Title In Progress

One,

Wu Shijiu dragged his suitcase to stand under the shade of the tree. He had chewed the gum in his mouth until it had lost all taste, but the owner of the house still hadn’t returned home. He walked down the length of the curb in one moment and went back to standing in the next, swaying from side to side, feet tapping to the rhythm of the music in his headphones, as the wind blew past his dyed flaxen hair still carrying the unabating heat of summer. He was thirsty, but still wanted to hold on for a while, biting down on his dry lips and releasing them with a “pop”.

Just at that time, Xu Xing’s car came to a stop next to him.

The glass reflected the pink evening sky and the velvet clouds. The car window slowly rolled down, revealing the face of a young-looking man, his upper body was turned with one hand still on the steering wheel, and he wore a Bluetooth earpiece on his left ear which was covered by a few strands of black hair. He looked up slightly, and probed with a deep, low voice.

“Shijiu?”

For some reason he felt a sudden shiver at being called out to. He straightened out his legs and stood, “Uncle Xu!”

“…Tsk.” Having confirmed his identity, the man’s smile unfolded and he opened the trunk of the car for him, “You used to call me brother when you were young.”


Two,

The suitcase was an oversized one, crammed full of Wu Shijiu’s mom’s maternal love, which he had nowhere to put, and the easy-going charm of someone delegating their responsibilities. This son, who was so aggravating even flowers wilted at the mere sight of him, had never done anything for his mother aside from making her even more stressed. Seeing he was soon going into his third year of high school, his hero mother and the boy’s father (who had no chance to say anything other than conscientiously nod his head) went through three days and three nights of intense discussion, and had no choice but to part with their love. They kicked Wu Shijiu to an elite high school in the capital nicknamed “The Prison”, and entrusted the son of a close friend to take care of him.

They said the other was a big shot who’d just returned from working abroad, and that he was an outstandingly talented young man. It was yet unknown whether he was outstanding or not, but he was truly talented.

The two had met before, but as far as Wu Shijiu remembered, Xu Xing was barely a silhouette vaguely seen through the crack in the door as he shut himself in a small room to play video games during the New Year. He had no concrete impression of his voice or appearance.

“I’m ten years older than you.”

As they reached the residence, Xu Xing reversed into the garage and parked in place, then opened the door to help him with his luggage, but was straightforwardly rejected by Wu Shijiu, “I can take it.”

Xu Xing’s outstretched hand stopped, but not for long. He grabbed his suit jacket and briefcase, then turned around for him to follow.

What eighteen year old boys needed to take care of most was their stubborn and fragile ego.

“So… Mr Xu, which floor do you live in?”

“Nineteenth.”

“……”

Wu Shijiu was stunned. He simply lifted his luggage and hit himself in the leg.

“There’s a lift.”

Xu Xing walked forward proudly, as if he’d made a deliberate joke.

His back was tall and straight, his hair a suitable length, his shoulders and waistline the perfect shape. He had draped his suit jacket over his left forearm, he should’ve looked serious and stiff, but the white shirt tucked into his leather belt was slightly untucked at a corner, which added a slight bit of unruliness to his personality.

He swiped his card to get in. The lift by the side of the lounge had just come down, and there just happened to be people on it. Wu Shijiu heard him say “excuse me” as he guarded the door of the lift and waited for him to get in, standing firmly surrounded by the group of people as he finally got on.

The lift went up, and the two people stood face-to-face, very close to each other, breathing in the unfamiliar air in the narrow space together. After a certain accidental glance in which their eyes met, the atmosphere became subtle. Wu Shijiu was naturally bad at small talk, and he couldn’t grasp the right way to speak with this level of intimacy, so he simply shut up.

It was actually Xu Xing who found something to talk about first, “Do they let you guys dye your hair at school now?”

They reached the tenth floor and the people in the lift left one after the other, relaxing the space the two had to move in. Wu Shijiu shifted his stance, looking up at Xu Xing due to the height difference, and answered, “We’re not allowed? Probably.”

He had single-edged eyelids, but the skin of his eyelids was thin and their ends slightly raised, which looked delicate and just right. His lips were also thin, his nose bridge elegant and straight, and his hair colour contrasted against his fair skin in a charming way. It was a fine appearance.

Xu Xing nodded. He didn’t express those remarks from elders Wu Shijiu had long since gotten tired of hearing, instead he said, “It looks great.”

“The earrings too.”

They certainly do. Wu Shijiu was smug, otherwise he wouldn’t have gotten three piercings in one go. It hurt like hell.

“I’m just afraid the school will mind.”

They reached the nineteenth floor, Xu Xing spoke as he got out and pulled a key from the pocket of his suit trousers. Wu Shijiu’s unperturbed voice came from behind him, “It’s none of their business.”

The lights came on, and he placed his heavy suitcase down on the floor.

“It’s nobody’s business.”


Wu Shijiu had a petty argument with his mom before, saying, ‘How can there be such a thing as letting me go live and eat for free without asking for rent? We’re not talking about a lonely old man with no one to care for him, it’s a dumb rich guy doing targeted poverty alleviation’. After saying that, his mom had dragged him by the ear and spun him around.

Now he understood. It was because the house was big, too lonely to live in by himself.

Xu Xing’s explanation for it was that it was “no big deal”. Helping his mother’s friend with a simple favour wouldn’t cost him much, it might seem very generous, but it wouldn’t really affect him. Adult relationships were just so casual and beautiful.

“You can stay in the second floor, there’s a bedroom, balcony, an independent bathroom, and a living room for whatever you want. Teenagers need their own space, I know.” He wasted no time, like any capable adult who didn't beat around the bush, and took off his shoes as he succinctly mapped out a plan, “The kitchen and living room on the first floor are common areas; the study and my room are private.”

“Got it.”

Wu Shijiu gestured and dragged his suitcase around the corner to go upstairs, this time Xu Xing followed after him, showing him around the rooms one by one. Naturally the bedroom, balcony, and bathroom had all been cleaned by a housekeeper in advance, so now they looked as good as new and as neat as a five star hotel, but they only had very basic decorations, with a double bed, desk, and wardrobe in the same colour, which made the place look somewhat monotonous.

Fortunately, Wu Shijiu was an especially adaptable little creature, so he sat on the bed and patted the pillow, ready to make himself at home, “Thank you, uncle. I’ll trouble you more in the future.”

Xu Xing shook his hand.

“You and me both.”