Depart at Dawn, Return at Dusk

[You took the screenshot of my January 1 public post and sent it to the gossip forum, then turned around and accused me of twisting the facts. You know perfectly well who’s twisting the facts. The first point of the reader’s guide says from beginning to end that both leads are non-virgins. Both leads, not that only the top isn’t a virgin. They’ve both had exes. You made up rumors that I wrote the top as a virgin and the bottom as not, that I wrote a one-top-many-bottoms story, that I never give the bottom a birthday, and that I’m going to write a story about the top and his ex over thirteen years. You make up whatever you like and spread it everywhere. You banded together and came at me with hundreds of insulting, abusive attacks, and you’ve continued to come right to my face to hurl abuse. I’ll keep evidence of every single one.]

[Cardiothoracic surgeon bottom x commercial airline pilot top]

[Eighth Hospital series, #ReunionAfterYearsApart]

[Completed books in the same series: Holding Hands and Following the Current. See the author’s page for the upcoming side-couple book, A Place Between Us.]

There was always something about Xu Mu that was hard to read and impossible to figure out.

Even his close friends of many years only knew him more or less as follows:

1. A cardiothoracic surgeon at the People’s Hospital, formerly.

2. Friends everywhere, but no romantic involvement with anyone. Supposedly because he was betrayed when he was young.

3. No parents, relatives, or close family since childhood. The only person who raised him was Xu Jinshan, whom he called Second Uncle.

Xu Mu had lived more than half his life wanting for nothing and with little ambition. As long as he woke up at dawn and went to bed at night, life went on just fine. He did as he pleased and took things easy.

Until one day, he ran into Lin Yanchao again.

What’s that saying? If you go around looking for trouble, sooner or later you’ll have to pay for it!

He owed Xu Jinshan, and he had to pay him back.

He owed Lin Yanchao, too, and he had to repay him as well.

They had both saved his life. He couldn’t leave either of them in his debt.

And so, while paying them back, the man who had always insisted on remaining single ended up giving himself away.

Reader’s Guide:

1. Reunion after years apart, 1v1, no switching or splitting the couple. Both leads have romantic histories. The top was originally an air force pilot, but retired due to injury. The bottom has PTSD. Read with caution if these are concerns for you.

2. There are many side characters and possibly several couples of different ages, but they won’t get much page time or overshadow the leads. The author doesn’t like writing straight romances in BL, so readers who prefer an all-BL cast should also read with caution. I haven’t thought of any other potential triggers, but readers with very strict character preferences should proceed carefully.

3. As always, the romance is the focus. I’m not a professional, but I’ve tried to research the leads’ occupations as carefully as possible. Please point out any mistakes or omissions!

4. Locations, names, hospitals, and airlines in China are fictional. Please don’t connect them to real life. Research materials are limited to documentaries, academic journals, news stories, and professional books. I’ll post the complete references after the story is finished.

5. My author’s notes can be rather wordy. Remember to turn them off if you don’t like them.

6. The story takes place from 2024 to 2026.

Finally, may everyone in the story find their happy ending, and may all you lovely readers enjoy the story!

Thanks to the artist @Zhen Ye for the handwritten cover lettering.

Thanks to the artist Niao Ji for the solo character art, and to Bao Liao for the two-character art.

Theme: No matter how many twists and turns there are, the people meant to meet will always find each other.