“Zero” was a sweet little love song. Ling Xi had a natural talent for writing and composing love songs. He'd never been in love before, but he possessed an innate talent for composing love poems. His songs may be accused of putting too much focus on love. There seemed to be pink bubbles of love in the air every time he sang.
Ling Xi gave up the high chair under his buttocks and securely placed the phone on it because there was nowhere else to put it. He stepped up to the stool, lowered the microphone, and began singing while carrying the guitar on his back.
In order to ensure that the mobile phone listener could hear him clearly, his singing voice was louder than usual. A louder voice naturally consumed more energy. During the music interlude, his slightly heavy breathing was relayed to everyone’s ears via the microphone.
An Ruifeng, who was clutching his phone, had no idea what the crowd was thinking, but when he heard the gasps, he felt both distressed and softhearted.
He wished he could grow a pair of wings and fly straight to the venue of the concert.
Ling Xi shook his hand strangely and leaned in front of the microphone after concluding the song: "Actually, I regretted it halfway through the song. Even though I was nervous about singing in front of so many fans, I had to let my friend listen to me perform. No zuo no die[1]. I'd be humiliated if I couldn't sing well. My palms are sweating now, and there were several incorrect notes in the solo just now. Will you laugh at me, guys?"
The fans stomped and clapped while laughing. They all yelled in unison: "Don't be nervous! It sounds good!"
Ling Xi shook his head pretentiously: "No, just you saying it was good isn’t enough. I’ll have to ask him if he thinks it was good." He picked up the phone and placed it to his ear, inquiring, "Did you hear my song just now?"
A soft "en" came from the handset.
Ling Xi was displeased: "I have so many fans here. It’s too embarrassing for you to simply say “en”, okay?"
An Ruifeng sighed in his heart. With Ling Xi's easygoing attitude, he knew he'd never grasp what kind of association sensitive gossip magazine reporters would make of his behavior. …… Well, with Ling Xi's coffee position, it might be that there were not as many gossip reporters as there were gossip ladies in the community.
Furthermore, even if he was discovered and his words were thoroughly investigated, as long as he asserted that he was "a friend," it would not make any big waves.
So An Ruifeng dropped his guard and complimented him: "It's very pleasant to hear. It’s so amazing that I’m hoping you’ll sing it to me alone the next time we meet."
Ling Xi's phone was not set to loudspeaker mode. The supporters in the arena could only vaguely hear a few words after An Ruifeng's response traveled through the radio waves and the microphone. The careless fans just saw him as Ling Xi's good friend and tried to push Ling Xi into revealing his identity by inquiring who the star was.
Ling Xi hung up the phone, took a look around the stands, and slyly replied, "Just call him a handsome guy, alright?"
His pompous answer drew everyone’s ire. Ling Xi pretended to be deaf and gestured to the accompaniment band behind him. He hummed softly and began the prelude to another song.
… …
The male voice, unfamiliar to Ling Xi’s fans, was almost as loud as fireworks exploding in the ears of a certain shuang dan[2] fan.
FengLin Whisperer stood up in her seat. Instead of listening to Ling Xi's song, she bowed her head and hurried to the exit.
When the gatekeeper in charge of security noticed her coming out, he inquired out of curiosity: "Miss, the concert hasn’t ended yet. Are you certain you want to leave?"
She replied incoherently, "Yeah. I want to go out and run around in circles right now."
※※※
The concert lasted until 10:30 in the evening. The fans in the audience were very passionate and Ling Xi couldn't bring himself to leave after witnessing their enthusiasm. He returned to the stage numerous times at their behest and sang till his mouth went dry.
Because there were no other possibilities, the concert was held on campus. To ensure that the school students' sleep was not disturbed, the school administration sent someone over to inform them that the lights in the dormitory would be switched off at 11 a.m. and that they must depart before that time.
Ling Xi took the stage for the final time to bid farewell to the supporters and agreed to see them again next year after repeated requests from the school. Ling Xi was moved by their exuberant and satisfied expressions. He was neither a big smash nor a nameless existence after eight years in the industry. Fortunately, he still had a large number of fans who listened to his music. It warmed the cockles of his heart.
