Chapter 15: Awkwardness at the Amusement Park — An Unspeakable Hidden Illness
Lu Xunye still clutched the very first flyer in his hand, strongly suspecting this group of people was in cahoots—they had swarmed up and stuffed everything into their hands all at once.
Sure enough, the group of young people who had just been “pretending not to know each other” couldn’t hold back their laughter after walking only a few steps. They huddled together, arms around each other’s shoulders, and stopped at a nearby grilled sausage stall.
Lu Xunye locked eyes with one of them who was craning his neck to peek back. The guy immediately whipped his head around, looking guilty as a thief.
Definitely students working part-time.
Pinching the amusement park advertisement in his hand, an idea popped into Lu Xunye’s head out of nowhere. He looked at Shen Yunqian, thought for a moment, and asked, “Want to go?”
When he spoke, Shen Yunqian was looking at the flyers on the table. The blue business card sitting on top was particularly eye-catching.
A long string of bold black text made it even more obvious—Ren’ai Hospital: Solving all your difficult and complicated male health issues.
So, upon hearing the question, Shen Yunqian fell into a strange silence for a few seconds.
In those few seconds, Shen Yunqian thought a lot: Admitting this kind of thing must require a lot of courage.
He pondered for a moment. “If you have a need… and feel afraid, I can accompany you.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, he hurriedly added, “I won’t tell anyone.”
Tell anyone what?
Hide what?
It’s just going to an amusement park; no need to be so secretive about it, right?
Lu Xunye was confused by what he was hearing. Looking at Shen Yunqian’s determined gaze—perhaps it was the atmosphere influencing things—he asked suspiciously, “Then… thank you?”
Shen Yunqian pursed his lips, his eyes drifting away. “No need to thank me.”
Based on this reaction, Lu Xunye intuitively felt they weren’t talking about the same thing. He looked down, just as Shen Yunqian’s palm slapped onto the table.
He watched the slender, distinct knuckles slide from the top of an A4-sized colorful flyer to the bottom, then quickly retract into a pocket.
Lu Xunye could see the guilt radiating from the hand’s owner. That secretive behavior… it was like he was guarding against him. “What are you doing?”
“I was checking if the ink on this flyer rubs off.” Shen Yunqian spoke so fast he almost bit his tongue.
“Oh.” Lu Xunye was skeptical. “Does it?”
“…” Shen Yunqian thought, You actually asked. He took his hand out and rubbed his fingers together under the other’s scrutiny. His fingertips were clean. “It doesn’t.”
“Are you full?” Lu Xunye didn’t think much more of it.
“I’m full.” Shen Yunqian pulled the cotton candy and candied hawthorn stick out from the cracks of the dilapidated table. “So, when are we going?”
“Eh?” Lu Xunye was surprised he was so agreeable this time. Afraid he might regret it, he slammed the table and stood up. “We’re going right now!”
The wheelchair was pushed forward, and Lu Xunye hailed a car.
He opened the rear door, then leaned his body over toward Shen Yunqian.
Shen Yunqian panicked. He stepped straight onto the ground, hopping on one leg to dodge the hand, saying, “I’ll do it myself. You… watch your health.”
What kind of talk is that! Does he think I’m weak?! Lu Xunye would be possessed if he could tolerate that. “I’m a manly man, okay?!”
The expression on Shen Yunqian’s face seemed to say: As long as you’re happy.
Just as Lu Xunye was about to retort, he watched Shen Yunqian scramble into the car like he was dodging the plague, sitting down properly.
He scoffed, his hands deftly folding the wheelchair and placing it in the trunk.
When he returned, he saw Shen Yunqian had closed the car door tight. “…”
I’m angry. I’m angry. I am seriously angry!
The ride-hailing car drove smoothly down the road. Shen Yunqian watched the man in the rearview mirror, who was frowning and staring at the road ahead with a face full of displeasure. He thought to himself: Is he… sulking?
He carefully chose his words. “Can I ask how old you are?”
Oh, right. He seemed to have seen the guy’s ID card. It was 24.
Hearing the voice, Lu Xunye lifted his eyelids and glanced at the rearview mirror. The young man immediately averted his gaze.
He let out a cold snort, propped his elbow on the car door, supported his temple, and stared unblinkingly at the rearview mirror.
Shen Yunqian felt like that scorching gaze was about to pierce through him, burning him up. His first reaction was to move toward the seat behind Lu Xunye.
Silently unbuckling his seatbelt, he had just slightly stood up when the car suddenly made a sharp turn. His body tilted uncontrollably, and a few seconds later, swayed back the other way.
Lu Xunye grabbed the handle on the car ceiling, feeling dizzy as if his soul was about to be flung out. Thank god for the seatbelt.
Thump—
The driver slammed on the brakes. Inertia threw Lu Xunye forward, only to be caught by the seatbelt.
He immediately turned to look at Shen Yunqian. His pupils constricted, and acting faster than his brain, he reached out and pressed down on Shen Yunqian’s… forehead.
His palm pressed against the young man’s bangs. They were soft, just as he imagined, but in the current scenario… “…” It wasn’t exactly a graceful pose.
Once the car stabilized completely, Lu Xunye quickly let go. Seeing Shen Yunqian sit back down and look at him, he hurriedly coughed twice and turned his head back around.
In reality, all of this happened in a matter of seconds. Three cars ahead had rear-ended each other, only two or three meters away from them.
“F*ck! Do you know how to watch the road?! Did your eyes grow in a dog’s belly or what?! Damn it!”
The driver, surviving the scare, finished cursing before remembering he had a passenger with limited mobility. “Handsome guy in the back, are you okay?”
