Difficult to Complete chapter 6

That day, Tang Yan arrived at Gu Yan’s house nearly an hour later. Gu Yan, unwilling to stay in the same room with Shen Qi, had already retreated to his own room, locked the door, and left Shen Qi alone outside.

Shen Qi, still drunk, sat at the door of Gu Yan’s room with his knees hugged, his eyes red and swollen from crying. When he saw Tang Yan, he called out to him pitifully:

“Tang Yan.”

Tang Yan sighed and knocked on Gu Yan’s door.

The footsteps from inside quickly approached, followed by Gu Yan’s voice: “Just take him away. He’s drunk; it’s best to buy him some stomach medicine or something.”

This clearly meant Gu Yan wasn’t coming out.

The once loving couple had turned into this in the blink of an eye, to the point where even a glance seemed unnecessary.

This was why he only loved casual people and avoided real feelings—because approaching love only led to unhappiness.

Tang Yan sighed again and couldn’t help but ask, “So what exactly happened between you two?”

This question had been on his mind for a while. Since learning about their breakup, he had wanted to ask but refrained out of fear of upsetting the parties involved.

Gu Yan still wasn’t planning to come out. Through the door, he replied indifferently, “It’s over. Nothing more to say.”

After knowing him for so many years, Tang Yan understood that if Gu Yan was determined not to talk about something, no matter what, he would never get it out of him. He was just that stubborn.

So he had no choice but to suppress his curiosity and resignedly replied, “Alright, I understand. I’ll take him with me and get him some medicine. Don’t worry.”

Gu Yan, standing behind the door, instinctively wanted to say, “Why should I be worried? Adding that he should buy medicine was just a humanitarian gesture. Even if he saw a stray cat or dog, he couldn’t ignore them, let alone a person.”

With Shen Qi’s fragile stomach, he was afraid that if he didn’t mention it, the other person might die at home without anyone knowing. Though he said he didn’t care about his life or death, he didn’t have the heart to truly ignore someone’s suffering.

Yet, he ended up not defending himself: “Mm.”

Shen Qi continued squatting at the door. He would occasionally look up at Tang Yan and then through the door, trying to see Gu Yan hiding inside.

The alcohol had spread through him, and now he was even more drunk than before. He had completely lost his senses, unable to understand why he was here and why Gu Yan wouldn’t see him.

He felt very wronged, pouted, and cried again. This time, he cried silently, resting his chin on his knees, with tears dripping down continuously, quickly soaking the floor.

This was actually closer to how he usually was—habitually hiding everything in his heart and bearing it alone.

“Ah, it’s all a mess!” Tang Yan was suffering because of the couple’s quarrel and breakup, but what could he say? The breakfasts and late-night snacks he enjoyed back then had to be repaid today.

He helped Shen Qi up and finally shouted into the room, “We’re really leaving now. I’ll send you a message when we get home.”

But Gu Yan said, “No need.”

In the following half month, the two didn’t meet again and had no contact. Gu Yan wasn’t someone who dragged things out. When he said he would cut off contact, he absolutely wouldn’t initiate any contact with Shen Qi. Shen Qi, on the other hand, was too embarrassed.

That day, Tang Yan didn’t leave the drunkard at home but took him back to his own place.

Later that night, Shen Qi did start to suffer from stomach pain. After taking medicine, he still vomited three or four times. Eventually, the alcohol wore off, and he woke up, recalling all the foolish things he did at Gu Yan’s place. He buried himself under the covers, wishing he could just suffocate himself.

Not finding the photos he was looking for was just one more disappointment, and he had no face to go back to Gu Yan anytime soon.

The next time they met was after the National Day holiday.

Breaking up might be a simple phrase, but staying completely out of touch was not so easy, leading to a series of problems.

For instance, they had mutual friends. Tang Yan, having been abroad for many years, wanted to make up for lost time upon returning, and as a homebody, he was now keen to go out and socialize every day.

Gu Yan, citing work, had avoided several gatherings. During the seven-day National Day holiday, when Tang Yan organized a trip to Z Province for hot springs, Gu Yan also had a business trip and couldn’t join.

Repeatedly, not only was Tang Yan unhappy, but other friends also expressed dissatisfaction, pretending to blame Gu Yan for being aloof and not treating them as friends.

So when Tang Yan tagged him in the group chat again, Gu Yan didn’t have the heart to refuse. He then saw Shen Qi also replied in the group, saying he was busy with work.

The two of them were quite tacit in this regard, trying to avoid meeting each other as much as possible.

It wasn’t that there were lingering feelings or a fear of rekindling old flames. It was just that friends who were used to seeing them together didn’t believe they could break up so easily and often made jokes about them being together, which often made Gu Yan feel uncomfortable and uneasy.

