Boyfriend for a Day

At seven o'clock, Xie Qizhi was awakened by the sound of a door closing outside. He sat up, giving a sleepy yawn, his consciousness not yet fully awake.

The bedroom door opened from the outside, and Ying Huai walked in holding a glass of plain water, saying: "You're awake?"

Xie Qizhi blinked, dazed as he took the glass Ying Huai handed him. He tilted his head back and gulped it down in one go before asking: "You haven't left yet? Why are you still here?"

Ying Huai took the empty glass, answering somewhat irrelevantly: "Last night, I kept thinking about something."

Xie Qizhi asked: "What?"

Ying Huai smiled a little and said: "I kept thinking, if I rolled you up in a blanket and stole you away, would you cry?"

He looked down at Xie Qizhi, as if waiting for his reaction.

Xie Qizhi didn't think much of it, only assuming he was teasing him again, and gave him a look of disbelief: "This is the 23rd floor, you know."

Ying Huai's expression didn't change at all: "So what?"

His calm expression was as if he were saying, "Is the 23rd floor that high? It's not like it's the 123rd floor."

Xie Qizhi didn't believe him: "Try carrying me then. I don't just weigh 50 kilograms now."

He stood by the edge of the bed, waiting for Ying Huai to come over. He then stepped forward, hugging Ying Huai's neck tightly like a koala, clinging to him.

Ying Huai supported his thighs with one hand, turned, and walked out of the bedroom, through the living room, and steadily into the dining area.

It had been light outside for a while, but the light was a bit hazy. The mesh curtains on the balcony had been pulled to one side, but the view outside the window was unclear, only a vast expanse of white mist.

Today was a day of heavy fog.

Xie Qizhi tilted his head, only then realizing Ying Huai was wearing a varsity jacket, not the clothes from last night.

It seemed he hadn't stayed here all night but had quietly gone home once, quietly asked for the door lock code, and then quietly returned.

Xie Qizhi blinked, his soft hair brushing against Ying Huai's ear, and asked him: "Am I heavy?"

Ying Huai laughed and asked back: "What do you think?"

Xie Qizhi said: "I think I'm okay."

He was two kilograms heavier than before the college entrance exam.

"Okay?" Ying Huai placed the empty glass on the sideboard, supported Xie Qizhi's waist, and lifted him up and down. "Is the helper your brother hired that bad at cooking? Where does all the food you eat every day go?"

The last time Xie Qizhi had been lifted like this was more than ten years ago. He hurriedly grabbed Ying Huai's strong arms, feeling a bit shy.

His grey-blue eyes blinked, and a faint pink blush appeared on his cheeks, but he still firmly defended the helper: "She's not bad at cooking, don't say that about her."

Ying Huai stared at him: "I'm talking about you. Do you not eat properly when no one is supervising you?"

"I do." Xie Qizhi looked into his eyes for two seconds, then looked away: "I just have poor absorption."

Ying Huai stroked the back of his neck, not asking further, but he didn't put him down either.

Xie Qizhi didn't ask Ying Huai to put him down either.

He was still barefoot and didn't want to step on the floor, but the main reason was actually that he liked this physical contact; it made their relationship look so intimate... He didn't know when the next time Ying Huai would carry him would be.

Xie Qizhi, wearing bear-themed pajamas, lay comfortably in Ying Huai's warm embrace.

A moment later, he suddenly let go of Ying Huai's neck, cupped his face, and without any warning, kissed him on the lips before quickly pulling away.

"What was that for?" Ying Huai looked at Xie Qizhi's eyes, which had involuntarily curved into a smile, looking like a little fox who had just successfully pulled off a prank.

His mood must be much better now for him to smile so beautifully.

Ying Huai was silent for a moment, unable to say a word of scolding, only asking a light question: "Molesting me first thing in the morning?"

Xie Qizhi said with righteous indignation: "Kissing my boyfriend, is that not allowed?"

Ying Huai looked at him and asked: "Who is your boyfriend?"

"You." Xie Qizhi reminded him, "You agreed to it, and it hasn't been 24 hours yet."

"Fine." Ying Huai changed his posture, supporting the back of his knees and placing him on a chair: "Boyfriend, after breakfast I'll take you to school."

Xie Qizhi sat cross-legged on the chair and said: "My slippers."

"Orders received." Ying Huai walked toward his bedroom and said: "Boyfriend."

As soon as they got into Ying Huai's Bentley, Xie Qizhi sat in the passenger seat, still eagerly demanding that he cooperate in playing the "Boyfriend for a Day" game.

"Fasten your seatbelt." Ying Huai leaned over to help him click it in, looking at him in confusion: "What are you so excited about?"

Xie Qizhi's eyes were bright as he asked: "Do you like me?"

Having been tormented by him all morning, Ying Huai said without resistance: "I do."

Xie Qizhi: "Do you love me?"

