Did My Wife Break Up With Me Today? - Chapter 55

Chapter 55: “Then, Can You Give Me a Chance to Be a Very, Very Good Boyfriend?”

The Rabbit cried.

Tears rolled down, one by one, tracing the curves of his cheeks until they reached his chin. In turn, they seemed to roll right into Xu Jingmo’s own heart.

Xu Jingmo was at a complete loss. He didn’t know how he had made the Rabbit cry, so he didn’t know the specific way to fix it.

“Don’t cry…” After several seconds, he managed only that pale comfort. He took half a step toward the Rabbit. “Tell me what I did wrong.”

He only took a tiny half-step forward, but the Rabbit took a giant leap back.

Xu Jingmo froze. His Adam’s apple rolled as he silently retracted that half-step.

Chen Kongqing shook his head. Now that the initial burst of emotion had passed, he realized how inexplicable his outburst was. He shouldn’t treat Xu Jingmo this way. One shouldn’t bully someone who is good to them.

“I’m sorry…” The Rabbit lowered his head, apologizing in a small voice. “I shouldn’t have been so loud.”

Xu Jingmo desperately wanted to pull this wounded Rabbit into his arms and tell him he never needed to apologize. But he was terrified that his proximity would make the Rabbit flinch. That act of avoidance—no matter how small—was blindingly painful to him.

The man stayed rooted in place, speaking softly and carefully: “It’s okay. I didn’t think you were loud.”

The Rabbit sniffled. “I… I’ll move out as soon as possible.”

Leaving behind those words, the Rabbit turned to leave.

Black Cat Detective seemed to sense the shift in the atmosphere. It stiffened its tail, staring nervously at the two humans with wide, clear eyes. Its round head tilted as it let out a couple of anxious “meows.”

Amidst the cat’s cries, Chen Kongqing’s wrist was seized. The grip was firm—even heavy. It was a strength the Rabbit could not possibly break.

Chen Kongqing didn’t struggle, but he didn’t turn around either.

“Why…” Xu Jingmo started to speak, and the cat’s meowing stopped. The silence became so heavy they could hear nothing but each other’s breathing.

“Chen Kongqing, you have to tell me why,” Xu Jingmo said in a deep voice, still holding the wrist.

“I have to move out eventually,” Chen Kongqing said after a long silence. His emotions boiled over again, and he turned around with red eyes. Since he had already started, he decided to say everything; maybe he’d feel better once it was out. “Dr. Xu, you will eventually leave. I won’t be your patient or your tenant forever. We have to separate sooner or later… and then I’ll be alone again.”

“Dr. Xu, I know you’re a good person. I know… you naturally have this ability to be good to people. You don’t think it’s anything special, but…” Chen Kongqing began to pant slightly, his voice choked with sobs. He paused before continuing, “But I’m different. No one has ever treated me like this. I’ll… I’ll become dependent. I won’t be able to leave. This isn’t right…”

“Then don’t leave,” Xu Jingmo interrupted. His voice was urgent, his phoenix eyes locked onto Chen Kongqing’s. “Then depend on me, Chen Kongqing.”

Depend on me forever. Forever. Just don’t leave me.

The Rabbit shook his head again, struggling to free his wrist. “I can’t. It’s not right…”

“Why isn’t it right? What’s wrong with it?” Xu Jingmo frowned, instinctively tightening his grip to prevent the Rabbit from escaping.

“What’s right about it?!” Chen Kongqing’s voice suddenly rose, trembling. “It’s not right at all. Why should I depend on you? Why shouldn’t I leave? You have no relation to me… Dr. Xu, you know my sexual orientation… don’t stand so close to me anymore…”

Saying this, Chen Kongqing used all his strength to tear his hand away. Without a moment’s hesitation, he fled into his room.

Bang! The door slammed shut.

Xu Jingmo stood there, stunned.

The cow cat jumped down from the cat tree and brushed its tail against Xu Jingmo’s pant leg. Its round eyes were full of anxiety and a hint of disdain. “Meow.”

The voice wasn’t high-pitched or “cute” at all; it was rugged and blunt. It seemed to be saying: “Human, you are truly useless. You can’t even coax him back?”

The cat marched toward the closed bedroom door, stood before the wood panel, and switched back to its high-pitched “baby” voice: “Meow~” It even patted the door with its pink paw.

But the door didn’t budge.

Chen Kongqing heard it, of course. He was leaning against the back of the door, sitting on the cold wooden floor. His eyes were like open faucets, tears flowing as if they would never stop. He didn’t want the cat or the person outside to hear him, so he could only sob quietly.

He didn’t even know why he was crying. Right now, it was probably out of shame for his loss of composure. What did I just say to Dr. Xu? I sound like a freak.

