Mom

On Wednesday, Yin Sufang called at six in the morning to hurry him along. Pei Yang sat up in bed, rubbing his eyes with a resentful look. The first thing he did once he was awake was check WeChat. Still, Feng Wanting hadn't replied.

"...Fuck."

Pei Yang couldn't help swearing. He considered simply deleting and blocking him. Sure, Feng Wanting was his superior, but such a distant one that their paths barely crossed. He might not get to visit Headquarters even once every couple of weeks. No, he had no opportunity to go there at all-since graduating and starting work at FK Exhibitions, he had only been there that one time.

And even if he did get to visit Headquarters again, he wouldn't necessarily meet the illustrious Director Feng.

Pei Yang also knew perfectly well that Feng Wanting couldn't possibly need this little bit of money.

Over ten thousand yuan was a lot to an ordinary person. To Feng Wanting... it might cover half a meal.

After wavering for days, Pei Yang still couldn't bring himself to block and delete him.

But seeing Feng Wanting's name in his message list annoyed him. In a fit of anger, Pei Yang went to remove the conversation, then, worried about losing the chat history, carefully tapped "Hide."

After leaving home, Pei Yang took a taxi to the venue. On the way, he went through the event proposal and schedule again from beginning to end.

He had to admit that Yin Sufang's proposal was excellent this time. Even if he had made it to the meeting, he couldn't guarantee he would have secured the lead curator position for this project.

"-Where's Pei Yang? Has anyone seen Pei Yang? Fuck, the archery experience area he's responsible for is the most likely place for an accident, and he's still nowhere to be seen! I bet he's doing this on purpose!"

The backstage area was chaotic, with people constantly coming and going. Pei Yang was still some distance from the break room and had only just hung his "Staff" badge around his neck when he heard Yin Sufang ranting like a shrew.

He quickened his pace and collided head-on with Yin Sufang as he came out of the break room.

Yin Sufang hadn't been watching where he was going, and the tip of his nose slammed into Pei Yang's hard collarbone. He yelped and backed away, clutching his nose. "Pei Yang! Are you trying to murder me?"

"Is your nose fake? Why are you so worried?"

Pei Yang tossed his briefcase onto the couch, planted a hand on his hip, and loosened his tie. "The exhibition doesn't start until ten. Coming this early is a complete waste of time."

"Easy for you to say when you're not in charge of this exhibition." Yin Sufang took the elaborate, floor-length pale pink hanfu out of the temporary wardrobe and flung it into Pei Yang's arms. "Go get changed."

Seeing the actual outfit made Pei Yang feel even worse. As someone whose wardrobe contained only black, white, and gray, he simply couldn't accept such a soft, pale color. "Yin Sufang, how about getting your eyes checked? What made you think this color suited me?"

"Here you go nitpicking again. Pale pink suits fair skin. Who in the Exhibition Planning Department is fairer than you?"

"You." Pei Yang pressed the clothes against Yin Sufang's chest. "I think it suits you pretty well."

The warmth of Pei Yang's hand seeped through the layers of fabric into Yin Sufang's chest. Suddenly, Yin Sufang seemed to have been put on pause. Before he could smooth down his ruffled feathers, the tips of his ears betrayed him, instantly turning as red as evening clouds scorched by the setting sun.

Pei Yang tilted his head in confusion. "What's wrong with you?"

"Y-you're such a pain! I'm busy today! How am I supposed to work in something that cumbersome?" Yin Sufang retreated a few steps, his lashes fluttering twice in quick succession. "If you're going to change, hurry up. Everyone else has already had their styling done!"

"Someone actually got here earlier than me?" Pei Yang had barely finished speaking when the door to the adjoining makeup room opened. A male colleague emerged in heavy makeup, fiddling with his "long hair."

Pei Yang nearly blacked out. "I can accept the hair and costume, but there's absolutely no way I'm wearing that makeup."

He slammed the door shut and locked it, unbuttoning his shirt with one hand and undoing his belt with the other.

"Aaaaaah-"

Pei Yang stripped down to his underclothes and began puzzling over the unfamiliar outfit. When he looked back, Yin Sufang was huddled in a corner with his hands over his eyes.

