You Sound Sleepy

Qi Jin looked back at the pale-faced man. He couldn’t help but grit his teeth and curse under his breath.

He originally egged on the little miss to come over, so he could watch a drama unfold. Unexpectedly, something went wrong. Que Qingyan’s sentences were vague, but his attitude was obvious. He wanted to help Lin Mian.

She was on his mind.

Qi Jin tried to make a call while running out of the restaurant. The call wasn’t answered. When he asked the waiter at the door, he realized that Que had taken back the wet clothes the little miss had changed from and, instead of driving away, he had walked out. 

The restaurant was serene and in the middle of a noisy district. Lin Mian, in a book kiosk, snuggled like a ball alone in the corner with a potted plant.

A small square, the 24-hour self-service book kiosk was shielded with glass. The air smelled of damp paper.

In a narrow space, Lin Mian struggled to hold back her tears, squirming. When she was trying to change positions, she looked down and thought. There’s no closet here.

She felt even more aggrieved.

Her phone had more than a dozen unanswered calls from her editor. Lin Mian glanced at the bright phone screen for a few seconds. After adjusting her emotions, just as she called her editor back, three clear knocks came from outside.

She raised her head, seeing Que Qingyan standing patiently outside the book kiosk. He was wearing a jacket and holding a paper bag in his hand.

“Ayo, you finally picked up. Author Mu Mian, you know I was almost about to go to your apartment to find you.” Her editor had answered the phone call. After sighing, her editor added, “Are you free?”

Silent, Lin Mian clutched the corner of her dress and stood up, meeting the man’s gaze. She quickly turned her gaze away.

“The new manhua has been sent for printing.” The editor didn’t take notice of Lin Mian’s silence and continued excitedly, “If everything was on schedule, it probably would have been on the market a year ago. I discussed with the chief editor about wanting to hold an autograph event for this manhua series. It just so happens to be a promotion…”

The glass door of the kiosk didn’t have any locks. However, Que Qingyan didn’t pull the door and come in. Lin Mian couldn’t help but meet his eyes again.

The effects of alcohol. Her cheeks and tips of her ears soft and red, her eyes wet, Lin Mian felt pain in her eyes. She suppressed the urge to cry.

Lin Mian squeezed her phone. She didn’t pay attention to a single word that her editor said.

Her anger didn’t originate from that man’s coarse words. His words were just a fuse to a bomb that had been welling up in her chest.

Bai Jiayi had said before that the mental age between Que Qingyan and herself were too far apart. She had said her crush for him would disappear eventually. She had said something along the line of “After all, love can be fickle. You’ll fall in love again, so why bother even bother trying to chase him?”

Qi Jin threw jokes at her and teased her in front of everyone, thinking that her feelings for him were shallow. That – that wasn’t true.

A stream of events flooded Lin Mian’s mind. She looked at Que Qingyan through the glass door, her eyes red.

“The time and venue for the event have been already planned and discussed by the organizer. It’s in the nearby City T. The specifics have yet to be confirmed, so I wanted to tell you in advance…”

If it weren’t for the fact she liked him, she wouldn’t have been so shameless. 

If it weren’t for the fact she liked him, she wouldn’t have obediently sat at the table, cautiously pleasing others and enduring the mocking of his colleagues. She didn’t want him to lose face.

If it weren’t for…

The confession scene from before played out in Lin Mian’s head. It made her feel miserable. She bit her lower lip silently. 

What happened tonight was all said and done. I deserve it. It was originally I that wanted to come.

After her editor finished speaking, she realized that the other party wasn’t responding. That was strange. “Author, are you listening?”

“…” Lin Mian remained silent for a moment. Then, she replied, “Yes.”

Her voice was choked and carried an unusual lowness. Her editor had actually still wanted to say more, but since Lin Mian didn’t seem too keen on listening, the editor, after sending out two more confirmation sentences, hung up the phone.

