TSIBAMS Chapter 117
by VolareYe Xing’s Weibo account displayed Qi Guang’s photos openly and neatly.
To be precise, they were all back views, nine in total.
Qi Guang felt his senses were amplified, especially his heartbeat, which was so fast that he could barely hear the surrounding sounds. He could only grip his phone tightly and confirm once again—
It really was Ye Xing’s Weibo.
And it really was his own photos.
The combination of the two gave him a very distant and unfamiliar feeling of incongruity.
Not only were they incongruous, but this blatant public display was simply arrogant and direct, like the midday sun, making it impossible for him to look at directly.
He took a deep breath and exhaled forcefully, repeating this several times. After a while, he finally managed to calm his rapid breathing slightly, then mustered the courage to click on the full-sized images.
A back view of him working at 1984, a back view of him cooking in the kitchen, a back view of him carrying groceries at the market, a back view of him studying in the study…
Each one was him, and each scene was different.
This guy had secretly taken so many photos!
His fingers moved cautiously and gently across the screen, continuing to scroll through the photos, and soon reached the last one.
This one was a little different from the previous photos. It was the only one of him squatting, and it didn’t occupy much space—at first glance, you might think the TV was the main subject, the scene was a frame from a movie, and he was squatting on the side adjusting the audio, unknowingly blocking part of the TV.
Qi Guang remembered this weekend of watching movies at home with Ye Xing, and even remembered the movie called “Atonement”—set in the English countryside in 1935, the wealthy Cecilia and Robbie, the son of a servant, confessed their feelings for each other. However, a rape case at the estate that evening caused Robbie to be wrongfully imprisoned. This enormous misunderstanding caused the two lovers to endure immense grief and suffering. By the time World War II broke out, both Robbie, after being released from prison, and the impoverished Cecilia joined the fight to protect their country. But fate didn’t give them a happy ending, and the two never truly got together before dying in the war.
Qi Guang didn’t understand why this photo, which didn’t match the other eight, appeared here.
Was it to complete the nine-grid layout?
In Qi Guang’s memory, the only time he realized Ye Xing was taking his picture was at the second-hand market. Ye Xing had called his name from behind him, and he had cooperated by looking at the camera, but because Ye Xing took too long adjusting the settings, he lost patience and ended up with only a profile shot…
And this profile shot didn’t seem to appear in the photos Ye Xing posted.
If this was what Huang Shanshan meant by coming out, then his deliberate omission of his photos where his face was visible was actually a form of protection?
The light from the phone screen reflected on Qi Guang’s face, showing no expression, his eyes bright, his brows slightly furrowed.
He only felt the capillaries in his face expanding wildly, all his blood rushing upwards—fortunately, the light from the phone was not too bright, and no one noticed the subtle changes in the color of his face.
But just because no one noticed didn’t mean it didn’t exist. For example, the phone screen was covered in a layer of mist for the first time ever, caused by his chaotic and excited breathing.
He wiped the screen with his sleeve, then leaned back on the sofa, tossing the phone aside.
He thought closing his eyes would make him feel better, but instead, more thoughts flooded his mind, like a barrage of questions.
Damn it!
Has he gone crazy?
But he didn’t post any text, so was it too far-fetched to assume he was coming out just based on these photos?
Who said he was coming out?
It was Huang Shanshan!
What did she say?
Comments?
Yes, Ye Xing had liked the comments!
He reopened his eyes, sat up quickly as if brought back from the dead, startling Bai Shu, who was walking by with a tray of beer and almost lost his balance.
Qi Guang glanced at what Bai Shu was holding, reached into the tray and grabbed a bottle of beer, opened the cap carelessly on the corner of the table, and took a huge gulp.
Bai Shu, who had been robbed, stood there in a daze, looking back at Xu Ge with an incredulous expression.
Xu Ge, a few meters away, nodded at him, indicating that this guy was not in his right mind today.
Qi Guang, oblivious to the other world a few meters above, opened Weibo by himself and clicked into the comments on Ye Xing’s Weibo.
If the Weibo content he had seen earlier was like the midday sun that was hard to look at directly, then these hot comments were simply roasting him under the sun—
[Is this the little brother from the picture that the artist drew last time?? I recognize the clothes and shoes!! And that study!! Ahhh, he looks so handsome even from the back!! Am I finding out something amazing?]
[Ye Da hasn’t even posted a photo of himself, but when he does, it’s all photos of this little brother, so sweet!]
[I’m shipping them! I’m shipping them! I’m shipping them!!!]
[I hope to see his face before I die, please!! I BALL BALL U]
[Everyone, I have successfully transformed from being a girlfriend fan to a mom fan, and now I’m a CP fan!!]
[I’m just gonna lie down in this pit, even if the gods come, I won’t leave!]
These were the comments that Ye Xing had liked?
Qi Guang couldn’t describe how he felt. He wasn’t afraid of coming out, nor was he afraid of others guessing or knowing about him and Ye Xing. At this moment, he even felt a sense of inexplicable, secret joy.
But this shouldn’t be happening now, right?
What is this?
But on the other hand, Ye Xing didn’t seem to know that he was following his Weibo.
So, the existence of these photos was not meant to be an implication or even a provocation, maybe it was just to share his “work”…
Qi Guang felt his mind was in chaos, or more precisely, it had been in chaos ever since Ye Xing stopped replying to his messages.
