A day of leisure
Xu Zhiyuan's computer desktop was clean and tidy, just like him. The folder Jinnan had glanced at lay quietly beside his work files. Jinnan double-clicked and typed, revealing a photo of a folder and an encrypted, locked compressed file.
The photos were taken inside and outside the Liancheng Orphanage, and were taken in the past six months. The latest one was taken last month, more than ten days ago.
The orphanage was much older than Jinnan remembered. It was as if the dark gray world in his memory had become cloudy, with foggy gray and white covering everything.
Jinnan recalled that Xu Zhiyuan had also inquired about the Liancheng Orphanage during their conversation at Youyi's house. What did he want to do? Fund it? Wouldn't it be better to just donate money or a building, like Liancheng No. 1 Middle School did?
Jin Nan couldn't figure it out, so he copied all the information to his phone before the countdown ended. Claire hurriedly packed up and pretended nothing had happened.
By the time they got back to their hotel, Xu Zhiyuan had a fever again that night and was now in bed after taking medicine. Lu Yiqing said they hadn't ordered dinner yet. The porridge had already been bought and had cooled, so Jinnan went to the kitchen to heat it up and add some sugar.
Xu Zhiyuan was indeed in bed, half-covered, not asleep. He had his phone in one hand and a pad of paper in the other. When he heard the noise, he looked up, his face flushed so red that it looked unfamiliar to Jinnan.
"Why isn't the medicine working?" Jin Nan put the porridge on the bedside and reached out to touch it. Xu Zhiyuan subconsciously dodged.
Jinnan insisted on touching it.
With his palms pressed against Jin Nan's, Xu Zhiyuan lowered his head and leaned forward. He wanted to laugh, but his body was weak, and he bent a little, then fell down as if he had no strength left. His breath hit Jin Nan's face, and Jin Nan could feel the temperature.
It was so hot! Jinnan had never felt such a hot forehead before. He panicked and immediately wanted to get out of bed to find medicine and a thermometer, but Xu Zhiyuan grabbed his wrist and held him in his arms.
Jin Nan was so familiar with his body temperature that he could feel any abnormality from his palm. How could he not know that Xu Zhiyuan was feeling unwell? If the medicine didn't work, would Jin Nan's work?
He can't become Xu Zhiyuan's white blood cell.
Nestled in Xu Zhiyuan's arms, Jinnan could hear his heartbeat through the fabric, faster and heavier than ever. Xu Zhiyuan rested his face against his shoulder. Illness made one particularly dependent, or perhaps he simply craves the coolness.
Compared to Jinnan, who gets scolded by doctors every time he has a physical examination, Xu Zhiyuan has always had a good physique and rarely gets sick throughout the year.
The most memorable experience for Jinnan over the years was when Xu Zhiyuan was studying for a master's degree abroad. One winter, the flu was particularly severe. In order to prevent Jinnan from seeing him blowing his nose, Xu Zhiyuan even stopped one of Jinnan's weekly "online classes".
Xu Zhiyuan didn't want him to see his embarrassed side, and Jinnan could empathize with him. He used to think that those shiny and exquisite outer appearances were all Xu Zhiyuan had, but today, his opinion has changed.
He just realized that Xu Zhiyuan was a jealous, vindictive, and petty person, of course, only towards him.
"I really don't like that Tobias." Jin Nan hugged Xu Zhiyuan and rocked him gently, saying coquettishly, "He quarreled with me when you were not around. You don't even know how he bullied me today."
"Did he quarrel with you?" Xu Zhiyuan spoke with a nasal tone.
"I can't argue with him, and I don't understand him." Jin Nan chuckled, "But he's quite nice. He helps me out when I have problems."
"I'll help you next time." Xu Zhiyuan said.
The body in Xu Zhiyuan's arms gradually warmed up, and the coldness brought by the long drive dissipated, leaving behind a warm, melting softness. Jin Nan was always soft when facing him, even though he was such a hard person.
Illness always makes people think too much. Xu Zhiyuan hugged Jinnan, thinking of the message Geng Guangsong sent in the evening, and his chest felt tight.