Lin Mian’s eyelashes dropped, her head lowered. Calm down. Calm down. She opened the kiosk’s door and walked out.

Standing in front of Que Qingyan, she paused for a bit before whispering, “… Professor Que.” Ok, take a deep breath and admit that you made a mistake throwing a tantrum. 1, 2, 3. “What happened last night was…”

“What happened last night has nothing to do with you.”

Lin Mian, shocked from hearing those words, looked up at his face.

“What just happened…” Que Qingyan looked down, meeting her eyes, his voice steady. “Even if you broke a cup,  it wouldn’t matter. No matter how bad your temper is, I won’t say anything. You really didn’t need to give me face.” He tacitly didn’t tell her what he had told everyone at the restaurant. 

He wanted to soothe her. His voice was deep and low, and his handsome face was accentuated against the neon light, which formed a shadow around him. There was a hint of warmth in his normally indifferent expression. 

 “I’m partially to blame for what happened. Before I brought you here, I didn’t expect such a thing to happen. It was my oversight.” 

Before Que Qingyan spoke, Lin Mian’s heart was brimming, full of grievances and fret. It formed a ball. Now that he opened his mouth, she was like a small animal that had its hair combed. The ball had broken apart and dispersed through her body. Her heart tightened. It felt sweet yet sour.

Even though I know he’s just comforting a student…

She blushed and quickly turned away, cursing to herself secretly. I’m too hopeless.

“…” Lin Mian remained silent, her throat choking up. After some time, she half-jokingly said, “You’re not a god. How should I expect you to…”

“If you’re upset,” Que Qingyan’s gaze swept over her eyes tinted in red. “I’ll arrange a time and make that person personally apologize to you.”

Make that person personally apologize…

Lin Mian, staring at him in a daze, quickly came to her senses and replied, “There’s no need. I’m not – them… I just want….” 

She pursed her lips and stopped talking, silently looking at him. She had swallowed her words. That was close.

Que Qingyan noticed the sudden stop in her words and her struggling expression. “Continue?”

Lin Mian took a step back, her feet trembling. Hesitating to speak or not, she felt the wine she had drunk suddenly flare up, her feet staggering.

She was still hesitating. At this moment, the fumes of wine engulfed her mind. Her face was burning. She let herself go. I drank alcohol. I might as well take advantage of that fact.

She drank alcohol. 

Even if I’m rejected by a few cold words, it won’t be… it won’t be too bad.

Qi Jin’s calls continued to bombard Que Qingyan. Que Qingyan glanced at them and just as he pressed to answer, he heard a low, shy voice.

“Can you…” Lin Mian’s voice was soft. It was like she was muttering to herself. “Can you comfort me?”

The book kiosk was at the entrance of an alley and further out was a street with bright lights. At this moment, the voices of the bustling streets seemed blocked to Que Qingyan. Her soft voice was the only thing that could be heard.

This time she didn’t dare look at him. She gave a muffled explanation. “It’s not – not that kind of comforting. It’s the one that uses words. Anything will do…”

“Comfort me, ok?”

Saying such things made Lin Mian ashamed to the point that she almost ran away. But, she endured. 

Anyways, I can’t pursue him. Anyways, he… doesn’t like me.

For a long while, there was no response.

“…” Forget it.  Lin Mian lowered her head. “Sorry Professor Que, I was just joking with you. I’ll take a taxi and go -”

Que Qingyan’s voice suddenly interrupted. It was indifferent. She couldn’t hear any emotions. “You’re so drunk. How can you take a taxi by yourself?”

Lin Main, her voice low, replied, “It’s ok.”

Just about to find an excuse and run away, Lin Mian saw a shadow fall on the side of her feet.

She raised her eyes. Her heartbeat stopped.

Que Qingyan’s back was in front of her. He was squatting halfway down. The roadside lights, shadows, and glowing colors shined on him. He was charming, mesmerizing.

“Come up.” Que Qingyan seemed to sigh. “I’ll carry you.”