Chapter 20

While Huoren was having dinner, he found Chi Ji sitting alone in the corner.

Chi Ji was usually shy and introverted. He was easy to blush when others made a few jokes. In addition, he had only recently joined as a trainee and was alone with no one.

Huoren finished his dinner, sat down with a plate beside him and said casually, “good evening.”

“Huoren,” said Chi Ji, staring at the caramel pudding on his plate, as if greeting the dessert. “Are you going to the bar tonight?”

“Mn, I want to practice the scene again.” Huoren pushed the pudding to his hand. “It’s delicious. There’s cheese in it.”

Chi Ji lowered his head and whispered: “I can’t eat. Uncle Jiang said I have baby fat.”

“You’re very cute.” Huoren blinked and didn’t understand what was going on: “and not fat at all. There’s no need for you to lose fat again, right?”

The teenager pointed to the boy group dancing on TV: “Everyone’s face will be widened when they get on the screen. In reality, people with just the right weight will still become round in the camera.”

Huoren thought about what the truth was, and looked sideways at the boy’s dinner today.

Half a box of raw cabbage shreds, no salad marinated in soy paste, no oil, four chicken breasts and two small purple potatoes.

“I want to eat hot pot.” Chi Ji pushed the lunch box and layed down on the table. “We had an appointment to go at the weekend, but Uncle Jiang beat me yesterday. I can’t even drink orange juice these days.”

Huoren silently glanced at the sweet and sour ribs, tofu and mousse cake in his bowl, and suddenly felt guilty.

His weight is too low, his digestive ability has been damaged for too long that he wouldn’t get fat now.

Chi Ji turned to look at Huoren’s meal and said pitifully. “You eat, I’m full.”

Huoren pushed the plate to his hand again: “What about the red pitaya? Or taste some mango?”

“No, I want to control my sugar.” Chi Ji buried his face in his arm and sobbed. “Eat quickly or I’ll smell it.”

“… All right.”

Huoren went to the bar to sing this time, especially when several other mates were not present.

When they standed on the stage, they gave him a sense of security and companionship. It was more convenient to face it alone.

The bar owner and the SPF company were old acquaintances. They led him to say hello to the band and offered a cup of water to moisten his voice: “I don’t think it’s easy for you to sing. It’s free tonight. I’m not in a hurry to do business.”

Huoren thanked him, took the lead singer’s position and tried to see how his tone was.

It was 7:30 in the evening.

There were already musicians playing guitars and singing in the bar on both sides. The bar here was deserted, and only two or three guests were drinking and chatting.

Huoren took a deep breath and motioned the musician to start the accompaniment.

The wooden chopstick sounded three times, and the sound of the electronic organ followed.

“If you see me today,” he said, holding the microphone in his hands and following the drum to find the rhythm, “please look for three more seconds. I’m becoming the perfect man you’ve never imagined-“

When he sang a happy love song, his cheeks were slightly hot because of the tension.

The small colored lights on the roadside signs flickered and changed, and the camera light at the door of the bar rotated the sign logo.

A couple holding hands stopped at the door and looked at the singing young man curiously.

Huoren took a deep breath, smiled and continued to sing: “Please stay for three more seconds. If you see me, you will also see me coming in the summer wind.”

He smiled and waved to the children at the door. The cheerful drums were swinging and jumping with the music.

A white-collar worker hesitated for a few seconds, came in and chose a seat by the window.

Huoren’s smile was more brilliant, and the situation started to increase.

Please see me.

Whether you are passing by or following where the music is, please see me.

He achieved some high notes, and he also raised the key. His breath was intact at the moment.

“I want to listen to your mind, cook soup for you and take care of our lovely dog-“

His voice was bright and beautiful, with a special texture like a smoothie, and the intonation was beautiful enough to crush the amateur singers in nearby bars.

More and more men and women came into the bar one after another and motioned the waiter to order.

The drum rack quickly slided out the continuous sound like bubbles, and the atmosphere was constantly getting hotter.

Huoren opened his hands and showed a frank smile. He welcomed the wandering passers-by at the door.

He leaned over to the microphone to sing, his voice was full of emotion, and kept singing the hook while he was ending.

“If you see me today, please look at me for three more seconds-“

Waiters hurried back and forth, beer glasses collided, and more and more people chatted and laughed.

The boss leaned against the pirate ship anchor with his arms and his legs began to shake.

“I’m becoming the perfect man you’ve never imagined-“

Huoren was completely embedded in the stage at this moment, dancing with a smile and grabbing the microphone.

