| BYSG | Birthday Play | 87 | Extra 2
Shen Yu's birthday happened to fall on Children's Day, June 1st.
With summer break approaching, it was the season of final exams.
Initially, the dormitory planned to go to an amusement park together, but June 1st, 2019, happened to be a Saturday. The largest amusement park in Yancheng was bound to be overcrowded, filled with screaming children, and every ride would likely have long queues.
Just thinking about it was headache-inducing, so they decided to give up on the idea.
Since Shen Yu was the birthday star, the decision was left to him.
After some thought, Shen Yu suggested going to the arcade instead.
There was an arcade on the upper floor of a mall in the city center. They could have lunch at his mom’s place before heading over to play, then enjoy a luxurious university student discount at Haidilao for dinner.
At noon, Shen Xunyan prepared a small bowl of longevity noodles for Shen Yu.
A single long noodle was coiled in the bowl, and Shen Yu slurped it up in one go.
Longevity.
A beautiful meaning.
Besides the longevity noodles, Shen Xunyan had also pre-ordered a large cake.
On the cake, candles shaped like the number 19 were placed.
Although turning 18 held the greatest significance, for Shen Yu, 18 had been a turning point—19 was the true beginning of everything beautiful.
Before blowing out the candles, he sincerely made a wish in his heart—hoping that both he and his loved ones would be safe and healthy.
When he opened his eyes, under the flickering candlelight, all gazes were on him—warm and gentle.
With his hands still clasped together, he leaned forward and blew out the candles. In the instant darkness arrived, the "Happy Birthday" song played once again.
This was the most perfect birthday Shen Yu had ever had.
There was love, there was family, there were friends.
…
This time, Ning Que also came. There happened to be eight people, so Shen Yu evenly divided the cake into eight slices.
Little Ning Yuan ended up with cake all over her face, her eyes curving into crescent moons.
Ever since Brother Yu came, it means she gets another chance to eat cake every year!
How wonderful!
…
After the meal, the dormmates went to the arcade together.
Shen Yu was actually quite familiar with arcades. He never had the chance to visit them as a child, and now that he was about to graduate and start working, he inexplicably felt out of place there.
But the truth was, as soon as one stepped into the arcade, they would see that it wasn’t just filled with children—there were plenty of adults, too. Among them were college students and working professionals alike.
He realized then that it was only his childhood that had held him back.
At this moment, he wanted to break free from his restraints.
"Watch me grab a hamster plushie for you!" Cheng Mofei rolled up his sleeves and confidently approached a claw machine.
Inside the machine, there were numerous hamster plushies in various colors.
Shen Yu held a box of game tokens, watching him expectantly.
A few minutes later, all the tokens were gone, and their hands were still empty. Cheng Mofei visibly wilted—if he had a dog’s tail, it would surely be drooping all the way down.
Shen Yu had also tried a few times, but without exception, he came up empty-handed every time.
It was just too difficult.
"The hamster plushies are too chubby; they’re hard to grab. Let’s try something else," Shen Yu said, taking Cheng Mofei’s hand.
Cheng Mofei hesitated, still reluctant to give up.
Just then, Sun Xinghe and Xiao Xiong walked over, their hands full of plushies. Seeing Shen Yu and Cheng Mofei standing there empty-handed, Sun Xinghe immediately stepped forward with a token in hand.
One minute later—clang!—a hamster plushie dropped into the prize chute.
Shen Yu and Cheng Mofei’s eyes instantly lit up like stars.
"After dating for so long, if nothing else, I’ve at least mastered the art of the claw machine," Sun Xinghe boasted, hands on his hips.
His partner loved these kinds of things, and every time they went on a date, if there was a claw machine around, they would always try for a few prizes. Over time, he had picked up the tricks.
Watching Shen Yu happily hugging the hamster plushie, Cheng Mofei secretly made up his mind—he had to practice and get better at this.
…
They had dinner at Haidilao.
The birthday atmosphere was great, and the staff were all very enthusiastic, but it really wasn’t the best place for introverts.
Luckily, everyone in the dorm was lively and fun-loving, so there was no awkwardness—only a warm, bustling atmosphere.
While waiting for the food to cook, Shen Yu held his phone and edited a Moments post before sending it out.
The caption was simple: 【Nineteen years old】
But the pictures were plentiful.
