At noon the next day, Zhou Fan declined the invitation from Dai Lin to go to the arcade and instead headed to the science classroom in Teaching Building Number 2.
He had to admit that Chi Hanqing really knew the place well because few people were aware of how quiet this specific classroom remained during the lunch break. He pushed open the closed door and found that Chi Hanqing had not yet arrived. He walked to a desk by the window and hopped onto it while pulling an orange-flavored lollipop from his uniform pocket.
Outside the window, the crowds of students leaving school transitioned from a noisy bustle to a sparse silence. The sunlight spilled in and wrapped around him with a warm and cozy glow. He waited quietly.
The sound of footsteps echoed in the corridor. Zhou Fan turned his head just in time to see Chi Hanqing push the door open and step inside. Today, Chi Hanqing was wearing the new school uniform. On anyone else, the uniform looked like a plain and oversized bag, but on Chi Hanqing, it fit perfectly. Underneath, he still wore that crisp white shirt with his sleeves rolled up to reveal slender wrists.
Zhou Fan smiled with the lollipop still in his mouth and noted that the other man had arrived. Chi Hanqing squinted slightly as if he were dazed by the sunlight streaming in behind Zhou Fan. Zhou Fan asked what he wanted to see him about and noted he could say it now.
Chi Hanqing put his hand into the pocket of his uniform jacket. This time, he finally pulled something out and held it out in front of Zhou Fan. Zhou Fan looked down and froze instantly. Clutched between the slender and pale fingers of Chi Hanqing was a pink envelope.
Thanks to the looks and temperament inherited from his parents, Zhou Fan was no stranger to such envelopes. However, he never expected to receive one from the hands of Chi Hanqing. He looked at the envelope then up at Chi Hanqing while his expression was unusually blank. He asked if the letter was for him.
Chi Hanqing became even more nervous at the reaction. His fingertips turned white from gripping the envelope although he maintained his expressionless mask. He gave a muffled confirmation. Zhou Fan hesitated for a moment before reaching out to take the envelope. Holding that pink paper, a thousand possibilities raced through his mind. He wondered if Chi Hanqing had a younger sister who liked him but could not approach him due to strict family rules. He thought perhaps Chi Hanqing was a devoted brother who had transferred classes just to help his sister confess. He eventually realized he might be projecting a bit too much.
Chi Hanqing stiffly told him to read the letter. Zhou Fan obeyed and opened the envelope to unfold the paper. The opening addressed him politely as Student Zhou Fan. He noticed it went straight to the point as the next sentence stated that the writer liked him. The letter continued to say that the writer could not help but fall for him at first sight. It mentioned that the writer felt they were a boring and uninteresting person who lived like an empty shell. It noted that meeting Zhou Fan made the writer feel their heart beating like a fire that never goes out.
Next to the complex where the violin teacher of Chi Hanqing lived, there was a park with a basketball court. Every time he went for a lesson, he would make an excuse about wanting to walk and clear his mind while asking the driver to let him out early on the roadside. Then, carrying his violin case alone, he would slowly walk the path that overlooked the court.
That handsome boy with the roguish smile was there almost every time. He was not always on the court because he was more often leaning lazily against the bleachers or sitting on the grass. Chi Hanqing knew his name was Zhou Fan and that he was there to accompany friends. He also knew they were the same age.
He knew Zhou Fan liked sweets, especially orange candies. He knew Zhou Fan preferred water over soda and quiet over noise. His grades were average, and because of family connections, he would be attending a local high school.
The noise from the basketball court was constant. Chi Hanqing walked slower and slower until he finally stopped. He reached out and gripped the wires of the fence. There were many people today, and his eyes scanned the bleachers while searching for the person he wanted to find. He withdrew his gaze with a look of disappointment when he realized the boy had not come.
However, when he turned around, he could not control the look of surprise on his face. Zhou Fan was standing right in front of him while looking through the fence just as he had been doing. Seeing him turn, Zhou Fan smiled and arched an eyebrow while asking what he was looking at. Chi Hanqing turned his head away without a word. His heart felt as if it were about to leap out of his throat, and he could not speak.
Someone on the other side of the fence spotted Zhou Fan and shouted for him to hurry because their team was short one person. Zhou Fan shouted back that he was coming. He did not wait for a reply and quickly jogged away. Chi Hanqing stood there for a long time as his heart refused to slow down.
That evening, his father asked unhappily at dinner why he was late for his violin lesson. He asked if the driver had dropped him off fifteen minutes early as instructed. Chi Hanqing remained silent until his father finished speaking. He noted he wanted to walk, so he got out of the car and did not pay attention to the time.
