Blue Cocktail chapter 72

After returning home, it was once again days and nights of revising drafts. Cheng Shuo, to some extent, was a perfectionist. Sometimes, he would agonize over two options for half a day, unable to choose the better one. He would then scrunch his brows and turn to Lu Huaiqian for advice.

Initially, Lu Huaiqian would diplomatically say both options were perfect, but one was slightly more perfect. Later, he discovered that Cheng Shuo didn’t need polite words; he preferred straightforward advice. So, he decisively helped Cheng Shuo make choices to avoid staying up late being indecisive.

Later, one day, Cheng Shuo woke up and, for the first time, didn’t immediately head for the digital tablet and stylus. Instead, he initiated a casual conversation with Lu Huaiqian.

Lu Huaiqian asked if Cheng Shuo had finished his drawing. Cheng Shuo replied that it had already been submitted. Lu Huaiqian chuckled, thinking Cheng Shuo might have invited him to witness the moment of successful submission.

Cheng Shuo was momentarily surprised, seemingly never having considered that possibility. Throughout his life, he always solved problems independently, lacking a sense of ceremony. After thinking for a moment, he said, “Next time I submit a competition entry, I will invite you.”

After a brief pause, he added, “In case I forget, remind me.”

“I actually hope you don’t participate in competitions in the short term. It’s too strenuous and detrimental to your health,” Lu Huaiqian remarked.

Cheng Shuo sighed with a pretended sense of world-weariness, “If you don’t struggle when you’re young, what will you do when you’re old?”

Lu Huaiqian’s laughter had never been particularly hearty. Hearing Cheng Shuo speak in an old man’s tone, he burst out laughing, “Sometimes I feel like your mental age is older than mine.”

“Thank you for the compliment,” Cheng Shuo pondered for a moment and couldn’t resist adding, “Actually, sometimes I feel like your mental age is younger than your actual age.”

What entered Lu Huaiqian’s ears, after passing through his eardrums, probably retained only the words “younger age.” He shamelessly accepted it, saying, “Of course, I have always been very young.”

With no competition, no commercial drafts, and a relaxed state, Cheng Shuo spoke more freely, “Back in the day, I had many fantasies about my future partner.”

Lu Huaiqian continued to ask, “Do I meet your fantasies?”

Cheng Shuo, learning from Lu Huaiqian, also started teasing. He deliberately looked Lu Huaiqian up and down, and, in response, Lu Huaiqian straightened up from his nonchalant posture, standing more upright.

After a while, Cheng Shuo’s lips moved slightly, “Completely—”

Lu Huaiqian preemptively responded, “Meets!”

“Don’t meet.”

Lu Huaiqian squinted slightly, “Where doesn’t it meet? Tell me.”

Cheng Shuo hesitated, “Can I be honest without making you angry?”

“What do you take me for?” Lu Huaiqian laughed casually, “Besides being a little jealous, I’m easy-going and gentle, right?”

He omitted the fact that he did hold grudges, which was true.

“Mainly, I never thought about having a boyfriend who is eight years older than me.”

“Why?”

“I think relationships with a significant age difference are prone to inequality because of disparate life experiences. I want to find a boyfriend, not a father. I dislike being lectured by others.”

Cheng Shuo paused, “But, you’ve broken my bias. I haven’t felt any inequality or fatherly vibes from you. I hope you can continue to maintain that.”

Lu Huaiqian’s eyes lit up, “Rare to hear you praise me.”

Cheng Shuo cleared his throat, “Just stating the facts.”

“Maybe because you usually talk and act in a disorderly and unserious manner, you seem—”

He originally wanted to say childish but felt that the term had a negative connotation, so he changed his mind, “Not mature.”

To his surprise, Lu Huaiqian was like a mind reader, “You don’t understand; being childish is a way to stay young.”

“Just now, listening to you, I feel like we’re a perfect match. You are psychologically mature compared to your age, and I am psychologically immature compared to my age. Although there is an eight-year age difference in our actual ages, we are equal psychologically. Didn’t you want an equal relationship?”

