Chapter 60: Mountain Rain

Chapter 60: Mountain Rain

This caught Zhao Yu completely off guard. He'd been in touch with Zhuang Shubai pretty often lately—they were basically friends.

He knew Zhuang Shubai's character well—easygoing and composed, with a good temper and solid morals, unlike anyone he'd ever known.

When Zhuang Shubai overheard him threatening the Fatty, he felt awkward for a second: "Dr. Zhuang, you... heard all that?"

Zhuang Shubai hadn't just heard it—he'd seen it too. When Zhao Yu clamped his hand over the Fatty's mouth and nose, nearly suffocating him, Zhuang Shubai had almost stepped in to stop him.

Luckily, the Fatty had decent lung capacity, so nothing serious happened, and Zhuang Shubai held back.

Zhuang Shubai didn't approve of Zhao Yu's risky approach, but he didn't lecture him. Instead, he just asked, "Why did you do that?"

Zhao Yu said, "He was trying to bully me, so I gave him a little taste of his own medicine. I wasn't gonna actually hurt him—just scare him."

Zhao Yu wasn't sure how Zhuang Shubai would react. If this disgusted him, they might never talk again. But he really wanted to keep Zhuang Shubai as a friend.

"He was bullying you at work?"

"Yeah, he's messed with my seasoning container a bunch of times."

"Yeah, he deserves a lesson."

Zhao Yu saw the smile on Zhuang Shubai's face and breathed a sigh of relief: "I thought you were gonna call the cops on me."

Zhuang Shubai laughed: "It's not that serious. How you getting home? Want a ride?"

"I biked here," Zhao Yu said. "What are you doing here?"

"Didn't we agree to night-hike to watch the sunrise?"

They'd planned a few days ago to climb the mountain together and catch the sunrise. Turns out Zhao Yu had the next day off, and Zhuang Shubai was free too.

Zhao Yu said, "I thought we were meeting at the base of the mountain."

"I didn't have much going on tonight, so I figured I'd swing by."

"Dr. Zhuang, that's not exactly on your way, is it?" Zhao Yu raised an eyebrow.

When Zhao Yu called him out on it, Zhuang Shubai was a bit surprised, wondering if he'd noticed something. But then Zhao Yu continued, "You just really love hiking, I get it. You can't sit still when you're excited about something."

Zhao Yu's guess was way off base, so Zhuang Shubai just smiled: "That's right."

"I need to ride my bike back. Dr. Zhuang, I'll wait for you downstairs."

Zhao Yu waved and went to grab his bike. Zhuang Shubai watched him ride that black beast out of the lot, the night wind lifting his shirt to flash a sliver of his lean waist, the red taillight streaking a long line before vanishing in an instant.

Zhuang Shubai wanted to see more of that lively side of Zhao Yu—a little sly when threatening the Fatty, a little cocky when riding off. The more he learned, the more sides of Zhao Yu he saw, the more he liked him.

Zhao Yu went home, parked his bike, changed, and got into Zhuang Shubai's car.

It was only midnight when they reached the plaza at the base of the mountain. There weren't many night hikers, and the trail was pretty off the beaten path.

From the base to the summit, it'd take about three hours tops. Zhao Yu stretched and followed Zhuang Shubai up the path.

Flashlight beams bobbed along the forest path. The two chatted casually, with Zhao Yu mostly listening to Zhuang Shubai talk about the crazy cases in the ER—more entertaining than any storybook. Zhao Yu was totally into it when he caught his toe on a step and nearly tripped.

Zhuang Shubai grabbed him and asked, "You okay? Your feet?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine."

Zhao Yu looked up just as Zhuang Shubai looked down, the flashlight beam flickering between them, their faces flashing in and out of the light.

Their breath briefly mingled. Zhao Yu could almost see the shadow of Zhuang Shubai's distinct lashes sweep across his face as the light passed. He caught a faint woody scent—like pine, or maybe oak.

Suddenly, he thought of another, more aggressive scent—cold, the kind that would swallow you whole if you got close.

He jerked back, losing his composure for a split second in front of Zhuang Shubai.

They smelled completely different, yet he'd thought of Gu Hansheng.

Zhao Yu quickly turned his head, dodging the flashlight beam, hiding his face in the dark.

"What's wrong?" Zhuang Shubai asked.

"Mosquito." Zhao Yu scratched his neck, and by the time he turned back, he'd already pulled himself together. He pulled out mosquito repellent from his bag, dabbed it on his collar, and asked, "Dr. Zhuang, do you want some?"

"No need."

The little incident was no big deal. They kept climbing and reached the summit at three-thirty.

There was still an hour and a half before sunrise. From the summit, they could see the chains of streetlights and the city lights still burning below.

Everything was silent, with just a gentle breeze and the bright moon hanging high in the night sky. It was all so peaceful and calming.

Zhuang Shubai spread a waterproof camping blanket on the ground, and they sat side by side. Zhao Yu yawned, lay back, and stared up at the stars. "Dr. Zhuang, we really have a connection. When we first met, I never would've guessed we'd end up as friends."

Zhuang Shubai turned to look at him. "I did."

Zhao Yu laughed out loud: "Really? I must've been all banged up back then, right? You could stand to look at me looking that ugly?"

"Not ugly." Zhuang Shubai asked, "Who hit you back then?"

"My dad. But I got him sent to prison not long after."

"Will he come after you when he gets out?"

"He's in the States, I'm in China. He doesn't know where I am—can't find me."

