Chapter 89: N. A Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

Ning Yixiao looked back at everything he possessed, and it still felt like a dream.

He wasn’t good at expressing himself when his emotions were turbulent. Instead, he simply closed the folder and asked Su Hui, “Can I kiss you?”

“Don’t ask questions that waste time.” Su Hui purposely repeated the words Ning Yixiao loved to say, but his tone was playful. He stepped closer and offered a kiss of his own.

Large bouquets of flowers were squeezed between their embrace, making soft, cozy rustling sounds. Ning Yixiao’s arms draped loosely over Su Hui’s lower back, gently deepening the kiss.

When it ended, Su Hui’s eyes were full of reluctance. As he pulled away, his hand still tugged lightly at Ning Yixiao’s sleeve. “Can you stay with me a while longer later?”

“Of course.” Ning Yixiao held his hand.

Su Hui was enveloped in happiness and joy. “After I finish the interview, I’ll take you around the exhibition, okay?”

“No more work after the interview?” Ning Yixiao asked.

Su Hui nodded. “The rest is just everyone freely looking at the exhibits.”

A sense of sweetness welled up in Ning Yixiao’s heart. “So I’m the only one who gets an artist’s personal, one-on-one guided tour.”

“That’s right!”

Looking at Su Hui’s smiling face, Ning Yixiao hoped he could add even more to his happiness.

In fact, his return to the Bay Area yesterday wasn’t entirely for work; he had also picked up a gift for Su Hui that had taken him a long time to prepare, wanting to give it to him on this significant day.

He just needed to wait for the perfect moment.

“Kaisa said if the response is good this time, it might expand into a touring exhibition.” Su Hui spoke a bit quickly, but he was excited. “But the ownership of this piece is yours. If you don’t want to exhibit this one, you can choose a place you think is nice to keep it. What do you think? Where would be better?”

Ning Yixiao thought for a moment and took Su Hui’s hand. “We can put it in the Bay Area company as a public installation first. Once the New York park is established, we can move it there for exhibition.”

Su Hui laughed. “I thought with your temper, you’d privately hide it at home.”

That wasn’t entirely wrong.

Ning Yixiao said, “I wouldn’t mind if you wrote down your creative inspiration and placed it beside it so everyone could see.”

“Okay.” Su Hui didn’t hesitate, even beginning to fantasize about the scene, how to write the creative process, and the final sentence must note: Both the work and the creator belong to Ning Yixiao.

“You will lend it to me for the tour, right?” They walked side-by-side, occasionally brushing against Ning Yixiao’s arm, feeling very safe.

Ning Yixiao said deliberately, “I’ll consider it.”

“You have to consider it? Stingy.” Su Hui tugged at his finger, walking backward through the empty top floor of the gallery. Inadvertently, they moved from the black-and-white transition zone into a deep gray-black area.

“By the way, remember that anonymous collector I told you about, Sean?”

Ning Yixiao’s heart fluttered, but on the surface, he appeared flawless, perhaps even too calm.

“Hmm, I remember. The man who collected your artwork on my birthday.”

Su Hui was amused by his slightly caustic remark. “Ning Yixiao, you’re so petty.” Then, he pulled the topic back to business. “I was worried he wouldn’t be willing to lend his collection because it’s a hassle—dismantling and assembling take so much time and effort. I didn’t expect him to be so straightforward, even finding the best art transport team. It really feels like he treasures what I made.”

Ning Yixiao commented naturally, “That’s because you are excellent.”

“Not at all.” Su Hui smiled. “Anyway, he lent it to me. You probably haven’t seen it, so I want to bring you to see it. It’s this one.”

He pulled Ning Yixiao quickly to an exhibit—in fact, the one Ning Yixiao was most familiar with.

“This is a piece I exhibited at a comprehensive show at the Seattle Art Museum. It’s called ‘The Web.’ Every single paper butterfly here I made by hand. The paper I used was from my own drafts, but there’s actually a little Easter egg.”

Ning Yixiao feigned the unfamiliarity of seeing the exhibit for the first time, though in truth, after collecting it, he hadn’t spent much time with it. Even though he had collected the work out of possessiveness, he knew Su Hui no longer belonged to him, and seeing the butterflies only made him sadder.

