Feeding mosquitoes
Fang Chuan remembered what Huang Fuda had told him last time: after the meeting, he would slip away with his own people.
The accommodations on the mountain were basic. He shared a room with two other team members, which made it inconvenient to make phone calls. But he really missed his boss, Mr. Huang, so he took his earphones and went out to find a corner to feed the mosquitoes.
The phone rang twice before being answered; it was the voice he had been longing to hear on the other end.
"Is our CEO, Mr. Fang, finished with work today?"
"Is Mr. Fang finished with his work? Is our Boss Huang finished with his work?"
There was a soft chuckle on the other end of the phone. "Boss Huang is done with his work too."
...
...
"miss you."
Huang Fuda smiled again, and the two listened to each other's breathing without saying a word.
After a long pause, Fang Chuan looked around and said, "I saw Bao Rongxiang today."
"...Did he cause you trouble?"
"No, we didn't talk. I was hiding."
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, then someone said, "Fang Chuan this morning..."
Fang Chuan swatted a mosquito and lazily asked, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, I just wanted to ask why you didn't wake me up when you left at noon. I overslept. Were you outside?"
Fang Chuan lowered his eyes, smiled at the night, and killed another mosquito. "Yeah, Mr. Huang, I was out here feeding mosquitoes just to call you."
"Then hurry back inside, the mosquitoes in the mountains are very vicious."
Fang Chuan refused, and lingered with Boss Huang for a while longer. Finally, unable to bear the mosquito bites any longer, he went back to his room and went to sleep with his headphones on.
As Huang Fuda listened to the gradually even breathing on the other end of the phone, he put down the book he was reading and got up to go outside to get a glass of water.
The living room was brightly lit, with only the sound of him getting water. Huang Fuda leaned against the bar, sipping his water, his eyes slowly sweeping over the doorway, the sofa, the balcony, and a few potted plants that shouldn't have been there.
I've gotten used to it over the years, so why do I suddenly feel a bit empty?
I think I really do miss that brat.
Lying in bed, he always felt like something was missing in his arms. He turned to his side, listening to the breathing coming from his phone, and managed to fall asleep.
The mountain area is not large, and Fang Chuan would occasionally take a detour when he saw Bao Rongxiang from afar. But the place is so small that no matter how hard you try to hide, there will always be a time when you can't hide from him.
Looking at the WeChat QR code that Bao Rongxiang had offered, he felt awkward refusing him and had no choice but to unlock his phone and add him as a contact.
Bao Rongxiang glanced at Fang Chuan's phone screen, lit a cigarette, and casually asked, "Young Mr. Fang doesn't look very old, only in his early twenties, right?"
"She's 22."
Bao Rongxiang looked at him more closely, then laughed and said, "He's young, too young."
Fang Chuan felt there was something more to his words. But Bao Rongxiang patted him on the shoulder, turned around, and left.
Huang Fuda, who was in the office, saw Fang Chuanfa's message and asked him how long it would take for him to return.
[It's faster than expected; I can be back the day after tomorrow. Boss Huang, do you miss me?]
Yes, I miss you.
"Hey, Mr. Fang, what did you see that made you laugh so happily?"
Fang Chuan put away his phone, trying to suppress the smile on his face, and turned to his team members, saying, "The stocks I bought went up."
"Which one? Let me see."
"I can't tell you that. If I get involved in everything, how am I supposed to make a profit?"
Huang Fuda, who was supposed to go to the construction site, turned his car around and went home first.
He rummaged through the wardrobe for a long time, took out a short-sleeved shirt and sweatpants, put on the orange hooded jacket that Fang Chuan had left there, put on a baseball cap, covered himself up completely, took an umbrella, and hailed a taxi to the Municipal Public Security Bureau.
At first glance, Director Yang didn't even recognize him.
"Little boy, what brings you here?"
"Let's see when you're going to retire."
Huang Fuda was tapped on the head. Then he heard Director Yang say, "It's still early, don't even think about it."
Director Yang was busy and only spent a short time with him. The rest of the time, Huang Fuda was the only person in the office.
