In the silence that followed, Jing Mian felt the other party’s slightly tense mood indirectly affecting him, making him swallow hard.
Jing Mian thought, there was no need to be so formal about it.
He had already made up his mind.
“Um, I want to join.”
Jing Mian asked, “Do I sign here?”
Xuan Cheng seemed to be taken aback for a moment.
After hearing his own voice, he nodded woodenly.
Jing Mian picked up the ballpoint pen from the side, found the spot, and carefully wrote his name at the bottom of the page.
Xuan Cheng took the contract, stared at the name for a while, then picked up the pen and signed his own name on the other side.
He leaned back in his chair.
After a long pause, Xuan Cheng spoke up:
“Jing Mian is now part of our team.”
Jing Mian: “…Huh?”
Sitting right across from the captain, Jing Mian was puzzled to hear his name mentioned in the third person…
Was the captain talking to him?
“YES!!!!!!”
“Ah ah ah ah ah”
“We got the supernova!!”
Suddenly, a deafening cheer erupted from outside the door, which hadn’t been fully closed.
Xuan Cheng: “……”
Jing Mian: “……”
He finally realized who the captain was talking to.
Strangely, Jing Mian didn’t mind the atmosphere.
Making friends often depends on the first impression, Jing Mian thought. The team was probably the same; the moment he stepped into the club, he was somehow drawn into the club’s atmosphere and felt relaxed.
Perhaps this was fate,
leading him to a team that suited him perfectly.
His decision to sign the contract without hesitation was likely due to this.
Next, Jing Mian met the other team members, introducing their names, IDs, and their usual roles and strengths.
Xuan Cheng took Jing Mian on a tour of the club.
As they walked, she explained the usual practice times and the process of participating in various competitions with the team in the future.
Jing Mian was the youngest among the team members. The club didn’t accept high school students, as academics were a priority.
But Jing Mian was a sophomore, and considering his busy schedule, he could choose his training times, try to attend competitions, and join gatherings whenever he wanted.
At this point, Xuan Cheng suddenly stopped.
She tentatively asked, “There’s a gathering at the club tonight.”
“Sort of a welcome party…” Xuan Cheng hesitated, trying to avoid making Jing Mian feel pressured or forced, so she smiled and rephrased, “Well… the captain is treating us to the new barbecue place across the street. We might have some drinks, but the younger members don’t have to… Do you want to come?”
Jing Mian realized this gathering was probably for him.
Since he wasn’t familiar with the team yet… Jing Mian thought that going out to eat together would be a good opportunity to get to know each other, and there was no reason to refuse.
He nodded, “Sure.”
It was undoubtedly an exciting night.
The club had turned off the lights and locked the doors early.
Whether it was the captain, the team members, or the staff, even the cleaning lady, everyone had changed into casual clothes and left the club with the young people.
—Straight to the barbecue place across the street.
The night was dark, but the street lights shimmered brightly. Jing Mian’s roommate hadn’t returned, and he didn’t have a live stream scheduled for today, so it was a rare moment of relaxation.
The group walked confidently to the front desk and requested two long tables joined together. They moved the chairs around the long table, forming a circle that was perfect for chatting and grilling.
Jing Mian prepared his seasonings and was given a small plate, placed next to the captain.
The smell of sizzling meat was already wafting from the neighboring table.
Jing Mian felt his mouth watering.
Just as he raised his hand to pull down the top edge of his mask, he suddenly sensed a gaze.
No, not just one.
Jing Mian: “……?”
He looked up and realized that almost everyone in the room was staring at him.
The air seemed unusually quiet.
What was going on?
Jing Mian’s hand froze, and after a few seconds of silence, confusion clouded his eyes.
Captain Xuan Cheng cleared his throat at the right moment.
“……”
He was frustrated; it seemed all his rules had been ignored. He had told them not to stare and not to pressure Jing Mian to take off his mask, but they had broken both rules at once.
Jing Mian asked, “What’s wrong?”
The team members seemed to snap out of their trance and smiled at Jing Mian.
“It’s just that…”
“We’re really curious.”
The others nodded vigorously, “Yes.”
Curious about his face?
“I’ve been a fan of yours for a long time, even before you made it to the PK Leaderboard,” one of the guys scratched his head, a bit embarrassed. “Since you never show your face, I’ve always been curious about what my favorite streamer looks like, and I’ve even imagined it.”
“Xuan Cheng invited you to this gathering, and I thought you might not come…” The guy’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he looked away, clearly uncomfortable with confessing to his idol. “So when you actually showed up, I was really excited.”