Rarely did Lu Huaiqian speak a long string of words seriously during leisure time, with a somewhat sincere expression. Cheng Shuo was momentarily stunned; indeed, it seemed to be the case. However, he always had a stubborn mouth, “Whether we’re a match or not, we’ll have to verify it slowly in the future.”

“Sure,” Lu Huaiqian said, “I’m very confident.”

This was Cheng Shuo’s first attempt to pick out his innermost thoughts and share them with Lu Huaiqian without any unexpected events triggering it. Therefore, he lacked experience and completely forgot about the fact that the old fox was naturally deceptive. Lu Huaiqian’s memory was also quite impressive. Once they were in bed, he recalled Cheng Shuo’s words, retrieving each one meticulously.

So sometimes, Cheng Shuo strongly suspected that Lu Huaiqian might have a little notebook for grudges, filled with his own quotes.

After the conclusion of the competition, May Day arrived and they were supposed to go out and hang out afterward, but it didn’t happen. Life, as it is, always enjoys playing tricks on people. After being busy with one thing, there’s another. There always seems to be something that never ends.

The renovated bar reopened, and Lu Huaiqian organized corresponding promotional activities. The flow of customers in those days was significant. Cheng Shuo volunteered to help without asking for a part-time fee. He suggested not being paid by his boyfriend for doing odd jobs, feeling it would be strange. From that moment on, he completely became free labor, occasionally joking that Lu Huaiqian was a heartless capitalist exploiting employees.

While Lu Huaiqian was busy with the reopening of the bar, Cheng Shuo received commercial drafts again.

After the commercial drafts, time flew, and it was already June. June, for college students, was the dreaded final exam month. Assignments pile up—drawing after drawing, paper after paper, group presentations—leaving little time for leisure. Even when they manage to go out, it was not as enjoyable. Cheng Shuo suggested waiting until the end of the exams to have a carefree time during the summer vacation, and Lu Huaiqian respected Cheng Shuo’s idea.

June was fast for Cheng Shuo due to being busy, but for Lu Huaiqian, it was like eagerly awaiting the end of a state of longing for the stars and the moon.

On the day of the final exams’ conclusion, under the sunny sky, Lu Huaiqian drove a luxury car to pick up Cheng Shuo at the school gate. He wore a retro floral shirt, black shorts, and a delicate pair of sunglasses, looking incredibly cool and becoming the center of attention.

Cheng Shuo, with his backpack slung over one shoulder, got into the passenger seat, fastened his seatbelt, and started shaking a bottle of Sprite. He shook it vigorously, opened the cap slightly to release the gas, and continued shaking.

Lu Huaiqian found it amusing, “What are you doing?”

As the car started moving, Cheng Shuo shook the bottle seriously, “I don’t like the fizz in soda.”

Lu Huaiqian burst into laughter, “Then why don’t you buy non-fizzy drinks?”

“The vending machine downstairs has a limited variety, and there’s no non-fizzy Sprite, which I really like.”

“It seems you like lemon-flavored drinks. In the future, I can make you a non-alcoholic lemon-flavored one. I’m planning to create a new non-alcoholic cocktail, and it will include lemon juice. I’ll have to ask you to help taste it when the time comes.”

“No problem,” Cheng Shuo replied. Then, he vigorously shook the Sprite bottle again, creating a miniature tornado inside. “It reminds me of high school when we used to gather during breaks. A group of people surrounded, holding the bottle neck and bottom, shaking it to see whose ‘tornado’ could last the longest. It was quite boring…”

On that night, the bar was entrusted to Zhao Ge and the newly hired bartender, realizing Zhao Ge’s dream of running the bar.

The next day, the lengthy journey began. Although Lu Huaiqian had promised to include racing and mountain roads in the travel schedule, it wasn’t their first stop. Cheng Shuo mentioned a place he wanted to visit more: the sea.

Adjusting the plan on the spot, Lu Huaiqian arranged for them to travel in the morning and reach the seaside in the afternoon. They rented a yacht, departed at 5:30 in the evening, and enjoyed the sunset on the open sea.

White seagulls adorned the blue sky, and the deep blue sea stretched far and near, creating a captivating scene.

Cheng Shuo stood on the deck, hands on the railing, gazing into the distance, feeling the evening breeze with the scent of the sea.

