Work Text:
“I am getting too old for this shit,” Gu Yun proclaimed loudly as they walked back towards the end of the long line of people, all dressed in flamboyant, festive outfits. The queue seemed endless, and with each step, he was losing another fraction of hope and remaining will to even try to join it. There was scarcely any left. “Maybe we should go for a beer or two and come back later. There is always that pop-up bar next to the entrance that opens every year.”
“But Gaye Su Akyol starts in an hour,” Shen Yi lamented.
Gu Yun wanted to snap back that if his friend cared so much, maybe he shouldn’t have insisted that they stop for bubble tea before the festival. That little detour cost them dearly, perhaps they would be already halfway through the line if not for it.
But, despite that stupid bubble tea idea, he did not doubt that Shen Yi’s commitment to the artist was real; his friend played her music on speakers any chance he got for the last two weeks, and he even wore a t-shirt from her last world tour. Gu Yun particularly liked the design of this one, with a long road between mountains that turned into a dragon’s head at the top.
Personally, he opted for a different aesthetic but decided to match the theme set by his best friend – he wore a loose mesh tank top with dragon print on it. He complemented it with some loose pants because no way he’d be wearing tight ones to a festival. He also added on a ton of jewelry because why not? It was a festive outfit after all. When he moved, depending on how close the material was to his skin, the top became more translucent to the point where his nipples were visible but that was kind of the point.
He looked good and he knew it, another proof was that it made Shen Yi feel bashful, his friend couldn’t look stuff in the eyes at the bubble tea place. Maybe Gu Yun was not stating his clear allegiance to a particular artist as his nerdy friend did, but definitely, he looked hot.
Hot enough to flirt his way in? He was beginning to think that would be his only option.
“You won’t see her either way, this queue is going to take at least two hours. Seriously, how long does it take to check a ticket and give a person a festival bracelet? What is their problem?” he gritted his teeth. “If they were my team, I’d definitely fix it in ten minutes, those people need some discipline and better organization.”
Shen Yi stopped. Gu Yun turned to him, looking at his friend in puzzlement.
“You’re right. I won’t make it to her concert. It’s hopeless,” Shen Yi stated in anguish. “Look how long it is. Realistically, we won’t even make it for Kneecap in time. Gu Yun, you need to do this. You have to pull the disability card. Not only for my Gaye Su Akyol. For Kneecap.”
Gu Yun just glares at his friend, contemplating his desperation. It did sound less vulgar than flirting his way in.
“My disability card expired,” he says eventually with hesitation in his voice.
“As if that was ever a problem. Come on, you always play it so well! We’ll just start talking in CSL and they will fall for it.”
“At a music festival?”
“People with partial hearing loss can enjoy music too! But fine, if you prefer blindness, go for it.”
Gu Yun looked at the line again and stopped hesitating. “I have my super thick glasses in the bag, I took them with me just in case something happened with the contacts. Let’s go. I’ll get you through that gate in time for your concert, friend.”
The two of them turned around and marched back on the scorching pavement, quickly approaching the festival entrance gate and the ticket control point. They were quite close already, close enough for Gu Yun to start to rummage through his backpack looking for glasses when an unfamiliar voice called out.
“Gu Zixi!”
The two of them froze, looking at the direction of the voice. A strange group of youngsters (youngsters in Gu Yun’s eyes, they were probably around 25 already) were staring at them. There was a pretty girl with extravagant, colorful style, a well-built nerdy guy standing next to her, a hippie-looking bald man whose clothes could use a wash, and a boy who seemed a little too posh and put together for this festival, without a hair out of place. They were all looking at him but it was the eyes of the posh boy that instantly drew Gu Yun’s attention. Those eyes were dark and intense, like two coals burning in the deep of the night, so intense that they could gaze deep into one’s soul, revealing all his secrets. He was looking at Gu Yun as if he knew him but at the same time there was some uncertainty in his expression as if he was worried, he may not be recognized back.
“Do you know them?” Shen Yi asked.
“No,” Gu Yun whispered back. “But they have a spot in the line.”
“Yeah, let’s pretend we know who they are at least until we get in.”
The two of them walked up to the group and sneakily started moving along the queue with them.
“Hi,” Gu Yun smiled charmingly as he always did when trying to fool someone. “Long time no see.”
“It’s been ten years, I’m surprised you even remember me,” the posh boy said, a shy smile on his face, accompanied by a shadow of a blush coloring his cheeks. He looked cute like that, Gu Yun had to admit. He was surprised he didn’t remember a handsome face like this one. He also seemed clean, something Gu Yun really liked in a man. Not even a speck of dust stained his light blue T-shirt.
