Chapter 59 - Love Song on Ice (16)
Ch59 – Love Song on Ice (16)
Dong Ge lent He Changsheng a pair of ice skates. The two of them changed into skin-tight black training clothes and went onto the ice once more on New Year’s Eve.
Even during practice, He Changsheng didn’t forget to put on gloves.
After getting onto the ice, He Changsheng said, a little at a loss, “How should we do this.”
Dong Ge said, “Start anyhow. Take me as your partner, a prop. I’ll go along with you, and see if I can help you find your inspiration.”
He Changsheng did as Dong Ge said.
For this program, the choreographer had chosen the theme of “Tango of Secret Love” for them.
Secret love needed one to be “restrained”, but the tango needed one to be “bold”. Handling this gap between “restrained” and “bold” was where the difficulty lay.
In the beginning, He Changsheng just skated back and forth on the ice with his eyes closed, occasionally making tango moves and trying to find the feeling. His slender legs alternated on the ice. The cold wind blew apart his bangs, exposing his clean, bright forehead.
Dong Ge followed alongside him, like a silent and graceful swallow.
But he wasn’t just blindly or mindlessly following him.
By the side of the rink, the OST of the movie 《The Scent of a Woman》was playing. Dong Ge cross rolled along with the beat, one foot forward, one foot back, his movements clean and confident. The blades of his skates etched out white lines that twisted and turned, blossoming into icy flowers on the thick surface of the ice.
He Changsheng looked up at him.
The youth was looking back.
The two were like a shy, young couple, each trying to feel out the other with their dance.
After capturing a hint of the feeling, Dong Ge found some inspiration.
One of his traits was being good at using props, so before getting onto the ice, he’d tied a little necktie around his neck.
He raised his pretty fingers with their delicate joints and loosened his necktie, giving He Changsheng a big smile at the same time.
For a time, He Changsheng almost forgot to breathe.
Dong Ge’s charm had passed the test of countless competitions and countless cameras.
Off the ice, he was cold, proud, and careful with his words and smiles; on the ice, he was like an entirely new person, seeming to have the power to turn himself into the spotlight.
But even on the ice, he rarely smiled.
The rare few times he’d smiled had all been meticulously captured and saved by his fans and were used as precious source material for repeated use in many a face-con’s face-licking video compilations.
This was his first time feeling Dong Ge’s charm at such a close distance. He Changsheng’s heart started pounding uncontrollably.
He thought back to the youth scratch spinning on the ice rink, the youth who fell down over and over again and stood back up each and every time, the youth who was habitually silent, the youth whose every slight glance held a stubborn sharpness……
He Changsheng didn’t have the time to think any deeper on it.
The person before him made his drained inspiration start to flow freely once more. He instinctively grasped onto this opportunity, skating over towards Dong Ge, but he didn’t seem overly rushed.
The purpose of this dance was to inspire He Changsheng’s creativity, so Dong Ge also wasn’t in a hurry, just placing all his effort into playing a qualified partner, gliding sideways along with him face to face, giving him a light kiss with his gaze.
After many years of guidance from Chi Xiaochi, a professional actor, Dong Ge’s artistic comprehension had become much better than before. On the ice, he could convey tens of thousands of words with a look.
His glance made He Changsheng’s body heat up. His limbs were as if they were being stimulated by small electric currents, becoming numb and limp.
After a moment of circling around each other, as if inseparable in their love, He Changsheng moved.
He raised his hand and kissed his own right index finger.
The finger that had touched his soft lips seemed like it was going to land on Dong Ge’s lips, but after a moment of hesitation, it landed lightly on Dong Ge’s collarbone.
The two of them were acting as a pair of youths at the start of their relationship, each wanting to invite the other to dance.
They were currently acting, but there was a little truth within.
Dong Ge had just been drinking black tea, so his mouth and fingers both had a slight woody fragrance. As the two of them skated past each other, noses almost brushing, their hands entwined.
The music playing on loop in the background reached its climax once again. According to He Changsheng’s original arrangement, it should be a complete set of mirrored arabesques. The two of them should have been mirror images of each other, but Dong Ge’s movements were a little slower than He Changsheng’s.
He Changsheng thought that it was probably because they didn’t have enough of a tacit understanding.
However, his excellent dynamic vision was enough for He Changsheng to see each of Dong Ge’s micro-expressions clearly.
He Changsheng rarely saw someone with this kind of ability to perform rapid, on-the-spot remediation.
A good partner would also let He Changsheng quickly enter the right emotions. He slowed his steps slightly, and after matching up with Dong Ge’s rhythm, as the music sped up, they embraced.
He Changsheng’s burning fingers were placed against Dong Ge’s back. Only then did he realise, the butterfly bone of the youth before his eyes was even more perfect than Fang Xiaoyan’s.
Tango, ballet, jazz, they’d learned all kinds of dances, and because the two had never dared to solely rely on talent, they could each guess the other’s next move from the slightest movement of their bodies.
