Confession

By the time Li Yu and Chi Yan left the little restaurant, the moon had already risen, hanging hazily at the edge of the sky and casting a soft halo of light. Wisps of cloud floated and curled around the luminous moon like gauze.

Li Yu lowered his eyes to look at the road. The moonlight stretched his and Chi Yan's shadows long, and Li Yu suddenly smiled, stepping forward to stomp on Chi Yan's shadow.

Chi Yan looked at Li Yu with puzzled eyes. Li Yu said, "Brother Chi, I've stepped on your shadow."

"I saw that."

"They say a person's soul is hidden in their shadow. Now, I've trapped your soul."

After Li Yu said that, Chi Yan's brows and eyes softened. "So now... my soul belongs to you?"

Li Yu let out an "Ah," unable to help feeling that Chi Yan's words sounded awfully suggestive. Not knowing how to reply, he silently withdrew his foot from Chi Yan's shadow and changed the subject. "So we're not going to the viewing platform? We're going to the Spring City Bridge that auntie mentioned?"

Chi Yan noticed that Li Yu was changing the subject, but he did not say anything. He simply went along with him. "Mm, let's go to Spring City Bridge. It's closer to the hotel, and we can see the fireworks too."

Li Yu nodded and fell silent again, only sticking close to Chi Yan's side.

After walking for over ten minutes, they arrived at Spring City Bridge. Compared to Quanyi Dam, there were indeed fewer people here. Many plane trees had been planted along the roadside, and as the breeze stirred, the shadows of the trees swayed across the ground.

Li Yu leaned half his body against the bridge railing and gazed at the scenery across the river. Most of the buildings were hidden in the night, but the commercial towers shone brilliantly, their lights reflecting off the river's surface.

The fireworks show was set to begin at ten. Li Yu took out his phone to check the time; there were still more than ten minutes left.

Then he noticed several unread WeChat messages from Yu Lin.

Yu Lin: Little Yu, are you home yet?

Yu Lin: Little Yu, I took another stroll around Rippling Isle tonight and found a shop that sells all kinds of little trinkets. Everything inside is really interesting. [Image][Image][Image]

Yu Lin: Little Yu, what are you doing now?

Li Yu opened the pictures Yu Lin had sent and glanced at them, the corner of his mouth curving up.

The pictures Yu Lin had sent showed several dolls. Their expressions all looked profoundly "wise," their fur standing on end all over, making them both strange and adorable.

Li Yu casually took a picture of the shimmering river and sent it over.

Li Yu: I'm not home. I'm outside waiting to watch the fireworks.

Yu Lin replied almost instantly. He said: Is it Spring City's fireworks show? I wanted to go before too, damn it, but I actually forgot! Can you record a video? I want to see it too.

Li Yu could picture Yu Lin's annoyed expression from between the lines. He replied with an "Okay" and put away his phone.

When he looked up again, he met Chi Yan's eyes.

Chi Yan pressed his lips together and glanced at Li Yu's phone. Then he turned away and asked as if casually, "Who were you talking to?"

"Yu Lin. He knows I'm watching the fireworks and asked me to record a video for him."

"Mm, I see."

Chi Yan answered, while the vinegar jar in his heart began to sour again.

Little Fish never shares his daily life with me...

As ten o'clock approached, the voices around them grew noisy. Everyone raised their phones to record, saying, "The fireworks are coming! The fireworks are coming! Start recording!"

Hearing that, Li Yu opened his phone and started filming as well.

On the far side of the river, more than a dozen clusters of fireworks spiraled into the air like silver serpents. Then, with a bang, the serpents burst apart, blooming into dazzling flowers in the night sky. One after another, they merged into an ocean of blossoms.

Flowers of every color bloomed amid the passersby's cries of amazement. Shifting between light and dark, they resembled falling meteors, rising flames, and dancing butterflies. The river was illuminated in a kaleidoscope of colors, as though the gods had sent down a dreamlike rain.

For a moment, Li Yu was speechless. The beauty of the fireworks was overwhelming—so brilliant, so eye-catching that they stirred a deep emotion in his heart.

"Do they look good?"

Chi Yan turned to ask Li Yu.

Li Yu nodded. Meeting Chi Yan's gaze, he said, "They're beautiful! So romantic! They're so beautiful they make me want to cry..."

Chi Yan asked again, "Do you like them?"

Li Yu nodded again and smiled. "I do! I'm really happy!"

A smile appeared in Chi Yan's eyes. He leaned close to Li Yu's ear and said softly, "Little Fish, I like you very much too."

Li Yu froze. The sensitive skin at the tip of his ear felt the warmth of Chi Yan's breath, and it instantly turned red.

What... did he just hear?

Although the surroundings were somewhat noisy, Li Yu had heard every word Chi Yan said clearly.

He said... he liked him...

Li Yu pursed his lips and suddenly did not dare look at Chi Yan. His eyes began to dart around, his heart beating so fast it felt as if it would leap out the next second.

Chi Yan liked him?

Since when?

How had he not known at all?

Chi Yan's hand suddenly settled on the back of Li Yu's neck, turning Li Yu's gaze toward him.

As Li Yu and Chi Yan looked at each other, he could clearly feel that Chi Yan's eyes had initially been fixed on the corner of his eye before slowly moving downward to his lips.

He vaguely realized what Chi Yan was about to do, and instinctively shrank back.

Chi Yan pulled Li Yu into his arms, then lightly kissed the tear mole at the corner of Li Yu's eye.

Li Yu's eyelashes trembled. He felt the whole world blur, and when he looked up, fireworks filled the sky. The voices around him seemed to grow quieter too. Like a machine that had crashed, he completely forgot how to think.

"Little Fish, can I kiss you?"

Chi Yan's lips left the corner of Li Yu's eye. His other hand supported Li Yu's chin, his thumb stroking Li Yu's rosy lips. Seeing Li Yu's dazed expression, Chi Yan's eyes darkened.

Before Li Yu could answer, Chi Yan bent down and kissed the lips he had longed for day and night.

At first, it was only a simple kiss, but Li Yu lost all strength from the very beginning and went limp in Chi Yan's arms.

His hands clutched tightly at Chi Yan's suit lapels, as though they were the only thing he could rely on before he sank under.

Chi Yan kissed him passionately, as if he meant to steal away every breath Li Yu had.

Their breaths mingled, burning hot enough to melt them completely into each other. Li Yu's grip on Chi Yan's lapels tightened as well.

"Mm..."

Li Yu was nearly unable to breathe and let out a muffled sound.

Chi Yan's lips moved to Li Yu's ear again and kissed it gently.

Tears rose in Li Yu's eyes. Through the blur, he looked at Chi Yan's face, illuminated by the light of the fireworks.