Plummet

After getting off the drop tower, they followed the staff's directions to the exit.

About a dozen people gathered around the exit. Balloons and fairy lights hung everywhere, and someone was holding up a banner covered in couple photos — clearly someone had put a lot of thought into the setup.

As expected. The next moment, the man who'd been sitting beside them took a ring box from his friend and dropped to one knee in front of his girlfriend. 'Baby, today marks our 520th day together...'

'Gag...'

'I gathered my courage and stood here...'

'Gag—'

'I hope you can marry me, I'll give you...'

'Gag!!!'

The man couldn't bear it anymore. He turned his head with a frustrated expression and asked, 'Sorry, can you stand further away and throw up?'

'I'm leaving, I'm leaving... hey, don't actually throw up, wait for me to find a bag...' Wang Luan'an grabbed Zuo Kuan's clothes, looking apologetic as he led the person away.

They found a spot with fewer people. Zuo Kuan stood in the corner holding a plastic bag and vomiting, while Wang Luan'an stood beside him, patting his back. The other two waited by the flower stand.

'What's wrong?'

Yu Fan seemed to be pulled out of some emotion, turning his head after two seconds. 'What?'

Chen Jingshen's gaze lingered on his face. 'You haven't said a word since we got off.'

Yu Fan subconsciously clenched his hand.

Ten minutes after getting off the drop tower, his heart was still beating fast, and his palms felt inexplicably damp.

He'd experienced this reaction before, though not as severely. When was that...?

His back was gently touched twice, warm and soft.

Chen Jingshen patted his back. 'Feel like throwing up too?'

It happened when Chen Jingshen touched him.

Sometimes Chen Jingshen didn't even need to touch him — just doing some stupid confession to a phone camera or smirking annoyingly would trigger this feeling.

It was strange, very unfamiliar, and instinctively he felt uncomfortable.

'No.' Yu Fan bent his elbow, pushing his hand away. 'I'm not that weak.'

Zuo Kuan barely recovered after vomiting for a while.

After rinsing his mouth and washing his face, he said with a pale face, 'I'm never riding this thing again in my life.'

'You can't even if you wanted to — no time left.' Wang Luan'an checked his watch. 'The night market opens in half an hour. Let's find some short-line attractions.'

'Fine.' Zuo Kuan's peripheral vision caught Chen Jingshen returning from the convenience store, holding a bottle of mineral water. He blurted out, 'Thanks, senior...'

Chen Jingshen touched the back of Yu Fan's hand with the mineral water bottle. Yu Fan glanced at him, took it, and opened it to drink.

Zuo Kuan: '...'

The four of them wandered around the attractions again, finally stopping between the Happy Spinning Cup and Bumper Cars — the two they'd initially looked down on.

These two had the fewest people in the whole amusement park.

Several big guys hesitated with complex expressions. Yu Fan was the first to step forward. 'Let's go, just for fun.'

The Happy Spinning Cup was正好是四人一个茶杯，茶杯中间有个圆柱子，柱子转多快，他们坐着的杯子就转多快。"The cup was designed for four people, with a central cylinder that determined how fast the cup would spin.

Most people on this attraction were kids and parents. The other cups spun slowly, warm and happy. But gradually, both the kids and adults couldn't help but stare at the cup in the center spinning like a top, their faces full of shock—

'Don't you dare stop!' Wang Luan'an疯狂转着圆柱。

'Come on! Who's afraid! Watch me spin you to the sky!' Zuo Kuan不甘示弱，动作快到脸蛋涨红。

Two idiots.

Yu Fan抱胸面无表情地坐着，在心里犹豫要不要把这两人踹下去。

'Spin faster! Are you even trying, Wang Luan'an— gag!' Zuo Kuan又有点反胃，偏头干呕了一下。

Yu Fan毫无防备，猛地侧身往另边一躲，整个人都撞到了旁边人身上。

The cup was spinning so violently that he wobbled. Before he could react, Chen Jingshen reached out and encircled him from behind.

Chen Jingshen grabbed his shoulder, his arm pressing against his neck, firmly securing him to the seat.

Wang Luan'an immediately stopped. 'Damn, you lost and started throwing up. Can't handle it? I'm done!'

Zuo Kuan: 'I didn't actually throw up!'

Yu Fan snapped back to reality. Just as he was about to break free, Chen Jingshen loosened his grip first.

Bumper cars were also paired, with one person gripping the steering wheel and the other pressing the accelerator.

Wang Luan'an and Zuo Kuan joined forces, crashing into all the kids in the arena before finally setting their sights on their other two friends.

Yu Fan initially had no interest in playing, but after being hit twice by them, his only thought was flipping their car to the amusement park's entrance.

He stomped on the accelerator, saying to Chen Jingshen, 'Turn left, turn left— can you do it? Let me!'

He leaned over, grabbing Chen Jingshen's steering wheel to turn around, then increased power and slammed into Wang Luan'an's car!