Two pairs of incredibly long, slender legs moved forward and back together, moving in parallel simultaneously, occasionally entangling, with simple touches like a dragonfly touching the water, before separating once again.
After a dazzling tango, this pair of enamoured lovers on the ice separated once more, skating in the same direction.
This time, Dong Ge was already able to catch up to He Changsheng’s footsteps, no longer needing the other to stop and wait for him.
After skating halfway across the rink, the two had a sudden meeting of minds. After exchanging just a quick glance, in the next second, they simultaneously sprung up into the air, each executing a singles jump.
……He Changsheng did a 4lz.
……Dong Ge did a 3T.
The two elf-like figures were light as clouds, jumping up, landing, their rhythms matching like one cloud was merging into the other.
When He Changsheng landed, he was so happy that he almost yelled.
And Dong Ge’s face blushed red.
……Probably due to a coincidence of fate, the two, together, had actually did the two jumps that had ended Dong Ge’s career in his last life.
But this time, their jumps were absolutely perfect.
As the program came to an end, they fell into the most classic pose, with the man supporting the woman’s waist, and the woman in the man’s embrace, both staring deeply into the other’s eyes.
Dong Ge was playing the role of the female partner, so He Changsheng placed his leg against his waist in a practised motion, helping him bend over.
Who would have thought that the youth would actually boldly reach out his hand, hook it behind He Changsheng’s head, grabbing his hair, and aggressively push his head down.
He Changsheng’s face almost pressed against Dong Ge’s, like they were kissing, yet not kissing.
The dance was over, the two of them caught their breath, and both began to pant slightly.
The youth’s head of black hair fell like a curtain, brushing against He Changsheng’s arm, making it a little itchy.
But because they were far too excited, neither made the first move to let go.
Dong Ge lay in He Changsheng’s arms, stars shining in his eyes.
He Changsheng’s eyes were also shining with a moving radiance.
When skating together with Dong Ge, He Changsheng always felt that the feelings Dong Ge gave him were completely different from the feelings he got from Fang Xiaoyan.
After calming down, he finally figured out what was different.
When he and Fang Xiaoyan were acting as lovers in their performances and exchanging loving looks, Fang Xiaoyan’s eyes would always be filled with the love of a young girl, while for He Changsheng, who had never been in a relationship before, his enthusiastic gaze was entirely filled with his love for skating.
But Dong Ge’s gaze was the same as his.
Those extremely intense emotions, were from his love of skating, from his attachment to this shining, sparkling ice rink.
As He Changsheng dazed off, the Dong Ge who was lying lightly in his embrace asked quietly, “Qianbei, are we done?”
Walking off the stage, Dong Ge once more turned back into that frosty Dong Ge.
But for some unknown reason, when the word “qianbei” was whispered from his mouth, there was a hint of inexplicable ambiguity, making He Changsheng’s heart race.
He Changsheng didn’t want to let Dong Ge leave, so he said, “Not yet, wait a little while longer.”
After saying this, he felt his teeth ache, and his blood rushed back onto his face, turning that handsome, pale face into a rush of red.
Dong Ge relaxed his hand that was gripping onto He Changsheng’s hair, then, slightly embarrassed, smoothed down the hair that he had messed up. He lowered his gaze, yet couldn’t hold back the uncontrollable trembling of his eyelashes.
Both of them couldn’t control the pounding of their hearts.
But because their hearts were beating at the same pace, each thought that those thumping, terrifyingly loud heartbeats were coming from their own chest.
In 061’s body, Chi Xiaochi, having watched the entire stream live, began to give out his comments quietly, “Wow, they’re really giving it all they’ve got.”
Dong Ge, “……”
Chi Xiaochi, “Xiao Dong Ge ah, are you feeling happy tonight? About as happy as how you would feel celebrating the Lunar New Year, right?”
Dong Ge, “……”
Chi Xiaochi, “My family’s pig can not only dig out cabbages now, but can also dig out good cabbages. He really has great taste.”
This time, 061 effortlessly received a string of “blushing” signals, so concentrated that he almost couldn’t bear to watch anymore. “Xiaochi, don’t embarrass him.”
Chi Xiaochi, “I’m praising him.”
061, “……You’re calling him a pig.”
Chi Xiaochi thought for a moment. “My family’s Cha can steal watermelons now?”
061, “……” Is that any better?
Only after hugging for a long time did He Changsheng finally completely come out of the act.
He let Dong Ge go. “Are you alright? Do you want to vomit?”
Dong Ge shook his head.
Because he’d handed control over the body entirely over to Dong Ge during the performance, those intimate touches had much less of an impact on Chi Xiaochi.
He Changsheng’s ears were red. “……En. Then that’s good.”
Dong Ge’s ears were also red. He was still trying to get the topic back on track, “Qianbei can try adding some props to this performance, like maybe have the female partner wear a mask, then in the end, she’ll finally remove the mask……”
He Changsheng said, “Good idea.”
