Graduation season was always the liveliest time of the year.
On the Nanyang University campus, graduates were all dressed in their academic gowns, taking commemorative photos in various spots, with the largest crowd gathered at the school gate. For this occasion, the school gate features a banner from when this cohort first entered as freshmen. The banner is dated four years ago, the day they first set foot in Nayang.
That morning, Yun Ci first went to the law firm before heading to the university. He quickly changed into his academic gown and leaned against the railing, waiting for someone. Just like on the first day of school, Li Yan was late on graduation day.
Li Yan: [Give me ten more minutes.]
Li Yan: [Just ten minutes.]
Li Yan: [I promise I’ll be in front of you in ten minutes.]
Yun Ci replied: [You might as well ask the heavens for 500 more years.]
Li Yan: [……]
While waiting, Yun Ci started poking at Yu Xun. Today, he and Yu Xun didn’t come together because the graduation ceremony included a family photo session in the afternoon, and Yan Yue would be coming. Since that phone call, Yan Yue had never mentioned his son’s and former student’s relationship again, and their conversations revolved around work, internships, and upcoming graduate school plans.
Although Yu Xun occasionally sent long texts to Yan Yue, considering Yan Yue’s feelings, he tried to avoid the topic when they met.
yc: [Are you here?]
Yu Xun didn’t say whether he had arrived, responding with three words instead.
yx: [I see you.]
yx: [/photo]
It was a candid shot of Yun Ci in his academic gown under a tree. Yu Xun had captured it well; though many people were bustling around, they all seemed like mere shadows in the photo, with only Yun Ci in the center being exceptionally clear. Sunlight fell on him, making him look vibrant and full of life.
Yun Ci looked in the direction the photo was taken but didn’t see Yu Xun. It seemed Yu Xun anticipated his action, and a moment later, the chat box had two more words.
yx: [Just left.]
yc: [Why didn’t you let me see you before leaving?]
yx: [See what?]
yx: [Didn’t you see the academic gown last night?]
Yu Xun emphasized: [In bed.]
Yun Ci: “……”
His ears turned red instantly. Last night, this person had clung to him, asking if he wanted to see him in his academic gown. The purpose of wearing it turned out to be far from innocent, and Yun Ci quickly succumbed to Yu Xun’s skilled maneuvering. Before losing consciousness, he even used the last bit of his reason to throw Yu Xun’s gown off the bed to avoid any unidentified stains on it.
……
In the middle of their conversation, Li Yan came running down the central avenue.
yx: [Has Mr. Yan arrived?]
Yun Ci replied: [Not yet, he has a class this morning.]
Li Yan, with his smooth black hair, couldn’t be as rebellious and flamboyant as he was in high school when he dyed his hair yellow. “It’s not my fault, brother, I had to work overtime last night.”
Li Yan said, tugging at his academic gown.
Yun Ci put away his phone and said, “Let’s go.”
However, after taking a few steps, he felt something was off.
Yun Ci glanced at him, “Are you wearing height-increasing shoes?”
“……” Li Yan looked down at his shoes hidden under the long academic gown, “Is it that obvious?”
Yun Ci: “You’re as tall as I am, what do you think?”
Obvious or not, Li Yan confessed, “There’s a photo session at the end, Liu Zi said he wants to take a picture with me.”
“……”
“Are you mocking me?” Li Yan jumped, “During the senior year group photo, can you say you didn’t wear height-increasing shoes?”
Yun Ci’s mocking gaze couldn’t be continued.
Because he had worn them that day too.
His and Yu Xun’s first photo together, even though they were in different classes—one in Class One and the other in Class Seven—and even though there were hundreds of students between them in the group photo, and no one would notice their slight height difference, he still wore his highest-heeled shoes. The label on those shoes read “Invisible Height Increase,” promoting a subtle boost in height.
……
Beside him, Li Yan was still daydreaming, “I have to catch him off guard this time, show him who’s the real master of group photos.”
Every time Yun Ci watched Li Yan and Liu Zi’s childish bickering, he couldn’t help but see his former self, falling into deep embarrassment and regret.
Was he really that silly back then?
Li Yan, still next to him, suggested, “You’re really not going to wear them? There’s still time to buy insoles.”
Yun Ci: “?”
Li Yan: “Even though you two are dating now, it doesn’t mean you can’t still compete. And most importantly, if you wear insoles too, my height won’t be an issue anymore.”
“…”
“I can’t wear them,” Yun Ci said, “and I don’t need to compete with him.”
Li Yan didn’t understand: “Huh?”
