After I Died, My Childhood Friend Became Daddy - Chapter 15

Chapter 15: The Fallen Camera

The moment this thought popped into his mind, Fang Ran’s entire body went stiff. A chill crawled up the back of his neck, his chest heaved violently, and his throat felt dry, forcing him to swallow repeatedly.

No… no way, it must just be a coincidence.

It was only because he had heard a ghost story from Zhao Yan yesterday about a tenant whose room was filled with cameras, with every move being peeped at by a perverted landlord.

It was inevitable that he’d make a connection.

Of course, Huo Yan definitely wasn’t a pervert; he was a good person!

But…

Auntie Liu served him a bowl of soup and placed it by hand. “Try it; it’s exceptionally fresh.”

It took a long while for Fang Ran to respond with an “un-huh.” He then took a slow sip, yet his mind remained elsewhere.

After a hasty dinner, Fang Ran went back to his room. Feeling paranoid, he couldn’t help but search the room, but he didn’t see anything like a camera.

After all, Fang Ran’s concept of a camera was still stuck ten years ago, when they were as big as bricks.

He thought for a moment, flopped onto the bed, and shouted loudly:

“I want to drink alcohol!”

No reaction.

He continued shouting, “I want to go out drag racing!”

Still no movement!

Finally, Fang Ran covered his head with a pillow and rolled around on the bed!

So annoying!

At the very moment his head was buried, the eyes of a robot model on the desk turned slightly.

…

He didn’t figure anything out all night. Fang Ran didn’t fall asleep until dawn broke, and as expected, he was about to be late for school again.

Running as if his butt were on fire, he slipped into the car in a flash.

The driver turned around and smiled at him. “Little Mister, you left in a hurry yesterday; I forgot to give you something.”

He held out a bag to Fang Ran.

“My youngest son loves this bread, so I went specifically to buy it for him. I thought you two are about the same age, so you’d probably like it too.”

Fang Ran thanked him with a beaming smile. Upon taking a look, the brand seemed familiar. He suddenly remembered something and hurriedly asked, “When was this bought?”

“The day Little Mister went to the bar. They’re quite close by. I happened to finish buying the bread nearby right before I picked you up.”

Fang Ran blinked.

So… that day’s incident was a coincidence?

By the time he walked into school, the bell had already rung. There was an exam today, so Fang Ran quickly ran inside with his backpack, pushing all his worries to the back of his mind.

After a whole day of exams, Fang Ran’s head was spinning. He was like a puppy soaked by heavy rain listless and drooping.

Zhao Yan walked beside him, along with a few other classmates who were already discussing which country to travel to after graduation.

Perhaps seeing that Fang Ran was too withered, Zhao Yan went to buy a few popsicles and handed one to him. “Wake your brain up.”

Fang Ran took it listlessly. “I’m doomed. I think I wrote one number wrong on the final math problem.”

At this point, Zhao Yan didn’t know how to comfort him, being a perpetual bottom-of-the-class student himself.

Fang Ran opened the popsicle, took a bite, and mumbled, “While A-Yan isn’t back, I can still be a bit wild; otherwise, he definitely wouldn’t let me eat this.”

Just as he finished speaking, he noticed Zhao Yan stop in his tracks.

What’s wrong…

Fang Ran looked in the same direction and blinked blankly.

Huo Yan??

Wasn’t he supposed to come back tomorrow?

A car was parked at the school gate. A man stood quietly by the car looking over, his expression flat, almost emotionless. His gaze landed on Fang Ran, and then seemed to land on Zhao Yan beside him.

“A-Yan!”

Fang Ran cheered and trotted over.

At that moment, the man’s cold and stern expression softened slightly.

He caught the pouncing Fang Ran in his arms. Regardless of how many people were at the school gate, he directly picked him up by the buttocks. “Did you miss me?”

He was shameless, but Fang Ran was embarrassed. He kicked his legs, struggling for Huo Yan to put him down.

The man easily snatched the popsicle from Fang Ran’s hand and threw it directly into a nearby trash can.

Fang Ran stared with wide, angry eyes. “What are you doing!”

“Who allowed you to eat cold things? Did you forget the stomach pain in the middle of the night last time?”

