
He turned and went upstairs, with Lu Yao following behind him.
The two walked in silence, each with their own thoughts.
At the door, Yu Le stopped and didn’t go inside. He turned to Lu Yao and asked, “Do you still need to do something now?”
“Maybe, I need to apply some medicine,” Lu Yao said.
“On your wrist?” Yu Le asked.
“Mm.”
Yu Le knew that with such a severe hand injury, it couldn’t have been fine after a whole night of rescue.
“I’ll help you.” He bypassed his own room and headed directly to Lu Yao’s.
In fact, such lingering injuries are not visible on the surface. Applying medicine is slow and not very effective; massage might be more useful.
Yu Le helped him with the massage slowly and asked in a soft voice, “Did you leave the army because of this hand injury?”
Lu Yao: “Yes.”
Yu Le: “How did you get injured?”
Lu Yao: “That summer there was a flood. A town was hit by the disaster, and we were tasked with the rescue. During the process, I accidentally got cut on the wrist by shards of glass carried down from upstream.”
He didn’t hide the truth but described the whole event in a light manner.
If Yu Le hadn’t specifically researched, knowing how severe the flood was that summer—the rushing river washed away bridges and houses, and people could be buried and swept away instantly—he might have been deceived.
An injury that left such serious aftereffects couldn’t have been a mere scratch.
Yu Le realized for the first time how close he was to a hero.
His feelings were written all over his face, and Lu Yao gently hooked his finger, “Actually, it didn’t hurt much when it happened. By the time I felt it, it was almost healed.”
Yu Le: “…Do you think I’m foolish?”
Lu Yao: “No, you’re the smartest.”
Yu Le: “…”
Yu Le gave a light punch to the palm of Lu Yao’s hand.
The conversation that had abruptly ended last night was not mentioned, but both knew it hadn’t been forgotten.
So, as soon as Yu Le’s fist touched the dry palm, it was gently held, but only for a second before being released.
The warmth that wrapped around the back of his hand gathered and dispersed. Yu Le could feel Lu Yao’s gaze on his profile.
He didn’t look up and remained quiet for two seconds.
Then, he silently squeezed his fingers into Lu Yao’s, clasping them tightly, trapping the warmth in the palm.
“Lu Yao.”
He looked up and filled his gaze with the person in front of him, “Let’s date!”
A brilliant light flashed in Lu Yao’s eyes, but Yu Le didn’t give him a chance to speak, as if afraid that if interrupted, he wouldn’t be able to say what he wanted.
“Yesterday when I said it was different, it was only because Cheng Xiwu’s confession made me feel guilty and uncomfortable. I would have preferred it if he didn’t like me, but if it were you, I would only feel happy. Lu Yao, I like you, so I hope you like me too!”
“But my feelings aren’t as precious as yours; they’re not worth much. I was thinking of someone else when I met you, but now I think of you day and night.”
“Lu Yao, I always feel like I change my feelings too quickly and lack stability, which doesn’t match with my feelings for you. But you’re so good, I find it hard not to like you…”
A troublesome kid, left unattended for a day, had managed to shift himself from the active position to the passive one.
There’s no such thing as inequality or lack of stability; this is clearly what Lu Yao has always yearned for!
Lu Yao thought he was already certain and fully prepared to calmly face Yu Le’s response, but the reality proved he had overestimated himself.
His current mood was not enough to support a calm explanation to Yu Le; he could only suppress the surging emotions in his chest, “Then what now? Why do you want to date me?”
“Because I want to be with you more than I want to work with Song Lao on the show.”
Yu Le looked into Lu Yao’s eyes, his tone trembling with nervousness and unease.
Even so, he still boldly revealed everything he was thinking and feeling, unconsciously stirring up huge waves in the other’s heart.
“I used to like my senior brother, but because he said he wouldn’t like men, I never thought about being with him.”
“I didn’t get along with those foreign students. He was the only one I could trust and rely on there. Just having meals and talking with him was very satisfying. Later, when he told me he had a girlfriend, I felt uncomfortable but still wished him well.”
“But today I thought about it carefully. If it were you, I definitely couldn’t be so generous. I can accept that I can’t be with Cheng Xiwu, but I can’t accept that there’s no chance between us.”
“Lu Yao, I can’t accept only maintaining a friendship of meals and conversations with you. I like being close to you, staying by your side, enjoying your care, your hugs, or even more intimacy!”
“If you told me you were getting engaged, I would definitely… no, from the moment you told me you didn’t like men, I would have tried to make you understand that love and liking don’t have to be restricted by gender!”
“They say if you like someone, you should fulfill it. I used to think I understood this very clearly, but now I find that I suddenly don’t understand it. If I had to support you being with someone else, it would be easier to send me to Africa to mine!”
“So Lu Yao, try dating me, since you also like me.”
His nervousness peaked after this sentence, and after a few seconds of pause, he continued, “I don’t know how to date, and I might not be very mature in this regard. I can learn slowly, or wait until you feel our feelings match enough before making it official.”
He said this as if afraid Lu Yao would refuse, “Of course, I can’t let you suffer. If in the end, you realize I’m not good enough and unreliable, we can break up…”
That word really stuck in his throat. Yu Le was so upset that he didn’t want to say it, but he found that Lu Yao, who had been silent, suddenly lowered his eyes and smiled after hearing this, his smile dazzling.
Yu Le stared blankly, disbelieving and deeply hurt, “Lu Yao, what are you happy about? We’re not even together yet, and you’re already looking forward to dumping me?”
Lu Yao couldn’t hide it anymore and let his affection, even more apparent than last night, overflow, “Le Le, you really…”
You really make me like you so much that I don’t even know what to do.
In the cool evening with the flickering lights, everything was perfectly quiet.
Lu Yao, self-mockingly thinking that even though it’s been nearly ten years since the college entrance exams, he still couldn’t control his emotions about a few words from one person.
But he enjoyed this loss of control, tightly holding Yu Le’s hand, pulling him close, and kissing the back of his hand. The wind carried his voice, low and deep, into Yu Le’s ear, “None of that matters. I only care about one thing.”
“When will my boyfriend start his job?”
Yu Le looked at him, his expression shifting from hurt to stunned, then to a smile, and finally to surprise.
With a beaming smile, he threw himself into Lu Yao’s arms.
“Now!”
