TF01 32

The innocent bystander looked baffled. “The hell does this have to do with me? Why are you dragging me down with you?”

Everyone around was clearly here to see Shi Yi make a fool of himself.

Predicting that Ying Ming would refuse, Shi Yi chuckled and leaned in close to murmur, “Come on man, you’re my bro. You can’t just watch me die here. And don’t forget, you still owe me a bet.”

That rally race bet from last time still hadn’t been settled.

Ying Ming had bet against Dong Xiao, with the loser having to do whatever the winner asked. Naturally, when he lost to Shi Yi, the same rule applied.

He hadn’t expected Shi Yi to bring it up at a time like this. He blinked, then arched a brow. “So what exactly do you want?”

“Anything goes. Sing, dance, whatever you want, just put on a little show.”

Shi Yi kept his voice low, so no one else could hear. All they could see was him whispering into Ying Ming’s ear, and the latter giving him a look, one of those smiles that was definitely up to no good.

Then Ying Ming took a step forward. “Alright then, let’s dance.”

He made a quick hand gesture toward the DJ booth. Regulars in nightclubs would recognize it instantly. The DJ cued up the track and Ying Ming casually walked up beside Shi Yi, resting a hand on his shoulder. Lowering his voice so only Shi Yi could hear, he murmured, “Young Master Shi, I only know one type of dance.”

Shi Yi didn’t even have time to react before the music kicked in and Ying Ming started moving.

At first, everyone had just been looking forward to the spectacle, but a minute into the performance, a few people’s expressions had started to shift.

The most obvious one was Shi Yi himself.

Ying Ming had been circling him, crouching down and getting up, grinding against him at just the right angles. Even if Shi Yi was the slowest motherfucker alive, he would still realize Ying Ming was giving him a full-on pole dance.

Except there was no pole. Just him.

The first time Shi Yi had ever seen a pole dance was in high school, when a bunch of dumbass teenagers snuck out to broaden their horizons. The twisting bodies under the neon lights had left a lasting impression. It was the kind of thing that was hard to forget, especially at that age, when the body reacted faster than the brain. But he never could have imagined that one day, a man would be pole dancing around him. Worse yet, that man was his own friend.

Ying Ming wasn’t just messing around. He was obviously trained. His body moved perfectly in sync with the rhythm, without a trace of awkwardness about using Shi Yi as his personal pole. Worse yet, from time to time, certain parts of his body brushed against Shi Yi’s lower half. The moment he felt Shi Yi tense up, he just arched a brow and smiled.

He was doing it on purpose.

Realizing this, Shi Yi tried to back away, a little flustered, but Ying Ming smoothly reeled him back in.

“Trying to run?”

The words were murmured right against his ear, with an infuriating little puff of breath that made Shi Yi’s entire back go rigid.

Nearby, someone next to Liu Li couldn’t help blurting out, “Holy shit! This is the first time I’ve seen a guy pole dance like this…”

It was impossible to describe the exact vibe in words, but everyone here knew what kind of person Ying Ming usually was. None of them had ever seen this side of him. That mix of dominance and subtle teasing, the way he carried himself, was different from the sultry charm of a professional dancer, but he did not need it. People could not take their eyes off him, and the look in his gaze made them wonder what else might be hidden beneath the surface.

When the music stopped, there was dead silence.

For a long moment, nobody reacted.

Liu Li was the first to clap. Then, a few scattered voices muttered in amazement, but most people were still too stunned to say anything.

Shi Yi sat there, his face stiff as he watched Ying Ming weave through the crowd and wave at him, that smirk on his lips downright malicious.

He’d reacted.

It wasn’t obvious, but that familiar, irritating heat had been stirred up inside him, creeping under his skin.

Ying Ming knew exactly how far to push. Just enough to make him feel something, but not enough to cross the line.

And now Shi Yi was stuck.

So many people were watching. Leaving would be awkward, but staying was even worse. He forced himself to suppress the heat pooling in his gut, grabbing a passing waiter and ordering a glass of ice water.

Liu Li noticed and slid a little closer. “What’s wrong? Did he get you?”

“Fuck.”

Shi Yi cursed under his breath. “That little shit is a fucking lunatic…”

He’d never seen a man pull off a pole dance like that in front of an audience.

Ying Ming had always been someone who saw through everything and knew exactly when to advance or retreat. Shi Yi never would have guessed that the one dance he knew how to do… was this.

And the worst part?

He was actually fucking good at it.

Afterward, when Shi Yi asked Ying Ming about it, he finally got an explanation. Ying Ming told him that he had learned the dance while filming a movie. It was a rather provocative film about a group of pole dancers, and his character was a male dancer. The director had arranged a solo performance for him, so he had trained specifically for it.