Huo Yan glanced at him indifferently, then raised his eyes slightly to look at Zhao Yan nearby. “Others are leading you astray.”

“You’re being unreasonable! Zhao Yan bought it for me because I was in a bad mood.”

Huo Yan frowned slightly, staring seriously at Fang Ran. “Why were you in a bad mood? What happened?”

Fang Ran brushed him off and climbed into the car huffily by himself.

Huo Yan’s current state was truly not good. To improve efficiency and return early, his total sleep over the last two days didn’t even add up to five hours. Coupled with severe separation anxiety, his head throbbed painfully, and even his fingertips trembled imperceptibly.

He exhaled, forced himself to adjust his mood, and opened the car door to follow him inside.

“It’s not that I won’t let you eat,” Huo Yan said in a softened tone. “I’ll have Auntie Liu make some for you when we get back, okay? Outside food isn’t clean.”

Fang Ran looked out the car window and ignored him.

Huo Yan took the initiative to hold Fang Ran’s hand, only to be shaken off. He held it again; it was shaken off again.

The two went back and forth playing this childish game. On the final attempt, the man finally caught his “baby’s” hand, forcing his fingers to interlock through the gaps, gripping tightly.

“It seems you didn’t miss me at all. I specifically came back a day early, stayed up all night last night…”

Before he could finish, Fang Ran immediately turned to look at him, frowning. “How can you not sleep at night?”

Silly little treasure.

Falling for it so easily.

Huo Yan’s Adam’s apple bobbed, then he said calmly, “You’re talking about me? You stayed up late last night too. Look at those dark circles. Did you drink the soup I told Auntie Liu to boil?”

Fang Ran froze.

The man had mentioned it so casually.

His breathing quickened slightly. “You… how did you know I stayed up late?”

Huo Yan twitched the corner of his mouth, as if smiling. “I can guess. Every night, if I don’t go catch you, which night do you not stay up late?”

“Since I left, you must have let yourself go.”

Was it… that simple?

Fang Ran was stunned.

Huo Yan smiled and flicked Fang Ran’s forehead with his finger. “What nonsense are you thinking about?”

Fang Ran rubbed his head and couldn’t help but squint his eyes and smile along.

Phew! He knew it!

He really was just overthinking things all day!!

Relaxed now, Fang Ran became happy again, sticking to Huo Yan clingily. “Did you buy me any local specialties?”

Huo Yan took the opportunity to pull him into his arms, letting Fang Ran sit directly on his lap. “I did, I did. All the sweets you like. Try them when we get back.”

Fang Ran threw his arms up. “Woohoo!”

“Tomorrow is the weekend, I’ll take you out to play.” Huo Yan thought for a moment. “How about the amusement park?”

Amusement park?

I’ve never been!

Fang Ran’s eyes lit up.

However

“Don’t always go to places I want to go.” Fang Ran looked at Huo Yan seriously. “Where do you usually go?”

“I want to know what your life has been like during these ten years I missed?”

What it was like…

Like a walking corpse.

Numb and decayed.

Huo Yan felt his heart tremble it felt like pain, yet also like bitterness. He lowered his voice slightly. “My ten years… weren’t very interesting.”

Not without you there.

“How could it be uninteresting!” Fang Ran frowned. “Let me get to know you too.”

Huo Yan’s chest heaved violently, enough to show his emotional turbulence, but when he spoke again, his voice remained gentle. “Going to the stables to ride horses, or playing golf and such.”

There was also the boxing ring, but that was purely for violent venting.

Fang Ran thought about it and made a final decision. “Then let’s go horse riding. You teach me.”

Huo Yan smiled and held him tight. “Okay.”

…

The next day happened to be a clear, sunny day.

Fang Ran had been like this since he was a child. If there was an activity the next day, he couldn’t sleep well the night before.

He got up even earlier than he did for school. After washing up obediently, he thought about it and simply ran to wake Huo Yan up.

This was the first time he had proactively stepped into Huo Yan’s room.

Usually, it was Huo Yan who came to call him.

Pushing the door open, the room was still somewhat dim. Fang Ran blinked at the door, then tiptoed inside.