He felt he could never face Dr. Xu again. Once his tears slowed and he calmed down, he sent a message to the agent of that apartment he had seen. The agent replied quickly: the place was still available and he could move in anytime.

Chen Kongqing checked the calendar. In three days, it would be exactly one month since he moved into Dr. Xu’s place. It was perfect. He could move out then and go to the hospital to end his treatment. Everything would be over.

He gripped his phone, his thoughts scattered and messy.

Just then, his phone pinged. Lnk: [Are you asleep?] Lnk: [I want to talk to you.] Lnk: [Tomorrow is fine too.] Lnk: [Do your eyes hurt?]

Chen Kongqing looked at the messages but didn’t reply. He didn’t know what to say. He no longer had the courage to talk to Dr. Xu. He didn’t even have the courage to see him.

Unable to sleep and plagued by a racing mind, he got up and spent the night packing his bags. He didn’t have much, so it wasn’t hard. He was just tired of moving. He hoped the next move would last at least six months. He was fine, but moving so often wasn’t good for the cat.

…

Two doors away, Xu Jingmo was in his study. A cigarette burned between his fingers.

Since the Rabbit moved in, he rarely smoked at home. If he really craved it, he would only light a few in the study. Afterward, he would wait for the scent to dissipate before going downstairs, terrified of bothering the non-smoking Rabbit. In truth, since the Rabbit arrived, he had rarely felt the urge to smoke.

Today was an exception. He wanted to smoke especially badly during every agonizing second he spent waiting for a reply.

What did those words mean? Was it… what he thought it meant? Was the Rabbit sad because of the distance between them? Did he think Xu was just a “nice straight doctor”?

Xu Jingmo felt a strange urge to laugh amidst his confusion. How is my Xiao Man so cute?

But this “cute” Rabbit had heartlessly ignored his messages for two days. When he finally replied, it was two days later.

Xiao Man [Carrot emoji]: [Dr. Xu, I’ve packed everything. I’ll be moving out today.]

Xu Jingmo was in the middle of a tedious “Return to Work” meeting when he got the text. He straightened his back instantly. He typed and deleted, typed and deleted.

Lnk: [Move to where?] Lnk: [Can’t we talk before you leave?] Lnk: [Chen Kongqing, I want to talk to you.] Lnk: [I want to see you.]

Xiao Man [Carrot emoji]: [Dr. Xu, thank you so much for taking care of me during this time.] Xiao Man [Carrot emoji]: [About meeting… I’ll come to the hospital for my follow-up in a couple of days.] Xiao Man [Carrot emoji]: [I’m sorry, I’m such a coward.] Xiao Man [Carrot emoji]: [I said many offensive things the other day. I’m sorry.] Xiao Man [Carrot emoji]: [Once I’ve calmed down more, I will definitely come see you.] Xiao Man [Carrot emoji]: [I’m sorry.]

Three “I’m sorry”s. Xu Jingmo’s brow furrowed. The leader on stage was still droning on, and it sounded like nothing but irritating noise to him. The Rabbit was too timid, too insecure. He had tried to go slow and gentle so as not to scare him. But it seemed… he had been too gentle? So gentle the Rabbit hadn’t even realized what his sexual orientation was.

Xu Jingmo didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

On his first day back, his schedule was packed. It was 5:30 PM by the time he finished seeing outpatients, and he still had to visit the inpatient ward. By the time he rushed home, everything belonging to the Rabbit was gone. The Rabbit had even changed and washed the sheets. The cat’s things were gone too. The corner of the living room belonging to Black Cat Detective was empty.

His phone pinged. Xiao Man [Carrot emoji]: [Transfer: 800 Yuan.] Xiao Man [Carrot emoji]: [Dr. Xu, you bought the cat tree and the cat likes it, so I took it with me.] Xiao Man [Carrot emoji]: [Please accept this money.] Xiao Man [Carrot emoji]: [I don’t know if it’s enough, let me know if it isn’t.]

Looking at the transfer notification, Xu Jingmo’s heart felt a dull ache. This Rabbit knew exactly how to stab him in the heart.

Lnk: [Where did you move to?] Lnk: [I was at work just now.]

No reply. Xu Jingmo dialed Chen Kongqing’s number. No answer. He sighed at the automated prompt.

Chen Kongqing wasn’t ignoring the call on purpose; he was genuinely busy. The rented room was very small—just a simple bed, a desk, and a wardrobe. Luckily, it had a private bathroom. There was no kitchen. He planned to buy a small induction cooker to make simple meals.