How long can he hold her? How many times can he hold her? What will be their ending? Will they see each other less, or...
Next time.
The two hearts are very close, but each has its own thoughts. One is thinking about how to please and comfort, while the other is thinking about how to get out of it gracefully.
Can't bear to let go, a million words of reluctance are suppressed in my heart, making me feel feverish and sick. At this moment, Xu Zhiyuan's mood is almost filled with hatred, hatred for his fate and hatred for himself.
Should he hold her longer? Would Jinnan push him away? Or would he let go first?
"We had foie gras tonight. The restaurant Claire found doesn't do takeout, otherwise I would have brought you some. Tomorrow... no, your throat won't be better tomorrow. Wait until we have some vacation time and fly back, and I'll take you there."
"Um."
"Back in Liancheng, whenever I caught a cold and my throat got hoarse, the old lady from Shaxian downstairs would give me a bowl of porridge. I'd mix it with sugar and eat it, and it would make me feel better. I brought some for you too, so can you try a little bit?"
"good."
"Zhiyuan, your beard has sprouted. It's so prickly."
"Shave tomorrow."
"Zhiyuan."
"……Um."
Xu Zhiyuan could sense Jin Nan's bewilderment. He wanted to comfort Xu Zhiyuan, to alleviate his pain, but the pain was mostly on his own. Jin Nan rarely opened his heart to others like this; he didn't know how to be considerate and could only clumsily and instinctively hug.
The pajamas on his shoulders were wet. Xu Zhiyuan felt his tears and slowly let go of his hand.
"Why are you crying?" Xu Zhiyuan said, "I'm not even crying."
"I hurt you, I should have called you first. How could I let you look for me so late at night?"
Tears were hotter than a person with a fever, burning into the skin and melting into the bones and blood. Each drop was brewed by love, and he could not drink until his thirst was quenched. The tears fell from Jinnan's eyes, and became Xu Zhiyuan's pain.
He really wanted to say it was okay, but the words became a threat when they reached his lips.
"Yes, it's you who harmed me," Xu Zhiyuan said. "So, can you remember this? If you stay out all night and lose contact with me again, I won't just have a fever.
"Do you still dare?"
Jinnan shook his head. Xu Zhiyuan had clearly let him go, but he kept his head down for a long time until he wiped his face clean before raising it.
His hair was messy, his nose and eyes were red, and there were drops of water on his eyelashes that had not been wiped clean, or perhaps they had just flowed out and were about to fall. He stared at Xu Zhiyuan intently, and just when Xu Zhiyuan thought he was going to continue to act coquettishly, Jinnan stood up and smeared his face with water.
"I'll go get you some water and medicine," Jin Nan said. "If your fever doesn't go away by the middle of the night, I'll go find a doctor. If you're not going to be well tomorrow, I'll write my name backwards."
Xu Zhiyuan tried to laugh, but the sound died in a cough. Jinnan, growing even more anxious, slipped on one of Xu Zhiyuan's slippers and returned with his left foot, medicine box in one hand and warm water in the other, his eyes fixed on the porridge on the bedside table.
"Can we eat together?" Jinnan asked.
Xu Zhiyuan: ...
After a night of hard work, Xu Zhiyuan finally woke up the next day with his fever gone. Perhaps due to a good night's sleep, Xu Zhiyuan felt refreshed, but Jin Nan, who was standing beside him, frowned slightly, as if having a nightmare.
Because Xu Zhiyuan turned over a little bit, Jinnan opened his eyes. His first reaction was to climb up with his arms and touch Xu Zhiyuan's forehead.
After touching him, he lost his strength and fell on Xu Zhiyuan's shoulder.
"I was so scared, I almost called Nanjing."
Xu Zhiyuan hugged him and patted him, but didn't dare to kiss him for fear of getting sick. He looked at the time and it was half past six in the morning.
The sky brightened.
