Chapter 21

The next day.

Yu family villa.

After finishing his morning routine, Yu An went downstairs, intending to head straight to the theater.

As he passed through the living room, Yu You called out, “Yu An, aren’t you going to eat breakfast?”

Yu An glanced over. “No need.”

Yu Qing also came downstairs, followed by their mother, who handed him a cup of water and some washed fruit. “You’re going to the teacher’s place, remember to drink plenty of water. I’ll make you a strawberry cake for lunch when you come home.”

Yu Qing obediently replied, “Okay.”

Yu An didn’t linger but headed toward the door, only to be caught up by their mother. “Wait, I prepared some fruit and warm water for you too.”

Looking at his gentle mother, Yu An’s eyes widened momentarily. Seeing the bag filled with fruit and warm water, he hesitated before accepting it and softly said, “Thank you...”

A barely audible “Mom” came from behind. In an instant, Yu An heard their mother ask him, “I seem to have forgotten your name again.”

Yu An’s breath caught.

Yu You, sitting at the dining table, stood and approached them.

He looked at their mother, opened his mouth as if to say something, but then saw Yu An’s eyebrows lift and a warm smile spread over his face as he said gently to their mother, “It’s okay.”

He took the bag politely. “Thank you, Mrs. Yu.”

Yu Qing’s clenched fists suddenly relaxed.

Yu You’s face tightened, and with a tone both helpless and heavy, he called out, “Mom, his name is Yu An.”

Then he looked at Yu An. “I’ll take you to the theater.”

It was getting late. Yu An agreed and followed Yu You outside, unaware of the stunned expression on their mother’s face upon hearing the name “Yu An.”

Yu Qing stepped forward, slipping his arm into their mother’s, and coquettishly said, “Mom, I’m off to class now.”

Their mother came back to herself and replied, “Okay.”

Yu Qing glanced at Yu An’s retreating figure, about to quicken his pace to catch up, but their mother called out, “An An, you forgot to take the costume I made for you.”

Hearing this, Yu An unconsciously grasped the hem of his shirt. Feeling the soft fabric, he gently touched it again and thought of Teacher Yu, smiling faintly.

Behind him, their mother continued chatting with Yu Qing. “Good thing Mom remembered.”

Yu Qing’s tone was light and grateful. “Thanks, Mom.”

Yu An quickened his steps, and the voices behind him grew faint.

Shortly after getting into the car, Yu Qing ran up as well and, just as he climbed in, heard Yu You say, “Today, the driver will take you.”

Yu Qing froze, glanced at the quietly sitting Yu You, and bit his lip awkwardly.

Yu You resembled their father, with sharp, cold features. When his face hardened, his features became even more severe.

Yu Qing had no choice but to get out and watch as Yu You drove away.

In the car.

Yu You kept glancing at the rearview mirror, observing Yu An’s expression.

Only now did he realize that once Yu An stopped approaching him willingly, he himself didn’t know how to interact with him or how to be a brother.

After pondering for a long time, when they arrived at the theater, he finally forced out, “When do you finish work?”

Yu An was momentarily stunned before answering, “Five o’clock.”

“I’ll come pick you up at the theater at five,” Yu You said stiffly, clearly uncomfortable with this arrangement.

Yu An shook his head. “No need.”

Yu You frowned. “Why? How will you get back? Taxi?”

Thinking about taking a taxi, Yu An hesitated, then said, “Not today. Maybe later.”

That was better than a flat refusal, so Yu You relaxed somewhat. “Alright.”

Looking at Yu An’s delicate features, which hadn’t changed much since childhood, his chest tightened, and he suddenly wanted to treat Yu An well.

Yu You wanted to say more, but Yu An closed the car door and left.

Watching his retreating back, so different from the way he used to turn around excitedly to see if Yu You was still there, a sense of helplessness surged within him.

But thinking of Yu An’s “later” just now, he breathed easier.

There would be many “laters”—no rush.

Yu You looked toward the theater. Yu An’s figure had completely disappeared before he drove off to the company.

—

The theater spent the entire morning training. Teacher Su Su meticulously refined every detail until each movement was perfect.

Afterward, Yu An went to the small villa.

This time, instead of ringing the doorbell, he took out the key that Yu Ling had long given him and unlocked the main door.

Upon entering, he was greeted by a rich aroma of cooked food.

Ping Ping, who hadn’t seen him for a whole evening, quickly rushed into his arms.