The room was quiet and tidy, not even looking like a place where someone lived. But it made sense; it was as if Huo Yan had extreme OCD. Sometimes he’d even reach out to smooth a wrinkle on Fang Ran’s clothes.

Fang Ran quietly walked to the bedside.

Just as he was debating whether to give Huo Yan a scare, his gaze suddenly paused. He saw a piece of pure white cloth peeking out from a corner of the blanket by the bed. Hmm? What was that?

Before Fang Ran could look closely, the man on the bed suddenly rolled over. Fang Ran’s wrist was grabbed, followed by a forceful pull. He felt the world spin and was dragged directly into the covers by Huo Yan.

Both his slippers flew off.

Like Huo Yan’s “Abeibei” (security blanket), Fang Ran was wrapped in his embrace. It was pitch black under the blanket, surrounded entirely by Huo Yan’s scent. A faint minty smell drifted into his nose, making Fang Ran’s face turn inexplicably hot.

It must be the stuffiness under the blanket.

He struggled to climb out, but the man’s arm was around his waist like an iron hoop. Not only did Fang Ran fail to get out, he was pulled back even closer to the man’s chest.

His hands pushed back wildly, and without knowing what he touched, Fang Ran’s eyes widened slightly. His hand retracted as if from an electric shock.

Re… really…

How is it again…

Huo Yan wasn’t eighteen anymore!!

How was his energy still so vigorous?

Fang Ran grit his teeth and finally couldn’t help but speak, “Huo Yan, let go of me.”

Can’t tease him anymore, or something will really happen, Huo Yan thought with regret.

He released his grip and let go of Fang Ran. Fang Ran immediately dived out like a little fish, almost scrambling out of bed on all fours, wishing he could be eight hundred meters away from the bed.

The man also sat up in bed. No matter how dim the light in the room was, one could clearly see his naked upper body and those obvious abs and chest muscles.

The temperature on Fang Ran’s face rose another degree.

He condemned loudly, “Why aren’t you wearing clothes?”

Perhaps because of the early hour, Huo Yan’s voice was a bit raspy. “I like sleeping naked. Is that not okay?”

Sleeping naked?

Then just now…

Fang Ran suddenly turned around. “You… hurry up and get up. I’ll wait for you downstairs.”

After saying this, Fang Ran fled the room.

It wasn’t until he reached the first floor that he seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, panting heavily and patting his own face.

Really!

What was wrong with him!

Logically, shouldn’t he have engaged in a boxing match with his childhood friend, then sat on him and triumphantly made him call him “Daddy”?

What was with him blushing and suddenly running out like this!

After waiting a while longer, the man slowly came downstairs.

Since he didn’t have to go to the company today and was taking Fang Ran out to play, the man wore a more casual outfit. However, he was still dressed all in black; the collar of his black short-sleeved shirt was slightly open. Looking up, the man’s Adam’s apple bobbed slightly, inexplicably carrying a hint of eroticism.

Fang Ran hurriedly lowered his eyes, poking the bread on his plate. “Why so slow!”

Huo Yan curled his lips slightly, walked over, pulled out the chair next to Fang Ran, and propped one hand on the table. Instead of sitting down immediately, he said nonchalantly, “What’s the rush? The horses in the stable won’t run away.”

The man loomed over him, his shadow casting down, unexpectedly carrying a sense of pressure.

Fang Ran’s hand gripped the fork tighter. Finally, he threw the fork down and said angrily, “Are you going to eat or not!”

Truly like a puppy, turning hostile in an instant.

Huo Yan found it funny on one hand and incredibly cute on the other. He stared at Fang Ran’s bright red earlobes for a while before sitting down unhurriedly. “I’ll eat. How can I have the strength to ride a horse without eating?”

The meal was eaten as if it were tasteless wax.

Once they finally left and breathed the fresh air, Fang Ran relaxed a bit.

They didn’t call the driver today; Huo Yan drove himself. Fang Ran sat in the passenger seat, hummed a little tune happily.

Huo Yan glanced sideways at Fang Ran’s smiling face; rarely, his mood followed suit.

But all of this came to a grinding halt when they met that person at the stables.

“Class Monitor?!”

Fang Ran was shocked. “It’s really you?!”

The person standing before him no longer looked like the shy teenager wearing glasses from back then; he was darker, sturdier, and taller.

