To My Pretender [BL]

[2] - Meeting the Crude Man

"I don't have a job."

Everyone raised their brows, and even those who were chatting and drinking tried to listen to their conversation.

"So, are you currently taking a break, or did you recently get fired?"

One interrupted, "Hey, what are you saying? There's no way Wu Jie will get fired. He's just joking right now, aren't you?"

It's been one year since he stopped working. He barely survived his old workplace without letting his inner thoughts disrupt him. Disorder. Turmoil. Degradation.

Due to the cumulation of the unforeseen misfortunes throughout his life working at that place, the agonies that he suffered night after night finally formed into a hell composed of infinite tortures, and he could no longer work like a functional human being.

Above all, the reason why he returned to Shanghai was that he was running away once again.

A cure, he would call it.

"No," Wu Jie responded, taking a shot of the drink on the table. "I just don't have a job at all."

This was another reason why Wu Jie didn't want to see all the people of the past so suddenly. He knew they would throw him questions, and he wouldn't know how to answer them. Yet, he also thought it would help him if he stopped running away for once. Maybe he could survive this night after all.

But what if someone here knew about the things he was involved in? What if someone here was aware of the rumours that surrounded him? This thought kept circling his mind, and it ruined his attempt at relaxing.

"Then, what have you been doing?"

"I've just been travelling here and there. There's nothing that interesting," Wu Jie responded in a usual soft tone.

His voice was always soothing to hear and quiet, though it wasn't quiet in the way he would need to keep repeating his words. It could be described as warm, to the point you would want to keep talking to him and hear him speak too as he listened to you talk about your day with a gentle smile.

*RINGG*

Just when a few others were going to start with the questions, the bell from the restaurant door rang as a new arrival came towards their table.

People turned around to see who it was, and their eyes widened when they identified the new figure.

Some started greeting the man who strolled in while the majority started pulling faces of distaste.

The women sitting at the table were drawn by his tall stature and attractive appearance. 

"Is that really him?" someone whispered.

"Look at those arms..."

"Doesn't he look like a celebrity? That can't be him."

Indeed, it was the infamous student of S High School, Shen Xiaoyun. Wu Jie examined the entrance of that familiar man.

He wore a thin, black turtleneck, holding onto his coat by hanging it over his forearm. Before, others never found any attraction towards Shen Xiaoyun due to his delinquent-like behaviour and average looks, but now they couldn't deny he was certainly handsome.

They were drawn to his finely-curved scarlet lips that didn't smile even now, combined with his hazel eyes and curled scruffy black hair. When his sharp eyes, which appeared to be so vague and colourless as if all warm tone had been washed down a creek, briefly brushed past others, they were immediately stunned with a curious instinct of both fascination and terror. 

"Shen Xiaoyun, come sit here," a man, known to be Shen Xiaoyun's closest friend, called.

Although he wore a turtleneck, parts of his sleeve tattoo can still be seen, leading up to the end of his arm though not all was revealed because of his sleeves.

When Shen Xiaoyun walked in, Wu Jie noticed Chen Yichun's smile immediately distorting, as if someone repulsive had stepped in.

Shen Xiaoyun was known for his nasty attitude and was always caught doing weird things in school. One time he was cold, so he started a fire by burning textbooks. Another time where he punched a student because they were blocking the hallway. Another time, he got caught by a teacher at a club. There were more infamous stories about him, which led to many rumours sprouting from here and there.

When Shen Xiaoyun settled down on the opposite side of Wu Jie, though he was a few seats away, people started chatting once again.

⋆✬❍◐⬤◑❍✬⋆

Half an hour passed, and they finally stopped asking Wu Jie questions.

"I can't believe you're working at such a large hospital," a woman said to Chen Yichun. "I don't think anyone here has that much dedication to study for that long. If it was me, I probably would've given up after a year or two into studying."

Chen Yichun responded, "Stop it, you're flattering me."

Chen Yichun worked as a surgical assistant in a well-known hospital which naturally made people envious of his position. He was probably the only person who studied for so long and ended up having a successful and stable job with many great achievements. Yet, despite Chen Yichun's humble attitude, there was strangely a condescending ego lingering behind his shining eyes.

"Sadly, I can't drink that much tonight since I have a morning shift tomorrow. I wouldn't want to see my patients all hungover," Chen Yichun said, and glanced next to him, allowing hints of deceit to glimpse through his smile. "Well, enough about me. What about you, Shen Xiaoyun? We haven't seen you in a long time, too. You usually never come to these sorts of events."

Upon hearing his name called, Shen Xiaoyun glanced over to their side with eyes riddled with distaste, as if he was annoyed just by hearing that shrilling voice. As if the two men were communicating with their glares, no one dared interrupt them.

"...Hey, did he really need to come? He's ruining the mood," a man whispered.

"Didn't he used to bully Wu Jie back then? I wonder if Wu Jie is feeling uncomfortable."

"He didn't bully Wu Jie. I mean... Shen Xiaoyun was mean to everyone. He never comes to these events, so why is he here now?"

"If I remember correctly, Shen Xiaoyun was always teasing Wu Jie back then," Chen Yichun commented.

Finally, Shen Xiaoyun spoke in the most repulsive tone:

"Why are you acting close to me? It's gross."

Chen Yichun's lips parted. Wu Jie too, raised his brows and looked over. Just hearing that voice and being around Shen Xiaoyun forced a wave of uneasiness to creep up people's spine.

He was as antagonistic and honest as always. Though it was somewhat refreshing amongst all these superficial people that pretended to be humble.