Chapter 99 How are you lately?
The mist in the bathtub covered the bathroom mirror with a thin layer of water droplets. The warm water that melted the bath salts was a little blue. Le gently stirred the water surface, and ripples appeared, just like the blue ice surface illuminated by the light today.
The two performances in Yokohama ended without any major incidents.
She slowly sank herself into the water, leaving only her head exposed and leaning against the edge of the bathtub, and took a long breath.
Having not yet fully recovered from yesterday's fatigue, Yuzuru Hanyu's physical condition wasn't as good as it had been the previous day, which worried Le. Fortunately, he only made a few minor mistakes and didn't fall or get hurt, which reassured her. Gazing at the shimmering blue water, the audience seats, reminiscent of a starry sky tonight, appeared before her eyes again.
Watching the blue bracelets light up one by one in the audience at the main console, and watching Yuzuru Hanyu waving his hands on the ice, almost crying, Le couldn't help but feel tears welling up in her eyes. At that moment, she suddenly understood why Yuzuru Hanyu loved that song so much.
【With everyone's support, I am the strongest! 】
He said this with a smile, but his fingers clasped in front of him revealed the uneasiness in his heart.
This guy, so nervous before his job change that he kept chewing on his fingers, must have finally gotten a reassuring answer at that moment. Le thought, stirring the water again. "I'm the strongest," a song she'd played countless times at home, was a complete brainwash. She even hummed it unconsciously as she emerged from the tub.
Eh? Why is the bath towel gone?
Yuzuru Hanyu sat in the living room, scrolling through Twitter on his iPad, his ears fixed on the sounds in the bathroom. The shower stopped, a splashing sound likely entering the tub, and a familiar song began to play...
And started singing...
He pursed his lips and angrily pushed the bath towel draped beside him under his elbow.
"Yuzuru, I seem to have forgotten to bring a bath towel, could you get it for me?"
The bathroom door opened a little, and Le stuck half of his head out. Seeing that the person sitting in the living room didn't move, he called his name again. Then he lazily got up from the sofa, holding the bath towel in his hand that should be in the bathroom in his memory.
"You took it out?" She glanced at the childish boy, snatched the towel from his hand, and closed the door. The door closed too quickly, and Yuzuru Hanyu, who had been preparing to complain outside, closed his mouth awkwardly and returned to the sofa to sulk.
When Le changed into pajamas and came out, he had already returned to the sofa. This time, his back was turned and he deliberately didn't look at her, which was particularly conspicuous.
"You were the one who took my towel as a prank, why are you still angry?" Le walked over and poked the back of that round, furry head with her finger. She pushed hard, but he didn't resist, just nodded along with the force, then stubbornly returned to his original position.
"Don't you have anything to tell me?" He puffed out his cheeks in a childish, sulking manner.
"I didn't mean to leave first. There really was something urgent happening at the dance troupe..." Le sat down next to him helplessly and poked his back with her finger.
That evening, by the time she rushed backstage from the main console, Yuzuru Hanyu had already been captured by the media. Amidst the throng of cameras and recorders, Le quietly stood behind the crowd, watching him struggle to hold back tears as he answered questions. He seemed to notice her between the flashes of light, his eyes clear as he glanced at her. She smiled and winked, assuring him that he could rest assured to be interviewed, and he immediately understood and looked away.
But when I looked again, Le was no longer there.
"Le-chan just said goodbye to us. She said that the dance troupe suddenly had something to talk to her about, so she rushed over. It seemed like they were having some kind of exchange with foreign artists..." Yuzuru Hanyu returned to the lounge, and teacher Mikiko, who was waiting for him with flowers, explained this to him.
What kind of communication would require calling her away so suddenly, and at this critical moment?
He was dissatisfied, but couldn't seem to find a legitimate reason to be unhappy, so he had to put on a decent smile and thank the staff one by one, packed up his things, and followed Hasegawa back to his empty home.
After washing and packing, he sat on the sofa and watched the video review that Hasegawa had filmed for him until he heard the sound of the door locking.
"I really didn't mean to do that. They notified me so suddenly. Or maybe I was so busy that I forgot and missed the information. This exchange is very important to my choreography work and I can't miss it... and your performance was so successful that I didn't miss a minute of it." Her hair wasn't dry yet, and Le poked his back with her fingers, not wanting to get him wet.
Just when she was at a loss in the face of this stubborn figure, Yuzuru Hanyu sighed heavily, turned around and opened his arms.
Le smiled and threw herself into his open arms.
"Congratulations on your successful performance, PD Hanyu." She finally had the chance to say the words she'd been preparing for so long, and she smiled brightly. Considering her still-dripping hair, she deliberately stiffened her neck, avoiding touching his shoulder.
But Yuzuru Hanyu didn't care at all. He tightened his embrace and buried his face in the crook of her neck. "Hmm." He couldn't help but frown as his palm caressed Le's back. Her already thin back seemed even thinner in his arms, and the same was true for her waist.
Suddenly I felt a little regretful that I was still angry with her.
