Hearing You Say Love chapter 12
Massage
When Zou Beiyuan received the message, he was about to take a shower. Seeing the content, his breath caught.
Helping a friend apply medication was normally a simple matter, but because the friend was Su Ming, a fleeting, indescribable emotion arose within him.
Holding his phone for a moment, with no reason to refuse, he sent a message back: [Sure, let me take a shower first.]
But as soon as it was sent, Zou Beiyuan quickly retracted the message, feeling something was off. After thinking for half a minute, he sent a new message: [Sure, come over.]
Witnessing the entire process of him retracting the message, Su Ming couldn’t help but smile and replied: [Thank you.]
Five minutes later, he knocked on Zou Beiyuan’s door with the medicine.
After taking a shower, Su Ming wasn’t wearing his glasses, and his skin still had a slight redness from the steam. His half-dry, medium-length hair hung down, with a few damp strands clinging to his collarbone.
Zou Beiyuan opened the door and let him in, and the fresh scent of citrus instantly filled the room.
Room 1601 was much more spacious than Su Ming’s, but it had no decorations and only basic furniture like a dining table, chairs, and a sofa.
There wasn’t even a water cup; only a bottle of half-drunk mineral water sat on the coffee table.
Zou Beiyuan spoke from behind him: “Sit on the sofa, and give me the medicine.”
Su Ming sat down and handed the medicine to Zou Beiyuan.
Standing, Zou Beiyuan looked down at the label and read aloud in a soft voice: “Warm it with both hands, and massage clockwise for fifteen minutes…”
He glanced at Su Ming as he spoke, and the rest of his words trailed off.
That look felt like it was in slow motion.
Su Ming sat on the sofa with his back to him, slowly turning his head and pulling open the wide collar of his cotton pajamas, revealing his entire left shoulder.
Noticing the hesitation in the voice behind him, Su Ming turned his head to look. His jawline gracefully extended with the movement, his lips parted naturally, and his eyes widened slightly, carrying an innocent bewilderment.
His skin was very fair; Zou Beiyuan knew that. But the exposed shoulder and back of his neck were a different kind of white—like a peeled boiled egg, like a skincare ad featuring a movie star.
Zou Beiyuan struggled to find the right words to describe the feeling, and oddly, what came to mind was the rabbit from the comic.
Su Ming subtly tilted his head, urging him with his gaze.
Zou Beiyuan, clutching the medicine bottle, sat behind him. Despite spending long hours at a desk, Su Ming’s posture hadn’t deteriorated at all—the line from his neck to his shoulder formed a perfect right angle.
His skin felt slightly cool to the touch, and when Zou Beiyuan pressed down, it turned visibly red.
In fact, after his daily training, Zou Beiyuan usually received massages from a health doctor, and over time he had become quite familiar with the technique. Occasionally, he’d even help friends out, executing the moves with impressive professionalism.
But for some reason, when it came to Su Ming, he didn’t dare make any unnecessary movements. He followed the instructions on the bottle, clumsily massaging in a clockwise motion, too afraid to apply pressure, his actions light as a feather.
Just then, Su Ming suddenly turned his head to glance at him. Their faces were so close, and once again, the citrus scent filled Zou Beiyuan’s nose. His breath hitched for a few seconds, and his mind went blank.
He met Su Ming’s eyes, his hands instinctively pressing down harder.
Su Ming had been quietly observing this nervous and straight man, but the sudden force caught him off guard, hitting a particularly sore spot, and he couldn’t help but let out a soft gasp.
The sound was clear, slipping from his throat.
Both of them froze.
This was the first time Zou Beiyuan had heard Su Ming make a sound. He had imagined before what Su Ming might sound like if he spoke, and strangely, this matched his imagination—it was just as pleasant.
A rare mischievous thought crossed Zou Beiyuan’s mind: he wanted to press harder, to make Su Ming feel even more pain.
But instead, he stopped and quietly said, “Sorry.”
Su Ming’s face flushed quickly, turning red from the tips of his ears down to his neck and spreading all the way to his back.
After a long silence, he nodded slightly, signaling Zou Beiyuan to continue.
But this time, he didn’t turn around again.
Fifteen minutes later, Zou Beiyuan let go and went to grab a tissue, intending to wipe off the excess oil on Su Ming’s skin. However, Su Ming quickly pulled up his collar, turned around, and made a thank-you gesture in sign language before leaving with the medicine bottle.
……
The next day, Zou Beiyuan was at the gym, practicing with the speed bag. During a break, he received a friend request on WeChat. The other party’s name was marked as: [Chen Muchao].
Zou Beiyuan accepted, and not long after, Chen Muchao called him via voice chat to discuss the details of the fishing trip the next evening.
He asked what kind of fishing rod to bring, how long the fishing line should be, and shared tips about the best techniques for that particular spot.
Zou Beiyuan had learned to fish in the U.S. His coach, Joyce, thought he lacked patience and suggested fishing to cultivate a calmer mindset.
Unfortunately, Zou Beiyuan became too fond of fishing and used up all the patience he had cultivated in that pursuit.
They talked for over ten minutes, finalizing their plans for the next evening. Zou Beiyuan then asked, “What’s Su Ming doing today?”
Chen Muchao replied, “He’s at home painting today.”
Zou Beiyuan responded with an “Oh, okay. See you tomorrow then.”
“Yeah, see you tomorrow.”
After hanging up, Zou Beiyuan stared blankly at the chat list on WeChat. Su Ming’s profile picture had already been pushed down by other messages.
..
At 3 p.m. on Saturday, Chen Muchao came to find Zou Beiyuan. Since Su Ming’s car had a large enough trunk, they decided they would load the fishing gear into his car first and then walk to a nearby shop to buy bait and accessories.
Su Ming arrived at the fishing shop at 4 p.m., and from a distance, he saw Chen Muchao standing by the roadside, waving at him. He slowly stepped on the brakes, his gaze landing on Zou Beiyuan.
The tall young man stood there, one hand in his pocket, the other on the phone, making Chen Muchao look like a hobbit in comparison.
Since they were going camping outdoors that night, and the temperature would drop, Zou Beiyuan was wearing a black waterproof jacket, paired with black casual pants and light brown wading boots. He looked tall and upright, exuding an unfamiliar air compared to his usual self.
Su Ming parked the car and unlocked the doors. Chen Muchao naturally got into the front passenger seat.
Zou Beiyuan sat in the back, shifting to the seat behind the driver’s seat. When Su Ming glanced at him through the rearview mirror, their eyes met.
Neither of them looked away first. They stared at each other for over ten seconds until Chen Muchao reminded Su Ming to start driving.
Author’s note:
Chen Muchao: Are you two pretending I don’t exist?