After that… highly unwelcome meeting, Qin Tiewei's full day had gone to hell. The only thing on his mind has been… regrettably… Chen Huan.
It was a strange thing. He had come to work praying for two things. First, Chen Huan had to show up. Second, he didn't want to cross paths with him at all. But after the meeting, he couldn't keep him off his mind.
He really is a genius. He's slobby, he's tardy, and he tells lies. But he is a genius. A crazy genius.
He built the dating app? The app that could tell if you were looking for a long-term partner or something more casual and match you appropriately? The app that had a secret 'friendly' feature that would match you with someone of your preferred gender? Why would you build a full app for a company and not request monetary compensation? Most especially when you've subjected yourself to that living condition. Why did he quit? And why did he come back so easily?
Throughout the day, he had resisted the urge to approach Chen Huan and demand the answers to those questions.
However, once closing time reached, now armed with the knowledge that Chen Huan must've closed, he buried himself in work. Was Chen Huan able to get any work done today? With all that 'bad blood' between them, he wouldn't go to Mr. Liu, would he? I would have to check on his progress myself tomorrow morning.
Huanhuan.
His face soured as he remembered the nickname. Why are they so close anyway? Just working on a project together for months? Is that really enough to build a bond where you address someone so intimately?
Qin Tiewei glanced at his wristwatch. 9:15. He sighed and pushed to his feet. Grabbed his jacket and his three cell phones. Time to call it a day.
As he walked past the rows of cubicles in the main office, he paused when he noticed the lamplight coming from a desk. It's him. He's still working this late. A warmth spread in his chest. Did he stay in the cubicle? I assumed he'd take Liu's office since he's now Lead Software Engineer. Is this..? This guy is really weird.
Despite himself, Qin Tiewei found himself walking towards Chen Huan. I'm just going over there to check his progress.
As he closed in on him, Chen Huan finally noticed the presence of another person approaching him. He lifted his eyes. President Qin. "Pres… President Qin."
"You're still here?" Qin Tiewei leaned slightly against the partition.
"Yes. I… I wanted to finish this today. So I can… move onto… something else tomorrow."
"Can you show me?" Qin Tiewei leaned over Chen Huan's neck. The softness in his voice surprised him.
A blush spread up Chen Huan's cheek as he felt Qin Tiewei's breath on him. He's so close, I could almost kiss him. It's night. How does he still smell so nice?
"Chen Huan." Qin Tiewei called, and Chen Huan almost gasped.
Fuck! When he calls my name like that… It feels like I'm hearing it for the first time. "I… I…" he said in a breathy voice. "I… didn't get any work done today."
"You didn't?" Qin Tiewei straightened.
"Someone had used this PC when I was away. They… they moved things around and I can't work until my workspace is completely tidied up, so I was sorting files into folders and folders into… other folders."
Qin Tiewei arched a brow. He can't work until his workspace is 'completely tidied up'? His mind drifted to that… abominable room again. The disgust that he had felt standing there seemed to have suddenly gained new life. Goosebumps crawled up his skin.
"I'm still going to meet up with the deadline, I promise."
I should be mad he didn't get any work done, but I'm not. I believe him. He's the genius. "Well… are you done with that?" He pointed at the screen.
Chen Huan nodded. "I was thinking of what to name these folders, but I'll leave them the way they are. I can remember what's in all of them."
"Well… do you want me to drop you at home?"
"I…" Chen Huan gave a nervous chuckle. "I don't want to inconvenience you."
"If it were an inconvenience, I wouldn't ask."
Chen Huan smiled. "Okay." What did I do to deserve this romance movie scene? President Qin. If you do this… how is this crush going to go away?
***
Chen Huan had stayed quiet almost all the way home. He was so nervous, he wished Yu Xiansheng were in the car with him.
The whole time Qin Tiewei was driving, he hadn't taken his eyes off the road once. He had questions to ask and things to say. How do I even talk to someone like this? How do I say 'thank you' for building the app that put my company on the map? How do I say 'thank you' for coming back even when you didn't have to? Why did you quit? What is your relationship with Liu?
As they drew closer to his neighborhood, Chen Huan finally spoke. "President Qin, I'm really going to meet the deadline." He couldn't remember if he had said it before.
"Okay," Qin Tiewei said in a small voice he didn't recognize. He cleared his throat once. "We have just two days left now."
Chen Huan turned to the window. "I know. I can… I can still meet up."
Qin Tiewei frowned at the sudden hesitation. He had just started to trust this person's brilliance. "What's the matter?"
"Nothing. It's just… It's just…" he sighed.
"Tell me. Anything you need. As long as it helps you help me."
"Okay." Chen Huan swallowed, then sighed again. "I'm burnt out."
"Oh!" Qin Tiewei tightened his grip on the steering. That's definitely a problem. That must have something to do with why he quit. Liu must've pushed him too hard.
"No, I… I can get back into the rhythm by tomorrow."
"You can?"
"I just need something. I'm afraid to say. I… I don't want you to think… I'm not serious about this project, because I am. I really am."
"Say it."
"I need to sleep."
Qin Tiewei glanced at him for a brief moment.
"Not at home. In the office. I'll have the code open, then have a cup of coffee, and go to sleep."
What's he saying? He kept his eyes on the road.
"Because of the caffeine, I sleep, but I don't really sleep."
I'm still confused.
"It's like my body is kind of stuck in REM sleep."
Ah! Nope! That doesn't help me understand at all.
"So, I'm sleeping, but my brain is not. It's working and getting fired up. So when I wake up and the work is there… Right in front of me. I can focus almost immediately and the burnout dissipates."
"And this works?" Whatever it is.
"Ninety-nine percent of the time."
What's the other one percent? Are you going to torture me by revealing it tomorrow? He sighed. "So you need to sleep in the office?"
"Yes. In the past when this happened, I slept in Liu's office. Now we're—"
"You can sleep in my office." The words left Qin Tiewei's mouth before he realized he was saying them.
Chen Huan's eyes widened. "Really?"
Qin Tiewei's lips curved in a slight frown. "Yes."
"That's good, then." Chen Huan said. "I really liked your office. It's quiet and your sofa is really soft. It'll be good to sleep on. Even your coffee table is the perfect height for my laptop if I sit on the floor," he paused, "I'm rambling again, I'm sorry."
Ah, he rambles a lot. I knew I left something out of his list of bad behaviors. He stopped. "I can't really drive past here. You have to get down."
"Yeah!" Chen Huan didn't realize they had gotten to the juncture a short distance from his house. He paused on the door. "President Qin?"
"Hmm?"
Hmm? So informal. We've really bonded, haven't we?
"What?" Qin Tiewei pressed.
"There's something else."
"What?"
"I need some things to sleep in the office." He hesitated. "You might think it's silly."
"Tell me. I'll get it for you."
"No, no. It's not 'some things', it's 'some things'."
This guy is driving me crazy.
"I already have them. I mean, I need to bring them from home. To the office."
Just say that then. "Okay."
"Thanks for the ride, President Qin."
"It's fine."
Chen Huan got down from the car and waved until Qin Tiewei turned and drove away.
As he approached his house, he knew one thing for certain. Immediately he entered that place, he was going to touch himself. To all of… this: Qin Tiewei's breath on his neck, the softness in his voice, the ride home.
Aiya! I have to complete this project quickly. What am I going to do if I fall for someone who can't seem to stand me? Someone… perfect like him. Someone I definitely can't have.
He placed his hand on his beating chest. I don't want that kind of trouble.