The Middle Fingers of Rivalry

“Brother!”

As Chu Nian stepped out of the company, Lin Yan ran over in a few quick strides. The wind swept the black hair from his forehead, revealing a backpack slung over his shoulder. Having shed his suit jacket, he wore only a thin black short-sleeved shirt; compared to a weary office worker like Chu Nian, Lin Yan looked more like a male college student who hadn’t yet graduated.

He came to a halt beside Chu Nian, his chest heaving slightly. The younger man was quite tall, forcing Chu Nian to look up at him. “You haven’t left yet?”

“I said I’d wait for you to finish work.” Lin Yan chuckled, his two canine teeth adding a touch of boyishness to his face. The dappled evening sunlight resting on his head softened his entire aura.

Chu Nian nodded without saying much and continued walking, his eyes scanning the surroundings. He didn’t see Lu Jinnian’s car.

He breathed a secret sigh of relief. After the events of the previous night, Chu Nian still hadn’t figured out how to face Lu Jinnian. The image of the man cupping his cheeks was still vivid in his mind; the lingering heat from those burning fingertips on his skin made his face flush. He quietly raised the back of his hand to touch his cheek.

Suddenly, he stepped on a small stone, the sharp pain shooting through his sole. Beside him, Lin Yan tilted his head in confusion and waved a hand in front of Chu Nian’s face.

“Brother… Brother!”

“Huh?” Chu Nian snapped back to reality, blinking blankly at Lin Yan. “What is it?”

Lin Yan curled his lips into a smile. “What are you thinking about? You didn’t even hear me speaking.”

Chu Nian looked away, his eyes downcast and his expression unnatural. “Nothing.”

Seeing that he didn’t want to talk about it, Lin Yan shrugged. “Alright then. Is there anything you want to eat, Brother? My treat.”

“No… it’s fine.” Chu Nian instinctively tried to decline.

“Oh, come on—” Lin Yan dragged out the syllable, grabbing Chu Nian’s arm and shaking it twice like a pouting child. “We haven’t seen each other in so long. Now that we’ve finally reunited, I want to spend more time with you.”

Chu Nian was swayed nearly off balance by the shaking. Unable to win the argument, he reluctantly agreed to let Lin Yan buy him a cold drink.

Lin Yan immediately beamed with uncontrollable joy. Once excited, he became even more talkative, rambling about his life over the past few years and stories from school. The chatterbox didn’t close for the entire walk. Chu Nian began to wonder: how did the quiet boy from his childhood turn into such a motor-mouth?

When Lin Yan went into the shop to buy the drinks, Chu Nian finally had a moment of peace. Shortly after, Lin Yan emerged and pressed a cup of iced lemon juice into Chu Nian’s hand while taking a sip of his own soda.

His prominent Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. Releasing the straw, he continued his story about a girl in his university class who was being manipulated by her boyfriend. “…I mean, with so many people on Earth, if one person isn’t right, you just find someone else to love. Why hang yourself from a single tree?”

Chu Nian swallowed a mouthful of tart lemon juice and suddenly asked, “What about you? Do you have someone you like?”

The question silenced Lin Yan. He stood frozen with his drink in hand, the look of helplessness in his eyes making Chu Nian feel as though he had broached a forbidden topic.

“Ah…” Chu Nian licked his lips. “I… I didn’t mean…”

Lin Yan quietly looked up. His light brown eyes landed on Chu Nian’s rosy lips, which were glowing in the sunset. Panic flared in his gaze for an instant before he lowered his lashes to hide it. “Actually, I always thought I didn’t. But ever since…”

He didn’t finish. Chu Nian stared at Lin Yan’s bright red earlobes.

[Since I met you again.]

[I finally realized that the person I’ve always loved is you.]

The secret hidden in his heart was exposed to Chu Nian along with the dying light of the setting sun.

Thump, thump, thump.

Someone’s erratic heartbeat blended into a wild rhapsody. Even Chu Nian, who had accidentally peeked into someone else’s secret, began to feel flustered.

When did it begin? For Lin Yan, the moment Chu Nian first stood in front of him to protect him, the older boy’s silhouette had moved into his heart. Although he was only five then and understood nothing of love, Chu Nian was the person he placed above everyone else.

As he grew older, after receiving his first love letter, that figure buried in his heart appeared in his dreams. He began to desperately search for Chu Nian, but the world was too big, and he had no idea where his “Big Brother” had gone. He trapped himself in a fog of time, stumbling as he chased the mere memory of a retreating back—until the day he saw Chu Nian’s name on a roster.

Perhaps heaven took pity on him and gave him the chance to meet Chu Nian again. The moment he saw him, his heart, which felt like it would jump out of his chest, and his burning cheeks betrayed his every thought.

“Brother.” Lin Yan’s tight lips relaxed. He looked up, hesitating to speak. “Actually, I…”

Before he could finish, Chu Nian patted his shoulder, cutting off whatever he was about to say. “Lin Yan, do you want some milk candy?”

Lin Yan frowned, looking bewildered. “What?”

Chu Nian tilted his chin, gesturing for him to look. Lin Yan turned; they happened to be standing by a small convenience store with rows of milk candies hanging at the entrance.

