Chapter 41: N. Appropriate Coaxing

After leaving the cocktail party, Ning Yixiao got into the car and gave the drunk Jing Ming a ride. The temperature inside the car was quite high, and as soon as he got in, he felt a bit dizzy, so he cracked open a window.

“Hey, by the way, didn’t you say that your ‘someone at home’ is still in a depressive phase?” Jing Ming was slurring his words, a mix of English and Chinese. “Can you really leave him alone at home? Should I have Kefi and Mark go back?”

Ning Yixiao didn’t want them to go back. He felt that the current two-person world was just right. If there were two more people, Su Hui would have an escape route and would just shrink away again.

“Not for now. Besides, if there are too many people taking care of him, he’ll feel uncomfortable.” Ning Yixiao hadn’t realized that he had already accepted Jing Ming’s new, possessive-sounding term for Su Hui. He did, however, feel a bit of doubt about his own judgment. “But he hasn’t wanted to take his medication lately, so I try not to go out as much as possible.”

“Huh?” Jing Ming sat bolt upright. “He has to take his meds! If you don’t take meds for a cold or a fever, it gets worse; isn’t his illness…” He caught himself halfway through. “Aren’t you out right now? Aren’t you afraid something might happen to him at home?”

Ning Yixiao didn’t speak.

Although he trusted that Su Hui wouldn’t do anything beyond his expectations in his current state, there had been a precedent six years ago. With Jing Ming putting it this way, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of anxiety.

He couldn’t help but tell the driver, “Drive faster.”

Jing Ming stopped him. “No way! I’m still in the car! Safety first!”

Instead, he looked at Ning Yixiao, paused for a long time, and then suddenly slapped his thigh. “Right! Doesn’t your place have a pet camera? The one for Xue Gao? I remember I got caught by you when I went over to sneak a drink. Is that monitor still on?”

“I turned it off,” Ning Yixiao said. “It’s been off ever since Xue Gao was taken back to San Francisco.”

“Just turn it on remotely.”

Jing Ming felt this idea was absolutely perfect. He was very proud of himself, considering himself the love strategist for Ning Yixiao, the workaholic. “With the camera, you won’t have to worry about him being home alone while you’re out. If something really happens, you can rush back immediately.”

Ning Yixiao pondered in silence for a moment, feeling it made sense. He used a mobile app to activate the smart home monitoring system, and the feed quickly synced to his laptop.

For five minutes, Su Hui hadn’t moved at all, lying motionless on the mattress.

Jing Ming glanced at it and couldn’t help but sigh, “Sigh, you really have it hard.”

Ning Yixiao didn’t respond to him. He quietly gazed out the car window. He caught a glimpse of a lighted clinic sign in the distance and, thinking of something, dialed the doctor, Grace.

On the phone, he described Su Hui’s condition, specifically mentioning his recent resistance to treatment.

Grace asked, “Did this resistance appear in the last few days, or has it been going on for a long time?”

Ning Yixiao replied, “These past few days. He had always been taking his meds on time before.”

Grace paused on the other end of the line, giving an uncertain answer. “In this situation, we consider it to be driven by the patient’s own experiences—for example, if something occurred at a specific time in the past that he is unwilling to face, causing psychological trauma, he might recall this trauma at fixed intervals, resulting in these obstacles.”

After saying this, Grace hesitated but couldn’t help but ask, “Shaw, is he the ‘ex’ you told me about?”

Ning Yixiao didn’t like the word ‘ex,’ but he still acknowledged it, “Yes.”

“Although I don’t understand your current relationship dynamic, listening to you, it seems you are unwilling to force him to follow the doctor’s orders. I have to tell you, doing this might hurt him, but it is also helping him. You must know that for a patient with bipolar disorder, quitting medication on their own is a terrifying thing with unimaginable consequences.”

“I know,” Ning Yixiao replied in a low voice.

Jing Ming listened quietly, feeling that it really wasn’t simple for this pair to walk forward together.

