Chapter 39: Secret Love at the Summer Solstice should be a cliffhanger.
Xia Huanming then realized that he had called out Chen Xing's nickname in his haste.
A heat rose from the back of his neck, his ears turned red imperceptibly, and his heartbeat roared in this lounge which was less than 15 square meters.
Xia Huanming loosened his grip on her wrist and explained in panic, "I am..."
Before he finished speaking, his hand was tightly wrapped by Chen Xing's hand, and he heard the other party's joyful voice: "That's great!"
Xia Huanming was startled and slowly raised his eyes.
Chen Xing's eyes were bright and fiery. He was like a vine silently clinging to the warmth of spring in the dark. When Chen Xing's gaze swept across his face, his heart was like a ignited flame.
What's the meaning?
"You finally called me that!" Chen Xing pressed his large palm tightly against his. As if he was afraid that he would regret it, he looked at him cautiously, "Does this mean that we are really friends now?"
friend?
Xia Huanming wanted to say: More than just friends. I even want to kiss you, how can we be just friends?
But he had to pretend to be clueless and nodded and said, "Do you want me to call you that?"
Chen Xing answered without hesitation: "Of course!"
Growing up, Chen Xing hated it most when his friends called him by his full name. It made the relationship between them seem distant, or as if he had done something wrong.
Xia Huanming was so nice to him, and they always talked and laughed together. It seemed like they had an official relationship, but Xia Huanming still called him by his full name, which made him wonder: Are they really "friends"?
Or, in Xia Huanming's eyes, he is just an ordinary colleague?
Especially since Xia Huanming asked him to call him by his nickname, but he ended up calling him by his full name, he didn't understand where Xia Huanming's boundaries were.
He was also afraid that pretending to be familiar would make Xia Huanming feel uncomfortable. After all, Xia Huanming was not as outgoing as Zhao Xingyu and Wang Baiyue; he was too kind and sensitive, and would remember a wrong word for a whole day.
Chen Xing was troubled by this for several days and finally let it go, but today he got such a big surprise.
He originally thought that he had misheard so he hesitated for a moment, but now looking at Xia Huanming's reaction, he was sure that Xia Huanming did tell him to "wake up".
Chen Xing continued: "I've been looking forward to it for a long time!"
"Looking forward to it?" Xia Huanming seemed to be thinking about something and repeated his words softly, "Looking forward to it..." and immediately showed his usual faint smile.
Chen Xing felt that Xia Huanming's features were actually suitable for smiling, but his usual cold and stern aura held him back.
Chen Xing could feel his hand holding the cage move slightly, and then Xia Huanming said, "Have you said this to your friends?"
"No," Chen Xing answered without thinking. None of his friends were the type like Xia Huanming, so he called out automatically, "You are the first."
His latter words were slightly ambiguous, especially to Xia Huanming's ears.
Xia Huanming instantly asked for the key word "first", and his heart was immediately filled with joy, but his voice was still very steady: "Okay, I'll call you that from now on."
"I thought about it, and what you just said makes sense," Chen Xing quickly shared the two circles of support he had just thought of, "So I decided to chat with you for a while, then go to see the sea, and then come back to watch you perform."
Xia Huanming nodded.
The two of them sat back down on the narrow little sofa, close together between layers of fabric.
Xia Huanming's coat was thin, and he could clearly feel Chen Xing's arms shaking as he spoke.
He originally thought that the lounge was too small. The various exaggerated theatrical costumes hanging there and the messy props piled on the small round table distracted him from the show.
Now I feel that this size is just right, giving him a reason to get closer.
Xia Huanming interlaced his fingers together as he listened to Chen Xing talking about random things. His eyes were fixed on a small stool in the distance. He looked like he was in a daze, but he was actually listening very carefully.
Some time ago, he saw a trick for hanging clothes on the Internet. After Chen Xing tried it, he not only lost a clothes rack, but also lost ten minutes. When he was composing a new song, he wanted to record a whistling sound, but he didn't know how to whistle, so he drooled for a long time, etc...
They are all very cute stories.
When Chen Xing got excited, he would grab his hand to gesture, and after grabbing it, he would forget to let go, and would keep holding his wrist, stroking his wrist bone with his slender index finger from time to time.
Chen Xing's hands are very beautiful, with slender fingertips and light pink nails. They are a circle smaller than his hands, and the skin is whiter and more delicate. Whether holding a pen, holding a cup, or gently brushing the fingertips across the table, these hands are full of casual elegance.
