Chapter 05

The night before, he had been buried in reports, even taking the elevator down together, so it was unlikely he had fallen asleep and immediately started dreaming, right?

Ye Ji’an was instantly wide awake.

This was no dream. It was just past five in the afternoon, and he had dozed off for the entire day. If no one had come looking for him, it was entirely possible he would have slept until the next day and been late for work. A cold breeze wafted in through the ventilation window a few flights of stairs away, and the hallway was not warm at all. The drowsiness that had been clouding Ye Ji’an’s mind dissipated in an instant. He let Liang Xiao in, handed him a pair of cotton slippers, and his throat felt a bit hoarse. “Neighbor? You moved over here?”

“Yeah, in the building across from yours, also at the second entrance, on the nineteenth floor.” Liang Xiao wasn’t wearing a coat, probably to save time since it was close by, and he sneezed twice, looking a bit embarrassed.

Ye Ji’an recognized the limited collaboration sneakers Liang Xiao was wearing and had even been tempted by them. He watched as Liang Xiao casually stepped out of them, slipping into the whale-shaped slippers he had brought. “Senior, this building is already sold out.”

The south-facing balcony was right next to the living room. Ye Ji’an glanced over a couple of times; the windows were designed to be wide, and it wasn’t too dark yet. The building across, the second building, was clearly visible. It was a large unit, three bedrooms and two living rooms. For a single person, it seemed far too big. As he pondered this, he made Liang Xiao a cup of instant grapefruit juice. He loved drinking it in the office, but Ye Ji’an didn’t care for it. He didn’t even know why he had put it in his shopping cart while at the supermarket.

“How’s the rent?” he asked.

“Bought it.” Liang Xiao sniffed, already arranging the pile of souvenirs next to the sofa.

“Make yourself comfortable; I’ve been sleeping here all day,” Ye Ji’an said, his back aching from the awkward position. He handed over the paper cup and added with a smile, “Please don’t tell me you paid in full.”

“It’s a mortgage,” Liang Xiao replied obediently, sitting down beside him. “I have to pay it off over ten years.”

I only have a little over five years left, Ye Ji’an thought, feeling slightly less desperate. Watching Liang Xiao quickly finish the still-hot juice, he said, “Get ready; you’ll have to wake up at five every day to catch the subway, just like me.”

“Will Senior ride the subway with me?”

“We should run into each other.” Ye Ji’an put two drops of eye drops in his eyes. “By the way, is your place all set up?”

“The previous owner did some renovations,” Liang Xiao said, taking his bottle of eye drops and curiously squeezing out two drops for himself. His eyes widened as if he were crying, and he looked at Ye Ji’an with bright eyes. “The moving company just left this morning.”

“…Then let’s go.”

“Senior?”

Ye Ji’an stood up and looked down. Liang Xiao’s eyes were still bloodshot from working late, and with that artificial sheen, he reminded Ye Ji’an of a little rabbit. “If it’s convenient, I can come over and help you tidy up.”

Liang Xiao’s eyes lit up even more. “Is that okay?”

“Let’s cook a couple of dishes first; we need to bring some warmth to the new home. You should have a frying pan and a pressure cooker, right?” Ye Ji’an said, stretching his back as he walked toward the kitchen. “Wait a moment; I’ll grab some ingredients.”

The fridge wasn’t as dire as he had imagined. The chrysanthemum greens and Shanghai greens were indeed wilted, but the winter bamboo shoots and potatoes were still good. The tomatoes were wrapped in plastic wrap, looking edible as well. Ye Ji’an was quite confident in his cooking skills. As he filled the basket with eggs, beef brisket, oil, salt, soy sauce, and cooking wine, he heard the sound of the whale slippers on the floor and Liang Xiao’s excited exclamation: “This is amazing, Senior! You’ve saved me!”

Ye Ji’an smiled, turned around to hand him the basket, and grabbed an apron for himself since this shirt was quite comfortable and rather expensive.

Liang Xiao happily hugged the basket of vegetables. “Just right; I can’t cook.”

