Nirvana(BL)

Many years later, this eventful spring is still existing in Yu Yue's memory.

An unexpected event happened in February revealed the tip of the iceberg, and soon brought it out entirely, turning into one of the few major political upheavals in China. That popular municipal party committee secretary was removed from his position under investigation a month later.

Sitting in front of the computer and reading the news, Yu Yue feels the secretary really looks like Ye Lin.

It seems that Ye Lin is done this time.

Yu Yue stays in hospital for less than a week. Lawyer Wang tells him that the medical expense will also be claimed with Ye Lin.

Since Yu Yue has took the courses and passed the exams in advance, he goes home directly with his parents for the lunar's New Year.

His parents are still nervous about him. They're afraid that he might have some psychological shadow. But Yu Yue is relaxed—it is really lucky to be able to survive in such disaster. He wants to thank god, thank the world, even thank the anti-corruption bureau. There's no shadow for him at all.

If there is any, it will be that Yu Yue is no longer willing to wear the clothes in bright and attractive colors.

After this time, Yu Yue thinks that he'll be able to keep calm in any circumstances. And also, there is nothing can be better than being alive.

At the dinner of New Year's Eve, Yu Yue gobbles the food for a long time with his head down, until he's too full to move, can only sit on the sofa to watch the Spring Festival Gala, laughing out because of a random line.

During the two sessions, the secretary who had no bright future was capture by the officious reporter with a plaintive and bitter look on his face. Looking at the face like Ye Lin in the picture, Yu Yue feels that he should have the same look now. And then, there's a deep joy comes from his heart.

On April, Ding Yichao comes to T University to give Yu Yue some local specialties from Hong Kong, and he says that he's going to the Black Bamboo Park with his girlfriend, where is near to Yu Yue. So he just brings the specialties here. While eating the dried fishes, Yu Yue remembers that the Black Bamboo Park is a popular place to break up. But he won't tell Ding Yichao that since he just accepted his gift and is enjoying it right now.

When the summer comes, Lawyer Wang contacts Yu Yue for that it's impossible to sue Ye Lin since Ye Lin's case has been involved in some sensitive matters, and no one knows when the investigation will be end. The trial will be classified. But he has talked to Ye Lin's lawyer and they have came to an agreement with a number. As long as Yu Yue nods and signs on the agreement, the money will be transfer to his account, as the sign of reconciliation. Yu Yue says yes when he hears the number of compensation—it's enough for a house in his hometown. After all, Ye Lin is a sensitive person in a sensitive case, it's better to cut off their relationship as soon as possible—as expected, Ye Lin is relative to that secretary.

It is a little funny in Yu Yue's mind. He's connected to someone who is very distant to him because of such thing. If it was not a private matter, he would probably to show off to others that he knew the relatives of that celebrity.

It was really like a dream, coming inexplicably and going without notice. Without beginning and end, it was just an unforeseen disaster.

Occasionally, Yu Yue wonders in a daze, why Ye Lin beat him to half death before he was arrested. It's not logical no matter how Ye Lin thinks about it. Was he so sick that he wanted Yu Yue to die with him? Although Yu Yue is not sure about the lower limit of Ye Lin, he still feels that it is too absurd to say so.

Since Yu Yue can't puzzle it out, he lets it go then. After all, the past is dead, a person who is awake won't struggle with the absurd plot in his dream.

At the end of the semester, Ding Yichao calls him again.

"Hello? Yu Yue? I've booked two train tickets to Y city. Can you go with me?"

"Ah?" There must be something wrong. Yu Yue asks: "why don't take your girlfriend?"

"I broke up with her." Ding Yichao says in a nonchalant voice.

"..." Yu Yue is silent for a moment, "are you all right?"

"Why not?" Ding Yichao seems to be feeling confused, "she couldn't get into the domestic universities, and was going to study abroad soon. So we broke up."

For Yu Yue, he sounds not bad as nothing has happened to him. But perhaps he's trying to hide his sadness? Some people are surprisingly calm after a serious setback, which is actually abnormal and problematic.

Then Yu Yue says with graveness: "so, she's not the one for you in your destiny. You can't stop someone who wants to leave, nor prevent the new one coming..."

"I just asked that whether you go or not, why you become sentimental…We'll leave on next Monday, is that OK for you?"

"Ah?" Yu Yue just notices the theme of their conversation, "how long does it take?"

"I'm going to stay about ten days."

Yu Yue considers for a minutes. Now he has a six-figure number in his account. It's not excessive to go out for several days. At least the money is earned by himself but not his parents—although it seems like a prostitution income, which means the money with his blood and tears.

"No problem." Yu Yue agrees.

Three days later, Yu Yue appears on the platform with his backpack.

"Since we're not in a rush, I booked the train ticket. It has more fun than taking the airplane." Ding Yichao takes a backpack taller than he is, wearing the sunglasses and a baseball cap, as if he were a professional backpacker.

Yu Yue follows him in to the carriage, looking at the thing tied to his bag, wondering if that is the tent and sleeping bag. "Well…Ding Yichao…we only go to the city but not to climb the mountain, right?"

