Starlight Descends - 71
Happiness
As soon as Yu Jiashu stepped into the room, he pushed the door shut behind him, stuffed both hands into his pockets, and called out, "Yu Qiuqiu. Come here."
"Were you secretly talking behind my back?"
"..."
Yu Qiuqiu blinked and immediately ducked behind Qi Yao, whispering, "No... I was just telling the truth."
She wasn't wrong!
It was the truth!
She'd just switched sides at the last second and joined Yaoyao-jiejie in scolding him, that was all!
Seeing his expressionless face, those pale eyelids drooping with cool indifference, so far removed from the pitiful act he'd worn outside moments ago, Yu Qiuqiu wisely clung to the only reliable protector she had.
She understood now.
Who the real boss was.
"All right, stop scaring her." Qi Yao couldn't help laughing at the sight. She stroked the little girl's head and bent down. "Go next door and play with Lizi-jiejie for a bit, okay?"
Yu Qiuqiu didn't want to leave. She hugged Qi Yao's leg like a tiny koala and refused to let go. Qi Yao laughed again and patiently coaxed her for quite a while, promising they'd come get her soon so they could all eat together. The child finally gave in, reluctantly shuffling out the door and looking back every other step.
"You have to remember to come get me!"
"We will," Qi Yao said.
Yu Jiashu stood to the side watching everything unfold. Only after he saw Yu Qiuqiu knock on the neighboring room and disappear inside did he turn back and say, "I think you actually like kids."
"Only the cute ones who know how to sweet-talk."
Qi Yao dropped onto the sofa and patted the seat beside her, signaling for him to come over. "Why did you bring her with you?"
Yu Jiashu shrugged off his coat. "I went home to tell everyone I wouldn't be spending New Year's there this year. She insisted on coming, and nobody in the family could stop her."
Qi Yao paused for two seconds. "You just straight up told them you weren't going home for New Year's?"
"What else was I supposed to do?" Yu Jiashu sat beside her, elbow propped on the armrest, leaning back lazily with an air of perfect ease. "Leave you here to celebrate with... what's-his-name?"
Qi Yao frowned, genuinely confused. "Who?"
Realizing she honestly hadn't caught on, Yu Jiashu tipped up his chin slightly. His Adam's apple bobbed as he cleared his throat, then launched into an exaggerated imitation.
"Jiejie... are you awake yet?"
He deliberately dragged out the ending, forcing his voice into an overly deep, breathy tone.
"Jiejie... are you not feeling well?"
That one made it obvious. Anyone could tell he was imitating Wen Chuan.
Qi Yao: "..."
"You're impossible."
Yu Jiashu chuckled against the back of the sofa. Stretching out an arm, he slipped a hand around her waist and began rubbing slow circles with his palm.
"Does it still hurt?"
It had been so long since he'd touched her that the contact felt strangely unfamiliar. She gave a tiny shiver before gradually relaxing into it.
"It's much better," she said. "It only felt sore when I stand too long. A pain patch will fix it."
After a brief pause, she added softly, "At least it's not as exhausting as when I'm home."
At home, this man never seemed to know when to stop. Sometimes being with him was more tiring than a full day's work.
Yu Jiashu raised an eyebrow without arguing, just made a sound of acknowledgment. "Oh."
"Then I'll massage it now. That way you won't be so tired tonight."
"..."
Preventative measures, really now?
"You're so annoying," Qi Yao complained.
Their eyes met, and for no reason at all, they both burst into laughter.
She was clingy.
After being apart for so long, Qi Yao could feel that side of herself resurfacing. Almost unconsciously, she reached for the hand he'd left resting on the sofa, lightly brushing the back of it with her fingertips. Then she turned it over and laced their fingers together.
Just sitting there in silence like this felt wonderfully enough.
Qi Yao sat quietly for a while, wrapped in a comfort she'd almost forgotten.
"Oh, right." Something suddenly occurred to her. "Will you be staying in this room the whole time you're here?"
She'd finished work early today and had skipped dinner with the others, coming back before everyone else. The hallway outside was nearly empty.
But on nights when filming wrapped late, people usually returned together in large groups, chatting in the hallway, sometimes even wandering into each other's rooms for late-night conversations. That would be far riskier.
Sure, the crew would tease about the mysterious investors, but Qi Yao knew it was just for fun. They thought this young master who never showed his face was just pursuing her, or something along those lines.
Sometimes teasing was actually the safest outcome. When people truly stumbled onto real gossip, they didn't joke. They simply exchanged glances and fell silent.
Qi Yao herself didn't really mind; she just didn't want him to become the target of idle gossip.
She was already used to living under rumors and scrutiny and didn't want him dragged into it again, like what had happened after the press conference.
Yu Jiashu understood exactly what she meant, though he didn't say so outright. Instead, he drawled lazily, "Didn't you notice the rooms on either side of yours are all empty?"
"I did..." Qi Yao started, then suddenly stopped short. She turned to stare at him in disbelief. "They're yours?"
"Obviously." He looked completely unruffled. "This whole floor is paid for by my wallet. What's wrong with keeping two rooms free?"
"..."
"Unbelievable," Qi Yao muttered.
Yu Jiashu lowered his eyes with a grin. "So there's nothing to worry about. If anyone sees me, they'll just think I'm some spoiled rich kid who became a dad at eighteen and brought his daughter along to inspect the set."
He meant it as a joke, speaking in that slow, teasing tone of his.
Qi Yao didn't laugh. Instead, something inside her grew unexpectedly heavy. It had started back in the elevator, when she'd overheard those girls talking.
After a long moment of silence, she reached out to wrap her arms around his waist, resting her head against his chest.
