TSTFTR Chapter 13

The next day, Yu Qiu’s headache persisted. When he fell sick, it would take a while for the illness to subside. It would take him three to five days to recover.

As soon as he picked up his phone, he was startled.

“Call duration: 00:31:45.”

“…”

Xuan Yan sent several voice messages, all asking about his health. Yu Qiu cleared his throat and said, “I’m fine now.”

Xuan Yan seemed even more anxious than him and kept fussing over him. Yu Qiu hadn’t enjoyed this feeling of being cared for in a long time, and it felt strange but lifted his spirits.

At the same time, a name quietly appeared on the hot search list on Weibo.

“Xuan Yan, Treasure Boy”[trending]

Yu Qiu was late for work, but the boss didn’t say much, only warning him that his salary would be deducted if it happened again. When the boss left, Zhong Yu secretly handed him a bread and whispered, “You haven’t had your meal, have some of this.”

Yu Qiu was taken aback, but he accepted it and said, “How much is it? I’ll transfer the money to you.”

“No need, no need,” Zhong Yu said, “If you keep treating me like an outsider, I’ll be mad at you.”

Yu Qiu replied, “…Alright.”

He slowly ate the bread, not even finishing half of it when someone came to buy coffee.

When Yu Qiu was checking out, he inadvertently saw the female customer’s phone screensaver. At first, he thought he had seen it wrong, but after the customer scanned the QR code on her phone, he asked tentatively, “Is your screensaver… Xuan Yan?”

The woman was taken aback for a moment and then lit up with excitement, “You like Xuan Yan too?”

“…”

“I love him so much! His singing is amazing. Do you have his poster? We can trade! I have the latest version, but not the older one.”

Yu Qiu felt a bit awkward and said, “No… I just mentioned it casually.”

The female customer seemed a bit disappointed and left after taking her coffee.

Zhong Yu leaned on the counter and asked, “You also know about Xuan Yan?”

“Do you know him?”

“Who doesn’t know him now,” Zhong Yu clicked his tongue, “The exposure of these talent shows is too high these days. He won the championship in one go—though he does look handsome.”

“…”

In his heart, Yu Qiu thought, “Oh, I know.”

Xuan Yan returned in early November.

It was raining outside, and the coffee shop played soothing piano music. The rain veiled the heavens, and dark clouds gathered on the horizon. Yu Qiu closed the door, and the cold wind made him sneeze. He rubbed his nose, and Zhong Yu asked, “Yu Qiu, is your cold not better yet?”

“It’s mostly fine now,” Yu Qiu replied, lowering his head to handle the accounts. “I recover slowly when I get sick. It’ll be better in a few more days.”

The door opened, and Zhong Yu greeted the customer. He put down the broom and asked, “Welcome! What would you like to drink?”

Yu Qiu didn’t look up and continued with his own calculations.

Suddenly, a shadow fell in front of him, and then a deep voice sounded.

“I’ll have a latte with extra sugar.”

Yu Qiu raised his eyes abruptly.

The person wore a duckbill cap and smiled at him. He pulled down his mask with slender fingers, revealing his exquisite face. Xuan Yan put his index finger to his lips, looked left and right, and lowered his voice, “Shh…”

Then he put his mask back on.

Yu Qiu took his order and said in a low voice, “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming back?”

“I told you,” Xuan Yan’s eyes fixed on him, “didn’t you receive my message on WeChat?”

Yu Qiu glanced at his WeChat and realized he had many unread messages. Feeling apologetic, he said, “I don’t check WeChat often. I’m sorry…”

“Gege, are you better now?” Xuan Yan asked, reminding him of that awkward night when Yu Qiu had a fever. He coughed and replied, “I’m mostly better now.”

Suddenly, his forehead felt cool, and Yu Qiu hadn’t even realized what happened.

Xuan Yan reached out and touched his forehead with the back of his hand. “Hmm, no fever now.”

“…”

The coffee was quickly prepared, and Yu Qiu asked, “Do you want to drink it here or take it away?”

“Um…” Xuan Yan hesitated, “Do you have any hidden spots here, like a place where ordinary people won’t notice?”

Half a minute later.

Xuan Yan sat in a secluded corner with no windows, and there was a floor-cleaning tool on his right. He silently glanced around, wondering why a big shot like him had to sit in such an awkward spot.

He hadn’t planned to drink the coffee anyway. He just propped his chin up and observed Yu Qiu.

It had been almost a month since he last saw Yu Qiu.

Yu Qiu seemed a bit thinner, but still incredibly handsome. The curve from his jaw to his neck was graceful, and his neck was slender. Xuan Yan didn’t know how to describe it, but it reminded him of a swan. At this moment, Yu Qiu had his eyes lowered, and his thick eyelashes resembled little fans.

Xuan Yan realized he lacked sufficient adjectives and found it amusing.

He hadn’t rested well for nearly a month, exhausted from the competition and busy schedules, getting less than five hours of sleep every day. He finally had some relief, but then rushed back by plane.

He rested his head on his arm and stared at Yu Qiu, feeling that these recent days of fatigue were worth it.