My Childhood Friend is Secretly in Love with Me - Chapter 6

Oh, You Two Are Having a Secret Affair

Zuo Yi, looking embarrassed, put down his water glass and tried to explain.

Ding Wenxiao said with a straight face, “No need to explain. I understand and respect it. Sometimes I like to drink a bit of air too; it purifies the brain.”

Just as Zuo Yi was about to retort, Qi Yan’s voice came from above. “Who needs to purify their brain?”

“Zuo,” Ding Wenxiao only managed one syllable before Zuo Yi lunged at her, covering her mouth tightly. The rest of her words turned into muffled “Wu wu wu” noises.

Sister Guan Guan watched the interaction between Zuo Yi and Ding Wenxiao with an amused expression. Zuo Yi tilted his head toward her and said, “Quick, sit down. We have already ordered the food.”

Ding Wenxiao’s face flushed bright red. She patted Zuo Yi’s head, gesturing for him to let go. Zuo Yi shot her a fierce glare, warning her not to talk nonsense, but in Guan Guan’s eyes, their behavior seemed heavy with meaning.

Guan Guan leaned in and whispered into Qi Yan’s ear, “They look quite close. Are they a couple?”

Qi Yan’s brow furrowed slightly. He shook his head and whispered back, “The three of us are childhood friends.”

“So what if you are childhood friends?” Guan Guan looked at the bickering pair again. “Childhood sweethearts are such a good match.”

Qi Yan did not respond. From the corner of his eye, Zuo Yi saw them whispering as soon as they sat down, looking very close. His chest felt an uncontrollable tightness.

While waiting for the food, Ding Wenxiao happily took on the role of the ice breaking host. She introduced herself to Guan Guan, “Hello, Senior. My name is Ding Wenxiao, and I am a student in the Acting Department at Jingxi Film Academy.” She then tugged at Zuo Yi beside her. “His name is Zuo Yi. He is at Jingxi Physical Education University, an athlete.”

Guan Guan also gave a formal introduction, “My name is Guan Zhouyi, Astronomy Department at Jingxi University. You can call me Guan Guan.” After that, she waved specifically to Zuo Yi. “Hello, Xiao Yi.”

Zuo Yi gave her a faint smile. “Sister Guan Guan, what a coincidence.” As he spoke, his gaze involuntarily flickered over Qi Yan before settling on Guan Guan.

Unsure of the situation, Ding Wenxiao looked at Zuo Yi with eyes full of curiosity.

“Sister Guan Guan is a friend of my roommate. We met during military training,” Zuo Yi explained.

“Oh, so you and Brother Yan have already met?” Ding Wenxiao was quick to catch the main point.

Qi Yan had been silent until now. Before Zuo Yi could speak, he answered Ding Wenxiao’s question, “We met half a month ago and had lunch together.”

As the dishes began to arrive, Ding Wenxiao pretended to be annoyed and teased, “Oh, you two are having a secret affair. You have hidden it pretty deep.”

Zuo Yi, who had just taken a bite of food, instantly choked and started coughing. Ding Wenxiao certainly had a way with summaries. Qi Yan poured a glass of water and handed it to him. “Eat slowly, no one is going to snatch it from you.”

“You sound like you are coaxing a child. Xiao Yi is a college student now,” Guan Guan said with a laugh.

Singing in harmony, who are they trying to coax like a child? Zuo Yi did not feel like dealing with it and ignored the water Qi Yan offered.

Throughout the meal, Zuo Yi stayed silent, burying his head in his food. Qi Yan was naturally a man of few words, leaving only Ding Wenxiao to talk incessantly to Guan Guan about the three of them when they were kids. She even gestured wildly as she got excited. During the meal, Qi Yan occasionally added food to Zuo Yi’s bowl, even wrapping several pieces of roast duck without scallions for him.

Zuo Yi did not eat a single bite of the food Qi Yan gave him. He moved all the roast duck over to Ding Wenxiao’s bowl, untouched. No one noticed that Qi Yan’s face was growing increasingly dark.

“By the way, I booked a room at a nearby KTV. You guys have time after dinner, right?” Ding Wenxiao nudged Zuo Yi’s arm with her elbow, reminding him to back her up.

