SM Chapter 9
by VolareChapter 9 Will You Be Back Tonight?
The scorching wind blew in from the car window, like waves crashing against his face one after another. Ye Lai hung up the phone, and the designated driver had already arrived. He looked away from the glittering neon lights outside the window, his pupils slowly retracting, the beating of his heart merging with the movement of the wind.
“Hello, are you Mr. Ye who called for a designated driver?” The driver knocked on the window to verify his identity.
Ye Lai nodded, “That’s me.”
The driver put away his foldable electric scooter, got into the driver’s seat, and didn’t move for a while. He looked at Ye Lai in the rearview mirror, “Mr. Ye, you look a bit familiar. Are you that celebrity?”
Ye Lai interrupted him, crossing his arms and moving closer to the car door, “You’ve got the wrong person. Let’s just drive.”
The driver didn’t say anything more, started the car, and slowly drove off.
Even though he hadn’t drunk much, his head was still throbbing slightly as the car swayed.
Ye Lai rubbed his forehead with his hand, his little finger brushing against his eye socket, causing him to hiss in pain. The stifling wind outside the car window stirred up the pain, turning the hazy feeling in his body into a paste. He really wanted to stand in the rain and wash away all the mess inside.
Half an hour later, the car smoothly pulled into the yard. When paying, the driver still glanced at him a few more times, but Ye Lai didn’t pay attention.
As soon as the driver left, Ye Lai grabbed the key, opened the trunk, and took out the bag he had left behind earlier. Clutching the bag, he hurried inside, went upstairs, and put it back in the lowest corner of the bedroom closet, not touching it again.
Ye Lai took off his clothes and walked barefoot on the floor, entered the bathroom, turned on all the lights, and stood naked in front of the mirror, examining himself from head to toe.
He had drunk alcohol tonight, and his eye sockets were even more swollen than before. His eyelids felt heavy when he blinked, throbbing with pain. His knee, which he had bumped against the corner of the table, was also bruised black.
Ye Lai’s skin was too fair, and any mark on his body would be exceptionally noticeable, making him look even more disheveled. Besides the new injuries from this afternoon, the finger marks that Sheng Mingqian had left on his buttocks last night were still there.
Ye Lai spun around in front of the mirror, turned on the hot water, and took a hot bath.
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Sheng Mingqian opened the door and walked in. The living room was dark, with no lights on. Only the TV screen was lit, the faint blue light flickering on Ye Lai’s slender body, making his back look even thinner.
“Why don’t you turn on the lights?”
“Don’t turn them on…” Ye Lai heard the voice and moved his arched back slightly. He came down from the sofa without putting on shoes, ran over barefoot, and hugged Sheng Mingqian tightly, wrapping his arms around his neck, “Mingqian, you’re finally back. I’m scared.”
“What are you scared of?”
“The dark.”
“If you’re scared of the dark, why don’t you turn on the lights?”
“Don’t turn them on.”
Ye Lai was hugging him too tightly, and Sheng Mingqian couldn’t breathe. He wanted to pry his hands open, but the more he moved, the tighter Ye Lai hugged him. Helpless, he could only let him hold him like this.
The two of them, embracing in this position, moved towards the sofa. Ye Lai stumbled several times, and Sheng Mingqian simply picked him up in his arms. At the moment he lifted him up, Sheng Mingqian also clearly saw Ye Lai’s eyes in the dim blue light.
“What happened to your eyes?” Sheng Mingqian asked.
Ye Lai turned his face, muffled against Sheng Mingqian’s shirt, raised his hand to cover his eyes and face, “Mingqian, don’t look at me. I look terrible.”
Sheng Mingqian carried him to the sofa and took his hand away, “I’m asking you, what happened to your eyes?”
“It was Zhou Ran.” Ye Lai pursed his lips and whispered Zhou Ran’s name, then told Sheng Mingqian what happened in the recording studio.
Of course, the process was embellished and vague, with half of the words left unsaid. As he spoke, he observed the expression on Sheng Mingqian’s face, watching him frown and purse his lips.
After picking and choosing a few words to describe the events in about five or six parts, Ye Lai felt it was enough and stopped talking. He sighed, tightened his jaw, and no longer looked at Sheng Mingqian, appearing shocked and wanting comfort but also deeply hurt.
Ye Lai was only wearing a bathrobe, which was open in Sheng Mingqian’s arms, draped down the sofa, revealing his legs.
He adjusted his position, and his knee brushed against the edge of the sofa, causing him to hum softly while biting his lip. He reached out to touch his leg.
Ye Lai saw Sheng Mingqian’s gaze follow his hand down to his leg, and he curled up his legs and shrank back, lifting his bathrobe to cover his injured knee.
Sheng Mingqian grabbed his arm. He had already seen it, “Your leg? Did Zhou Ran do this too?”
Ye Lai bit his lower lip, his eyes filled with glistening blue light, and nodded, “Yes, I fell off the sofa and accidentally bumped into the corner of the table.”
“Zhou Ran has bipolar disorder,” Sheng Mingqian said, “Don’t record shows with him next time.”
