Chapter 6- Some Secrets are Hard to Keep

The week following the hacking incident seemed to fly past; with the confirmation of the contract with Feng Teng for their mobile game, as well as the announcement of a date for their presentation for Dreams of Jiangshu 2, Hao Mei felt as though he had code burned into the back of his eyelids. Every time he closed his eyes lately, a parade of zeros and ones waltzed past his cornea, drumming themselves into his brain. He didn't want to think what it was going to be like as they got closer to the date of the presentation. Even after begging Laosan to recruit more programmers, Hao Mei knew that he had a greater chance of winning the lottery than of getting reliable help in time for a new comer to make a difference. He paused as thoughts of a lottery win reminded him that he had won big with his last gamble. Which meant...

Text to: Number One Chef

[Wangfujing?]

Text from: Number One Chef

[For?]

Text to: Number One Chef

[Shopping. Food. Duh.]

Text from: Number One Chef

[Meet you there.]

Smiling serenely as his co-workers teased him about leaving the office early for a date, Hao Mei didn't bother correcting them. After his outburst during the meeting early that day, he knew they'd be more sympathetic about him leaving early if they thought he was headed out for a date. Technically, he guessed he was. What was a date after all? Two people who liked each other, spending time in each other's company? What did you do on a date? Go shopping, share a meal, tak about your day, work, and interests? The only difference that Hao Mei saw between a 'date' date and his date with KO was that generally dates were between members of the opposite sex. But what his co-workers didn't know, wouldn't hurt them.

His stomach was rumbling by the time he arrived at the end of Wangfujing Street and saw KO sitting on a bench outside a bookshop. The older man looked up as Hao Mei drew nearer and their eyes locked. Feeling strangely sheepish- maybe it was all his thoughts of dating earlier- Mei felt his cheeks heat and looked quickly away, dropping his gaze from KO's and landing it upon a paper bag in the other man's hand. As Mei neared, eyes still locked to the paper bag, which he was now close to enough to know smelled divine, KO held the bag out to him.

"You've been working all day. Eat first." KO looked Hao Mei over, seeming to note the slight shadows under his eyes and the crumpled shirt that he'd napped in during the day.

Taking a deep breath, Mei inhaled the scent of the freshly steamed buns and groaned theatrically. "KO... you are a lifesaver. If you were a woman I'd make this an actual date."

"Date?"

"Oh..." Rubbing the back of his neck, Mei could feel his cheeks heating again. Explaining what he meant to KO between bites of the steamed buns, the pair meandered up the street.

"What shopping do you need to do?" KO didn't seem to be much of a window shopper, keeping his eyes on Mei as they walked, rather than the displays in the windows they were passing.

"Eh? Oh. I recently moved so I need new bedding, towels, and house slippers. I think I also need washing detergent; guess I should do my washing soon... I'm running out of clean clothes. Maybe I could buy some more clothes while we're here?" Licking the residue from the buns off his fingers, Mei didn't think too much about his actions until, while eying a display, he caught a glimpse of their reflection and caught KO looking at him oddly. "Do you need anything?"

"Ah..." For a moment, KO's normally implacable face looked stunned, as though Mei had said something outlandish.

"Eh? Do you? Need anything while we're here?" Mei looked his friend up and down. "Maybe some new clothes? With colour?"

"I don't need colour. I mean, clothes." Eyebrows furrowed, KO tried to climb out of the hole he'd just dug for himself. "Lets get what you need first.... ah... Mei...?"

"Hmm?"

"Face cream?"

"No, I'm good for creams. Can't you tell? Skin this smooth has to be looked after."

"No." KO turned the younger man to look in the direction of the beauty shop they were standing in front of. Raising Mei's arm, he used it as a pointer to draw his attention to a large poster in the shop's window. In front of the poster was a display of various beauty products, but it wasn't the products themselves that had caught KO's attention; rather, it was the smiling beauty gracing the poster.

"Oh." Mei's face felt as though it would burst in to flames- was he coming down with something due to over work? Shifting his weight from side to side, he decided that discretion was the better part of valour and headed off, ignoring both the poster and the question on KO's face. He didn't get very far before a large hand grabbed his wrist and pulled him into a small alley, out of the crowds and the lights.

"It was you."

In the dark of the alley, KO seemed to double in size and Mei took a step back even as he told his imagination to calm down. This is what happens when you step into the dark with someone wearing all black; it feels like they're suddenly so much bigger than you, and too close, and was KO actually coming closer? Mei took another step back and felt the cool rasp of brickwork press against his shirt. Putting his hands up in an instinctive gesture, he checked himself and dropped them back to his side; cursing himself for acting girly.

If in doubt, go with bravado, he told himself.

"Yeah. It was. If you're born with a talent then it would be stupid to let it go to waste." Light from the busy shopping street shone faintly enough that he could see the confusion in KO's eyes.

"Why?"

"Why not?"

KO reached a hand up but froze with his fingers barely hovering over Mei's jaw line. "You don't like this face. It frustrates you when people can't see past it. Why would you put it forward like that?"

Breath catching in his throat, Mei froze even as his heart raced. He hadn't thought KO would see through it so quickly. "Money."

"Why?"

"I needed it."

"Why?"

"I just..." Looking up at the implacable face so close to his own, Mei sighed. "I needed it to fuel my hobby. I like to....well, my father calls it gambling."

"You don't gamble. You're not that careless."

Mei smiled. "Thank you. And you're right. I don't gamble but my father doesn't see much difference between horse racing and playing the stock market. He refused to let me access my savings, moved it to his account 'for my own good' and only releases enough for me to buy food each week. You know you need a decent amount to invest if you ever want to make a profit."

He was shocked when KO's lips actually twitched in the hint of a smile.

"So you, what? Signed a modelling contract for the start up funds?" Was that... admiration Mei could hear in KO's voice?

"Uhuh. I was approached on my first day on campus and worked my way through my degree. Invested as I went along. The place I just moved into? I sold all my stock when I graduated; I'd already proved I could do it and going to work at Zhi Yi Technologies was going to take up all my time and mental capacity. So I bought a place." Confessing was nerve-wracking and Mei wasn't entirely sure why. It wasn't like he'd done anything wrong... he just had kept quiet about some things.

With a sigh, KO pivoted to lean against the wall next to Mei. It sounded like he muttered under his breath something about needing to get used to eating soft rice, but that didn't make sense to Mei so he shrugged it off. At least he wasn't mad. (A/N: eating soft rice= financially relying on your wife... Mei really should have paid attention. But that's okay; KO will remind him later.)

After what felt like hours, but was really only a minute or two, KO pushed off from the wall and held a hand out to Mei. "We still have shopping to do."

Automatically putting his hand in KO's, Mei let him lead the way back out on to the busy street, where they both felt a sudden desire to put their hands in their pockets and look anywhere but at each other. The lights of a clothing shop caught Mei's attention and he grabbed at the distraction they offered, pushing KO inside and calling for the shop assistant to find "Bright shirts for the gentleman! The brighter the better!"

A glowering KO held out until the girl had passed from hearing before muttering "You buy anything in neon and I can't promise my lips will stay sealed."

Mei checked his face, saw the truth etched across his features and abruptly changed his mind about tormenting his friend. Trying to coax KO into colour was obviously as productive as playing a lute to a cow. Better to save his breath and remain friends for another day.