Chapter 2

Translators: Moonie (And Meraki)

We actually didn’t stay at the bar for too long. I wasn’t sure if they had other plans, but I wanted to go home.

After I returned home and charged my phone, I took a bath. After taking a bath and cleaning up the bathroom, I returned to the bedroom and picked up my phone. I discovered there were 21 missed calls from Yang Wenli. I was truly shocked; I rarely see Yang Wenli’s frantic side.

I called back and he immediately picked up.

“Why didn’t you respond or answer the phone? We were worried and didn’t know if you safely arrived home.” Yang Wenli’s anxious tone came from the other side of the phone.

“I arrived safely at home a long time ago, I didn’t hear because I was in the bath.”

While I responded, I wondered what’s wrong. I never had the habit of reporting my safety to him when I went home alone before. In addition, he never worried about my safety.

I lay down on the bed listening to him ramble on the phone. “I originally wasn’t worried, but it was He Tong who reminded me to ask you. Then we couldn’t contact you, and we became worried. He said he recorded the car’s plate and was about to go to the taxi website to find a customer service agent…”

I never expected this matter to blow up this big. I sat up, leaned against the headboard, and told Yang Wenli: “You exaggerate…”

Yang Wenli smiled and told me: “I also think so. Looking back, I feel that I was very idiotic. It could be because I never linked ‘you’ and the word ‘unsafe’ together before.” Afterwards, his voice became quiet, “But he’s really earnest and a worrier. I didn’t expect he’d quietly jot down the licence plate number…”

Even though it’s our first time meeting and we didn’t talk too much, I could feel that He Tong is truly a kind-hearted gentleman.

While dancing on the dance floor, I’d occasionally lean on his sturdy and wide chest. I could feel him trying his best to clear a small space for me so I wouldn’t have to squeeze into the crowd. Afterwards, I stepped on his shoes on more than one occasion. I apologized to him and he said it’s fine, saying I stepped on it very lightly.

It’s been a long time since I felt a sense of security, and it felt a bit absurd. It could be because of the dim lights, the faint touch, the cramped space, the oxygen-deprived brain, and the mischief of hormones.

The phone was handed to He Tong by Yang Wenli.

I didn’t know what to say so I waited for him to start. As a result, there was a long period of silence between us. I heard Yang Wenli shout on the other side: “Are you guys transmitting your thoughts to each other?”

“I arrived home.” I dryly spoke.

“En, safely arriving home is good.” He Tong’s voice over the phone is especially pleasant to hear, very deep and low.

“En,” I said, “Thank you for worrying about me.”

He laughed once, the sound of his laughter through the phone tickled my ears. “No need to thank me, it’s good as long as you don’t feel I’m annoying.”

After hanging up, I laid back on the bed. I stared blankly for a bit realizing my mind unconsciously wandered to He Tong. He Tong truly acted like a gentleman towards me. I didn’t know if he’s naturally gentlemanly, and if he’d act like that towards everyone. I can’t feel his character, and I couldn’t figure him out. But a guy like He Tong is definitely not lacking in friends, his life is definitely more interesting than mine. Moreover, even I, the picky misandrist[1], feel it’s comfortable to interact with him.

I don’t know why, but my brain suddenly flashed back to the scene at the bar where Yang Wenli asked He Tong “How was Zhou Yuanmu’s dance?”

How did he say it then?

“He danced very well, very sexy.”

“What sexy...” Thinking of this, my face heated up and burrowed into the blanket. Although I have a good sense of positioning, my limbs have always been uncoordinated since I was small. How sexy could it be? I originally thought that as long as the person looked good, even if they danced into a lump of sh*t, they’d be able to scrape by based on their face alone. But dancing to the end is even more nerve wracking, you wouldn’t know what you danced.

I’m really weird.

Five days later at night, Yang Wenli invited me out for the next day. I casually asked who else would go, my heart unexpectedly having thoughts of “Perhaps He Tong would go too”.

Yang Wenli said a few names I was familiar with, even taking the initiative to mention that he originally wanted to invite He Tong, but he was busy and couldn’t go.

Upon hearing this, I didn’t want to go. Thinking about it again, I felt I was crazy. What, do I have to act like this for a person I met once? Zhou Yuanmu, is there something wrong with you?

When I questioned myself like this, I instinctively refuted it.

"I'm going", I agreed to Yang Wenli’s invitation.

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[1] The words the raws use is 暂时性厌男的挑剔鬼 which roughly translate to (temporary disliking men, picky ghost)

but he's exaggerating here. I don't think he actually dislikes men, he's more neutral about it.