Shen Yi tossed him a condemning glare, probably assuming that the boy was his previous hookup. Gu Yun glared back, briefly, neither confirming nor denying, purely enjoying teasing his friend.
“These are my friends, Ge Chen, Cao Chunhua, and Liao Ran,” the young man continued. Even though he witnessed the unspeakable exchange between Shen Yi and Gu Yun, he didn’t comment on it.
“That’s my buddy, Shen Yi. So, you usually go to the festival? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you around, and we come here every other year.” Gu Yun swiftly maneuvered into a topic that would be easier to navigate than whatever this handsome man would choose. Heavens forbid, he’d start reminiscing about old times before they reached the gates.
“We come every other year too,” the burly man introduced as Ge Chen explained. “When the lineup is good and we can afford it.”
Gu Yun’s attention was mostly consumed by the pretty posh boy but hearing from Ge Chen, he switched attention back to his friends. The girl was gaping at him with open eyes as if she had seen a very attractive ghost.
“What?” Gu Yun asked, meeting her eyes.
The girl blushed, bashfully cupping her own cheeks and dropping her eyes. And then she spoke, in a very manly voice, “Geng-ge wasn’t lying, you’re outrageously pretty.”
Gu Yun laughed and flashed a flirty smile at the posh boy, who he guessed was Geng-ge. The longer he looked, the more enticing this boy seemed, at least physically. “Thank you, handsome!”
Shen Yi nudged him in the ribs with his elbow. Gu Yun cringed.
“Bro, don’t be so rough, I’m still recovering,” he hissed.
“You are always recovering from something,” Shen Yi talked back but Gu Yun knew that if he was really sick, his friend would treat it seriously. The thing was, that he wasn’t at the moment, not anymore. “Doctors said you’re perfectly fine now.”
“Doctors? Are you ok?” the posh boy asked with worry.
“I’m fine,” Gu Yun confirmed. “Just a couple of months ago, I had an accident with a tank. It fell from a cliff.”
“And two years ago, he was on a ship that exploded,” Shen Yi added, always very excited to share this dramatic story.
The group was glaring at them with eyes wide open, not sure whether to believe them or not. Gu Yun smirked, satisfied with their expressions.
“Don’t worry, it was a small cliff,” Shen Yi comforted them.
“And the ship?” Cao Chunhua asked.
“Oh, that was large. I’m still surprised he survived that.”
“What can I say, I’m like a cockroach, absolutely unkillable,” Gu Yun a nonchalant shrug. “But way prettier, as you were already kind enough to mention”, he winked at Geng-ge.
“So you went into the military like your dad wanted?” the posh boy asked, showing surprising knowledge about Gu Yun’s life while Gu Yun still had no idea who he was.
“Yeah,” he replied. “But it’s something I’m good at. Very good. I like my job. And I may get to retire early, which sounds really enticing. And where did you end up at?”
“It’s government-related a lot of legal work,” he answered, a bit elusively. He clearly didn’t want to tell them more, as he swiftly moved on to another topic. “So, asking about important things, which concerts are you going to today?”
“Thanks to you, I’ll make it in time for Gaye Su Akyol, she’s amazing, beautiful, the music is stunning and…” Shen Yi started hyping up, but he got interrupted by the trans girl.
“Yes! We love her too! We love her so much!”
“And then,” Gu Yun interrupted, because otherwise they would probably just fawn over Gaye Su Akyol’s new album for the next hour. “Fat Dog, Kneecap, Kraftwerk.”
“Did we listen to Fat Dog?” hippie suddenly asked his friends in CSL.
“Oh sorry,” Shen Yi reacted instantly. “We can switch to sign language if you want. We’re both pretty fluent after Zixi almost lost his hearing after a bomb incident.”
“No, it’s fine,” the hippie quickly replied. “I’m only mute, I can hear perfectly well.”
“Mutism!” Gu Yun gasped. “We gotta remember it for the next time we want to use the disability card to get in.”
Geng-ge glared at him with slight judgment in his stunning eyes but decided to let go.
“I’m very excited about Kneecap,” he said instead. “It’s good we have an opportunity to see them, their concerts in Berlin and Hungary were banned, most likely because of their statements about Palestine.”
“And Vienna too,” Gu Yun added. “You don’t seem like a Kneecap kind of person, honestly. Or someone who enjoys rap.”
