CH 31

Suo Yang was always the one the others changed shifts to, and everyone liked to ask him for help when they were unable to fly because they know that he was single, free and easy to talk to.

In fact, everyone remembered how good he was, so when he was looking for someone to change shifts, everyone raised their hands and said they could do it.

Suo Yang was a very dedicated person. He never thought that one day he would change shifts for a date, but it was a bit lovely to have something to look forward to in life because the morning he opened his eyes to get ready for his date, he was in a good mood that his whole body felt refreshed.

It was a beautiful day at the end of September.

Suo Yang opened the curtains and saw the light blue sky at a glance, empty and clean, high and vast.

He stood in front of the window and stretched, then turned his head to glance at the small alarm clock on the table.

At a quarter past six in the morning, he opened the window.

Suo Yang opened the window to ventilate and then went into the bathroom by himself.

At nine o’clock, he was going to Shen Huiming’s 24-hour date. From nine o’clock today to nine o’clock tomorrow morning, and who knows what would happen between them in those 24 hours.

Suo Yang had never expected romance, but Shen Huiming had brought him a lot of romance in an invisible way.

For example, at this moment, as he stood under the shower, he was thinking about someone, which was also a kind of romance.

When Suo Yang walked out of the bathroom and returned to the room, he turned on the stereo which automatically played the song he had listened to before going to bed the night before—’Berlin’, which Shen Huiming had recommended to him.

He walked to the closet, opened the sliding door, looked at the rows of clothes hanging inside, and thought for a long time but didn’t know which one to wear.

He sat on the opposite bed and crossed his legs in a daze until the song ended, and the single started again. On a whim, he took a photo of his wardrobe with his mobile phone and sent it to Shen Huiming.

Suo Yang asked Shen Huiming: Which one do you want me to wear?

When he received the message, Shen Huiming was sitting on the balcony, drinking coffee while working on his work.

He had been woken up by Jiang Tongyan’s phone call at four o’clock and had been forced to get up to have a video conference, after which he had some remaining work to finish.

He put down his coffee cup, clicked on the picture, and smiled.

In fact, all of Suo Yang’s clothes were in the same style. When he changed out of his uniform, he mostly wore dark shirts. Shen Huiming remembered that the light shirt Suo Yang wore that night in Moscow was not in it, and it must have been sent to the laundry.

He liked to see Suo Yang wearing light-coloured clothes. The light-coloured clothes made the man more clear and bright.

Shen Huiming didn’t directly help him decide which one to wear but said: Going on a date is all about being spontaneous and choosing what you like best.

Suo Yang chuckled as he looked at the message, got off the bed, and quickly changed his clothes.

He wore a light grey pinstriped casual shirt, and a white T-shirt inside.

Everything was ready, but it was still very early.

Suo Yang was lying on his bed listening to a song, feeling so relaxed for the first time in his life.

===

At exactly nine o’clock, Suo Yang went downstairs, but Shen Huiming was already waiting downstairs.

Suo Yang asked, “When did you come? Why didn’t you call me?”

Shen Huiming pulled open the door of the passenger seat for him, “The appointment was at nine o’clock, I should have waited peacefully if I had come early.”

He arrived fifteen minutes early. After all, it was morning rush hour, so he was afraid of being late due to traffic jams.

When it comes to a date, punctuality was important.

Shen Huiming didn’t want to be late for the first date. Because in this case, there would probably be no second time.

Perhaps it was a tacit understanding, or perhaps Shen Huiming spied something from the photos that Suo Yang had sent earlier, the two of them were surprisingly dressed to complement each other a bit today, both in shirts and T-shirts and Shen Huiming, who was usually calm and steady, also wore jeans for a rare occasion.

Both of them were tall and long-legged handsome guys, with good figures and good looks. When they stood there, all the passers-by would take a second look.

When Suo Yang got into the car and fastened his seat belt, he asked Shen Huiming, “Where is the first stop?”

“Breakfast.” Shen Huiming started the car and drove Suo Yang out of the neighbourhood.