Han Zhi circled Fang Ran twice in disbelief. “No, Fang Ran, what did you grow up eating? How do you still look like you did in high school?”

Fang Ran covered his face and smiled awkwardly.

“Seriously! How is your face still so white? No, it’s even whiter than before. You said you went abroad; is the anti-aging technology overseas that advanced now?”

As Han Zhi spoke, he even reached out wanting to give a pinch, but his wrist was grabbed and shoved away neither lightly nor heavily.

Huo Yan stood right beside Fang Ran, eyes lowered, his tone somewhat impatient. “Reminisce if you must, but don’t touch.”

Fang Ran blinked and suddenly realized.

Wait… his Class Monitor was Huo Yan’s Class Monitor too.

Han Zhi was clearly a bit embarrassed and smiled. “I didn’t expect to run into President Huo here.”

“You guys have met before?” Fang Ran said. “I’m living at Huo Yan’s house now.”

Hearing the last sentence, Huo Yan frowned slightly, reached out to pinch the back of Fang Ran’s neck, and whispered, “Say that again?”

Fang Ran quickly corrected himself, “My house, my house.”

“I’m just a working man; I don’t get the chance to meet President Huo. I see him often in the financial news, though.”

Han Zhi smiled, his gaze shifting between the two. “Alright, I’ll be going then. See you later, Fang Ran. Remember to reply to the WeChat message I sent you.”

Fang Ran waved hurriedly. “Okay, okay.”

Once the person left, Huo Yan began to settle the score. “Take out your phone. What WeChat message did he send you?”

Fang Ran obediently opened it for him to see. “He really didn’t say much. He asked me to dinner a couple of days ago, but I refused.”

“Because I had to do ‘Five Years of GaoKao, Three Years of Mock Exams’ at home.”

Huo Yan: “…”

He paused before saying, “You didn’t tell him that reason, did you?”

Fang Ran shook his head quickly.

Huo Yan scrolled through briefly; it was mostly normal catching up. He handed the phone back to Fang Ran. “Be good, keep contact with old classmates to a minimum.”

Fang Ran knew Huo Yan meant well. After all, he had suddenly traveled ten years into the future; the fewer people who knew about this, the better.

Seeing Fang Ran looking a bit dejected, Huo Yan imperceptibly put his arm around his shoulder and whispered, “Actually, you weren’t that close to them before, right? Only the two of us are the closest.”

Fang Ran lifted his head. “Are you brainwashing me?”

Huo Yan pushed his head back down. “No. Be good.”

…

There weren’t many people at the stables. Huo Yan picked a pony for Fang Ran and took him for a lap first.

It was Fang Ran’s first time riding a horse, so he was inevitably nervous. He held the posture Huo Yan taught him back straight and after a lap at a walking pace, he gradually grew bolder.

“Too slow.” Fang Ran looked at Huo Yan expectantly. “Can I ride a bit faster?”

Huo Yan smiled. “You definitely can’t do it alone, but I can take you.”

Huo Yan had his own exclusive horse at the stables.

The staff led it out. Only then did Fang Ran see that it was a horse with a pitch-black coat, looking quite formidable.

Fang Ran plucked up the courage to try and pet it, but the horse suddenly snorted, startling him.

Huo Yan patted the horse’s head, then supported Fang Ran’s waist, lifting him directly onto the horse’s back.

This move was too sudden, without any warning. Fang Ran was startled and cried out. The next second, the man also flipped onto the horse, sitting right behind Fang Ran, one arm around his waist and the other pulling the reins.

“Don’t be afraid, I’m here.”

After saying this, Huo Yan flicked the reins, and the horse suddenly began to run.

At first, it was fine within the range Fang Ran could adapt to but the horse ran faster and faster. The wind whistled past his ears. Driven by inertia, Fang Ran’s whole body leaned against Huo Yan. He opened his mouth slightly, wanting to say something but unable to, swallowing a bellyful of wind.

Too exciting!

Fang Ran even felt his pores open up and his hair probably stood on end.

After running for a full two or three laps, Huo Yan squeezed the horse’s flanks with his legs and pulled the reins tight. The horse gradually slowed to a stop.

