Chapter Ch21 - I Miss Xia Xia.
Translator: Reiyu, Editors: Pyrrhae, Celtic
Lin Feiran was immersed in playing the piano and seemed to have forgotten about the time. However, as the song neared its end, that full-body chill returned.
It’s here again… Lin Feiran shuddered and hurried to lock his gaze upon the piano keys. But the piano keys, which had been new and white like fresh snow just a moment ago, were now a stark blood red. Coagulating and blackening blood oozed along the piano and dripped to the ground; the drops shattering into blossoms on the stage floor like flowers of ill omen. The bloodstained keys felt like they were covered in a layer of ice. When Lin Feiran’s fingers touched the keys, the Yin energy given off by the black blood was so cold it froze them. Thankfully, he was at the last four bars.
Lin Feiran no longer dared to look. He shut his eyes as if losing himself in the music. Gritting his teeth, he clamped down on the fear that was boiling over in his heart and forced his fingers, frozen by the Yin energy, to move. He forcefully pounded out the final few fortissimo chords on the blood-red piano keys.
Having finished the performance, Lin Feiran didn’t linger on the piano bench. He hurried to get up, bracing himself before opening his eyes and bowing to the audience — half of which were ghosts.
As he walked off the stage, he caught sight of the upright piano from the corner of his eye. A male ghost stood there, the lower half of his body submerged in the piano with his transparent upper body protruding from the top. His body was slumped forward so his face could not be seen, and it appeared as though he was suspended after being left within an inch of his life. His long arms drooped down so his hands were sitting right on the piano keys.
And those two hands… Lin Feiran had only caught a glimpse of them and hadn’t been able to see them clearly, but where the ghost’s hands should have been were only two messy globs of black and red. The source of the blood should be these two unidentifiable globs that could no longer be termed hands.
Lin Feiran’s heart was trembling with fear and he didn’t dare to look longer. Amidst the clapping and the cheers, he walked swiftly backstage. That person who gave off a faint golden light was watching him. His smile was handsome and gentle, with the power to soothe hearts.
A thought that Lin Feiran couldn’t even discern slipped quickly through his heart.
Before, when he looked at Gu Kaifeng with his Yin-Yang eyes activated, he basically only saw Yang energy and didn’t register Gu Kaifeng’s face and expression. Just like how a person in a desert about to die of thirst would only care about the water in the cup and wouldn’t pay attention at all to the cup’s beauty. But…
Damn, what am I thinking about foolishly? Lin Feiran shook his head and threw himself into Gu Kaifeng’s arms, absorbing a great big gulp of Yang energy!
Gu Kaifeng hugged Lin Feiran’s narrow waist firmly and gritted out, “Wait.” As he finished speaking, he let go of Lin Feiran and walked onstage to announce the next performance.
Lin Feiran, now full of Yang energy, had confusion written all over his face: “……”
What do you want me to wait for?
This time around, Gu Kaifeng delivered his lines quicker than usual. He rapidly finished speaking, then strode back behind the curtain, picked up Lin Feiran who was watching him with wide, innocent eyes like a little hamster’s, and spun him around three times!
Lin Feiran was stunned and hadn’t reacted quickly enough to avoid being twirled around. “Ah? What are you doing?”
Once he was done spinning, Gu Kaifeng put Lin Feiran down and flicked the tip of Lin Feiran’s nose with one finger. He laughed, “The performance was a great success.”
Lin Feiran recovered and smiled, “Thank you.”
The air was filled with an atmosphere of floating pink bubbles that was almost visible to the naked eye. All the students who were near the pair backstage were looking at the two of them with complicated gazes. Only Lin Feiran was ignorant and slow to react. He was still too immersed in both the joy of having successfully completed his piano solo and the faint fear of having seen ghosts twice in close succession to have noticed anything.
By this time, the piano had been rolled off-stage. As several boys pushed the piano past Lin Feiran, he could not help but stare at it and think of the ghost he had just seen. Suddenly, his heart felt a little unwell.
A ghost who haunted a piano after death was very likely someone who loved the piano. But his hands had been mutilated to the point that the flesh was unrecognizable… Lin Feiran bit his lips as he watched the piano be pushed into the storage room.
The storage room door shut with a slam, and Lin Feiran retracted his gaze.
Normally, students who had finished performing would join their class in the audience. Gu Kaifeng pointed to where Second Year Class 4 was seated and said, “Our class is there. They’ve saved a seat for you. Are you going?”
“Not going.” Lin Feiran shook his head and practiced his Way of the Great Sticky Cake. “It’s more fun to stay backstage.”
Gu Kaifeng had completely expected this answer. His eyes were full of laughter as he agreed and pulled a chair over for Lin Feiran to sit on.
The Arts Festival concluded at five o’clock in the afternoon, and the self-study period was due to begin at six like usual. Lin Feiran and Gu Kaifeng changed back into their school uniforms, went to the cafeteria to eat dinner, and then made their way to the classroom. Lin Feiran had just sat down when Wang Zhuo scooted towards him with a mischievous smile, calling out, “Lin Feiran.”
Gu Kaifeng cut in and answered first, “What are you calling him for?”
Wang Zhuo replied, “There’s a girl in Class 3 with whom I’m on good terms. She asked me just now if I have Lin Feiran’s number.”
Gu Kaifeng interjected again, “Couldn’t you just say you didn’t and let that be the end of it?”
Lin Feiran: “……”
Lin Feiran was the concerned party, but he didn’t even get a chance to put a word in!
Wang Zhuo tsked, “What are you blathering on about there? Lin Feiran hasn’t even said anything yet.”
Lin Feiran, who had finally gotten a chance to speak, now asked, “Which girl from Class 3?”