Ye Lai stopped talking, wanting to wait for what would happen next, but Sheng Mingqian only said that one sentence, which explained why Zhou Ran always lost control.
Losing the mood to act, Ye Lai knew that continuing would be meaningless. He responded to Sheng Mingqian’s words, “Oh… I see…”
“Just stay away from Zhou Ran in the future. He won’t retaliate against you, and he won’t make things difficult for you,” Sheng Mingqian said.
“Really?” Ye Lai asked woodenly, no longer interested in knowing what Zhou Ran would do to him.
He had used this kind of tea-like coquetry and pitiful act more than once in the past few years. The last time he didn’t want to record a show with Yang Xingzhou, he complained to Sheng Mingqian like this, and the next day he received a notice from Zhang Yihao that he didn’t have to go to the show.
This time, Zhou Ran punched him, and he also punched back. He didn’t think about what would happen. Saying this to Sheng Mingqian was partly to vent his grievances and seek attention, and partly to cautiously probe.
Seeking attention had failed, and the probing ended here. Ye Lai no longer wanted to continue.
There were still six months left. What was this for him? A final struggle?
Ye Lai didn’t want to mention Zhou Ran’s name again, so he changed the topic, “I originally went to help Ning Yuan out this afternoon, but it turned into a disaster. They worked hard to get Zhou Ran, and it took a lot of effort.”
“Given Zhou Ran’s temper, he probably won’t agree to record again. Don’t go looking for him privately,” Sheng Mingqian said, then paused, “How about this, I’ll introduce Sang Mei to them. Sang Mei is a Queen, and she’s just married, so her popularity is only going to increase.”
Ye Lai pursed his lips, closed his eyes, and leaned into Sheng Mingqian’s arms, “Thank you, Mingqian. You’re so good to me.”
“Have you applied the medicine?” Sheng Mingqian’s fingers rubbed Ye Lai’s knee.
The spot Sheng Mingqian pressed wasn’t that painful, but Ye Lai felt the warmth of his fingertips more, but at that moment, the temperature felt sharp like thorns, piercing through the skin and stabbing deep, carrying flesh and blood.
Ye Lai inhaled deeply in pain. Sheng Mingqian put him on the sofa, took out the medicine cabinet, found the anti-swelling ointment, and applied it to Ye Lai’s eyes and knees.
Ye Lai lay on the sofa with his eyes closed the whole time, only his eyelashes trembling slightly.
The ointment was slightly cool when it was first applied, but after a while, it gradually started to heat up. Ye Lai didn’t open his eyes, listening to Sheng Mingqian putting away the medicine cabinet, the sound of his shoes on the floor, first near, then far, then far and near again.
“Are you asleep?” Sheng Mingqian’s voice fell from above.
Ye Lai turned over, facing the sofa, yawned as he followed his words, a tear from the yawn sliding down his eye, his voice muffled, “I was tossing around for too long tonight. I’m sleepy, Mingqian. Good night.”
“Go back to the room to sleep.” Sheng Mingqian placed his palm on his thin back.
Ye Lai turned his neck, still with his eyes closed, and smiled as he opened his arms to Sheng Mingqian, “My legs hurt. Mingqian, carry me upstairs.”
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The sound of rushing water came from the bathroom in the room. Ye Lai stared blankly at the blurry figure behind the frosted glass.
The cell phone on the bedside table rang. Ye Lai’s eyelids twitched. It wasn’t his phone, it was Sheng Mingqian’s. The words “Zhou Ran” were lit up on the screen.
Sheng Mingqian came out of the bathroom. Ye Lai turned his back to him, pretending to be asleep. He continued until he heard the sound of Sheng Mingqian getting dressed. Ye Lai couldn’t pretend any longer and sat up, propping himself up with his arms, “It’s so late, are you getting dressed to go out?”
Sheng Mingqian held the phone in one hand and buttoned his shirt with the other, “I have something to take care of.”
Ye Lai sat up, propping himself up with his arms, “Will you be back tonight?”
Sheng Mingqian finished buttoning the last button, turned his wrist and glanced at his watch, “It’s too late, so I won’t be back. You get some sleep.”
Ye Lai watched Sheng Mingqian leave the room. The door opened and closed, and the lock clicked shut.
Ye Lai’s once soft profile became slightly defined due to his jaw clenching too tightly. The lines were clear, and his mind was empty, as if he had thought about everything, yet also as if he hadn’t thought about anything.
He waited until there were no more footsteps in the living room, then he raised his hand to turn off the bedside lamp and pulled the blanket over his head.
For the first time, Ye Lai wished that the remaining six months would pass quickly. Five years had passed, and he had passively accepted it. In the past, he always felt that time passed too quickly, so quickly that he couldn’t grasp it, so quickly that he hadn’t seen enough, so quickly that he was reluctant to let go.
Now, he hoped that time would pass even faster. Ye Lai knew that he wouldn’t actively end this marriage agreement. The obsession in his heart had become more and more shackled over the years, making it even more impossible for him to extricate himself.
He was now like a butterfly trapped in a swamp, its constantly trembling wings useless against the deep suction…