Fang Ran hadn’t recovered yet, panting heavily.

Huo Yan smiled, reached out to pat his back, and asked softly, “Are you okay?”

Fang Ran let out a heavy “Phew” and couldn’t help but complain quietly, “You rode way too fast.”

“Apologies. I just thought it would be more stimulating.”

“…It certainly was stimulating.”

Huo Yan gave a low laugh. “Then I’ll take you for two more laps, slowly.”

“Okay!”

The weather that day was excellent. A light breeze blew over them; it wasn’t too cold or too hot the temperature was just right.

Huo Yan’s hands held the reins, encircling Fang Ran completely in his embrace. He intentionally leaned forward a bit; with just a slight turn of his head, his lips could brush against Fang Ran’s earlobe.

Touching, yet not quite.

Fang Ran’s ears were extremely sensitive; a light brush made them turn bright red instantly.

He turned his head away uncomfortably. “I’m a bit tired.”

“Okay, let’s go rest first.”

The stables didn’t just have horse riding; there were a series of supporting facilities nearby: lounges, tea rooms, and an archery range.

He spent nearly the whole day playing there with Fang Ran, returning only at sunset.

Unexpectedly, on the way back, Fang Ran opened his phone only to find that Han Zhi had sent him many messages.

[You’re living with Huo Yan? Did you just return to the country?]

[Huo Yan isn’t the Huo Yan from our school days anymore. I have a friend who works at a nursing home actually, it’s called a madhouse. He said Huo Yan locked his own grandmother in there.]

[Power struggles in big families are quite terrifying. Fang Ran, you should be careful.]

Fang Ran frowned.

As for how Huo Yan was, he didn’t need to hear about it from someone else’s mouth.

[That’s not his grandmother.]

[Huo Yan is very good. I understand him better than anyone.]

After replying with two messages, Fang Ran huffily set the Class Monitor’s messages to ‘Do Not Disturb’ out of sight, out of mind.

Huo Yan glanced at him. “What’s wrong? You look unhappy.”

Fang Ran’s voice was muffled. “It’s nothing.”

He just couldn’t stand anyone saying a single bad word about Huo Yan.

Huo Yan didn’t ask further, thinking he was just tired from the day.

After arriving home, Fang Ran had sweated all day and felt uncomfortable all over, so he rushed into the bathroom to take a shower.

To his surprise, when he came out, he saw Huo Yan sitting composedly on the chair by the bed, waiting for him.

Fang Ran couldn’t help but take two steps back. “What is it?”

Huo Yan gestured with his chin. “Go lie down on the bed. You’ve been riding all day; are your inner thighs chafed? Let me see, I’ll apply some medicine.”

Apply medicine there?

Fang Ran covered himself. “No, I’m fine, I don’t have any.”

Huo Yan didn’t believe him. He forcefully pulled him over, pressed him onto the bed, and pulled off his pants. The two red, chafed patches on his inner thighs were exceptionally obvious.

Fang Ran’s skin was tender; it was normal to get chafed after riding for a whole day. Huo Yan’s movements were very light, slowly applying the ointment with his fingertips. When he retracted his hand, he paused, smiled, and flicked with his finger. “Still quite spirited.”

Fang Ran’s entire face flushed red. He quickly covered his face with one hand and raised a leg to kick, but Huo Yan clearly anticipated it and dodged in advance with a smile.

“Don’t close your legs yet; let the ointment dry.”

Huo Yan instructed him.

Fang Ran remained silent, still covering his face.

Huo Yan teased him, “What’s wrong? Why have you been so shy lately?”

Truly, if this can be endured, what can’t be! If “Shu” can endure it, “Ran” cannot!

Fang Ran’s face turned red with anger. He grabbed the nearby tube of ointment and threw it at Huo Yan. Huo Yan dodged, and the ointment hit the robot model next to him.

The model didn’t move, but one of its eyes fell out.

Huo Yan’s expression changed. In an instant, the smile on his face vanished completely.

The room suddenly fell silent.

The glass bead eye, looking like a ruby, rolled across the floor. Attached to the back was a black, small magnetic chip-like object.

Fang Ran sat up slightly, stared at it for a long time, and frowned.

“What is that?”