He promptly rushed to remove his makeup and change his clothes after stepping down. Despite the fact that he was a male, he had to put on make-up before going on stage. Ling Xi's face was painted like a wall - coated with a layer of putty at least three times - and could practically be demolded in order to seem fair and bright beneath the light.
While removing his makeup, Wu Youpeng kept glaring at the back of his head with a dark face while exuding low pressure.
Ling Xi worked on his face with the makeup remover for a long period. When he looked up, he noticed Wu Youpeng staring at him glumly, causing him to quiver with fear. Only then did he realize he had just called An Ruifeng in front of so many fans on stage, and his agent had not approved of his behavior...
"Wu-ge..." Ling Xi moved forward with a bashful expression, acting coquettish like before: "You know I love you the most..."
Wu Youpeng slapped him away: "You flatter me. You dare to do things like calling another star directly on the stage. Do you attach importance to me at all?"
"How can you say that!"
"Why not? Luckily, you still have some brains in your head and didn’t use the loudspeaker. Otherwise, tomorrow the coming out of the closet sex scandal between you two would’ve definitely caused an uproar!"
Ling Xi blushed: "We are a pure male-male relationship."
Wu Youpeng didn't know if others believed it or not, but he certainly didn't. Thankfully, Ling Xi's feelings for An Ruifeng were hazy, and Wu Youpeng hoped that the day when this hazy goodwill became apparent would never come. He stopped talking and stopped fretting about the situation - the call had already been made. He couldn't have rushed to the platform and snatched his phone in front of the entire audience. What was the point in being anxious right now?
"Remove your makeup slowly," Wu Youpeng said, his shoulders slumping: "I'll go ahead and have a look. I'll be back to pick you up later." He turned around and walked away.
Ling Xi suspected Wu Youpeng’s great uncle[3] had arrived. Why else would he experience mood swings?
He continued to remove his makeup facing the mirror. Before going on stage, the makeup artist specially drew the inner eyeliner for him in addition to the foundation to ensure that he didn’t look like an effeminate man giving flirty looks, but rather, expressive and bright. Ling Xi had never removed his makeup before, but he knew the procedure: first, apply makeup remover to a cotton pad, then wipe off the face and mouth, and finally, deal with the tricky eyeliner.
His cheeks and neck were caked in makeup. He battled for about 10 minutes and used over a dozen cotton pads before wiping his face clean.
… It had been so difficult to clean his face. To clean his eyes, he'd probably need additional makeup remover.
Ling Xi emptied a bottle of makeup remover on the cotton pad, soaked it wet, and squeezed out the water with a light touch, then placed the soaked cotton pad directly on his open eyes.
"Ow!"
He shrieked at the top of his lungs.
It stung like hell. The melted eyeliner had gotten powdered after being blended with too much makeup remover and had dropped into the eyeballs, pushing against the eyeballs like rough sandpaper. Ling Xi was in physiological tears as a result of the pain.
He was dizzy and unable to open his eyes. He searched around the table in the dim light, remembering a bottle of mineral water in one of the table's corners. He needed to wipe his eyes right away or he'd go blind. But the more disorganized he became, the more he couldn't find anything. After a few jingling and bang, bang sounds, he hurled more than half of the items on the table to the ground, and all he could do was sit there frowning and wiping the tears surging from his eyes.
F*ck! How come it hurts so much ah?
He was at a loss when he heard the dressing room door behind him being pushed open. He hurriedly turned his head despite his tear-stained face, and closed his eyes pitifully, clawing at the void: "It's the makeup artist, right?"
The guest made no denials. When he saw his discomfort, he closed the door with his backhand and hurried towards Ling Xi. The smell of men's cologne washed over Ling Xi as he heard the man's approaching footsteps. He came to a halt in front of Ling Xi, leaned down, and picked up the mineral water that had fallen to the ground, soaking the handkerchief he was carrying with it.
With one hand, he lifted Ling Xi's chin, and with the other, he softly dabbed the corner of Ling Xi's eye.
His movements were light, as if he were stroking a baby bird that had just broken free from its shell. He carefully wiped away his tears, then placed the handkerchief on his eyes, stroked his eyelashes, and motioned him to blink.