The other team members nodded in agreement.
Jing Mian: “……”
Suddenly, the act of taking off his mask felt sacred and solemn, and the pressure was immense!
Jing Mian hesitated for a moment, then raised his hand, his index finger curling around the edge of the mask.
He pulled it down to his jaw, revealing his face.
“……”
For some reason,
the air remained silent for a long time.
The neighboring table was sizzling with the sound of grilling meat, a stark contrast to the quiet at their table.
Even Captain Xuan Cheng, who was usually in charge of keeping the team in line, seemed frozen, his shrimp chip hovering in mid-air.
“Damn…”
One voice broke the silence.
The other team members reacted, joining in with exclamations:
“MianMian, you’re so handsome!”
“Definitely a handsome college student!!!”
“Jing Mian, why aren’t you in the looks category? If you had, you’d have been famous long ago.”
“Damn, it’s a waste of talent, MianMian, you’re too good for the tech category…”
…
Jing Mian smiled.
He looked calm and gentle, and despite his young age, he handled the situation with grace, defusing the tension.
Though his face remained composed, his ears, which no one could see, turned increasingly red.
Soon, the server wheeled over a cart with the meat they had ordered, already sorted into different categories.
But… the quantity was astonishing.
No wonder, with a group of young people, no type of meat was spared, especially pork and beef.
As the guest of honor at the welcome party, Jing Mian didn’t even have to reach for his chopsticks before the grilled meat was being passed to him, quickly piling up into a small mountain on his plate.
“……”
Jing Mian tentatively put down his chopsticks.
He started to tackle the mountain of meat.
The atmosphere at the club was lively but not chaotic, and dining in such an environment made one feel a deep sense of happiness, even without much conversation.
Jing Mian was thinking this when a glass of alcohol silently appeared next to his plate.
Jing Mian: “?”
“Kid, can you drink?”
Jing Mian looked up and saw a man he didn’t recognize. The man was very handsome, probably in his twenties, with a beauty mark at the corner of his eye.
He was smiling, looking at Jing Mian with a playful expression.
Jing Mian was taken aback but nodded, “I can drink.”
“Jing Mian, don’t listen to him. You don’t have to drink if you don’t want to,” Xuan Cheng leaned over, pointing at the handsome man who had offered the drink. “He’s Mole, his real name is Xuan Cheng, and he’s been with me for a while. He was abroad and just returned.”
Jing Mian was slightly surprised.
If he remembered correctly, Mole, whose name meant “beauty mark,” was the player who often ranked in the top ten on the leaderboard.
He had signed with me.?!
This club seemed to have more hidden talents than he had imagined.
But Jing Mian still took the glass and obediently drank it all.
His lips turned a deeper shade, but he was clearly a bit dazed.
The alcohol content was higher than he had expected.
“……” They both felt a bit guilty, as if they had taken advantage of a kid.
Xuan Cheng said, “You have a good tolerance.”
He asked, “Another one?”
Jing Mian swallowed, the lingering taste of the alcohol still in his mouth. He shook his head, “No one will be there to pick me up if I get drunk, so I can’t.”
Xuan Cheng cleared his throat, finding Jing Mian’s response adorable.
What kind of well-behaved team member had he signed?
Xuan Cheng didn’t care: “I can take you back, drink up.”
Xuan Cheng: “……” Just shut up.
Jing Mian clearly didn’t agree with the suggestion and didn’t drink a second glass.
At the other end of the long table, a few team members were already into their second round, the atmosphere lively. Some were dozing off on the table, and others had cleared a space to arm wrestle.
Suddenly, Jing Mian felt a vibration in his pocket.
He reached in and found his phone screen lit up with a new message.
Jing Mian lowered his gaze, his long lashes soft and delicate. He opened the message silently, feeling a bit dazed, his forehead resting on the edge of the table:
【Back to school?】
A short message.
—From Ren Xingwan.
Jing Mian was stunned for a few seconds, then slowly typed: [Yes.]
After a moment, he realized the mistake and added: [No.]
The message was clearly contradictory.
The other side seemed to pause for about ten seconds, then the next message arrived:
【Where are you?】
Jing Mian put down his phone.
He had just sent his real-time location and, when he looked up, noticed that everyone was looking at him.
Jing Mian: “?”
One of the more outgoing team members leaned over, gossiping, “MianMian, is this a message from your girlfriend?”
