Psycho Chapter 11

Chapter 11, Name

Hare sat on the sofa while the warmness of the room soothed his cold body. He was clearly very excited, standing around and observing Ye Zi's apartment. The narrow living room was dominated by a monotonous grayscale. There were gray windows, white walls, a black sofa, and the tiles were a creamy white. Some newspapers and magazines were placed on the coffee table but the fruit basket was empty. He could hear the cold wind beating against the window, whirring loudly.

Ye Zi brought over a glass of steaming hot juice and placed it in front of him. “Here.”

Hare looked at the juice, then back at him.

His light-colored eyes seemed to be filled with happiness and emotion, as if tears would flow out in just the next moment. Ye Zi turned his head away, feeling a little awkward and taking a seat on the other end of the sofa to watch TV. The Spring Festival Gala had already begun.

There were dazzling dance performances filled with bright colors, and the festive music playing in the background finally put some life into the room.

After being silent for a while, Ye Zi who was leaning back on his cushion suddenly turned to look at Hare.

Hare's body turned stiff in an instant. “Ah Zi?”

“What's your name?” Ye Zi asked.

Hare froze for a moment. “I'm Hare. Or you can call me Jason as well.”

“I'm asking about your real name.”

Hare's eyes trailed towards the screen and he took another sip before answering. “Gu CHengxi. Cheng for city, and Xi for the tide.”

Ye Zi suddenly frowned.

“Ah Zi, what's wrong?”

Ye Zi rubbed his temples and said, “Just a headache. I might've caught a cold.”

“Have you taken your medicine yet? Do you want to rest for a bit?”

“It's fine. Hey, tell me.”

While speaking, Ye Zi turned over to look at Hare again. Not only that, he even reached out to catch a lock of Hare's hair and asked, “Is your hair really natural?”

“Yeah.”

“Your eyes, too? They look so light.”

Hare lowered his eyes slightly, cheeks turning red. With a smile at his lips, he responded, “It's natural. It's because the color of my eyes and hair are different from my parents that my father suspects I'm not his son. Even after the paternity test, he still doesn't believe it.”

*That's no wonder why Hare's dad found another woman while leaving his mother to be bullied, then. Maybe his father is suspecting his wife of having an affair?*

Unknowingly, he ended up letting his mind wander again and forgot to put some distance between them.

Ye Zi wanted to take a better look at Hare's appearance, but unknowingly, the two of them got closer and closer.

The hair between his fingers felt very soft, and it made a slight rustling when he rubbed them between his fingers.

Hare's pupils gradually widened, and very soon, those light-colored eyes of his turned extremely deep.

Suddenly, Hare moved his head away slightly. Gulping, he muttered under his breath, “Ah Zi, you're too close.”

Ye Zi was stunned and he quickly backed away a little. “I thought you've got no shame left. I didn't expect you to be so bashful.”

Hare put the cup down on the coffee table and responded, “That's because it's you.”

Ye Zi watched the TV for a while, seemingly immersed in his thoughts. After a while, he suddenly said, “Have I met you in the past?”

“?”

“Your face seems quite familiar somehow, but I can't put my finger on it. Oh, that's right. You also asked me a strange question the day before my birthday. Did I still like fireworks? You asked.”

“Who knows, maybe we met in our past lives.”

“I'm being serious here!”

“I've been waiting this whole time, just so I could see you. I watched you secretly from afar, hoping that you'd finally remember me.”

Ye Zi sighed. “Are you that cheesy to everyone you meet? Shit, you're giving me goosebumps over here.”

Hare laughed. “You're the only person I treat this way, Ah Zi. You're special.”

Ye Zi was completely speechless. “Sometimes, I think you're quite intelligent, but other times, I just can't reason with you. How long have we met? What part of me attracted you? I don't even remember ever being nice to you. Or are you just trying to tell me that this is what the high school kids are into these days? Do you just pick out a random target and harass them every single day? And constantly spitting out sweet whatevers? Is this a contest? Or is this just some kind of punishment game?”

Hare shook his head.

“So what is it then? Also, you should understand the peculiarities of our relationship as well…Being together with you is like jumping into a pit of fire. What's more, I already have a girlfriend, and I'll never do her wrong, ever. Besides, I'm not attracted to men either. Anyway, all I'm trying to say is that there's no way for me to accept you.”

