Chapter 32: CH 32

After Gu Yaoyang finished his sentence, Shao Zheng squeezed his rumbling stomach. Although he was hungry, he didn’t dare to reach out for the snacks inside the bag.

Lin Yuyan’s sudden visit didn’t affect their discussion about the players, so they proceeded to talk. Lin Yuyan sat next to Gu Yaoyang and listened. Although he didn’t understand much, he kept quiet during their chat.

“Cole is too hostile, probably because of some family issues. I think he needs to do some psychological counseling, otherwise, he’ll easily get out of control once he’s inside the ring…”

“Shh…” After a few minutes, Gu Yaoyang felt a weight sinking onto his shoulders as a small round head slowly leaned toward him. He waited for a while until Lin Yuyan fell asleep completely before gently moving him to his lap and asking Shou Zheng for a blanket to cover him with.

Tonight’s work must be finished. They must analyze each player’s characteristics, advantages, and disadvantages so that tomorrow’s training will significantly improve them.

Gu Yaoyang was still expressionless, but the movement of his hands was very gentle. He had long legs, which made a slope on the short sofa. To make Lin Yuyan lie more comfortably, he sat in a half-stretched-out posture on the ground, which looked very awkward to sit in.

Shao Zheng had known him for many years, yet he had never seen this gentle side of him. After he thought about it, he asked, “Does he… know about your feelings?”

Gu Yaoyang answered, “Maybe.”

“Then.. does he feel the same about you?”

Gu Yaoyang picked up a pen and wrote a question mark on Cole’s name. With the corners of his mouth hooked, he said, “Maybe.”

“Then you’re now…”

“Shao Zheng.” Gu Yaoyang lowered his eyes. He looked at Lin Yuyan’s delicate nose and asked, “What do you think about being a hidden lover?”

“Wh- What?”

“It’s nothing.” Gu Yaoyang looked at the roster again and said, “Cole needs to train alone. As for you, you need to improve your speaking, so you better hurry up and improve.”

Shao Zheng collapsed and asked, “Yaoyang, are we really going to continue to do this in the future?”

“Otherwise?” Gu Yaoyang asked, “Do you still want to go back to the black market?”

Shao Zheng answered, “Not really. After all, this is such a rare opportunity for us. I also want to live a better life in the future.” After he thought for a bit he continued, “Forget it. For now, I’ll improve my speaking… I’ll work harder.”

—

In his half-dreaming and half-awakened state, Lin Yuyan realized that he seemed to be on someone’s back. A cool breeze blew over him and sobered him up from his groggy state a little. He rubbed himself against Gu Yaoyang and vaguely asked, “Are you done with your work?”

“Mm.”

“What time is it?”

“It’s two o’clock.”

In a daze, Lin Yuyan wanted to get off of him, but Gu Yaoyang refused and told him to lie down instead.

Lin Yuyan asked, “Why is it so late?”

Gu Yaoyang didn’t answer and merely hummed a response.

Lin Yuyan smirked, “Fortunately, I came here to find you. Otherwise, I’ll have to wait until tomorrow for you to come back.”

Gu Yaoyang raised his eyebrows, “Weren’t you here to bring some snacks for Shao Zheng?”

Lin Yuyan realized he had forgotten his lie. He muttered, “I came here to find you.” Then he inexplicably asked, “Are you wearing your pajamas?”

Gu Yaoyang asked, “Did you bring it?”

“Yeah.”

“Then wear it.”

After a while, Gu Yaoyang still hadn’t heard Lin Yuyan’s response and thought that he had fallen asleep again. He picked up his pace when he heard him say, “Then I’ll send it back now… Or is it too late for that?”

Gu Yaoyang instantly responded and asked with a smile, “Are you a hooligan?”

Lin Yuyan pouted and said, “I’m not.”

It was already the next day but it wasn’t morning yet when Gu Yaoyang left again. The club members were scheduled to gather at five o’clock. When they came back last night, he had just taken off his jacket and slept for a while before rushing out again.

Lin Yuyan woke up and realized that there was no one around him. He covered his head and sighed. He couldn’t sleep without his pajamas, and he didn’t even take off his clothes. He secretly complained about his shamelessness for a while when he heard someone knocking on the door.

Lin Yuyan told them to wait as he climbed down the ladder. When he opened the door, he saw Mr. Zeng standing in front of him carrying some painting tools.