Before this date started, Suo Yang had made some assumptions.

He thought that a person like Shen Huiming would arrange an exquisite and expensive itinerary, but what he didn’t expect was that the breakfast shop Shen Huiming took him to was just a small shop outside an old neighbourhood, and even the breakfast shop did not even have its own name. There was only a plaque with red letters on a white background that read—Breakfast Fast Food.

Suo Yang was somewhat surprised.

When the two stood at the door, Shen Huiming explained, “Although the shop looks small and old, the hygiene conditions are very good, so don’t worry about eating.”

Suo Yang smiled, “I don’t mind about that.”

He followed Shen Huiming in, “I just don’t quite understand what’s the need to drive so far to this one specifically.”

Because it tastes so good?

“Because I grew up eating breakfast here.” Shen Huiming led him to a seat by the window and pulled out a chair for him to sit in. “You sit first, I’ll go and order.”

Suo Yang nodded, sat obediently and waited for Shen Huiming.

“By the way,” Shen Huiming asked him, “Is there anything you should avoid?”

“No.” Suo Yang said, “I like everything that tastes good.”

Shen Huiming smiled, “Good. At least we are the same in this regard.”

After nine o’clock, the peak dining period of the breakfast restaurant had passed, and all the office workers had already left for their workplaces. Even if there were still people queuing up to order, they were all for takeaways and there were not many people dining in. So Suo Yang who sat by the window could directly see Shen Huiming standing in line.

Among the customers in the row, Shen Huiming was the tallest one.

He stood out a lot.

Suo Yang looked at his back, watched him wait patiently, and watched him turn around to look at himself after answering a phone call.

The two men looked at each other and Suo Yang smiled at him, to which the other man responded with a smile that was almost like exchanging feelings across the air.

When Shen Huiming came back, he was holding the plate in both hands. Suo Yang hurriedly got up and wanted to help him up, but after he gave it some thought, he felt it was unnecessary, so he stood there waiting for the other party to come over, and said, “Thanks for your hard work.”

Shen Huiming ordered two plates of small buns with different fillings, a bowl of millet congee for each person, and a few small dishes.

“It’s a very simple meal.” Shen Huiming said, “But this is the most important memory I have growing up.”

He told Suo Yang, “At that time, after setting a date with you I thought I had to bring you here to experience it, but the food actually tasted really good.”

It had been a long time since Suo Yang had been out for breakfast. Because of irregular work and rest after work, breakfast was basically what was served in the airport’s canteen, which was actually quite hearty, but it really didn’t feel the same sitting here.

“You live around here?”

“I lived here when I was a kid,” Shen Huiming said, “and only moved away in my third year of high school.”

Suo Yang put a small steamed stuffed bun into his bowl and recalled the nearby neighbourhood that he just saw.

Because Shen Huiming was doing well in his career, Suo Yang subconsciously thought that he was a rich second generation and had the help of his family, but now it seemed that he had been narrow-minded.

“When I was young, my parents were busy at work. Both of them worked in the hospital, and they often had no time to take care of me. I basically ate three meals a day outside.”

Suo Yang listened quietly as Shen Huiming told him about himself, this feeling of leisurely and comfortable talking about the past made him feel comfortable.

“Back then, my family used to settle my breakfast bill with the owner of this shop on a monthly basis,” Shen Huiming recalled the incident when he was a child that he still found interesting now, “I can get up early enough to eat here before going to school, but you know how students are. I don’t even want to get up and often just packed it up and took them to the classroom to eat. The buns smell good, and I get caught every time I sneak a bun in the morning study.”

Suo Yang laughed, “I didn’t expect you to do this kind of thing when you were in school.”

“You too?” Shen Huiming said, “It’s not like that, I thought you were one of those extraordinarily well-behaved honours students.”

“When I was in the third year of high school, I was caught by my homeroom teacher sneaking hot and spicy food with my classmates in the evening study. Suo Yang smiled, “So let’s say we are no better than the other.”

