Aki Apricot Juvenile - Chapter 15

Jiang Ji stormed out after Meng Li, his footsteps quick and heavy. “Meng Li, wait! What did you mean by that?”

He caught up and grabbed Meng Li’s arm, but Meng Li shook him off violently.

“I mean,” Meng Li’s breath came rough and fast, eyes bloodshot as he glared at him, “you don’t deserve to stay by Xingyou’s side.”

“What are you talking about?” Jiang Ji asked, momentarily dazed by the seriousness in Meng Li’s expression.

Meng Li forced himself to calm down a little. “Come with me.” Without waiting for an answer, he turned and pulled Jiang Ji toward his car.

“Where are we going?” Jiang Ji asked.

“My place. Xingyou’s there.” Meng Li’s tone was cold, though his eyes shimmered with tears that refused to fall. “There are things you need to know. If you still love Xingyou, I believe you’ll make the right decision.”

At Meng Li’s apartment

When Jiang Ji stepped inside, the first thing he saw was chaos. Even though Meng Li had tried to tidy up, it was obvious there had been a struggle or something worse.

“What’s this supposed to mean? Where’s Xingyou?” Jiang Ji demanded, his voice icy.

Meng Li gave a dry laugh. “Stop asking stupid questions.” He shot Jiang Ji a contemptuous look, then picked up a folder from the coffee table. “Here. See for yourself.”

He tossed it at Jiang Ji and turned away toward the balcony, lighting a cigarette.

Jiang Ji sat on the couch and opened the folder. It was Xingyou’s medical file. As he read, his expression grew darker and darker until finally he set it down, face pale, one hand covering his eyes.

“This can’t be real,” he whispered hoarsely. “He’s fine he laughs, he cries, he talks, he dances. He’s smarter than anyone I know, stronger than anyone I’ve ever met. He’s the person I love most.” His voice cracked, and he took a deep breath to steady himself before joining Meng Li on the balcony. Both men smoked in silence, one cigarette after another, but nothing could dull the ache in their chests.

“What are you going to do now?” Meng Li asked, brow furrowed, exhaling a thin stream of smoke.

“I don’t know.”

Meng Li suddenly threw down his cigarette, grabbed Jiang Ji by the collar, and snarled, “What the hell do you even know? You’ve never cared about Xingyou, have you? You just stood there pretending! Look at you don’t you see what kind of scum you are?”

“Hey, what are you two doing?”

Both men froze. Xingyou’s voice came from behind them.

“We…” Meng Li released Jiang Ji’s collar. Jiang Ji stood there speechless.

“Jiang Ji, why are you here?” Xingyou’s voice trembled as he leaned weakly against the wall, his face pale and shadowed. “Didn’t you say you were busy?”

He pushed himself off the wall, step by step, toward them. “What are you hiding from me? What else haven’t you told me? Speak!” His eyes were sharp and accusing.

Meng Li shot Jiang Ji a warning glance he could tell Xingyou was having another episode.

“Heh… hehehe…” Xingyou’s laughter was eerie, echoing through the tense air. He tilted his head, eyes glinting darkly. “Jiang Ji, do you love me?”

“I do,” Jiang Ji said, moving closer.

“Then go die.”

Before Jiang Ji could react, Xingyou swung his left hand there was a knife in it. The blade slashed toward him.

“Xingyou, no!” Meng Li lunged forward. The knife cut into Jiang Ji’s arm, and Meng Li managed to wrestle it out of Xingyou’s hand. Jiang Ji held Xingyou down, panicked.

“Do you have any medicine? Hurry!”

“Yes—just a second!” Meng Li ran into the room and came back with a medical kit. He quickly prepared a sedative and injected it into Xingyou.

Moments later, the body beneath Jiang Ji’s hands went still.

“Xingyou? Xingyou!” Jiang Ji shook him desperately.

“He’s asleep,” Meng Li said, wiping sweat from his brow. “I don’t know when he woke up this time. Every episode ends like this we have to use a sedative. When he wakes, he needs to take his medication immediately, or it’ll happen again. We can’t take this lightly it’s too dangerous.”

At the clinic

After Xingyou fell asleep, Meng Li carried him into the bedroom. The two agreed to take turns watching over him. Since Jiang Ji was injured, Meng Li insisted he go to a nearby clinic for treatment first.

As Jiang Ji was leaving the clinic, wrapping his bandaged arm, his phone started ringing. The screen showed Yan Yue’s name. He hesitated, thinking of ignoring it, but eventually answered.

“Hello?”

“Where are you?” Yan Yue’s voice sounded tired, though Jiang Ji’s didn’t sound much better.

“I’m at Meng Li’s place. What is it?” He sighed heavily before replying.

“Nothing serious. You still had a fever earlier, remember? I just wanted to check on you.” Her voice was gentle, concerned.

“I’m fine. It’s better now. Thanks.”

“Okay… then I’ll let you rest.” She must have sensed his impatience, because she quickly hung up.

When Jiang Ji returned, Xingyou was still asleep. Meng Li looked utterly exhausted, so Jiang Ji told him to rest and took over the watch. Sitting by the bed, he gazed at Xingyou’s familiar face, peaceful in sleep.

A heavy guilt settled in his chest. He felt like he’d ruined Xingyou’s life and even if he spent his whole lifetime making amends, he wasn’t sure it would ever be enough.

But perhaps… time wouldn’t let him try.