Chapter 8

Chapter 8: 1. deep rising-07

At nine p.m., Liu Yi drove to the famous bar street in Xinhai City, parked at the intersection, and, weaving through the dense neon lights on both sides of the street, made his way into a bar called “Blues.”

“Blues” was a somewhat well-known gay bar in the circle. Liu Yi had visited a few times with friends, so he was a semi-regular.

The bar was decorated in an ‘80s American country style—walnut tables and chairs and a deliberately aged bar, wall lamps made to look like lanterns. The dim lighting was perfect for cultivating a suggestive atmosphere.

At this hour, the bar was fairly busy. Most patrons were couples, but some came alone, hoping to find a suitable flirtation to pass the lonely night.

Liu Yi walked straight to a backlit corner booth in the southeast, sitting by the window.

“Hi, Michael.”

He smiled and waved at a tall man across from him, greeting him.

The man called Michael was muscular, with defined contours, fluffy chestnut curls, and deep-set eyes. His real name was Xue Haofan, a junior Liu Yi had known at Dundee University.

Xue Haofan was four years younger than Liu Yi, majoring in media. They had met at their hometown association and quickly recognized, via some inexplicable shared radar, that both were male and attracted to men.

As a quarter Latin American mixed-race, Xue Haofan was average-looking but his height and physique perfectly matched Liu Yi’s aesthetic, especially his sharply defined eight-pack abs, which Liu Yi greatly admired.

More importantly, one was zero and the other one—on top/bottom dynamics, there was no conflict. They hit it off, and after three enjoyable dates, became a couple and naturally progressed toward intimacy.

However, Liu Yi hadn’t expected that while everything seemed ready, the final step left a deep psychological scar, so much so that even after years in the gay scene in the UK, he never considered having a boyfriend again—the reason was simple: Xue Haofan was an exception he could never handle.

That day, sitting in Xue Haofan’s room, looking at pastel pink curtains and bedsheets, and seeing him shyly remove his clothes to reveal a snowy white lace lingerie set covering his muscular frame, Liu Yi felt as if an ice bucket had been dumped on his ardor, and a certain place of his would never respond to him again.

Liu Yi admitted he had no objections to muscular men or cross-dressing fetishes—he just really, really, really didn’t like it!

He tearfully dressed Xue Haofan, and they stepped back to being kindred mischievous friends.

Later, Xue Haofan graduated from graduate school, returned to Xinhai City two years before Liu Yi, and joined the city’s largest private newspaper, covering society news. Knowing Liu Yi had moved to Xinhai earlier in the year, he often invited him out to hang, joking and venting, treating the almost-lover as a confidant.

Tonight, however, Xue Haofan wasn’t complaining about Liu Yi’s impossible boss. Instead, he leaned over, mysteriously close to Liu Yi’s ear, pointing toward the bar:

“Look, that handsome guy over there—what do you think?”

Liu Yi followed his finger.

Though the bar was dimly lit, Liu Yi immediately recognized the man silently drinking beer at the bar corner—Officer Qi’s partner, whom he had met only once but remembered clearly: Officer Qi Shanyu.

——!!

Liu Yi shivered in shock.

If Officer Qi hadn’t accidentally walked into a gay bar, there was only one explanation: he was the same type.

“Handsome, right?”

Xue Haofan, oblivious to Liu Yi’s shock, winked. “If I ask him for a drink, think it’ll ‘work’?”

He stressed “work,” implying clearly.

“I’d advise against making a move.”

Liu Yi glanced at him, amused by his excitement. “Look at his expression and how he’s chugging his drink. Clearly, he’s in a bad mood. Not exactly the right time to approach, right?”

“Hey, that’s not always true!”

Xue Haofan quickly retorted. “What if he just wants someone to keep him company? Even if it’s a one-night thing, I don’t lose!”

“Don’t test fate—just watch.”

Liu Yi shrugged, pointing at Qi Shanyu. “Someone’s going over. Watch his reaction.”

Sure enough, a young man in a leather jacket, holding a cocktail, leaned toward Qi Shanyu, brushing his arm and speaking.

Qi Shanyu didn’t turn his head, ignoring the stranger, simply drinking silently.