“What Easter egg?”

Su Hui let him lean closer and took down a butterfly hanging on the display, unfolding it bit by bit along the creases. Because the butterfly design was intentionally fragile, it was difficult to open, and he moved with great care.

“Is it really okay to take it apart like this?” Ning Yixiao couldn’t help but ask on his own behalf. “Isn’t it someone else’s property now?”

He had been so careful with it after taking it back, terrified of damaging the artwork, never imagining it would be taken apart like this.

Su Hui felt a bit guilty, his voice dropping significantly. “I can fold it back. If you don’t say anything, who would know?”

There’s security surveillance, Ning Yixiao answered in his heart.

Besides, the owner is standing right in front of you, forced to act as an accomplice.

“Okay, look.” Su Hui smoothed out the wrinkled paper and held it out to Ning Yixiao.

The outer side of the origami butterfly was indeed Su Hui’s draft paper, still bearing pencil marks, but the inside surprised him—it was many lines of printed code.

“C language?”

Ning Yixiao looked at Su Hui.

“Hmm, it seems like you can use code to draw a heart. It’s composed of many, many small heart symbols. Help me look, can it run? Will it throw an error?”

Ning Yixiao was amused by his cute little intentions. “Su Hui, what’s on your mind?”

“You.” When Su Hui talked about Ning Yixiao and his own work, his eyes always showed a moving brightness, like rippling water under the night lights.

“The day of the exhibition happened to be your birthday. You used to give me butterflies, and I like this symbol. The heart created by the code looks cold and heartless, but filling it with the butterfly trapped in the web—don’t you think that’s romantic?”

After hearing his words, Ning Yixiao’s heart skipped a beat, as if it were his own heart throwing the error.

He shifted his gaze from the code on the paper to Su Hui’s face and said softly, “Hmm, it is very romantic.”

Soon, his tone changed. “However, this code isn’t very elegant. Next time, you can come to me if you need to.”

Su Hui couldn’t do anything about him. “Okay, Engineer Ning.”

In a blink, Su Hui had folded the paper butterfly back to its original state and hung it back. He whispered to himself, “It shouldn’t look like it’s been opened…”

After finishing, Su Hui clapped his hands, gazed at the slightly fluttering butterflies and the “Web” shadow on the wall, and sighed casually.

“I wonder if Sean will come to see my exhibition?”

A moment later, a slender hand reached out before him, fingers holding the special handmade greeting card. A thumb swiped gently, revealing a card beneath painted with a butterfly pattern.

The name Sean was written on the card.

“He’s here.”

Su Hui froze for a second, then violently turned his head toward Ning Yixiao beside him, filled with disbelief.

The corner of Ning Yixiao’s mouth curled into a faint smile as he looked at Su Hui. “And he also saw the whole process of the little butterfly being taken apart.”

At that moment, Su Hui felt his worldview collapse.

He finally understood how Carl felt—that Carl who had happened to witness him and Ning Yixiao being intimate.

He snatched the invitation letter from Ning Yixiao’s hand. There was no mistake; it was the butterfly he had drawn himself, the name he had written himself.

How could this be?

That friendly anonymous collector, Sean, didn’t exist at all…

Realizing the truth, Su Hui’s voice rose. “Ning Yixiao, you lied to me!”

His accusatory voice immediately echoed through the empty art museum. Ning Yixiao quickly reached out and covered Su Hui’s mouth, looking around.

But Su Hui bit his finger without mercy. Although the force was slight, he was genuinely itching with anger.

“You really are a little cat; biting hands when you’re angry.” Ning Yixiao said that, but didn’t pull his hand away.

“You were even pretending with me just now.” Su Hui thought of what had just happened and felt a wave of shame. “You really can act.”

Ning Yixiao, however, found teasing him extremely interesting, giving him a greater sense of achievement than writing a long, error-free code.

He pulled Su Hui into his arms, half-hugging him, and began his planned “misery sales pitch.” “When I first met you, I missed you so much. I secretly inquired about your schedule for the next day, and because it was almost my birthday and no one was with me, and no one gave me a gift, I collected this as a gift for myself.”

Su Hui’s expression changed visibly.

Heartache is the beginning of defeat.