After three rounds, Zuo Kuan couldn't take it anymore. 'Stop running! Hit them! Let's go down together!'

Wang Luan'an: 'I was thinking the same thing!!'

The two highest-powered bumper cars collided head-on, both damaged. Yu Fan was laughing so hard his head was spinning, crashing directly into Chen Jingshen's chest. The next moment, his head was pressed down.

Chen Jingshen protected his head in front of him, pressing him against his body, his voice unable to hold back laughter. 'Does it hurt?'

'...'

Half an hour later, Yu Fan left the children's area, his heart still racing like hell.

Weird.

When they came out, it was exactly the agreed time. They went to the night market to meet Zhang Xianjing and the others.

The night market was this amusement park's specialty. Though called a night market, it was actually a street the park had cleared out, hung with light strips and balloons and other decorations, with snack stalls and game booths on both sides, creating a certain atmosphere.

However, there were few and childish attractions, plus they were tired from playing earlier, so the guys weren't very interested.

Zhang Xianjing, though, loved this atmosphere and took many photos.

'Wow, they have photo booths!' Zhang Xianjing hooked her arm through Ke Ting's. 'Tingbao, let's go take a set!'

Ke Ting pushed up her clunky glasses and whispered, 'Okay.'

Before going in, Zhang Xianjing thought of something and handed the camera to Yu Fan.

Yu Fan frowned. 'What for?'

Zhang Xianjing: 'Since you're not doing anything anyway, take some scenery photos for me.'

'I don't—'

Zhang Xianjing forcefully stuffed the camera into his hands. 'You're so tall, help me get more shots of the Ferris Wheel!' Then she pulled Ke Ting into the photo booth.

Yu Fan: '...'

Yu Fan had never used one of these before. He held the camera, frowning as he studied it for a long time, unable to figure out how to work it.

Just as he was about to give up, a hand reached over and pointed to a button.

'This is for photos,' Chen Jingshen said. 'This is for video.'

'...Oh.' Yu Fan responded while moving slightly to the side, putting some distance between them.

It seemed he couldn't get too close to Chen Jingshen right now.

Chen Jingshen glanced at him but didn't say anything more.

After wandering for a while, Wang Luan'an and Zuo Kuan regained their energy. They made a bet and went to play the basketball shooting machine.

Yu Fan stood to the side, bored, randomly taking photos.

He looked around to see what he could photograph. Turning his head, he spotted a row of colorful candy machines.

Candy machines were everywhere — nothing special to photograph. But in one of them were a bunch of dog plushies.

They were Doberman designs, tongues sticking out, wearing a cheesy red heart on their heads with 'LOVE' written in white.

All Dobermans probably looked the same.

Anyway, this plush looked just as ugly as the one in Chen Jingshen's house.

Yu Fan silently criticized it in his mind, then raised the camera and took a photo of that side.

The photo froze. When the screen returned to the shooting interface, someone was standing in front of that candy machine.

He watched Chen Jingshen insert coins, operate the handle, lower the claw, then effortlessly fish up that dog plush.

A girl who'd been standing nearby for over ten minutes without catching anything watched him in shock and envy.

Chen Jingshen bent down to pick up the plush, holding it in his hands as he examined it with a cold expression.

Probably thought this thing was as ugly as... as his dog at home.

Yu Fan couldn't help but want to laugh.

He raised the camera, wanting to take another photo. But in the screen, he saw Chen Jingshen turn around, scan the crowd, and finally his gaze landed on him.

The next second, Chen Jingshen walked toward him.

Yu Fan held the camera, not yet reacting, when the person was already standing in front of him.

The night market was bustling with people, lights brilliant. Around him were vendors shouting, tourists constantly brushing past him, Wang Luan'an and Zuo Kuan arguing behind him.

A small dog plush was stuffed into his hand.

'Stop looking.' Chen Jingshen said. 'I caught it for you.'

-

To avoid traffic, they left the amusement park half an hour before closing.

There were no buses at this hour, so Yu Fan called a taxi.

On the way back, the WeChat group was buzzing with activity.

Wang Luan'an was exposing Zuo Kuan's embarrassing moments. Zuo Kuan sent seven 60-second voice messages, each full of curses.

Yu Fan listened to them one by one. When something was funny, he couldn't help but curl the corner of his mouth. As he smiled, his gaze drifted to the dog in his hand.

The plush sat properly, with a stupid expression — the more he looked, the uglier it became.

He stared at the dog plush for a while, then couldn't resist poking its nose, blurting out, 'From now on, your name is Chen Jingshen.'

The driver suddenly looked up, giving him a strange glance in the rearview mirror.

Yu Fan: '...'

Damn.

Am I out of my mind?

Yu Fan flipped the plush over, lowering his head as he continued watching the group chat with a blank expression.

Just as Yu Fan arrived at the building entrance, he received a message from Chen Jingshen — a three-minute video.

Late at night, the rundown neighborhood was almost silent. Yu Fan turned the volume very low and slowly opened it.

