Normally, Mai Ding prided himself on being polite and respectful toward girls, and under ordinary circumstances he definitely would have apologized to the girl. But not today. After Bai Xiao Si’s tearful deception in the past, he was not going soft. Just how deep a psychological shadow had An Zi Yan left on Mai Ding? He checked the time. An Zi Yan should be arriving soon. Mai Ding took out his phone and dialed the familiar number.
“Where are you?”
“Watch your tone.”
“Then when are you going to start watching your tone with me?” Mai Ding retorted unhappily, then asked, “Are you at school yet? What are you doing?”
“Talking on the phone.”
“Can you show a little sincerity when you answer my questions?”
“The fact that I’m willing to answer you at all should make you happy enough to go burn incense at your ancestors’ graves.”
“How pathetic do you think me and the ancestors of the Mai family are? Why can I hear people talking beside you?”
“I’m with the class adviser.”
“Student An, I’m not trying to criticize you, but this year’s tricks really aren’t creative at all. You even dragged a teacher into it? I saw through you ages ago. Stop desperately pretending otherwise. I won’t laugh at you. Just admit defeat and we’ll both feel better.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about, but because of that tone, I’m going to deal with you immediately.”
“Yoo-hoo, embarrassed because I exposed you? Going straight to violence now? You think I’m going to let you find me?” Mai Ding turned his head as he spoke and saw An Zi Yan and the class adviser not far away. Perhaps Mai Ding really had accumulated too much pressure lately, because his courage had fattened considerably too. He was going to face An Zi Yan head-on. Four whole years, and on the final day he would finally become the victor!
The class adviser walked over smiling and patted Mai Ding on the shoulder. “Seeing all of you graduate successfully makes me happy too. But Mai Ding, you…” Before the class adviser could finish, Mai Ding stepped backward and escaped his hand. “Are you about to say I can’t graduate successfully and scare me so badly I piss my pants? Teacher, you’re supposed to set an example. What benefit do you get if I wet myself?” A teacher had once agreed to let two burly men sent by An Zi Yan enter the classroom to arrest him. Today, nobody could be trusted!
“Or are you going to tell me you and An Zi Yan are secretly having an aff—” Before the final word could leave his mouth, An Zi Yan pressed down on the back of Mai Ding’s head and forced him to bow. “Apologize properly to the class adviser. Who taught you to be this rude?”
He, Mai Ding, was being lectured by An Zi Yan about manners! If some random cat or dog on the street accused Mai Ding of being rude, maybe he would have to admit they had a point. But An Zi Yan? The man who ignored practically everyone, could not be bothered to look people in the eye, and treated basic courtesy as optional? Where did he get the nerve to call Mai Ding rude?!
“Stop acting! You’re all in on it together. I’m not falling for this!” Mai Ding kept shouting as An Zi Yan grabbed him by the back of his collar and dragged him away. Only when they reached somewhere deserted did An Zi Yan release him. He leaned lazily against the wall with both hands in his pockets, perfectly composed. Was Mai Ding imagining it? An Zi Yan seemed to be wearing an especially good-looking outfit. He even appeared to have showered, and his clean, fresh hair made no attempt to hide his handsome face. Mai Ding shook away the distracting thoughts and was just about to speak when An Zi Yan got there first. “Explain it in thirty words or fewer.”
“Why should I have to listen…”
“You’ve already used six words.”
“I said I wanted a memorable graduation ceremony, so you found a way to mess with me and secretly planned it behind my back.”
“Word limit reached.”
“You actually counted?! Anyway, I’ve already seen through you. There’s no point pretending anymore. Why make things embarrassing for both of us?”
“Don’t think you’re that important. I’m not willing to waste time on you, much less spend effort planning games for you.” An Zi Yan’s merciless words dealt Mai Ding a serious blow, yet Mai Ding still had doubts. “You really didn’t?”
An Zi Yan shrugged lazily. “I’ve been preparing for work after graduation. I’m not a little kid who only knows how to play anymore.”
After hearing that, Mai Ding did not know what to say. For some reason, disappointment rose inside him. Every time An Zi Yan played a prank, Mai Ding complained endlessly that he was childish and boring. Now that An Zi Yan was not playing pranks, Mai Ding somehow felt unaccustomed to it.
“So…” Mai Ding could barely ask.
“So?”
“So after you start working, you’ll be busy with the company, busy socializing with other people, busy earning money. You’ll become mature. You won’t play pranks anymore, you won’t sleep in every day, and you won’t keep insulting me. Right?”
“That’s the kind of thing that happens naturally, isn’t it?”
Mai Ding nodded and smiled. “Then that’s great. I won’t have to stay on guard against you all the time or keep waking you up. Think how much lighter my burden will be.” He said the opposite of what he meant, hiding his hands behind his back and refusing to look at An Zi Yan’s face, like a child forcing himself not to touch a beloved treasure. Growing up meant giving certain things away. Mai Ding would have to give An Zi Yan over to society too, little by little, bit by bit. He could do it. He would manage.
“Mai Ding, after today, we won’t be students anymore.”
“I know. You don’t have to tell me. I just haven’t adjusted yet.” He searched for excuse after excuse, but none could fill the hollow feeling inside him. This thing called love was willful and greedy. He did not want to give An Zi Yan away. He wanted to glue him down with industrial-strength adhesive, wanted to bind him with the strongest thing in the world so only Mai Ding could get near him. Mai Ding snapped out of his strange thoughts and stared at An Zi Yan in horror before blurting something completely out of nowhere. “If I ever end up on the road to crime, it will absolutely be because of you!”
“Stop saying stupid things nobody understands.”
Music began playing across the campus. Mai Ding looked outside and saw students already heading toward the auditorium, so he had no choice but to end the conversation. “The graduation ceremony should be starting. Let’s go.” Maybe the timing was perfect. Right now, Mai Ding still did not want to think about all the things that might change as they grew older. He admitted it: he was a coward.
But An Zi Yan was right. They had grown up. They could not spend all their time playing anymore.
What practical meaning was there in wanting some special, unforgettable graduation ceremony?
The more beautiful something was, the more it seemed to clash with society.