Chapter Text
After regaining his old championship; after going back home; after being told he was to coach for the Chinese National Team; after all that, 28 years old Ye Xiu knows that he may have made many mistakes in his short life but he would never change anything with how he handled it.
But, when thrown back to the past - to the time when he was at his lowest - he wanted to curse everyone and everything.
Look, what's with the genre switch? He'd like to go back to his normal MMORPG slash drama genre, please.
Besides, if he was going to time travel, at least the time should be right. He didn't want to go back to when he was 25 years old. He wants to go back to when he was 17 years old and he still has Su Muqiu by his side.
That would be preferable. He does not have many regrets. Some of them are on Excellent Era and how he handled it after the original team members left. But most of them are regrets for not saving Su Muqiu.
If he was to travel back in time, he wanted to go back in time and stop Muqiu from crossing that street.
He wants to be able to see Muqiu's smile again. He wants to hear his voice. He wants to feel his steady presence, his hand on his back, know that he's there for him. He wants to be confused by Muqiu - to have his contradicting character beside him again.
What a spoiled child , he thinks about his thoughts. You ought to know that you can't always get what you want.
He sighs.
The former coach of the Chinese Glory National Team whose name is now Ye Shunfeng slaps his face, stands straighter, and decides to do his best for this time's him.
He isn't good with this housekeeping stuff but he'd like to think he's passable, if not outright great.
He adapts to this timeline; adapts to his role as the second oldest, and reluctantly adapts to being the quasi-responsible one since his oldest future self likes his carefree attitude.
He says reluctantly, but he has embraced the role of caretaker.
He doesn't play Glory as he used to. It's not even about age. He looks at his younger selves and thinks, wow, look at the way their eyes brighten while playing this game he loves.
Let the young have their fun.
Their time here is not certain, after all. They are nothing but outliers to this time. He knows they shouldn't do anything to show their presence in this time, but he also knows that they've failed the moment they decided to create a different team.
He eyes every person his younger selves have stumbled upon and touched the lives of. These people he already knows, and whom he is learning something new about each day.
"Don't get attached," the oldest Ye said.
What a laugh, he thinks, looking at the way Ye Qianliyan follows Wu Xuefeng with a smile. Look at who is attached.
He shakes his head and gets lost in his thoughts.
He isn't blind and he isn't dumb. Okay, he was a little dense but having the gift of hindsight and looking at the scene from the outside, he can see things he never saw before.
Even though they joke a lot about the couple name of Ye Xiuliu and Qiao Yifan, he sees that they are getting attached with each other. He sees it in the way Little Ye tries to make Yifan smile everyday. He knows it from hearing Little Ye compare Yifan's smile to Su Muqiu.
(It's not even that similar. Yifan - this Yifan and the Yifan from his timeline - smiles shyly in comparison to Muqiu's bright grin. He can't see what Little Ye sees.)
He looks around his juniors and sees the way they gravitate around his younger self. He sees his juniors follow Third Ye around with admiration in their eyes and his heart warms at the sight.
During his time, he really was blind to the effect he had on them. He knows that, even in some instances, they do care for him. But to know that they see him that way.
Heh.
It makes him smile to know he's got the older brother vibes for many of the other Pros.
Third Ye truly has strong charisma points.
Ye Xiu has strong charisma points.
Nice.
---
It rained when he was out of the base.
He didn't bring any umbrella. He didn't bring a phone. He finds himself stuck in a waiting shed looking like a wet cat with the downpour that caught him off-guard.
He couldn't help but sigh, a heavy feeling in his heart he knows is nostalgia threatens to burst. With each sound of pitter-patter from the rain meeting the roof, his mind travels to warm days even during the cold rain. He remembers how warm he felt despite the broken heater at that small internet café. He remembers laughter and cries and how nothing is unsolvable with the three of them together.
He remembers bright Su Muqiu - his sun, his protector, his umbrella when it rains.
He remembers and each raindrop that touches his skin burns because he knows it means his umbrella is no longer there to shade him.
Ah, being in the past and being surrounded by his past selves who still haven’t gotten over Muqiu’s death has unearthed the grief he had thought he had already gotten over with. He had thought that by cementing Lord Grim’s name in Glory’s history, he had cemented Su Muqiu’s presence in Glory and he could proudly smile and face Muqiu again.
Now, it seems it wasn’t enough to stave the hurt.
He still feels alone even with the soothing balm that is the presence of Mucheng and the other Ye Xius.
He feels alone even in the midst of the the friends he made.
He feels alone without Muqiu to hold an umbrella over his head and tell him everything will be fine.
His lament was cut short by the loss of the raindrop on his skin. He looked up and saw an umbrella covering him.
“What?” He mouthed.
“Ye Shunfeng, am I correct?” His eyes lowered to meet a pair of uneven eyes.
“Wang Jiexi,” he said.
“You don’t have an umbrella with you,” he observed.
Ye Shunfeng didn’t say ‘obviously’ but his eyebrows spoke it loudly. “Are you here to visit San Ye?”
“Yes,” he said, “Ah, since I am going to Chaos Theory’s base, would you care to share an umbrella with me?"
Ye Shunfeng paused for a moment, looked at the umbrella, then back to his junior. A small smile crossed his face.
“Sure.”
The realization hits him and he feels lighter.
Yes, he still misses Su Muqiu. Yes, the hurt is still there.
But the truth is, he isn’t alone anymore.
He had met numerous kind people who would share an umbrella with him.