He wasn't bored at all. Fang Chuan would send him messages from time to time, telling him everything from the size of the reservoir to the fact that a team member had a piece of vegetable stuck in their tooth.
They waited until 9 p.m. before Director Yang finally returned, bringing with him the smell of braised beef noodles.
"Uncle Yang, are you so busy? Is something important happening lately?"
Don't ask questions you shouldn't ask.
"Then I'll take you back, and I'll make you some extra steamed buns while I'm at it. You can't always eat instant noodles, no matter how busy you are."
Director Yang looked him straight in the eye and said, "Kid, what brings you here?"
"It's nothing... I just want you to retire early so I can take you around."
Huang Fuda drove the car, and Director Yang sat in the passenger seat. Xianye wasn't a big city; by 9 p.m., the streets were already deserted, and with the heavy rain today, there wasn't a single car in sight for hundreds of meters.
Director Yang asked Huang Fuda a few questions about his work and urged him to settle down and start a family as soon as possible, to which Huang Fuda agreed.
"Uncle Yang, you should get your car windows tinted. We can't see anything when oncoming cars use their high beams."
Director Yang agreed.
As they were talking, the car came straight at them. Huang Fuda honked the horn frantically, but the car seemed not to hear him. He swerved to the right to avoid it, but it was too late.
With a loud crash, Huang Fuda's car was instantly overturned. He felt a sharp pain all over his body, his head was burning, and he lost consciousness.
When he woke up again, he was already in the hospital.
My head hurts, my arms hurt, and my legs hurt.
"Finally awake."
It was Uncle Yang's voice.
Huang Fuda looked in the direction of the sound and saw Yang Zhengping standing unharmed in front of his hospital bed.
He breathed a sigh of relief. Then the pain in his body intensified. He saw his left leg and left arm in casts and asked what had happened to the car.
"He was a pretty young man. He hadn't slept for two days and was driving while fatigued. He said he was drowsy and didn't notice."
"Is he outside?"
"They're at the traffic management brigade."
Huang Fuda's phone kept ringing. When Director Yang saw this, he handed the phone to Huang's right hand.
"This phone has rung so many times, why don't you answer it?" Director Yang straightened his collar and continued, "You get some rest first, I'll go check on the traffic management team."
After the person left, Huang Fuda answered the phone; Fang Chuan was on the other end.
Fang Chuan's voice sounded particularly anxious amidst the sound of rain, "Where have you been? Why haven't you replied to my messages or answered my calls! It's been four hours, do you know how worried I am!"
Huang Fuda was still a little dizzy, so he turned the volume down a bit. Afraid that Huang might impulsively run back, he made up a lie.
His voice was weak as he said, "My phone died, I didn't see the message."
As Fang Chuan listened to his voice and considered the current time, some inappropriate thoughts inexplicably came to mind, making him even more suspicious.
"I didn't find the power was out at 9 o'clock, nor at 10 o'clock, but I did find it at 1 a.m. Do you think I'm easy to fool? What have you been doing? You're lying to me again. You were lying to me yesterday at noon. Yesterday you said your clothes were soiled by the child, but I went to the front desk of Yundao across the street and asked. When you came back to change, your clothes weren't dirty at all! It's okay, you can lie a little bit. But you can't lie to me about everything! What have you been doing tonight? I advise you to tell me the truth."
Huang Fuda's brows furrowed. Just as he was about to speak, Fang Chuan on the other end said fiercely, "Hang up the phone and answer my video call. If you don't answer, I'll wait until I get back to find you in person."
The call was disconnected, and Fang Chuan immediately made a video call.
Huang Fuda answered the video call with a furrowed brow. The other end of the video was completely black, and Fang Chuan's face could only be vaguely seen.
Fang Chuan was stunned when he saw Huang Fuda in the video. His breathing gradually calmed down, and he asked carefully, "Are you in the hospital? What happened to you? Why is there gauze on your head?"
"I was hit."
"Where are you still injured...?"
"Legs, arms."
Fang Chuan's eyes instantly reddened, and he choked out, "I'm sorry, I was wrong, please don't be angry. But you, you shouldn't have lied to me. I'll go back to see you right now, which hospital are you in?"
