What Are Your Tastes? chapter 38

Insight

During the New Year’s holiday, Zhou Yanchuan didn’t go anywhere special.

As he scrolled through his friends’ moments, he saw photos posted by acquaintances from the racetrack, reminding him that it had been a long time since he had been there.

Zhou Yanchuan hadn’t known about horse riding clubs before, nor was he interested in things that most upper-class people liked to do. But after accompanying a business partner to the racetrack once, it was like discovering a new world. Horses had been his favorite animals since childhood, yet he had rarely had the chance to get up close.

He asked the coach to teach him horseback riding and later bought a horse of his own. If he hadn’t been injured, he would have gone this New Year’s Day. Glancing at his recently removed cast, he sighed and decided to wait a few more days.

He didn’t know what Lu Yunchu did during the holidays; he couldn’t hear any noise from the next door.

Blue Bay was an old community with mediocre soundproofing. Zhou Yanchuan remembered the previous homeowner making quite a bit of noise. He could tolerate it as much as possible, only reminding him a little when his sleep was disturbed.

However, since Lu Yunchu moved in, he had hardly noticed any noteworthy noises. The same was true these past few days, and they hadn’t crossed paths again since New Year’s Eve.

During the month when his arm was in a cast, he had eaten at Lu Yunchu’s place several times. Lu Yunchu always generously invited him over, appearing entirely unconcerned, which made Zhou Yanchuan feel he could rely on him without causing embarrassment.

But after several visits, he realized he was imposing on Lu Yunchu. He was capable of doing ordinary household chores now, so next time he would return the favor.

Sunday was the last day of the New Year’s holiday, and early in the morning, he sent a message to Lu Yunchu, inviting him to come over for lunch. However, the morning passed, several dishes were already prepared, and he hadn’t received any response.

Was he not at home?

Living next door was convenient, so Zhou Yanchuan went to knock directly. After waiting for a while, just as he thought Lu Yunchu must be out, the door finally opened.

The face peeking out through the crack was unusually pale, cheeks and nose reddened in a completely unnatural way, and hair disheveled and unbound on his  shoulders.

“Oh, it’s you?” Lu Yunchu’s voice came out hoarsely.

“What’s wrong with you?” Zhou Yanchuan immediately noticed something wrong with his appearance. “Are you sick?”

It wasn’t the flu this time, not that serious, but the stuffy nose, cough, and low-grade fever were still uncomfortable. Lu Yunchu didn’t feel like moving at all and had been lying in bed.

Leaning against the doorframe, just as he was about to say “nothing,” Zhou Yanchuan’s right hand reached out, palm against his forehead. Lu Yunchu’s shoulders trembled slightly, and he instinctively lowered his head.

“You’re a bit warm,” Zhou Yanchuan affirmed.

“It’s about 37 degrees.”

“Have you taken any medicine?”

“Took some in the morning.”

“What about lunch? Haven’t eaten yet, right?”

Lu Yunchu shook his head. “Can’t eat.”

“That won’t do. You need to eat to take medicine,” Zhou Yanchuan directed him back to the room. “Let me get something for you; just stay lying down.”

Knowing that Lu Yunchu was sick, Zhou Yanchuan prepared a bowl of rice and selected some light dishes to bring over.

Despite having little appetite, Lu Yunchu started eating the food he brought.

“Thank you.”

In his weakened state, the emotions he usually kept hidden were amplified, causing his heartbeat to race.

Being so close, Zhou Yanchuan felt Lu Yunchu’s warm breath brush past his ear, thinking his condition had worsened, and urgently wanted to get his medicine.

“Are you out of medicine?” he asked while searching the dresser drawer, only to find a few empty boxes.

“Never mind,” Lu Yunchu said, not too concerned. “Maybe I’ll feel better after some sleep.”

Zhou Yanchuan hadn’t had a cold for two or three years, and any medicine at home would be expired.