“I enjoy their music,” Geng-ge admitted. “But I like the whole context even more. Ireland, for decades, had been fighting against the British for their independence and preservation of national identity and while the generation of their parents and grandparents favored to fight by committing terrorist acts, the three of them decided to take a completely different approach and use words, fight using language and make it political, even though they didn’t have to, it would be very easy for them to make music in English but it’s not about this. It’s about the fight against imperialism and the fight for own culture.”
“And it’s fascinating that only in 2022 Irish got the status of an official language,” Gu Yun added. “You watched the movie, I guess?”
Geng-ge nodded enthusiastically.
“I was a really good movie,” he immediately agreed. “There are so many movies and books about Ireland, although only a few are on this level both in from narrative perspective but also in their take on the topic.”
“I read Anna Burns’s The Milkman last year,” Gu Yun shared. “It’s about Ireland of 70s, and when I watched the movie about Kneecap it felt like the perfect continuation of this story, another generation of that very dark world she presented.”
“I completely agree, I read that book too!” Geng-ge’s eyes sparkled with excitement and he took a step closer to Gu Yun. “The way she shows how toxic and oppressive the Irish society was towards each other but how it was all a defensive mechanism – it was absolutely stunning writing. It stuck in my head for weeks.”
“It’s also amazing to see all the social mechanisms going behind the scenes in such societies, ones that struggle for independence. It’s not all glorious fight for freedom done by idealists with hearts of gold, as history books like to sell it. The way she describes it is dirty, complicated, and realistic, this glimpse into something that you have to live through to even attempt to understand.”
“It’s like walking on a very thin line between allowing your culture to be obliterated and becoming a fanatic. And it’s the society that made the line so thin. It’s kind of funny that both Kneecap and the main protagonist from The Milkman are considered pariahs for not acting in line with the oppressive society norms. Both of them are progressive and don’t want to continue what was done by the previous generations, and this country is definitely changing but at the same time, it’s amazing that they were facing very similar pressure from paramilitary groups, even though there’s fifty years of difference.”
“I love the way Kneecap talks about it all in the interviews,” Gu Yun continued. “I mean, not Anna Burns, I’m not sure I have seen anything where they address her writing but about their roots in the Irish political situation, relations to IRA and so on.”
“I always found them admirably brave for doing all that.”
Gu Yun opened his mouth to continue to ramble about the book, oppression, patriotism, social engineering, propaganda tools and so on, so on, but he noticed the rest of the group was staring at them. For a moment, he completely forgot about them, lost in his talk with Geng-ge.
“Guys, get the tickets ready, we’re approaching,” Shen Yi reminded them.
“He’s right,” Gu Yun said but instead of taking out his phone, he put a hand on the posh boy’s shoulder, urging him to move forward. “Let’s go, A-Geng.”
He made up his mind. He was attracted to this handsome, smart, clean young man, and he would act on it. Because men that captivating were hard to find, and one should strike iron when it is hot.
Calling him by his name was clearly the right move because all the intelligence seemed to have instantly evaporated from his head, and his cheeks flushed red. He nodded and took a step forward, although not too abruptly, in a perfect way that allowed Gu Yun to drop his hand a little lower, caressing his shoulder blade and eventually resting on the small of his back. Geng-ge stepped a little closer, a small movement that could pass as simply trying to get closer to the ticket check but Gu Yun knew it was intentional.
He smelled nice; the scent seemed somewhat pacifying. Gu Yun picked up notes of mint, sandalwood and jasmine.
“You smell nice,” he whispered into his ear, leaning closer.
“So do you,” Geng-ge must have decided to retaliate because as he murmured back, his lips brushed against Gu Yun’s earlobe in a subtle but clearly intentional touch that made the recipient shiver.
Fuck. Gu Yun had no idea how he could forget someone like this. Maybe there was something wrong with his eyes or hearing back then because there was no way that in a proper state of mind, he would go past this man and ever forget him.
When they approached the ticket checkpoint, they finally understood why the line was so huge; what they found there was sheer chaos. People were pushing, arguing, yelling; no one knew which desk was the right one. The queue collapsed into nothingness; one had to fight to reach the frightened festival volunteer in charge of bracelets. Geng-ge’s group and Gu Yun got separated; only Shen Yi who had been taught by years of experience, clung to his best friend’s arm with desperation as if his life depended on it.
Thanks to Gu Yun’s expert skills in moving people out of his way, the two of them quickly managed to get their tickets exchanged for the festival bracelets and then they swiftly got through passed the security check. Gu Yun successfully snuck in several snacks and even a little bottle of wine, safely wrapped in a blanket. When free, Shen Yi immediately started walking past the festival gate and toward the furthest of the stages where Gaye Su Akyol was supposed to perform, but Gu Yun firmly grabbed his arm.