Upon hearing that he was coming back, Huang Fuda frowned even more.
“The rain is even heavier up the mountain, and there might be mudslides. It’s not safe at night. What are you doing back here? And what if General Wu finds out?”
I'm worried about you.
"...Listen to me, I'm fine."
"It's not a big deal! If that bastard had hit you any harder, you'd be dead!"
Huang Fuda sighed and turned the volume down a little more.
"He's still alive, and it's just a fracture, not an amputation. Listen to me, don't run around." Her head was spinning from his noise. "I want to rest for a while, Fang Chuan, can we talk about it tomorrow?"
Fang Chuan readily agreed, then hung up the video call, grabbed his car keys, and drove down the mountain.
The road was difficult to travel due to the rain, and the mountain road was full of downhill slopes and bends. After narrowly avoiding several falling rocks, we finally arrived in the city.
He didn't know which hospital Huang Fuda was in, nor did he dare to ask. On his way to the emergency room of the second hospital, he regained his senses and realized this wouldn't do; it was too slow. So he called the traffic police directly to ask where Huang Fuda, who had been in a car accident that night, had been taken. After getting the exact information, he rushed to the hospital.
Gently push open the ward door, and there lies Mr. Huang on the hospital bed, his face as white as paper, an oxygen concentrator in his nose, blood on his short-sleeved shirt, and his chest covered in a jumble of wires.
He sat down on the stool by the bed, tears streaming down his face and onto the back of Mr. Huang's hand. A wave of fear washed over him.
He sat there blankly for who knows how long, his tears almost dried up, before Huang Fuda woke up, fluttering his eyelashes.
Huang Fuda looked at Fang Chuan, then raised his wet right hand and said in a hoarse voice, "I was wondering why there was always a big dog licking my hand in my dreams. Turns out it was a little dog crying."
She raised her hand to wipe away Fang Chuan's tears, "Didn't I tell you not to come? What time is it now?"
Fang Chuan glanced at his watch and said, "It's four o'clock." He looked at Huang Fuda's dry lips and asked, "Do you want some water?"
Huang Fuda shook his head and asked Fang Chuan to come closer. Looking at the bloodshot eyes of Huang Fuda, Huang Fuda felt a pang of sadness.
"Go wash your face. You're a grown man, why do you always cry when something happens?"
Fang Chuan obediently washed his face and then sat back down on Huang Fuda's bedside.
"Rest for a while, then go back up the mountain."
Fang Chuan hesitated for a long time before saying, "I don't want to keep hiding like this. If you like me even a little bit, I can call my mom right now."
He took Huang Fuda's hand, gazed at his boss with deep affection and care, and asked, "Do you like me? Even just a little bit."
Huang Fuda felt a burning sensation from his gaze, and his heart inexplicably ached. He turned his head away and said, "Fang Chuan, do you want to hear the truth or a lie?"
Fang Chuan looked at Huang Fuda's evasive gaze, pursed his lips hard, looked up at the sky, and forced back his tears.
The air was thick with his unease and resentment. After a long silence, Fang Chuan finally spoke up.
"You don't need to say anything more, I'll stay a little longer and then go up the mountain."
Huang Fuda raised his hand to touch his face and said, "Sleep for a while, I'll wake you up."
Fang Chuan couldn't sleep; how could he possibly sleep? He felt uncomfortable staying here, and he felt uncomfortable leaving. He didn't understand why his first experience of liking someone was so difficult. They had been acting like a normal couple for the past few days, but why did things always break down so easily?
He wanted to ask Huang Fuda where he went yesterday morning and why he changed his clothes, but he didn't dare to ask. He didn't dare to ask in the suite yesterday, and he didn't dare to ask in the hospital room now.
I can only console myself that at least the checkup showed no new marks and we didn't sleep together. Since that's the case, I'll just keep it a secret. I can't really push him too hard. It's already good enough that he's willing to play house with me. You can't expect him to fall for someone who makes those kinds of videos to threaten him.
But why can't I like myself? Why can't I like myself?
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