WP 16

The third day of Si Shaorong and Jiang Yibai living together.

Si Shaorong flipped through his little notebook and wrote down the date, ears slightly flushed.

Before, it had just been staying at Jiang Yibai’s place. Now, it was living together. He recalculated the timeline. From the day they “officially started dating” to now, this was the third day of living together.

Si Shaorong flipped back a few pages and read over the earlier entries. Life over these past few days already felt more eventful than his entire last year.

Since he needed so much material to draw from, Si Shaorong had a habit of keeping notes on the go. Whatever popped into his head or caught his attention, he’d jot it down immediately so he wouldn’t forget later.

He used a little blue hardcover notebook, just about the size of a grown man’s palm, very convenient to carry around.

Zhen Zhen had once asked him, “Why not just use your phone?” He replied, “Virtual things are unreliable. Also, I don’t like typing on phones.”

Zhen Zhen figured the second reason was the real one.

Si Shaorong sat in the morning light, barefoot, gazing down at his little notebook:

“First day at Jiang Yibai’s place. His home is beautiful, full of life. You can feel how much he loves living.”

“Second day at Jiang Yibai’s place. I like hearing him play piano. He hums while he plays, and his voice is really pleasant. I want to know what he’s like playing the violin, but our relationship isn’t at the point where I can ask something like that. He asked if I’d never dated anyone before. He talks in a very forward way, and his eyes are so bright, like he can see right through me.”

“First day living with Jiang Yibai. I want to call it living together because I’m trying to date him. But I don’t know what dating is supposed to look like. He doesn’t seem any different from yesterday. It’s confusing.”

“Second day living together. One of his students brought him chocolate, and he invited me to share it. The student asked what our relationship was, and he actually answered. I still can’t figure out what he’s thinking. I can only guess he’s just the kind of person who has no filters. Also, his cologne smells really nice.”

Third day of living together.

Si Shaorong recalled yesterday’s events and jotted down the key points. He didn’t like writing too much. It blurred what was most important. He only recorded what had left the deepest impression.

Yesterday, Jiang Yibai had brought him a bouquet of flowers and a beautifully wrapped gift.

The gift was a high-quality pair of headphones. The design was similar to the ones he already owned, also from Beyerdynamic. He liked them a lot. He couldn’t remember if there was any holiday that day, and he hadn’t prepared anything in return. It left him a little flustered. But Jiang Yibai said he just felt like buying something, and told him not to feel pressured. He also said, that’s just how it is between lovers.

Si Shaorong still remembered how seriously he’d replied, “Even between lovers, both sides should remain independent. You can’t take someone’s kindness for granted.”

So he pulled out his phone on the spot to search for a return gift for Jiang Yibai.

Jiang Yibai…,

Si Shaorong paused. He felt like he was writing too much today, but he didn’t want to leave out a single detail.

Jiang Yibai suddenly pulled him into a hug, arms around his waist, holding him firmly in his arms. The two of them were about the same height, and his chin ended up resting on Jiang Yibai’s shoulder. He went momentarily blank.

He had never been this physically close to anyone before. Jiang Yibai’s arms were warm, and his head of curls brushed against Si Shaorong’s cheek, tickling slightly.

Jiang Yibai said, “If you reject me like this, I’ll be heartbroken. So today’s your first lesson. When your lover gives you something, you just accept it. You can return the favor later, but don’t say it outright, okay?”

Si Shaorong dazedly responded with a soft “Mm.”

Jiang Yibai shook his head, looking into his eyes. “What are you supposed to say right now?”

Si Shaorong’s whole body tensed. He could feel every inch of where Jiang Yibai was touching him. “Th-thank you.”

Jiang Yibai smiled, and the dimples in his cheeks appeared. He leaned in close and whispered in Si Shaorong’s ear, “Lovers don’t say it like that. What you should’ve said is, ‘Thank you, baby.’”

Then, as if he knew perfectly well that Si Shaorong could never say that, he answered himself, “You’re welcome, baby.” And lightly kissed the tip of Si Shaorong’s ear.

Si Shaorong touched his own ear. His pen wobbled as he wrote.

Si Shaorong touched his own ear. The tip of his pen trembled slightly as he wrote.

