Chapter 49

With Shen Yi busy with his senior year of high school, Fu Yuhe usually refrained from disturbing him and waited for him to come to him instead. They kissed and embraced with growing skill in the study, the bedroom, or the bathroom, but they still hadn't crossed that final line.

"I understand, Teacher Fu." Shen Yi reopened his computer and, without any concern for the very much alive Fu Yuhe sitting beside him, openly started watching an adults-only action movie.

Shen Yi felt in his pocket and found one last lollipop, strawberry-flavored.

Fu Yuhe had originally meant to make him uncomfortable, but Shen Yi was perfectly at ease and had even started eating a lollipop. A faint sweetness lingered around Fu Yuhe's nose, and he realized that the one suffering wasn't Shen Yi, but himself.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked casually.

Shen Yi said, "Your legs look better than his."

Fu Yuhe said, "..."

Shen Yi said, "Your waist is slimmer than his too, and you have muscles-"

"Enough." Fu Yuhe's Adam's apple bobbed. A few words from Shen Yi had him struggling to hold himself together; hearing such suggestive things in that innocent tone was intensely stimulating. He sprang to his feet. "I have some things to take care of in the study. Stay here by yourself."

Shen Yi looked eager. "Aren't you going to test me anymore?"

Fu Yuhe sneered, convinced that Shen Yi was doing it on purpose. He turned his back on him without answering the question.

Shen Yi didn't understand. Hearing the door shut with a bang, he muttered, "It's fine if you test me later."

On Christmas Eve, Shen Yi went home with an extra bag of apples in his hand. Fu Yuhe had given them to him so he could get more vitamins.

Fu Yuhe was going away on a business trip for more than half a month and wouldn't make it back for New Year's Day. On New Year's Eve, he called Fu Cheng, but hung up after exchanging only a few words and called another little ungrateful pup instead.

"Ge!" the ungrateful Shen Yi greeted him excitedly. "Good evening."

In an apartment high up in a building in an upscale neighborhood, Shen Yi leaned against the balcony railing. The cold wind had turned the tip of his nose slightly red, but he didn't go back inside. Light spilled out from the living room, illuminating half his body.

He watched the snow drifting through the night sky, the corners of his lips curling up slightly.

The sky was dark as a curtain, and the streetlights below stood alone. Snowflakes drifted down to the ground, where a thin layer of snow had settled. It had begun snowing on and off a few days ago, though not heavily.

"Are you outside?" Fu Yuhe's voice came from the other end, casual and a little soft, as though touched with warmth.

Shen Yi said, "It's snowing here, Ge. Is it snowing where you are?"

Fu Yuhe pulled open the hotel curtains. Outside, snowflakes had begun to drift down at some point. "Mm, it is."

It gave Fu Yuhe a subtle feeling, as though they were watching the same snowfall in different places. There was a touch of romance to it, and his heart stirred for a second. He wanted very much to embrace the person on the other end of the phone-just a simple embrace.

"Is everything going smoothly?" Shen Yi asked from the other end.

Fu Yuhe said, "Mm."

Shen Yi said, "Ge, come back soon. If I don't see you for too long, I'll miss you."

Fu Yuhe took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. He took out a cigarette and held it between his lips. "Miss me?"

He chuckled. "Do you miss me, or do you want to do something else with me?"

"Either," Shen Yi said. Hearing the faint click of a lighter on the other end, he guessed that Fu Yuhe was smoking again.

"Is something bothering you?" he asked.

Fu Yuhe said nothing, falling silent for a moment.

It wasn't exactly something troubling, just something that had been weighing on his heart.

That afternoon-

Fu Yuhe had taken Special Assistant Wang to meet with a business partner. After the two sides finished their discussion, they parted ways. On the way back to the hotel, Fu Yuhe stopped by a boutique for the brand of watch he usually wore.

Warm yellow lights glowed inside the store. Special Assistant Wang asked whether he was buying a watch to take back for Fu Cheng. Special Assistant Wang had some experience in this regard: when Fu Yuhe traveled on business, he would occasionally bring something back for Fu Cheng, though he rarely picked anything out in person.

Special Assistant Wang recommended a new model. "This one is more suitable for boys their age."

Fu Yuhe bought it, but didn't leave right away. His own watch was about due for a replacement too. A sales assistant recommended several watches, and Fu Yuhe took a liking to one that was understated but exquisitely detailed. He asked for two.

Special Assistant Wang was puzzled. "Two? President Fu, who else are you buying one for?"

"Mm," Fu Yuhe said.

Special Assistant Wang had a girlfriend, so he quickly guessed that the matching watch was for Fu Yuhe's partner. He told Fu Yuhe that if he was buying it for his girlfriend, the watch wasn't quite suitable for a woman. Most women had slender wrists, and a thinner watchband would look better.

Fu Yuhe glanced at him. "Do I look like I have a girlfriend?"

Special Assistant Wang said, "..."

He fell silent at once.

Come to think of it, although he had never seen Fu Yuhe show interest in any woman, lately he really had seemed a little like he had a girlfriend. He was radiant every day, looking as though something good had happened, and he often had Special Assistant Wang buy desserts for him to take home.

Special Assistant Wang had even suspected that Fu Yuhe was keeping a woman hidden away.

Unlike the twists and turns in Special Assistant Wang's train of thought, Fu Yuhe, after receiving the watches, was simply wondering when Shen Yi would finally confess and tell him he liked him. Or... did Shen Yi simply like this kind of physical relationship?

After the initial period of infatuation and impulsiveness had passed, Fu Yuhe had gradually begun to sense that something wasn't quite right. Although he had initially been happy to maintain this kind of relationship, he didn't want it to go on like this forever now.

In the hotel room, two boxes lay open on the coffee table, each containing an exquisite wristwatch. Fu Yuhe sat on the sofa, puffing out clouds of smoke.