The answer could only be one of a few things. Jing Mian was handsome, so having a girlfriend was understandable. But when everyone expected Jing Mian to say it was his girlfriend, or a family member, or a roommate…
To everyone’s surprise, Jing Mian paused, then, under their gazes, answered softly:
“My fiancé.”
…
This time, the atmosphere fell into complete silence.
Even more so than when Jing Mian had taken off his mask.
The neighboring table had already cleared out, leaving only the sound of sizzling meat from their table.
No one broke the silence.
Unaware of the sudden change in atmosphere, Jing Mian used a leaf to wrap a piece of grilled meat, added some rice, and quietly ate it.
The captain was the first to break the silence, his voice filled with surprise as he swallowed, “MianMian, you…”
But after finishing his rice ball, Jing Mian quietly laid his head on the table, his soft hair falling over the edge, and joined the others in a peaceful slumber.
…
Jing Mian was woken by a vibration in his hand.
He sat up, feeling a bit dizzy. Someone had draped a jacket over him, protecting him from the slightly cool air.
His teammates were mostly asleep, leaving only a few with impressive alcohol tolerance, their voices faint as they discussed the next season’s matches and equipment.
Jing Mian blinked, and after a moment of hesitation, instinctively answered the ringing phone.
A deep male voice came through the receiver: “I’m here.”
Jing Mian was taken aback, thinking he had misheard.
Why would Mr. Ren come here?
But the next second, he heard:
“MianMian, come out.”
Hearing the familiar voice, Jing Mian sat up, staring at the number on the screen. The alcohol seemed to clear his head a bit.
So, Ren Xingwan was outside?
How was that possible?
Realizing this, Jing Mian stood up abruptly, feeling a bit weak in the legs, the heavy-headed, weak-limbed feeling not dissipating despite his forced清醒.
“Ah, MianMian, you’re awake?”
A nearby teammate, still drinking, noticed Jing Mian and gave a thumbs up, praising, “Don’t look at the new guy, but he can drink more than all of us.”
Jing Mian turned his head and saw that even Xuan Cheng was asleep, his cheek pressed into the table, leaving an imprint.
“……” Jing Mian was amazed by the incredible drinking capacity that had even knocked out their captain.
“MianMian, are you leaving?” One of the older team members stood up, concerned, and asked Jing Mian, “Why not stay at the club? There are beds and a lounge, it’s warm and safe. It’s so late, how will you go back alone?”
Jing Mian shook his head, “I have a ride, don’t worry.”
The person asked again, “Are you sure? Is someone picking you up?”
“Yes.”
Jing Mian whispered, picked up his clothes, and put on his mask before leaving the restaurant.
Outside the restaurant.
The night was dark and long, the street lights flickering over the bustling area. Despite the late hour, people were still coming and going.
Jing Mian stopped, looking left and right.
He didn’t see Mr. Ren, or the car he had seen before.
Jing Mian began to doubt himself.
Was the phone call just a hallucination?
No, he wasn’t that drunk, but maybe he had given the wrong address, and Ren Xingwan had gone to the wrong place?
Jing Mian took a few steps forward, then stopped, completely lost.
He took a deep breath and stood there for a few minutes.
Then he turned and started to leave.
“……”
Don’t trouble Mr. Ren anymore, Jing Mian thought. They weren’t in any relationship, so he might as well go back to school.
But he should call Ren Xingwan first to make sure he wasn’t waiting at the wrong place, and to thank him.
Jing Mian took out his phone and dialed Ren Xingwan’s number.
Just as the intermittent ringing started, a large hand gripped his elbow.
The next second, Jing Mian was pulled with such force that his feet almost left the ground.
His vision spun, and before he knew it, his back was pressed against a broad chest, with no room to move.
“……!”
Even though he wasn’t fully sober, Jing Mian recognized that they were in a narrow, secluded corner of the alley, barely wide enough for two people.
Suddenly brought to such a hidden and dangerous place, Jing Mian’s breath caught in his throat. The person seemed to be wearing a hat and mask, deliberately hiding his identity, making it impossible to see his face.
Jing Mian’s heart sank, and just as he was about to struggle free, a familiar voice sounded in his ear:
“It’s me.”
Jing Mian felt his hat being pulled down from behind, and the skin on the back of his neck tightened slightly.
The man’s two fingers pulled down Jing Mian’s mask from behind, the slightly cool fingertips brushing against his skin, revealing Jing Mian’s surprised, slightly flushed face, moistened by his breath.
The man’s voice was slow and deep, with a hint of hoarseness:
“Jing Mian, you don’t recognize me again?”