Ling Xi blinked obediently, allowing tears to pour along with the impurities in his eyes, soiling the handkerchief in front of him.
He then closed his eyes again, waiting for the individual to rinse off the handkerchief and repeat the action he had just performed.
The sting in Ling Xi's eyes faded for the most part after numerous dabs. Ling Xi grasped the arm of the owner of the hand before he could leave.
He moved his hand down his arm, stroked the man's wrist and palm, which had distinct joints.
The palm was large and warm. Ling Xi purposefully delayed time, scoring the person's fingers one by one, from the root to the tip, from the nail to the finger pad. "Is that An Ruifeng?" Ling Xi exclaimed joyfully after enough stroking.
The handkerchief that had been covering his eyes was removed, and the long-lost light returned to Ling Xi's eyes, causing him to blink. Things in the distance were blurry as a result of the accident just now, but the handsome face in front of him was clearly etched in his heart.
"I apologize for being late." An Ruifeng didn't inquire as to how he knew it was him. He lowered his head and moved in close to Ling Xi, concernedly studying his red eyes.
Ling Xi was about to demonstrate his reasoning process when An Ruifeng approached and his thoughts went blank, as if he had lost his ability to speak.
An Ruifeng saw the man in front of him as having a unique ignorance. His eyes were red, his face was stained with tears, his brows were slightly creased, his mouth was slightly open, and he appeared wronged and adorable. He'd never seen such a distressing expression before. He was like a lively little deer with a rose in his mouth, slamming his head against his heart.
There was no turning back the emotions that were flooding in his heart.
Ling Xi sat in the chair, watching An Ruifeng lower his head, getting closer and closer to him. His reflection could be seen in those lovely dark gray eyes.
Suddenly, he felt a slight heat at the corner of his mouth. It was a kiss that was neither light nor heavy.
Ling Xi sat there blankly for three seconds before turning red in an instant.
Footnotes:
[1] An Internet meme meaning "one would not be in trouble had one not asked for it".
[2] A fan of both parties but does not necessarily ship them as a real-life couple.
[3] Equivalent to "great aunt" for women i.e. monthlies.
“Zero” was a sweet little love song. Ling Xi had a natural talent for writing and composing love songs. He'd never been in love before, but he possessed an innate talent for composing love poems. His songs may be accused of putting too much focus on love. There seemed to be pink bubbles of love in the air every time he sang.
Ling Xi gave up the high chair under his buttocks and securely placed the phone on it because there was nowhere else to put it. He stepped up to the stool, lowered the microphone, and began singing while carrying the guitar on his back.
In order to ensure that the mobile phone listener could hear him clearly, his singing voice was louder than usual. A louder voice naturally consumed more energy. During the music interlude, his slightly heavy breathing was relayed to everyone’s ears via the microphone.
An Ruifeng, who was clutching his phone, had no idea what the crowd was thinking, but when he heard the gasps, he felt both distressed and softhearted.
He wished he could grow a pair of wings and fly straight to the venue of the concert.
Ling Xi shook his hand strangely and leaned in front of the microphone after concluding the song: "Actually, I regretted it halfway through the song. Even though I was nervous about singing in front of so many fans, I had to let my friend listen to me perform. No zuo no die[1]. I'd be humiliated if I couldn't sing well. My palms are sweating now, and there were several incorrect notes in the solo just now. Will you laugh at me, guys?"
The fans stomped and clapped while laughing. They all yelled in unison: "Don't be nervous! It sounds good!"
Ling Xi shook his head pretentiously: "No, just you saying it was good isn’t enough. I’ll have to ask him if he thinks it was good." He picked up the phone and placed it to his ear, inquiring, "Did you hear my song just now?"
A soft "en" came from the handset.
Ling Xi was displeased: "I have so many fans here. It’s too embarrassing for you to simply say “en”, okay?"
An Ruifeng sighed in his heart. With Ling Xi's easygoing attitude, he knew he'd never grasp what kind of association sensitive gossip magazine reporters would make of his behavior. …… Well, with Ling Xi's coffee position, it might be that there were not as many gossip reporters as there were gossip ladies in the community.
Furthermore, even if he was discovered and his words were thoroughly investigated, as long as he asserted that he was "a friend," it would not make any big waves.
