Kiss you at Sunset (BL) - Chapter 1

October 2018

In October, the capital’s weather fluctuates significantly. It’s a little chilly in the morning and evening, but quite warm around noon. This month is the coolest, but also the most difficult to dress for.

Zhou Shiluo wore a white shirt with three-quarter sleeves, and a black denim jacket was tossed beside him. He sat in the coffee shop, slowly flipping through a magazine. On the surface, he seemed emotionless, but the staff could tell he was getting impatient.

This was the third time the man had gone through the magazine from the start. Since he entered the shop, his gaze would unconsciously drift toward the customer sitting in the corner.

The reason was simple: the customer was exceptionally handsome and exuded a scholarly air. His medium-length hair was tucked behind his ears, accentuating his sharp features. He sat in the corner quietly, like a prince from a fairy tale. It was clear he was waiting for someone, but even when the wait seemed to bother him, he only slightly furrowed his brows before relaxing again, giving off an elegant and refined vibe.

He’s truly a well-mannered person.

After a long inner struggle, the staff finally worked up the courage to approach him for his contact information, but a brief ringtone from the man’s phone caused him to retreat.

Zhou Shiluo quickly picked up the phone, switched it to silent mode, and looked around apologetically.

The coffee shop was a perfect place for a post-meal rest, with only soothing background music playing. It was nearly silent otherwise.

Zhou Shiluo put the magazine down, opened the chat window from the caller just now, and typed: Dog basket, can you hurry up? I’ve been waiting forever!

The reply came quickly: Teacher Zhou, as a teacher of the people, please mind your language.

Zhou Shiluo was about to curse back when the messages from the other side kept coming in.

Wan Liuliu: Damn it, I’m really done with this. The kids in our department are causing trouble again.

Wan Liuliu: I should’ve just come to find you earlier.

Wan Liuliu: One by one they think they can do whatever they want. I won’t say anything about them fighting within the department, but this time, they’re fighting with another department.

Wan Liuliu: The department head just scolded me, what the hell did I do wrong?

Zhou Shiluo, thinking about his friend’s exasperation, felt much better, putting aside the fact that he’d been made to wait for two hours. He replied: Teacher Liu, a kind reminder: as a teacher of the people, please be mindful of your image.

His friend, Liu Linshen, was a classmate from his graduate school years at D University, where both studied film. After graduation, they both entered the education field, though Zhou Shiluo became a teacher at the Film Art Academy, while Liu Linshen, who didn’t like teaching, initially stayed at D University as an arts department counselor. Two months ago, for some inexplicable reason, he was transferred to the Department of Information Engineering.

Recently, when Zhou Shiluo bought a house near the school and needed to buy furniture, Liu Linshen insisted on joining him. So, they had arranged to meet up this afternoon, but then the student fighting incident came up.

Liu Linshen’s messages kept coming: Damn image!!!

Liu Linshen: Where are you? Still at the coffee shop? Just come to my office, you can pick up the books you left here last time, they’re heavy as hell.

Zhou Shiluo stared at the long series of messages, wanting to just turn off his phone and go home, but he resisted and typed: Lazy as hell, huh?

After sending it, he stood up and walked toward the door. As he passed the counter, he suddenly remembered that the staff had wanted to tell him something, so he stopped, walked over, and politely asked, ”Excuse me, was there something you needed>“

The staff member looked startled, clearly not expecting him to come back and speak to them. They forgot about asking for his contact information and stammered, “No… no, it’s just a reminder that there are other customers resting, so it’s better to keep your phone volume low.”

“Sorry, I’ll keep that in mind next time,” Zhou Shiluo smiled slightly, calmly accepting the staff member’s reminder and apologizing for his actions.

The coffee shop wasn’t far from D University, and Zhou Shiluo guessed that Liu Linshen was still dealing with the fight, so he wasn’t in a hurry. He took his time walking toward the teaching building where the Department of Information Engineering was located.

There were small groups of girls chatting in the building, softly discussing the fight that had happened earlier. Zhou Shiluo couldn’t hear them clearly, but he roughly guessed the cause—apparently, two boys had a dispute over a girl and ended up fighting.