He suddenly realized that as a playboy, he was lucky; he didn’t have to be like a devoted fool like Ning Yixiao, exhausting his body and mind for the sake of a relationship. But looking at it from another angle, he was also unfortunate; he might never encounter such love in his lifetime, never finding anyone to whom he could give himself unconditionally.

Traffic was congested, and Jing Ming fell asleep directly in the car. Ning Yixiao was still multitasking, handling work while keeping a split-screen eye on the monitor.

Ten minutes later, the screen finally changed.

Ning Yixiao’s typing paused. He watched as Su Hui was nudged by Xue Gao on the monitor. He looked bewildered, sitting up to wake himself for a bit, then held onto the low cabinet to stand up. He stumbled toward the door, apparently to pour food for Xue Gao.

Crossing the living room, he reached the bowl under the floor-to-ceiling window, poured a mountain-high pile of food, patted Xue Gao’s head, and stood up to return to his room.

But in the next second, he seemed to trip over the edge of the rug, lost his balance, and his shin slammed hard against the corner of the coffee table, his knees hitting the ground heavily.

Ning Yixiao’s heart tightened. He saw Su Hui collapse on the rug behind the sofa, most of his body obscured, unable to get up for a long time.

He didn’t think much before calling Su Hui directly, but he didn’t seem to have his phone with him in the room, and the call never connected.

The driver glanced a few times in the rearview mirror and guessed that something might have happened, as he rarely saw Ning Yixiao look so anxious. But the street was jammed solid. He pressed the horn several times, but it didn’t change the situation.

It wasn’t until nearly 11:30 PM that Ning Yixiao returned to the apartment.

He kept his voice low when opening the door, and Xue Gao, who ran to welcome him, was very well-behaved and didn’t bark. On the monitor, Ning Yixiao had seen that Su Hui had been asleep for some time.

After he fell, he lay on the ground for nearly twenty minutes before limping back to the room, clutching his leg, lying down, and never getting back up.

Ning Yixiao took off his coat, went upstairs to get the medical kit, and went to the door of Su Hui’s room. He knocked gently, but there was no response.

He walked in with light footsteps; he had set the room temperature very high. Su Hui was in a deep sleep, most of the quilt on the floor, with only a small corner draped over his waist.

Su Hui was wearing beige silk pajamas, lying on his side. His bare feet were stretched off the mattress, touching the floor, his snow-white ankles blindingly pale under the light.

Ning Yixiao looked away and whispered his name, trying to wake him up.

“Su Hui, Su Hui…”

After several failed attempts, Ning Yixiao looked at his sleeping face, harboring the thought that he wouldn’t be heard anyway, and whispered “Little Cat.”

As he expected, Su Hui didn’t wake up.

With his wish fulfilled, Ning Yixiao stopped thinking and pushed up the leg of Su Hui’s loose pajama pants. As expected, there was a large, purplish-blue bruise on his lower leg and knee, and the skin on his shin was even broken, but Su Hui hadn’t treated it at all.

It looked painful.

Ning Yixiao used an iodine cotton swab to gently touch the wound, sprayed a bruise-reducing spray onto a cotton pad, and applied it to his knee and lower leg.

After carefully finishing all this, Ning Yixiao sat on the floor, quietly watching Su Hui sleep, occasionally reaching out to brush aside the stray hairs scattered on his cheeks, and very lightly petting his head.

Only after the pad had been on long enough did Ning Yixiao remove it, pull down his pajama leg, and tuck him in. Throughout the entire process, Su Hui never woke up; he slept very soundly. Ning Yixiao couldn’t help but feel suspicious.

He stood up and checked the surroundings. Sure enough, he found the prescription sleeping pills in the storage box on the desk. The packaging was familiar, but it seemed to have been newly opened, with only two pills missing from a strip—much better than the worst-case scenario he had imagined.