Zuo Yi said, “It is still early. If we sing for two hours before heading back, we will still make it before curfew.”

Guan Guan had no objections. Qi Yan checked his phone, hesitated for a moment, and then nodded.

Just then, Zuo Yi’s phone rang. As soon as he answered, Li Zihao’s loud, whining voice came through, “Xiao Yi Yi, where are you? I miss you so much!”

His exaggerated, high pitched tone made one want to punch him. Zuo Yi pulled the phone away in disgust and said to Guan Guan, “It is Li Zihao.”

“Who are you talking to? Xiao Yi Yi?” Li Zihao asked.

Zuo Yi intentionally mimicked Li Zihao’s whining tone. “I am eating with my childhood friends. Sister Guan Guan is here too.”

“Holy crap, is that guy Qi Yan there too?” At the critical moment, Li Zihao was also good at catching the main point.

Zuo Yi dropped the playful tone and asked impatiently, “What is it? Get to the point.”

Li Zihao stopped joking around. “When are you coming back?”

“We are going singing in a bit, so I will be back quite late,” he replied.

Li Zihao was displeased. “Singing? I am so bored. Come back and keep me company right now. Immediately! Instantly!”

Zuo Yi looked at everyone awkwardly and lowered his voice. “I cannot come back right now, brother!”

“Tell your roommate to come sing with us,” Qi Yan said expressionlessly.

For some reason, Zuo Yi felt that Qi Yan sounded a bit unhappy when he said that. Ding Wenxiao got excited. “Yeah, yeah! The more the merrier. Should I call my roommates to come along too?”

“Mm,” Qi Yan responded.

Seeing Zuo Yi’s headache induced expression, Guan Guan snatched his phone away. “What are you barking for? I will send you the location in a bit. Bring the rest of your roommates too.”

On the way to the KTV, Ding Wenxiao called her two roommates. Everyone had similar travel times and arrived at almost the same time.

Ding Wenxiao pulled Zuo Yi aside with a mysterious look, urging him to blindfold Qi Yan. Zuo Yi thought it was childish and was reluctant, but he did as he was told. Near the door of the private room, Zuo Yi quietly circled behind Qi Yan. He reached his arms around, brushing past Qi Yan’s ears, and covered his eyes.

Qi Yan was startled by the sudden movement from behind. The KTV was very noisy. Zuo Yi leaned close to Qi Yan’s ear and soothed him, “Don’t panic, I will lead you.”

Ding Wenxiao pushed open the door and flicked on all the lights. The dim room was instantly flooded with brightness. With her loud shout of “Surprise! Happy Birthday, Brother Yan!” Zuo Yi released his hands from Qi Yan’s eyes.

Before them was a row of large “HAPPY BIRTHDAY” letter balloons, surrounded by photos of the three of them. Photos of the “Iron Triangle” celebrating birthdays together were arranged neatly on the wall according to age.

Besides birthday photos, there were moments of them playing as children: eight year old Zuo Yi crying with a runny nose, Qi Yan chasing Zuo Yi with a rice bowl to feed him, Ding Wenxiao pulling Zuo Yi’s hair while they fought, and the three of them sitting on stone stools in the small courtyard licking popsicles. It was warm and hilarious. There were so many photos of their exclusive memories; it was obvious how much effort the person who prepared this had put in.

Everyone present was stunned. They had not known it was Qi Yan’s birthday today, including Guan Guan. The group began offering birthday wishes, livening up the atmosphere.

Qi Yan’s eyes felt stinging and moist, and Zuo Yi stood frozen in place. Ding Wenxiao felt a surge of emotion and rushed over to give them both a tight hug, shouting, “Are you surprised? Was it unexpected? Do you like it?”

“Surprised, unexpected, and I like it very much,” Qi Yan replied with a smile.

Ding Wenxiao pulled Qi Yan toward the sofa. “Then please, let the birthday boy take his seat!”

Qi Yan was swarmed and seated in the middle, while Ding Wenxiao grabbed the microphone to pick songs. Zuo Yi was still immersed in the shock of the moment. Li Zihao threw an arm around his shoulder, his eyes full of envy. “The three of you have such a great relationship.”