Yun Ci, subtly showing off his relationship, said coldly, “I can make him post on social media that he’s only 160 cm and feels very insecure every day, needing to wear height-increasing insoles.”
“…”
Damn.
Li Yan gritted his teeth, thinking about the world of couples.
He realized he had overstepped.
—
The grand hall of Nanyang University was packed with people.
Usually, everyone would skip collective activities to go back to the dorms to sleep or play games, so it was rare to see this place filled.
Following the schedule, after the host stepped down, representatives from each department came up to speak.
Although Yun Ci was sitting in the back row, he had good eyesight and could see Gao Pingyang preparing on the side of the stage.
“Class monitor,” the student next to Yun Ci said, “Isn’t Lao Gao wearing a wig?”
“His hair wasn’t this thick before—”
Others whispered, “Maybe he used some technology, got a hair transplant.”
“And also dyed it? This brownish-yellow is too trendy.”
“And there’s a color difference with the rest of his hair.”
“Then it’s probably a wig piece.”
“What’s the difference?”
“You don’t know about different types of wigs? As law students, we should be knowledgeable about this.”
“…”
Yun Ci, sitting among the crowd, raised his hand and placed a finger to his lips, “Shh, give Lao Gao some face, keep quiet.”
Once he spoke, the whole class fell silent.
Except for some noise from the back row, which disappeared soon after, then someone tapped on the seat behind Yun Ci.
He turned around.
It was Yu Xun, who had swapped seats with someone to sit behind him.
“Bored?” Yu Xun asked.
“I was a bit,” Yun Ci leaned back a little, “but not anymore.”
Because of a certain someone, the long graduation ceremony became less boring.
On stage.
Each department’s representative teacher went up to congratulate the students. Finally, a whole row of teachers said in unison, “Lastly, congratulations to everyone on graduating from Nanyang—”
Yun Ci was about to applaud, but at that moment, a hand reached through the gap between the seats.
Under the flashing lights, he saw a paper rose being passed through the gap.
“Open it,” Yu Xun said as he let go.
Amidst the thunderous applause, Yun Ci unfolded the rose.
Inside the paper, four words were written: “Happy Graduation.”
—
After the ceremony, the photo session began.
On the park lawn, the school had set up many decorative stands with balloons, which the students jokingly said looked like a wedding venue.
After going outside, they lined up by class to take class photos.
The photo area was a bit chaotic, with everyone looking for their parents:
“Dad—over here.”
“Mom, I’m here! Stand next to me.”
“…”
Yun Ci searched the crowd for Yan Yue but couldn’t find him after several glances.
He was puzzled, as Yan Yue would never be late. He would likely have arrived early to confirm the arrangements with the relevant teachers.
The sun was blazing, so Yun Ci took off his graduation cap and was about to leave the group to find him when someone called him: “Yun…”
The person seemed unsure how to address him, calling his full name felt too formal, so after hesitating, they imitated Yan Yue and Yu Xun, calling him by his nickname, “Xiao Ci.”
Yu Ying, wearing a white dress, stood under the decorative stand, holding a bouquet of flowers.
“Auntie wishes you a successful graduation and a bright future.”
She was a bit nervous, handing him the flowers and explaining, “Mr. Yan asked me to come.”
Yun Ci was a bit confused, “Where is he?”
Yu Ying pointed to the place where another law class was taking photos: “Over there, he said he had something to say.”
Yun Ci looked in the direction she pointed and saw Yan Yue standing in front of Yu Xun, holding a bouquet of flowers.
It had been a long time since these two had stood so close together.
Yu Xun was also taken aback.
Soon, he reacted, feeling a bit at a loss.
After a myriad of emotions surged through him, he seemed to calm down and chose the most appropriate identity for communication, calling out to Yan Yue, “Teacher.”
Yan Yue was dressed very formally today, wearing a suit and a neatly tied bow tie despite the heat.
Yan Yue’s feelings were also very complex.
Back in West High, he had taught Yu Xun for three years, with memories of those days vivid in his mind. But now, their relationship was more than just teacher and student.
“You’re graduated now,” Yan Yue, as his high school teacher, handed him the flowers, “Congratulations. I wish you success in your future work.”
Yu Xun took them obediently and said, “Thank you, Teacher Yan.”
Yan Yue looked at him, and the photographer beside them enthusiastically asked, “Do you want me to take a picture of you two?”
Yu Xun hesitated, but Yan Yue said, “Please do.”
Saying that, Yan Yue moved closer to him, their shoulders touching. Both of their backs were inexplicably straight.
“Click.”
The moment was captured.
After the photo, just as Yu Xun was about to step aside, Yan Yue said, “Stop sending them to me.”
