By eight thirty, customers were trickling out the front doors of the Dining Hall.
They’d arrived in one car with Chen Wen and Liu Yushu; now it was just Yun Qi and Liu Yushu. Chen Wen had gotten dragged off by the others. The rest of the party wasn’t their scene anyway—and Yun Qi had no interest in wasting more time there.
Once they were in the car, Yun Qi slumped against the window with a sigh of relief. Liu Yushu caught the sound and chuckled. “You were nervous? You’ve got Eidis in your corner—who’s gonna mess with you now?”
Having Yu Jin as an ally felt like securing a rock-solid backer. Yun Qi had gotten a clear sense of Yu Jin’s clout in the esports world over dinner, and it eased his mind. But correcting Liu Yushu’s take on their relationship, he murmured, “Doesn’t mean I can slack off. He just bought me in—how far I climb is on me.”
Liu Yushu let out a sigh. “Still miles ahead of us. I’m jealous as hell. You’ve barely been around, and you’re already dining with the big shots, standing at this level. Heaven’s got a soft spot for you. Me? I clawed my way up rung by rung, took all kinds of beatings. Back in the day, I was dying to break into KRO, but Yi Yang slammed the door in my face.”
Liu Yushu offered his heartfelt well-wishes. “Keep pushing.”
That name jogged Yun Qi’s memory. Liu Yushu had to know the guy inside out. “You know Yi Yang well? Ever hear about his time with SK?”
“Oh yeah,” Liu Yushu said, glancing over. “What, getting sentimental about your old team?”
“Nah. I heard he absolutely demolished SK in the Challenge Tournament. Doesn’t make sense to me. Do the teams have some grudge?”
Liu Yushu tsked. “Beats me. Yi Yang’s always marched to his own beat. Kid’s young, insanely talented—no one bosses him around. He calls everybody by their first name, zero respect for hierarchy. Only Eidis gets a scrap of deference from him. Never heard anything about bad blood with SK, but he’s got that hotheaded kid energy. Just recently, he got booted from the substitutes for mouthing off to Ziwu. If he’s got beef with SK, yeah, he might start swinging over nothing.”
“I figured somebody put him up to it,” Yun Qi said thoughtfully.
“Doubt it. We don’t cross paths with SK much. Players don’t even know each other.”
Yun Qi nodded and let it drop. He settled into the back seat, listening raptly as Liu Yushu spilled more dirt on Yi Yang. It held his attention for a while, until drowsiness crept in. Then his mind wandered back to Yu Jin pinning him against the wall. Had he been drunk? Or somewhere in between? Tough to say.
Yun Qi had never seen him properly wasted. He had no clue what threshold or tells meant truly sloshed.
It was late by the time they pulled up to the KRO Base. Yun Qi was ready to crash. As he neared his room, though, he caught some odd noises down the corridor. One door hung slightly ajar, and two male voices leaked out from the gap.
“I’ve burned every bridge with DYJ. Cut ties for good, even if it paints me as the backstabber—just to come here for you. And now you’re flirting with Ziwu? Say it again. I dare you.”
Ziwu. Ziwu again. Tonight was the second time Yun Qi had heard that name.
He wasn’t one to gossip about other people’s business, but a familiar esports team name caught his ear, and he quietly halted his steps.
“Don’t push me, Yuanwei. I didn’t make you come here—you chose to. What right do you have to blame me?”
“Yeah? If I hadn’t come, I never would’ve known about your thing with Ziwu. Doesn’t he know you have a boyfriend? When did you two start? Has he kissed you? Fucked you? How far have you gone?”
“You’re crazy. What nonsense is this?” The man’s voice grew frantic. “Things between us are completely innocent…”
“And you’re telling me it’s innocent? What kind of pictures did you send him? Don’t you know what angles those selfies were taken from? If I go public with this…”
“Don’t.” The man’s voice turned desperate. “Don’t be so stubborn…”
“I never imagined it. I like a guy, and someone still tries to steal him from me. Liking men is supposed to be rough, but this? Do I have nothing left now…?”
Footsteps echoed. Yun Qi hurried away from the door and back to his room, softly locking it behind him.
From the conversation next door, he’d uncovered a secret no one else knew. Yuanwei—the teammate Doesn’t Eat Grass wanted him to take down—was tangled up in something like this.
Yun Qi’s mind raced, unable to settle. From their exchange, he pieced together why DYJ’s rising star had stabbed his team in the back right before the season, jumping ship. It was for something this messy and hard to judge.
He didn’t know much about Yuanwei himself—just bits and pieces from other players. Everyone said the guy was a beast. Without that pre-season betrayal, DYJ would’ve made the Grand Finals this year for sure. SK might’ve even run into them before KRO, and they probably wouldn’t have had the upper hand.
Yet Yuanwei had thrown away a path to success and fame for a personal fling, landing in the cutthroat world of KRO. He still hadn’t cracked the starting roster. All for the one person in his heart.
Yun Qi reflected on his own situation. Sure, he’d come here to get close to the man he liked, but he and Yuanwei were worlds apart. Yuanwei had been red-hot at DYJ. Even without a championship, he could’ve built a big name for himself. Faced with those real-world gains, he’d chosen to abandon it all and start over? Few people had that kind of guts. Was it bold or just plain stupid? And now reality had slapped him hard—did he regret leaving DYJ?
