08

Qi Shuitang, after experiencing a long and arduous struggle for existence, finally saw a glimmer of hope.

Yi He was intellectually impaired, single-minded by nature, and on top of that, they were both of the same gender, making it even more difficult for him to open up. Qi Shuitang had been trying to establish his presence for so long, and he guessed that the other party probably only saw him as a slightly more familiar customer, maybe a friend at best.

However, Yi He’s evasion a few days ago had inadvertently stirred up an uncontrollable sense of excitement in Qi Shuitang’s heart.

He held two movie tickets in his hands, and after the previous customer left, he inched closer to the stove and asked Yi He, “Boss, are you done with work?”

“You’re here early today.” Yi He was surprised when he glanced at the watch, and while scooping another ladle of batter, he said, “Wait a moment, I’ll make it right now.”

“No rush.” Qi Shuitang pressed down on his hand, squinting his eyes and smiling, “When you’re done, would you like to go watch a movie?”  He swung the movie tickets in his hand and tried to pull Yi He out.

“But…” Yi He withdrew his hand and wiped it on his apron, “I, I haven’t finished selling yet.”

Qi Shuitang sighed pretentiously, lamenting, “Then what should I do? These two movie tickets are quite expensive, and I’ve looked around but couldn’t find anyone to go with, so I thought of you.”

Seeing Yi He’s hesitation, he added fuel to the fire, “Is it wrong to watch a movie with a friend? Or do you not consider me a friend?”

“No, no!” Yi He, who couldn’t withstand Qi Shuitang’s persuasion, agreed after a moment of hesitation. He tidied up, pushed the small cart with difficulty to the back, and then, together with Qi Shuitang, exerted their combined efforts to pull down the roller shutter and lock the shop.

It was hard to imagine that Yi He had been selling jianbing at the gate of A University for so long, and today was the first time he had come inside the campus.

He followed Qi Shuitang step by step, curiously inspecting the campus.

09

“Wait for me, I’ll go get the bike.” Qi Shuitang’s small electric scooter was parked in the bicycle shed. He let Yi He stand under the tree and ran into the shed himself, the keys in his hand jingling merrily as he went.

Yi He stood in front of the bulletin board, carefully examining the resumes of the outstanding students, not without a trace of envy.

“Ah, Jianbing Xiao Ge¹小哥 (xiǎo gē) – friendly form of address for a young man of about one’s own age or a little older.” Yi He turned around at the sound, and a female student was standing not far away, looking at him in surprise. Yi He studied her carefully and recognized her as a regular customer at his shop.

He curved his mouth into a smile and greeted her loudly.

The girl’s expression momentarily froze, but then she stepped forward and casually asked, “Xiao Ge, are you doing takeout business now?”

Yi He shook his head and replied carefully, “I’m here with a friend.”

Before the girl could say anything else, Qi Shuitang came rushing out of the shed on his fashionable little electric scooter and stopped steadily next to Yi He.

Yi He was startled, but when he recognized it was Qi Shuitang, he smiled and clapped his hands in appreciation.

Qi Shuitang cleared his throat proudly and gestured to the back seat, “Get on.”

“Senior Qi, do you know each other?”

Qi Shuitang finally spared a glance at the girl. He nodded coolly and then turned to Yi He, instructing, “Hug my waist, don’t fall off.”

“I didn’t expect the friend Xiao Ge mentioned to be Senior Qi.” The girl spoke up again, at an inappropriate time. These words were harmless, but Qi Shuitang, seeing the girl’s undisguised surprise and scrutiny in her eyes, frowned with some disdain and said, “What’s wrong with him being my friend?”

The girl was taken aback for a moment, then blushed deeply and hurriedly turned and left.

Qi Shuitang fell silent. He twisted the handlebar a few times and then, in a roundabout way, left the campus.

Yi He could feel Qi Shuitang’s irritation and resentment. He sat on the back seat, his two arms obediently hugging Qi Shuitang’s waist tightly, sweating anxiously.

So when they got off the bike, Yi He, imitating the way the director comforts him, awkwardly hugged the man and kissed his forehead, clumsily soothing, “Are you angry? Uh…”

He got flustered and forgot the next sentence. Frowning, he lamented, “I’m so stupid…”

Qi Shuitang was stunned. He touched his forehead and asked dumbly, “Why did you kiss me?”

“You’re not happy.” Yi He felt frustrated by his own uselessness. He turned in circles on the spot, muttering to himself, not even knowing what he was saying, his forehead starting to sweat.

“Yi He, Yi He.” Qi Shuitang grabbed him, stroked his hair, and spoke calmly, “It’s not your fault. I was just venting my anger. Let’s go watch the movie, okay?”

Yi He was forced to calm down. He nodded heavily and followed Qi Shuitang to the cinema.

It wasn’t until halfway through the movie that Qi Shuitang finally regained his composure. He stared at Yi He’s focused profile and thought: If Yi He is so anxious about me, does it mean that I’ve already become important to him?

TL Notes

• 1
  小哥 (xiǎo gē) – friendly form of address for a young man of about one’s own age or a little older