IROAWTMTFL Chapter 43

The Moments post that Yan Yan sent out was deleted when they reached the next service area. Even though Zhuang Yiyun’s words were powerful, and the word “miracle” touched him deeply, just looking at it by himself was enough. Posting it on Moments was a bit too much; others wouldn’t understand it and might find it confusing .

The more he thought about it, the more sentimental it seemed. But, maybe he was just a foil for the sunset, necessary for the composition and atmosphere?

While Zhuang Yiyun was asleep, Yan Yan, felt overwhelmed by the romantic gesture and blushed. The sophistication of this act was a bit much for him to handle. Even after deleting the Moments post, he couldn’t stop thinking about it.

Chinese New Year was probably the time when people posted on Moments the most frequently. Yan Yan thought it would be easily pushed down, and not many people would see it. Even if someone did see it, they wouldn’t understand the context, so it didn’t matter. However, what he didn’t expect was that someone had been following his Moments ever since he posted yesterday.

The moment he saw this post, Orange was immediately convinced of his intuition.

“Captured at…” indicated that it was a photo, Orange muttered to himself. Although he didn’t know the content, the fact that Brother Yan would post it separately on Moments meant it had significant meaning.

This handwriting wasn’t Brother Yan’s. They had known each other for a long time; Orange had seen Yan Yan’s handwriting before, and this definitely wasn’t his. So, the person who wrote these words must be someone traveling with Yan Yan.

They say a person’s handwriting reflects their personality. So if he were to look at them, the person who wrote this line could only be a man, and probably a mature and distinguished man.

Orange imagined the scene: a tall, handsome, mature man had taken a photo with Brother Yan, and the man had inscribed words on the photo. For this, Brother Yan had specifically posted a Moment.

On refreshing, the Moments post was gone.

Instead of being reassured, Orange became more certain of his judgment.

Without further hesitation, he opened the ticket booking app and booked the earliest flight to Hainan. Unfortunately, Chinese New Year was the peak tourist season in Hainan, and it was extremely difficult to get tickets, whether to Haikou or Sanya. Even red-eye flights were fully booked. He managed to get a seat on the earliest flight, which was in two days.

He opened Yan Yan’s chat window, wanting to say something. He typed a line: [Brother Yan, you stood me up, I’m coming to find you.]

He deleted it before sending, removing each word until nothing was left.

Yan Yan who was miles away, was unaware of this. He had just left the island highway and arrived in Dongfang City. This was the only destination selected by Zhuang Yiyun. Before they set out, he had set the navigation, and the endpoint was the skydiving base at sea.

He had never tried skydiving before. As they approached the destination, the chaotic thoughts caused by the photo finally calmed down and turned into anticipation for the new activity. Zhuang Yiyun had been sleeping all the way until the car stopped, and he had to wake him up.

There were multiple sea skydiving bases in Hainan, and the one in Dongfang City wasn’t the most famous. He guessed that there must be a reason why Zhuang Yiyun specifically chose this place. Indeed, after Zhuang Yiyun woke up and took a moment to recover, he took out his phone and made a call.

Shortly after the call, someone came to pick them up—a middle-aged man with a sturdy build. He greeted Zhuang Yiyun warmly as soon as he saw him.

“Hey, Xiao Yun, long time no see.”

Although the man was older, hearing the term “Xiao Yun” surprised Yan Yan. Besides his parents, he was the first person he had heard call Zhuang Yiyun “Xiao Yun.”

Zhuang Yiyun clearly knew this person well and accepted the greeting with a smile, looking very relaxed.

“This is Old Zheng, the skydiving instructor,” he introduced the two to each other. “Old Zheng, this is Yan Yan.”

Upon hearing the man’s identity, Yan Yan immediately greeted him warmly and respectfully, “Hello, Brother Zheng.”

Surprisingly, Zhuang Yiyun had even found an acquaintance to take him skydiving. He didn’t expect Zhuang Yiyun to be so considerate.

