My Straight Male Childhood Friend Says I Have to Take Responsibility

Yu Qing realized there was something odd about his childhood friend, Fang Zhiyi.

Fang Zhiyi had always been as straight as they come. He never noticed when people of either sex showed interest in him. He either talked them into silence or became their sworn buddy.

Except after exercising, Yu Qing had never seen Fang Zhiyi blush.

But lately, Yu Qing had noticed that Fang Zhiyi was blushing far too often.

When Yu Qing casually helped straighten Fang Zhiyi's collar, Fang Zhiyi would slap his hand away, his ears red.

When Yu Qing made bone broth for Fang Zhiyi after he sprained his ankle, Fang Zhiyi drank the hot soup in one go, then kicked him out of the dorm room.

When Yu Qing tried to blow an eyelash out of Fang Zhiyi's eye, Fang Zhiyi pushed him away with a red face as soon as he leaned in. He fled in a panic and nearly tripped on the way out.

Yu Qing remembered that the strange behavior had started after his family asked Fang Zhiyi to bring something over for him.

Only his cousin's textbook in the bag didn't belong to him. His cousin had repeatedly warned him not to look inside and to return it when his parents weren't around.

A thought struck Yu Qing. When he opened the cover, he found that it contained a recently popular danmei manga. The very first scene showed two men kissing passionately on a large bed.

Yu Qing: Case closed. So the worldview of this straight-as-an-arrow guy has collapsed.

*

To preserve their friendship of many years, Yu Qing decided to have an honest talk with his friend.

One day after class, Yu Qing caught Fang Zhiyi, who had been avoiding him, and took him to a nearby cafe.

Yu Qing: "The manga belongs to my cousin, but I really am gay."

Fang Zhiyi, sitting across from him, looked a little strange. Yu Qing continued, "But don't worry. I only see you as a good buddy. You're not my type."

To his surprise, Fang Zhiyi bit down hard on the ice in his mouth when he heard that.

"Yu Qing, don't you have a conscience!"

Yu Qing: "?"

[Note from 2022/5/1: The blurb has been archived.]

Theme: Face your own heart