In fact, the routine he had performed in the movie was even more risqué than the one that night. He had actually toned it down out of consideration for Shi Yi’s dignity.

“This kind of dance is great for training. You sweat more after one routine than you do from running,” Ying Ming said casually, cigarette between his lips, looking completely at ease.

That night, Shi Yi went home and dug through all the DVDs of Ying Ming’s movies that he had bought but never watched. He finally found one with a cover that matched the description and put it on.

He ended up spending the entire afternoon watching Ying Ming dance.

Even Shi Yi did not understand what had gotten into him. He just could not stop. After finishing that movie, he went through the rest of the DVDs one by one.

Most of them were Category III films with explicit content.

Some were erotic dramas, while others had darker and more violent themes. Ying Ming’s film choices were all over the place, and he seemed to have a high tolerance for different roles. Some of the intimate scenes were clearly staged, but they still caught Shi Yi off guard. The Ying Ming he knew had always seemed like someone with sharp awareness and careful restraint, not someone who would be so unbothered or uninhibited. But on screen, he was like a different person.

Sometimes wild, sometimes sensual.

People often compared women to books. If Shi Yi had to describe Ying Ming that way, then he was like a novel that looked absurd from the cover, read like poetry on the first page, turned into a philosophical reflection halfway through, and then ended with the words “purely fictional.”

“Goddamn…” After watching most of the films, Shi Yi leaned back on the couch and lit a cigarette.

There was something unsettling about spending an entire evening watching all of a friend’s movies alone. It felt borderline obsessive.

But to be honest, he was surprised.

His friendship with Ying Ming had never been about his acting career. Shi Yi was not someone who cared for movies or TV dramas, and he had no particular interest in actors. If it had not been for that one rebellious role Ying Ming played back then, he probably never would have paid him any attention at all.

Even when he bought the DVDs, he had just tossed them aside without much thought.

Now that he had watched them all, he suddenly felt that the Ying Ming he had known all this time was just one reflection in a mirror.

If they had never met in person and he had only seen these films, he never would have guessed that Ying Ming had this kind of personality. The contrast was strange. It was not necessarily bad, but it was definitely unsettling. It felt like someone who had always been close to him was being pulled further away by the roles he played on screen. It made him realize that his understanding of Ying Ming had only scratched the surface.

Ying Ming was like that. Maybe Liu Li was the same.

He frowned and slowly finished his cigarette, lost in thought as he sat in the living room. Every now and then, scenes from the movies flashed through his mind before finally settling on the memory of Ying Ming’s dance that night.

The feeling was bizarre, yet no matter how much he tried to shake it off, it lingered.

Two days after Liu Li’s birthday, Shi Yi unexpectedly got a call from Wang Le.

Wang Le had been out of town before, which was why he had missed the party. He called Shi Yi to explain and offer a casual apology.

But Shi Yi held the phone and didn’t believe for a second that Wang Le had called just for that. “Just say what you want.”

They had known each other for too many years. If he still couldn’t read between the lines, he’d have to be an idiot.

There was a brief hesitation on the other end before Wang Le finally spoke. “Shi Yi, can you take me to Wang Yiqi’s set?”

“Wang Yiqi?” Shi Yi frowned instinctively at the name. “You still haven’t sorted things out with him?”

“There was a misunderstanding before. I’ve been trying to contact him for days, but he won’t answer my calls or agree to see me. I know you’re close with Ying Ming, and they’re filming together right now. Can you take me there?”

Wang Le’s voice sounded heavy, as if he had taken quite a blow. But the whole thing made Shi Yi feel a little disgusted. He thought about it for a moment and didn’t want to agree. “If he doesn’t want to see you, then stop pushing it. What’s the point?”

If Wang Yiqi actually cared, he wouldn’t have just left without a word in the first place. Shi Yi didn’t know all the details, but it seemed like Wang Le was the only one clinging to it while the other person had already moved on.

“You don’t understand, Ayi…”

“How many times do I have to say it? Stop calling me Ayi!”

That nickname always pissed him off. He leaned back in his office chair, letting himself sink into it completely. “Wang Le, I don’t think I can help you with this.”

Even an impartial judge would struggle to settle personal disputes, let alone something that wasn’t even a proper relationship issue.

Shi Yi’s refusal was met with a long silence. Just as he thought Wang Le had given up, the voice on the other end broke again, this time with a faint tremor.

“Shi Yi, I already came out to my family… I… I can’t turn back now…”

For a brief moment, Shi Yi felt something snap in his head.

“Fuck!”

What the hell was all this bullshit?