Chapter 8

The first time Yuan Ye ever saw Fang Shaoyi was in his third year of university. That year, Guan Zhou had just started university. Actually, he was merely half a year younger than Yuan Ye, but Yuan Ye had skipped several grades so had entered university two years before him. On the day of orientation, Yuan Ye helped him carry his luggage and move into school. It was only the two of them.

The upperclassman originally in charge of welcoming the new students got called away halfway through their conversation and only pointed them in a general direction. Yuan Ye and Guan Zhou walked an entire circle around the lake but still couldn’t find their destination.

It was so hot that there was a layer of sweat on Yuan Ye’s forehead. His annoyance level kept rising. Even so, he was still very courteous when asking passersby for directions. Two people walked over from in front of them. Yuan Ye politely approached and asked them, “Ey, hi classmates! I want to ask where the dorms are?”

Yuan Ye had thought that his call of “classmates” was very friendly and amiable; he was only asking for directions but had given them a title and had said “hi”. But the person directly across from him completely ignored him while the person off to the side was looking at him without a smile that wasn’t really a smile. Both of them were handsome. At the time, Yuan Ye had thought, a school that produces celebrities is truly different. I’ve just run into two random people and they’re already on this level?

Actually, Yuan Ye had only been seventeen at the time. He also looked young. His face made him seem like a high schooler. Though he was already an old third year gege at his own school, to most others, he appeared to be an incoming first year. He was even carrying luggage. He felt that he had already been extremely polite, but this honestly seemed like a first year newbie calling two important elders “classmates” instead of the more respectful “seniors”.

The two “classmates” across from him were Fang Shaoyi and Jian Xu. Both were currently popular young male actors. They didn’t work unless it was with famous directors. At sixteen, Fang Shaoyi had acted in Director Wei Tong’s《Sandstorm》, which shot him to instant fame. Jian Xu was even more impressive. At age four, he had started acting in television dramas. Many of the extremely popular celebrities now had all acted as his parents before. But at the time, Yuan Ye didn’t recognize either of them. This wasn’t because they weren’t famous enough or popular enough – it was because Yuan Ye normally didn’t pay attention to these things. He rarely watched TV. When he went online, it was only to play games or write. He hadn’t cared about these things at all.

In his eyes, these two were truly handsome, but were also a little annoying. One had his mouth glued shut and the other was laughing at who knows what. So disappointing.

Yuan Ye cocked an eyebrow and asked the two of them, “You don’t know?”

Jian Xu pointed behind himself and answered while still laughing, “Walk forward and take a left when you get to the end.” After saying this, he added, “Little classmate.”

“Thanks,” Yuan Ye hiked the luggage higher onto his shoulders and responded. “Little classmate.”

Since little, he had always been younger than everyone else in his classes. His teachers and classmates would frequently call him “Little Yuan Ye”. Thus, Yuan Ye hated when people focused on the fact that he was young. He had only taken a few steps so heard the person who had just answered his question say to the one who had remained silent, “Haha, did you hear? He called me little classmate.”

This was the first time Yuan Ye and Fang Shaoyi had met. He asked Fang Shaoyi for directions, Fang Shaoyi ignored him. It was also because Guan Zhou was timid and too introverted. In actuality, Guan Zhou had been standing right behind Yuan Ye the whole time and had recognized the two. He didn’t know who Fang Shaoyi was because he hadn’t watched《Sandstorm》, but he knew Jian Xu. He had watched this person’s dramas before. However, he didn’t dare to strike up a conversation with them. In his heart, he still felt a bit shy and hesitant about seeing celebrities, so hadn’t dared to speak.

Later on, Yuan Ye would always feel that their encounter was quite incredible. There were so many people at Guan Zhou’s school, but how had he just so managed to ask Fang Shaoyi for directions? Yuan Ye often said that this was fate. They were destined to meet, destined to get together.

His school was very close to Guan Zhou’s. When he had nothing to do on the weekends, Yuan Ye would go visit Guan Zhou. At the time, Yuan Ye was still young. There were so many handsome men and beautiful women at Guan Zhou’s school, but he had no eyes for them. He purely wanted to play with Guan Zhou.

By then, Yuan Ye had also found out that the two people they had run into that day were celebrities – actors. He specially found《Sandstorm》to watch. After he finished it, he found that he actually liked it a lot.

