hill bit by bit, and very soon, the two of them reached the end of the road. Green trees surrounded them, and there was no one else to disturb them.

“We’ve reached the end.” Yue Zhishi slightly hopped in place, and he pointed at the characters on the floor, saying to Song Yu, “Look.”

The unremarkable cobblestones on the ground spelled out simple characters, and yet those characters seemed to carry the weight of the many years in between them.

“Time passed, deep affection grows,” Song Yu softly read.

Since no one else was there, Yue Zhishi took his hand. “Since we’ve already journeyed through the road of love, we have lots of experience now. Don’t worry, everything will get better.”

Song Yu couldn’t hold back his smile. “What experience do you even have..”

Yue Zhishi suddenly popped upwards, just as his words left his mouth; he very lightly, very quickly pecked at his lips — it was just like the autumn days in this city, transient and glorious.

He nervously retreated back to a safe location, and he also let go of Song Yu’s hand, looking around him in a fluster with his lips pressed together.

“The experience of my first kiss,” Yue Zhishi stammered, his voice without any confidence.

The setting sun fell gently onto his face, turning his soft hair into a glimmering gold. His ears were red, the rays of the sun shining through the semi-translucent flesh — the capillaries were faintly visible, and his ears looked just like golden sea shells. Song Yu could look nowhere else; he hoped the shadows of night would arrive later, because this was truly beautiful and breathtaking.

And yet he also hoped the sky would darken right that moment — so that in the dark corners of the night, he could hold Yue Zhishi in his arms.

“Are you unsatisfied?” A bit of chagrin covered Yue Zhishi’s face as he lifted his head. “You must definitely be unsatisfied.”

Song Yu stuffed his two hands into the pockets of his trench coat, looking entirely at ease. “Maybe a bit.”

“Then can I try again? That one didn’t count.”

Song Yu took one step ahead, the distance between them shortened to zero. Their chests were right on top of each other, and he said, “Sure.”

Yue Zhishi glanced around again, and then he swiftly kissed him for the second time before he retreated half a step. He very earnestly questioned, “How was that?”

His romantic partner was very hard to satisfy; his mouth curved upwards slightly again, but he still shook his head. “Still not good enough.”

Yue Zhishi realised he might have dug a pit for himself. “I feel like you won’t be satisfied no matter what I do.”

Song Yu raised his eyebrows. “That’s okay, I’ll give you many, many chances.”