This class was for figure drawing, aimed at allowing students to practice delineating muscle contours, movements, clothing, and other details under different lighting conditions.

As the teacher explained the techniques to pay attention to, Yan Chen took off his leather jacket.

The black shirt was unbuttoned, leaving only two buttons in the middle, revealing the tight and muscular chest and abdomen poised beneath the open collar. He sat on a high stool in a lazy and comfortable posture. The sunlight cast a light golden glow on his already handsome and straight features, and his gaze naturally fell on the corner of the classroom.

The eyes, infused with fragmented sunlight, coincided with the glance he had given An Yi when he was wearing a school uniform at the age of 18.

An Yi didn’t raise his head for the entire class.

But the gaze that fell on the top of his head seemed tangible, just like its owner, with an extremely strong presence that was hard to ignore.

The sound of sketching pencils filled the classroom, occasionally accompanied by whispers and conversations, which then returned to silence.

Normal classes lasted for an hour and a half, but An Yi didn’t wait until the end. He tore out a page from his sketchbook and, along with several other students who had something to do, handed in his work to the teacher, then grabbed his backpack and left.

Yan Chen subconsciously wanted to catch up, but as soon as he moved, there was a low exclamation of “Hey” in the classroom.

The teacher reminded in a low voice, “Hold on a bit longer, keep still.”

Yan Chen could only sit back down again.

As students handed in their work one by one, the classroom became increasingly empty. After about half an hour, Yan Chen finally gained his freedom.

He put on his jacket and walked to An Yi’s seat. The breakfast on the small table had already cooled down, untouched.

Yan Chen silently packed up his things and stopped the teacher who was about to return to the office, “Can I see An Yi’s drawing? He’s my friend.”

“An Yi, huh,” the teacher smiled knowingly as he rummaged through the pile of papers as he spoke, “He’s a good talent, progressing very quickly.”

He pushed his glasses up and confirmed that the signature was indeed An Yi’s. He pulled out a portrait sketch and sighed, “It’s a crossover work.”

Yan Chen glanced down, and his pitch-black eyes couldn’t help but narrow.

The person in the drawing was Xie Nancang.

“You two are friends?”

The teachers in the institution all liked An Yi very much and had discussed it privately. They all knew he wanted to study porcelain carving and printmaking. “He’s been a bit absent-minded lately. You should help him more and encourage him. Actually, we all hope he leans towards painting. Pottery is too hard, and the job prospects are relatively narrow.”

Yan Chen said quietly, “He likes doing pottery.”

“Whether he likes it or not, to be honest, interests won’t put food on the table,” the teacher sighed, “Nowadays, the pottery world is mostly supported by the older generation. It’s too difficult for young people to make a name for themselves. There’s no opportunity, and even collectors don’t recognize it.”

Yan Chen nodded thoughtfully.

“Actually, it’s not just pottery, the entire art industry is not easy. It sounds elegant, but the invisible threshold is too high. Young people without qualifications or fame, no matter how talented they are, few people are willing to foot the bill for you.”

The teacher smiled, “I’ve said too much. Back to the point, pay more attention to An Yi, his current state is not good for exams.”

Yan Chen nodded, “Thank you.”

Leaving the training institution, Tan Chen walked back to the neighborhood.

He saw An Yi squatting by the greenery downstairs, feeding a small orange cat.

It had been raining a lot recently, and the little orange cat hadn’t appeared for several days. An Yi had been worried for a long time. Today, it finally showed up, looking even thinner from hunger. Some fur had fallen off its back, and there were scabs where the skin had broken, as if it had been scratched by another animal.

An Yi was afraid it would die outside. He had intended to take it to the vet, but as soon as his fingertips touched its neck, the little guy darted into the greenery.

An Yi sighed and could only wait for next time.

He brushed off the dust and cat hair from his pants and stood up to enter the apartment building.

Yan Chen held the cooled breakfast and stood downstairs for a while on purpose, estimating that An Yi had already returned home before taking the elevator upstairs.

Today, he had received his salary again and bought another small bouquet of roses, intending to leave them outside An Yi’s door.

Unexpectedly, the door clicked open.

An Yi came out with a trash bag and bumped into him.

An Yi furrowed his brows and said coldly, “Do you know what your behavior is called?”

This time they were even closer than in the art classroom, just a step away. Yan Chen could clearly see the agitation, annoyance, and disgust in his eyes.

He wanted to explain that he wasn’t a stalker, but he had indeed moved next door and even followed An Yi to his training class.

He stood at the door, blocking most of the hallway light. He looked at An Yi seriously with his pitch-black eyes, “I want to pursue you again.”

“Not possible.”

An Yi slammed the door coldly, dropping the roses that were on the doorknob to the ground.

Today, Yan Chen had sent a bouquet of cut Juliet roses.

Apricot pink, yet to bloom. If Yan Chen had sent him such a bouquet before, he would have cherished it carefully, put it in the most beautiful vase, placed it in the best sunlight, and foolishly hoped that it would never wither. But now he just felt bitter.

What could Yan Chen do to pursue him? He was such a proud person. Even if he was willing to put down his pride to pursue him, how long could he persist? After catching him, would he just put him on a pedestal again, then go back to his worldly ways? He didn’t want to repeat the same mistakes, and he didn’t think he had enough charm to make Yan Chen change.

He didn’t have this ability before, and the result wouldn’t change even five years later.

It’s a pity, such beautiful flowers.

An Yi carried the garbage bag and walked past Yan Chen towards the stairwell.

