Ye Erlan looked back at Lin Xian who was following him. He had taken off his suit jacket and presumably changed into an ordinary sweatshirt in his own car. He still wore a mask on his face. "Why are you here?"
Lin Xian stared at him and then tried to reach out and take off his mask. "It's okay now. Take off the mask. I'd like to see you. You left in such a hurry back then that you didn't even have time to take a graduation photo with us."
Ye Erlan tilted his head slightly to avoid Lin Xian's hand. Hearing his words, he couldn't help feeling a great deal of emotion. If possible, he didn't want to leave back then either, but things just didn't go as one wished. Since he wanted him to take off the mask, he might as well do it. Anyway, he wasn't really used to wearing a mask. Even after all these years, he still felt uncomfortable with it.
"You haven't changed much. Your features just look more mature." Lin Xian stared directly at him like he was trying to see through him.
Ye Erlan couldn't help feeling a bit self - conscious under such a gaze, especially since the person was Lin Xian. He slowly turned his face away, then took out his sunglasses and put them on, and continued walking forward. "Do you have something to say?"
"Why do you have to be so distant with me? Back then..." When he said this, Lin Xian saw Ye Erlan suddenly stop in his tracks and turn his head to look at him. Lin Xian suddenly stopped what he was about to say. After a pause, he changed the topic. "After all, we're old classmates. It shouldn't be a problem for me to talk to you, right?"
Ye Erlan didn't respond and continued walking forward. Lin Xian just followed beside him.
"Yu Jun and Xiao Yan seem to be really in love. When they made their relationship public, they received a lot of criticism. After all, homosexuality is still not widely accepted these days. But luckily, they really love each other. You can tell just from their words."
"Yeah, what's your point?" Ye Erlan was a bit confused. Why was this guy so friendly towards homosexuality now? When he turned to look at him just now, this guy had turned his head away, looking like he looked down on Yu Jun and the others.
Lin Xian was a bit tongue - tied. He had held these words in for so many years. He wanted to say them but was also a bit at a loss for words. He simply changed his way of asking. "You've achieved great success in your career. There must be a lot of girls... you know."
"Lin Xian, what are you talking nonsense about?" Ye Erlan was a bit angry. What was this guy up to? He knew his sexual orientation was different from the ordinary people back then. What was the point of saying these words now? Was he trying to disgust him... "Don't follow me anymore. I don't want to talk to you."
Lin Xian was a bit confused. Why was this guy suddenly angry again? Suddenly, he understood. This guy probably thought he was insulting him. He quickly explained, "I didn't mean that. I... I just wanted to know if you have a partner now?"
"What does it matter to you whether I have a partner or not?" Ye Erlan was still a bit annoyed. His words were tinged with irritation as he quickened his pace and walked forward.
"I... I like you."
Ye Erlan suddenly stopped in his tracks. He couldn't believe his ears. What did he say? He said he liked him. How was that possible...
Seeing that he had a reaction, Lin Xian suddenly grabbed his arm and made him face him. Then he took a deep breath and simply poured out all his feelings from these years in one go. "I've liked you for many years. I... I've been looking for you all these years, but I just couldn't find you.
When I saw Yu Jun and Xiao Yan just now, I was so jealous. I thought that if we had been together back then, we would be even more in love than them now. I wouldn't have missed you for so many years..."
Just as Lin Xian was speaking passionately, Ye Erlan suddenly shook off his hand. "Stop talking. These words would have been effective if you had said them earlier. Saying them now doesn't seem sincere.
Are you, Lin Xian, playing me for a fool? After I confessed my feelings to you back then, what did you do? You said you couldn't accept homosexuality and then turned around and found a girl to date. And what's this now? Do you really think I, Ye Erlan, will still cling to you like I did back then?
People change. You can even say things against your will now, right?"
As Ye Erlan was speaking, a sudden sourness welled up in his nose. Lin Xian, what on earth is wrong with you! You rejected me so decisively back then. Why are you coming to provoke me now? Don't you like girls? Why are you coming to find me, a man who was rejected so thoroughly back then?
If only you hadn't brought this up, we could all pretend like nothing had happened. Out of consideration for our old classmate friendship, we could have been good friends. But now that things have come to this, how are we going to end this...
Lin Xian didn't expect Ye Erlan to say such things. He suddenly panicked and didn't know what to do. "I'm not playing with you. I'm being completely sincere. I admit what I did back then, but I had my reasons. I can explain it to you. You have to believe me."
"Lin Xian, no matter what you're thinking, I don't have those feelings now. I hope you can take a good look at your own heart. I, Ye Erlan, am not someone you can just play around with for fun. I have my dignity."
