They both fell quiet. Wen Rui didn't know how to respond so he stared at Zhou Ye's wrist instead, at the beautiful Patek Philippe he saw on a huge billboard in the city. The watch was the most ostentatious thing about Zhou Ye, black alligator strap and a rose gold case, its striking open architecture a display window for the hammer and cogs within.
Wen Rui had enjoyed collecting watches when he was younger. He had a Ulysse Nardin that his mother had given him for his 16th birthday but he had no idea where it had gone. Perhaps it was lying somewhere in his room in the apartment. Perhaps Lu Xiamei had thrown it out with his other belongings when he'd left the Wen Estate, or appropriated it for herself.
Such luxuries in life had come too easily to him when he'd been younger and he hadn't learnt to cherish it until he lost everything that was once precious to him.
Zhou Ye followed his line of sight and noticed what Wen Rui was fixated upon. His watch was half-hidden beneath his sleeve and had memories attributed to it that he didn't want to think about. He tried to cover it up but Wen Rui stopped him.
"Does it have a minute repeater?" Wen Rui asked.
Zhou Ye eyed him sternly. "Are you trying to change the conversation?"
"…yes, but I do want to know." This model was new on the market and he didn't have much information on it. Not that he would be able to afford one himself. If it were anything like the rest of the Grand Complications collection range, of which Wen Guoyan owned one or two, it could easily cost a hefty 5 million yuan.
Zhou Ye didn't reply. Instead, he held up his wrist to Wen Rui, whose lips parted in surprise.
"Go on," Zhou Ye said softly.
It was an invitation. Not for anything suggestive but it still made Wen Rui shyer than he'd been in years.
[You're being dumb again,] he told himself. [Just because you're 'married' on paper doesn't mean you need to be sensitive about it, this is just a xiongdi inviting you to play with his…watch. It's the same as loaning you a console or a tennis racket, what are you even freaking out for?]
His inner voice ran rampant but outwardly, he reached out to push at the silver button on the side of the watch's face. It was currently 11:46 am because Wen Rui had slept the entire morning away without realising it. Eleven low chimes rang out, followed by three sequence chimes, and then one high chime. The sound was like a beautiful symphony. Wen Rui missed his old present even more. It wasn't the only thing his mother had given him but he clung to all available memories he had of her.
"Do you like it?" Zhou Ye asked.
Wen Rui nodded, not realising that Zhou Ye had let him change the topic and was no longer asking him about what had happened on set. "It's one of the nicest models I've ever seen," he said, idly wondering whether he would ever become successful enough as an idol or actor to buy one for himself. After the divorce, his standard of living was going to be drastically reduced. But he couldn't keep relying on Zhou Ye's charity.
The odd sinking feeling in his gut was probably because his future was so uncertain and he was now so dependent on Zhou Ye for security and support. Once he bucked up, he was going to be fine.
Speaking of bucking up, Wen Rui really ought to contact Director Fu and apologise for missing work. Zhou Ye had mentioned that everything had already been taken care of but Wen Rui wasn't sure in what capacity Zhou Ye had informed Director Fu. This made him antsy. No one in the entertainment industry, not even Wen Rui's Manager, knew about their marriage. The old rumours about them had been dismissed as 'an epic bromance' but would Director Fu or whoever had picked up that call buy that? The last thing Wen Rui needed was for another scandal to mar Zhou Ye's reputation.
He patted around the sheets in search of his phone before realising that he'd left it in his room when fetching a glass of water the night before.
"Hey, could I trouble you to get my phone for me—"
Black leather around a white wrist, so slender that the strap had to be tightened to the maximum limit. Metal that was still warm from someone else's skin pressed against his own. The watch, which had a mature, imposing vibe on Zhou Ye, now seemed elegant and aesthetic on Wen Rui.
"W-What are you doing?" Wen Rui stammered, fiddling with the clasp. He felt like his fever had returned, light-headed and groggy as he tried to fathom Zhou Ye's actions. But a large hand snagged at his fingers, stopping him from sliding the strap out of its buckle.
"It was always meant to be yours," Zhou Ye replied. "But you didn't want it." His eyes were darker than Wen Rui had ever remembered. He didn't know that Zhou Ye could look like that, or rather, could look at him like that. With just the dim lighting from the bedside lamp he'd turned on earlier, the atmosphere was charged with a current of something inexplicable. Wen Rui knew that logically he should pull away and return the gift. It was too valuable for a present between high school classmates who weren't even close friends.
But a part of him was reluctant to.
That split second of hesitation was all it took for Zhou Ye to stand up and stack the empty bowl back onto the tray. "I'll bring your phone over," he said, moving out of reach so Wen Rui, who was still attached to the stupid IV line, couldn't catch hold of him. "Uncle Li will be around at noon to check on you, I need to head out now."
"Hey, wait—" Before Wen Rui could finish his protest, Zhou Ye had already disappeared behind the door. "…"
Typical. Wen Rui was willing to wager that in five minutes, it would be Auntie who returned his phone to him, not this pseudo husband of his.
He flopped back against the pillows and raised his wrist in the air to admire it. Zhou Ye said that he'd rejected it before? That made sense to Wen Rui. Given the antagonism he used to feel towards Zhou Ye, he would have been shocked to find out that he'd accepted.
What made a lot less sense was why he felt like accepting now.
——————————
Zhou Ye crammed all of the relevant units of study into the previous years to free up time from third year onwards. He only had an optional thesis for economics elective left, the internship component of his business management degree having been waived because of his corporate experience.
He'd chosen to write the thesis, not because he had any inclinations towards becoming an academic but because it served as an adequate excuse to get his grandfather off his back. When necessary, he could even bring it out as a reason to reject attending social events. Under the guise of working on his studies, Zhou Ye had spent many nights dealing with the business of NJ Corporation instead.
That being said, he had to come up with a substantial submission at the end of the day. This was why he had chosen to come into the library to work on it. He was a creature of discipline and had scheduled the whole of today to work on the discussion section of his paper. But staying at home would mean thinking about Wen Rui the entire day instead.
Not that, he noted wryly, he was being that much more productive now. His laptop was switched on in front of him, reference organiser already open and ready for use, but Wang Lingyi had been updating him on her findings for the past fifteen minutes.
Secretary Wang: Jiang Xin, 23, was an unknown eighteen-stringed (1) actress until her supporting role in 'Legend of Yuhuan'.
Secretary Wang: Following this, she started obtaining contracts for advertisements and some film roles, her backer appears to be the second young master of the Qi Family.
Zhou Ye: Any evidence?
Secretary Wang: At present, I have only been able to buy some blurred photographs of their intimate interactions in clubs but I have contacted a couple of other people who might have more information.
Zhou Ye: How about that assistant director?
Secretary Wang: Nothing cropped up on him broadly but I ran a search on his father's company and discovered it's in liquidation. I have reached out to his debtors to find out more.
Zhou Ye: Noted.
It sounded pretty clear cut on the surface. An arrogant spoiled young actress with a sugar daddy wanted more privileges on the set, much to the detriment of those around her. But Zhou Ye couldn't help but sense that something wasn't right with the picture. It was almost too…brainless.
[No matter,] he thought. Since they had already caused Wen Rui trouble, then they couldn't blame him for retaliating.