HTC 15

Xie Huai felt uneasy when he heard Jiang Xu say that he had liked him since the first year of middle school.

In the first year of middle school…four years ago, Jiang Xu had liked him for four full years.

What if he didn’t like Jiang Xu in return? Xie Huai didn’t dare to think about this possibility.

Jiang Xu also knew that this love might not be reciprocated, but he was still so kind to him and still liked him.

No wonder, Jiang Xu clearly remembered the wish he made in the first year of high school that he had almost forgotten. Jiang Xu remembered that he liked drinking lemon tea and that specific brand of dolphin-shaped gummies he liked.

It turned out that Jiang Xu liked him, and everything had fallen into place.

However, this realization left Xie Huai feeling miserable. He would have preferred it if Jiang Xu had only started liking him recently.

Xie Huai lowered his head, biting his lip tightly, and his shoulders trembled slightly.

Jiang Xu reached out and gently cupped Xie Huai’s face. He noticed that Xie Huai’s eyes were turning red, and tears were streaming down his cheeks.

Jiang Xu’s heart tightened. He wiped away Xie Huai’s tears with his thumb and whispered, “Why are you crying?”

Xie Huai gritted his teeth and shook his head without saying anything.

Seeing Xie Huai’s appearance, Jiang Xu felt extremely distressed. He lowered his head slightly and placed a kiss on Xie Huai’s right eye.

“Huaihuai, stop crying.” Jiang Xu hugged Xie Huai and patted his back gently.

After a while, Xie Huai finally began to calm down.

“Don’t call me Huaihuai.” Xie Huai said suddenly.

His voice still had a hint of hoarseness from just crying.

“What should I call you then?” Jiang Xu asked.

Xie Huai closed his eyes and leaned on Jiang Xu’s shoulder, and said lazily: “As long as you don’t call me Huaihuai, everything else is fine.”

At the end, he added: “Huaihuai is our son.”

Jiang Xu suddenly smiled. He kissed Xie Huai’s earlobe and called out, “Baby.”

Then he saw a faint blush spread across Xie Huai’s earlobe.

“Jiang Xu, what if I don’t like you? What will you do?” Xie Huai couldn’t help feeling distressed when he thought about this possibility, and he couldn’t care less about being embarrassed by Jiang Xu’s “baby.”

He felt sorry for Jiang Xu.

When Jiang Xu heard this, he knew why Xie Huai cried just now.

It turned out that he felt sorry for him.

“Xie Huai, don’t think about this possibility,” Jiang Xu said, lifting Xie Huai’s chin so he could look into his eyes, “You like me, right? So, don’t dwell on such thoughts, okay?”

Xie Huai thought to himself, Jiang Xu was right. Why should he entertain such thoughts? He liked Jiang Xu, and Jiang Xu liked him in return. That was enough.

He smiled at Jiang Xu and said, “Okay.”

Xie Huai was silent for a while and said, “Jiang Xu, what did you want to tell me tonight?”

Actually, Xie Huai had already guessed, but he wanted to hear it from Jiang Xu himself, and he didn’t want to wait until the evening; he wanted it now.

Xiao Huaihuai, who had approached quietly, was now lying at Jiang Xu’s feet, its ears perked up as if it wanted to hear what Jiang Xu had to say.

The afterglow disappeared into the horizon. Jiang Xu’s eyes darkened for a moment. He curled his lips into a gentle smile and said, “I don’t want the award. Instead, I want you. Will you give yourself to me?”

The last trace of uneasiness in Xie Huai’s heart vanished instantly.

He didn’t hesitate and blurted out, “Okay.”

Perhaps because he was too excited, Xie Huai’s left leg went weak when he stood up, and he almost knelt on the ground.

Fortunately, Jiang Xu supported him in time.

“Does it hurt again?” Jiang Xu said and squatted down to check.

Xie Huai grabbed Jiang Xu and said, “No, it’s probably just because I sat for too long, and my leg got a bit weak.”

After saying this, Xie Huai frowned, feeling that something was wrong.

He was going to have a checkup tomorrow anyway, so Xie Huai didn’t dwell on it further.

Jiang Xu cooked the meal in the evening. Before eating, Xie Huai’s mother called to ask if he had taken his vitamins.

Xie Huai thought for a moment and realized that he hadn’t taken them for a few weeks.

He honestly confessed this to Ms. Zhao Li, who advised him to take an extra one when he had a chance.

As they were ending the call, Ms. Zhao Li suddenly asked Xie Huai: “Huaihuai, tell your mom, are you with classmate Xiao Jiang now?”

Xie Huai almost said ‘Holy shit’ out of his mouth. He was shocked. Ms. Zhao Li was probably a modern-day Sherlock Holmes. It had only been a week since they last saw him, and she had already figured it out?

Xie Huai’s silence for a while made Ms. Zhao Li even more confident in her assumption. Their family had an open and accepting view of same-sex relationships, not only due to their higher education but also because of their experiences in business and interactions with various people, including those from the community. So, they held progressive views on this matter.