But Su Hui’s condition was indeed not optimistic. He had originally thought it was just hypersomnia; he hadn’t expected it to reach the point where he needed medication to assist with sleep.

Quite suddenly, Ning Yixiao heard Su Hui mumbling in his sleep, but it was indistinct. He returned to the side of the mattress, half-knelt on the floor, and leaned in closer. “Su Hui, what’s wrong?”

Su Hui furrowed his brows, fine sweat beads on his forehead. His lips were parted slightly, but he couldn’t articulate clearly. Some unclear words spilled out, sounding like “My letter…”

Ning Yixiao frowned.

He wasn’t sure if Su Hui was speaking to him, or if he was referring to the letters from when they parted.

Subconsciously, he was resistant to hearing these things, evading the content he had seen back then, but he still stayed by his side until he was better, stopped frowning, and stopped mumbling in his sleep before leaving.

Su Hui didn’t wake up until noon. The side effects of the medication were severe. When he woke up, he felt that even drinking water tasted bitter. His thoughts were chaotic, and he felt nauseated.

The bedroom door was open, and he saw Ning Yixiao’s silhouette, so he got up, intending to go out, only then realizing that his leg hurt a lot.

Lifting his pajama leg, he discovered the large bruises. Only then did he remember the fall in the living room yesterday.

It felt very painful, but looking at the spread of the bruise, it didn’t seem too bad. Su Hui didn’t think much of it and limped out of the room, looking at Ning Yixiao’s back in the kitchen from a distance, feeling a bit dazed.

“You’re awake?” Ning Yixiao brought out the soup pot. “I made chicken soup.” While speaking, he took off his heat-resistant gloves and bent over to wash his hands in the sink.

Su Hui was clearly groggy, but he was the first to notice that Ning Yixiao’s hands were very red.

“What’s wrong with your hands? Did you get burned?”

His expression was very confused. Just woken up, his eyes were wet and misty, looking at Ning Yixiao’s hands from a safe distance, looking very much like a small animal.

“No.” Ning Yixiao smiled. “I felt my hands were dirty when I got up this morning, so I washed them a few extra times. It’s nothing important.”

Su Hui frowned and walked to the dining table, but his eyes remained fixed on his hands.

“You can’t wash them like this.” His speech was slow, and he was very worried. “They finally got a little better, why are they uncomfortable again?”

Ning Yixiao sat opposite him, pretending not to care about this matter. He served a bowl of soup and pushed it in front of Su Hui, using the opportunity to reveal the small skin lesions on his hands, deliberately letting him see them clearly.

Su Hui’s tone became a bit urgent. “Look, this place was already much better last time, now there’s a rash, what’s going on… Have you been listening to the doctor and taking your medicine properly?”

Ning Yixiao had been waiting for this line, so he followed the path of least resistance, pleading guilty like an unrepentant criminal. “No.”

Su Hui furrowed his brows, as if unable to understand, and asked softly: “Why?”

“No reason.” Ning Yixiao’s attitude was casual. “Too busy, kept forgetting.” As he spoke, he urged Su Hui, “Eat first, don’t worry about these things.”

How could Su Hui have any appetite? He stared at Ning Yixiao’s face for a long time. He knew he shouldn’t interfere in his business, but he couldn’t help but speak up.

“You can’t do this. You have to take your medicine on time, otherwise, it will get worse.”

Ning Yixiao took a sip of water, put down the cup, and sat quietly for a while before answering in a perfunctory manner. “Okay, got it.”

“Just promising isn’t enough,” Su Hui urged him.

Ning Yixiao smiled and countered, asking Su Hui, “Then what should I do? Why don’t you supervise me?”

Su Hui’s thoughts were dull; he couldn’t think of how to do it immediately. “How to supervise…”

“Anyway, you have to take medicine, and I have to take medicine.” Ning Yixiao made a suggestion very naturally. “How about this: every day, at the right time, let’s take our medicine together.”

