Chapter 39 39. The Birth, Extinction, and Death of Star Butterflies
Early one weekend morning, Xie Kang was awakened by Zhuang Yongyuan's cell phone ringing.
The curtains were not drawn tightly, and the soft winter sun shone through the gaps, illuminating Zhuang Yongyuan's face.
After seeing the old piano that Li Xiuyu played in the utility room, Zhuang Yongyuan spoke even less than before. He was always distracted while eating or taking a walk, and several times he walked directly onto the busy street.
But he was not as resistant to Xie Kang's approach as before, and the two of them spent more time together.
Having spent the night here for almost half a month, with Zhuang Yongyuan beside him before going to bed and when waking up, Xie Kang felt dazed for a moment, thinking that the past six years were just a nightmare with too many details. They were still living in a rented house in the suburbs of Shanghai, writing songs and dreaming.
Zhuang Yongyuan rested his head on Xie Kang's arm, his eyelids trembling slightly. He was sleeping so soundly that even the sharp ringing of the cell phone could not wake him up.
Xie Kang bent his arm, touched Zhuang Yongyuan's hair, and answered the phone himself.
The caller was a young man with a clear voice. Without saying hello, he said bluntly, "AM's contract has been sent to your home. Will you be back to Shanghai soon? Or should I send it to you?"
At home, Xie Kang was in a daze for a moment. When he didn't hear the answer, he continued to ask, "Brother Yuan? Did you hear that?"
Xie Kang lowered his voice and said, "Zhuang Yongyuan is sleeping. I'll get back to you when he wakes up."
The person on the other side was stunned for a moment and asked, "Who are you?"
"I'm his friend."
The other side laughed knowingly and said, "You're done. Brother Yuan hates it most when people touch his phone."
Xie Kang held the phone tightly: "How did you know?"
The man just smiled and said nothing, which made Xie Kang angry. He said in a bad tone, "Who are you?"
"What are you unhappy about?" The man said, puzzled. "You don't know who you're sleeping with, do you?"
Xie Kang was angry: "We are not the kind of relationship you think."
"If you think it's not, then it's not." After saying that, the other party hung up the phone.
Even though he didn't know the caller at all, Xie Kang could still imagine the mocking expression on his face. He considered himself Zhuang Yongyuan's flesh and blood, and he was the most inconsiderate person.
As Xie Kang became more and more angry, his heart sank again.
What difference did he make from just another person? Did it take six years? But Zhuang Yongyuan had said many times that they could only resume physical relations.
Xie Kang had searched for Zhuang Yongyuan's scandals. The only benefit of his ex-boyfriend becoming famous after the breakup was that there were many people on the Internet who paid attention to his updates, especially his love life, just like him.
Some people have vaguely revealed that Zhuang Yongyuan had ambiguous relationships with several of his colleagues, and some people also said that Zhuang Yongyuan took the initiative to add them on WeChat.
Xie Kang had the impression that Zhuang Yongyuan wasn't interested in casual relationships, and his physical desires were average. He was certainly aware of the culture within this circle, but he felt that Zhuang Yong was closer to him than the circle itself.
But Zhuang Yongyuan almost never smoked or drank in the past, but now smoking and drinking are more important to him than three meals a day. Zhuang Yongyuan will change.
Zhuang Yongyuan turned his head, resting it on his arm. After a moment, Xie Kang heard him mumble, "Who were you talking to just now?"
Xie Kang didn't respond. He opened his eyes and pushed Xie Kang: "Didn't you hear me? Who were you talking to just now?"
"I got a call... yours."
"Mine?!" Zhuang Yongyuan threw back the covers, sat up from the bed, and looked at Xie Kang unreasonably. "Why are you answering my call? Give me your phone right now."
Xie Kang reluctantly took out his phone and said while Zhuang Yongyuan was calling back, "This guy thought we were just friends with benefits."
Zhuang Yongyuan ignored him and stood up to go outside to talk on the phone. It was still time, but Xie Kang was no longer sleepy. He opened the window and leaned against the frame, smoking a cigarette.
He had originally quit smoking after graduating and returning to Pingnan, but because Zhuang Yongyuan had a relapse and it was so severe, he felt a little bit blaming Zhuang Yongyuan.
Looking out the window, it was the time when Kaiping Old Street was at its most popular. People of all kinds passed by and shops on the street opened one after another.
Pingnan has undergone a lot of demolition and construction in recent years, and the old city has changed a lot. Many of the bungalows and old streets have become high-rise commercial buildings. I don’t know why Kaiping Street seems to have been forgotten, and there is not even a rumor of demolition. Only the stone stairs have been walked on day after day, becoming more and more smooth.
