Promise
As the bus drove out of the gate of the social practice base, Li Huaizhou put his backpack on his lap and caught a glimpse of Xie Mo fiddling with his phone with his fingertips tapping lightly on the screen. He was punished to run ten laps last night, and then went back to clean up until late at night. Everyone in the dormitory had dark circles under their eyes, and they had been following group activities all morning. Even the most noisy Ji Jiancheng leaned back in his chair and soon began to doze off.
"Headphones." Xie Mo suddenly turned his head and handed him a pair of white headphones, the cable still connected to the phone in his hand, "It's connected to Bluetooth, you should get some sleep too."
Li Huaizhou took the earphones and plugged them into his ears. His fingertips brushed against Xie Mo's slightly cool fingertips, and a soothing melody drifted in along the earphone cord. It was a soft English song, mixed with the low hum of the bus engine. He leaned back in his chair and looked sideways at Xie Mo - the other person was also leaning back in his chair, his eyes gently closed, his long eyelashes casting a small shadow under his eyes, and even his breathing was very light, as if he was afraid of disturbing something. At first, Li Huaizhou still tried to stay awake, his fingers unconsciously tapping on his knees to the melody, his mind still thinking about what Xie Mo said on the lawn last night - "ways to act coquettishly with your boyfriend" His heart felt like it was soaked in warm water, soft. But his eyelids were getting heavier, and the sleep he lacked last night came flooding back. He slowly leaned to the side and rested his head lightly on Xie Mo's shoulder.
The weight on his shoulder was so light that Xie Mo's eyelashes trembled, but he didn't open his eyes. He quietly leaned towards Li Huaizhou, letting him lean more steadily, then slowly tilted his head, his forehead gently resting on the top of Li Huaizhou's head, his breath filled with the faint scent of his body's laundry detergent. The music in the headphones continued, their shoulders pressed tightly together, even their heartbeats gradually slowed to follow the melody.
The girl in front of her woke up drowsily. When she rubbed her eyes, she accidentally glanced back and saw the two of them sleeping together. Li Huaizhou's head was tilted on Xie Mo's shoulder. Xie Mo's forehead was against his hair, his eyelashes drooped, and his profile was soft like a painting in the morning light. The girl didn't dare to say anything. She quietly took out her mobile phone, took a photo of the two of them, turned around and posted it on the campus network. The latter was sleeping soundly.
"Sisters, which couple is the best?"
The bus swayed for more than two hours until it entered the city and the tall buildings on the roadside gradually increased. Li Huaizhou finally woke up in a daze. When his head left Xie Mo's shoulder, he subconsciously rubbed it. When he opened his eyes, he met Xie Mo's smiling eyes. "Awake?" Xie Mo's voice was a little hoarse. He reached out and took off the headphones from his ears. "We're almost at school. He was sleeping like a pig just now. I couldn't wake him up even if I called him."
"Who is like a pig?" Li Huaizhou rubbed his eyes, the tips of his ears felt a little hot, and reached for his backpack. "Why didn't you call me?" He asked in a low voice, feeling a little uneasy.
"Look at you sleeping soundly, so cute..." Xie Mo wound up the earphone cable and stuffed it into the back of the phone case. "I'm not sleepy anyway." As he said that, he took out a lollipop from his backpack, the same one he gave to Li Huaizhou last night, unwrapped the candy wrapper and handed it to him: "Hold it in your mouth, wake up, we'll be at school soon."
Li Huaizhou opened his mouth to take it, and the sweet fragrance of the snow pear instantly spread in his mouth. He stared at Xie Mo's profile. The other party was looking at the street scene passing by outside the window. The sunlight fell on his eyelashes, shining like a little gold. His heart suddenly softened - Xie Mo didn't sleep for a few hours last night, but he still wanted him to sleep a little longer.
When the bus stopped at the school gate, Ji Jiancheng woke up early. When the bus stopped, he stood up and saw Li Huaizhou and Xie Mo huddled together, one sucking on a candy, the other looking out the window. "Hey, are you two awake?" He came over and put his arms on the backs of their chairs. "There's a photo that the campus network just posted. You two looked like a couple sleeping together, leaning against each other."
Li Huaizhou's face flushed instantly. Just as he was about to retort, Xie Mo spoke first, his tone very calm: "I didn't sleep well last night, so my head tilted and leaned against it." As he spoke, he picked up his backpack and stood up: "Let's go down quickly, the teacher must be waiting anxiously."
Several people followed the main group to the teaching building. As soon as they entered the school gate, they heard a few girls next to them whispering - "Have you read the forum? Someone posted a photo from the social practice base. Xie Mo and Li Huaizhuo are sleeping together. How sweet!" "The whole base knows that Xie Mo publicly protected Li Huaizhuo before. Are they really having an affair?" "No way, I haven't heard that Li Huaizhuo likes boys before." Li Huaizhuo paused and turned to look at Xie Mo, but the other party seemed not to hear him. He didn't stop walking, but just quietly leaned towards him, and gently touched the back of his hand with his fingers behind his back. Li Huaizhuo's heart moved, and he didn't ask any more questions. He followed him to the teaching building - anyway, others can say whatever they want, and the things between him and Xie Mo are only known by themselves.
