He's Not in the Habit of Carrying an Umbrella

[Gentle, clingy umbrella-maker top x cold-faced, adorable, flirtatious young master bottom] The entire novel costs just 2.36 yuan to subscribe to. Thank you for your support. I drew the cover illustration myself, hehe.

Rekindled romance / Equally matched leads / Younger top, though he occasionally feels older / Half small-town, half city setting / Intangible cultural heritage of oil-paper umbrella making

Chen Mingxiao became popular online for his good looks and received an invitation to film a promotional video for oil-paper umbrellas.

He looked up and saw his ex of five years standing right beside him!

Ji Qiao, the director of the shoot, was best at pretending to be nonchalant. He didn't say a word to Chen Mingxiao.

But the strange delivery rider at Chen Mingxiao's rental apartment at midnight, and the figure who appeared across the street at the tea shop for three days in a row, made Chen Mingxiao suspect that Ji Qiao was following him.

When they met again, the first thing Ji Qiao asked was why Chen Mingxiao was living in the apartment they had shared back in college.

Ji Qiao had returned to the small town in southern Sichuan where he had temporarily lived during his final year of high school. It was also Chen Mingxiao's hometown, known as the "home of oil-paper umbrellas."

One moment, Chen Mingxiao told his friend, "We're not catching up. It's just work." The next, he was eagerly bringing Ji Qiao a late-night snack.

One moment, Ji Qiao coldly refused: "No." The next, he accepted it without a second thought.

Back when they were dating, Ji Qiao was aloof in public, but in private...

He would brace himself on the bed with both hands, his pretty Adam's apple bobbing as he raised an eyebrow and softly called Chen Mingxiao "gege."

Though he was actually the younger one, Chen Mingxiao thought to himself: He's totally seducing me!

Now, though, Ji Qiao was hot and cold, drawing near and then pulling away.

Chen Mingxiao consoled himself: It's already a blessing that he can work with you calmly. Don't be too greedy.

But he still wanted more. He crossed the city to Ji Qiao's place, eyes red, and asked, "Are you still mad at me?"

Ji Qiao didn't answer. He simply let Chen Mingxiao in, ordered him to help dry his hair, and sprawled across his lap to sleep, just like before.

He left Chen Mingxiao feeling completely unsettled, then acted as if nothing had happened the next morning, smiling as he brought out breakfast. "Want some?"

When Ji Qiao was in his final year of high school, his family went through a crisis, and he moved from a villa in the provincial capital to a single-story house in a village on the edge of town.

Mold crept up the walls, but the seventeen-year-old across the door was as fresh as the warm sunshine after rain.

So Ji Qiao stole glances at the buttons Chen Mingxiao left undone, breathed in the tung-oil scent carried by the breeze through the house, accepted the kindness he offered again and again, and let his gaze drift toward the school field outside the window.

He began to open up old wounds, telling Chen Mingxiao things he would never tell anyone else.

Ji Qiao told himself there was no future in it, and that Chen Mingxiao was only kind to him because he was naturally a good person.

What he didn't know was that in his second year of high school, Chen Mingxiao took an earlier bus to school every day and waited half an hour after evening study before going home.

He wasn't doing it so he could get started on his studies earlier. He just wanted to steal a little time with Ji Qiao.

Then came the parting. Ji Qiao returned to his old life, thinking he had buried a youthful crush for good.

He never expected Chen Mingxiao to get into his university the following year and kiss him on the very day he registered.

When Chen Mingxiao saw the note "Little Rain Pup," he looked confused.

Ji Qiao pinched the back of his neck, his tone unkind. "You sound so reluctant. Don't you like it?"

Chen Mingxiao rubbed his nose against Ji Qiao's like a puppy and answered happily, "No, being your dog is an honor."

Years later, nearly twenty-nine-year-old Ji Qiao thought back to the summer when he was nineteen.

A long, bitter rain had fallen without end. He used to have a driver to shield him from the weather, so he wasn't used to carrying an umbrella.

Someone came to hold one over him. It wasn't an ordinary umbrella.

1. One devoted couple, 1v1, less than two years apart in age. Sweet overall, with a little bittersweetness. The leads are gentle at heart. The bottom isn't a doormat at the start; there's a reason for it. In fact, he only treats the top kindly.

2. The first chapter unfolds from the top's perspective; the second switches between both perspectives. The flashbacks are mostly from the bottom's perspective.

3. The timeline for the year they met is based on 2013, but some details differ from reality. Consider it an alternate universe.

4. The story opens with their reunion. If you want to read in chronological order, start from Chapter Ten. The youthful flashbacks focus on life outside school, with almost no school scenes.

Theme: Love means accepting one another and growing together.