Xie Kang watched the owner of the grocery store across the street remove the wooden planks from the door slots, piling them up at the doorway, and shaking cigarette ashes into the ashtray on the windowsill. Zhuang Yongyuan finished his phone call and walked over. He looked at the few fresh cigarette butts in the ashtray, frowned, and said unreasonably, "You're smoking so early in the morning, and you've made the room smell."
Xie Kang pointed at the grocery store as if to verify something and said, "They're still using these wooden doors."
Zhuang Yongyuan glanced out the window and said nothing. Xie Kang continued, "You used to love watching people open and close doors on the street."
"Did your agent call you? Or your assistant?"
Zhuang Yongyuan looked at him strangely: "Why are you talking so much today?"
"I don't have an assistant. My agent was looking for one, but I don't know if Lily Heart will disband, so I'm not looking for one for now," he added.
"Is that your friend? He seems to be living in your house." Xie Kang turned around, leaned crookedly against the window frame, and said to Zhuang Yongyuan.
"Xie Kang, you're really being a drag right now." Zhuang Yongyuan tilted his head, blew cigarette smoke into Xie Kang's face, and said, "If you want to know if this person has slept with me, just ask directly. What's the point of asking this and that?"
Xie Kang denied it, "You think I'm too boring."
He changed the subject: "What will happen to Adian and the others if Lily Heart disbands?"
Zhuang Yongyuan was frightened and pushed Xie Kang.
"Why do you always stay at my house? Go back to your own home." After saying that, he walked into the bathroom without even taking off his clothes. He stood under the shower and turned on the shower switch directly, and the cold water hit his face.
He closed his eyes, his nose didn't feel sore, his eyes didn't swell, the water poured down, and because of the unstable water pressure, it was sometimes surging and sometimes weak, like a curtain of water that shed tears for him.
Xie Kang was so annoying. Eight out of ten of his sentences hit his soft spot.
The question Xie Kang asked was what Zhuang Yongyuan least wanted to think about. It was one of the things he wanted to escape from by returning to Pingnan from Shanghai.
Even if Zhuang Yongyuan still had some way and forced himself to stand on the stage and make a sound like in the past year, he would not make the decision to take a break from the band.
Although he is the core of Lily's Heart, the band is related to everyone in the team. Everyone has worked together in the recording studio and on the small stage for so long to achieve their current status, but they had to come to an abrupt end because of their own condition and had to fill in for other bands or help with songwriting.
When in Shanghai, Zhuang Yongyuan was hesitating whether to announce the disbandment, but facing the band members who repeatedly said they were willing to wait for him to get better, he couldn't say it. Thinking of the night when Li Xiuyu hastily named the band Lily Heart, he was even more afraid to face the idea.
As soon as Xie Kang asked Adian what they should do, Zhuang Yongyuan's head immediately went empty like a bucket that had been kicked over. The tinnitus in his ears gave him a headache. He had to pour countless cold water on himself before the world became quiet again.
Downstairs, an old man selling maltose hawked his wares. Zhuang Yongyuan turned off the shower, feeling the water dripping all over him. He listened to the hawker's cries for a long time, only to feel the chill as they faded away.
Zhuang Yongyuan sneezed and changed into dry clothes. Shivering all over, he walked up and down the stairs, opened every room and every cabinet, but Xie Kang was not there.
He took out Xie Kang's old high school coat from the closet and put it on. The coat, which was too big then, was now too short for Zhuang Yongyuan. It hung at his waist like a weird performance costume.
There was no way the coat could smell like Xie Kang's past, but Zhuang Yongyuan could smell it all the same. He missed Xie Kang so much, so much, thinking about him every minute and every second. He wanted Xie Kang to accompany him on stage the most, and he wanted Xie Kang to be by his side before he went to sleep and when he woke up, so he could touch him with just a stretch of his hand.
But Zhuang Yongyuan wasn't thinking about Xie Kang, whom he had just met. He was thinking about the owner of the coat, the Xie Kang in his memory, the Xie Kang who had saved him. If it was that Xie Kang, he would definitely find a way to save him again.
When the ashtray was full, Zhuang Yongyuan knew he had to find something to do. He was a little more experienced than before, and if he had nothing to do, he would be more likely to get into trouble.
He made a phone call and asked, "Hello, yes, are you free today? Would you like to have an interview this afternoon?" Okay, thank you.
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