What was Ye Xing thinking?
He was cold-shouldering their undefined relationship on one hand, and openly coming out with him on the other?
And he, as an ex-boyfriend who had mistakenly entered his private territory, what identity and what posture should he adopt to respond to these two completely opposite situations?
He collapsed onto the sofa, his fingers sliding aimlessly on the screen, up, down, exit, re-enter, left, then exit, re-enter, refresh…
After messing around like this countless times, he noticed two new hot comments—
[Does anyone else want to know what model of film camera Ye Da uses?]
This was also the only comment that Ye Xing had replied to, which was probably why it was pushed to the top.
The other comment was posted by Ye Xing himself—
[The movie in picture nine is “Atonement”]
And he attached a screenshot of the movie.
Qi Guang tapped the screen to enlarge the still. It was a still with the sea as the backdrop, the female lead on the beach was like a silhouette. The lines at the bottom of the still were from a letter written by the male lead Robbie—The story can resume. I will return, find you, love you, marry you. And live without shame.
Our fate is not yet over, I will return.
Return to find you, love you, marry you, and live with my head held high.
Qi Guang slammed his phone shut, his breathing erratic. He couldn’t process what was happening for a long time. If his mind was in chaos just now, it was now the site of an atomic bomb explosion, and he was gradually losing his ability to think and judge in the mushroom cloud after the explosion.
This Ye Xing, has he really lost it?
Ten minutes later.
The gossipers, Xu Ge and Bai Shu, put down their phones, dumbfounded, after reviewing Ye Xing’s Weibo countless times.
“I knew this phone would need a password sooner or later!” Qi Guang looked at them with his eyes half-open.
“Bai Shu said your expression was off while looking at your phone, and he told me you were sick, maybe even terminally ill,” Xu Ge cleared his throat. “So, out of concern for my subordinate as a former boss, I felt it was necessary to understand…”
“It’s no use pushing the blame onto Bai Shu,” Qi Guang said, half-lying on the sofa, glaring at Xu Ge. “I saw with my own eyes that the phone was put down by you.”
Xu Ge chuckled awkwardly.
Bai Shu bowed his fist towards Qi Guang to express gratitude for his trust, and then immediately escaped the scene to take orders from customers.
“The car is right outside. If you want to go find him to reconcile, I’ll drive you to the station right away,” Xu Ge sat down, picked up a lighter from the coffee table, lit a cigarette, took a puff, and exhaled gently, adding, “And I’ll reimburse you for your round-trip train tickets.”
Qi Guang turned his head, waving away the smoky air in disgust. “Just send me to school.”
“It looks like Ye Xing took the first step this time, so what do you say? Should you make up now?” Xu Ge moved the cigarette away, looking at him in confusion.
“He doesn’t know that I’m following his Weibo,” Qi Guang said. “So this post isn’t meant for me.”
Xu Ge suddenly got a little excited, didn’t even bother to tap off the ash, which got stuck on the edge of the ashtray, and reached out to pat Qi Guang’s arm. “Hey, I didn’t realize you were such a drama queen before? Do you need him to rush to Chen Town overnight, block your door, push you down, and hold a knife to your throat before you reluctantly agree? I advise you to cut it out!”
“It’s not that I’m being a drama queen, Xu Ge,” Qi Guang said, a little impatiently. “Really, I’m really confused lately. No matter what he does, it disrupts my nerves. He didn’t reply to my WeChat, but he posted this on Weibo. I don’t know what his intention is. Whether it’s coming out or sharing his work, it’s definitely not to reconcile with me.”
“Just because he didn’t reply to your WeChat?” Xu Ge asked him.
“This trivial matter has been bothering me for a long time. I don’t have the courage to try anything right now. Every time he makes a move, I can’t have peace of mind.” Qi Guang knew his internal struggle. To hide it, he sighed a long sigh. It was less of an explanation to Xu Ge, more of him trying to convince himself. “I now… I just want to calm down and study, get into a school in S City. This was my previous wish and my mom’s wish. I can’t afford to be distracted. He had to leave me for his mom. I also have things that I need to accomplish. Do you understand?”
“Are you saying that you’ll deal with this matter after you finish the exam?” Xu Ge asked.
“I guess so,” Qi Guang said.
Xu Ge picked up his cigarette again, lost in thought as he smoked in silence.
And Qi Guang, who had been disgusted by this scene just a few minutes ago, also took one from Xu Ge’s cigarette pack, skillfully held it between his fingers, lit it with a lighter, and took a quick puff.
A familiar taste.
The two of them were silent, smoking one cigarette after another, like they were trying to survive.
Until the lights in the bar gradually dimmed.
Then, the spotlights on the stage lit up, and a girl band that they had never seen before appeared under the spotlights, wearing cute and festive performance outfits, smiling brightly.
It was said that listening to a song without a prelude was like being forcefully kissed.
When “I want to send you a text message, I miss you so much” came out of one of the band members’ mouth without any warning, Qi Guang felt this especially strongly.
“I want to call you right away, I miss you so much.”
“The first thing I do every morning is miss you so much.”
“Whether it’s sunny or rainy, I miss you so much…”
…
“Damn it!” Qi Guang stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray, cursed, then whispered something.
“What?” Since the scene was too loud, Xu Ge didn’t hear what he said, so he leaned closer to listen.
“I said,” Qi Guang spoke each word clearly and firmly, “Send me to the station.”