“What do you think you’re doing?” Gu Shiyue asked Qi Mu in a cold voice.
“I…” Qi Mu paused, “I didn’t mean anything by it.”
This was the first time Jiang Luo had seen Gu Shiyue with such a blatantly cold expression. His jaw was clenched tight, and even his profile radiated a sense of oppression.
Gu Shiyue tugged at Jiang Luo’s wrist, shifting his gaze to Jiang Luo’s face.
“Are you finished?” Gu Shiyue asked him, “With your commission.”
Jiang Luo was stunned for a moment before nodding: “…Yeah.”
Gu Shiyue released Jiang Luo’s wrist. His expression remained cold, but his tone was calm: “You should go back now.”
Jiang Luo nodded. As Gu Shiyue turned and walked toward where the car was parked, Jiang Luo followed him, hearing Qi Mu call out a “Sorry” from behind.
Jiang Luo didn’t look back.
The level of that hug had been a major breach of boundaries. It was the first time he’d encountered such a situation, and it felt somewhat uncomfortable. Furthermore, the client had left a very good impression on him all day; he hadn’t expected the man to suddenly lose his sense of propriety, catching him so off guard that he hadn’t reacted in time.
However, what left Jiang Luo even more off-balance was Gu Shiyue’s sudden appearance. After Gu Shiyue asked where he was, he hadn’t replied to any messages; Jiang Luo had no idea when Gu Shiyue had arrived.
Gu Shiyue walked ahead in silence. His expression wasn’t as frigid as before, but even though no specific emotion was visible on his face, Jiang Luo acutely sensed that he was angry.
Gu Shiyue reached the car and opened the passenger door for Jiang Luo.
Jiang Luo climbed in. He had never seen Gu Shiyue in this state and didn’t even dare to breathe too loudly. He was so nervous he even forgot to buckle his seatbelt.
After getting in, Gu Shiyue turned to look at Jiang Luo. Jiang Luo stared back at him without blinking, his hands resting on his knees, sitting there both obediently and stiffly.
Gu Shiyue watched him for a moment; instead of telling him verbally, he leaned over and buckled the seatbelt for him. Jiang Luo was startled and instinctively leaned back. Pressing his back against the seat, he stared at Gu Shiyue’s face, which was now inches away, holding his breath.
In just a few seconds, when Jiang Luo came to his senses, the seatbelt was already buckled. But Gu Shiyue didn’t pull back immediately; he kept his fingers on the buckle, watching Jiang Luo at close range.
The interior car lights hadn’t dimmed yet. Jiang Luo’s eyelashes trembled, casting two shallow shadows on his face.
His cosplay look today was casual, and neither his makeup nor his hairstyle were exaggerated. He was wearing colored contact lenses, which were far less beautiful than his natural eyes.
Jiang Luo’s breathing was light, his lips pressed tightly together. He had been in this tense state since just now.
Gu Shiyue could tell that Jiang Luo’s state was caused by him.
“Why are you so flustered?” Gu Shiyue asked, “Are you afraid of me?”
Jiang Luo immediately shook his head.
Gu Shiyue stared at him for a while, then leaned back and started the car.
Jiang Luo asked in a small voice: “Senior, are you… angry?”
Gu Shiyue didn’t speak.
“Are you angry with me?” Jiang Luo asked again.
“No,” Gu Shiyue replied.
Jiang Luo didn’t actually know why Gu Shiyue was angry, but his instinct was to appease him: “But you look unhappy…”
Gu Shiyue waited a moment before speaking, his voice deep: “Don’t you know how to be cautious when you’re with strangers? Do you have no sense of self-defense with anyone?”
Jiang Luo suddenly realized: that was why he was unhappy. He said to Gu Shiyue: “This is the first time I’ve encountered this situation. I’ll definitely be careful from now on.”
“From now on?” Gu Shiyue narrowed his eyes.
“Is… something wrong?” Jiang Luo’s voice was low, his mind feeling dull.
Gu Shiyue didn’t speak again. The car was terrifyingly quiet. Jiang Luo didn’t know what he had said wrong, so he turned to Gu Shiyue: “Senior, you—”
Gu Shiyue interrupted him: “Why did you hug him?”
Jiang Luo was stunned and explained: “It was just a hug to say goodbye…”
“Does saying goodbye require a hug?” Gu Shiyue stared straight ahead, his tone flat. “When you take a commission, if someone tells you to do something, you just do it, right?”