It had been a very light kiss, so light it was barely there. But somehow he still caught that fleeting touch with sharp precision. His whole body broke out in goosebumps, and even his scalp tingled.

After that, Jiang Yibai acted as if nothing had happened. He cooked, did laundry, and waited for his students to arrive for lessons.

When they had dinner that evening, they chatted just like usual, talking about their lives, learning more about each other. It was a little like a blind date, but not quite the same.

He learned that Jiang Yibai disliked many kinds of fruit, but was hardly picky when it came to meat or vegetables.

Jiang Yibai didn’t like sweets, especially chocolate, but he still ate the ones his student had brought. He was that kind of warm person.

He also enjoyed watching American TV shows and movies, and even wrote reviews of them. As for his own writing, he didn’t obsess over updating regularly. Sometimes he’d go two or three days between posts, but when he was in the mood, he’d update daily or even twice a day.

And then…

Before bed, Jiang Yibai would always wait for him to say goodnight first. Then he would hold his hand, press gently on his palm, but never did anything more intimate than that.

That kiss on the tip of his ear almost felt like a hallucination.

…

Knock knock.

The bedroom door was tapped lightly. Jiang Yibai’s voice came from outside. “Ge, are you up?”

Si Shaorong quickly closed his notebook and tucked it into the bag he usually carried with him when going out. “Yeah, I’m up.”

“Come wash up and eat,” Jiang Yibai said. “How long have you been awake? Hungry?”

“Just got up.” Si Shaorong instinctively straightened his pajamas, smoothed his hair, and opened the door. “Morning.”

“Morning.” Jiang Yibai gave him a grin. His curls were a bit of a mess, and he was wearing an apron over his clothes, flip-flops on his feet, with a cigarette tucked behind his right ear. The whole look was oddly mismatched.

Every morning at eight, the robot vacuum cleaner would start its routine. At that moment it was weaving its way through the apartment in smooth, rhythmic turns.

The living room curtains had been drawn open, and the windows pushed wide. The heat that had built up overnight was swept away by the morning breeze. On the wind came the rich scent of stir-fried vegetables and fried dough from the neighbors in the old alleyway outside, lifting one’s spirits in an instant.

Si Shaorong hadn’t felt hungry at all, until his stomach let out a growl.

“You’re hungry, aren’t you? Go wash up and come eat.” Jiang Yibai gave his palm a light squeeze before turning around to head back to the kitchen and dish up the food.

Breakfast today was youtiao, steamed buns, preserved egg and lean pork congee, and a side of pickled ginger that Jiang Yibai had made himself.

When Si Shaorong came back from washing up, there were beads of water clinging to the ends of his hair, and with a fresh shave, he looked sharp and refreshed. Noticing Jiang Yibai staring at him, he stiffened his expression and gave a small nod.

“You’ve probably had a lot of people tell you how handsome you are.” Jiang Yibai passed him a steamed bun. “Still, I’ll say it anyway. You’re really handsome.”

Then he grinned. “Sorry, I’m not great with words. Can’t think of anything more original.”

Si Shaorong shook his head. He held the bun for a long moment, visibly uncomfortable, before finally replying, “You’re handsome too.”

Jiang Yibai smiled so wide his eyes practically disappeared. “Thanks. You know, hearing your own boyfriend say it really does hit different from hearing it from someone else.”

The word “boyfriend” made Si Shaorong’s ears turn red.

To be honest, it all still felt unreal to him. He still didn’t quite understand how he had ended up agreeing so easily in the first place.

By the time he realized what had happened, it was already too late to take it back. Even though Jiang Yibai had told him he could call it off anytime, somehow, he just… couldn’t bring himself to.

After breakfast, Si Shaorong got back to work. Jiang Yibai finished cleaning up the dishes and said, “Ge, I’m heading out for a bit. Any cravings for lunch? I’ll stop by the market and pick up some groceries.”

Jiang Yibai’s refrigerator was always full. There was wine, vegetables, and meat. There were jars of fermented glutinous rice, small containers of fermented tofu, unopened cans of fish and luncheon meat, yogurt, and even half a watermelon.

Whenever Si Shaorong thought of that fully stocked fridge, something inside him felt full as well, as if someone had quietly stuffed a sense of calm into his chest, one he couldn’t quite describe.