Shen Yunqian glanced at Lu Xunye in the front, who was swiping on his phone pretending to be busy, and said to the driver, “I’m fine.”
From Shen Yunqian’s angle, Lu Xunye’s phone screen was black. Shen Yunqian guessed it was probably a privacy filter.
“There’s a traffic jam ahead, we need to change routes. Are you in a hurry?” the driver asked.
Lu Xunye put away the phone he hadn’t even unlocked. “No rush, just drive slowly.”
The car arrived at the entrance of the Happy Valley grounds and slowly came to a stop. Lu Xunye got out, took the wheelchair from the trunk, and knocked on the rear window.
When the window rolled down, Shen Yunqian poked his head out, looking from left to right. Crowds were surging, laughter filled the air, and there was a long queue for ticket checks at the gate.
From this position, he could see the towering Ferris wheel and roller coaster tracks inside the grounds. This was clearly an amusement park; there wasn’t a shadow of a hospital anywhere.
Lu Xunye was now even more baffled than Shen Yunqian. Heaven knows that earlier action was just a reflex in the heat of the moment; he didn’t mean to mess up Shen’s bangs.
He coughed guiltily, stepped closer, and raised his hand. Before Shen Yunqian could shrink back, he smoothed out the hair on his forehead, then quickly withdrew his hand. “Not coming down yet? Planning to let the driver take you home for tea?”
Perhaps recalling what happened earlier, Shen Yunqian’s ears gradually blushed. He stammered a defense, “I’m not.”
As Lu Xunye opened the car door, the next passenger for the driver opened the door on the other side and got in.
Lu’s hand padded the roof of the car, his broad shoulders blocking the sunlight spilling in from outside. Shen Yunqian glanced at his action but didn’t speak.
Once out of the car, Shen Yunqian fingered the card in his hoodie pocket, hesitating to speak, then stopping, then wanting to speak again. “Are you sure you didn’t go to the wrong place?”
“No.” Lu Xunye was dismissive. “I’m not an idiot. How could I take a taxi to the wrong place?”
He stroked his chin in thought. “Unless you want to go somewhere else? Shall we go now?”
As he spoke, Lu Xunye unfolded the wheelchair and patted it, signaling him to sit.
“…” After sitting down successfully, Shen Yunqian rejected the offer. “Here is fine… it’s quite nice.”
Then, he looked up at Lu Xunye’s smooth jawline and sharply defined profile, thinking: Could it be that he felt embarrassed and didn’t want anyone to accompany him, so he plans to go secretly later?
Noticing his gaze, Lu Xunye deliberately pushed the wheelchair faster, a smile playing on his lips. “Peeking at me? Think I’m good-looking?”
Shen Yunqian: “…”
Once inside the park, Lu Xunye adopted the tone of a gracious host, putting on an arrogant face. “What do you want to play first? I’ll take you.”
He pushed the wheelchair around in a circle to let Shen Yunqian see the signs for the attractions. When they reached a certain spot, Lu Xunye’s eyes flickered, and he quickly breezed past it.
The view suddenly changed rapidly, making Shen Yunqian dizzy. “?”
Lu Xunye stopped. “Alright, what do you want to play?”
Shen Yunqian looked down at the attractions listed on the back of the ticket in his hand. After scanning the entertainment facilities, he finally said, “Let’s do the roller coaster.”
“Roller coaster?” Lu Xunye played dumb. “Is there one? Isn’t the roller coaster under maintenance? It’s not open today.”
He looked around and found something that looked very safe. “What about… the carousel?”
Amidst the cheerful and warm children’s songs of the carousel, Lu Xunye saw Shen Yunqian’s flat expression. Okay, fine. He took a step back. “Then what about the Ferris wheel?”
“…” Shen Yunqian remained skeptical. “Is it really under maintenance?”
Lu Xunye: “What benefit would I get from lying to you?”
Shen Yunqian tentatively believed him. “Then bungee jumping?” Although it cost extra, he hadn’t done it before and actually wanted to try.
Lu Xunye: “…” Is there no end to this?!
He opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by a sudden sound.
“Bleagh—”
Lu Xunye was speechless. He turned toward the source of the sound.
A boy was hugging a tree, retching repeatedly. Although nothing came out, the sound made it seem like he was about to vomit his stomach out.
His face was pale, and his stiff hair stood up in a messy, fluffy style, as if sprayed with hairspray.
“Are you okay? I told you not to come with us if you’re afraid of heights. We two will go on the roller coaster, you just go play what you like.” The young man beside him patted his back, feeling both amused and exasperated.
The boy let go of the tree and, using the posture of the other boy comforting him, wrapped his arm around the boy’s shoulder. He leaned his whole body against him, forcing a smile. “You care about me.”
Before he could adjust his posture, another handsome boy walked over the next second, grabbed the back of his neck, and pulled him away, throwing a drink into his arms.
Then the handsome boy poked the straw through the lid of the milk tea and gently handed it to the young boy. “He’s faking it. Don’t pay attention to him.”
…
Lu Xunye and Shen Yunqian watched the three of them walk away, arms around each other.
“So,” Shen Yunqian spoke up, breaking the silence between them, “the pendulum ride must be under maintenance too, right?”
Before the words even settled, Lu Xunye looked at the giant pendulum swinging high in the distance and heard the piercing screams. Remembering that he was the one who suggested coming to this damn place, he fell silent.
“Are you afraid of heights?” Lu Xunye’s reaction perfectly verified Shen Yunqian’s guess.
Judging by that guy just now, the symptoms of acrophobia did seem quite terrifying. “If you’re scared, we can go back…”
Before Shen Yunqian could finish, the wheelchair started moving, heading toward the roller coaster. “?”
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