Jiang Luo shook his head: “I didn’t… I… it’s not what you think.”
Jiang Luo was anxious. He wanted to explain, but his language system suddenly felt chaotic. He was afraid Gu Shiyue would misunderstand and think that he did something improper during his commissions.
The more anxious he became, the less he could form a complete sentence. Jiang Luo furrowed his brows: “I didn’t do anything like that…”
His voice was trembling with urgency. Gu Shiyue glanced at him; Jiang Luo’s beautiful face was already scrunched up like a little bitter melon.
Gu Shiyue naturally knew the situation wasn’t what he had suggested. He was pushing Jiang Luo like this purely because he couldn’t contain his emotions.
The car stopped slowly at a red light. Gu Shiyue said: “I see.”
Jiang Luo was still explaining: “At the very most, I just hug the client when the commission ends… there’s no other physical contact. I told you before, my commissions aren’t for doing anything improper.”
Gu Shiyue gave a soft “Mhm”: “I know.”
Gu Shiyue didn’t like Jiang Luo taking these commissions, but he had no standing to interfere. He didn’t say anything more, silence being his way to control his emotions.
Gu Shiyue dropped Jiang Luo off at the school gate. Jiang Luo unbuckled his seatbelt and said, “Thank you, Senior.” Gu Shiyue said nothing; he had been almost silent the whole ride, though he wasn’t a talkative person to begin with.
“…I’m leaving, Senior.” Jiang Luo opened the car door. “Bye-bye.”
“Mhm.”
Jiang Luo sat in the car, his hand on the door handle, not getting out immediately. After a moment of silence, Jiang Luo mumbled: “…Senior.”
Gu Shiyue turned to look at him.
Meeting Gu Shiyue’s gaze, Jiang Luo lowered his eyes, his fingers lightly picking at the door handle.
Gu Shiyue didn’t speak, waiting for him to talk.
Jiang Luo hesitated for a while before lifting his eyes to look at Gu Shiyue again. His fingers had moved to his lap, picking at his pants.
The last time they had met was on National Day, nearly ten days ago. They had barely managed to see each other, only for the atmosphere to be unpleasant. Thinking about how he didn’t know when they’d be in contact again after this, Jiang Luo took the initiative to ask: “Senior… do you need me to feed the cat tomorrow?”
Gu Shiyue was going hiking with friends tomorrow but wouldn’t be back too late; theoretically, he didn’t need Jiang Luo to come over.
Gu Shiyue didn’t answer at first, then gave a “Mhm.”
Jiang Luo’s eyes lit up: “Great!”
“From now on, I’ll feed your cat for free. Just ping me whenever you need.” Jiang Luo got out of the car, his tone becoming light and cheerful: “Bye-bye, Senior. Drive safely.”
The next afternoon, after finishing work at the cafe, Jiang Luo went straight to Gu Shiyue’s place.
As soon as he stepped in, Jiang Luo saw a note on the entryway table—[There is cake in the fridge. — Gu Shiyue]
Gu Shiyue’s handwriting was beautiful. Jiang Luo picked up the note to admire it; the more he looked, the more pleasing it seemed.
Gu Shiyue’s handsome face suddenly surfaced in his mind. Jiang Luo thought to himself that perhaps “the handwriting is the person” was true.
He carefully folded the note and tucked it into his jacket pocket.
Jiang Luo opened the kitchen fridge and saw a box of chocolate cake. Aside from fresh vegetables and mineral water, Gu Shiyue’s fridge was perfectly organized; the small box of cake looked very out of place in it.
Jiang Luo felt soft inside. He couldn’t help but open WeChat and send Gu Shiyue a sticker of a puppy crying.
Gu Shiyue must have been busy, as he didn’t reply.
Miantuan hadn’t seen Jiang Luo in a while and was still very affectionate. When Jiang Luo was preparing to leave after walking the cat, it followed him to the door with “Meow, meow” sounds.
Jiang Luo sat in the entryway putting on his shoes, and Miantuan rubbed against his legs, meowing.
Who could resist that?
Before Jiang Luo had even finished putting on his shoes, he bent down to pick up the cat and buried his face in its neck, inhaling deeply.
Beep. The sound of the door opening followed. Gu Shiyue walked in and witnessed Jiang Luo inhaling the cat.