“Let’s go, I’ll take you to sketch.” Mr. Zeng had rented a car out of nowhere and took Lin Yuyan to the seaside four or five kilometers away from where they were staying.

The seaside scenery was good, there were dilapidated boats, abandoned beer houses, and a transparent house made of glass. The temperature inside was just right, and one could enjoy the scenery outside. It seemed to be a place specially used for taking pictures or painting.

Lin Yuyan held up his easel and asked, “Is Gu Yaoyang busy with training today?”

Mr. Zeng nodded and answered with a short, “Yes.” He then smiled and continued to say, “I didn’t expect him to be so responsible.”

Lin Yuyan said with a smile, “I used to think that too.”

“Oh?”  Mr. Zeng sat down and asked, “What did you think of him before?”

“I used to think he was awful, but after I got acquainted with him, I think he’s pretty good.” Lin Yuyan said as he adjusted his paint. The corners of his mouth rose as if mentioning Gu Yaoyang made him happy. His mood was obvious to everyone. If he couldn’t figure it out himself, then he was a fool.

After he thought for a while, he asked, “Teacher… Is it okay if I call you ‘teacher’?”

Mr. Zeng said, “Yes, I am your teacher now.”

Lin Yuyan laughed and called him teacher again before asking, “Say, what does it feel like to like someone?”

Mr. Zeng found out early on that something was wrong. The child never left Gu Yaoyang’s side, he would mention him in their conversation from time to time, and now that he’s asking this question, it seems like there’s hope for his bet this time.

“It’s like any other emotion. You’ll think about him all the time, want to know what he’s doing, want to know all about him, constantly have him in your mind, wanting to talk to him, and share all your joys and sorrows with him.”

Lin Yuyan asked, “Teacher, do you have someone you like?”

Mr. Zeng said, “Of course I do. I’m in my fifties, so of course, I have someone I like.”

“Then, why don’t you live together?’ Having said this, Mr. Zeng’s expression changed. Lin Yuyan immediately realized that he had said something wrong, and hurriedly apologized, “I’m sorry teacher, I…”

Mr. Zeng took a pen and dipped a little bit of paint in it. He smiled and said, “It’s alright, we… missed the chance more than 30 years ago.”

“M- missed?”

“Yes, her son is already married.” Mr. Zeng seemed to be lost in his memories. There was a little flash of resignation in his eyes as he said, “The two of us were also classmates, and we liked each other at that time. She knew that I liked her, and I also knew that she had a crush on me. But at that time, she was young, and vigorous. No one said anything, just waiting for the other to speak first. I always felt that the first person who confessed first was the loser, but now that I think about it, the person who doesn’t confess is the real loser.”

“It dragged on for seven or eight years. Everyone was tired. When she wanted to confess, she realised that things had changed. She already had people around her who were actively pursuing her, and she didn’t want to waste any more time with me. In the end, she took the initiative to say that she liked me, but her words also meant goodbye.”

Lin Yuyan was stunned, “Then you- you didn’t try to keep her?”

“How could I? We both missed the time, so how could I retain her? Do I have to travel back in time to start all over again?” Mr. Zeng glanced at Lin Yuyan’s drawing board. He was clearly looking at the boundless sea ahead of him, but he drew Gu Yaoyang’s figure in the paper.

“So, if you like someone, you have to bravely tell them your feelings. No matter what the outcome is, at least you won’t have any regrets.”

Everyone’s emotional experience is different. What Mr. Zeng said was also different between him and Gu Yaoyang.

The only thing in common was that they liked each other…

Yeah, since they liked each other, what was he waiting for? Lin Yuyan looked at the figure on his drawing board and suddenly came to a realization.

He likes Gu Yaoyang.

It turns out that he really… likes Gu Yaoyang.

Does Gu Yaoyang know? Lin Yuyan suddenly stood up and smacked his forehead. He didn’t confess, how could Gu Yaoyang know?!

“Teacher, I want to ask for leave first!”

Mr. Zeng asked, “Why are you leaving?”

Lin Yuyan said, “I, I’ll go make a confession first! I’ll be back in a while! I’ll be back soon!” After speaking, he put on his coat. He turned around and ran away. He was afraid of following in Mr. Zeng’s footsteps and dying alone with regret.