Right now, he was setting up the cat’s nest and the cat tree. Once he cleared a corner for the cat, the room felt even smaller. In Dr. Xu’s penthouse, the cat could run wild. Now, his entire apartment was likely smaller than Dr. Xu’s living room.

Chen Kongqing picked up the cat with a sense of guilt. “It’s a bit small, isn’t it? But from now on, you can sleep in your nest or on my bed—you can climb on my bed, just not out the window… Wait for me. Once I get my new scholarship next semester, I’ll find a part-time job. By summer, we’ll move to a bigger place, okay?”

The usually erratic cat was unusually gentle, nuzzling Chen like a soft cake. “Meow~” Chen felt the itch on his chin and a warmth in his chest.

I don’t have nothing, he thought. As for those days living with Dr. Xu, he and the cat would eventually forget.

But for several nights, the cat wouldn’t sleep. It stayed on the cat tree, licking its fur and letting out low meows.

“Are you thinking about him?” Chen Kongqing asked one night. The cat seemed to understand and gave a firm “Meow.”

Chen Kongqing fell silent. It wasn’t just the cat thinking about him. He missed that Earl Grey scent. He missed those phoenix eyes. He buried his head in his blanket, forbidding himself from thinking.

For the next two days, he immersed himself in the lab. Xu Jingmo continued to message him but didn’t accept the 800 Yuan. Chen Kongqing rarely replied because he didn’t know what to say. But he knew he had to say something—properly.

So, on the fifth day of avoiding Dr. Xu, he finally gathered his courage and went to the hospital. Entering the familiar consultation room, he felt the same trepidation as his first visit. Back then, he was worried about describing his condition; now, he was worried about saying goodbye.

He touched the metal door handle. It was cool.

When he stepped inside, Xu Jingmo was at his desk, just like their first meeting, wearing a white coat with a mask covering half his face. Xu Jingmo froze for a moment. In just a few days, the Rabbit had grown thinner. The little weight he had gained seemed to have vanished.

Xu Jingmo gripped his pen, trying to stay calm. “Sit.”

The Rabbit sat down. “I’m here to… end my treatment, Dr. Xu.”

It was hard to say those words. Especially the word “end.”

Xu Jingmo paused and removed his mask. “How have you been? These last few days.”

“Fine… no signs of relapse.” Chen Kongqing felt his condition was truly stable now. Perhaps because he had the cat to hold whenever he felt down, his condition hadn’t flared up despite his poor emotional state.

“Good. Then… just be careful. If it relapses, seek medical help immediately. You can stop the meds. You don’t need to come for follow-ups anymore.” Xu Jingmo stared at the Rabbit he hadn’t seen for days. He wanted to ask things that weren’t medical. But they were in the consultation room.

However, the treatment was over. Soon, Chen Kongqing would no longer be his patient.

Chen Kongqing nodded. He didn’t dare look into Xu’s eyes. He had come to say goodbye, yet he couldn’t even look up. The scent of Earl Grey—orange mixed with fresh lemon—filled his nose. It was the scent he missed so much.

Since Xu Jingmo knew everything about his condition, there was nothing left to discuss.

Chen Kongqing stood up stiffly. Supported by a sudden burst of courage, he looked up and met Xu Jingmo’s gaze. He smiled, though it was a bittersweet, difficult smile. “Goodbye, Dr. Xu.”

He turned and left without a second thought. But the moment his back was turned, his eyes turned red.

Xu Jingmo suddenly understood why the Rabbit was so sad. The Rabbit thought the end of the treatment meant the end of everything. But for Xu Jingmo, the end of the treatment was the beginning. A beginning free of professional boundaries.

…

Chen Kongqing didn’t know how he made it to the lobby. Just like his first visit, it was raining. The winter rain was cold, like flowing ice. He looked up and sighed into the gray sky. Since meeting Dr. Xu, he had forgotten to check the weather or carry an umbrella. On rainy days, Dr. Xu always picked him up, saying it was “on the way.” He had gotten used to a life without getting rained on.

If I get soaked once, I’ll remember, he thought. He stepped out into the rain.

“It’s raining hard.”

A familiar voice came from behind him. The man was panting, as if he had run. “You’ll catch a cold.”

Chen Kongqing stopped.

“Let me drive you, okay?” Xu Jingmo stepped forward, his breathing ragged. He had taken off his white coat and was in his usual overcoat. His face was slightly flushed from running, and his nose was red from the wind.

Chen Kongqing stared into those phoenix eyes, wanting to memorize them one last time. “Thank you, Dr. Xu. You are a very, very good doctor.”

That was Chen Kongqing’s farewell speech.

Xu Jingmo met his gaze directly, his Adam’s apple rolling. “Then, can you give me a chance to be a very, very good boyfriend?”

That was Xu Jingmo’s confession.