He stood quietly in the corridor for a while. When he calmed down and returned, Yan Chen was gone, and the cut Juliet roses were once again placed securely on the doorknob.

A few petals that had been dropped were scattered on the ground at the door.

An Yi stood in front of the door for half a minute, then went to the stairwell again and threw the flowers into the trash.

Xie Nancang had already boarded the plane, and it would be more than ten hours before landing. An Yi had no intention to do anything, not even practicing porcelain painting. He climbed into bed early, ready to sleep.

As a result, he tossed and turned all night, his mind full of Yan Chen’s moment of surprise when he saw the fallen flowers.

The next day, there was still a sketching class, and An Yi surprisingly entertained the idea of skipping. After lying down with his eyes closed for a while, he decided to get up, tidy up, and go to the training class.

Before class time, those who arrived early were chatting in the classroom.

Some of the students had overlapping classes with yesterday’s sketching session, and amidst their conversation, An Yi overheard them discussing yesterday’s model. He lowered his eyes, bored, and absentmindedly scrolled through his phone.

Earlier, Xie Nancang had sent a message confirming his safe landing, and An Yi had sent his regards, but the other party should be experiencing jet lag and hadn’t replied yet.

He turned off the screen and took out his own sketchbook from his bag.

He had already filled half of this book, flipping through the pages, the latest page caught the attention of the person next to him, who exclaimed in surprise, “Isn’t this the handsome guy from yesterday?” The classmate leaned over, their eyes lighting up, “He’s really good-looking! But why is he wearing a school uniform?”

“…You’re mistaken,” An Yi flipped to a blank page and said indifferently, “It’s not him.”

“Oh, don’t pretend. You two must know each other. He even brought you breakfast yesterday,” the classmate sat down next to him, smiling as he nudged An Yi with his elbow, “Can you give me a hint? I heard someone wanted to add him on WeChat after class, but he refused, saying he’s married. Is that true or false?”

An Yi’s hand, sharpening the pencil, paused, shaking his head, “I really don’t know.”

Throughout the entire class, An Yi was distracted.

The blank page had imprints from yesterday’s drawings, and he turned back to the previous page. He had sketched Yan Chen countless times over the past few years during his student days. He didn’t even need to look up at the real person to capture his facial features, but that didn’t mean anything.

When he boarded the cruise ship, he had already made up his mind.

He couldn’t afford to be soft-hearted, he shouldn’t look back.

After class, An Yi had lunch outside and brought back two meat buns to the apartment.

He searched around downstairs for a while, but the little orange cat never showed up.

He planned to try again in the evening. When he took the elevator back home, there was a stranger waiting for the elevator to go down, and a brand-new coffee machine was blocking half of the path by his feet. He had to step around it.

There were several delivery boxes piled up at the door of 1202, indicating that the new neighbors who moved in a few days ago were still furnishing their home.

But a few days later, An Yi encountered two workers carrying a huge new leather sofa out of 1202. It took a lot of effort to cram the sofa into the elevator and take it downstairs, giving the impression that they were moving out.

An Yi patiently waited for the other elevator to come downstairs, but even after searching the entire neighborhood, he still didn’t see the small, skinny orange cat.

Feeling a bit pessimistic, he regretted letting it run away with injuries that day.

In the evening, when he talked about this with Xie Nancang via video call, he felt very self-blaming.

Xie Nancang, standing by the floor-to-ceiling window on the other side, loosened his tie and said to An Yi, “Things might not be as bad as you think. Maybe it was taken home by a kind-hearted person like you.”

An Yi rested his chin on his hand and smiled, “You always know how to comfort people.”

“Did it comfort you?” Xie Nancong asked.

An Yi nodded.

Xie Nancang chuckled, “You’re just too easy to please.”

An Yi picked up his phone and sat down on the sofa, asking about Xie Nancang’s work. After chatting for just a few sentences, they were suddenly interrupted by a knock on the door.

It was now nine o’clock in the evening.

Both of them furrowed their brows slightly, and Xie Nancong instructed, “First, check the peephole, don’t open the door easily, and don’t turn off the video call.”

An Yi nodded and walked over with his phone, looking out through the peephole, unexpectedly seeing the little orange cat he had been searching for for a week.

The little guy was being held by a pair of clearly defined hands, its eyes shining as it stared at the door, sniffing with its small nose. 

The door was lightly knocked again, and An Yi asked who it was. There was silence outside for two seconds, then Yan Chen’s voice came: “It’s me.”

Xie Nancang couldn’t hear and asked An Yi what was happening.

An Yi came to his senses, shook his head, and said, “Nothing, I’ll call you back later.”

After ending the video call, An Yi opened the door a crack, and Yan Chen stood two steps away holding the little orange cat. Both man and cat looked at him with shiny black eyes.

Yan Chen said, “It’s afraid of medication, and I can’t handle it alone. Can you help me?”

An Yi hesitated for two seconds but then opened the door.

He thought Yan Chen would bring the cat inside, but instead, Yan Chen bent down and walked towards 1202. An Yi realized belatedly that Yan Chen was wearing slippers.

“Do you live here?” An Yi asked.

Yan Chen nodded and handed the little orange cat to him. “Be careful, it’s just been neutered, so it’s a bit restless.”

^[1]Author’s note: Yan Chen’s accounting book: sold coffee machine +1800; sold sofa +10,000; bought cat litter, cat bed, litter box, catnip, cat food, canned cat food, cat toy, along with … Continue reading