People in this world are chance encounters you can't seek out. Once missed, there will never be another.

Jiang Xu had never forced anything in his life. Whether it was life or people, he was always easy-going and indifferent. If Gu Qingzhou truly wanted to leave, he most likely wouldn't stop him. But at the same time, he couldn't help but think, what if Gu Qingzhou really left and never came back in this lifetime?

Would Jiang Xu... ever meet a second Gu Qingzhou?

Probably not.

Gu Qingzhou had always been one to endure. He buried his head deep in the steering wheel, hiding any emotion. Only the taut blue veins on his temples were visible, as if he were forcibly enduring something. In the end, he finally raised his head, started the car expressionlessly, and sped right past Jiang Xu, driving away.

For a split second, Jiang Xu saw his reddened eye sockets and thought, 'Gu Qingzhou didn't seem to cry so much before.'

It was the morning peak hour with heavy traffic, and the road was an endless stream of vehicles. Jiang Xu, afraid that Gu Qingzhou's unstable emotions might lead to an accident, raised his hand to hail a taxi. He deftly pulled open the door, sat in the passenger seat, and said in a low voice, "Sir, follow that car ahead."

The driver glanced at him upon hearing this, immediately turning the steering wheel and hitting the gas to follow. But he was still a beat too slow; several cars cut in between them, so he could only trail behind at a distance. Jiang Xu stared intently ahead through the windshield, unconsciously pursing his lips. His fingertips tapped rapidly on his phone screen, as if he wanted to make a call, but for some reason, he held back.

The driver seemed to notice his hidden anxiety. Chewing gum, he said in broken Mandarin, "Don't worry, I've been driving for more than twenty years. I can definitely keep up."

Jiang Xu said nothing, looking somewhat absent-minded.

Gu Qingzhou's thoughts were probably in disarray, as even his driving route was aimless; he kept circling the same area. In the end, the driver was also getting confused. He shifted his sitting position and said, "Brother, are you messing with me? The car in front keeps circling nearby. Where on earth is he trying to go?"

Jiang Xu said, "He doesn't know the way..."

He added, "Just keep following. I'll definitely pay the fare."

The driver probably found this job rather trying. Hearing this, he didn't say anything and just continued to follow at a distance. Fortunately, Gu Qingzhou didn't keep circling. Before long, he changed direction and stopped in front of a nearby bar.

The driver was a step behind, getting stuck at a red light. From across the street, Jiang Xu watched Gu Qingzhou enter the bar. He had the driver pull over, paid the fare, and got out.

This bar was open twenty-four hours a day, but business was slow during the daytime. There were only a few scattered bartenders wiping glasses by the counter. When Jiang Xu first walked in, he attracted the attention of a few other patrons. His gaze swept across the first floor, but he didn't see Gu Qingzhou. He then went up to the second floor and finally found him in a booth near the corner.

Solitary people always liked sitting in dimly lit corners. Gu Qingzhou had his back to Jiang Xu, and several bottles of liquor had already been ordered to the table. The blue-toned light poured down from above, making his back seem somewhat gaunt and hazy, creating an inexplicable sense of distance.

Jiang Xu didn't approach him. Instead, he found a table diagonally behind Gu Qingzhou and sat down. When a waiter came to take his order, he casually ordered a drink, then sat there in silence, his eyes never leaving the person in the corner.

Gu Qingzhou didn't move. He pressed a hand to his forehead, closing his eyes wearily. Even with most of his figure cast in shadow, his excessively pale complexion was still visible. The bottles on the table were chilled. Having been left untouched for a long time, a layer of condensation had formed on them, leaving a ring of moisture on the smooth tabletop.

Jiang Xu sat there with him like that until the afternoon. The once-quiet bar gradually grew lively. The lights and music for the dance floor came on, abruptly shattering the daytime calm and setting the pace for the nightlife—unrestrained and decadent.

Jiang Xu had come to places like this often during his school days, but he hadn't been back since starting work. The intensely rhythmic music felt a bit loud to him, and it took a moment to adjust. The booths on the second floor gradually filled up with new patrons, and the waiters hurried back and forth, appearing extremely busy.

Gu Qingzhou finally moved. As a waiter passed by, he placed another order. Before long, several bottles of high-proof cocktails were set on his table. He popped the caps and began to drink, glass after glass, seemingly no different from the others around him who were drinking themselves into a stupor.

Jiang Xu watched from behind, his frown deepening. He was on the verge of going over. Just then, a somewhat soft male voice sounded by his ear, "Handsome, there are no tables left nearby. I see you're by yourself, mind if we share?"

Jiang Xu looked toward the speaker and saw a fair-skinned man. The man wore a semi-sheer shirt with a wide-open collar and skin-tight black pants. He deliberately leaned closer as he spoke, and it was only then that Jiang Xu noticed he was wearing makeup and had on a faint, cloyingly sweet perfume.

...

Jiang Xu glanced around and confirmed there were indeed no empty tables. He was occupying a four-person table by himself, so he could only say, "Whatever."

Unexpectedly, the man didn't leave it at that. He sat directly on the edge of the table, blocking Jiang Xu's path. The hand he braced on the table crept inconspicuously toward Jiang Xu's glass, a small white pill pinched between his fingertips. "Handsome, can we get to know each other? I think you're really my type. How about I buy you a drink?"