“Let’s wait for them.”
“The concert starts in fifteen minutes! It’s on the Forest Stage, it’s six minutes of just walking,” Shen Yi urged him.
“Jiping, I like him,” Gu Yun said.
“Yeah, I noticed,” his friend scoffed. “Oh, come on, Gu Yun! You’re hot, you can find people interested in you anywhere.”
“But not like him,” Gu Yun argued with a sudden burst of passion and honesty that shocked his friend and even himself. “Not handsome, intelligent, smelling nice, not one that leans into my touch as he was made for it. And he’s cute when he blushes. Unbearably so.”
Shen Yi facepalmed.
“Seriously? You got all that from talking to him for a few minutes?”
“It won’t kill you to wait a bit,” Gu Yun crossed his arms over his chest.
He knew he was asking for a lot. A river of people rushed past them without ceasing, even for a moment. For all they knew, all of them could be going to Gaye Su Akyol’s concert, stealing all the good spots. If they waited, Shen Yi could be forced to stand in the back.
But the power of friendship has wom.
“Eight minutes. Then I’m going, I’ll send you a picture of where I’m standing. We can also catch up after the concert.”
“Thanks,” Gu Yun grinned.
“And if you care, get his contact info,” Shen Yi ordered. “Because you still haven’t figured out who he is, right?”
“I didn’t,” Gu Yun admitted. “What were we doing ten years ago?”
“We were in college,” Shen Yi shrugged. “Maybe you hooked up with him and forgot, sounds like your style.”
“I remember people I hooked up with,” Gu Yun replied with a frown. “And I would definitely remember this one.”
A moment later, the hippie baldie emerged from the security check with his backpack that looked like he had sewn it by himself from a ripped-off part of a curtain. The rest of his group followed soon after. Shen Yi breathed out in relief.
“No resting, no photo taking at the gate! Gaye Su Akyol starts in nine minutes!” he called out as if he were an expedition leader.
He turned on the spot and started marching in the direction of the stage. The rest ran up to catch up with him. Geng-ge took the spot right next to Gu Yun as they walked. He pushed a stand of hair behind his ear, the gesture seeming too coy to be casual.
“You’ve waited.”
“I thought we had something special. I’m almost offended you thought I wouldn’t wait for you.”
“I know it’s special, I already waited ten years for you to notice,” Geng-ge blurted out and immediately covered his face with his palm in embarrassment, letting out a loud groan that didn’t match his put-together image but Gu Yun found absolutely adorable. “Oh no, it turned out so wrong. What I wanted to say is… thank you for waiting. Ten years ago, I had a really immense crush on you, so… it means a lot to me that you’ve waited just now and not just… disappeared for another decade.”
Gu Yun’s heart fluttered pleasantly at a confession from such a beauty.
“When he stops walking like his ass in on fire,” he pointed at Shen Yi. “Let’s exchange contacts. So that it doesn’t happen, okay?”
Geng-ge’s face lit up like a thousand suns. His honest smile was really a sight to behold. Suddenly, Gu Yun made a very spontaneous and rushed decision, but he didn’t care at this point.
He stopped abruptly, grabbing Geng-ge by his forearm. For an instant, he stalled and ran his thumb against the younger man’s jawline, causing him to shiver. Their eyes crossed and he was not held back by any hesitation but he also had ran out of time for it. Geng-ge already took action, throwing his arms over Gu Yun’s neck and pulling his closer.
Their lips met in a hot, urgent kiss, one that probably would haunt Gu Yun’s dreams because, although intense, it lasted just a brief moment; it was just a glimpse of what kissing A-Geng would be actually like.
They didn’t let go immediately; they just stared at each other in panic.
“I don’t… I don’t usually do things like that. But I really like you,” A-Geng said feverishly as if he had been boiling down those words for eternity, and he had to speak them out now or they’d burst. “I always liked you. A lot.”
“I like you too, but I have no idea who you are,” Gu Yun confessed, since it seemed like the right time to lay out all the cards on the table.
The younger man just smiled gently. “I noticed. It’s fine. As long as you want to get to know me.”
“Yeah,” Gu Yun gave him a goofy grin, imagining all the different ways in which he’d like to get to know this charming individual. “I definitely do.”
It definitely seemed like an effort but Geng-ge pulled his eyes away from Gu Yun’s face and looked around. “Seems like we lost them.”
“They will be okay, we’ll catch them after the concert. Speaking of… do you want to stay in the back with me? I have a blanket, we could sit down and talk about important things like Irish literature, Palestine, and where exactly have you been all my life,” Gu Yun proposed.