Their student days were already far away, more than ten years ago in fact, but as they exchanged embarrassing and cute moments of their adolescence, they both felt that the person in front of them had become more vivid and real.

The good breakfast not only filled Suo Yang’s stomach but also made him feel comfortable. He should have felt tired after flying for more than ten hours the day before, but during his time with Shen Huiming, not only he didn’t feel tired but also rarely relaxed.

He recalled a theory he had read a long time ago, which said that certain types of emotions actually had a similar effect to pills, which could stimulate certain nerves and activate certain human cells.

This so-called ‘certain type of emotions’ was called ‘love’.

For the time being, Suo Yang was not sure that his love for Shen Huiming was confirmed, but at least he had a good impression of this person, and because he had a good impression, he was willing to continue to spend time with him.

It was past ten o’clock when they came out of the breakfast shop.

Time seemed to fly by, just one breakfast and an hour or so had already passed.

“Where is the next stop?”

“Tsk,” Shen Huiming stretched at the door of the breakfast shop, and then said to him with a smile in his eyes, “Can we not be so formal? You’re asking a question like you’re trying to clear a game. “

“Then how should I ask?”

Shen Huiming thought for a while and said, “You should say this.”

He cleared his throat and tried to imitate Suo Yang, “Huiming, we have eaten to our heart’s content and the weather is so nice now, shall we go for a walk?”

Although the imitation failed, he still made Suo Yang laugh.

“Even though I said you’re mine for 24 hours today, the truth is, all of your time is not always at my disposal.” Shen Huiming walked slowly and leisurely forward with Suo Yang, “Going one stop at a time to complete a task, that’s not called a date. A date should be relaxed, spontaneous, a sudden whim when you are on it and it’s a combination of everything you have to do. You’ve only given me 24 hours, your time is mine, but I’m yours, and I can accompany you to do whatever you want. Of course, I will also balance my selfishness in this process and let you accompany me to do something I want to do.”

The two of them walked side by side along the pavement, aimlessly moving forward.

Suo Yang was moved by Shen Huiming’s words.

Your time is mine, but I’m yours.

He had to admit that Shen Huiming was an expert, and he couldn’t resist such a person.

“Okay.” Suo Yang said, “Then you can walk with me on the street and bask in the sun.”

Sometimes, a casual walk on the street was also enjoyable.

Hai Zi1‘s famous saying, ‘You have come to earth to see the sun and to walk in the streets with your beloved.’ completely turned an aimless walk under the sun into a romanticism of love.

Neither Shen Huiming nor Suo Yang was people who had extra time for walking. With their fast-paced lives and irregular work schedules, they didn’t even have enough time to rest. Rather than saying that they seemed to be sitting on a high-speed train, it was better to say they were the train itself, and the so-called “passengers” in the train were the burdens they carried, burdens that made them unable and afraid to stop.

In the end, this was a common problem faced by every adult who had to work hard to make ends meet in this society.

Therefore, on the rare occasion that he completely dropped everything and went out on a date, Shen Huiming made some arrangements with his assistant in advance and repeatedly instructed him to wait until he returned to the office tomorrow, and not to call him easily during this period.

And Suo Yang was finally willing to hold off flying for the sake of someone, to come back to the ground from high altitude and feel the sunshine in the hustle and bustle of the city rather than over it.

This was a breakthrough for both of them.

The old city districts always had more personality than the new ones.

The old man, who had come out early in the morning to walk the birds in the park and practice tai chi, walked back with his bird cage, greeting the shopkeeper who was cleaning the front of his shop on the roadside as he went.

The sleepy-eyed young man led the dog and took the pocket money to buy egg-filled pancakes2 at the moving breakfast stand that was about to close the stall.

There were also children who are late for school, crying and running out from the gate of the neighbourhood, followed by their grandmas be it from the father’s side or mother’s side chasing after them with school bags.

How long has it been since they saw a scene like this?

They used to see it every day, but it was hard to notice it anymore.

Suo Yang looked at what happened around him with a smile and suddenly wondered what he and Shen Huiming looked like to others.