“I’ll go downstairs and buy some for you.” There was a pharmacy at the entrance of their community. Without giving Lu Yunchu a chance to refuse, he said in a nearly commanding tone, “You rest well. I’ll be right back.”

As soon as Lu Yunchu’s head touched the pillow, he dozed off.

Before going downstairs, Zhou Yanchuan didn’t lock the security door, nor did he lock the inner door with a key. Lu Yunchu didn’t know when he came back, but found himself woken up from a half-sleep state, swallowing capsules with water and taking two gulps of cough syrup.

“I put the rest of the medicine in your drawer.”

“Thanks.”

Lu Yunchu hadn’t cleaned his room properly over the past two days due to being sick, and the dresser was cluttered with books and miscellaneous items.

After closing the medicine drawer, a notebook fell from the top, nearly hitting Zhou Yanchuan’s hand.

It seemed to be a sketchbook. At first glance, Zhou Yanchuan didn’t pay much attention, but when it fell open, its contents were naturally revealed before his eyes.

He was stunned.

The drawing was clearly of himself. The realistic style made it recognizable even to someone with no knowledge of art.

Lu Yunchu had drawn him. Was it just for fun?

He picked up the notebook and began flipping through it, feeling inexplicably anxious.

This sketchbook contained dozens of drawings, some with a few strokes, others meticulously detailed, but all of them depicted the same person.

After taking the medicine and getting plenty of rest, Lu Yunchu’s fever subsided by the afternoon. By evening, except for his sore throat, he was mostly recovered.

He had been too sleepy at noon to notice when Zhou Yanchuan left. He hadn’t yet repaid the money for the medicine, so he opened the drawer, calculated the cost, and transferred 200 yuan to Zhou Yanchuan via WeChat.

When he stood up, his eyes passed over the top of the dresser. The sketchbook he had searched for the day before was there, along with a pile of neatly stacked books. He took everything back to his bedroom.

Zhou Yanchuan did not confirm the transfer, and a day later the money automatically returned to Lu Yunchu’s account, along with a message from Zhou Yanchuan.

[No need.]

Text messages, unlike voice messages, don’t reveal the sender’s tone, but Lu Yunchu felt that this message didn’t match Zhou Yanchuan’s usual style.

Was it too brief? But Zhou Yanchuan had sent even shorter messages before.

He couldn’t put his finger on it, but there was a strange feeling. Without seeing Zhou Yanchuan in person, he couldn’t confirm anything. He suddenly thought of the neatly stacked sketchbook on the dresser the previous day… His mind was stuck as if filled with paste.

He hoped it was just an illusion.

Two days later, Lu Yunchu ran into Zhou Yanchuan at the entrance of their building; both had just returned from outside.

Recalling the refused transfer and Zhou Yanchuan’s odd tone, he casually asked, “Why didn’t you accept the money for the medicine?”

Zhou Yanchuan briefly met his gaze before looking away. After a moment, he said, “Really, it’s fine. It wasn’t much money.”

Besides that, he didn’t seem inclined to continue the conversation. In the elevator, he just stared blankly at the rising numbers.

The silence made the small space feel suffocating. It was as if a drop of paint had been added to water, changing its color completely without notice.

When the elevator doors opened again, the two seemed relieved.

Lu Yunchu waited for Zhou Yanchuan to exit first. Zhou Yanchuan didn’t look at him and didn’t even offer his usual goodbye before entering his apartment.

Feeling a tightness in his chest, Lu Yunchu couldn’t help but cough again, covering his mouth with his left hand as he slowly walked toward his own door.

Zhou Yanchuan paused mid-action of opening his door, turned his head, and their sudden eye contact made the awkward atmosphere even more unbearable.

Someone had to say something to break the stalemate.

“Are you… feeling better from your cold?”

“Yes,” Lu Yunchu realized Zhou Yanchuan had asked because he heard him cough, “Just a bit of a cough, nothing serious.”

Zhou Yanchuan nodded, placing his hand on the door handle again. “Get some rest.”

That was the last thing he said that night before closing the door, creating an invisible wall between them.