The homeroom teacher gave a few brief instructions in the classroom, asking everyone to go home and rest well and attend classes on time next week, then waved everyone off. Ji Jiancheng hooked his arm around Li Huaizhou's shoulders, his eyes gleaming. "Come on, Huaizhou! Isn't 'Patients' performing tonight? Jiang Changnan and Ji Lu also want to go, so let's go together!"
"Patients" is a band formed by Ji Jiancheng, Shen Qitang, and Li Huaizhou. Ji Jiancheng came up with the name randomly, saying that "three patients tortured by their studies redeem each other through music." Li Huaizhou was about to go back, but when he heard Ji Jiancheng say this, he was about to nod, but turned to look at Xie Mo: "What about you? Are you going with us?"
Xie Mo was holding the strap of his backpack and shook his head slightly when he heard it: "I have to go home first to put my things away." He looked up at Li Huaizhou with a hint of apology in his eyes: "Sorry, I may not be able to make it in time." Li Huaizhou's heart sank instantly, as if a basin of cold water had been poured on him. He remembered that they had clearly agreed on it last time, and he had smiled and said "OK", but now he suddenly said that he could not make it in time. He opened his mouth, wanting to ask what it was, but was afraid of appearing too clingy, so he just pulled the corner of his mouth: "It's okay, I can check it next time."
Xie Mo looked at the disappointment in his eyes, moved his fingers, but didn't say anything else, just nodded: "Then I'll go first." After that, he turned and walked towards the school gate, his back gradually getting smaller in the crowd until he disappeared around the corner. Li Huaizhou stood there, his heart was like a ball of cotton, and he didn't even hear what Ji Jiancheng said next to him. Until Ji Lu patted his arm: "What are you daydreaming about? Let's go, if we don't go to the bar now, we will be late for rehearsal."
"Oh, here I come." Li Huaizhou came back to his senses, picked up his backpack and followed, but his steps were a little heavy.
The rehearsal room in the bar was small and the soundproofing wasn't very good, so the music outside could be faintly heard. Shen Qitang had just arrived home after putting his stuff away. He was sitting in front of the drums, testing the sound, and when he saw Li Huaizhou come in, he raised his chin and asked, "Why are you here so late? You look so bad, did you not sleep well last night?"
"Yeah, a little." Li Huaizhou tossed his backpack into the corner, picked up his bass, and plucked the strings with his fingers, but he couldn't find the flow. During rehearsals, he was often distracted, repeatedly hitting the wrong keys despite being familiar with the chords. He even nearly lost the rhythm when Ji Jiancheng sang the chorus.
"What's wrong with you?" Ji Jiancheng put the microphone on the stand and looked at him with a frown. "You've been distracted since you came out of school. Is it because of Xie Mo?" Li Huaizhou paused, but didn't deny it. He just sighed and said, "He said he wanted to go home and would miss the performance."
"If he doesn't want to come, then don't come. Why do you care so much?" Ji Jiancheng came over and put his arm around his shoulders. "You two won't..." Li Huaizhou was startled and quickly pushed Ji Jiancheng's hand away. "Get lost. I don't like men." Ji Jiancheng smiled and took his hand back. "I knew my brother didn't like men."
Li Huaizhou took a deep breath, forced himself to put Xie Mo's matter behind him, and picked up the guitar again. His fingertips slid across the strings, and a familiar melody gradually sounded. He closed his eyes and slowly regained his state. Just like Ji Jiancheng said, the performance should not be affected by this matter. When the performance began, the bar was already full of people. The lights dimmed and only the spotlight on the stage was on. Li Huaizhou stood in the center of the stage, holding a guitar in his hands, looking at the crowd below the stage, took a deep breath, and plucked the strings. The last song they chose tonight was "Looking Up" by Rainie Yang, which he chose specifically - the melody of this song is very soothing, but with a tenacity, just like his mood at the moment.
Ji Jiancheng's voice emanated from the microphone, a youthful clarity. Li Huaizhou's fingers glided across the strings, his gaze fixed on the audience. He couldn't help but think of Xie Mo—was he home now? What was he doing? Would he remember his promise to come to the show?