Le has been incredibly busy lately, preparing for his ice show. But Director Suginohara, despite his multi-tasking, has never let anything slip, something he admires. How could Le, who is so meticulous in his work, forget such an important meeting?
"How is the dance troupe doing lately?" he asked.
The body in his arms stiffened imperceptibly for a moment, but quickly relaxed again.
"It's fine, the rehearsal went pretty smoothly. It's just that my piece is a bit stuck right now, and my brain isn't enough." She stood up from his arms and laughed at herself, not knowing that this made Yuzuru Hanyu even more worried.
"Tell me something." He raised his hand to smooth the wet hair from her forehead. Le nodded in agreement, looking particularly sincere. He said nothing more, got up and got a hair dryer. She sat down on the carpet, leaning against the sofa, waiting for him.
The hairdryer whirred, her long hair danced between Yuzuru Hanyu's fingertips, her knees bent, and she was texting on her phone. Judging by the background and the Chinese characters she typed, she was probably chatting with Guan Yue. They'd been so busy lately, and it seemed like Guan Yue hadn't appeared in their lives for a while.
"Yueyue asked if she could have a video call." She looked up at Yuzuru Hanyu and asked. The hair dryer was turned off sensibly, which meant she knew he agreed. While he was sorting out his clothes, she had already made a video call to Guan Yue.
Back in Beijing, Guan Yue was still nervously staring at the question she had sent in the chat box. If it were just for fun, she would have already played the video. But now with Yuzuru Hanyu around, even though she knew he was easygoing, it was hard to let go of her inherent fan filter. Every time she mentioned the video, she felt like a bad guy with ulterior motives.
The video invitation ringtone suddenly rang, startling her and almost throwing her phone away.
When the video was connected, the smiling face that had just appeared on the live screen appeared again, which scared her again. For no apparent reason, tears suddenly welled up in her eyes.
"Hello~" Yuzuru Hanyu said in Chinese in the video. After he finished speaking, he saw Guan Yue's tears and was frightened. He turned to Le for help in panic, "What's going on? She's crying."
"Yueyue, what's wrong with you?"
Seeing Le in the camera, she cried even harder. This made the two little faces on the other side frown together, scrambling to squeeze into the camera frame, frantically trying to comfort her.
"I was just so happy to see the live broadcast of the ice show, but it's a pity that I can't go there." Guan Yue finally took a deep breath and adjusted her mood, although her voice was still full of tears when she spoke.
Her personal translator dutifully conveyed her words to Yuzuru Hanyu, and soon, she received Hanyu's promise that there would definitely be an opportunity for her to come to the scene in the future.
The pleasantries were quickly exchanged, and the concern expressed through the screen always seemed so pale. As they chatted, Guan Yue felt that she was about to burst the bubble again, and she left a sentence, "I was so proud of you two," and hurriedly ended the video.
When Fang Li came home from overtime, he saw his fiancée holding a pack of tissues and crying with her nose red.
"What's wrong?" He quickly put down his bag, not even taking off his coat. He quickly walked over to Guan Yue, hugged her in his arms, and patted her back to comfort her. "Don't cry, what's wrong? What happened?"
"Yuzu, uh, and Lele..."
Guan Yue was already sobbing, and when Fang Li hugged her like that, she lost her breath and started hiccuping. Her words were unclear, but Fang Li still managed to catch her name. He sighed and gently patted Guan Yue's head.
"Have you been reading those idiotic comments online again? Hey, didn't we talk about this before? People like that are mentally unbalanced and need to vent online. You can't let them influence you. You know Xiaole very well. The Hanyu she chose definitely wouldn't be like what people say online, right?"
"I, of course I know... It's because I know that I feel bad for them!"
In today's video, Le's already small face seemed even thinner, and Yuzuru Hanyu, fresh from his ice performance, looked a bit tired. The more they enthusiastically told her about the fun things they'd been doing in preparation for the performance, the more her mind uncontrollably turned to all the comments she'd seen recently: about Hanyu, about Le, and about both of them.
"What I can see, they must see too. They're two people who work so hard and are so sincere, so why do those people want to slander them?" As she spoke, anger replaced sadness. She stopped crying and her speech became faster, but soon she sighed again, "But I've never been involved in the circle. I'm not an influential fan. I can't influence anyone, and I can't even help them explain."
"You underestimate them." Fang Li pinched Guan Yue's nose. "They must know what to listen to and what to block out. You just need to believe in them from the bottom of your heart, and believe that you are not the only one in the world who believes in them this way. When Xiaole needs you, just be her best listener, that's all."
Seeing Fang Li's worried expression, Guan Yue wiped the tears from her face, blew her nose hard with a tissue, and cleared her throat.
"Well, you're right. Thanks, dear."
Even so, she was still sad. She also understood that Fang Li's words were not wrong in principle. But she was still heartbroken. How strong a heart would it take to block out those unbearable speculations and slanders? She didn't dare to think about it. She even knew that on Le's side, the best audience was definitely not her.
Perhaps all we can do is pray for them.
"Fang Li, come with me to the Lama Temple tomorrow. I heard it's very effective, right?"
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