Two not bad-looking men with a good temperament walking leisurely along the road. Where did they come from? Where were they coming from and where were they going?

As they walked along the road, Shen Huiming pointed out the neighbourhood across the road to Suo Yang, “I lived there when I was a kid.”

Suo Yang looked over and heard Shen Huiming say, “This building is older than me, I remember it was built in the eighties, almost forty years ago, I remember it was said to be demolished a few years ago, but since this area is a school district, there are too many things involved and it has never been implemented.”

Shen Huiming asked him suddenly, “Are you a local3?”

“Well,” Suo Yang said, “I studied here in college and stayed here to work after graduation.”

Shen Huiming could actually understand why Suo Yang works so hard. There were a lot of foreigners in their city, and it was not easy to stay and take root here. Many people had to go back home or settle in other cities where life was not so stressful after working for a few years or a dozen years. It was rare for someone like Suo Yang who could buy a small house with his own ability at such a young age.

Suo Yang knew what Shen Huiming was thinking, and said to him, “Many people may think that we make a lot of money in this line of work.”

Shen Huiming looked at him.

In fact, Shen Huiming had always thought so, perhaps because of the special nature of the flight attendant industry—flying in the blue sky, always gives people a sense of mystery and endless reverie.

Just like the ‘private life’ the two talked about before, many people thought that the private life of the flight attendant was chaotic, but did those people really understand them?

“But the truth is, it’s not that easy to make money.” Suo Yang said, “The amount of money we make each month depends on the number of hours we fly and where we fly, and we really aren’t a team of high-flying models who live off our looks and bodies going through the motions every day.”

He laughed, “There is a certain amount of danger in what we do.”

Of course Shen Huiming understood what Suo Yang said, but he didn’t interrupt the other party and listened quietly.

“Cabin service is actually not easy, and communicating with people is a very laborious task.” When Suo Yang said this, he always smiled and spoke in a relaxed tone, but Shen Huiming knew that he was talking about something very stressful in a relaxed tone as much as possible, “But compared to those unforeseen emergencies, this is already very easy to deal with.”

“Unforeseen emergencies…” Shen Huiming frowned slightly.

Shen Huiming thought about this when he encountered the bad weather in Moscow last time. In fact, he suddenly understood the reason for Zhou Mo’s career change, and maybe it was also due to this factor.

“You’ve been on planes a lot, you must have experienced the turbulence,” Suo Yang said, “Every time the broadcast was aired, the passengers will feel very uncomfortable sitting there. Of course we will take some measures, but often there’s no way to just sit down and fasten your seat belt in the first place.”

They walked into a park and took a slow stroll along the river.

“When we flew to Rio de Janeiro a while ago, there was a sudden turbulence in the middle of the flight. At that time, were doing cabin service handing out meal boxes and one girl was hit in the back before the meal cart could stop because the turbulence was so violent.” Suo Yang said softly, “This kind of thing, in fact, happens every day.”

When most people thought of flight attendants, they think of the ‘glamour’ and ‘good pay’ they had, but rarely do they think of the problems they had to face.

Of course, all professions and trades had their own share of difficulties, but they only get so much in exchange for their hard work. Not to mention, many times they didn’t get as much as what was rumoured by the outsiders.

Suo Yang smiled, “Sorry, I complained to you.”

“What are you sorry for?” Shen Huiming said, “I like to hear it, and I want to know more about your life.”

Suo Yang looked at him, “What do you want to know? You can ask me.”

“No,” Shen Huiming was unexpectedly showing a tsundere4 side, “I’m going to wait for you to reveal it to me little by little.”

Suo Yang laughed out loud, “Fine, then you can wait.”

The two walked around the park and coincidentally reached the place where they rented the boat.

Shen Huiming said, “Do you want to row a boat?”

Suo Yang looked at the sparkling water surface, this season, this temperature, and this time, boating couldn’t be more suitable.

There were not many tourists in this park, it was still early, and there were only a few scattered boats on the water.

