38 Birthday

"C'mon open it!" Chao whined, pushing the gift into Yitian's stomach. But Yitian did not want any gift. Although now thanks to his part-time job he was paying his share of the rent, he was still reluctant to accept any gifts from Chao.

"I didn't give you a gift on your birthday too. Why did you give me one then? I can't take it." Yitian opposed him, but Chao kept pushing the gift onto Yitian. "Are you even listening to me?" Yitian burst out and got up from his gaming place. He was in the middle of completing the quest but he didn't care now. He was fed up with Chao this week. He kept buying some things for him. New clothes, new skincare products, new types of expensive food for 'trying it out' and now. This bag definitely contained something expensive by the logo on the side of it.

"Are you looking down on me? Do you think I can't save enough money to buy things myself? Or are you just showing off with your money?" Yitian shouted again. He knew Chao wasn't like that, but he kept saying he didn't want any gifts. And Chao kept ignoring him.

"I just want you to…" Chao stopped himself from saying something that pissed Yitian even more.

"I don't need your pity anymore. I just need…" Yitian almost said some things, so he rather stopped talking completely.

They were standing there opposite to each other, just looking at each other. None of them said a thing. They stood there for quite a while. When Yitian just turned around and went to his room. He grabbed his sketchbook there with some pencils and then marched out of the apartment without saying anything, slamming the entrance door.

Chao, disgusted, threw the gift on Yitian's chair and sat in his. He wanted to finish the scheduled quests they had to finish today, but soon after he started he noticed it wasn't so much fun. NO. Without Yitian it wasn't fun at all. Chao threw away his headphones, but then he noticed the symbols on them. He picked them up and carefully placed it on the holder. The holder that was sculpted like a dragon, red dragon. His dragon.

Meanwhile, Yitian went to one of Hong Kong's parks, he sat there on the bench and sighed, not even opening his sketchbook, yet. He just looked at the people around him, thinking about what he had done to Chao. Yitian was wrong. He knew that. He shouldn't have been so angry. Chao just wanted to give him a birthday present.

Birthday present full of pity. Yitian grabbed his sketchbook and drew the first flower around him that caught his attention. Daffodil. Realizing the meaning of it, Yitian tore out the page and crumpled it. He just leaned back and listened to the murmur around him. He closed his eyes and a pair of deep black eyes popped out. Yitian growled in frustration and while trying to erase them from his mind he unconsciously drew them. When he realized what he did, he put the sketchbook aside shocked.

When did his feelings change so much? When did he want something more than pity from Chao? Did he do anything to deserve it? He was only leaching from him. He took advantage of Chao's kindness and Never gave anything back. Yitian felt like crying. What was wrong with him lately. He wanted Chao's attention, he wanted their friendship to be more about them, then about Chao's pity towards Yitian. But he had no idea how to achieve that.

Yitian had no idea how long he was there, but when he was flicked into his forehead, he rapidly opened his eyes startled. Chao was standing above him leaning towards him. So when Yitian stood up quickly, for a brief moment their faces almost touched, before Chao made a step back. Just because of that brief moment Yitian's heart beat faster, even though he thought it was because of how Chao frightened him.

"What are you doing here?! How did you find me?!" Yitian raised his voice, when Chao looked around, Yitian calmed down again. No need to disturb others.

"I know you long enough to know where you go when you are pissed." Chao shrugged and sat on the bench, moving the open sketchbook aside. Yitian noticed the pair of monolid eyes staring at him from the paper and he quickly closed it down. He did not want to be caught. It was embarrassing to be drawing Chao.

"How could you know the exact park I will be in?" Yitian asked, wanting to know more. But Chao just brushed it off, not wanting to tell. But he knew. Thanks to the first time he met him in the park. Badly beaten up by his own mother. It was the moment that Chao started to feel guilty. It was the exact moment of realizing how powerful actions could be. And that even small action could destroy someone's life.

"Come back home," Chao said instead, making puppy eyes, which, he knew, always were effective on Yitian. But as if Yitian was someone else today, he just turned away not looking at him.

"Are you sure you want me there? I think I should go to my old apartment. At least for today." Yitian said sadly, still not looking at Chao. "Or maybe a few more days."

"What about the game?" Chao said as a last resort. But it obviously pissed Yitian even more. He got up and turned to Chao. This sentence made Yitian sure that it was right to go away for now.

"Please try to think about something else than a game for once," Yitian said tired, tired of everything. Game, school, his job, everything was sucking out energy from him and Chao usually helped him. But now, he knew that he didn't need him at all. He was only a game buddy. Not even friends.

Yitian was walking away when he turned around and he said one last sentence to Chao: "Please, don't drink." Before walking to his old home, leaving Chao behind.