"What are you screaming about?"

"Why the fuck are you stripping in public?"

"In public?" Pei Yang made a show of looking around the break room. "Is there anyone here besides you?"

Yin Sufang bared his teeth and angrily turned toward the wall, his exposed neck flushed scarlet.

Pei Yang had originally planned to ask Yin Sufang to help him get dressed, but judging by the way he didn't even dare look at him, that wasn't happening. He could only wrestle his way into the heavy, multilayered hanfu on his own.

Once all the layers were on, Pei Yang felt uncomfortable from head to toe and silently marveled at the evolution of clothing. He wound the sleeves trailing on the floor around his arms, then went to open the door, only to find Yin Sufang still facing the wall as though reflecting on his mistakes.

Well, that was a first. How bizarre.

The left corner of Pei Yang's mouth lifted with a hint of mischief. He bent down slightly, leaned close to Yin Sufang's scarlet ear, and murmured, "Yin Sufang, don't fall for me. It'll never work out."

Yin Sufang: "?" His eyes widened. Just as he was about to start swearing, Pei Yang pushed past him and went into the makeup room next door.

"Fuck! Goddamn you, Pei Yang! I'd fall for a dog before I fell for you-"

Despite Pei Yang's fierce resistance, once his hair was done, the makeup artist still held him in place and painted a pink floral ornament on his forehead, along with pink eyeliner.

-And lipstick.

Pei Yang had never suffered such humiliation in his life. The thought of wearing this outfit and a long-haired wig that jingled with every step made him want to die.

And of course, the ever-mouthy Yin Sufang led the teasing. "Oh, look at that. Out of everyone here, our Curator Pei is the 'prettiest.'"

"Hahahaha-Curator Pei really looks like a girl all done up like this."

"Oh! Like one of those seductive consorts in TV dramas who bring entire kingdoms to ruin!"

"He does! That's exactly the vibe!"

"Hey, most of the visitors will be kids. They're so young-what if they can't tell whether he's a man or a woman?"

"Then I suggest Curator Pei keep his mouth shut so he doesn't scare them."

"Hahahahaha!! He looks like a big sister, but the moment he opens his mouth, he turns into a big brother. That really would be scary!"

"Curator Pei, if a kid calls you big sister, keep that temper of yours in check. Don't hit anyone!"

Pei Yang: "..."

When the exhibition opened, the rich music of bronze chime bells descended from the domed ceiling. Most visitors were families, entering in an orderly stream with their children. They all craned their necks and looked around curiously, delighted cries mingling from every direction.

Yin Sufang handed out walkie-talkies and gave the order: "Time to work-"

Pei Yang brought up the rear of the staff procession. He kept stepping on the floor-length skirt, and there were over a dozen bells on the wig's long braid. He strongly suspected Yin Sufang had done it on purpose. This hair ornament was practically a public nuisance.

Lifting his skirt, Pei Yang slowly made his way toward the exhibition area, hoping to remove the bells from his braid when Yin Sufang wasn't looking. A curtain separated the exhibition space from backstage. Holding his braid, he reached to lift it. A gust blew in through the floor-to-ceiling window at the side, which had been opened for ventilation. The silver bells swayed gently, and his long skirt streamed to one side. Before he had fully stepped through the curtain, Pei Yang's pupils froze.

Feng Wanting, who had sat silently under the dim lights that night, was now less than ten meters away, holding a child's hand.

Their gazes collided in midair. The instant their eyes met, Pei Yang's Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed in a panic.

Of course the very thing I dreaded had to happen.

This was mortifying. Pei Yang instinctively raised his arm, intending to hide his face behind his sleeve. Before he could, a small, childish voice called out from ahead, "Mom-"

Mom? So his colleagues had all guessed wrong. Children seeing him dressed like this wouldn't call him big sister, but "Mom?"

Feng Wanting was still staring at Pei Yang, watching his long skirt unfurl in the wind, watching the gauzy sleeves billow behind him, watching the faint, alluring pink tracing the corners of his eyes. He fell into a daze. By the time he realized Feng Chuxun had pulled free of his hand and run over to hug Pei Yang's leg, calling him "Mom," it was already too late.

"It really is you! Mom-"