Lin Feiran hadn’t really intended anything with this question. Since he was young, there had been no shortage of people who liked him, and he had never had the notion of dating anyone. But now that the subject had come up, he was curious and just wanted to know.
“It’s that girl who’s quite thin and pale with especially long hair…” Wang Zhuo hadn’t finished speaking when Gu Kaifeng suddenly stood up, a blank expression on his face, and walked past the empty seat in front of him to reach Wang Zhuo’s aisle. Picking up Wang Zhuo by the collar, he dragged him out of the classroom.
Ten seconds later, an off-pitch miserable shriek came from Wang Zhuo in the corridor: “Ah ah ah! Gu Kaifeng, damn you!”
Lin Feiran: “……”
A short time later, Wang Zhuo returned to the classroom looking like a young wife who had just been bullied and humiliated. He didn’t even give Lin Feiran another glance and instead walked directly back to his seat in the third last row and sat down. He angrily pointed at Gu Kaifeng and accused, “You’re vicious!”
Gu Kaifeng, for his part, leisurely sat back down in his own seat with composure.
Lin Feiran nudged him. “Why didn’t you let him talk?”
Gu Kaifeng said matter-of-factly, “Article seven of the school rules states that students of the opposite sex cannot be overly intimate in their interactions with each other. Without exception, violators of this rule will be subject to disciplinary action. I, your big brother, am watching out for you and am worried that you’ll mistakenly commit an offence.”
In other words, according to the school rules, it would be no problem for students of the same sex to interact, no matter how intimately!
“I wasn’t thinking about things like that. I was just asking.” On the topic of dating, Lin Feiran was a little embarrassed. He reached out with his hand to flick Gu Kaifeng’s hair and changed the subject, “You dare to talk about school rules? The length of your hair is against the rules.”
Gu Kaifeng chuckled and flicked Lin Feiran’s hair too. “Yours is longer than mine.”
Lin Feiran puffed up his cheeks and blew upwards, causing his bangs to flutter. “This Saturday when school lets out, I’m going to get my hair cut. The discipline master has been eyeing me for a few days. If I anger him, someday he might get an electric hair clipper, hold me down over the lectern, and shave my head.”
Gu Kaifeng’s gaze drifted over to the lectern. He was silent for a moment, then said in a low voice, “I want to hold you down over the lectern and … now.”
The words he said before “now” were pronounced carelessly and especially quickly, so Lin Feiran couldn’t make them out clearly. He probed, “What? What do you want to do to me?”
Gu Kaifeng’s laugh was terrible. “Shave your head. What did you hear?”
I heard wrong, definitely heard it wrong! Lin Feiran choked and shook his head. “Nothing. Saturday evening, do you want to come with me? Your hair needs to be cut too.”
Gu Kaifeng was happy to agree, “Right after school, let’s go get our hair cut. After the haircut, let’s eat dinner. And after dinner, we can hang out.”
“Good.” Lin Feiran nodded and started to try to come up with hairstyles that would allow him to both be handsome and not draw the discipline master’s eye.
The next two days were calm and passed very quickly. When school let out on Saturday evening, the two followed their plan from earlier and got their hair cut, ate dinner, went shopping, and played games at the arcade.
Lin Feiran pulled Gu Kaifeng to some basketball machines, each of them claiming their own, and competed in throwing basketballs. Though Lin Feiran’s sports aptitude was a little lower than Gu Kaifeng’s, he was accurate, and his eyes were sharp and his hands were agile. The balls landed in the net one after another, and over their multiple rounds he beat Gu Kaifeng every time. He felt especially satisfied!
“You’re good at landing baskets.” Gu Kaifeng used the back of his hand to wipe at the sweat beading on his forehead, and gave Lin Feiran a great thumbs-up.
Gu Kaifeng was getting more and more cute! Lin Feiran was elated and said modestly, “I’m all right. In first year of high school, I got up early every day to play basketball.”
It wasn’t that he liked playing basketball. He had heard that playing basketball would help him grow taller, so he kept at it for a year. In the end, he hadn’t grown much, but he got quite good at landing baskets.
Gu Kaifeng instantly made a direct jab to his sore point: “Then why haven’t you grown?”
Lin Feiran: “……”
Gu Kaifeng was, indeed, still not cute!
“But your height is just right for hugging.” Saying that, Gu Kaifeng suddenly took a step towards Lin Feiran, stretched out his hands, and pulled Lin Feiran into his arms for a hug. Lin Feiran was 10 cm shorter than Gu Kaifeng and the top of his head only reached the middle of the bridge of Gu Kaifeng’s nose. Gu Kaifeng lifted his head slightly, and, with a suggestive gesture, sniffed Lin Feiran’s newly cut hair. The soft hair tickled as it brushed the tip of Gu Kaifeng’s nose, and the sensation tickled his heart, too.
“Is your zodiac sign a dog?” Lin Feiran froze and pushed Gu Kaifeng away. With his eyes lowered, he touched the place where Gu Kaifeng had sniffed, not daring to look up at him. He hurriedly stuffed another two coins into Gu Kaifeng’s basketball machine and called, “Come, let’s play another round.” Following these words, Lin Feiran added, “After this round, let’s go home, alright? I miss Xia Xia.” He thought he said it naturally, but in reality it was the exact opposite of natural.
“All right.” Gu Kaifeng laughed softly and continued, “My parents are at home today too, so you can meet them.”
This weekend, I have also successfully stuck! Little sticky cake Lin Feiran’s heart had been full of unease since Saturday morning and was finally put back into his stomach. He showed a radiant smile and said with haste, “Good, good! But will Aunt and Uncle scold you for bringing a classmate home for the weekend?”
“They won’t.” The corners of Gu Kaifeng’s lips twitched upwards and he said ambiguously, “They’ll be more than happy.”