Applaud for Happiness

ed stained his ears and quickly spread to his cheeks.
“You, you, you…”

Who would say something like this?! Had he heard that right?

Had Jiang Changshen read his mind?

What did he mean by that? Could it be…?

He was torn, apprehensive, and felt a small tinge of amusement.

Jiang Changshen gently shook the beer can as he leant against the wall.
His posture was idle as if he were holding a red wine glass.
He smiled with a raised eyebrow.
“Aren’t you? I thought you were a fan of mine.”

Shen Qi’s expression turned rigid, the thoughts rushing through his head instantly calming.
Quite late to elaborate, wasn’t it?

“Yeah, I’m really a fan of yours.” He blinked away the disappointment in his eyes.
Reluctantly—a little testily, even—he added: “I like you a lot; I’ve liked you for the past eight years.
I’ve watched every movie you’ve ever done, I have all the magazine posters, and I’m so happy to know I’m going to be on this show with you!”

“Thank you.” Jiang Changshen smiled sincerely.
“You’re not bad either.
Work hard from now on; it’s only a matter of time before you become popular.”

Inwardly, Shen Qi was disappointed, but no matter what, it was already a dream come true to receive recognition and praise from one’s idol, and a smile couldn’t stop creeping onto his lips.

“I’ll work hard and won’t let Brother Jiang down!”

Jiang Changshen raised his beer can and made a clinking gesture.
Shen Qi busily picked up the one in front of him and took the initiative to knock it against Jian Changshen’s.
He then took a big sip.

He was an average drinker.
He had had three cans earlier in the conversation and this was the fourth.
The previously red from his previous shyness was fading as if he’d been covered in powder, as if he had been steamed.

Some mechanism seemed to have unlocked in the tipsy Shen Qi.
He rambled on and on, speaking and unwittingly rubbing up against Jiang Changshen.

“…Brother Jiang, what kind of…person do you like?”

He wanted to ask what kind of girl, but he had a personal agenda, so he stayed vague on gender.

Jiang Changshen didn’t stop him from getting close, even holding Shen Qi up as he tilted over.
That left them side by side with Jiang Changshen against the wall.
His fingers withdrew from Shen Qi’s shoulders and happened to trace across the corners of the young man’s lips, down his cheeks and outward, finally grazing the pink area of one of his ears.
He watched as the sensitive ear trembled.

He smiled silently, and his gaze lingered for a second on the tip of that ear and on the boy’s somewhat misty eyes.

“I like…”

The young man immediately looked over at him, his eyes suddenly much clearer, waiting for his answer.

“Initiative.”

Huh?

Shen Qi’s booze was half gone in an instant.

Shouldn’t it be words like big eyes, long hair and white skin? What did it mean, ‘initiative’?

Jiang Changshen spread his hands out, looking slightly embarrassed.
“Can’t help it, you know.
In a profession like ours, with a busy year and not a lot of free time, even if you like someone, you don’t have the time or privacy to chase after the other person, in case it causes trouble and backfires.”

He seemed troubled and had had too much wine; enough to confide in Shen Qi.

It was a rare opportunity and the atmosphere was perfect.
Shen Qi had gotten an inch, so now he would try and take a mile.

“So is Brother Jiang looking for someone inside or outside the entertainment circle?”

He was all tense, and his hand was tightly gripping the beer can.
The can made a sound as his hand loosened.

“I’d…” Jiang Changshen took a sip of his beer.
“I’d just go with the flow, follow fate.”

Shen Qi was stuck on those words.
What did follow the fate mean? Was it good news for him? He wanted to take the conversation further but was afraid of going too far.
After all, they weren’t close enough to talk about certain topics.

Jiang Changshen put down his beer can and pushed him aside by his shoulder.
“We can’t drink any more.
It’s still early, so get some sleep.
You have a busy night ahead of you.”

Shen Qi was unprepared and went down with force.
Jiang Changshen pushed him down, stifling a laugh at his dumbfounded appearance.

Such a posture, at such a close distance…

Shen Qi’s face became bright red.

Jiang Changshen narrowed his eyes.
His body pressed down, faintly smelling of alcohol, and then a little further down, until their breaths intertwined.

Shen Qi’s eyelashes trembled violently.

His fingers instinctively gripped the corners of his coat.
Did… ?

“You want to sleep on the inner side?” Jiang Changshen’s smiling tone interrupted his musings.
Jiang Changshen suddenly stretched out his long legs and briefly straddled Shen Qi, so that they were face to face, then shifted off of him to the outer side of the bed.
“Then I’ll sleep on the outer one.”

Shen Qi’s entire body tensed, as if stung by a scorpion.
He rolled over with a whoosh, lying curled up on his side and facing the wall.

This was simply… It was…

It was humiliating!

He couldn’t turn around even if his idol would think he was rude!

He couldn’t believe he… He couldn’t believe…

He couldn’t believe there had been a reaction!

With just a small gesture, without even being touched, he’d reacted…

He hadn’t been able to wait to curl up like a shrimp.
Hopefully his idol would stop paying attention.

Yet how could Jiang Changshen not notice such a big movement? He looked over the young man’s shoulder at the exposed ears and neck, all red.
There was amusement in his eyes.
He slid his fingers twice over the bent spine of the teenager, his expression meaningful.

Jiang Changshen had stirred up a pool of gentle spring water.
He went to sleep on his own, leaving Shen Qi tossing and turning.
Shen Qi stared at the white wall with a stiff body for nearly half an hour before he couldn’t handle the drunkenness that surged up and fell asleep.