BIAC CH 6

Chapter 6: That’s Right! I’m a Freak, a Pervert, a Sissy

Tang He sat in his car, watching Du Jianyou’s retreating figure with a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. He found this man incredibly amusing—already thirty-one, yet he came off like someone who’d just stepped into the adult world, still naive and unguarded. Every emotion was written plainly in his eyes, completely different from the cunning old foxes Tang He usually dealt with. But what puzzled him was this: hadn’t Du Jianyou been working in the business world too? Then how could his eyes still remain so clear and transparent, without the slightest trace of wariness? How could his heart feel so genuine, so free of pretense?

Thinking about how Du Jianyou said he’d like to eat with him again, Tang He genuinely felt happy. A smile bloomed on his face and reached his eyes. With his current status and position, he had dinner invitations lined up until the end of next year—finding someone to dine with wasn’t the hard part. But finding the right person to share a meal with? That was rare. Sharing a table with someone you didn’t vibe with, even if the food was Michelin three-star, would still taste like chewing wax.

But with Du Jianyou, it was different. Even though they’d only just become friends, being with him felt easy and natural. Tang He thought back to the prejudice and petty behavior he’d displayed after the “Moonlight Drunken Night” incident. Compared to Du Jianyou’s openness and sincerity, he now felt truly sorry. Especially after tonight’s dinner—it wasn’t brought up again by either of them, but Tang He suddenly realized that Du Jianyou had only rushed off that day to cover up the awkwardness of the situation. After all, two unfamiliar men waking up in the same room, on the same bed—it’s hardly a normal scenario. Of course, one’s first instinct would be to flee.

And yet he, Tang He, had been so petty, stewing in frustration this whole time. In the end, the one who really didn’t understand the situation… was him.

He should have understood that awkward moment better than Du Jianyou. After all, it was Du Jianyou who got drunk and passed out, and it was Tang He, fully conscious, who had been left shaken, unsure what had really happened. And the one who acted impulsively—uh, who kissed someone in a drunken haze—was also him, Tang He. Thinking of that chaotic kiss, he couldn’t help but shift uncomfortably in his seat. It was as if his lower body had a memory of its own and was starting to stir.

“What the hell—what are you doing? Calm the hell down. Haven’t you caused enough trouble these past few months? I gave you a woman and you didn’t want her. Now you’re showing off again? Shameless, absolutely shameless.”

Trying to salute someone just because they called you “gege”? How utterly shameless could one be?

Still, Tang He was in a great mood tonight. This happiness came from finally resolving the knot in his heart after all these months, and from getting to know that person all over again. That person even called him “Ge,” didn’t he? Of course, others had called him “Ge” before—but it had always been out of respect for his age or position. Not like Du Jianyou. That soft, syrupy “Ge” wasn’t just about age or courtesy. It was about getting closer to him, being affectionate with him.

And he liked that feeling.

He liked the way Du Jianyou clung to him sweetly and intimately.

Tang He continued to bask in the joy of meeting a new friend, completely unaware of where that joy truly came from. He didn’t even register the true meaning behind Du Jianyou’s last words: “I really like you.”

At this moment, he was just purely enjoying the beginning of a new friendship.

As for everything else… what else could there possibly be?

Meanwhile, Du Jianyou, who had hurried into the building, dashed straight to the elevator. He swiped his keycard to activate the floor sensor and pressed the button for the 18th floor. That’s when his knees finally gave out. Luckily, he was alone in the elevator. Leaning against the wall, he nearly collapsed, burying his burning face into his hands. Even his ears felt like they were about to smoke.

“What the hell did I just say? Have I completely lost my mind? I actually told Tang the Shark, who I’ve only met three times, ‘I really like you.’ Who gave me the right to like him?”

I… am truly insane.

Ding! The 18th floor. In the building where Du Jianyou lived, each floor had only one unit. So stepping out of the elevator was practically like arriving home. Though the elevator strictly controlled access to designated floors, Du Jianyou had added an extra layer of security: a personal password lock on his door. The code was his birthday.

Today, as he keyed in the code to unlock the door, he stopped and tilted his head, staring at the keypad for a moment. Then, he reset the password to: 1212.

As he stepped inside, he quickly sorted through his emotions.

He knew exactly what kind of person he was. And yet, he was still confused.

From a young age, he had always known he was different from other boys. At the all-boys school, he didn’t speak coarsely or run around drenched in sweat. Rather than playing sports under the scorching sun and ending up reeking with sweat, he preferred sitting quietly in a classroom, reading or drawing. He was thoughtful, intelligent, and polite.