I know you can’t, Ye Ji’an thought, glancing at him silently, the guy who doesn’t even know how to use a microwave.

Before leaving, he draped a down jacket over Liang Xiao’s sweater as a thank-you for borrowing his Hermès coat last time at the soup dumpling shop.

About an hour later, Ye Ji’an’s cooking skills were finally put to the test. The tomato-braised beef brisket, stir-fried shredded potatoes, and bamboo shoots with scrambled eggs came out steaming hot, while Liang Xiao’s only contribution was stirring the egg mixture. For the rest of the time, Ye Ji’an didn’t trust him enough to help and sent him back to work on the reports.

When he emerged from the kitchen with the dish tray, he saw Liang Xiao sitting on the carpet in the large living room, frowning at the computer screen. Upon seeing him, Liang Xiao smiled, set the computer aside, and knelt by the coffee table, rummaging through the clutter. “Let’s eat here, Senior,” he said, his eyes still sparkling. “It’s really soft to sit on.”

With that, he scooted past the various-sized boxes piled in the living room and went to the kitchen to get bowls and chopsticks. Ye Ji’an arranged the plates, sat cross-legged, and indeed found it quite soft, soft enough to make him feel that even his old back would get sore from sitting too long. The underfloor heating made him feel quite comfortable, though he wondered how to clean this long, white wool carpet.

With a probability of over ninety percent, he bet himself that this pampered little landlord would hire a cleaning lady every day.

Aside from the bowls and chopsticks, Liang Xiao also brought over a tray of beer. It was the Kirin that Ye Ji’an often drank at parties. He opened a can, filled two cups, and they clinked them together. “Drink less; we have work tomorrow, and we still need to tidy up,” Ye Ji’an said, mainly because he didn’t want to gain weight.

Liang Xiao nodded obediently. “You’re really nice.”

“I always feel like I’m leading you into this den of wolves…” Ye Ji’an pondered his words. “This neighborhood isn’t as convenient as you think. People live too closely together; you have to queue for everything, and they dig up pipes every few days, cutting off my water.”

Liang Xiao smirked. “Anyway, we aren’t home that often.”

“That’s true,” Ye Ji’an laughed, serving Liang Xiao a bowl of beef brisket. “Where did you live before? Just near the company?”

“Yeah, my parents are over there.” Liang Xiao answered vaguely, seemingly focused on drinking, without tasting any of the dishes.

Ye Ji’an looked at him. “You really need to buy a place; otherwise, how will you find a partner?”

Liang Xiao raised an eyebrow, about to say something when his phone suddenly rang, vibrating on the glass table. Ye Ji’an glanced at it; it was an unknown number.

He gestured for Liang Xiao to answer it; it was no big deal.

Liang Xiao showed no intention of avoiding it, swiped to answer, and held it to his ear. The person on the other end said something first, and when Liang Xiao didn’t respond, the voice suddenly became very loud. Ye Ji’an couldn’t make out what language it was; at least it wasn’t English or Chinese.

It was hard to tell if it was a man or a woman.

Yet Liang Xiao remained calm, stirring the tomato soup in his bowl without saying a word. A few seconds later, he hung up the phone directly.

“Ex. He needs money again.” He said simply, turning off his phone and tossing it on the floor. He then pressed a few buttons on a small remote, and the sound system in the living room immediately activated, playing music at a moderate volume, surrounding them in a stereo sound. It was a shoegaze band that Ye Ji’an really liked; he had even taken a vacation to see them live in the summer.

“This is my favorite album,” Liang Xiao explained.

Ye Ji’an was taken aback. Although they often differed greatly, in some subtle ways, he and Liang Xiao were indeed very similar. “You still support your ex…” he asked cautiously, wondering what kind of fortune god had descended upon him.

“No, that’s why he keeps bothering me. It’s driving me crazy.” Liang Xiao seemed reluctant to say more, finally taking a piece of beef, followed by another. “So delicious!” His eyes sparkled again.