"Right, I think so."

"…Nothing." Yu Yue feels that Ding Yichao might have the idea to camp in the mountain. But it is stressful to sleep in the wild at the middle of night with only darkness surrounding them.

"I just want to visit the countryside of city Y. If I couldn't find a place to stay for night, I would sleep in my tent."

Oh, shit. Yu Yue almost bites his tongue. He wouldn't travel with this artistic young man if he knew that earlier. He's an ordinary youth who can't accept such a literary life.

After 30 hours on the train, they arrives at Y city. And Yu Yue finally knows what regret is. Ding Yichao is not out to travel at all, he's here to take the theme photography.

"I came here last year to take photos, so I need to come this year as well, to see the changes." Ding Yichao pats his hand on the billboard at a bus stop, "it was the poster of the Red Song Gala last year."

Yu Yue grins and understands why he has to let himself go out with him—no one in the right mind would do so.

There's one more thing that bothers Yu Yue—money.

Whether it is to eat or check in a hotel, Ding Yichao always strives to pay. Basically Yu Yue has not spent any money, and he's very embarrassed about it.

"You are a student, no need to pay by yourself. And it is me who invite you to come." Ding Yichao sounds sincere.

"That's not the point, I also have a part-time job to earn money." Yu Yue wants to insist.

"It's hard for a student to take a part-time job to earn money. And the pay is not good, isn't it?"

"No," Yu Yue thinks for a moment and says, "it's a project introduced by my teacher, the pay is pretty good."

"What project?"

"To help a company do product research and development." Yu Yue continues to make up the story, "for the most time I only need to do the research in our laboratory."

"You're really a student from the elite school, people with knowledge is really different from others." Ding Yichao pats his shoulder, "I only have one high-level friend which is you, don't forget me when you get rich."

Yu Yue has no words to say, and can only smirk. He says in his mind that 'you are a son of a rich family and I'm a poor drifter in Beijing, how do you say to me to not forget you when I become rich?"

After all, Ding Yichao still covers more than 90% expenses in this trip.

Although Ding Yichao spent most of his time in taking photos, they still experienced a lot local customs of this city. They wen to Ciqikou, and the foreigner's street. Yu Yue was completely addicted to the food, he went to several hot pot restaurants and lingered in the snack street at night. He even took out the food back to his hotel while he was too full to walk.

On the afternoon of the last day, they goes to the Liberation Monument. While Ding Yichao is crouching on the ground with a polaroid in his hands to take a low-angle picture, a girl wearing a skirt passes by and raises her eyebrows to stare at him: "What are you doing!" Ding Yichao is startled and goes to the side of the road embarrassedly. Yu Yue grins from ear to ear.

In the evening, they're going to Chaotianmen to enjoy the night scene. The artistic young man continues to take photos while Yu Yue is holding a bowl of spicy hot pot, sitting on the riverside and eating happily. The cruises and freighters come and go on the wharf, beating the surface of the water. Yu Yue hisses because the food is too hot, but he's comfortable when the night wind is blowing with vapor.

Suddenly Ding Yichao runs to Yu Yue with laugh and sits down, showing a photo in front of his eyes.

Yu Yue takes a look—the background of the photo is a variety of colors that out of focus, and in the middle is a shot of his side face, opening in a half because of the pepper, and with the red lips. In his eyes, the light across the river is bright and sparkling.

"Shit! Why are you taking my photo?"

Yu Yue wants to grab the photo but Ding Yichao retracts his hand more quickly and then he steps aside: "This is my work, don't rob it."

"No way! You're violating my portrait right."

"I didn't take it for commercial use. It has nothing to do with the portrait right!"

"Why you took a stupid photo like that?"

"I have a camera as a world in my hand. I can take whatever I want."

"Give it to me!"

"No way!"

They argue about it for a while, finally roll into a ball on the lawn. Ding Yichao holds it like grim death, and hides it into the inner layer of the backpack at last.

Ding Yichao tidies up the photos and then lays down with him, pointing to the sky: "Look, Yu Yue. The Milky Way."

Yu Yue doesn't see where the Milky Way is, but the stars is really bright with the good weather.

Yu Yue looks at the sky, the stars are shining and sparkling. After seeing them for a long time, Yu Yue feels like the stars is in front of his eyes closely, as if he's lying among them.

He reaches out to grab with a hand, and of course there's nothing.

Yu Yue puts down his hand, breathes deeply.

Yu Yue goes back home directly from Y city, and stay there till the end of the summer vacation.

He has took some photos to post on the internet, and has bought a lot of local specialties to his relatives and friends. Now he feels that he's a normal university student, going out for trips, eating and drinking, leaving some good memories of his youth. How sunny and young his university life is! Compare with his life today, the previous three semesters were a total nightmare.

On September, Yu Yue returns to T University, hoping to maintain his healthy and lively life.

However, a bolt out of the blue, is going to blast you to thunderstruck when you're unprepared.