Just my palms are a little cold.
He really wanted to cover it.
"And the people in our band are actually not easy to bully. When he pissed us off, our captain and drummer all rushed forward. But guess what, before we even started to do anything, those guys stepped back and forth, and their feet hit the chairs." Chen Xing looked around and suddenly discovered something.
He lifted Xia Huanming's wrist, pointed to a small stool not far away, and then put it back on Chen Xing's thigh.
Xia Huanming: “…”
Xia Huanming could see his fingertips sinking slightly into the soft fabric, which was only a few millimeters thick.
He moved tentatively, but the other party showed no reaction and continued to talk: "That's right, it was that low a stool, and then the two of them fell flat on their backs. Later the teacher came and wanted to scold us, but we immediately pointed at them and said in unison, "It's none of my business." The teacher was stunned for a moment. Those two people were so embarrassed that they never dared to come again. Thinking about it now makes me laugh..."
This one-sided lecture ended only when the cell phone on the table rang.
However, the sound cut off after a few seconds, as if reminding the owner of the phone to pay attention to the content of the phone.
Xia Huanming looked in the direction of the sound and saw Chen Xing’s phone wallpaper, which was a beautiful shorthair cheese cat held in someone’s arms.
Half of Cheese Cat's face was blocked by a display, and he saw "Zhao Xingyu" written on it.
Xia Huanming frowned, and Chen Xing stood up after getting the phone: "It's almost time, I should go."
But Xia Huanming's mood was completely different from before. He contentedly chose to let go: "Be careful."
"Okay, I'll come see you later. Remember to drink the water." Chen Xing waved his hand and walked out the door.
After Chen Xing left, Xia Huanming didn't stay in the lounge for long. He changed his clothes and came out to see Director Yu's arrangements for the crew.
Director Yu was slightly moved by Xia Huanming's enthusiasm and asked him to sit behind the monitor to watch the rivalry between Shao Shuxian and Wang Baiyue.
These two people don't interact much in their daily lives, and they don't have much tacit understanding when acting.
Fortunately, this scene was shot indoors, and Director Yu patiently called for a stop and stepped forward to give instructions on the interaction between the two.
Director Yu grabbed Wang Baiyue's arm and instructed: "Don't be quick when you raise your finger. It will show that you are bored. Raise your hand slowly. That's right."
The two of them were also able to listen to what was said, and they made obvious progress during the next filming, with their interactions being natural.
As one of Shao Shuxian's suitors, Xia Huanming found it inexplicably funny sitting here watching the couple act.
During the break when the guide was explaining, Xia Huanming opened his mobile phone and looked through the WeChat chat group.
The production team shared the update time of the evening pilot episode in the group, asking everyone to pay attention, and everyone responded in succession: "1". Xia Huanming also replied with a "1".
Then there is some information from public accounts.
Just when Xia Huanming was bored and wanted to play Candy Crush Saga, a red dot appeared in Chen Xing's chat box, and he immediately clicked on it.
[Chen Xing]: Look
Xia Huanming stared at the two words in confusion. What are you looking at?
But he did not quit. He stared at the chat interface motionlessly. After more than ten seconds, a video appeared below the text.
In the first few seconds, Chen Xing's eyes were close to the camera. Probably because he realized the angle of view was wrong, he hurriedly switched to the rear camera to take a picture of the sea water covering his ankles.
Crystal clear water droplets hung on Chen Xing's fair calves, and Xia Huanming could faintly see the scar.
"Look." Chen Xing's voice-over came along with the sound of waves.
When the tide receded, the sound of the waves became slow and thick, but Chen Xing's voice was very clear.
“It’s a little cold, but very comfortable.”
The video then ends.
【Chen Xing】: You can also come and step on the water. The sand feels completely different after the rain (*OuO*)
What? I sent him a video specifically?
Xia Huanming covered half of his face with his hands, and the light from his cell phone shone into the corners of his eyes as he smiled.
Xia Huanming watched this 15-second video for three minutes.
After importing it back, he saved it, turned off the computer, and put it in his pocket.
Director Yu sat down next to Xia Huanming and shouted into the intercom: "Okay, you can come over."
The script supervisor came over to clap the board.
"Three scenes, four shots, seven times! Start!"