That movie had won a couple awards outside of the country: best director and best screenplay. It was a very incredible film. Yuan Ye was a Chinese major, so he really liked the plot. In it, Fang Shaoyi played the younger version of the main character. One of the shots of the movie was him looking into the camera and suddenly smiling. His smile revealed a mouth full of straight, white teeth. That smile was terribly difficult. His eyes needed to be bright, filled with infinite hope for the future and reverie for life. All of the main character’s free and boastful years needed to be concentrated into those eyes. However, he couldn’t look dumb while he smiled. The shot needed to be clean and pure.

Many years later, Fang Shaoyi mentioned that Wei Tong had made him refilm that take over two hundred times. He started practicing that smile from the first day he started filming, all the way until filming ended four months later. Wei Tong didn’t tell him anything, only making him smile all sorts of different smiles at the camera. Every one or two days, they would film a few smiles. Even on the last day of filming, he shot another take. This three second shot had been chosen out of those two hundred plus takes. Repeated immersion into that emotional state followed by return to the self was extremely difficult for a sixteen year old actor.

Yuan Ye watched this film twice. Consequently, he recognized Fang Shaoyi immediately after encountering him again.

Yuan Ye was leaving Guan Zhou’s dorm and was about to head back to his own school. From afar, he spotted Fang Shaoyi in an instant. The other was wearing exercise gear and was followed by a few little girls who were watching him. Yuan Ye blatantly walked up and clucked his tongue. He smiled and greeted Fang Shaoyi, “Hi, classmate!”

Fang Shaoyi looked at him. Yuan Ye couldn’t tell if the other remembered him or not.

Yuan Ye walked up beside him and was very generous with his praise. At the time, he was much shorter than Fang Shaoyi, so when he wanted to speak while walking next to Fang Shaoyi, he needed to look up. “I watched your movie.”

Fang Shaoyi seemed slightly hard to interact with. He probably got hit on like this quite often. He calmly raised an eyebrow. “Am I supposed to say thank you?”

“There’s no need.” Yuan Ye wobbled his head. There was still a smile on his face. “It’s my own business whether I watch it or not.”

Their initial encounters were all Yuan Ye gluing himself to Fang Shaoyi like this. Back then, he hadn’t thought too much of it. It was all because he really liked that movie, so also liked Fang Shaoyi by extension. Yuan Ye was actually someone with a terrible temper. He also wasn’t patient enough to take initiative and get to know someone. Fang Shaoyi was the first. Yuan Ye was sweet with his words; every time Fang Shaoyi saw him on campus, he would greet the other with a delighted smile and a “Yi ge”. This gave off the air of natural familiarity.

After seeing the other enough times, Fang Shaoyi’s face was no longer so cold. He could also smile in response every time he encountered Yuan Ye. At that time, Fang Shaoyi had thought Yuan Ye also went to their school. One time, he asked, “What major are you?”

Yuan Ye answered, “I’m a Chinese major. Third year student.”

Both Fang Shaoyi’s eyebrows shot up. He looked at the other, “You’re a third year?”

“Ah.” Yuan Ye nodded. With a smile, he added, “I know you’re a fourth year.”

Fang Shaoyi observed his face again, then burst into laughter. “How old are you?”

For some unknown reason, Yuan Ye didn’t tell the truth. But he also didn’t lie. He vaguely answered, “You’re a fourth year, I’m a third year. So I’m a year younger than you.”

Later on, to prove that he really was a third year, Yuan Ye even showed the other his student ID.

Fang Shaoyi asked him, “Not from our school?”

“Nope,” Yuan Ye said. “I’m here to see my friend.”

Back then, Yuan Ye would always visit on the weekends, but he wouldn’t always see Fang Shaoyi. The other wasn’t always at school. One time when he was visiting, Guan Zhou told him Fang Shaoyi had just returned to school. Yuan Ye’s personality in those days made him act like a headstrong and stubborn little bull. He happily ran off to Fang Shaoyi’s dorm. When Fang Shaoyi saw him after opening the door, he laughed and shook his head, “Well your news is quick.”

“I have spies.” There was a tiny scar on Yuan Ye’s eyelid. Every time he smiled, there would be a tiny little dip there. It was quite interesting.

Fang Shaoyi looked away. He turned to get out of the doorway. “Come in and sit for a bit?”

“Ah, okay,” Yuan Ye nodded.

