Chapter 26
Even the air conditioning at Baiyun Airport couldn't dispel the stench of sweat from the arrival area. Li Ruiyuan adjusted his shirt collar for the third time, sweat staining the silk fabric darkly. When the arrival announcement sounded over the PA system, he instinctively reached for a cigarette, but only found the mints in his pocket.
The crowd poured out like a flood. Wu Ye appeared at the end of the covered bridge, pushing a suitcase. His white T-shirt was washed to a shine, and a Tsinghua University canvas bag slung over his shoulder. The young man's eyes swept through the crowd of people waiting for the arrival of the airport, and when they fixed on him, they suddenly lit up.
"Brother Yuan." Wu Ye stood in front of him, his voice deeper than on the phone. His eyes slid from his new hairstyle to his suede loafers, and the corner of his mouth curled up: "Whose soul has been possessed?"
Li Ruiyuan grabbed the suitcase handle: "Isn't he handsome? Come back quickly, mom has cooked a table of dishes." When he turned around, Wu Ye's hand naturally rested on his lower back, leaving a mark through the fabric of his shirt.
The taxi ride home was filled with silence. Wu Ye's fingers hooked around his shirt cuffs and rubbed them, then he slowly shrunk into Li Ruiyuan's arms: "It's so hot."
"It's hot, why are you getting so close to me?" Li Ruiyuan rolled down the car window, and the hot and humid wind blew in, blowing away the unfamiliar cedar scent on the boy's body.
As expected, my mother prepared a feast. The white-cut chicken was slicked with fat, the lobster noodles were piled high, and even the coconut soup was tied with a red ribbon. Li Xuan tugged at Wu Ye's clothes and skipped, "Brother Ye, do you have double-skin milk in the Tsinghua cafeteria?"
Wu Ye pulled a Daoxiangcun box from his suitcase. Hidden at the bottom was a model of Tsinghua University's second gate, wrapped in oil paper. His mother's eyes reddened as she took it, and her hands trembled slightly as she turned to serve the soup.
"Aye, have this." Mother piled abalone into Wu Ye's bowl. "Studying uses up your brain."
Li Xuan pouted: "Mom, you are biased!" Wu Ye smiled helplessly, then put the abalone on Li Xuan's plate, and his knees under the table gently bumped into Li Ruiyuan.
As he washed the dishes after dinner, foam covered the blue and white dishes. Wu Ye stood behind him, adjusting the water heater, his chest barely touching his back. "The water's too cold," the boy said suddenly, his breath brushing against his ear.
The night stained the window screen like blue ink. Wu Ye was left in the living room by his mother to look at family albums. Lee Seo-yeon heard the boy's clear laughter as he showered in the bathroom. As water dripped down his new shirt, the door lock turned gently.
"Mom is asleep." Wu Ye locked the door with his backhand, and the scent of cedar in the steam filled the air again.
"Wait a minute,...you come out first..." Before Li Ruiyuan could finish his words, he was pressed against the wall.
The first kiss landed on his Adam's apple, with the sweetness of lychee. As Lee Seo-yeon backed away, he knocked over the laundry basket, and Wu Ye took advantage of the situation and hugged him.
"Brother...I miss you so much." Wu Ye suddenly lowered his voice.
The soaked shirt clung to his skin like a second layer. As Wu Ye bit open the first button, he looked up and saw his own hazy eyes in the mirror. The boy's hot palm pressed against his waist, where a new scar had appeared.
"This...I scratched it accidentally." He explained breathlessly. Wu Ye's kiss fell on the scar, burning more than the water.
The old air conditioner finally began to hum. Amidst the mechanical sighs, Wu Ye carried him to the washing machine. The vibrating drum was like a heartbeat. The boy buried his head in his neck and mumbled, "Beijing doesn't have you... I really miss you every day... I love you so much, brother. I really do..."
The second half of the sentence was swallowed between their intertwined lips and teeth. The jasmine scent of laundry detergent mingled with their panting breaths.
Moonlight filtered in through the cracks in the blinds, illuminating the entangled figures. Under the cover of the regular vibrations of the washing machine, some suppressed longing finally found an outlet.
In the early hours of the morning, Wu Ye wiped the sticky mess between his legs with a wet towel. As the boy bent down to kiss his old knee injury, he suddenly said, "Brother, you're so kind."
"……Um"
At dawn, Li Ruiyuan awoke to the scent of mint. Wu Ye's arm draped across his waist, his face as peaceful as if he were eighteen again. He gently brushed aside the boy's hair, tracing the outline of his growth in the gradually brightening light.
The sound of my mother frying eggs in the kitchen sounded like a prelude to ordinary life.
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