Of course, it was still painful. How could it not be painful when a sincere heart was fed to the dogs? But since it had been made clear and they had broken up, there wasn’t any possibility of rekindling the relationship or lingering connections.

People didn’t really need it. A straight man, behind the scenes, might even be happy to finally be rid of him.

But Gu Yan had no intention of bringing it up. What’s the use of saying it? Let everyone know that he was deceived and hurt by a straight man? It was unnecessary.

Leave some dignity for both sides. A peaceful breakup was quite good.

So when Tang Yan asked him why that day, he said nothing and would not tell anyone else in the future.

Just for a weekend, not going too far, they decided to play outdoor live-action CS. Men generally like thrilling shooting games, and being able to have some barbecue and soak in hot springs afterward was a good choice.

Gu Yan showed complete sincerity this time, arriving at the club half an hour early. However, someone had arrived even earlier—Tan Xiaolei was already in gear, doing shooting training.

The lighting in the private room that day was dim, so Gu Yan only then noticed that this person was only slightly shorter than him. Wearing goggles and a camouflage vest, the shoulder blades were faintly visible due to the shooting, making it look particularly attractive.

Gu Yan glanced at the shooting target. Nine rings, nine rings, ten rings, nine rings… The hit rate was quite high, indicating that he was an experienced shooter.

The posture was standard, cool, and stylish.

“Gu Ge, you’re here!”

Seeing Gu Yan, he took off his goggles and greeted him happily. Although still in the same outfit, the impression was completely different, as if a fierce beast had sheathed its claws and revealed its soft belly, showing a docile and tame side.

Especially his face, which was not as big as Gu Yan’s palm, was really deceptive.

Gu Yan nodded politely and sat on a nearby stool. “You go ahead and play, don’t mind me.”

“Want to play a game?” Tan Xiaolei raised his chin and said, “If I win, you’ll team up with me later. How about it, Gu Ge?”

Glancing at the time, Tang Yan and the others probably wouldn’t arrive soon. Instead of sitting idle, it was better to play a few rounds.

Seeing Tan Xiaolei’s impressive performance, Gu Yan was indeed a bit eager to join, so he agreed readily, “Alright, how do you want to play?”

Tan Xiaolei set the simplest rule: ten shots each, the one with the highest total score wins.

They took turns shooting, and the scores were neck and neck. Gu Yan hadn’t felt this adrenaline rush in a long time. It was thrilling and exciting, and his gaze toward Tan Xiaolei changed.

Since adding WeChat that night in the KTV room, they had contacted each other several times, but it was always initiated by the other party. Gu Yan replied when he had time, and when he didn’t, he put it off for later.

But Tan Xiaolei seemed to have no temper at all, continuing to chat with him as usual.

Gu Yan knew Tan Xiaolei was hiding something. He thought Tan Xiaolei was a weed but didn’t expect him to be a thorny rose. It was quite surprising.

“Last shot.” Tan Xiaolei raised his eyebrows.

Gu Yan glanced at the scoreboard. After nine shots, their scores were exactly the same, making it unclear whether it was due to equal skill or coincidence. But Gu Yan preferred to believe it was the former.

Since dating Shen Qi, he had almost stopped engaging in extreme sports, and Shen Qi was also not interested in shooting-related activities, so he played less often. But he hadn’t fallen behind and was confident in his skills.

Gu Yan shot first. As he loaded the bullet, he asked Tan Xiaolei with interest, “What if it’s a tie?”

Tan Xiaolei pouted, tilted his head as if thinking seriously for a moment, and then smiled, “Then we’ll team up. Tang Yan said the loser will treat us to a meal. Let’s join forces and give him a good feast.”

A man doing such an action was usually quite annoying, but Tan Xiaolei doing it didn’t seem deliberate. Instead, it added a youthful touch.

He definitely knew how to use his appearance to his advantage.

Gu Yan decisively pulled the trigger: “Okay.”

A perfect score.

“That was close,” Tan Xiaolei said, but his actions were swift and decisive as he also pulled the trigger. Bang—

Also a perfect score.

“Nice working with you, teammate!” They high-fived, and then Tan Xiaolei firmly held Gu Yan’s hand in that pose, pressing their shoulders together. The warm breath immediately touched Gu Yan, “If we win later, will you give me a chance to go on a date with you, Gu Ge?”

Gu Yan’s eyes flashed with surprise. He moved his fingers, trying to pull his hand away, but Tan Xiaolei didn’t let go. The tension from the competition continued into now. Gu Yan shrugged and smiled, “Why?”

Tan Xiaolei moved closer, his smiling voice brushing against his ear: “Gu Ge, are you pretending not to know? Why else, I like you.”

Gu Yan used a little trick to avoid Tan Xiaolei’s grip, stepped back a few steps, and then smiled at him, noncommittal.

Tan Xiaolei raised one eyebrow: “If you don’t speak, I’ll take it as your consent.”