Ning Yixiao added deliberately, “I actually went to the art museum myself and saw Dr. Liang standing next to you. I thought you two were a couple and was so sad I suffered from insomnia for days.”

Su Hui frowned. Too much imagination.

“But you kept lying to me…”

“That’s not lying; it’s a different way of approaching an ex-boyfriend, called ‘encirclement tactics.'” Ning Yixiao began to beautify his behavior. “Think about it, if I told you directly I wanted to collect it, would you have agreed? Maybe I wouldn’t have even gotten such a small gift.”

Su Hui looked up and saw the sincerity and vulnerability in Ning Yixiao’s eyes—a sight rarer than a shooting star.

“Then when I emailed you to meet up, you said you didn’t look good and were afraid I’d be disappointed. That was a lie, too.”

Ning Yixiao began to smooth things over. “The first part was subjective aesthetics—I never thought I looked good—and the second part was true; I was really afraid that if you found out it was me, you’d be disappointed.”

His tone was much softer than usual.

Su Hui was completely handled, and he even felt a little unstoppable heartache for Ning Yixiao.

“Alright then.” Su Hui held his hand and rubbed the place he had just bitten. “Then you aren’t allowed to lie to me in the future.”

“Hmm, I promise.” Ning Yixiao jumped right down the step provided.

Looking at the two invitation cards in his hand, Su Hui couldn’t help but sigh inwardly: With these two special cards ending up in one person’s hands, it must be fate.

“Teacher Su, this can also count as your first offline meeting with the collector Sean.”

Ning Yixiao leaned closer, his tone filled with interest, bringing a bit of coaxing and instigation. “Want to kiss to celebrate?”

This was practically an intentional desecration of the pure artistic exchange between these two identities.

“Ning Yixiao, you really are a bit of a pervert…”

Before he could finish, he was sealed by Ning Yixiao’s aggressive kiss.

Su Hui had originally wanted to骂 him a “perverted puppy,” but failed in the end, the words turning into sticky, wet sounds and gasps within the kiss.

He had clearly raised his hand to push him away, but Ning Yixiao held his hand, leading it to his own nape, and then deepened the kiss further. Before this work that had long belonged to him, he tangled his love and lust without any scruples.

Suddenly, a voice came through the earpiece, and Su Hui, who was lost in the kiss, was startled.

“Eddy, I’ve arrived at the first-floor press room. Some reporters have already arrived. You can come over now.”

Su Hui instantly sobered up, pushed Ning Yixiao away, and after calming his panting, gave a response. “Okay, I’ll be right there.”

A moment later, Kaisa asked, “Are you running? No need to be in such a hurry, watch out for falling.”

Her voice was loud and heard clearly by Ning Yixiao, who was standing very close.

So, he laughed without restraint, making Su Hui even more flustered.

The interview location was in a small suite-style exhibition hall at the far right of the first floor. Ning Yixiao never liked appearing in public; as an outsider, he didn’t want to be surrounded by camera flashes. After arriving on the first floor by elevator, he separated from Su Hui, slowing his pace to follow behind.

As he walked into the suite, Ning Yixiao saw a large crowd of reporters surrounding Su Hui. Perhaps because his height was too conspicuous, the moment he stepped in, several reporters on the outer circle turned their heads, simultaneously examining him, the outsider.

Ning Yixiao took a few steps back, standing in a corner, regretting that he hadn’t dressed more modestly or worn a baseball cap to cover his face.

Su Hui, however, was perfectly suited to stand at the center of the crowd, attracting everyone’s gaze.

Ning Yixiao took out his phone and took a photo from afar.

A few minutes later, the interview began. Curator Kaisa slipped away from the reporters, leaving the stage purely to Su Hui.

She noticed Ning Yixiao in the corner right away, but showing no surprise, she walked straight toward him.

“You must be Eddy’s boyfriend, right?” Kaisa smiled, revealing a neat row of white teeth; it was quite dazzling.

Ning Yixiao nodded, friendly, and shook hands with Su Hui’s work partner. “Nice to meet you. Just call me Shaw.”

“I know.” Kaisa said with a smile. “He’s told me many times; I’ve remembered it for a long time.”

Ning Yixiao wasn’t keen on socializing, so he replaced his response with a smile. Neither of them engaged in further conversation, instead focusing their attention on Su Hui, who was currently being interviewed.