So An Ruifeng dropped his guard and complimented him: "It's very pleasant to hear. It’s so amazing that I’m hoping you’ll sing it to me alone the next time we meet."
Ling Xi's phone was not set to loudspeaker mode. The supporters in the arena could only vaguely hear a few words after An Ruifeng's response traveled through the radio waves and the microphone. The careless fans just saw him as Ling Xi's good friend and tried to push Ling Xi into revealing his identity by inquiring who the star was.
Ling Xi hung up the phone, took a look around the stands, and slyly replied, "Just call him a handsome guy, alright?"
His pompous answer drew everyone’s ire. Ling Xi pretended to be deaf and gestured to the accompaniment band behind him. He hummed softly and began the prelude to another song.
… …
The male voice, unfamiliar to Ling Xi’s fans, was almost as loud as fireworks exploding in the ears of a certain shuang dan[2] fan.
FengLin Whisperer stood up in her seat. Instead of listening to Ling Xi's song, she bowed her head and hurried to the exit.
When the gatekeeper in charge of security noticed her coming out, he inquired out of curiosity: "Miss, the concert hasn’t ended yet. Are you certain you want to leave?"
She replied incoherently, "Yeah. I want to go out and run around in circles right now."
※※※
The concert lasted until 10:30 in the evening. The fans in the audience were very passionate and Ling Xi couldn't bring himself to leave after witnessing their enthusiasm. He returned to the stage numerous times at their behest and sang till his mouth went dry.
Because there were no other possibilities, the concert was held on campus. To ensure that the school students' sleep was not disturbed, the school administration sent someone over to inform them that the lights in the dormitory would be switched off at 11 a.m. and that they must depart before that time.
Ling Xi took the stage for the final time to bid farewell to the supporters and agreed to see them again next year after repeated requests from the school. Ling Xi was moved by their exuberant and satisfied expressions. He was neither a big smash nor a nameless existence after eight years in the industry. Fortunately, he still had a large number of fans who listened to his music. It warmed the cockles of his heart.
He promptly rushed to remove his makeup and change his clothes after stepping down. Despite the fact that he was a male, he had to put on make-up before going on stage. Ling Xi's face was painted like a wall - coated with a layer of putty at least three times - and could practically be demolded in order to seem fair and bright beneath the light.
While removing his makeup, Wu Youpeng kept glaring at the back of his head with a dark face while exuding low pressure.
Ling Xi worked on his face with the makeup remover for a long period. When he looked up, he noticed Wu Youpeng staring at him glumly, causing him to quiver with fear. Only then did he realize he had just called An Ruifeng in front of so many fans on stage, and his agent had not approved of his behavior...
"Wu-ge..." Ling Xi moved forward with a bashful expression, acting coquettish like before: "You know I love you the most..."
Wu Youpeng slapped him away: "You flatter me. You dare to do things like calling another star directly on the stage. Do you attach importance to me at all?"
"How can you say that!"
"Why not? Luckily, you still have some brains in your head and didn’t use the loudspeaker. Otherwise, tomorrow the coming out of the closet sex scandal between you two would’ve definitely caused an uproar!"
Ling Xi blushed: "We are a pure male-male relationship."
Wu Youpeng didn't know if others believed it or not, but he certainly didn't. Thankfully, Ling Xi's feelings for An Ruifeng were hazy, and Wu Youpeng hoped that the day when this hazy goodwill became apparent would never come. He stopped talking and stopped fretting about the situation - the call had already been made. He couldn't have rushed to the platform and snatched his phone in front of the entire audience. What was the point in being anxious right now?
"Remove your makeup slowly," Wu Youpeng said, his shoulders slumping: "I'll go ahead and have a look. I'll be back to pick you up later." He turned around and walked away.
Ling Xi suspected Wu Youpeng’s great uncle[3] had arrived. Why else would he experience mood swings?
He continued to remove his makeup facing the mirror. Before going on stage, the makeup artist specially drew the inner eyeliner for him in addition to the foundation to ensure that he didn’t look like an effeminate man giving flirty looks, but rather, expressive and bright. Ling Xi had never removed his makeup before, but he knew the procedure: first, apply makeup remover to a cotton pad, then wipe off the face and mouth, and finally, deal with the tricky eyeliner.