This bar had been visited by Li Jin with Qi Shanyu twice before, not far from Li Jin’s apartment.

After breaking up with Li Jin, Qi Shanyu wandered aimlessly, somehow ending up on this street. Recalling the bar from memory, he ordered a beer and quietly drank.

He wasn’t reminiscing or self-destructing—he just didn’t want to return to an empty apartment, where he would replay Li Jin’s breakup declaration and feel doomed to loneliness.

Qi Shanyu rarely visited Blues, so most regulars didn’t know him.

But his striking looks—handsome, tall, long legs, upright posture—caught the dim wall lamp’s warm glow, creating a hazy filter effect, making him stunning at first sight.

Especially a prime “top” sitting alone drinking quietly, looking like a recent heartbreak—irresistibly tempting.

During the three hours Liu Yi and Xue Haofan watched him, several people approached, all coldly rejected by Qi Shanyu.

“See, I told you—no chance.”

Liu Yi finished his martini, smirking at Xue Haofan.

“Hmph, maybe they just don’t suit the little handsome guy!”

Even seeing previous failures, Xue Haofan knew he was likely out of luck, but stubbornly argued.

Meanwhile, a red-haired petite man, holding a sapphire cocktail, stood up from a nearby table, swaying his narrow waist, heading straight for Qi Shanyu.

This red-haired charmer, known as “Little Zero” and nicknamed “Slasher of a Hundred,” was famous in the scene for his “collection,” having slept with more than ten handsome guys. He prided himself on catching rich men.

As he passed Liu Yi, he exposed the top of his drink cup.

Liu Yi smirked, coldly snorting, stood, and patted his friend’s shoulder. “I’ll be right back.”

“Slasher of a Hundred” placed the glowing blue drink on the bar, nudging it toward Qi Shanyu.

“Handsome, a drink for you.” He cooed, sliding his arm around Qi Shanyu’s back.

Qi Shanyu shook his head, trying to pull away, but the red-haired man held tight.

Past midnight, the bar was thinning; most patrons were drunk and leaving.

Qi Shanyu had finished four pints and a Long Island Iced Tea; the alcohol was hitting him. Rarely drinking, he had no sense of limits.

“Come on, just one drink. Then I won’t bother you again.”

The red-haired man had been waiting all night for this.

Qi Shanyu, propping his chin with one hand, vision blurring, felt like floating in a mirage, swaying. Rational thought told him to go home, sleep, yet his feet felt like sinking into cotton, and the insistent stranger buzzed in his ear annoyingly.

“Just one sip, okay?”

In his haze, Qi Shanyu felt his shoulder gripped, the glowing blue cup near his nose.

Irritated, he grabbed the cup and tilted it toward his mouth.

“Wait.”

A hand reached out, taking the cup.

“Hey, what are you doing!”

The red-haired man jumped like a cat, glaring.

Liu Yi smiled, unbothered, dumping the drink on the floor, grabbing the man’s arm and pulling him toward himself.

“Viagra, 100mg.”

He whispered into the red-haired man’s ear with a magnetic smile: “Slightly strong, but since it’s not illegal, I’ll let you off this time.”

He rubbed the empty cup across the audacious man’s face, then tossed it back. “Let’s go.”

The red-haired man turned pale, saying nothing, and ran off.

Qi Shanyu watched, dazed, unable to process what happened.

Seeing him drunk, Liu Yi placed a hand on his shoulder, steadying him. “Officer Qi, are you okay?”

Qi Shanyu’s eyelids felt heavy, like lead; even holding himself up was a struggle.

Meeting Liu Yi’s seductive phoenix eyes, he froze like a paused player.

The man before him was stunning, stylish, with slightly messy long hair, bangs brushing his temples, exuding charm. If six or seven years younger, he could be a pop idol.

Qi Shanyu let the stranger support him, staring blankly, his alcohol-addled mind like a crashed CPU.

“Officer Qi?”

Liu Yi asked again.

“Exc-excuse me… do… do I know… you?”

Liu Yi laughed. “Looks like you’re really drunk.”

He extended his hand. “Come on, I’ll find you a place to sleep.”

Qi Shanyu, dazed, saw only