There were snapshots of the lunch and birthday cake from earlier in the day, group photos, a picture of the hamster plushie they won at the arcade, and shots taken at Haidilao in the evening.
Not long after posting, Fang Xiang sent him a private message.
—Fang Xiang had actually sent him a birthday greeting and a red envelope right at midnight.
Fang Xiang: [You guys celebrated at Haidilao tonight?]
Shen Yu: [Yeah.]
Fang Xiang: [Thumbs up][Thumbs up][Thumbs up]
Fang Xiang: [Brother Fei really treats you well.]
Shen Yu paused for a few seconds, then finally understood what Fang Xiang meant.
Last year, when Fang Xiang visited Yancheng, Cheng Mofei had been too nervous to speak properly, acting all stiff and awkward. Fang Xiang had believed it was because he was shy, and that impression had stuck with him until now.
Shen Yu couldn't help but laugh softly.
He was about to explain, but Cheng Mofei, drawn by his laughter, leaned over and saw the last message on his screen.
Cheng Mofei: "Isn't that obvious? If I treat you well, who else would I treat well? Open your mouth."
Shen Yu smiled and obediently opened his mouth, biting into the little shrimp dumpling Cheng Mofei had fed him with a spoon. It had cooled down to the perfect temperature, with a delicious tomato flavor—it tasted amazing.
Shen Yu chewed, then typed, [Mm, he’s really, really good to me.]
…
After dinner, Cheng Mofei wanted to spend time with Shen Yu for a bit, while Sun Xinghe and Xiao Xiong made sure to give them some space for their date.
The subway was conveniently located on the basement floor of the mall, making it easy for Shen Yu to return to campus—just one transfer away.
Cheng Mofei didn’t bother asking where Shen Yu wanted to go for the date. After letting the food settle for a while, he headed straight home.
After all, he still had to tutor Cheng Zhiyu later.
The first thing Cheng Mofei did when he got to his room was lock the door.
The second thing was kiss Shen Yu.
As they kissed, they ended up in the bathroom.
Since they first became intimate during the winter break, they had frequently shared affectionate moments over the past six months.
The once shy and awkward senior, Cheng Mofei, had gradually become more proactive. He had even secretly been studying a few things on his own.
Tonight...
"Wait for me a second," Cheng Mofei said as he walked out of the bathroom wearing only his underwear, closing the bathroom door behind him. "I'll call you when it's time to come out."
Shen Yu blinked, knowing he was probably preparing some "surprise" for him.
About five minutes later, Cheng Mofei's voice finally came from outside.
"You can come out now."
Shen Yu, who had been tidying up the bottles and jars in the bathroom, immediately turned and pushed the door open.
Cheng Mofei was standing right outside. As soon as the door opened, he stepped forward and closed the distance between them.
At this moment, he had changed into a black suit—broad shoulders, a narrow waist, and every button meticulously fastened all the way to the top.
This year, Cheng Mofei had just turned twenty. Compared to when he was nineteen, there were only the subtlest of changes, and he still carried a hint of youthful innocence.
Wearing a suit didn’t give him any air of authority; instead, he looked more like a character straight out of a Japanese anime.
“How is it? Do you like it?” Cheng Mofei eagerly asked.
Last time, he had specially ordered a fluffy costume complete with animal ears, paws, and a tail for Shen Yu, and Shen Yu had loved it. So, for Shen Yu’s birthday this time, he decided to go for a different look to surprise him.
When he thought about Shen Yu’s rebirth, the first thing that came to his mind was a suit.
“I like it,” Shen Yu said with a gentle smile. He raised his hand and unfastened the buttons of Cheng Mofei’s suit jacket.
So silly.
Even seduction should be done properly.
All the buttons were fastened—what was there to see?
Only when the jacket was fully unbuttoned did Shen Yu notice the black restraint straps wrapped around the white dress shirt underneath.
The straps bound his shoulders and cinched slightly at the waist, accentuating the well-defined contours of his chest muscles—particularly alluring.
Shen Yu subconsciously swallowed and asked, “Where did you learn this?”
Cheng Mofei obediently answered, “I saw it online. There’s an artist who likes to share these things. Their comics… have quite a variety. One of them was about suit restraints, so I followed along and bought one.”
Shen Yu asked, “What’s the artist’s name?”