“Okay.” Suo Yang said, “But, can I choose the pedal boat?”

Shen Huiming was not quite concerned with the shape of the boat, but he was very curious why Suo Yang had to choose a pedal boat.

“The others…are scary.”

Shen Huiming didn’t expect Suo Yang to give such an answer. Suo Yang was so cute that Shen Huiming laughed out loud immediately.

“It turns out that you also have something to be afraid of.”

“Of course, I’m human too.” Suo Yang said with a smile, “I’m afraid of water.”

When he heard what Suo Yang said, Shen Huiming waved his hand, “Forget it then, let’s go do something else.”

He didn’t want his suggestion to bring any pressure on Suo Yang.

Suo Yang suddenly grabbed Shen Huiming’s wrist and said firmly, “No, I want to experience it, maybe because of this, I can overcome my fear of water.”

Suo Yang learned to swim when he was in elementary school, but he choked on the water on the first day, and since then he had been afraid of water. After that, even when the school organized everyone to go to the park on Children’s Day, he didn’t participate in the ‘swing the oar’ with the other students.

For so many years, he always had a sense of fear for rivers and lakes.

He didn’t like it. He didn’t like that he had a weakness.

In fact, he disliked exposing his weaknesses to others, but perhaps because Shen Huiming made him feel reliable, he was even willing to take risks with him around.

Shen Huiming looked at him, suddenly grabbed Suo Yang’s hand holding his wrist, squeezed it hard, and then let go.

“Don’t worry, I’m here.”

With a single word, Suo Yang felt relieved.

He was not a person who liked to rely on others, but it felt really good to have someone he could trust.

It was even, somewhat touching.

Shen Huiming and Suo Yang went to rent a boat, and Suo Yang smiled and pointed to the little yellow duck’s pedal boat, “Is it childish?”

“It’s cute, that’s all.”

After they paid the deposit and asked about the fee standard, they put on their life jackets and then followed the staff to the shore.

Shen Huiming went up first, sat down, and waited for Suo Yang to come up.

As Suo Yang stood there and raised his feet, the boat in front of him was shaking slightly on the water’s surface. His heartbeat suddenly accelerated, and he didn’t dare to look at the water’s surface.

As he tensed and hesitated, Shen Huiming stretched out his hand.

“Suo Yang.” Shen Huiming looked at him and said, “It’s alright, come on.”

Suo Yang raised his head and looked at Shen Huiming, and the moment the other party extended his hand to him, it was as if the world was silent.

Everything was just a fleeting glimpse. Only the hand extended towards him and the person looking at him were real.

Suo Yang stretched out his hand and held it.

Shen Huiming pulled him hard and rose slightly, protecting Suo Yang as he took him aboard.

The two held hands all the time, and they didn’t let go until Suo Yang sat down.

The boat swayed from side to side due to their movements, the swaying range was not large, but it was enough to make Suo Yang flustered.

He held Shen Huiming’s hand tightly, and tried to look calm and collected.

Shen Huiming turned around and briefly exchanged words with the staff, then turned to him and said, “Are you okay?”

Suo Yang nodded.

“Keep your feet on the pedals.” Shen Huiming was as patient and gentle as if teaching a child to learn to walk.

Suo Yang obediently lifted his foot and put it on the pedal, and then heard Shen Huiming say, Hold my hand tightly if you’re afraid, I’ll count to three, two, one, and we’ll press the pedal hard together, and prepare to sail.”

“Okay.” Suo Yang held Shen Huiming with one hand and grabbed the handrail beside him with the other hand.

“Three, two, one.”

The ‘Little Yellow Duck’ sailed and cut through the calm water, as it carried the two of them towards the centre of the lake.

Suo Yang’s heart was beating fast. He didn’t know if it was because of nervousness or because of the hand he was holding.

Suo Yang could probably understand the reason why he was afraid of water—floating, helpless, not in control of his body, and even his breath could be taken away at any moment.

He didn’t like this sense of uncertainty, and the feeling of his fate spiralling out of control made him feel panicked.