The dark clouds had just dispersed, and the sky seemed to be torn open, with sunlight pouring down from the gap and sprinkling on the wet beach. The air was filled with the freshness after the rain, mixed with the scent of sea salt and the faint smell of seaweed.
Chen Xing and Zhao Xingyu walked along the entire beach, then walked back and squatted on the steps leading down to the beach. They sat in silence, watching the waves hitting the shore again and again.
"You say..." Zhao Xingyu stared at the sea and raised his voice, "If a fish is stranded and a shark eats it when I put it back into the sea, would that be considered feeding the shark?"
Chen Xing didn't even look at him, and answered without thinking: "It doesn't count, you are just offering gifts to Buddha."
Zhao Xingyu asked again: "But if the shark turns into a human form, it will still come to me to repay its gratitude, right?"
Chen Xing replied: "You have to give it your address first, otherwise it won't know where you live, how can it repay you?"
Zhao Xingyu nodded: "That's right, I'm not even a local..."
If someone else heard the conversation between these two people, they would definitely say that they were crazy.
But these two people have played too many games, especially the galgame games that are popular in Japan, in which there are often plots where animals are personified to repay their gratitude.
Zhao Xingyu: This can only be called that anyone with a dream is great.
The boring conversation between the two was interrupted by the sound of seagulls. Chen Xing stretched out his hand, trying to pretend that he had something in his hand so that the seagulls would fly down and grab the food.
Zhao Xingyu was speechless and laughed at Chen Xing's actions: "Seagull is not a fool."
Chen Xing glanced at Zhao Xingyu: "My way of repaying a favor is more realistic than your shark's, right?"
Zhao Xingyu: “That makes sense.”
So the two men simultaneously stretched out their empty hands in an attempt to tame the seagull, but the seagull in the sky didn't even look at them and flew away mercilessly.
"How long have we been out? Is it time to go back?" Chen Xing turned around and glanced at the photographers behind him.
The two photographers followed them all the way and even used a drone to take panoramic photos.
Chen Xing felt that this segment would definitely be broadcasted. It would be very interesting to have millions of people watching the two of them telling lies together.
"It's almost time," Zhao Xingyu turned on his phone, "It's been an hour, let's go."
After Zhao Xingyu stood up, he pulled Chen Xing and put his hand directly on Chen Xing's shoulder, and the two walked back to the crew.
When they arrived at the crew, Zhao Xingyu went to change his clothes, but Chen Xing was not in a hurry. He went to the shooting location first to take a photo of Xia Huanming.
He arrived at the right time, as it was Xia Huanming's turn to act.
Xia Huanming stood on an empty street corner, holding a bunch of withered flowers, walking forward aimlessly.
At this moment, someone called him from behind.
"Du Junruo!"
Xia Huanming stopped and turned back suddenly.
In the script, it is written that the heroine played by Shao Shuxian is calling his name. In fact, the street Xia Huanming is facing is empty, with only countless cameras and monitors.
Among the densely packed faces, he quickly found the distinctive face, and the taut strings broke completely the moment they touched his gaze.
Xia Huanming couldn't help but smile with relief.
To everyone behind the monitor, Xia Huanming was just acting as a man who reunited with his admirer.
A close-up of Xia Huanming's face was played on the monitor.
Xia Huanming's eyebrows and eyes were an extremely dark color, his features were extremely photogenic, and his phoenix eyes were incredibly beautiful in the camera - his eyes were so gentle to death, as if the ice on the top of a snowy mountain had quietly cracked, revealing the gurgling spring water underneath.
The thin lips raised up in just the right arc.
Chen Xing was drawn into the play and couldn't help but sigh: "What an amazing acting skill."
It was as if his lover really was here.
Chen Xing heard Huang Canni beside him say thoughtfully: "I didn't expect Xia Huanming's love scenes to be so good. It's a pity that there are too few romantic dramas."
Chen Xing turned around and asked in confusion, "Why so few? He's such a good actor and so handsome."
"These two points are indeed beyond reproach, but his appearance can only get him a limited number of roles. Do you think he can play a high school student? Can he play a high-spirited young man? Can he play a bad-hearted man? The appearance that I like most in ancient and modern idol dramas should be similar to Qi Yinrui, who is both good and evil, with characteristics but not particularly prominent," Huang Canni said, and scanned Chen Xing's body, and smiled: "Hey, what about you, how tall are you?"
"One hundred and seventy-nine and a half." Chen Xing replied.
