Rule Me School Me: A Complex Creatures Story (BoyxBoy)

Chapter 30

Bao Zheng took off his coat and threw it on the coat rack in his office. The memories of fall had finally disappeared and winter chilled the air. He looked at the stack of papers slid under his door during his absence. He sighed and slumped into his office chair. He took his cell phone from his pocket and looked at the screen. Qing Hua hadn't called him in two days. Although he didn't want to see Qing Hua, the sudden absence of his attention made him worried.

Bao Zheng reluctantly pressed the call button next to Qing Hua's name.

"Hello?" Qing Hua said.

"Hey." Bao Zheng's voice was low.

"Are you feeling better?"

"Yes... Sorry I yelled at you."

"It's okay." The line was silent. This awkward silence between them was new. Bao Zheng sensed that something was different. Maybe his sudden outburst had drawn a wedge in their relationship. He regretted calling him. "Where are you?"

Qing Hua's question drew Bao Zheng from his thoughts.

"In my office. Can't stay at home forever." Bao Zheng laughed dryly. Qing Hua remained silent. "Is something..." A sudden knock on his office door interrupted him.

"Hold on... someone is at the door." Bao Zheng said.

"Come in!" He exclaimed towards his visitor. The door opened and Qing Hua stuck his head in. He wore a warm smile as he made his way into the office with a bag in hand. It had been days since Bao Zheng had seen him and he looked like he'd lost weight. His skin was rough and his eyes had dark circles around them. Though Bao Zheng felt he should hate him, seeing him in that condition turned his stomach.

"I hope I didn't interrupt your call." Qing Hua said placing the bag on Bao Zheng's desk.

Bao Zheng chuckled. "No. I... what's in the bag?" He asked.

"You were sick so I brought you some congee. I came everyday just in case you were here."

Bao Zheng looked away.

"You didn't have to. I feel better now." Bao Zheng sat down and dug into the stack of papers. He couldn't fall for his charm, not anymore.

"I didn't have to... I wanted to." Qing Hua placed his hand on the paper in front of Bao Zheng, forcing him to look at him. His charismatic smile shone bright on his face. Seeing his smile was bittersweet but his eyes were different. Qing Hua's smile faded.

"Qing Hua, I'm busy... can I call you later?" Bao Zheng said trying to hold his resolve.

"I haven't seen you in days. You can't see me for ten minutes?" Qing Hua said walking around Bao Zheng's desk to stand next to him.

" I'm so behind."

"What kind of wife doesn't want to see his husband?" Qing Hua asked kneeling down next to Bao Zheng.

"Wife? Have you been a good husband?" Bao Zheng asked turning to face him.

"Of course. I've been the most faithful husband." Qing Hua ran his pointer finger gently across Bao Zheng's cheek. He was shaken.

"You don't lie to your wife right?" Bao Zheng's face was serious. Qing Hua's eyes widened momentarily before his face returned to its resting cold stare.

"What about my wife?"

Bao Zheng was taken aback by his question.

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing." Qing Hua stood and stretched. He avoided eye contact with Bao Zheng as he turned to leave. "You said you're busy so I'm just gonna go."

"Qing Hua..."

He turned around.

Bao Zheng paused. "Don't forget your breakfast." He said motioning towards the bad Qing Hua placed on his desk.

"Keep it. I got it for you. Make sure you eat it." Qing Hua turned and quickly left his office. 

 Bao Zheng was left alone with the sound of the wind whistling past his office windows. His warm office felt to be the same temperature as outside once Qing Hua was gone. He attempted to turn his attention back to work but all of his focus was lost.

His mind and heart kept fighting with each other about what to do. His mind wanted to confront Qing Hua and put it all out in the open, which his heart wanted to forget it ever happened and go back to the way things used to be.

Even though he'd loathed the idea of seeing Qing Hua moments before, seeing him made him miss him even more when he was gone. The sight of him leaving pained him more than anything but not as much as his betrayal.

Bao Zheng laid his aching head on his desk. He was jolted from his despair by his vibrating phone. He stared at the caller ID and saw Jiang Ru's name.

"Jiang Ru- Ge... how are you?" He asked attempting to sound cheerful.

"I am good. How are you? I feel like every time we get a chance to talk the call drops."

Bao Zheng laughed dryly. The thought of Qing Hua "disconnecting" his calls with Jiang Ru popped into his head.

"Yes, sorry about that. Darn reception." Bao Zheng lied.

"Right. Maybe you should switch carriers."

"Maybe. So what's up?"

"Oh. Right. So I am actually leaving Shenzhen on a business trip to Taipei for four months and I thought about our agreement to have dinner or lunch. I wanted to fulfill that before I go."

"Oh yes absolutely. We have to. When do you leave?"

"Next Saturday. I am free for lunch or dinner next Thursday."

"Let's have dinner." Bao Zheng said.

"Great. We can try that great Thai restaurant near..."

"No!" Bao Zheng exclaimed, louder than he'd anticipated.

"Whoa."

"Sorry... I just don't like Thai food that much." He lied. He couldn't fathom the chance of Qing Hua walking in on a meeting between Jiang Ru and himself, that would definitely be a disaster of a night.

"Wow. I didn't know you hated it that much. Okay. Well I will let you decide."

"Great. I will call you with details."

"Sounds good. Talk to you later."

Bao Zheng stared at his phone's home screen. He saw the message app with the illuminated number of messages Qing Hua had sent him over the last few days, before he'd stopped contacting him. Bao Zheng clicked on the icon and opened the messages.

Qing Hua: You cancelled class today. Are you really sick?

Qing Hua: It's supposed to rain today. Do you have an umbrella?

Qing Hua: Make sure you eat. It's best for getting over an illness.

Qing Hua: Are you on campus? I have something to give you.

Qing Hua: Message Deleted.

Bao Zheng stared at the 'message deleted' icon.

What had he written? Was it meant for someone else? Had he come clean and regretted his decision?

His head reeled with questions, but he lacked the courage to ask Qing Hua directly. He wanted to be the brave type like Zhen Hua, confront Qing Hua, and move on. But he was afraid. Afraid of what would come after.

How their relationship would change.  

I wanted to give a big thank you to all the readers that enjoy my book. I love reading your in-line comments and replying back. You all make great points and really motivate me to write the next chapter. I even get a few laughs off of some of the comments. 

Thank you so much for the support.