“You’re always this flirty?” Geng-ge asked but didn’t pull away.
“Only in front quality dates,” Gu Yun promised charmingly.
“Give me your phone,” his impromptu date requested.
Gu Yun fished out his smartphone and unlocked it for Geng-ge. He saw him type in a phone number, “The reception here is bad but if we lose each other, text me.”
“Add me on social media too.”
“You have me on social media.”
“Impossible.”
Geng-ge opened one of the apps and typed his name. Li Min. They were friends on social media. The two of them really did befriend each other 10 years ago, and in their shared acquaintances, Gu Yun saw… Li Feng. Annoying, paranoid drama queen rich upper-class boy he studied with. During the last year of college, they worked on a group project together the whole semester, and for that reason, he paid a few visits to the Li family mansion, which looked almost like a palace.
Li Min. Li Feng’s youngest brother who always seemed to be watching Gu Yun when he came over and sometimes listened in when they talked. He was nice, well-put together, thoughtful, and always seemed to think before talking. One day, he made them a noodle soup for lunch, it was really good.
No wonder Gu Yun didn’t remember him, Li Min was barely a middle schooler back then, a kid in his eyes.
“I remember,” Gu Yun said. “You grew up to be much more handsome than your brother.”
“Thank you.”
“And Geng-ge?”
“Chang Geng. My name before my father remembered I existed and gave me an official one,” he shrugged. “I like it when you use it.”
A loud scream came from the direction of the stage where Gaye Su Akyol was about to perform. Gu Yun’s hand tightened around Chang Geng’s wrist.
“Let’s go, A-Geng. My best friend won’t be happy if I miss that concert.”
When they reached the stage, the music was already playing and the crowd was swaying to the rhythm. They went straight for Gu Yun’s favorite spot by the three from which the screens with the show were visible. They sat down on the blanket and half listened to the songs, half talked about all the matters, important and unimportant, from Gu Yun’s pet rat to how traumatic but eye-opening it was reading The Kite Runner and To Live, getting to know each other and each other’s worldview. Gu Yun showed Chang Geng pictures of his hand-painted edition of Sun Tzu’s Art of War. Cheng Geng found a pen in his bag, and the next thing he knew, they were writing their favorite quotes from Chinese poetry on each other’s forearms, in beautiful calligraphy.
It was only a couple of hours later that Shen Yi texted him.
Shen Yi
Bro
Checking in, are you alive?
I’m still with those kids
Because you left me
Gu Yun
Sorry bro
It was worth it, though
Shen Yi
You’re unbelievable
You left me with strangers for a full day for a hot guy
Gu Yun
And smart
And with a beautiful soul
By the way, it’s not just a random hot guy anymore, it’s my boyfriend
Turns out he’s a very goal-oriented person and apparently I am the goal
I gladly complied
Shen Yi
Oh god
Congrats
I hope he won’t dump you when he discovers what a lazy, vulgar mess you are
Gu Yun
That’s the best part, he kind of already knows
He’s Li Feng’s brother
Remember that guy I studied with who appreciated my existence because he needed me to pass but also didn’t trust me and probably hated me? That one. I think he was really graphic with describing what human trash I am but somehow my Chang Geng still likes me <3
Shen Yi
Oh wow
Try to keep that one
I’d love it if someone else took care of you, not only me
Gu Yun
Fuck off
Anyway, can he sleep in our hotel room tonight?
Shen Yi
HOLD YOUR FUCKING HORSES YOU MET HIM TODAY
Gu Yun
I meant sleep
But Chang Geng says ‘no’ already, he says he couldn’t just sleep next to me <3
Shen Yi
Did you at least figure out his name before you kissed him
Gu Yun
No
Shen Yi
Of course, you didn’t
Are you guys coming for Kraftwerk now?
Bring the boy back, his friends are a bit worried
Gu Yun
Ugh fine
Shen Yi
Also
We’re going to the museum tomorrow, with the festival bracelet tickets at a discount
Us + them + one friend of theirs that stays with them but she came only because she likes the city and is having fun being a tourist
She’s a doctor or sth
Gu Yun
We’ll see
Maybe my boyfriend will want to take me out for brunch
Yes, he says yes to brunch
Sorry, apparently I’m busy tomorrow before the concerts
But go to the museum, you like museums
We’ll go for brunch and then hang out in our hotel room
Shen Yi
I have no words
But well, at the end of the day, even if you drive me crazy, I love you and I’m happy for you
Gu Yun
Thanks <3
Hey, don’t get single and miserable, maybe the doctor friend will be hot
Shen Yi
-_-