He pressed his advantage. “I didn’t eat regularly when I was working before, and my stomach was often uncomfortable. But lately, I’ve basically been at home, eating with you, so it’s quite regular. It seems like my stomach doesn’t hurt anymore; it’s quite effective. How about we be roommates, dining buddies, and medication buddies from now on?”

He said so much, but Su Hui could only process it slowly in his brain. Ning Yixiao hadn’t been taking his medicine properly, and he himself wasn’t much better, always thinking of just muddling through, surviving this period, and holding on. But now… any other concerns were outweighed by making Ning Yixiao feel better.

Su Hui nodded hopelessly, agreeing to Ning Yixiao’s proposal. “Okay, then I’ll call you to take it. You are not allowed to go back on your word.”

Ning Yixiao pursed his lips into a smile. “I’ll try my best.”

Su Hui was worried that he wouldn’t follow through. “Take it after lunch.”

Ning Yixiao nodded, the way he smiled looking very much like the way he would give anything Su Hui wanted six years ago. “Okay.”

Su Hui quietly finished the chicken soup. After many days, he took his first dose of medicine with Ning Yixiao.

There was no formal dessert after the meal, only fruit. Su Hui picked up a piece of apple with a fork. Just as he took a bite, he saw Ning Yixiao get up and thought he was going to wash his hands again.

“What are you doing?” he asked subconsciously, looking a bit strange, like a child who couldn’t bear to see his parent leave for even a moment.

“I suddenly remembered that Jing Ming’s assistant sent this over this morning.” Ning Yixiao returned from the entryway, holding a small gift bag. He placed it in front of Su Hui and said in an encouraging tone, “Take a look.”

Su Hui put down his fork and opened the gift bag. Inside was a donation certificate and a greeting card. The handwriting on the card was very cute, with Santa hats and stockings drawn in oil pastels, written: “Thank you, Mr. Su! Merry Christmas!”

“Christmas was a month ago.” Su Hui couldn’t help but say, a hint of a smile in his tone. He lifted his eyes to look at Ning Yixiao, initially wanting to ask if it was written by that child, but the moment he met his gaze, he suddenly thought of Ning Yixiao’s birthday, and he paused.

“What’s wrong?” Ning Yixiao’s eyes were soft.

Su Hui felt that saying it out loud would only make them both awkward, so he just shook his head.

But what he didn’t expect was that Ning Yixiao seemed to read his eyes and broke through it directly. “Were you thinking about my birthday?”

Su Hui’s eyes widened. He hadn’t expected Ning Yixiao to be so direct.

He thought he would be more cautious, after all, they were no longer in their past relationship.

He often felt subtle changes in Ning Yixiao—not just between six years ago and six years later, but between just after their reunion and now. Ning Yixiao was undergoing subtle changes, whether in attitude or in his words.

Such changes caused Su Hui to have complex emotions. He hoped Ning Yixiao could be happier because of their time together, but if he really treated him as a good friend, he couldn’t help but feel a bit sour.

There’s no one more troublesome than myself, Su Hui thought.

Ning Yixiao sat down, the corners of his mouth hooked in a subtle smile. “Looking at that reaction, I guessed right.”

Su Hui lowered his eyes, picked up his fork, and popped the remaining piece of apple into his mouth, which was equivalent to a tacit admission.

“Aren’t we friends now?” Ning Yixiao asked carelessly, his expression relaxed. “Su Hui, although a month has passed, even a child knows to make up for a greeting. What about you? Are you considering giving me a belated birthday gift?”

Su Hui lifted his eyes to look at him, a little crystal-clear apple juice still on his lips, giving him a mixed quality—both despondent and pure.

He seemed unsure; his voice was very light, like fog that would scatter with the wind. “You…”

Ning Yixiao didn’t wait for him to finish. That tone of near-incitement and enticement appeared again, and even his eyes were fixed on Su Hui, as if what he wanted was far more than just this.

“Give it to me. I want it.”