Staring at the potted plant swaying on the balcony, she hesitated before asking in a small voice, "Do you ever feel like dating me is... a lot of trouble?"
Two seconds passed.
Yu Jiashu's expression remained calm. He shifted slightly so she could lean against him more comfortably before asking, "Why would you think that?"
"We can't post pictures together. We can't openly go out on dates." She listed them off one by one. It seemed like everything ordinary couples could do was off-limits to them. Finally, she sighed. "In short... we always have to hide."
Yu Jiashu didn't answer for a moment. His hand rested on her waist, long fingers tapping gently twice.
It was a subconscious gesture he made when thinking.
Silence settled between them.
After what felt like forever without hearing a reply, Qi Yao's heart tightened. Uneasy, she looked up at him.
Only then did he lower his gaze and say, "I've never thought that."
"I've never dated anyone else, so I don't know what an open, public relationship is supposed to feel like. But I'm pretty sure it couldn't make me happier than I already am."
Something inside her heart melted all over again.
Qi Yao pressed her lips together, listening.
"Whether people know or not doesn't make a big difference to me. I don't work in your industry. I don't need public opinion, and I'm not afraid of it."
His expression as he said this was casual, almost nonchalant. Yet the quiet confidence in his words was impossible to hide. It carried an effortless certainty, as if the world's opinions simply weren't worth worrying about.
After another pause, he furrowed his brow and continued. "So, the decision is entirely yours."
"If the timing isn't right yet, then we can be like this. Quietly dating, just us. There's nothing bad about it."
"When you feel the time is right, when you want to tell the world you have the most handsome boyfriend in the world...Just tell them. You never have to worry about what I think."
"I'll be ready whenever you are."
"And I'll always be by your side."
Even her breath stopped for two seconds.
Her heart seemed to stop before crashing back into her chest.
Warmth swelled through her until it almost hurt.
He was always like this.
So respectful and understanding.
The one forced to endure gossip was him. The one who had to hide from others despite being the investor was him. Yet here he was comforting her, like she was the one who might cry because the world had been cruel to her.
Qi Yao sniffed quietly, lowered her eyes, and whispered, "Okay."
Two seconds later, that overwhelming fullness still hadn't faded. It felt like love was expanding until there was no room left inside her.
She lifted herself slightly and leaned forward to kiss him.
At first it was gentle, nothing more than the brief brush of lips, their breaths mingling in the quiet, a simple expression of love.
Then, somehow, the tips of their noses touched, lips and tongues tangled, breaths interwoven, and the air began to heat up.
Yu Jiashu tightened the arm around her waist. In one smooth motion she was lifted off the sofa and settled onto his lap, facing him with her legs on either side.
Qi Yao's breathing had already turned ragged. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she whispered, "...We still have to take Qiuqiu to dinner later."
"She'll survive," Yu Jiashu replied casually, he lowered his eyes and tugged lightly at the hem of her shirt.
The cool touch felt startlingly unfamiliar.
Her flat stomach instinctively drew in, trembling beneath his fingertips.
Strength left her all at once. Her arms slipped loosely around his neck as she sank down against him, burying her face in the hollow of his shoulder, relying entirely on him to hold her up.
Outside on the balcony, the slender green plant swayed helplessly in the wind. One breeze bent its delicate branches one way, another pushed them back again, leaving only the fragile shadows of its leaves quivering against the floor.
"..."
Yu Qiuqiu lay on the bed, having finished five rounds of Fireboy and Watergirl and four rounds of Twin Star, she finally couldn't take it anymore and said quietly, "Lizi-jiejie, I'm so hungry."
Lizi was busy organizing post-New Year work schedules and confirming brand appearances. Glancing at the time, she thought for a moment. "Why don't you go remind them? They should be almost done."
"Okay," Yu Qiuqiu said, hopping off the bed.
"...Wait." Thinking it over, Lizi still wasn't comfortable letting her go alone. "I'll come with you."
When they reached their door, they found it hadn't been closed fully.
Yu Qiuqiu, running ahead, was two steps faster. She peeked through the crack, blinked, and said, "They still seem busy."
"Hm?" Lizi was looking down, answering a message on her phone. "Just knock and remind them."
From where she stood, all she could make out were two blurry figures.
"But Yaoyao-jiejie is sitting on Gege's lap, hugging him. It looks like she's sleeping..." Yu Qiuqiu reported honestly.
"...!"
Lizi froze for two seconds.
The image instantly assembled itself in her imagination.
"Oh my god!"
She instantly shoved her phone into her pocket, lunged forward to pull the child away, and even covered her eyes. "It's nothing, nothing! They're just... playing..."
She yanked the door shut behind them without caring how loudly it slammed, then hurriedly herded Yu Qiuqiu back toward her own room as though fleeing a disaster.
It's over.
It's over.
Lizi panicked inwardly.
It was all Yu Qiuqiu's doing!
She herself hadn't heard a thing, hadn't seen anything! Please, please don't let them be found out!
Unfortunately, fate had other plans.
Before the mismatched pair could disappear into their room, the door across the hall, the one that had just been slammed shut, opened again.
Qi Yao stood there looking unusually flustered. Her cheeks were flushed, her hair slightly messy. She opened her mouth, closed it, and offered a small explanation. "...Sorry, I fell asleep."
Lizi: "..."
"Mm-hmm! That's exactly what we thought!" she said, nodding so hard it was almost frantic. Her other hand tightened unconsciously on Yu Qiuqiu's shoulder.
The hallway went silent.
Of the three people standing there, the only person not feeling the tension was Yu Qiuqiu.
She blinked her big eyes, looking from Lizi to Qi Yao in complete confusion.
Why was everyone acting so strangely?
—
Author's Note:
An awkward little moment for our lovebirds.
---
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