“What?”
“Your essays.”
“…”
Yu Xun couldn’t quite grasp the meaning of “stop sending them,” but judging by Yan Yue’s tone, it didn’t seem like he was annoyed.
Yan Yue’s expression was complicated, “How many trivial stories from high school do you plan to write about?”
Even the chicken legs from the school shop got their own essay, titled “Remembering West High’s Chicken Legs.” He really didn’t want to read any more of them.
“Your essays are so bad,” Yan Yue finally found the opportunity to say, “just stop sending them.”
Yu Xun carefully asked, “Then what do you think I should send?”
“Or maybe I can draw,” he added, “I can write poetry too.”
Yan Yue: “……”
“Nothing at all.”
Before leaving, Yan Yue finally said, “Living your life well is better than anything.”
—
Evening, in a KTV.
After the graduation ceremony, Liu Zi and the others organized a gathering, saying it was the last time everyone would get together before graduation, to sing some songs.
Many people came to the private room.
Li Yan and Liu Zi were red-faced from drinking, fighting over the microphone: “Let me sing this line—”
“Move aside, I’m better at singing these high notes.”
“You think your high notes are better than mine? Let me show you what real high notes are.”
The two of them argued, and their voices amplified through the microphone turned into a shrill static noise: “Zzzz—”
“Stop singing,” Yun Ci coldly interrupted them, “Go out, turn left, and go downstairs.”
But it was no use.
With the competition unresolved, no one’s words could break through.
Yun Ci, having been in their shoes before, understood their current state.
So he tried a different approach: “Let him sing first.”
Upon hearing this, Li Yan sat down: “Fine, let him embarrass himself first. After he sings, I’ll sing the same song again. That way, our skills can be compared more clearly.”
After saying that, Li Yan added, “Is that what you meant? I get it.”
“…”
Yun Ci said nothing, pretending he didn’t have such an embarrassing friend. He turned back to see that Yu Xun had been silent all along, so he tilted his head to look at him.
This KTV was the same one Peng Yiyuan had brought them to before. Yun Ci watched the shimmering light fall on Yu Xun’s eyes, thinking of a distant memory.
Yun Ci asked, “Why aren’t you saying anything?”
Yu Xun was still replaying Yan Yue’s last words before he left, worried he might have misunderstood: “Did Teacher Yan… agree?”
Yun Ci didn’t know what Yan Yue had said to him privately, but after the graduation ceremony, he received a message from Yan Yue.
His hand still held by Yu Xun, he gently pulled away and showed him his phone.
—You have graduated. In future exams, there will be no proctor, no grader, only yourself.
—Over the past two years, I have thought a lot, including about your relationship with Yu Xun.
The last sentence read:
—Choose the way you want to live your life. Home will always be your harbor.
Liu Zi and Li Yan’s singing contest ended, and the next song, a famous love song, started playing, though no one knew who chose it.
The microphone made its way around the room but no one took it.
Yu Xun looked at the message on the screen for a long time. When the microphone came to him, he took it, relaxed his eyebrows, placed a hand on Yun Ci’s shoulder, and said openly, “I’ll sing this one.”
Then, as the prelude played, Yu Xun sang a line softly: “Often secretly watching you.”
His voice lost some of its usual nonchalance, and the ending note lingered: “Like you too much / Dare not to keep it hidden.”
During the song, his gaze stayed on Yun Ci.
The gathering went on late into the night, dispersing around two or three in the morning.
Liu Zi had too much to drink, and Li Yan, irritable, carried him, following the group: “He said he could drink a thousand cups without getting drunk, really?”
“…”
The noisy chatter spread along the corridor.
Halfway through, Yun Ci suddenly stopped.
Beside him, there was a familiar window slightly ajar, with the wind blowing through the gap.
This was the corridor where, long ago, he found Yu Xun drunk and accidentally discovered the photo album on his phone.
Yu Xun, walking ahead, habitually reached back, his hand hanging in the air, waiting for Yun Ci to take it. When Yun Ci didn’t, his hand swayed in the air as a reminder: “Hand.”
But Yun Ci didn’t take it immediately.
He suddenly called out, “Yu Xun.”
Yu Xun turned around.
The wind still blew through the gap.
Yun Ci looked at him and said, “I like you too.”
Yu Xun was stunned for a long time, then glanced around, realizing where they were. He deliberately asked, “What?”
Yun Ci repeated, “I said I like you.”
Yu Xun smiled, light flickering in his eyes, and said in a teasing tone, “Actually, I heard you. I just wanted to hear it again.” Then he added, “I love you, Xiao Ci.”