Realizing the implication, Lin Yan’s face turned an even deeper shade of crimson. He shyly grabbed the hem of Chu Nian’s shirt and whispered, “Brother! I’m not a child anymore!”

Chu Nian looked up at him with a smile. “Is that so? To me, you’ve always been my little brother.”

As the words fell, Lin Yan’s brow knitted tighter, and his grip on Chu Nian’s shirt quietly loosened.

Little brother?

He bit his back teeth in frustration. When he looked at Chu Nian again, something flashed in the depths of his eyes.

It didn’t matter. There was plenty of time. He was merely a beast that Chu Nian happened to catch. Either Chu Nian would save him, or they would sink to the bottom of the ocean together.

On the road not far away, a black car followed them at a distance. The man inside frowned as he watched Lin Yan and Chu Nian walking closer and closer together. The man in the passenger seat gloated: “Looks like your wife is being seduced by another man.”

Lu Jinnian let out an impatient “Tsk,” his eyes nailed to Chu Nian. As the two stopped, he was forced to slow his car even further. A bicycle wobbled past, and the rider quirked an eyebrow at Lu Jinnian provocatively. “Driving like that? What a waste of a luxury car.”

He Xing, sitting beside him, laughed even more hysterically, clutching his stomach and wiping tears from his eyes as he ignored Lu Jinnian’s darkening face. “I say, Young Master Lu, you’re driving while injured—aren’t you afraid of a crash? You might not be afraid to die, but I am.”

“Zhou Ze messed up earlier; I don’t trust him right now,” Lu Jinnian answered coldly, his eyes never leaving Chu Nian. At that moment, Lin Yan—cursed luck—actually grabbed the hem of Chu Nian’s shirt. Lu Jinnian nearly ground his teeth to powder. “Who exactly is that guy?!”

“Looks pretty young,” He Xing remarked, crossing his arms like an expert on the subject.

Lu Jinnian’s eyes were rimmed with red. “Does Chu Nian really like younger guys?”

He Xing shrugged. “I don’t know if Chu Nian likes them, but if it’s a ‘younger brother’ that handsome, even I’d like him.”

Lu Jinnian’s composure was about to shatter. “What do you think they’re doing now?”

He Xing used his hands to widen his eyes mockingly. After a brief analysis, he replied, “I’d say… they’re probably confessing… Hey!! Lu Jinnian, what are you doing?!”

The moment the word “confessing” left his mouth, Lu Jinnian accelerated abruptly, causing the unready He Xing to slam back into his seat. He groaned, rubbing his bruised back, and by the time he recovered, all that remained was the sound of a door slamming in fury.

The loud “Bang!” caught the attention of the two people by the roadside. Chu Nian turned to see Lu Jinnian appearing behind them, his face clouded with anger. With a stern expression, he strode over and positioned his body halfway in front of Chu Nian.

Chu Nian was pushed back a few steps, looking utterly bewildered. Lu Jinnian narrowed his eyes, sizing up the stranger before him.

[Who the hell are you?]

[Seducing a married man in public, are we?]

[Watch out, or I’ll sentence you to life without a wife.]

Chu Nian’s eyes widened, unable to process the thought. Lin Yan was also dazed, his gaze scanning Lu Jinnian up and down several times before looking past the man’s shoulder at Chu Nian. “Uh… Brother?”

He instinctively reached out to grab Chu Nian, but Lu Jinnian intercepted him. The man moved with lightning speed to seize Lin Yan’s hand in a handshake. Lin Yan froze.

As the man’s body heat transferred over, Lin Yan felt the grip tighten continuously, crushing his hand until the bones ached. Chu Nian blinked; seeing Lin Yan’s face turn pale with a pained expression and seeing the veins bulging on the back of Lu Jinnian’s hand, he knew exactly how much force was being used.

Chu Nian quickly grabbed Lu Jinnian’s arm. “Lu Jinnian, what are you doing! Let go!”

Only then did Lu Jinnian release his grip. Lin Yan pulled his hand back immediately, rubbing his reddened fingers.

“Oh—I thought he wanted to greet me,” Lu Jinnian said without a hint of shame. He shoved his hands into his pockets and looked at Chu Nian expressionlessly. “Do you two know each other?”

Chu Nian: “He’s an intern at our company, and also my—”

“An intern,” Lu Jinnian interrupted, only listening to the first half. “Then just like Chu Nian, I am also your boss. However, you can just call me President Lu. You aren’t worthy of calling me ‘Lu Jinnian’ yet.”

The hostility was so blatant that the sharp-witted Lin Yan had sensed it long ago. He snorted, unfazed. “Hello, President Lu. I wonder what business you have with us?”

Lin Yan pointedly emphasized the word “us,” as if to highlight his closeness with Chu Nian.

Lu Jinnian lazily lifted his eyelids. “Just a boss showing concern for his employees.”

Lin Yan’s gaze slid downward, landing exactly on Lu Jinnian’s hands—which were shoved in his pockets, yet with both middle fingers clearly extended and visible.

His expression froze.

Two middle fingers.