It was already a breakthrough when he reached the shore. He thought that he would be too nervous to speak when he got on the boat, but to his surprise, everything was much more relaxed than he had imagined.

“I learnt to walk in this park,” Shen Huiming said while stepping on the pedals to Suo Yang’s rhythm, “I also learnt to ride a bicycle here.”

He pointed to the road they had come from, “It’s over there, on that road.”

Suo Yang looked in the direction of his finger, knowing that it was impossible, but it was as if he saw the child Shen Huiming walking there step by step with his parents, and the adolescent Shen Huiming speeding past with his classmates on bicycles.

He missed Shen Huiming of that era.

Lovely, childish, youthful and soaring.

Suo Yang suddenly felt a little regretful, if they could have met earlier, wouldn’t they have had a chance…

Suo Yang put away these unrealistic fantasies.

He smiled and said, “Are you bringing me here to reminisce over the years?”

Shen Huiming also smiled, “Oops, you found out.”

He did.

He brought Suo Yang to see the place where he grew up and let Suo Yang know that he really wanted the other party to come and see his world.

Since Suo Yang had no intention of opening the door for him yet, he had no choice but to take this step first.

“I want to show you my favourite place,” Shen Huiming said, “I have always said that there is no word ‘best’ in life, every moment is brand new, every moment is the best, every moment is the most worth cherishing and remembering. But the truth is, people are biased.”

Shen Huiming stepped on the pedal, and the boat swayed and took them farther and farther away from the shore.

He said, “My favourite time should be before the age of seventeen. I can’t say that it was a carefree time because there was always something to cause headaches, such as forgetting to wear a red scarf when I went to school or having a parents’ meeting when I didn’t do well in an exam.”

As he listened, Suo Yang slowly relaxed and sat beside Shen Huiming with a light smile.

The two chatted while they roamed the lake. The little snippets that Shen Huiming narrated seemed to fill the gap between the two of them for so many years.

Shen Huiming’s thirty years.

Suo Yang’s twenty-seven years.

The two non-overlapping worlds were pulled in front of Suo Yang by Shen Huiming through storytelling.

And their hands were held together from beginning to end.

After the lake tour was over, the two returned to the shore.

Shen Huiming let Suo Yang go ashore first, and himself guarded behind.

This time, although Suo Yang was still a little nervous standing on the swaying boat, he did not feel as dizzy as when he arrived, because someone was holding his hand all the time, and not only that, he was also protecting him from behind.

When he came back to the ground from the boat, he really knew what it meant to have ‘his feet on the ground’.

Suo Yang breathed a long sigh of relief, and Shen Huiming asked with a smile, “How is it? Do you feel alive now?”

Suo Yang rubbed between his brows, “It’s better than I imagined.”

“Then do you dare to board the boat when you are alone?”

Suo Yang looked at him, thought for a while, and replied, “Maybe it won’t work. Maybe it won’t work if someone else is around.”

This sentence was a pleasant surprise to Shen Huiming, he suppressed his laughter, and asked Suo Yang as calmly as possible, “So, I’m the only one who can?”

Suo Yang smiled, didn’t say anything, and turned around to go elsewhere.

The autumn wind swept by, and a fallen leaf fell on Suo Yang’s shoulder.

Shen Huiming quickly followed him and lifted his hand to pick up the leaf on his shoulder, holding it in his hand and playing with it.

“I’m taking it back and making a specimen.”

Suo Yang looked at him suspiciously.

“It’s got your autumn on it.”

===

It was already noon when they came out of the park, and the two were tired from walking and playing. When they got back to the car, Shen Huiming handed Suo Yang a bottle of water.

When Suo Yang took it and thanked him, Shen Huiming was a little exasperated, “When will you stop being so polite to me?”

Suo Yang took a sip of the water and said as he screwed on the cap, “I’m used to it.”

“Alright, take your time.” Shen Huiming glanced at the time. It was still early, and it was not suitable for eating or watching movies. He raised his hand to pick at his hair and said, “Do you mind accompanying me to get a haircut?”

