Cloudside Café

The Thirteenth Cup of Coffee Part 2

Jiang Ying said, “Truthfully, the model for the game we are doing now is a drawing of mine. My boss, don’t look at how he usually is, he’s a dog1.”

Yun Xian nodded silently in agreement.

“He’s actually the one who recruited me. After graduation, my family wanted me to have a stable job. So, I went to several companies for interviews, but the outcomes were not great. At that time, my boss contacted me and said that he liked the concept of ‘Little World’ and asked me if I had considered presenting it in the form of a game. He later told me some of his ideas. I was very excited when I heard it, and did not hesitate to start a business with him.” Jiang Ying was probably thirsty from speaking so much. She took out the orange juice from the paper bag, opened the bottle and took a sip.

As she talked about these experiences, Jiang Ying’s mood rose. She continued to share, “You should know my boss. I saw you two chatting last time.”

Yun Xian nodded. In order not to let Jiang Ying connect the dots on his relationship with Li Zhicheng, he said with a blank expression, “I’m not very familiar with him.”

“He has a bad temper and is unpredictable. But his business acumen is really excellent. He understands technology, marketing and creativity. Although I always make fun of him, I still respect him.”

Jiang Ying glanced at Yun Xian and slowed down her pace, “But I actually admire you the most. I heard from Xinrou that you used to be a director of an Internet company? The monthly salary is probably equal to me working for one year.”

Yun Xian was a little distracted for a moment and answered modestly, “It’s not that extreme. When I first entered the company, I was pretty much like you. I worked overtime all the time and was also corporate slave.”

Jiang Ying twirled the pencil and lightly smiled, “Although I always complain about how exhausting overtime is, every time I see the players’ comments, I become very happy and feel like I’ve achieved something.

“It’s good to find pleasure at work,” Yun Xian said. He could feel the love and enthusiasm in Jiang Ying’s heart when she talked. Her eyes were shining.

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In fact, he envied her. This was something he didn’t have—something he passionately loved and strived for, something he looked forward to in life and in the future, something full of purpose, something young and alive.

In what seemed like a smooth life, the greatest feeling he had ever felt was: it’s boring to live.

He could try his hardest for something, but he never had the ambition and desire for it—it’s all because a voice kept telling him what he should want and what he should do.

He played the role of a filial son, a mature older brother, an excellent student, and a dutiful employee. He stood out among the crowd.

On the surface, it was a polished and beautiful life. Everyone admired him, but Yun Xian knew that he would always be a mediocre human being. He pushed forward, passing goal after goal, and when he looked back, he found nothing worth remembering.

“Do not be afraid of dying, and spend it in passing.” Yun Xian once regarded this as the meaning of life.

——

When they got to a service area, Yun Xian turned the steering wheel and went in. He stopped the car and turned off the engine. He turned his head to look at Jiang Ying. She was focused on drawing again and was ignorant to the changes outside of her world.

The girl always seemed to give him nice, unexpected surprises, like a box of chocolates2.

Yun Xian thought of Jiang Ying’s Moments, where her exciting life was recorded.

She had been to many cities, rock climbing, bungee jumping, diving, and checked in at the roller coasters of six amusement parks.

She tried to learn to skateboard on a whim, and injured her leg from a fall during the first week.

She wanted to see the sunrise, but overslept. She simply changed her plans and enjoyed an orange-pink sunset.

She also shared interesting dreams. In the dream, she explored South America alone with her luggage on her back. She made three exclamation marks to express her excitement of meeting a lion deep in the forest, and used a series of ellipses to express the abrupt end of the dream when the alarm clock rang.

He remembered the way Jiang Ying was smoking on the steps that day, and the tattoo on her left shoulder—planet B612 and the rose in the glass globe.

Was she the little prince who was visiting the universe?

Jiang Ying was a reckless rebel and a romantic risktaker. She was like a flame on the wasteland that was impossible to extinguish. She was young and burning with enthusiasm, and was  invincible despite testing the limits.

She struggled to break free from the secular world, and illogically loved it with determination.

If there was a soft, warm, beating heart in front of you, would you resist being attracted to it?

It’s been cloudy and rainy recently. Dusk came earlier than usual, and it was completely dark at this moment. The branches outside the window were swaying from the wind.

Yun Xian raised his hand and turned off the light on the roof.

With a click, the car fell into darkness. The distinct smell of citrus fragrance spread everywhere. It was unclear whether it was the bergamot on his body or the orange juice that Jiang Ying had drunk.

Yun Xian took a light breath and leaned over, getting closer and closer.

Ding— A notification came from the mobile phone, and a new message arrived.

“Yun Xian, look!” Jiang Ying had just finished sending the message and was trying to look up, but she slammed into a hard object.

She let out a soft cry and covered her head. She asked Yun Xian, “Why are you suddenly leaning over?”

Yun Xian’s eyebrows scrunched together and he rubbed his chin. He pointed to the compartment. “I was getting change for the toll.”

“Oh.” The chin was a little more fragile, so Jiang Ying asked apologetically, “Is it okay, does it hurt?”

“Xiang… qin?”

Jiang Ying’s eyes suddenly widened. She hugged her iPad and looked warily at Yun Xian.

“Why did you give me this nickname?”

“You’re wrong. It’s not you. It’s a colleague of mine. Her name is Xiangqin.”

Yun Xian looked at her suspiciously. He took out his cell phone and unlocked the screen. He’s not wrong. She had just sent him a message, and the app was the same.

But soon, Yun Xian’s attention was drawn to the drawing on the screen. “What is this?”

“You and Cloudside.”

The drawing was in soft colors. It had patterned clouds on the blue background. The chibi version of the person was holding a cup of coffee. The speech bubble next to him was written with Jiang Ying’s unique handwriting: “Welcome to Cloudside Café”.

It was easy to tell who the drawer of the simple and cute style was with one glance.

It had Yun Xian’s hairstyle, the white shirt he liked to wear, and included the mole below his eye.

Jiang Ying held the iPad in her arms and looked at Yun Xian with high expectations, as if she wanted to be praised.

Yun Xian tapped the screen a few times. He saved the picture in an album, and rubbed Jiang Ying’s head.

“Nice painting, madam.”

The author has something to say:

An intelligent male lead will know how to learn and apply it well.

Footnotes

meaning he’s outrageousThe raws translate to a box of colorful candy, but I just had to throw in a Forrest Gump reference