Zhao Li said earnestly: “Huaihuai, both you and Xiao Jiang are still growing and maturing. I hope that you can manage this relationship on your own. Also, if I remember correctly, Xiao Jiang has good grades, right?”

Xie Huai leaned against the balcony railing, glanced at where Jiang Xu was sitting, and then nodded, replying, “Yes, he’s ranked first in our grade.”

Ms. Zhao Li fell silent for a moment and then said, “Therefore, I hope you won’t negatively affect Xiao Jiang’s studies.”

Xie Huai: “?”

Xie Huai’s face instantly darkened. He had prepared a whole speech to assure his mother that he wouldn’t let Jiang Xu go, no matter what. However,
Ms. Zhao Li’s words caught him off guard.

“I’m affecting his studies?!” Xie Huai found it incredulous. “Mom, how could you say that about me?”

Ms. Zhao Li asked calmly, “What’s your current ranking?”

Xie Huai thought carefully for a few seconds and then replied, “Two hundred and fifth.”

Ms. Zhao Li asked: “So is there something wrong with what I said?”

Xie Huai felt somewhat aggrieved but chose not to voice it: “…No.”

Ms. Zhao Li finally smiled: “Alright, Mom won’t tease you anymore. As long as you’re happy, Dad and I won’t object.”

Xie Huai couldn’t help but think, what about Jiang Xu’s parents?

“Oh, by the way Huaihuai, I just remembered, I had the speakerphone on during our call. We are having a gathering with old friends tonight. After chatting for a while, we found out that they are Xiao Jiang’s parents.”

Xie Huai suddenly raised his head: “…What? So, they heard what we were talking about just now?”

“They said that Xiao Jiang has liked you for a long time.”

Xie Huai was momentarily stunned. He couldn’t believe what he had just heard.

He couldn’t get his thoughts together even during dinner.

Seeing that Xie Huai was acting strangely, Jiang Xu poured him a glass of warm water and placed it in front of him. He asked, “What’s wrong?”

Xie Huai’s nose felt sore. After a long while, he said, “My mother knows about the two of us.”

Jiang Xu’s hand, which was reaching for his chopsticks, paused for a second. Then, he calmly resumed picking up his chopsticks and said, “Did she scold you?”

Xie Huai looked at Jiang Xu and shook his head, saying, “No, she didn’t. She doesn’t object.”

He remembered the words his mother had said earlier. Then he added, “My mom had dinner with Uncle Jiang and Aunt Jiang. She found out from Aunt Jiang that you’ve liked me for a long time.”

Jiang Xu instantly knew who the “Uncle Jiang and Aunt Jiang” Xie Huai was talking about, but he didn’t expect that his parents actually knew Xie Huai’s parents.

He lowered his head and smiled: “Well, I’ve liked you for a long time, don’t you know?”

Xie Huai asked: “Then will we separate in the future?”

He didn’t want to be separated from Jiang Xu.

Jiang Xu did not hesitate. He looked at Xie Huai and said, “No, I promise you, we will never be separated.”

“I also promise you that we will not separate.”

Xie Huai thought that he and Jiang Xu would definitely go on well.

Even though they were still young, isn’t the age of seventeen or eighteen the age when there is no turning back? He trusted Jiang Xu, and Jiang Xu trusted him. For Xie Huai, a heart full of passion was already enough.

—

In the early morning, a ray of sunlight streamed into the room from the window, filling the bedroom with brightness. Xie Huai had forgotten when he fell asleep last night. He only remembered watching a movie halfway through, feeling sleepy, and then it seemed like he had fallen asleep not long after.

Today, they were going to the hospital for a check-up. Xie Huai changed into casual clothes—a black hoodie with a loose-fitting tracksuit.

When he opened the bedroom door and walked out, Jiang Xu had already prepared breakfast.

Xie Huai thought nothing about what had happened yesterday, but when he saw Jiang Xu now, he felt a little embarrassed.

This may be the slight awkwardness between young lovers who have just been together.

Xie Huai found that Jiang Xu adapted faster than him.

After finishing breakfast, they took a taxi to the hospital, a specialized orthopedic hospital. They had previously made an appointment with a specialist, so they didn’t have to wait in line and went straight to the fourth floor.

After a series of examinations, the doctor asked Xie Huai to come back the day after tomorrow to collect the test results.

As Xie Huai and Jiang Xu left, the doctor looked at the X-rays on the screen and furrowed his brow slightly.

Outside, the streets were adorned with national flags waving in the wind.

Xie Huai thought about how to spend the next seven days as he walked along the street.

“Xie Huai.” Jiang Xu called him.

Xie Huai came back to his senses and responded: “What’s wrong?”

Jiang Xu took Xie Huai’s hand and whispered, “Should we hold hands?”

“You’re already holding my hand, aren’t you?” Xie Huai raised his hand and motioned for Jiang Xu to see, “You decided first and then informed me, right, Jiang Xuxu?”

Jiang Xu slid his fingers into the gaps between Xie Huai’s fingers, forming a tight grip with all ten fingers, and said seriously, “This is holding hands.”

“Then where are we going?” Xie Huai smiled, and they continued to walk hand in hand.

“How about an amusement park?”