His cheeks and neck were caked in makeup. He battled for about 10 minutes and used over a dozen cotton pads before wiping his face clean.
… It had been so difficult to clean his face. To clean his eyes, he'd probably need additional makeup remover.
Ling Xi emptied a bottle of makeup remover on the cotton pad, soaked it wet, and squeezed out the water with a light touch, then placed the soaked cotton pad directly on his open eyes.
"Ow!"
He shrieked at the top of his lungs.
It stung like hell. The melted eyeliner had gotten powdered after being blended with too much makeup remover and had dropped into the eyeballs, pushing against the eyeballs like rough sandpaper. Ling Xi was in physiological tears as a result of the pain.
He was dizzy and unable to open his eyes. He searched around the table in the dim light, remembering a bottle of mineral water in one of the table's corners. He needed to wipe his eyes right away or he'd go blind. But the more disorganized he became, the more he couldn't find anything. After a few jingling and bang, bang sounds, he hurled more than half of the items on the table to the ground, and all he could do was sit there frowning and wiping the tears surging from his eyes.
F*ck! How come it hurts so much ah?
He was at a loss when he heard the dressing room door behind him being pushed open. He hurriedly turned his head despite his tear-stained face, and closed his eyes pitifully, clawing at the void: "It's the makeup artist, right?"
The guest made no denials. When he saw his discomfort, he closed the door with his backhand and hurried towards Ling Xi. The smell of men's cologne washed over Ling Xi as he heard the man's approaching footsteps. He came to a halt in front of Ling Xi, leaned down, and picked up the mineral water that had fallen to the ground, soaking the handkerchief he was carrying with it.
With one hand, he lifted Ling Xi's chin, and with the other, he softly dabbed the corner of Ling Xi's eye.
His movements were light, as if he were stroking a baby bird that had just broken free from its shell. He carefully wiped away his tears, then placed the handkerchief on his eyes, stroked his eyelashes, and motioned him to blink.
Ling Xi blinked obediently, allowing tears to pour along with the impurities in his eyes, soiling the handkerchief in front of him.
He then closed his eyes again, waiting for the individual to rinse off the handkerchief and repeat the action he had just performed.
The sting in Ling Xi's eyes faded for the most part after numerous dabs. Ling Xi grasped the arm of the owner of the hand before he could leave.
He moved his hand down his arm, stroked the man's wrist and palm, which had distinct joints.
The palm was large and warm. Ling Xi purposefully delayed time, scoring the person's fingers one by one, from the root to the tip, from the nail to the finger pad. "Is that An Ruifeng?" Ling Xi exclaimed joyfully after enough stroking.
The handkerchief that had been covering his eyes was removed, and the long-lost light returned to Ling Xi's eyes, causing him to blink. Things in the distance were blurry as a result of the accident just now, but the handsome face in front of him was clearly etched in his heart.
"I apologize for being late." An Ruifeng didn't inquire as to how he knew it was him. He lowered his head and moved in close to Ling Xi, concernedly studying his red eyes.
Ling Xi was about to demonstrate his reasoning process when An Ruifeng approached and his thoughts went blank, as if he had lost his ability to speak.
An Ruifeng saw the man in front of him as having a unique ignorance. His eyes were red, his face was stained with tears, his brows were slightly creased, his mouth was slightly open, and he appeared wronged and adorable. He'd never seen such a distressing expression before. He was like a lively little deer with a rose in his mouth, slamming his head against his heart.
There was no turning back the emotions that were flooding in his heart.
Ling Xi sat in the chair, watching An Ruifeng lower his head, getting closer and closer to him. His reflection could be seen in those lovely dark gray eyes.
Suddenly, he felt a slight heat at the corner of his mouth. It was a kiss that was neither light nor heavy.
Ling Xi sat there blankly for three seconds before turning red in an instant.
Footnotes:
[1] An Internet meme meaning "one would not be in trouble had one not asked for it".
[2] A fan of both parties but does not necessarily ship them as a real-life couple.
[3] Equivalent to "great aunt" for women i.e. monthlies.