Zhou Shiluo chuckled softly to himself as he bypassed the crowd and made his way up to the fourth floor. He didn’t often come to the Information Engineering Department, but he remembered clearly where the counselor’s office was.

He knocked on the door, but there was no response. The person was probably still being scolded in the office.

Zhou Shiluo was about to wander around nearby but, for some inexplicable reason, tried the door handle. It opened.

After hesitating for a moment, he decided to go inside and wait.

Zhou Shiluo paced around the room twice and, out of boredom, pulled out the books he had left here earlier.

He didn’t wait too long—about ten minutes later, he could hear Liu Linshen’s increasingly clear scolding and the sound of footsteps.

Liu Linshen entered with a dark expression, but when he saw Zhou Shiluo, he didn’t seem surprised. He just said, “Wait another ten minutes.”

Then, he yelled at the door, “Hurry up and come in!”

Zhou Shiluo wanted to laugh at his friend’s unfortunate appearance, but he held it in. He had to leave some dignity for his friend in front of the students. He could tease him afterward.

Just as his thoughts were interrupted, someone entered the room.

Expecting some gossip, Zhou Shiluo glanced up, but the next second, he unexpectedly met a familiar gaze. His heart sank, and he froze, a single thought running through his mind:

How is he here?

They locked eyes. The person’s face was expressionless, and his dark, shining eyes seemed to dull with disdain the moment he saw Zhou Shiluo. But then he quickly turned away, as if he had just casually glanced at a stranger.

Zhou Shiluo felt nailed to the spot. The cold attitude made him deceive himself into thinking it was just someone who looked like the person from two years ago, since the other had been admitted to D University even before the results were announced that year.

Before his thoughts could settle, Liu Linshen’s scolding voice echoed: “Yang Jin, how old are you? Why can’t you solve things without using your fists?”

Hearing his friend’s name made Zhou Shiluo, who had been holding onto a shred of hope, fall into the pit.

It was really him—Yang Jin.

But the familiar name, the familiar face, made him feel strangely distant.

Zhou Shiluo guessed that Yang Jin hadn’t recognized him yet, as he had changed quite a bit in the past two years, especially with his long hair now.

Once he had that thought, Zhou Shiluo felt a little calmer. He lowered his head and quietly walked toward the sofa, trying to hide his features with his bangs.

The events of two years ago suddenly flashed through his mind. He hadn’t been prepared to meet Yang Jin again.

Liu Linshen continued scolding him, from school matters to family, and finally bringing up relationships, trying to awaken the basic conscience of this good student.

Zhou Shiluo fidgeted, his heart anxious and chaotic.

After more than ten minutes of criticism, Liu Linshen finally seemed to ease up: “Alright, go back and think about what you’ve done. You can’t be so reckless next time.”

“Goodbye, Teacher Liu,” Yang Jin seemed to have been waiting for this sentence, saying it immediately after Liu Linshen finished speaking. Then he turned to Zhou Shiluo, who was lounging on the sofa. His expression was equally blank, but his voice was colder, “Goodbye, Teacher Zhou.”

Then he turned and walked away without looking back.

Zhou Shiluo, who had just relaxed, suddenly tensed up again. Yang Jin’s seemingly casual farewell was actually a reminder: Don’t hide, I saw you.

Zhou Shiluo froze in place, his face darkened and ugly. What he had thought was a perfect disguise had already been seen through. It was so ridiculous, almost laughable.

Liu Linshen didn’t notice anything wrong with his friend. Instead, he was amused by Yang Jin’s actions and reflexively cursed, “That little bastard.”

Only after a moment did he realize something was off. He looked at Zhou Shiluo and asked in confusion, “Wait a second, how does he know your last name is Zhou? Do you two know each other?”

Zhou Shiluo stood frozen, his gaze still fixed on the direction Yang Jin had left. His hands hung weakly at his sides, feeling as if a heavy stone was pressing down on his chest, making it hard to breathe.

He and Yang Jin didn’t just know each other—they had once slept together.