He wanted to check it out himself.
Cheng Mofei replied, “Se Li—Se as in ‘youthful,’ Li as in ‘pear.’”
Shen Yu responded with an "Oh," his fingers moving of their own accord to trace over Cheng Mofei’s chest muscles through the shirt.
That name… definitely didn’t belong to a very ‘serious’ artist.
But that was fine—if Cheng Mofei studied more, Shen Yu would get to enjoy it more too.
“What else did they teach?” Shen Yu asked casually.
“It said the attacker should keep the suit on the whole time, just like this,” Cheng Mofei replied.
Shen Yu’s fingers paused slightly. His mind instinctively conjured up a vivid image of such a scene, and shamefully—he reacted to it.
…
Late at night, Cheng Zhiyu, who was secretly staying up under the covers reading a novel, suddenly received a message from her cousin.
[Xiao Shen had some drinks for his birthday and got a little tipsy. He’s not feeling too well, so tomorrow’s tutoring session is postponed to next Saturday.]
Originally struggling with whether to go to sleep or brace herself for a morning tutoring session, Cheng Zhiyu instantly rolled happily on her bed upon seeing the message.
With her newfound freedom, she decided to stay up all night and finish her novel.
…
…
Several years later, on Shen Yu’s thirty-third birthday—another Children's Day.
Cheng Mofei had cleared his entire schedule in advance, setting aside the whole day just to be with Shen Yu.
As usual, they had a bowl of longevity noodles at home.
Ning Yuan, who was studying at a university in another city, couldn’t make it back in time. However, she had bought Shen Yu a gift early, with a card that read: “Happy birthday, Brother Xiaoyu! Love, your Yuan Yuan.”
Ning Que, on the other hand, had managed to rush back from the hospital. As expected, during dinner, their parents nagged him about his lifelong happiness again.
Without missing a beat, Ning Que activated his selective hearing mode and quietly continued peeling pine nuts.
Nagging was one thing, but at least they weren’t forcing him into blind dates. After all, being in his thirties, getting the occasional lecture was pretty much expected.
Not long after, he received a call from the hospital and hurried over.
Shen Yu and Cheng Mofei spent some time chatting with Shen Xunyan and Ning Boren before leaving. Afterward, they headed to the mall, won a few plush toys from a claw machine, and wandered around for a bit before returning home.
Once they got back, Shen Yu started unboxing his birthday gifts.
Cheng Mofei sat nearby, holding a kitten in his arms, occasionally lending a hand and helping out.
There were plenty of presents—some sent by his dormmates, some from Fang Xiang, some from Ning Yuan, some from Cheng Zhiyu, some from Han Xuan and Tan Feng, and others from colleagues and friends he had made over the years. It took quite a while to open everything.
Cheng Mofei’s gift was a custom-made tie clip—part of a matching couple’s set. One for Shen Yu, and one for himself.
He was already anticipating the moment when, in just a few days, some sharp-eyed university students would notice and start a CP discussion on the forums. He was honestly looking forward to it.
As usual, Shen Yu posted a status update on his social media.
Every year on his birthday, Shen Yu would post a status update to mark the occasion.
It was the day his mother had brought him into this world—a day that belonged solely to him each year, and he cherished it deeply.
…
That night, Cheng Mofei once again mysteriously locked Shen Yu in the bathroom, instructing him to stay inside until he called him out.
Shen Yu was already used to these little antics. Smiling, he idly tidied up the bottles and jars on the bathroom counter, patiently waiting.
About five minutes later, Cheng Mofei’s voice sounded from outside.
“You can come out now.”
Shen Yu eagerly opened the door.
Standing before him was Cheng Mofei, dressed in the official uniform of Yanda’s University of Finance.
Back in university, whenever the school organized events, Cheng Mofei would wear his faculty uniform as required.
Among all the matching outfits they had worn over the years, it was this uniform that left the deepest impression on Shen Yu’s heart.
It felt as if time had rewound several years. The breeze was gentle, and the air carried a faint scent of oranges.
“Do you like it?” Cheng Mofei asked with a smile.
Shen Yu didn’t answer. Instead, he simply said, “Close your eyes.”
Cheng Mofei obediently shut his eyes.
Just like that snowy night beneath the fireworks when they shared their first kiss, Shen Yu rose on his toes and pressed his lips against his.
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