“I don't mind. You just have to remain as you are.” Hare lowered his head. “Just being able to speak with you in this way is enough for me.”

“…”

Ye Zi sighed, he couldn't deal with him at all. Lounging back onto the sofa, he continued watching the Spring Festival Gala.

At eleven in the evening, Hare planned to go home for the day, but he was stopped by Ye Zi.

“How are you gonna go back in that snow?”

He found an old blanket from the cupboard and threw it on the sofa. “You can sleep here, but don't you dare get it dirty.”

“Okay.” Hare's eyes curved in joy. “Ah Zi, you're really good at taking care of people.”

Ye Zi was pissed. “Who's taking care of you now? And also, just because I'm letting you stay in my house doesn't mean I'm accepting you so don't push your luck, got it?”

“Yeah, I got it. Thank you for today, Ah Zi, and Happy New Year.”

Ye Zi clicked his tongue and went into the bedroom, shutting the door behind him. After taking a shower, he shut off the lights and went to bed.

But he had no idea that, in the middle of the night, when all was quiet, his room had been quietly opened.

A tall boy walked in very slowly, and his footsteps were as silent as a fleeting spirit.

He sat by the bed, observing Ye Zi's features in the darkness.

The faint glow of light coming through the cracks of the window flowed in, reflecting the rose patterns of the window's grills and gauze curtains on Ye Zi's back, as well as half of Hare's body.

Ye Zi's left end was at the edge of the bed. The back of it was very fair, and his fingers were slightly curled up in a relaxed state.

Hare carefully reached out to envelop his hand softly.

The snowflakes continued to pour down as the sounds mixed in with the ticking of the clock. Ye Zi's breathing was still.

After some amount of time went past, Hare fell asleep, just like that.

Right next to Ye Zi's bed.

…

……

After Ye Zi woke up, his head no longer hurt, and Hare had already left.

Placed right there on the coffee table was breakfast, and it also came with a text message on his phone that he received this morning at 7.

Hare, “I'll be going now. Remember to have your breakfast. You should warm up the soy milk and buns before you eat them. PS: Your sleeping face is really too cute, I couldn't stop myself from taking a few pictures. [image]”

The attached image was one of Ye Zi's sleeping face with his limbs sprawled all over and his hair in a mess. His mouth was open wide and he could see saliva flowing down from his mouth while his hand was scratching at his belly…

Ye Zi tossed his phone on the sofa and grumbled, “That bastard!”

Even though he cursed at him, Hare and Ye Zi's relationship made a leap in development after that night.

Right now, it wasn't just Hare sending messages to him one-sidedly, Ye Zi would also return the favor occasionally. He would also greet him in the mornings or say good night to him. Whenever they met at the subway or the bus, they would talk to each other a little, and of course, Hare would often show up at Ye Zi's school again after the holiday was over. Whenever Ye Zi was playing basketball, he would see Hare watching him from the audience. When Ye Zi and his girlfriend were studying in the library, Hare would occasionally appear near them reading books or doing his homework as well.

Then, quickly, it developed into a scene where Ye Zi would sometimes tutor Hare in his schoolwork. At times like these, they wouldn't choose to meet at the library. So as not to interrupt anyone, they would do it in an empty classroom instead.

Ye Zi's grades in advanced mathematics was pretty good, so Hare's homework was simply nothing in his eyes. If he was in a good mood, he didn't mind putting on the airs of a senior and helping a high school kid with his homework.

It was only at times like these that Hare really seemed like he was still in high school. He saw how he frowned and scribbled his calculations onto his scrap paper, how he would spend half an hour just to solve a geometry question, how he looked at him in surprise whenever he taught him how to solve a problem, and how admiring his gaze was…Ye Zi felt really proud. It seems like he wasn't this brat's senior of four or five years for nothing after all.

Ye Zi found one of Hare's notebooks, and there seemed to be Chinese and English passages written down in it.

“What's this?”

“Just a notebook I keep so I can copy down some interesting quotes.”

“Huh, didn't think you had that in you. These look like…poems?” Ye Zi asked while texting with his girlfriend.

“Some are from poems, some are just quotes from novels.”

“Oh?”

Probably having become bored from waiting for his girlfriend, Ye Zi suddenly asked with curiosity. “Why don't you read out some of the quotes you like? Oh, that's right. Don't read the English ones, just the Chinese. I don't understand that gibberish.”