Looking at Lin Xian's appearance, Ye Erlan suddenly wavered a bit. Then he quickly composed himself. Didn't he know what kind of person Lin Xian was? There was no way for the two of them. Whether what he was saying now was true or false, it had nothing to do with him. He couldn't and shouldn't get involved with Lin Xian anymore.
After taking a few deep breaths, Lin Xian managed to calm his emotions a bit. "I don't know why you're so repulsed by me now, but I've told you my feelings. Yezi, I hope you can think it over. Of course, if you're not happy about it, you don't have to think about it. I don't want you to be unhappy.
There's still plenty of time. I'll slowly show you my true heart. I've never had the intention of playing with you. I've waited for so many years and finally found you. I love you too much to play with you..."
Love? Lin Xian actually said that word.
Ye Erlan suddenly felt an intense sourness in his heart. He inexplicably wanted to rush forward. Even if he knew it was an inescapable abyss, but since that person was Lin Xian, it was worth it even if it meant flying into the fire like a moth.
But was this real? Or was he, as an actor, already able to disguise himself so well that he could even put on a passionate and infatuated act towards him?
His emotions urged him to rush forward and hug this man he had liked for so many years, but his reason kept replaying the scenes from that year over and over again, the words he had heard back then, reminding him over and over again that all this might just be the superb acting skills this man, as an actor, was supposed to have.
Just as Ye Erlan was at a loss for what to say, Lin Xian's phone rang. It seemed to be Lin Xian's agent on the other end of the phone, telling him that there was an urgent matter for him to handle. It was probably something so urgent that he had to go.
Lin Xian hung up the phone and turned to see that Ye Erlan's attitude hadn't softened much. He thought this call had come just in time. It gave him a reason to leave and also gave Ye Erlan time to digest all this.
He cleared his throat. "Yezi, I know you may not be able to accept this for a while. That's okay. I've waited for so many years, so I don't mind waiting a bit longer. It's good for you to think it over carefully so you won't regret it.
Even if you don't agree, it's okay. We can start as friends. We were good brothers in the first place, weren't we?
I have an urgent matter here and I have to go. If you need anything, call me. My phone is on 24 hours a day. You should go back early too. Be careful on the way."
Maybe he didn't want to hear Ye Erlan say anything more hurtful. As soon as Lin Xian finished speaking, he ran away, not giving Ye Erlan a chance to say anything.
The sky had inexplicably turned gloomy. It seemed like it was going to rain heavily. Ye Erlan didn't want to go back to the garage to get his car looking like this. So he simply called a ride - hailing service. After getting in the car, as the scenery outside the window changed, his heart finally calmed down a bit.
After getting home, he took a shower and then threw himself on the bed, covering himself with the quilt. "Boom, boom" Thunder began to roar outside the window, and the rain was coming down violently. Some lightning was even glaringly obvious in the daytime.
He composed himself and called Ning Qian. "You guys go back early. It seems like this rain is going to last all day. If the rain gets too heavy, it'll be hard for you to solve your lunch problem. Performance isn't that important. You can reschedule the customers' departure, and then you guys leave early too. Go home slowly. If you get caught in the rain, remember to boil some ginger tea. Don't catch a cold."
Just as he hung up the phone, he received a text message from Lin Xian. "Did you get caught in the rain? It's all my fault. I should have taken you with me. You're not in good health. You used to catch colds often back then. Remember to take a hot shower and boil some ginger soup. Don't worry about me. I'm fine here."
Ye Erlan smacked his lips. Who cared about him? He was really being self - indulgent. He simply turned off his phone, then drank some hot water, pulled the curtains tightly, and then lay back on the bed. He slept for a long time, but not very soundly.
"What are you talking nonsense about? We're brothers. Why are you saying such things? It's so embarrassing."
"I can't accept homosexuality. You can forget about this. Pretend today never happened. We'll still be good friends like before. You're a very important friend to me, Lin Xian. Don't say such things in the future."
"This is my girlfriend from the next class. How about it? Isn't she pretty!"
"Ye Erlan, I've heard all about you from A Xian. Pfft, pfft, pfft. It's so disgusting. You're not normal and you're disgusting others too. No wonder you're in such a mess."
"He's kind - hearted and considerate of the friendship of these years. Do you really think you're someone special? I really don't know how A Xian was so blind to know someone like you. You're just disgusting."
I'm not, I didn't... I just like him. I just like him. I don't want to disgust others like this. I don't want to...
...
"Hello, Mr. L. This is Lin Xian."
"Do you know? After you left back then, I looked for you for a long time, but I just couldn't find any news about you."
...
"I... I like you."
"I love you too much to play with you..."