Yu An hadn’t even changed his shoes yet when a furry bundle appeared in his hands. He smiled and said, “Ping Ping, did you miss me?”

Ping Ping meowed softly.

Usually quiet and rarely vocal, even the occasional meow was rare from Ping Ping. It only wagged its tail when happy, and when it wanted something, it would stare with those big, moist eyes.

This time, however, after meowing once, it buried its head in Yu An’s arms and kept meowing continuously.

Yu An decided not to put on slippers. Sitting on the floor, he played with Ping Ping for quite a while.

His body completely relaxed, he smiled at Ping Ping, “Have you gotten fat? You feel heavier.”

Ping Ping stopped meowing, jumped out of Yu An’s arms, rubbed against his legs in a sticky circle, then left.

Yu Ling had long known Yu An was home, sitting at the dining table watching them play.

When Ping Ping left, Yu An finally stood and went to eat.

After dinner, Yu An went upstairs for a nap, then headed to the theater to focus on training.

At five in the afternoon, he practiced a bit more before going to the opera hall.

At eight thirty in the evening, the teachers at the opera hall left one by one. Qi Lin hurried over and asked him, “Mr. Gu probably isn’t coming today, right?”

Yu An saw the anxious look on his face and said, “If you have things to do, you can leave first. I’ll close up.”

Qi Lin hesitated briefly, then sincerely thanked him. “Thanks, Teacher Yu. My child is sick at home, so I have to rush to the hospital. I’ll leave this to you.”

Yu An nodded and watched him leave.

At nine, Yu An opened Gu Yuzhou’s WeChat page, tapped the keyboard hesitantly, then turned off his phone screen and got up to leave.

Stepping out of the opera hall, he had just set foot on the water bridge when he saw a figure approaching from the other end.

Yu An stopped, waited for the person to come closer, then smiled and called out, “Mr. Gu.”

Gu Yuzhou looked at him. “Am I late?”

Yu An shook his head. “Not late.”

His eyes curved. “Last time I promised to treat you to an opera, so today I won’t charge you.”

Gu Yuzhou’s dark eyes reflected the smile on the young man’s face. He nodded. “Alright.”

They entered the opera hall. There was no one inside, so this time Yu An mainly sang unaccompanied.

The equipment was simple, but he still asked Gu Yuzhou to wait outside while he went to the dressing room at the back to change into a simple costume.

Sitting outside, Gu Yuzhou frowned at the somewhat dim corridor.

He stood and sent a message to his assistant, then stepped into the dressing room, his gaze fixed on the young man.

Yu An had changed into a reddish costume and was sitting in front of the mirror, shaping his eyebrows. His exposed neck was slender and pale, his ears delicate and clear.

Gu Yuzhou suppressed the urge to smoke.

Seeing Yu An erase and redo his eyebrows for the third time, he stepped forward, took the eyebrow pencil from Yu An’s hand, bent over, and gently drew on the young man’s face.

Yu An was a little shocked and widened his eyes. “Mr. Gu?”

“Mm, don’t move,” the man’s low voice came from above.

Though they were not close, Yu An could smell a faint, fresh scent from him. Feeling the pencil brush softly across his skin, he felt a slight tickle.

He asked, “Mr. Gu, how do you know how to do eyebrows?”

Gu Yuzhou’s actions were gentlemanly, his tone gentle. “My mother likes opera and I occasionally help her with makeup.”

When he finished the last stroke, he stood, looked at the young man, and said, “All done.”

Yu An finally looked up at Gu Yuzhou. Their gazes met for a few seconds before he turned his eyes to the mirror.

He reached out and touched his brow. “You did a great job.”

As he spoke, his eyes drifted back to Gu Yuzhou’s reflection in the mirror.

—

After the performance, Gu Yuzhou gave him a ride back to the Yu family villa. This time, the driver was behind the wheel.

On the way.

Yu An and Gu Yuzhou sat together in the back seat, silent the entire trip.

When they arrived outside the Yu villa, Gu Yuzhou said, “If you need anything, you can call me.”

Yu An nodded but didn’t get out immediately. Instead, he asked, “Mr. Gu, are you wearing cologne?”

“No,” Gu Yuzhou’s brow twitched. “Why?”

“Nothing,” Yu An smiled softly. “You smell really nice.”

After speaking, he quickly got out and walked toward the villa, leaving the car quiet.

Gu Yuzhou stood there for a long moment before letting out a soft laugh.