Ying Huai said while starting the car: "I do."

Xie Qizhi: "Then if someone else like me asked you to be their boyfriend for a day, would you agree?"

Ying Huai: "I'd beat them to a pulp."

Xie Qizhi was extremely satisfied with the other's answer: "That's right, only I am unique."

He turned his head and said to Ying Huai: "How about this? From now on, you continue being my boyfriend, and I'll continue being your Qi Qi. We'll each mind our own business, and you won't have to take any responsibility for me. That way, we're both happy!"

Ying Huai: "..."

He was silent for a moment, looked straight ahead, and said: "I'm fine with it, but do you plan on telling your brother?"

This time, it was Xie Qizhi's turn to be silent.

He deliberately put on a thoughtful look, looking out the window to avoid the question.

Ying Huai didn't let him off, asking further: "When your brother flies back to kill me, will you help him or help me?"

Xie Qizhi: "..." Truly a sharp question!

"So, Qi Qi," taking advantage of a red light, Ying Huai stroked his head and said seriously for once, "Feelings aren't child's play. You can't turn me into someone who enjoys the good things from you while not having to shoulder any responsibility. I'm not that kind of person."

Xie Qizhi was unhappy to hear any answer other than "Yes, I do." He turned his face away and gave a dejected "Oh."

A moment later, he suddenly spoke up, asking a strange question: "What good things do you enjoy from me?"

Ying Huai: "..."

Xie Qizhi turned his head, observing his expression which showed no flaws, and asked again: "So you look like you're going along with my joke, but in your heart, you're actually enjoying it, right?"

Ying Huai: "..."

Xie Qizhi clicked his tongue and commented: "Truly a man who says one thing but means another."

Ying Huai: "..."

Xie Qizhi continued: "Your mouth is really stubborn."

Ying Huai: "...That's enough."

Xie Qizhi ignored him, crossed his legs, and rested his chin on one hand, striking a very confident pose, saying: "You'll fall in love with me sooner or later, Brother Ying Huai."

Ying Huai finally realized he was just acting and playing along to the end. He stopped responding to give him a platform and focused on playing the role of a cold, silent driver boyfriend, taking Xie Qizhi to the gate of Ximing University.

Xie Qizhi got out with his books, walked around the front of the car, and before he could even knock on the window, the glass automatically lowered.

He leaned down to look at Ying Huai inside, saying with a smile: "I finish class at 5:00 PM. If you're not busy today, come pick me up."

Ying Huai agreed.

At 5:00 PM, Zhan Xinjiai and You Ran said they wanted to go out for Haidilao hotpot. Xie Qizhi didn't go with them but still waited for Zhan Xinjiai with You Ran to go downstairs. The three of them walked to the school gate together.

As they passed the fountain at the east gate, a group of students who had no afternoon classes were walking in, chirping about something.

They vaguely heard some gossip about a top-tier handsome guy at the school gate, and Xie Qizhi's heart stirred.

"What kind of handsome guy could our school possibly have?" Zhan Xinjiai was extremely skeptical. "Let me see."

You Ran shared her view, brushing back his bangs: "Is he as handsome as me?"

The three of them, with different purposes, all quickened their pace.

Ying Huai was indeed waiting outside, leaning against the black Bentley, looking down at his phone.

Today was a gloomy day with poor lighting, but he didn't look grey at all; he seemed to be glowing, drawing everyone's eyes.

From the perspective of the three, he stood out tall among the crowd, his legs exceptionally long. Clearly not even looking up, the aura of a great handsome man still radiated intensely.

For the first time, Xie Qizhi felt that the black Bentley behind him looked so cool, simply because it had been missing its owner as a model.

In his memory, the person who often relied on his looks to attract attention was his brother, while Ying Huai's job was to stand behind and emit signals of impatience, telling him to tone it down and stop selling his charms.

Back then he had criticized his brother, yet now when he was showing off himself, he wasn't toning it down at all.

Xie Qizhi looked at Ying Huai in the distance and suddenly remembered having asked You Ran and Zhan Xinjiai why they still insisted on being friends with him when many roommates and classmates had more contact with them.

Was it because they had discovered the strong, brave, and kind heart hidden under his frail appearance?

Zhan Xinjiai said: "Because you look handsome."

You Ran said: "Truly very handsome."

Zhan Xinjiai: "Do you understand the feeling of pride when the person the whole school is secretly looking at is your friend, and just by me calling out, you'll run over like a happy puppy?"

You Ran said: "It's truly a great feeling."

Now, Xie Qizhi felt he could understand it. It was: Ying Huai's looks, Qi Qi's glory!

You Ran nudged Zhan Xinjiai's arm, just about to remind her that he had met this handsome guy before—he was Xie Qizhi's brother.

Then he saw Xie Qizhi, like a joyful little bird, without even a word of greeting, run straight toward the handsome guy in the distance and throw himself into his arms without any hesitation.