In the past, Si Shaorong had never believed he needed things like peace of mind, a sense of fulfillment, stability, or security.

When he had lived with He Jia, or even earlier during his school days in the dorms, or after graduation when he rented with strangers, he had never considered it necessary. Back then, he couldn’t afford better and lived in small shared rooms, with seven or eight people packed into the same space. Each room was divided into tiny partitions. The people who lived there came from all kinds of backgrounds. Some would steal, and others had even secretly installed pinhole cameras in the bathroom.

During that time, he never thought he needed a place that felt like home. He had put all his focus on his career. He believed that as a man, he did not need to be so particular. It was fine to live rough, as long as life could go on.

But in just these few days, he had come to understand something very clearly. Once you’ve had comfort, it’s hard to go back.

After experiencing this kind of steadiness, it became impossible to imagine how he had ever lived the way he did before.

“Anything is fine.” Si Shaorong wanted to ask where Jiang Yibai was going, but stopped himself, feeling that it was not his place. “You…”

He paused mid-sentence, then chose not to continue. He only said, “Be careful on the road.”

“Okay.” Jiang Yibai gave him a smile, changed his shoes, and headed out.

Si Shaorong made himself a cup of tea, then sat down at his desk and opened his laptop. A moment later, he realized the room felt too quiet.

There was no sound from the television with the volume turned low, no sound of Jiang Yibai tuning his instrument, and no bubbling of water boiling in the kitchen.

Suddenly, the place felt empty and strange. Something felt off.

Normally, he was used to wearing headphones when writing, whether there was music playing or not. It was a habit. As long as he had them on, it felt like he was sealed off in a private space of his own.

But since moving in here, he had not been wearing them much at all.

He reached for the headphones Jiang Yibai had given him and put them on. He played an instrumental track, but only a few minutes passed before he took them off again. He picked up his phone and sent Jiang Yibai a voice message.

“Where did you go?”

Jiang Yibai replied quickly. “I was just guessing whether you’d message me within ten minutes. Turns out I was wrong. It’s been almost twenty, hasn’t it?”

Si Shaorong fell silent.

Jiang Yibai made a small sound of dissatisfaction, as if annoyed with himself.
“I went to a bar. The owner is a friend of mine. He had something he wanted to talk about face-to-face.”

Si Shaorong sounded puzzled. “You’re going to a bar this early in the morning? Are they even open?”

“The owner lives upstairs,” Jiang Yibai said. “Do you want the address? I can send it to you. I swear I’m not out doing anything shady.”

Maybe it was because they weren’t speaking face-to-face, but some things were easier to say like this. Jiang Yibai had been holding back these past few days, keeping a careful distance. Now, with Si Shaorong finally reaching out on his own, he found it hard to restrain himself.
“When I’ve got such a handsome treasure waiting for me at home, why would I bother looking at anyone else?”

Si Shaorong did not reply.

Jiang Yibai’s warm, pleasant laugh came through the phone. Si Shaorong felt his ears getting hot.

“That’s not what I meant…”

“I know,” Jiang Yibai said softly, still laughing. “Lesson number two. This is called sweet talk. It’s what you use to coax your lover and make them happy. Are you happy?”

Si Shaorong said nothing.

Coax?

---

Jiang Yibai had no idea what he had said wrong. Si Shaorong was a serious person, at least compared to most people his age. After being single for so many years, his experience with relationships was close to none. He had spent a long time buried in his writing, always avoiding social events and gatherings. That habit had made him especially sensitive to what others said, often without realizing it himself. And when the person speaking happened to be Jiang Yibai, that sensitivity only became stronger. He would think even more.

He figured the sudden silence on the other end was just Si Shaorong being awkward and flustered. So he did not think much of it when the call ended so abruptly. In fact, he was feeling quite pleased with himself, thinking his male god was adorably shy.

Still humming, Jiang Yibai headed over to the Silver Axis bar. It was an old place. Back when he was still in university, he had worked there part-time with his bandmates. They used to perform three nights a week and got paid after each show.

The bar’s owner could be considered a half-rich second-generation. He came from a well-off family, but there were plenty of people richer than him. Compared to ordinary people like Jiang Yibai, he had money and lived comfortably, but he was far from extravagant.