Fang Shaoyi lived in a two person room. It was much more luxurious than Guan Zhou’s. Only he was in the room. He told Yuan Ye to sit in his chair, then grabbed a bottle of water and handed it to him. Yuan Ye pulled out several little booklets from his own backpack and said, “Yi ge, help sign some autographs.”

Fang Shaoyi asked him, “For what?”

Yuan Ye answered, “To sell. I plan to keep developing this into my eventual side occupation.”

Fang Shaoyi was already used to his amusing way of speaking. He took the pen and signed all the booklets for him.

There weren’t so many guessing games or hidden motives between interactions with boys. You’re a celebrity, I’m just a normal kid. So? I’m still not trying to get anything out of you. I just like to play with you, so what? At most, I’ll help the girls in my class ask for a few autographs. Other than that, I haven’t taken advantage of you in any way. Back then, in Yuan Ye’s heart, Fang Shaoyi was his friend, his bro. In the beginning, he had found Fang Shaoyi’s celebrity status new and interesting, but after enough time, it became irrelevant. Fang Shaoyi probably also liked how Yuan Ye could always surprise him with his thinking, so treated him like a little brother. When they had nothing else to do, he would tease him.

Yuan Ye would eat with Fang Shaoyi too, in the school cafeteria. A bunch of girls sat around them. Yuan Ye quietly asked Fang Shaoyi, “Yi ge, don’t you ever get annoyed?”

Fang Shaoyi answered, “I’m used to it.”

“If it were me, I’d be royally pissed.” Yuan Ye bit into his corn, then added, “I’m even royally pissed now.”

Fang Shaoyi smiled. “Just eat.”

Guan Zhou quickly lost favor in Yuan Ye’s eyes. Yuan Ye had already hung out with him for over a decade; looking at him didn’t feel fresh. In those days, Yuan Ye’s only goal was to play with Fang Shaoyi. He even spent Christmas with Fang Shaoyi that year.

Neither Fang Shaoyi nor Yuan Ye thought Christmas was too important. They treated it like an ordinary weekend. Yuan Ye was in Fang Shaoyi’s dorm, sitting on his bed. His feet dangled casually over the edge and he would also swing them around occasionally. Fang Shaoyi was sitting in a chair, reading a book. After a bit, he looked up and asked, “Want to visit a film crew? I could take you.”

Yuan Ye asked, “Director Wei’s film crew?”

Fang Shaoyi shook his head and said with a smile, “What, every film I participate in has to be Director Wei’s?”

Yuan Ye stated, “Then no.”

Though he said no, he still went in the end. That was Yuan Ye’s first time visiting a film set. The magnificence surprised him. This was a historical movie with a slight wartime background. The crew was huge, easily several hundred people. Fang Shaoyi’s character was a young king. It wasn’t his turn to film yet.

At the time, Yuan Ye wore a round ski cap and carried a backpack on his back. From behind, he looked like a little boy working with the equipment team.

Someone was moving stuff and had to pass beside them. Fang Shaoyi reached a hand out and tugged Yuan Ye closer to himself, saying, “Don’t let them bump into you.”

Yuan Ye got squished by the guy moving stuff, causing his waist to bend and him to lose his balance. Fortunately, Fang Shaoyi was standing next to him. Yuan Ye fell directly onto him, face getting buried in the other’s collar.

In that moment, Fang Shaoyi’s body fragrance instantly traveled into Yuan Ye’s nostrils. He had always loved the way Fang Shaoyi smelled. His dorm room was always filled with this faint aroma. It was really pleasant. Fang Shaoyi instinctively raised his arms to circle him slightly.

Yuan Ye was glued to his body for about three to five seconds. He only straightened himself up after the person moving stuff had completely finished walking by.

He put his hands in his jacket pockets, then took one out to rub his nose. After, he looked up to gaze at Fang Shaoyi. They made eye contact. The reflector close by was mirrored in his eyes, making it appear extra bright. Yuan Ye finished rubbing his nose and laughed, pleased. He said, “Yi ge, you smell so good.”

Following this, Yuan Ye scooted forward once more so that his nose was where Fang Shaoyi’s collar was. The tip of his nose even brushed against the other’s chin.

The weather was quite chilly. His nose was a bit cold. The moment they made contact with one another, it felt like a dragonfly gently tapping the water’s surface, or like a butterfly shyly kissing a kitten.