“No problem.”

Shen Huiming’s hair should really be cut. He was busy a while ago and went to the hospital after he finished his work, and after he came out of the hospital, he chased Suo Yang to Berlin.

Before they set off, Shen Huiming called his hair stylist and asked him if it was convenient for him to go there. After he received the approval, he drove Suo Yang there.

The place where Shen Huiming cut his hair was not far from his company. When he passed by, he still thought that maybe he could take Suo Yang to his company on the way.

He found out that he was a villain indeed, and having lured Suo Yang to his side, he couldn’t wait to flaunt him around and let everyone see him.

But he didn’t tell Suo Yang about this plan in advance, for fear that Suo Yang would feel embarrassed.

The two of them parked the car and went to get the haircut first.

When they entered, Shen Hui Ming’s hair stylist was already waiting at the door, and as soon as he saw him, he smiled, “What’s wrong with your hair? Are you going to change careers to be an actor, and play a tramp?”

Suo Yang followed behind Shen Huiming and looked over after hearing the sound.

The hair stylist was a young man, very white and thin, not very tall, it was already autumn, but the temperature inside was nice, he was still wearing short sleeves and had a flower arm tattooed on one arm.

Shen Huiming responded with a smile, “Mocking me as soon as I get here.”

After talking to the other party, he immediately turned to look back at Suo Yang, making sure that the other party was following him.

The hairstylist noticed this man just now, and they stared at him for a long time before they came in.

“Friend?” The hairstylist leaned against the bar to look at them.

“Yes,” Shen Huiming smiled at Suo Yang, and said to the hair stylist, “He came with me.”

The hairdresser tilted his head and looked at Suo Yang, then smiled softly, straightened up, turned around and walked in with light steps, “Come on, I’m waiting for you specially.”

Shen Huiming and Suo Yang walked side by side behind the hairstylist, “No need to queue today, we should be able to finish the cut soon.”

Suo Yang smiled, “It’s okay, there’s no rush.”

In this barber shop, each hairstylist had their own independent workroom, which had no door and was spacious, with a workbench in front and a waiting sofa at the back.

After the hair stylist took them there, he asked his assistant to wash Shen Huiming’s hair first, then pointed to the sofa behind and said to Suo Yang, “Handsome guy, you can sit there.”

Suo Yang politely thanked him, then sat down by the side.

As Shen Huiming went to wash his hair, the hairstylist glanced at Suo Yang, turned around and got him a glass of water.

“Thank you.” Suo Yang smiled at him.

The hairstylist leaned on the back of the chair and looked at him with a smile, “Are you dating Ming ge?”

Suo Yang was very calm. He held the paper cup in both hands, and looked up at the other party with a smile, “Just friends.”

The hairstylist curled his lips and smiled, “Oh, just friends for the time being, and hard to say about it in the future.”

Suo Yang smiled and said nothing.

“It’s alright, you guys are well-matched.”

Suo Yang listened to his tone of voice and could probably guess what he was thinking.

“Handsome, what do you do for a living?”

“What?”

“It’s nothing, just curious.” The hairstylist said, “I see that you have an unusual temperament. What’s the word for it…”

The hairstylist tapped his forehead vigorously, but couldn’t remember, turned his head and shouted outside, “Andy! What is the word you use to describe your idol?”

“Gentle as jade!” The man called Andy was nowhere to be found, but his voice overpowered the music in the shop, “Baby! Are you going to be in the pit5?”

“Into the pit my ass.” The hairstylist muttered in a low voice, then turned to Suo Yang and said, “That’s the word, gentle as jade, looks like a cultured person.”

Suo Yang was amused by him, but he just smiled and didn’t say much, let alone tell the other party his profession.

The hairstylist saw that he was not willing to talk, and he didn’t know whether it was Suo Yang’s personality, or that Suo Yang still looked down on him and didn’t want to talk to him, so he felt bored, so he stopped talking.

He turned around, looked in the mirror, and subconsciously compared himself in the mirror with the person sitting behind him.