Zhao Yu lay with his arms behind his head. Bringing up Zhao Lianfeng made him uneasy. Even though he wasn't the helpless kid he used to be, the shadow Zhao Lianfeng had cast over him was too deep to ever fully shake.

Zhuang Shubai had talked with him many times and finally touched on his past. He wanted to dig deeper into the root of Zhao Yu's claustrophobia, but saw his eyes were already closed.

This couldn't be rushed. Zhuang Shubai decided to take it slow, backing off when Zhao Yu didn't want to talk.

Zhao Yu fell asleep the second his eyes closed, his chest rising and falling steadily.

Zhuang Shubai gently slid his arm out from under Zhao Yu's head so it wouldn't go numb from poor circulation.

He cradled Zhao Yu's head and set it down gently, but his hand lingered, not pulling back. He left it there as a cushion for Zhao Yu. With one glance down, he could see Zhao Yu's face clearly, and with one reach, he could pull Zhao Yu into his arms.

Zhuang Shubai was a gentleman, sure, but his love wasn't platonic. It was just that his upbringing kept his desires in check, constantly reminding him to respect Zhao Yu's wishes. So he kept proper boundaries, moving step by step from doctor-patient to friends.

But when Zhao Yu was asleep, with faint moonlight filtering through the trees falling on his face, Zhuang Shubai looked at his defenseless expression and couldn't help but lean down.

A kiss that never landed, hovering just inches from Zhao Yu.

He almost kissed him, but barely held back, refusing to let his desire take over.

Maybe sensing something, Zhao Yu blinked awake, groggy, and saw Zhuang Shubai's face pulling away.

"Is the sun rising?" Zhao Yu asked.

"Not yet," Zhuang Shubai said. "Go back to sleep. I'll wake you when it's almost sunrise."

An hour later, the sky started to lighten, but unlike the forecast said, the clear sky began clouding over, and before long it started to rain.

They never got to see the sunrise. Zhuang Shubai woke Zhao Yu to head back down, but the rain suddenly came down harder.

They pulled the waterproof blanket over their heads and huddled under it together.

Rain hammered the waterproof blanket with a crackling sound, and splashing water soaked their shoes and the cuffs of their pants.

Zhao Yu noticed Zhuang Shubai's shoulder was soaked, so he pulled the blanket's other corner toward him and scooted closer.

A loud shout rang out from the mountain path in the distance: "Oh my god! Where did this rain come from?!"

They both cracked up, their heads almost knocking together in the cramped space under the blanket. Even though they were soaked, they felt surprisingly cheerful.

The rain didn't last long. Soon the clouds broke apart, and sunlight cut through the gaps. The mountain stayed cool even in summer, and the little puddles on the stone steps were perfectly clear.

As they headed down the mountain, Zhuang Shubai said, "Xiao Yu, look up."

Zhao Yu looked up and saw the Tyndall effect as sunlight hit the sea of clouds. Birds chirped crisply in the morning mountain air, and everything felt alive.

"Dr. Zhuang, let's come back to see the sunrise next time," Zhao Yu said.

Zhuang Shubai watched his profile as he looked up, those bright dark eyes mirroring the leaves and sky. Zhuang Shubai smiled. "Sure."

Zhuang Shubai drove them back. Zhao Yu felt a little bad about it and made a mental note to swap his U.S. license for a Chinese one as soon as he got home, so he could take turns driving with Zhuang Shubai on future trips.

When they got to Zhao Yu's place, Zhao Yu said, "Dr. Zhuang, why don't you come up and change into some dry clothes? I can whip up some breakfast while you're at it."

Zhuang Shubai gladly agreed.

Upstairs, Zhao Yu dug around and found a brand-new white T-shirt, then told Zhuang Shubai to go take a hot shower.

When it was raining, Zhuang Shubai had kept Zhao Yu completely covered with the blanket, and half his own clothes got soaked—Zhao Yu saw all of it.

By the time they got back, his clothes had mostly dried from body heat, but his hands were still cold. Zhao Yu sliced some ginger and made him some ginger soup. By the time he got out of the shower, the soup was ready.

"The soup is still a bit hot, so give it a minute before you drink it," Zhao Yu said, then brought out two ceramic plates. "I didn't know what you liked, so I made a sandwich and macaroni."

The bread was lightly toasted with a slight char, filled with ham, bacon, eggs, and a few of the tenderest lettuce leaves.

Zhao Yu asked, "Do you like spicy, sweet-spicy, or sweet-and-sour?"

"Sweet-spicy."

"OK."

Zhao Yu mixed the sauce right there, picked up a slice of bread, brushed it over the ham, then set half a cherry tomato on the plate and drizzled a few drops of the orange-red sauce on top.

Zhuang Shubai teased, "You plate your breakfast even at home?"

"Just a habit. If it doesn't look good, Gu—"

The name almost slipped out, and Zhao Yu immediately fell silent.

He always plated Gu Hansheng's breakfast. That man was picky—if what was served didn't look good, he wouldn't eat it no matter how good it tasted.

"What?" Zhuang Shubai asked.

"Nothing. Just a chef's habit."

A black Maybach was parked in the shade not far away. Gu Hansheng stood by the car smoking, planning to finish his cigarette and then go upstairs to find someone.

Suddenly, he saw Zhao Yu walk out, with another man following beside him.

Last time at the hospital entrance, Zhuang Shubai had cut in and taken Zhao Yu away, and Gu Hansheng had remembered that face.