“Sure.”

Hare flipped through the book skillfully as the pages fluttered by. Soon, he began to recite, his voice clear and gentle. Resting his chin on his palm, Ye Zi listened.

“There is a legend about a bird which sings just once in its life, more sweetly than any other creature on the face of the earth. From the moment it leaves the nest it searches for a thorn tree, and does not rest until it has found one.”

Ye Zi closed his eyes and gave a quiet hum, urging him to continue. “Go on.”

“Then, singing among the savage branches, it impales itself upon the longest, sharpest spine. And, dying, it rises above its own agony to outcarol the lark and the nightingale. One superlative song, existence the price.”

“…”

“But the whole world stills to listen, and God in His heaven smiles. For the best is only bought at the cost of great pain.[1]”

Ye Zi found himself unable to comment when he was done.

He didn't know what to say.

He was even beginning to feel a little dizzy again.

When he went to the toilet, Nie Haixia just happened to arrive and there was a group of girls following her.

Nie Haixia took Ye Zi's seat and played with Ye Zi's pen. She had very long and thin nails that were decorated beautifully. “Jason, how did you get so close to hubby all of a sudden? I'm even starting to feel a little jealous here.”

Hare smiled and began packing up his things.

The girls were all looking at him with excitement, chattering amongst each other.

“Jason, aren't your parents genes seriously too good? How did they give birth to you?”

“So you're not dating Xiao Qin? That means you're single, right?”

“Jason, Are you free next week? Why don't you come join our event? Oh, our movie club is also short of people too this Friday. Why don't you come help? There's a reward in it for you!”

Hare shook his head. “I'm sorry seniors, I'm afraid I won't be able to make it.”

The girls quickly called out with disappointment.

But Nie Haixia had her doubts. “But you look pretty free, don't you? Otherwise, you wouldn't come to our school every day. Come on, for our sakes? You've got no idea. Some of the girls from our major got hold of your photo somehow and now they won't shut up about you. It would really help us out a lot if you came to our event.”

After Hare was done packing up his things and he lightly brushed against the smooth strap of his shoulder bag with his fingers. His mouth curving faintly, he asked, “Is that an invitation, Senior?”

The girls were instantly KO-ed.

But Nie Haixia wasn't downed instantly. She continued on. “Yeah. So, can you come? Well, how about this. Is there anything you want to do? I happen to be in charge of planning for the publicity team. We still have time to add in some activities. What about singing? Outdoor games? Sports activities?”

The girls at the side interjected. “If we manage to get a higher budget then we can even go out for some good food or maybe even a karaoke session!”

“Have you ever went to karaoke with Senior before?” Hare suddenly looked at Nie Haixia and asked.

Nie Haixia paused for a moment before she responded. “Yeah, we have.”

“Have you kissed?”

Hearing that, the girls instantly exploded. Nie Haixia was also feeling a little shy from the question. “Why did you suddenly ask? I mean, that's a matter of course…”

“Have you done it?”

The girls at the side began squealing in excitement. “I didn't expect that high schoolers mature so early these days…”

“He's a carnivore!”

Nie Haixia's face turned completely red. “Stop teasing your seniors. So, did you want to…”

Halfway through her sentence, Hare suddenly stood up, causing his chair to skid backwards in a screech that sounded like a frightened scream.

He was tall to begin with, so standing this way made it look as if he were looking down at the group of girls. No, in fact, he was only looking down at one. Nie Haixia.

Half of his face was hidden in the shadows, and his expressionless face actually looked strangely scary.

He opened his mouth, and his lips moved a little.

But nobody could hear what he said, because he had only mouthed the words.

“What did you say? I didn't hear you,” Nie Haixia asked.

Hare suddenly smiled, looking as gentle and amiable as usual. None of that darkness could be seen on his face. “If Senior Ah Zi is participating, then I'll come too.”

After he said that, he left.

Nobody knew what he mouthed earlier, only he himself knew.

Nie Haixia asked him what he wanted to do, so he was only responding honestly.

“I want to kill you, damn woman.”

Notes:
[1]Despite Ye Zi asking for a Chinese quote, this comes from an English novel called The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough. I pulled the quote from the book directly instead of translating it for authenticity's sake.

Chapter end