Jinnan lay there, still wanting to sleep, and Xu Zhiyuan naturally let him. Most of the difficult matters requiring their involvement had been resolved yesterday. Attending the activities today and tomorrow would be ideal, but not essential. Due to Xu Zhiyuan's unforeseen situation, Claire even postponed her return flight by a day.
In other words, it would not be a problem even if they just stayed in the hotel and rested all day.
Jinnan was exhausted last night. He stayed by Xu Zhiyuan's side, changing his handkerchief, wiping his hands, and feeding him water, as if he were too sick to move. He stayed until Xu Zhiyuan's fever subsided, then he got into bed. As soon as he touched the pillow, he passed out.
He was still sleepy at the moment, but he didn't know what he was thinking. He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again and asked nervously, "What time is it?!"
"Six thirty." Xu Zhiyuan said, "What's wrong?"
"We'll meet at ten in the morning. We'll leave at nine, have breakfast at eight, and get up at seven-thirty to shave. Um... you should take another shower. You worked up a sweat last night. Then get up at seven," Jinnan muttered, burying his face in the pillow. "Wake me up at seven."
Xu Zhiyuan didn't call out, and when Jinnan opened his eyes again, it was already a quarter past ten.
Jinnan jumped up from the bed and frantically searched for clothes, but couldn't find his own clothes. He pulled Xu Zhiyuan's coat over and put it on himself, then floated into the bathroom like a wandering soul and washed up at the speed of light.
After he finished cleaning up, he didn't forget to come out and take care of the "patient." Xu Zhiyuan was curled up in his quilt, looking at documents on his phone, smiling gently.
Jinnan acted like a parent: "Rest well in the hotel today. Ask Yiqing to buy you whatever you want to eat. I'll shave your beard for you when I get back tonight. Don't do it yourself!"
"My hand is not broken, I can do it myself," said Xu Zhiyuan.
"I know," Jin Nan lowered his voice guiltily, "I really want to see it. Just consider it as accommodating me, okay?"
His occasional idiocy always makes Xu Zhiyuan's heart flutter. For a magic called "beloved", Jin Nan is willing to sacrifice himself and plead in a low voice.
The only difference between Xu Zhiyuan and him in this matter is that Xu Zhiyuan would not ask, he would usually just do it directly.
He didn't say anything, didn't expose the truth. Ten minutes later, Jin Nan was stopped by Lu Yiqing's phone call. He was still holding the breakfast Lu Yiqing had bought for him, and his expression was a little confused.
Xu Zhiyuan had already stood up and was halfway through changing when a long-sleeved T-shirt got caught at his elbow, stopping him. Nan Suyuan hadn't shaved yet.
Jinnan suddenly realized that Xu Zhiyuan had arranged everything before he woke up: Claire who left early, the project manager who arrived at Paname temporarily, and Lu Yiqing who prepared the car, handed him the keys and breakfast and disappeared.
There was even another set of casual clothes laid out on the sofa, picked out by Xu Zhiyuan for him. No suit today, no work talk, medical appointments in advance, flights later, this was a day of leisure reserved just for him.
Xu Zhiyuan, the whole day, belonged to him completely.
Jinnan could hear his heart beating wildly and watched Xu Zhiyuan put on his clothes intently. He took out his aftershave from the box and before putting the knife to Xu Zhiyuan's chin, he put the tip of his nose against Xu Zhiyuan's back and sniffed it.
In such a short time, Xu Zhiyuan actually got up and took a bath.
"Would you like to know more about Xiao Jin's shaving service?"
Xu Zhiyuan: "Is your craftsmanship good?"
"I guarantee you'll be satisfied." Jin Nan grinned, "Do you want to go out with me today?"
"We've made plans for the museum, which you haven't been to, and the restaurant you mentioned yesterday. I asked Xiao Lu to help reserve a table. Do you want to climb the Eiffel Tower? The night view there is beautiful. Take some pictures and show them off to your circle of young masters."
Jinnan covered his mouth.
"Stop talking."
"Um?"
"Don't talk about the Young Master's circle or anything like that."
Xu Zhiyuan chuckled: "Okay."
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