Jiang Luo stopped in his tracks and lifted his face abruptly, locking eyes with Gu Shiyue at the door, a few white cat hairs sticking to the hair poking up on his forehead.
Jiang Luo quickly set the cat down: “Senior, how come you’re back so early?”
Gu Shiyue walked in: “I never said I’d be back late.”
Gu Shiyue was dressed in a black shell jacket, wearing a hiking backpack and carrying trekking poles; clearly, he had just finished an outdoor activity. This was the same outfit he had been wearing the first time Jiang Luo saw him—cool and handsome.
Miantuan rubbed against Gu Shiyue’s feet, and Gu Shiyue looked down at it.
“Did you go mountain climbing?” Jiang Luo asked.
“Hiking.”
Jiang Luo smiled: “I’ve never experienced that; it sounds interesting.”
“Want to go?”
Jiang Luo was stunned: “Huh?”
“I’m going again next week. If you want to go, come with me.” Gu Shiyue changed his shoes and walked inside; they stood facing each other.
Jiang Luo was clearly hesitating. Gu Shiyue raised an eyebrow: “You don’t want to go?”
Jiang Luo quickly said: “I do, it’s just… I don’t have hiking gear…”
Forget trekking poles; Jiang Luo didn’t even have a proper hiking shell jacket or hiking boots.
“Use mine.”
“No, no, that’s fine. If I use yours, what will you use? I think I’d better not go.”
“I have more than one set.”
“Oh…” Jiang Luo nodded and asked quite honestly: “Then, Senior, can I wear regular sportswear? I don’t have those clothes specifically made for outdoor activities.”
“Wear mine,” Gu Shiyue said.
“…Huh?” Jiang Luo froze.
Gu Shiyue walked past him toward the inside. Jiang Luo was still standing there in a daze, so Gu Shiyue looked back and said: “Come here.”
“…Oh.” Jiang Luo didn’t even put his slippers on, following him barefoot—well, not quite barefoot, he was still wearing white athletic socks.
Jiang Luo followed Gu Shiyue into a huge walk-in closet. Gu Shiyue pulled a new set of shell jackets from a cabinet. When he turned to hand them to Jiang Luo, he realized the boy wasn’t wearing shoes.
The floor in Gu Shiyue’s house was so clean it reflected light, but walking barefoot would definitely be cold.
“Why aren’t you wearing shoes?” Gu Shiyue asked.
Jiang Luo looked down and smiled sheepishly: “Forgot.”
Gu Shiyue handed him the clothes and said, “Try them on,” before stepping out.
It was a full set of outdoor gear, even including the base-layer quick-dry clothing—all brand new and unworn. Jiang Luo unfolded the base layer and held it against his body to measure; Gu Shiyue was taller than him, so the size was naturally bigger, and the sleeves of the quick-dry top were a bit long.
When Gu Shiyue returned, he was holding a pair of slippers, which he threw in front of Jiang Luo: “Put on the shoes.”
Jiang Luo obediently put on the slippers.
“Haven’t tried the clothes on yet?” Gu Shiyue glanced at the jacket in his hand.
“Trying them on now.” Jiang Luo slipped on the shell jacket. It hung loosely on him, the sleeves so long they covered his hands.
Although it was brand new, the jacket had Gu Shiyue’s scent on it—that faint, clean, fragrant smell. Jiang Luo stretched his fingers out from the sleeves and lowered his head to pull the zipper, but the slider seemed to be caught on the fabric and wouldn’t budge.
Jiang Luo used all his might, but after fiddling with it for a long time, the zipper still wouldn’t move.
Gu Shiyue walked over to Jiang Luo and brushed his hands aside.
Jiang Luo stopped moving and froze, standing there in a daze.
Gu Shiyue grabbed the zipper and pulled firmly on the slider, moving it up with ease. He zipped it all the way to the top. Due to the momentum, the collar was lifted up, causing Jiang Luo to lean toward Gu Shiyue, ending up face-to-face with him.
Their eyes met, their breath mingling.
Jiang Luo looked up, eyes widening slightly, his ears turning visibly red.
Gu Shiyue didn’t let go, looking down at him: “Does it fit?”
A question with an obvious answer.
Jiang Luo lowered his eyes, his eyelashes trembling violently: “It’s… a little big.”
Author’s note: I’ll update again tomorrow at 12:00 PM~