At this moment, the lyrics sang "Don't let love escape, don't let the heart hide", Li Huaizhou's eyes accidentally swept across the door of the bar, and suddenly stopped - the door was gently pushed open, and Xie Mo stood at the door, with a little sweat on his forehead, his hair slightly messy, and his breathing seemed a little rapid, as if he had run over. He was wearing a sweater, standing in the light and shadow of the door, his eyes fixed on Li Huaizhou on the stage
Li Huaizhou's heart skipped a beat, and his fingers almost pressed the wrong chord, even the sound of the strings was out of tune. He quickly came to his senses and forced himself to put his attention back on the guitar, but his heart felt like fireworks exploding, chaotic and sweet - why is he here? Didn't he say he was going home? Did he come here on purpose? Aren't his family strict? It was not until the end of the song and applause from the audience that Li Huaizhou managed to calm down and bowed with Ji Jiancheng and Shen Qitang. When he walked off the stage, his steps were still a little unsteady. As soon as he put down the guitar, he made an excuse: "I'm going to the bathroom." After that, without waiting for the two to react, he hurried to the back door of the bar.
The alley behind the bar was very narrow, and one of the streetlights was broken, leaving only a dim light that illuminated the ground in patches. Li Huaizhou had just walked to the alley when he saw Xie Mo standing under the streetlight, holding a bag in his hand. When he saw him coming, his expression softened.
"Why are you here?" Li Huaizhou walked over, his voice still a little breathless, "Didn't you say you were going home?"
"Go home and put your things away. Tell my dad to return the things to your classmates." Xie Mo reached out and touched Li Huaizhou's head, then handed him the plastic bag. "Want to eat?"
Li Huaizhou took the plastic bag. His fingertips touched the coolness of the bag, but his heart was warmed. He looked down at the oden and two cartons of milk in the bag, both of which he usually liked to eat. "You ran here?" He looked up at Xie Mo, whose breathing had not yet completely calmed down.
"Well, I'm afraid I won't be able to catch your performance." Xie Mo nodded and moved forward. "What should I do if my boyfriend is angry?"
"I'm not that stingy." Li Huaizhou's ears instantly turned red. He reached out and put the plastic bag on the steps next to him, then grabbed Xie Mo's wrist and pulled him towards him. Xie Mo didn't refute, just smiled at him, like a star soaked in water. "Just now at school, I saw you were unhappy." He said softly, hooking his fingers through Li Huaizhou's, palms pressed together. "I brought you a gift." As he said this, he pulled something out of his pocket and handed it to Li Huaizhou - a small keychain with a small pendant in the shape of a bass guitar and the word "friend" engraved on it.
"It seems to suit you very well." Xie Mo's voice was very soft, mixed in the evening breeze at the alley. "I wanted to give it to you before the performance, but the things only came back yesterday."
Li Huaizhou stared at the keychain, his heart filled with something, bittersweet. He reached out to take it, stroking the word "friend" on it with his fingertips, and suddenly remembered the moment he saw Xie Mo on the stage just now - his heart skipped a beat, even his breathing became disordered. It turned out that it was not because of panic, but because he was too happy.
Li Huaizhou raised his head and smiled. "Actually, there's no need to be so troublesome. It doesn't matter if you give it to me a few days later." "No." Xie Mo put his arm around Li Huaizhou's waist and hugged him tightly. "I promised to come and see your performance."
The evening breeze from the alleyway carried the sound of music from the bar, blowing gently, carrying a hint of the remaining warmth of summer. Li Huaizhou put his arm around Xie Mo's waist, resting his chin on the top of his head, his nose lingering with the faint scent of laundry detergent on him. "By the way," Xie Mo suddenly raised his head and looked at him, "today on the bus, when you were sleeping on my shoulder, you drooled."
"Who's drooling!" Li Huaizhou's face flushed instantly. He reached out and pinched Xie Mo's face lightly. "Don't talk nonsense. I didn't."
"Yes." Xie Mo dodged with a smile, reached out to grab his hand, and put it against his face, "If you don't believe me, ask Ji Jiancheng and the others, maybe it has spread all over the forum now." Li Huaizhou was stunned for a moment, then he remembered what Zhou Yu said in the morning. He looked down at Xie Mo's smiling eyes. Anyway, the two of them were "friends" and had not admitted it in person, so they could spread it however they wanted. He reached out and hugged Xie Mo tighter: "Spread it if you want, anyway, I like you, no one will know if you don't admit it"
Xie Mo's body paused, and he looked up at him, with a light light in his eyes. He put his hand around Li Huaizhou's neck, stood on tiptoe, and gently touched his lips. "I like you too."
The streetlight at the entrance of the alley was on, stretching the shadows of the two people very long, overlapping, as if they would never separate. Li Huaizhou looked down at the person in his arms, and the corners of his mouth could not help but rise. He reached out and picked up the oden on the steps and handed a string to Xie Mo: "Eat it first, it won't taste good if it gets cold later."
Xie Mo opened his mouth to take it, his eyes curved into crescents. The two leaned against the wall at the entrance of the alley, eating oden bite by bite, occasionally touching fingers, even their breaths were slightly sweet. The music in the bar in the distance was still going on, and the evening breeze blew gently, carrying their laughter far away, like the stars falling in the autumn night, bright, warm and dazzling.
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