The band played tirelessly one by one, and he continued to sing like a stream. His voice freely switched between laziness and affection with the lyrics, and he sang more and more happily with the second button on his collar unbuttoned.

This was quite different from the vocal music exam, the KTV or his feeling in the practice room.

Xiaochi Yun-ge took him to see a musical several times ago. It seemed that he was constantly gradually being enlightened.

Standing on the stage today, he should please all the people present, let them put down all their troubles and worries and enjoy the happy music at the moment.

By eight o’clock, the bar was full, and many people were looking through the door.

There were new trainees nearby who came to sing the chorus, and Huoren danced with them. He let his sweaty messy hair stick on his forehead and enjoyed the pleasure that made his blood boil.

At 9:30, the boss had to move tables and benches outside the door to accommodate a steady stream of new guests.

Some little girls held up their mobile phones to take pictures quietly. Others took a group photo, held up the beers and sang loudly. They all had a good time.

Huoren sang all the way to 11:30. Before he got off the stage, he was stopped by many guests and asked him for an encore.

Huoren’s hair was soaked, his neck was sweating, and his eyes were bright.

He didn’t expect so many people to like him.

He didn’t expect so many people to sing along.

The boss greeted teacher Lu, handed him a dry towel and arranged him to go out from the side door. Behind him, there were guests shouting: “Sing another song- just one-“

When Huoren returned to the dormitory, his cheeks were still blushed.

He stood under the three rows of lights for so long that it was like singing on a stove.

Xie Lianyun was quietly eating noodles. When he heard the door, he pulled out his hand and hid the plastic bag under the bed.

“Oh- Huohuo.” He let out a sigh of relief and continued to shake the seasoning powder, so that the smell of spicy crab spread all over the room: “Did you sing?”

Huoren nodded. When he spoke again, he found that his voice was completely hoarse.

“Just came back with Teacher Lu,” he subconsciously touched his throat and smiled embarrassed: “I didn’t control it well. It was too loud.”

“There’s a box for the throat on the shelf. You should take it first.” Xie Lianyun missed the lemon green tea after two bites and rolled on the bed: “If I had known earlier, I would have asked you to bring me two cups secretly… My assistant went on strike.”

Huoren was still touching his throat. He was a little worried that he couldn’t sing tomorrow.

After taking a bath, he sat back by the bed and had not recovered from the party atmosphere in the bar.

He didn’t know whether the singing was good or not, but he felt fine, really fine.

Xie Lianyun gave up snacks for four days. Now his craving became more and more painful. He endured it for 15 minutes and rushed to the dormitory next door to find food.

“Hey, do you have spicy-“

From next door came the disgusting voice of Bo Jue: “You think everyone is like you. You eat junk food every day.”

Longjia raised his hand: “Do you want potato chips?”

“Yes! Bo Jue, don’t tell Uncle Jiang or we will die together. Do you hear me!”

When he came back after tossing for a long time, he went to bed with three bottles of herbal tea, a packet of potato chips and two pieces of sachima in his arms.

Huoren laid awake for a while, turned over to grab the book at the head of the bed and continued to read, unconsciously humming.

After eating two pieces of sachima, Xie Lianyun reached out to touch his stomach. After touching it, he went to the door to measure his weight and began to enter the sage mode after breaking the rules.

After condemning himself for a while, he sat back in bed with his pillow and had nothing to say to Huoren.

“If you want to challenge something more difficult, I know a place.”

“Where?”

“Qingxi road.” Xie Lianyun sat up straight and said, “SPF’s street service has a large open-air stage, where you can perform freely every saturday night. Some new artists do testing there, and many trainees have used it to adapt to public performances. As long as you bring a USB, you can dance and sing. Even if you screw up, you will generally be very supportive under the stage. Not only many SPF fans often go there but also the middle and senior management of the company. Do you want to try?”

Huoren was stunned. At this moment, he wasn’t very relieved: “Can I go too?”

“Most of the people who went are seniors. They could have practiced for three or four years,” Xie Lianyun thought. “It’s good to go there to get the feeling.”

“I want to go.” Huoren suddenly said, “I want to try.”

“Right, Longjia said he would go over to play today,” Xie Lianyun went to his mobile phone and sent a text message: “If you’re with him, remember to bring me lemon soda.”

“Alright, thank you, Yun-ge.”

“Oh, and two potato chips. By the way, strange flavored beans too… Shrimp sticks, I want to eat shrimp sticks, too. Ah- wait, I’ll write a note for you. Hide it in your backpack. The building management usually only checks me, not you. It will be okay…”