"So specific?" Huang Canni laughed, "I think you are more suitable for acting in romantic dramas than them. You can act in both modern and ancient idol dramas."
At this time, Director Yu also nodded and said, "Yes, he is also suitable for the kind of role that turns evil in the later period. He has a strong plasticity."
Chen Xing felt embarrassed by their praise and just laughed.
Xia Huanming just finished his performance. Director Yu called out "over" and Xia Huanming walked towards them.
"What are you talking about?" Xia Huanming put his arm around Chen Xing's shoulders and leaned against him naturally, actually deliberately standing between Chen Xing and Huang Canni.
He was originally happy that Chen Xing had returned, but as he watched Chen Xing chatting with them, he felt almost jealous to death.
Luckily, he is a professional actor and he continued acting without revealing any flaws.
Chen Xing, who had no idea, praised enthusiastically: "Let's talk about your acting skills. That part just now was amazing."
"Really?" Xia Huanming pinched Chen Xing's shoulder.
From this angle, he could see Chen Xing's slightly protruding collarbone under his ripped neckline, which looked like two crescent moons, making his neck look long and slender.
Xia Huanming really wanted to touch Chen Xing's throat, just like he did in the play that day.
But he was afraid that if he really touched it, he would have an uncontrollable dream at night.
"Okay, let's take a look at what we just filmed."
Director Yu called back the content that had just been filmed.
The dark asphalt road was soaked by rain, and the wet ground reflected the dim light of the street lights like a broken mirror.
Xia Huanming's leather shoes were reflected in the puddle. The camera shifted upwards, starting from Xia Huanming's ankles and shooting his entire body from bottom to top - an open black suit, revealing a white shirt that fits his chest muscles.
His face was half hidden in the shadows, with only the line of his chin appearing particularly sharp in the dim light. The camera slowly pulled back, stretching his figure.
A voice of "Du Junruo" was heard, and Xia Huanming stopped abruptly and turned back.
The gaze passes through the lens and reaches an invisible distance.
"That's amazing." Chen Xing said softly. He would still be amazed when he saw Xia Huanming looking back again.
"Chen Xing, pay attention to how Huan Ming handled the situation," Yu explained to Chen Xing. "Before this, Du Junruo felt disappointed, but after hearing the voice, he felt hopeful. Even if this hope wasn't real, it might be his hallucination."
Huang Canni rubbed her chin with one hand, feeling that Director Yu's explanation was a bit too "professional", and added in a more popular way: "When you want to act out this kind of scene, you just imagine that you are in winter and accidentally step into a spring garden. When you see the flowers and plants, does your mood improve?"
Chen Xing's originally confused eyes suddenly became clear: "Ah, I understand."
"It's obvious that you've never had a crush on anyone," Director Yu joked with Chen Xing, "You must be pursued by others in school."
Chen Xing smiled and looked up at the silent protagonist. Xia Huanming's jaw line was slightly straightened. He was watching the monitor intently with some surprise in his eyes.
Was he shocked by his own extraordinary performance? Chen Xing wondered.
It is an extremely perfect acting performance to anyone who sees it. The image of the affectionate second male lead who loves the female lead is perfectly interpreted at this moment, and the character's emotions are ready to burst out.
Especially the close-up of the eyes at the end. Everyone around was amazed, but Xia Huanming froze.
Because at this moment, he remembered what Qi Yinrui said -
"Do you know what the audience cares most about in a romantic drama when two people are in love?"
"Have you ever noticed the way you look at him?"
Xia Huanming has always reviewed the dramas in which he first acted, but he has never seen himself like this.
Even when he was acting in "Far View", when his long-awaited "wife" was in front of him, he never had such a look in his eyes.
It turned out that he had always been looking at Chen Xing with such eyes, which was the look he showed when he truly loved someone.
No wonder Qi Yinrui, who knows everything, would discover it.
Xia Huanming felt mixed emotions. He could still use his acting skills to conceal his secret love, but how long could he keep it secret?
As he gets along with Chen Xing, such looks will only become more intense, and by then he will no longer have any excuses.
Xia Huanming heard someone say, "Just imagine that you were originally in winter, and accidentally stepped into a spring garden. Seeing those flowers and plants, wouldn't your mood improve?"
So, secret love should not be like spring breeze and green willows, but should be on the steep cliff.
When love is about to burst out, there is no way back.
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