Cold Lapel

On the day of freshman orientation,

Yu Chen, shy and timid, and starved of love since childhood, hurries around looking for his classroom,

and crashes straight into a warm embrace.

He immediately bows his head to apologize, ears burning red,

too afraid even to look up at the other person.

He’s used to being disliked and yelled at, and is already bracing himself to be scolded.

But the boy he bumps into, Xu Ziyang,

just smiles and ruffles his hair, his voice gentle and warm:

“It’s okay. That didn’t hurt.”

Xu Ziyang is sunny, cheerful, and friendly with everyone. He’s the kind of person who shines brightest in any crowd.

No one knows that someone so dazzling

would notice timid, unremarkable Yu Chen, tucked away in a corner.

He’ll strike up conversations with him,

stand up for him when others ignore him,

and softly say, when Yu Chen is scared and trembling:

“I’m here. Don’t be afraid.”

Yu Chen thinks he’ll have to hide in the darkness for the rest of his life.

But he never imagined

that the boy who crashed into his life

would become the only light he’d ever need.