Suo Yang suddenly raised his eyes and just met his gaze. The hairstylist didn’t dodge and smiled at him.

Shen Huiming came back from washing his hair, and as soon as he came in, he looked at Suo Yang who was sitting there.

Suo Yang smiled at him, put down the water glass, and got up to take the phone and car keys that Shen Huiming handed him.

“It almost fell out just now when I was lying there washing my hair.” Shen Huiming said.

“You should have let me hold it for you before you went.” With Shen Huiming’s things in his hand, Suo Yang moved to the side and watched Shen Huiming go over and sit in front of the worktable.

Instead of going back to the sofa to sit down, he stood and watched.

The hairstylist was neat and skilled, and he didn’t talk too much when cutting Shen Huiming’s hair, which was really good.

Suo Yang stood there looking at Shen Huiming. The other man’s eyes were closed and his eyelashes were covered with a little bit of hair that had been cut, making him want to go over and help him blow it out.

The waiting time was longer than the two of them expected. Suo Yang could tell that in the end, they were just trimming some insignificant parts. The hairdresser seemed anxious to cut and repair them one by one.

That hand holding the scissors was thin and white, and they were very dexterous. He carefully styled Shen Huiming’s hair, obviously delaying time on purpose.

Shen Huiming naturally found out, and asked, “Suo Yang, what time is it?”

When he asked Suo Yang the time, he was actually tactfully urging the hairstylist.

Suo Yang glanced at the phone and found that it had been cut for almost an hour.

However, only Shen Huiming was in a hurry, while Suo Yang was really not in a hurry. He stood there a bit lost in thought, his thoughts fell on the hairstylist.

The hairstylist understood what Shen Huiming meant, “What’s the hurry? If you don’t get a good cut, you’re ruining my reputation.”

Shen Huiming smiled, “Can we not be in a hurry, both of our time was very precious today.”

The reason why he asked Suo Yang to come and cut his hair with him was that he thought that this matter was quite personal, and only those who were close to him would accompany him to have a haircut.

However, he didn’t expect it to be so slow.

The hairstylist pouted again, “What for? A date?”

Shen Huiming smiled and said, “Yes, can’t you see it?”

Suo Yang laughed softly, and when he raised his eyes, he found that the hairstylist was looking at him.

“I can see it now.” The hairstylist stopped talking and announced after a few minutes that the cut was done.

Although the hairstylist seemed to not really be in a good mood, the cut was pretty good.

Shen Huiming went to the cashier to swipe his card, while Suo Yang walked slowly behind.

“I’m envious of you,” the hairstylist said beside Suo Yang, “I told you. He just won’t look at me.”

Suo Yang turned to look at him.

“I make a lot of money a month,” the hair stylist muttered, “but it’s not the same. No matter how much I earn, I’m not at the same level as him.”

Suo Yang listened to his words, was silent for a few seconds, and said softly, “Don’t say that, you just haven’t met the right person for you.”

“Huh?” The hairdresser didn’t expect Suo Yang to comfort himself.

“Thank you for your hard work today,” Suo Yang said with a smile, “He looks a lot more refreshed.”

The hairstylist stared at Suo Yang and then smiled too.

“It’s okay,” said the hair stylist, “Next time you come to see me, I’ll give you a 20% discount.”

After swiping the card, Shen Huiming came to look for Suo Yang, holding a red immortal flower bear in his hand. It was not big, it was packed in a transparent box and tied with a black ribbon6.

He conveniently handed the little bear to Suo Yang.

“A top-up gift.” Shen Huiming said, “It looks cute.”

Suo Yang looked at the little bear in his hand and leaned closer to smell it through the package.

“Can you smell the fragrance?” Shen Huiming asked with a smile.

“It seems to be okay.” Suo Yang handed the little bear in front of him, and Shen Huiming was really cooperative, so he leaned over to sniff it.

The hairstylist standing on the side pouted and said, “Alright, you guys should go now. Not only do I have no one to date, but I also have to continue working, please let me live!”