Three minutes of Fanfan's personal show.

In the lens, Chen Jingshen held a dog chew rope and silently teased the dog for three minutes, making Fanfan whine.

It was only in the last few seconds that he calmly asked, 'Does it look like that plush?'

When the video finished, Yu Fan正好走到家门口。He took out his key to unlock the door, and was about to speak when he saw the scene inside, freezing mid-sentence.

He took out his key to unlock the door, and was about to speak when he saw the scene inside, freezing mid-sentence.

'Yu Kaiming, what are you doing?' His voice turned colder than ice.

Yu Fan had been so focused on the video that he hadn't noticed the lights were on in his apartment.

Now, his room that should have been locked stood wide open. Yu Kaiming sat at his desk, beside him lay several twisted Paper Clips and a padlock that had just been removed.

Yu Kaiming held a pink envelope he'd taken from the drawer, also stunned at seeing Yu Fan.

What's going on? Why would Yu Fan come back suddenly? This little bastard usually stays at the internet café playing all night if he doesn't come home past midnight??

'How come you're back?' Yu Kaiming forced a smile. 'Dad recently had some trouble and needs money. Is there any money left from your grandfather and mother?'

'You still get love letters? I remember when I...'

Yu Fan grabbed the fish tank that hadn't been used in a long time from the shoe cabinet and threw it at him!

Yu Kaiming barely dodged. The fish tank grazed his face, hitting the ground heavily with a crash and shattering into pieces—

Yu Fan let go of his fingers and threw his phone aside.

-

The rundown neighborhood suddenly became lively late at night, with constant sounds of breaking, dull thuds, and curses.

Every household turned on their lights, windows were closed one after another, and several families got up to confirm their doors were locked.

Yu Fan grabbed Yu Kaiming's hair and fiercely kicked him in the stomach! Yu Kaiming screamed in pain, then slapped him back, his pinky nail leaving a blood scratch on his face.

Yu Fan didn't seem to feel the pain, slamming the person forcefully against the wall.

'That was my old man's money! My wife's inheritance! Why the hell do you get to keep it all! Fuck your mother!'

Yu Kaiming's mouth was foul, nonstop since just now. 'Bastard! I should've come on you instead of your mother! I should've strangled you the day you were born! You're just as worthless as your mother—'

Yu Fan pressed him against the wall, throwing a punch at his face, and finally spoke: 'I told you, you can't mention her.'

'Worthless woman can't be criticized? She's just a dog that can't be tamed no matter how much you beat her! And she ran off with someone else! You're standing up for her, but did she ever think about you when she ran away?'

Yu Kaiming laughed insanely. 'You don't hate her, but you turn against your old man? You're exactly like me! You should be on my side! Do you think the person who sent you that love letter actually likes you? When those people see what you're like now, they'll just run away like your mother did!'

Yu Fan didn't say a word, throwing another punch at his face.

...

When Chen Jingshen got out of the car, he already felt something was off.

The rundown neighborhood was eerily quiet. Only one household in the whole building had lights on, the rest had their windows tightly shut.

Chen Jingshen walked quickly upstairs, his footsteps sounding too heavy in the silent stairwell.

Yu Fan's door was left slightly ajar. Chen Jingshen stood at the entrance and smelled a faint trace of blood inside.

He took a heavy breath and pushed the door open.

A complete mess.

The sofa, coffee table, dining table, and chairs were knocked over everywhere. The TV screen was cracked, and glass fragments of different colors were scattered across the floor. There wasn't a single good spot in the entire house.

The person he was looking for sat exhausted in the corner, his white t-shirt stained dirty, his face and neck covered in wounds, his eyes red, holding a broken piece of broom in his hand.

Seeing who it was, the person relaxed again, casually tossing the broom aside.

-Wait — those people will see you like this and run away just like your mother did.

Yu Fan stared at him, suddenly recalling what Yu Kaiming had just said.

Neither of them spoke. Complete silence.

After a long while, Chen Jingshen stepped over the mess and crouched down in front of him.

'Can you move?' Chen Jingshen asked.

Yu Fan's eyes were dark and heavy. When he opened his mouth, his voice was hoarse. 'Go back.'

Chen Jingshen ignored him, scanning over his body. 'Where did that person go?'

'Chen Jingshen,' Yu Fan repeated. 'Go back.'

Chen Jingshen's expression was very cold, different from before. He regulated his breathing, trying to calm himself, and reached out to help him up. 'Can you move? Can you get up first...'

Before Chen Jingshen could finish, his collar was suddenly grabbed. His nose was violently bumped, and then dry, chapped lips pressed against his.

Bitter.

Yu Fan pulled back after just a few seconds.

He let go of Chen Jingshen's clothes, gave a cold smile, and was about to say something—

His neck was suddenly grabbed, and without warning, he was pressed back against the wall. Chen Jingshen's fingers dug into his hair, gripping hard, effortlessly forcing him to raise his head, turning his face and pressing down with a kiss.

[missing — flagged for review]