“My scrambled eggs are pretty good too, and the shredded potatoes are a masterpiece,” Ye Ji’an offered.

Liang Xiao immediately tasted them one by one, giving them high praise. His frankness didn’t feel like flattery. “You’re really amazing, Senior.”

Seeing that the bowl of beef was about to be finished, Ye Ji’an rarely saw him eat so ravenously. He nudged his wine glass, signaling him to slow down and not choke, then took a sip of beer, feeling a bit shy. “By the time you reach my age, you might cook even better. You can’t starve yourself.”

“I can’t; no one cooks for me, so I eat out every day,” Liang Xiao said confidently. “Only you are amazing, Senior.”

“Alright then.” Ye Ji’an thought to himself that there should be limits to flattery. Why didn’t he show this much admiration for the General Manager?

“Only my Ge is the best.”

“…” Ye Ji’an buried his head in his food, retracting his earlier thoughts.

Liang Xiao wiped his mouth with a napkin, took a swig of beer, and suddenly asked, “Senior, did you buy a house to find a partner?”

“Haha, that was the initial reason,” Ye Ji’an said, looking at the shimmering surface of the wine under the lights. “About five years ago, I made the down payment. My girlfriend and I had been dating since college, and we were already discussing marriage. Then she quit her job to study for civil service exams for two years, while I got promoted and paid off the mortgage for two years, and then we broke up.”

Liang Xiao asked directly, “Can I ask why?”

“Of course,” Ye Ji’an shrugged. “I felt the relationship had become very bland. It’s strange, right? Just because people have been together for a long time doesn’t mean their feelings deepen. Maybe we were just living too carelessly. She felt insecure and lacked the motivation to continue, and I was also exhausted. I suddenly realized that I didn’t have to be with her, so why make things difficult for each other? Otherwise, getting married would be even more troublesome.”

“That’s true.” Liang Xiao’s eyebrows arched.

“I don’t care now; being alone is the most freeing. No one owes me anything, and I don’t provoke anyone. My family doesn’t have any expectations of me either,” Ye Ji’an took a big sip, the aroma and warmth of the room making him want to offer more sincerity at that moment. “Continuing to pay for this apartment is quite good; everyone needs some motivation, right?”

Liang Xiao looked at him intently but said nothing.

Ye Ji’an felt a bit warm, his heart racing a little faster, the alcohol swirling in his throat. Especially when he caught a glimpse of the large blue-green lizard on the TV cabinet suddenly opening its eyes and moving, he felt as if he were dreaming in broad daylight. He had always thought it was a model decoration.

“They’re not very active in winter,” Liang Xiao said casually. “His name is Marx, a four-year-old blue iguana. I still have a few boxes of geckos that I haven’t moved over yet.”

“I didn’t know you had this hobby before.”

“They’ve always kept me company abroad.”

“Well, our company has a reptile enthusiast group. You can ask Xiao Li from the General Affairs Department to add you,” Ye Ji’an said, looking at the expensive-looking reptile, picking up the earlier thread of conversation. “I actually just want to say, you don’t need to rush. Now that you’ve bought a house, you don’t have to be in a hurry to get married. Just take your time and enjoy life a bit more. You won’t have to keep running into people like that. Of course, the most important thing is still the work; no matter what relationship you have, it shouldn’t interfere with your responsibilities.”

Liang Xiao laughed heartily. After laughing enough, he said very seriously, “I don’t want to mess around, Ge. I have someone I like, someone I can’t do without.”

Ye Ji’an was gazed at by him. “What’s the status?”

“I’m pursuing him.”

“Good luck, Xiao Liang,” Ye Ji’an twirled his wine glass, putting on a seasoned expression. “I think you can do it.”

“Yeah, I think so too.” Liang Xiao still smiled brightly. “Senior, I haven’t mentioned this at work, but I want to tell you. You might be concerned when you hear it, but I think it’s necessary to tell you early.”

Marx closed his philosophically meaningful eyes again, and Ye Ji’an felt tense. “Go ahead.” He sat up straight.

“I’m gay. The person I like is also a man.”