“It is pretty good,” Zuo Yi shrugged, but this was not the relationship he wanted. He wanted it to be even better.

Before long, the different groups were mingling. Zuo Yi was pulled by Li Zihao to play dice. There were three people between him and Qi Yan, so he could not see clearly what Qi Yan was doing.

Guo Jingjing came over with a glass, nudged Li Zihao away, and sat next to Zuo Yi. “Shall we have a drink?”

Zuo Yi was not a strong drinker. He had been losing the games and had already downed several glasses, but he had to accept this drink from Guo Jingjing. He filled his glass and raised it to clink with hers.

Qi Yan reached across the two people between them, intending to take the glass from Zuo Yi’s hand. Zuo Yi followed the movement of his hand, only to see Sister Guan Guan pull Qi Yan back and whisper something in his ear. Qi Yan’s reaching hand paused. Zuo Yi’s gaze instantly turned to ice. He pushed away Qi Yan’s blocking hand and drained the glass in one gulp.

Li Zihao forced himself to sit between Qi Yan and Guan Guan. A seat just happened to open up next to Zuo Yi. He kept drinking glass after glass, not noticing that Qi Yan had already taken that empty seat.

“Stop drinking,” Qi Yan grabbed Zuo Yi’s arm, trying to stop him from pouring more.

Zuo Yi dodged him and leaned close to Qi Yan’s face. “The birthday boy’s wine, shouldn’t I have a few more glasses to catch some of the good luck?” After saying that, he raised his glass and downed it.

Qi Yan helplessly walked out of the room. He went to the smoking area, took a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, pulled one out, and lit it. He leaned against the wall, surrounded by clouds of smoke. After just two puffs, he saw Ding Wenxiao approaching. She took out a long, thin cigarette and said, “Brother Yan, can I borrow a lighter?”

Qi Yan frowned as he handed over the lighter. “When did you learn to smoke?”

Ding Wenxiao lit the cigarette, took a deep drag, and exhaled. “When the pressure is high, this is the only thing that helps. You did not use to smoke either.”

Qi Yan held the cigarette between his long fingers and flicked the ash. “Girls should smoke less.”

Ding Wenxiao gave a couple of clucks of her tongue. “Two years ago, we were sitting in the courtyard holding popsicles. Now it is cigarettes. Things have changed so much.”

Qi Yan took two more puffs, the smoke drifting. “Xiaoxiao, are you and Xiao Yi?”

Ding Wenxiao crushed her cigarette out and laughed, bumping into Qi Yan. “What are you thinking? I have been bros with that brat since we were kids. He is too mischievous.”

“Yeah, very mischievous. Xiaoxiao,” Qi Yan stubbed out his cigarette butt. “What is it, Brother?” Ding Wenxiao asked.

“Send me Xiao Yi’s contact information in a bit.”

Inside the room, everyone was in high spirits. Zuo Yi had watched Qi Yan and Ding Wenxiao leave one after the other. Li Zihao was bothering Guan Guan to play a childish game, and Guo Jingjing occasionally whispered some gossip in his ear, though he was not really listening. He suddenly felt the surroundings were too loud. Annoyed, he downed two more glasses. Just as he was on his third, the glass was suddenly snatched from his hand.

He was about to curse and ask who the hell it was, but when he looked up, it was Qi Yan.

Zuo Yi’s lips curled into a smirk. In the dim, noisy room, fueled by the alcohol, he grabbed Qi Yan’s wrist. Qi Yan was holding his glass, and Zuo Yi looked up, his eyes fixed on his chosen prey like a snake.

This was the person he thought of day and night. This was the source of his motivation for being here. Throughout his entire senior year of high school, Zuo Yi had participated in various city and provincial swimming competitions. Outside of training, he had to study academic subjects desperately with a tutor, memorizing information he had absolutely no interest in. After struggling through countless days and nights, he finally saw the light.

He thought he had reached the shore, but once he arrived, he realized that the person had been moving forward all along, never stopping to wait for him. Just when he thought he was about to catch up, the distance only grew further. It looked like a pursuit, but in reality, he was the only one trapped in place.

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