But he had no friends.

In those dark, awkward teenage years, someone as delicate and sensitive as him never had a place among the boys. No one wanted to be friends with him.

He slumped down from the edge of the sofa to the carpet, hugging his head as unpleasant memories flashed through his mind one by one.

In his first year of high school, Du Jianyou was a silent presence. He was even thinner and paler back then, always alone. He barely spoke—because whenever he did, someone would mockingly imitate him. Even walking down the hall, people would exaggerate his movements and sway their hips behind his back.

He wasn’t even like that. But he couldn’t stop them. Speaking up would only bring more ridicule.

That one cloudy afternoon, the air heavy with impending rain, Du Jianyou had been on his way to the bathroom during a break. He always went to the restrooms farther from the main building—they were quieter and cleaner. But unexpectedly, a few older boys from the senior class who always picked on him were hiding in there smoking. The moment Du Jianyou realized someone was inside, he turned to leave—but they wouldn’t let him.

They blocked the doorway, shoved him back in, and surrounded him with mocking words.

The ringleader smirked:

“Hey there, junior. Why’re you turning around the moment you see us? Didn’t you come to use the bathroom? Go ahead, take a leak.”

“I don’t need to anymore,” Du Jianyou said. “Class is about to start. I want to go back.”

The ringleader leaned in with a sly grin:

“Oh, no no. Holding it in is bad for your health. Or are you just too shy to pee in front of us?”

The one with glasses sneered, “Don’t be shy! We’re all guys here, what are you so shy about?”

The chubby one laughed, “We’re guys, but he’s not. Isn’t he more like a girl?” He even struck a mocking orchid hand pose.

Du Jianyou: “……”

Everyone burst out laughing.

The ringleader feigned confusion. “Really? He’s a girl? How can there be a girl in an all-boys school? Don’t joke about stuff like that. I better check thoroughly just to be sure.”

Du Jianyou asked in terror, “What are you going to do?” His voice shot up several pitches in fear.

Glasses Guy smirked, “Nothing much, just want to do a little check. See whether you’re a junior brother or a junior sister.” He reached out toward Du Jianyou as he spoke, joking.

Du Jianyou dodged, but someone else blocked him and shoved him back. The class bell had already rung, but he still couldn’t get away. He panicked, wondering if anyone would realize he hadn’t returned to class and come looking for him—though the chances were slim.

Surrounded by three or four people, he was shoved around like a ball. His steps faltered and he stumbled. One of them already grabbed the waistband of his pants and yanked it downward as a prank. Du Jianyou’s eyes were red with desperation. “No, stop it. Let me go—it’s already class time. Please, let me go back.”

The chubby one grinned, “Don’t be so shy! Come on, let us inspect you. Let’s find out what’s really going on with you.” Another wave of raucous laughter erupted.

Du Jianyou was outnumbered and helpless. Honestly, even one-on-one, he wouldn’t have been able to fight them off. He could feel someone almost pulling his pants down. In a panic, he crouched down too, and with his balance thrown off, he ended up falling to the floor.

At that moment, the ringleader lunged forward, grabbed Du Jianyou by the hair, and forced him to tilt his head upward so that his face was directly in front of the other’s crotch. Du Jianyou’s eyes widened in shock, and he looked up at him.

The ringleader smirked, raising an eyebrow, and thrust his hips forward twice in a lewd gesture, almost hitting Du Jianyou in the face. Du Jianyou jerked his neck back, trying to put some distance between them, his eyes red with tears, nearly sobbing.

“You’re disgusting!” he choked out. “You’re all perverts!”

The group burst into even louder laughter. Someone mimicked his tone mockingly, “Pervert… pervert… Do you even know? You’re the pervert here. Freak. Sissy. You’re just like a woman who likes men, aren’t you? Have you ever been ridden? Want to give it a try?”

They were just a bunch of high school seniors, still ignorant and immature. After watching a few explicit videos, they thought they could play the part of thugs. Their mouths were foul, spewing whatever came to mind without thinking. What had started out as a joke had quickly spiraled out of control.

Du Jianyou froze, his body tense, both hands clutching the waistband of his pants tightly. He squeezed his eyes shut in despair. It was the first time he’d ever been subjected to such humiliation. His entire body trembled with rage, unable to even catch his breath.

Amidst the group’s jeering laughter, a loud bang suddenly echoed through the restroom. The little thugs all jumped in surprise—even Du Jianyou opened his eyes to see what had happened.