Lu Huaiqian, on the other hand, lazily sat on a distant deck chair, watching Cheng Shuo’s excited gestures and pointing around.

Separated by some distance, they had to shout to converse. “Cheng Shuo, I remember your design competition’s results are supposed to be announced at 6:00 this afternoon!”

Cheng Shuo turned around, “Oh right, I almost forgot. These days, I’ve been busy with final exams and the trip!”

Lu Huaiqian stood up from the deck chair and walked behind Cheng Shuo. “When you submitted the work, I couldn’t witness it with you. But when the competition results come out, we should check them together, as you promised. In case you forgot, let me remind you.”

Cheng Shuo agreed at the time, but when it came to the actual announcement, he changed his mind, “No, Lu Huaiqian, what if I don’t win, I’ll feel it’s because of my incompetence. I’ve exposed my mediocre skills in front of my boyfriend. Let me check it myself. If there’s good news, I’ll tell you. okay?”

“No, in my heart, your skills are number one in the world.” Seeing Cheng Shuo persisting, Lu Huaiqian sighed and agreed, “Alright, go check it, I’ll be here.”

Cheng Shuo deliberately moved away, hiding in a corner to prevent Lu Huaiqian from peeking. His hands trembled slightly as he opened the official website on his phone.

After half a minute, he put away his phone, lowered his head, and slowly walked to Lu Huaiqian. He sighed first and then shook his head silently.

Seeing Cheng Shuo’s expression, Lu Huaiqian understood everything. He was about to offer comforting words, but Cheng Shuo spoke first.

“I originally didn’t plan to tell you the result, but then I thought you would be curious. It’s nothing big anyway. Ah,” he sighed lightly again, “indeed, I got first place. No surprises at all.”

Lu Huaiqian was first stunned and then reacted, “Congratulations!”

Cheng Shuo immediately smiled and raised his head, “How about it, did my acting just now fool you?”

“Maybe for about—three seconds.”

“Is that so? I feel like it was more than three seconds?”

“Alright, alright, seven seconds, not a moment longer,” Lu Huaiqian laughed, “Little trickster.”

Cheng Shuo gestured, “Old fox, we’re even.”

“I remember the first prize comes with a cash reward of fifty thousand, right?”

“Yes, I’ll cover the expenses for this trip. I’ll treat you to a feast.”

“Thank you, Boss Cheng.”

“Mr. Lu, you’re too polite.”

After some banter, Cheng Shuo turned to look at the sea.

It was a spectacular sunset, with golden light dancing on the tips of the waves like a flickering gilt. The red and yellow from the palette and the primary colors were splashed into the sky, then scattered into the sea. White seagulls and the yacht followed, and even Cheng Shuo’s hair and pupils couldn’t escape, rapidly transforming into shades of purple and pink.

“So beautiful!” Cheng Shuo exclaimed. After a moment of contemplation, he asked, “Are there jellyfish in the sea?”

“There probably are since jellyfish exist in some freshwater areas. If you want to see jellyfish, shall I add it to our summer vacation plan?”

“Sure.”

“I also want to surf and scuba dive.”

“Okay, you can tell me everything you want to do. While we have this chance, I’ll help you make it happen.”

A fleeting mischievous light flashed in Cheng Shuo’s eyes. He cleared his throat and said intentionally, “Actually, I also want to bungee jump, parachute, climb a snow-capped mountain, see the Northern Lights, and cross a desert—”

“Stop, stop, stop—” Lu Huaiqian clicked his tongue, “I figured it out. You’re only well-behaved on the surface, but your soul is rebellious.”

“I was teasing you.” Cheng Shuo grinned.

“Alright!” Lu Huaiqian caught on.

“But those places I just mentioned, I do want to go. I want to travel north and south, witness mountains, rivers, and oceans, and use my paintbrush to record everything I see. If you’re interested—”

“Of course, I’d be delighted to accompany you.”

As the sea breeze carried away their laughter and playful banter, they sailed into a brand new unknown territory.

The orange-pink sea willingly made way for the yacht, and the resistance was effortlessly resolved. As they passed, the stern of the yacht moved silently, capturing the floating sunlight. As the night fell, it scooped up the wandering starlight.

(End of the main text)