During his manic phase, Su Hui was inherently confident, radiating a unique, high-spirited, and dazzling charm, responding to every question with a positive attitude.

“Hello, Eddy. This is your first solo exhibition. We’re very curious if you’re nervous? Although you look very relaxed right now.”

“Of course, of course I’m nervous.” Su Hui smiled expansively, leaning forward slightly to help the reporter hold the microphone. “You might not be able to tell, but I only slept two hours last night. I’m even more anxious than when I took my first important exam. Lying in bed, I felt like my heart was going to jump out; that’s no exaggeration.”

Another reporter asked, “Can you describe the theme of today’s exhibition in three words?”

“Hmm… that’s a tough question.” Su Hui habitually glanced upward while thinking.

This little habit was captured by a nearby reporter, who joked, “What are you looking at?”

Su Hui replied with a joke, “My inspiration angel.” He moved the topic back to the question, answering earnestly. “Three words, right? I think I’d choose… Bipolar, Freedom, and Love.”

After speaking, he deliberately glanced at Ning Yixiao, who was standing in the corner, and exchanged a sweet look with him.

“Eddy, you just mentioned bipolar. That happens to be something we’re very concerned about. Would it be convenient for you to talk about your illness history? For example, when were you diagnosed with bipolar disorder? What are your specific feelings, and what treatments have you undergone? Has this impacted your life…”

Kaisa was clearly unhappy. She straightened up. “This wasn’t on the script!”

Ning Yixiao also felt such questioning put the cart before the horse. Kaisa, as the curator, couldn’t tolerate the situation and stepped forward directly. “I’m sorry, we hope to hear more questions about this exhibition.”

But the reporter wouldn’t let it go. “But this mental illness has great significance for this exhibition, doesn’t it? After all, even the decor of the venue is based on this. I think there’s absolutely no need to avoid this question.”

His phrasing began to become aggressive.

Su Hui remained relaxed, his mood unaffected, and he still smiled as he replied, “Yes, bipolar disorder itself is actually a very important element of this solo exhibition. I think many people don’t understand this illness. It actually keeps me living in uncertainty forever, because we can never predict whether the next second we will be in a manic state or dominated by depression. It’s a rollercoaster ride between heaven and hell, forever.”

He appeared calm and full of vitality. “But these two mental states have also given me different spiritual realms for creation. Therefore, my work presents two distinct extremes. Under the proposal of my curator Kaisa, we split all the works based on this, which led to the black-and-white gallery layout you see today.”

Another reporter asked, “There seem to be many artists suffering from mental illness, and as far as I know, bipolar disorder is a disease with a very high suicide rate. Have you ever attempted suicide?”

This sharp question immediately caused an uproar at the scene.

Kaisa rushed forward immediately to protect Su Hui. “We refuse to answer such questions. I’m sorry, next please.”

Before hearing this question, Su Hui’s thoughts had still been floating, carefree and free-roaming like clouds. But in the next second, the sky he was wandering in completely solidified.

Just like every sudden entry into a depressive phase, it was like falling into an ice cellar without warning. Both ears were instantly filled with freezing, bone-chilling water. It drilled in, freezing him. All the clamorous human voices became blurred, as if blocked by rising water.

He became someone drowning, unable to hear anything, and robbed of the strength to fight back.

Thump. The hands Su Hui used to hold several microphones loosened involuntarily. The microphones fell, slamming hard against the ground. Everyone was scared off, retreating as if he were some devastating beast.

What he had just said himself turned into a self-fulfilling prophecy. Falling from heaven to hell, indeed, only took a single instant.

Su Hui’s whole body went limp, his legs unable to support himself. Breathing was difficult, his brain was blank. He only felt that there were so many people here, so terrifying, he wanted to run away, but he couldn’t move at all.

He cried for help in silence, and no one heard.

“Excuse me, let me through.”

In the next second, a white suit jacket was draped over Su Hui. Warm hands supported his shoulders, his arms half-enclosing his powerless body, taking him away from the dangerous crowd.

Ning Yixiao’s voice broke through the sound of water in Su Hui’s mind, breaking the desperate silence.

He said, “Su Hui, I’m here.”