The door of the innermost toilet stall had been slammed open, and out walked a figure. He strode toward them—not in a rush, but clearly annoyed—as he went over to the sink, turned on the tap, and began washing his hands.

“Can’t even take a shit in peace. So damn noisy.”

By this point, the ringleader had let go of Du Jianyou’s hair. His expression was somewhat awkward as he called out to the newcomer:

“Anzi!”

Anzi. An Zicheng. A second-year student.

Du Jianyou had heard of him—he was a well-known figure on campus, ranked in the top five of his grade and a member of the school’s basketball team. The type of student people referred to as the legendary “model student” who excelled in both academics and conduct.

But for some reason, this group of punks seemed a little intimidated by him.

Du Jianyou didn’t know the full story, but the ringleader did. Back when An Zicheng had first entered the school, the ringleader once tried to pick on him. Why? No reason, really. Just like how they were bullying Du Jianyou now—he probably thought An Zicheng looked clean, delicate, and easy to mess with.

What he didn’t know at the time was that An Zicheng’s father was a karate coach. An Zicheng had started learning martial arts from his dad at age four. More than a decade of training wasn’t for nothing.

That day, An Zicheng had taken on six guys all by himself—and beat them down in a matter of seconds.

The ringleader refused to back down. He even pulled in his own older cousin, who also practiced karate, hoping he could help get revenge. But when he explained the situation, his cousin ended up beating him instead.

Turned out, An Zicheng’s father was the very same karate coach that his cousin was studying under. Since the cousin joined the dojo later than An Zicheng, he even had to call him senior brother.

The ringleader was dragged along with his cousin to personally apologize. Ever since then, whenever he saw An Zicheng, he went out of his way to avoid him.

An Zicheng finally lifted his gaze toward the group. He flicked the water off his hands, pulled a white handkerchief from his pocket, and carefully dried them before folding it neatly and putting it away.

“Class has started. Shouldn’t you all be getting back?”

His voice held no particular emotion.

“Y-yeah, we were just about to go,” someone stammered.

The group scattered in a flurry, bumping into each other in their rush to leave.

Du Jianyou, still sitting on the floor, stared in shock.

“And you? Why are you still sitting there? Don’t you have class too?”

An Zicheng frowned down at him.

Du Jianyou slowly got to his feet, tidied up his rumpled uniform, and whispered to the floor,

“Thank you.”

Then he turned to leave the restroom.

“Wait a sec,” An Zicheng called out.

“There was one thing they said that wasn’t wrong—”

Du Jianyou instantly tensed up again. Was he here to humiliate him too?

Just as he had begun to let his guard down, his emotions surged up again, and he couldn’t hold back the tears.

He turned and yelled at An Zicheng, completely losing control:

“Yeah! I’m a freak! A pervert! A sissy! Is that what you wanted to hear? Are you satisfied now?!”

Panting heavily, he stared at An Zicheng with eyes full of anger.

An Zicheng looked genuinely startled by his outburst.

“I meant,” he replied, “that holding in your pee is bad for your health.”

“Didn’t you come here to use the toilet? You haven’t gone yet, right? Shouldn’t you finish up before heading back to class?”

As he processed An Zicheng’s explanation, Du Jianyou slowly calmed down.

Still panting, his face flushed red with embarrassment.

An Zicheng shook his head and muttered softly, “Fiery little guy.”

Then he walked past Du Jianyou and exited the restroom, leaving him standing there, stunned.

Du Jianyou felt embarrassed about lashing out just now and couldn’t bring himself to walk out immediately.

He was usually the type to endure whatever he could, but this time he had been pushed too far—his anger had exploded and he had lashed out like a cornered animal.

He hadn’t meant to hurt someone who actually meant well.

Standing there dazed for a while, he eventually thought he should make use of the quiet moment and actually go to the bathroom. After finishing up, he lingered for a bit longer before finally leaving the restroom.

As soon as he stepped out, Du Jianyou was surprised to find that An Zicheng hadn’t left. With his back to the restroom, An Zicheng was leaning one arm against the railing, gazing out in deep focus at the basketball court.

Du Jianyou took a deep breath, walked up to him, and murmured softly: “I’m sorry.”

An Zicheng didn’t reply, still watching the players dribbling the basketball.

Du Jianyou wasn’t surprised by the silence—he was used to being ignored. He turned and began to walk away, but just then, a voice called out from behind him:

“Wanna learn karate?”

Du Jianyou turned back to see An Zicheng now facing him with a smile.

For the first time since entering this high school, he felt what it was like to have someone show him genuine kindness.

(To be continued…)