Those two people who had been so free and unrestrained on the ice were now as pure as high school students. As they talked, both were unwilling to meet the other’s eyes from the beginning to the end.
They faced each other in silence.
After a while, Dong Ge suggested, “It’s a little cold. Qianbei, let’s go back.”
He Changsheng, “En.”
After that, Dong Ge raised his hand, touching it to his collarbone.
He was just adjusting his necktie, but who knew that when He Changsheng saw this movement, he then thought of that indirect kiss to his collarbone, and his face soon began to burn red.
Due to that, he didn’t notice that in the distance was a malicious gaze staring straight into the backs of the two leaving side by side.
The ice rink was surrounded by a barbed iron fence.
Outside, Lou Sifan tightened his grip on the railing.
The railing had long since frozen over, emitting the fresh scent of rust. With his tightened grip, dark red flakes of rust peeled off one after another, falling to the ground.
In order to find He Changsheng to apologise, Lou Sifan had run through the entire town.
He called, but He Changsheng had turned off his phone.
The train station didn’t have any trains going to the capital of the province at the moment, so he searched all the waiting rooms, finding nothing.
He then ran to the bus stop, which had already closed for the night. Just like before, he found nothing.
He didn’t dare to think of the possibility that “He Changsheng went to find Dong Ge”, so Dong Ge’s skating rink was the last location he came to, after going through all of his options and being left with no way out.
That was when he saw the two people dancing together in the empty rink.
Lou Sifan’s hands grasped the railing in a death grip. The freezing pain was already nothing to him.
……Surnamed Dong, you’ve stolen so much from me, wasn’t it enough?
Why did you still have to steal He Changsheng??
061 originally didn’t want to say too much, but he was unable to bear Lou Sifan’s gaze. It was really too unsubtle. “……He still hasn’t left.”
Chi Xiaochi stared at the rapidly rising regret value, hurriedly exchanging cards from the storehouse. “I felt it already, it’s like that of a sniper’s. I can assure you, if there was a gun in his hand, he would have immediately blown off my head.”
061, “……I don’t think he means well.”
Chi Xiaochi sloppily said, “Look at you saying this, old man. Has he ever meant well towards Dong Ge?”
061 laughed.
He already understood Chi Xiaochi now.
This person would always sound like he didn’t care about anything, but in truth, he took everything to heart.
……He would always be here for them. There was no need to worry.
Upon thinking of this, 061 had the slight urge to laugh.
Clearly it was him who was the system who often gave people reassurance and support, but the Chi Xiaochi who had no special abilities whatsoever was more reassuring than him.
At 3 am that night, their wait for the New Year having come to an end, Dong Ge and his family had all went to sleep.
But in the guest room, He Changsheng tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.
After bearing it to the point that tears had formed in his eyes, he carefully got up with intense guilt in his heart, opened his suitcase, spread several layers of his clothes out onto the new sheets, climbed back into the quilt with slightly stiff movements, and smoothly covered himself with it.
Soon, low, muffled moans came from inside, making one’s heart itch, “Mm, mm hng……”
For a while, the image before his eyes was Dong Ge flying up like a god on the ice; for a while, it was his cold and proud appearance, tormenting him, making his heart fill with flames and his damp eyes turn red.
He Changsheng thought bitterly, why was it like this?
Next door, 061 heaved a sigh.
……Ai, young people.
He set the sound insulation of He Changsheng’s guest room to its highest, then continued to watch his 《The Matrix》.
This movie was about the protagonist, Neo, who unintentionally realised that there was something strange about his world. Then, after constant investigation, he found that he was actually in a virtual reality controlled by artificial intelligence.
As far as storytelling was concerned, this movie was brilliant and also reflected on the possible impact technological progress might have on human beings.
But why did Chi Xiaochi suddenly mention this film to Dong Feihong?
061 thought, could it be that he’d noticed Dong Feihong was a “virtual reality” created by him?
……But why wouldn’t he directly ask him?
According to Chi Xiaochi’s personality, if he were to find out, there was a high chance he would casually call Dong Feihong “Liu-laoshi”, then laugh loudly as he admired his wide-eyed, tongue-tied expression.
But Chi Xiaochi hadn’t.
And in the moment that he talked about the movie, his eyes were filled with a touch of melancholy and self-depreciation.
061 thought, these kinds of emotions shouldn’t appear in Chi Xiaochi’s eyes.
He wanted to be his doctor and cure all of his illnesses.
But even if had more power than he had now, he didn’t have the key to Chi Xiaochi’s heart.
So he watched the movie over from the beginning, again and again.
……He wanted to find that key.
The author has something to say:
#Liu-laoshi’s score sheet#
Chi Love Score: 80 (Out of 100)
Chi Praise Score: 70 (No upper limit)
Chi Vinegar Score: 70 (No upper limit)
Fake Lou: For you, I endured the cold, harsh wind, but you were actually picking up sisters.