As he spoke, he used the angle as cover and loosened his fingertips, about to slip the pill into the drink unnoticed. But suddenly, his wrist was seized in a tight grip. The immense force felt as if it would shatter his wrist bone, and his face instantly turned pale with pain.

Jiang Xu eyed him without expression. With a flick of his finger, the glass slid across the smooth tabletop, perfectly avoiding the pill that dropped from the man's hand. In a low voice, he asked, "Are you trying to buy me a drink, or spike it?"

The man's eyes teared up from the pain, but he couldn't wrench his hand free. He said anxiously, "I just saw you were handsome and wanted to hook up! It's just a little something to liven things up, no need to be like this, right?!"

Hearing this, Jiang Xu's brows furrowed slightly. The force in his fingers loosened, and the man seized the opportunity to escape, clutching his wrist as he stumbled down the stairs. Quite a few people turned to look.

He hadn't paid much attention when he first entered the bar, only feeling a vague sense of strangeness he couldn't quite place. Now, it dawned on him. He subtly scanned his surroundings and finally realized there wasn't a single woman in sight. It was all men—

Clearly, this was a gay bar.

Upon this realization, Jiang Xu's pupils constricted. He shot up from his seat almost instantly, his expression a mixture of shock and disbelief. He never in a million years would have thought he'd walk into a place like this. He wanted to leave immediately, but then something made him subconsciously glance toward Gu Qingzhou in the corner. After much hesitation, he forced himself to sit back down.

In this scene, tops were scarce and bottoms were plentiful; there were many bottoms without a top. Jiang Xu's aura was too intense, and with his exceptional looks, he was considered a rare catch. From the moment he entered the bar, he had attracted a lot of attention. Everyone assumed he was a top here on the hunt, and they were all secretly itching to make a move.

After the first person tried, a second and third naturally followed. But without exception, all of them returned in defeat. Meanwhile, Jiang Xu's expression grew increasingly grim. It was unclear if Gu Qingzhou saw what was happening, but his drinking pace quickened, and the number of empty bottles by his side grew.

Every scene has its share of oddballs. A normal person could see that Jiang Xu was clearly not to be messed with and would give up any ideas of getting close. But there were always those fearless types who insisted on pestering him.

Jiang Xu expressionlessly sent the third person away, his temples throbbing. He could barely contain the violent urge in his blood to punch someone. This feeling reached its peak the moment he saw a man in glasses approach Gu Qingzhou, seemingly trying to hit on him and take advantage.

With a loud screech—

Jiang Xu shot up so quickly that he knocked his chair askew, causing it to scrape harshly against the floor. He walked straight to the corner booth, roughly pulled away the bespectacled man who was trying to get chummy, and, with a cold expression, grabbed Gu Qingzhou's wrist, hauling him up from the seat. Without a word of explanation, he led him downstairs, ignoring all the stares as he strode quickly out of the bar. It was only when the cold wind hit him that he sobered up a little.

Under the influence of alcohol, Gu Qingzhou could barely stand steady. He had no strength to resist. He could only stumble along behind, half-coerced out of the bar by Jiang Xu like a puppet on strings.

"Let go..."

Gu Qingzhou steadied himself with a stumble and said to Jiang Xu in a hoarse voice, "Let go."

Jiang Xu didn't release him. He stared straight into Gu Qingzhou's eyes in the darkness, his voice devoid of emotion as he asked, "Let you go, and then what? So you can go back in and keep drinking? Drink until you pass out and get taken advantage of by some hooligan?"

Gu Qingzhou struggled to shake him off, saying coldly, "It's none of your business."

Hearing this, Jiang Xu silently clenched his jaw and stared fixedly at him. After a few seconds, he actually let go. "Fine. Then go."

He was filled with an indescribable anger, directed not at Gu Qingzhou, but at himself. The rage burned through his mind, searing his rationality to ashes. Jiang Xu had never lost his composure like this, not even in his most brutal fights.

He struggled to even out his breathing, trying not to do something he couldn't control. He stood rooted to the spot, his face a blank mask, and watched as Gu Qingzhou walked back toward the bar. He didn't follow.

One step,

Two steps,

Three steps...

On the fifteenth step, Jiang Xu saw Gu Qingzhou suddenly crouch down. Whether it was from drunkenness or something else, he didn't move for a long time.

Seeing this, Jiang Xu pressed his lips together and went forward to help him up. But as he reached out, his hand touched a palmful of cold tears.

...

Jiang Xu frowned unconsciously. He leaned down, half-kneeling on the ground, and gripped Gu Qingzhou's shoulders. "Gu Qingzhou?" he asked in a low voice.

His tone held a hidden anxiety, but Gu Qingzhou didn't make a sound. He just hugged his knees tightly, curling into a ball like a hedgehog that had lost its quills, instinctively assuming a defensive posture to keep anyone from hurting him.

Seeing this, Jiang Xu's voice unconsciously dropped an octave. "Gu Qingzhou..."

He knelt on one knee, the hard, cold bricks hurting his knee, but the pain was nothing compared to the coldness of the tears on his fingertips. Jiang Xu closed his eyes, suddenly seeming to understand why Gu Qingzhou was so heartbroken. He pulled the helpless figure curled before him into an embrace, holding him tightly. His Adam's apple bobbed. "I'm sorry..." he whispered.

"I'm sorry, Gu Qingzhou..."