Yun Qi had been thrilled earlier at dinner, seeing Yu Jin. But this news left him adrift. Their situations weren’t the same, but when a better option appeared, it was damn hard for anyone to stick to their principles and resist temptation.
In terms of skill, Yuanwei couldn’t touch Ziwu, the starting roster mainstay. Looks-wise, Yun Qi had seen Ziwu at Esports Night—that was one hell of a handsome face, tall and striking. Fame? Yuanwei couldn’t compete there either. He’d come here for the guy he liked, only to find him tangled up with someone more “ideal” by conventional standards. How did you even handle that?
Turning inward: If things went well, he and Yu Jin could rekindle things. But if they went south—if Yu Jin found someone better—where would that leave Yun Qi on KRO?
Maybe it was the alcohol, but a wave of melancholy hit Yun Qi.
He’d thrown himself headlong into KRO, dead set on making the starting roster, no holds barred. He’d flirted with Yu Jin, teased him, pleased him, all with the conviction they’d reignite their old flame. He hadn’t left himself any outs. He hadn’t even asked if Yu Jin wanted it. What if he poured his heart into it, and Yu Jin’s final choice wasn’t him? Some better catch, or someone who truly stirred his heart? Could Yun Qi blame him then?
Back then, as a starter they’d see each other constantly. How would he face his ex-boyfriend, now off the market?
And now, he could still pull little tricks to seduce Yu Jin. But if Yu Jin started something new? What could he do? Have the nerve to try? When they crossed paths again, how would he stomach acting all coy and deliberate in front of him?
Yun Qi sank onto the sofa.
Night had fully fallen. A breeze slipped through the window. The noise from next door lingered in his ears. He couldn’t shake it or make it stop. He’d already committed to KRO. Yu Jin had made it clear tonight—no surprises, it’d happen in the next couple days. Yet suddenly, he hesitated.
To banish the dark thoughts swirling in his head, Yun Qi poured himself a glass of hot water. He was done with alcohol for good. That stuff only killed his drive and ambition.
He kept overthinking it, second-guessing himself. That very night, Yu Jin had publicly declared that Yun Qi belonged to him. He’d locked him in place and interrogated him, panicking when Yun Qi mentioned considering other options. So was it simply because Yu Jin wanted to keep him around, or was it the staggering thirty-million transfer fee?
He couldn’t figure it out. Everything had grown complicated.
In a momentary loss of confidence, Yun Qi collapsed onto the sofa and soon drifted off to sleep.
The move to KRO was settled.
Two days after the dinner, someone from above notified Yun Qi to head to A Block. Yun Qi stood by the window, staring at the house next door for a long time. The life he’d dreamed of was now right at his feet.
He thought to himself that ever since arriving here, he’d been too eager—too enthusiastic about training, too obvious around Yu Jin. No matter how dense Yu Jin might be, he had to have noticed Yun Qi’s feelings by now. Even separated by a whole house, Yun Qi’s obsession burned this hot. If they got any closer, everyone would see right through him.
And if they did see through him, fine—but what if Yu Jin actually got together with someone else one day? At least in KRO, Yun Qi could keep some distance, some space to breathe. He couldn’t afford to come on too strong. Otherwise, if he failed to win Yu Jin over, people would point at his back and call him scheming and unscrupulous.
He’d already broadcast his crush on Yu Jin online. If he didn’t rein it in privately too, the gossip was inevitable. Yun Qi figured it out: at least in public, he had to play it cool with Yu Jin. Cooler. Even cooler…
By the time he arrived at A Block that day, Yun Qi had steeled himself with all sorts of mental preparations.
No one came to see him off, and no one greeted him there. He stood alone at the door to A Block, catching everyone off guard. Yun Qi still remembered the scene vividly. In the living room of A Block, a guy was sprawled on the sofa, feet propped on the coffee table, leaning against a cushion with a book in his hands—like a slacker desperately cramming for an exam.
That was Liu Ying.
Another had his hair tied back with a rubber band clenched in his mouth. He’d paused at Yun Qi’s arrival, stopping in his tracks to look him over with eyes full of charm.
That was Ziwu.
And the one holding a cigarette, head down over his phone with a smile on his face…
That had to be Shooter Chang Shu.
All three stared in bewilderment at the unexpected figure in the doorway. But the first to greet Yun Qi was the cat perched on the cabinet.
With a “thud,” it leaped down and charged straight at Yun Qi, like a gust of wind too fast to stop.
Instantly, roars erupted in unison from the living room, rattling the air: “Don’t touch it!”
The smoking Chang Shu shot to his feet in a panic. “Get out of the way! It scratches!”
But before the words had even settled, they witnessed something unbelievable.
The cat that had everyone on edge launched itself at the newcomer—only to be caught gently and cradled in his arms. Yun Qi dropped to one knee, wrapping his arms around the flying furball. His expression softened, his palm cupping the Maine Coon’s head as he rested his chin lightly against it. “Tata,” he murmured, “long time no see.”