His father said sternly that he was not allowed to get out of the car early anymore. He questioned how old the boy was and noted he had no sense of time. He compared the boy to the eldest son of the Luo family and asked if being number one on exams made him arrogant. Chi Hanqing chewed his food silently while listening to his father’s lecture. After enduring the stifling dinner, he went to the study with his violin.
His mother was wearing her glasses and looking at reports. Without looking up, she asked if he had finished the papers the tutor gave him. Chi Hanqing confirmed he finished them. She asked how many he got wrong, and he noted he missed three. She told him to do three more sets tomorrow and send them to the teacher.
Chi Hanqing nodded and began to play his violin. His mother listened and suddenly noted that his father seemed to have an illegitimate child. The music paused for a split second before continuing to flow through the night. When he finished, his mother noted that arrangements had been made for him to go abroad after his final year. She mentioned the university there had his father’s sponsorship and would be happy to accept him.
Chi Hanqing stated that he wanted to go to a different school. His mother acted as if she had not heard him and waved him away. Chi Hanqing did not repeat himself and left the room. The villa was luxurious, yet he felt as if he were living in a magnificent coffin. His room was just a smaller coffin within it.
Fortunately, the end of the day belonged to him. He hid in his room under the covers and closed his eyes while thinking of the encounter at the basketball court. In his imagination, he found the courage to tell Zhou Fan he was looking for him. But he could never imagine how Zhou Fan would respond.
After the exams, he did the boldest thing in his life. He pretended to agree to the elite school his parents chose, but on his application, he only listed the school Zhou Fan was attending. He did not expect his parents to send him to the elite school anyway as a visiting student. The elite school was a boarding school, which finally gave him some freedom and a phone of his own. Zhou Fan was a celebrity on the campus forums, so Chi Hanqing easily found information about him.
He learned that Zhou Fan had come out and had a boyfriend. He learned they broke up and that the boy had a new boyfriend. Two years later, Chi Hanqing finally arrived here while standing before Zhou Fan. He had wanted to give him the letter yesterday in the lounge, but his mind had gone blank with nerves. He had checked the letter all night for typos while preparing himself to finally hand over the pink envelope. He knew a love letter was an old-fashioned method, but he did not trust himself to speak the words aloud.
Zhou Fan had initially assumed the letter was from someone else, but as he read, his heart began to pound. He realized the cold and aloof boy in front of him had been pining for him for years. The letter ended with a request to date. Zhou Fan gripped the paper while feeling a strange mix of amusement and desire. He looked at Chi Hanqing who was still pretending to be calm despite his red neck and trembling eyelashes.
Zhou Fan called his name and beckoned for him to come closer. He saw the hesitation before the boy slowly walked toward him. Zhou Fan thought that he would not eat the boy as his lips curled upward. He felt a sense of pride that this beautiful and wealthy honor student had loved him from afar for so long. Zhou Fan was still young and could not help but feel smug about his own charm.
Chi Hanqing stopped in front of him. Zhou Fan reached out and cupped his face while noticing the skin was hot. He smiled and asked if the boy liked orange candies. Chi Hanqing blinked because he did not understand the question. The next moment, Zhou Fan chewed up his lollipop and tossed the stick into the trash then pulled the boy down into a kiss.
The thin and cold lips were just as soft as he had imagined. He tasted the sweetness of the orange candy on the tongue of the boy. When they finally pulled apart, Zhou Fan smiled and asked if the other man really liked him. Chi Hanqing panted slightly while his eyes were full of shock and confusion. He nodded instinctively.
Zhou Fan noted he wanted to hear him say it. Chi Hanqing grabbed the edge of the uniform of Zhou Fan and confessed that he liked him. Zhou Fan teased him and asked who he liked. He whispered that he liked Zhou Fan as his ears burned. Zhou Fan stopped teasing and kissed him again while agreeing to date.
When Zhou Fan said those words, he did not expect the relationship to last long. He was a restless person with many exes and little sense of responsibility. But Chi Hanqing felt different because he was the most interesting and beautiful boy Zhou Fan had ever met. He felt a heartbeat he had never experienced before as if a thin thread now connected their hearts.
Zhou Fan did not look too deeply into what that meant. He only wanted to follow the impulse he felt in the lounge the day before. After Chi Hanqing whispered his agreement, Zhou Fan pulled him close and reached for the buttons of his shirt. Previously, he had only ever kissed his boyfriends, but Chi Hanqing was not just another boy.
He accidentally brushed against the pocket of the school uniform and heard the rustle of plastic. He asked curiously what was in the pocket. Chi Hanqing looked at him deeply then reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of orange candies.