Zhuang Yiyun frowned, visibly displeased. Yan Yan had referred to the man as “Brother Zheng.” Even though there was no romantic or ambiguous meaning behind it, Zhuang Yiyun didn’t like it. He had stated that he was the only one who could be called “brother,” and now he couldn’t even use that title anymore, so he felt uncomfortable.

Old Zheng was also quite warm towards Yan Yan. Zhuang Yiyun had brought someone with him, which was unprecedented. He had returned to China from Australia to work for three or four years, and Zhuang Yiyun visited him every year, but this was the first time he had brought someone to jump.

After entering the base, Yan Yan became more active when he looked at the various parachuting equipment and the helicopters parked outside. Skydiving, bungee diving, he was interested in all exciting and novel sports, although he did not expect that his first time skydiving would be with Zhuang Yiyun.

“Brother Zheng, are we jumping soon?”

“you need to do a physical examination first.”

“Okay, at what height do we jump from?”

“4300 meters high.”

“Wow, impressive. Brother Zheng, can we do flips in the air?”

“No, it’s not wingsuit flying. However, it’s not ‘we,’ it’s ‘you.’” Old Zheng stopped and pointed at Zhuang Yiyun.

“Huh? Isn’t the instructor supposed to guide us?” Yan Yan’s face clearly showed his disbelief. Could a beginner jump on their own?

“Yes, Coach Zhuang will guide you.”

Yan Yan glanced at Old Zheng and then at Zhuang Yiyun. Zhuang Yiyun nodded at him, confirming that it wasn’t a joke.

Zhuang Yiyun left them and went with the staff arranged by Old Zheng to check the equipment. Old Zheng took the opportunity to explain to Yan Yan.

“Xiao Yun earned his E-certificate from APF, which is commonly known as a skydiving instructor certificate. However, he does it purely as a hobby, he got certified but never guided anyone. He was my student back in Australia and later became a friend. When I returned to China, he came to jump every year. This is his first time guiding someone.”

“But don’t worry, Xiao Yan. He’s very skilled, and it’s safe.”

Zhuang Yiyun, who was praised for his skill, personally helped Yan Yan put on the equipment inside the helicopter, securing the two of them together. The shoulder straps were manageable, but when Zhuang Yiyun squatted down to fasten the thigh straps, his fingers grazed Yan Yan’s thigh, making him slightly uncomfortable.

The sports equipment clung to his body, outlining his beautiful leg shape. Zhuang Yiyun’s gaze subtly shifted, and as he fastened the straps, he couldn’t help but think of Yan Yan wearing shorts. It must look very good, very tempting.

His teeth itched, and after they were all geared up, the hand he had around Yan Yan’s waist exerted a bit more force than he intended.

They were very close, close enough to communicate in regular tones amidst the helicopter’s deafening noise. The atmosphere was tense and Yan Yan tried to break the silence, “How did you end up learning skydiving?”

Ah damn it, who couldn’t learn skydiving? Just because Zhuang Yiyun seemed a bit scholarly didn’t mean he couldn’t enjoy extreme sports. However, the words were already out, and he couldn’t take them back, so Yan Yan could only wait for his answer with a curious expression.

“For stress relief.”

Zhuang Yiyun didn’t continue the topic and gave Yan Yan detailed instructions. In the end, he summarized, “Just relax your body and trust me.”

Yan Yan: “…” This phrase was something that be said in a situation unsuitable for children, damn it.

The helicopter ascended to the designated altitude, and they reached the door. The moment they leaped from the high altitude, a strong feeling of weightlessness struck Yan Yan’s heart and every nerve in his body was stirred.

He followed Zhuang Yiyun’s guidance to relax, stretched his limbs, and the sensation of floating replaced the weightlessness. He felt like a gliding bird, unparalleled freedom.

“Whoa!” He exclaimed, and the mountains and seas were smoothed out beneath his feet.

Seeing him so happy, Zhuang Yiyun floated with him and opened the parachute at an extreme height. Old Zheng watched in amazement. This kind of risk was a bit too much for a young man. It was only because of Zhuang Yiyun’s skill and stable mindset that he dared to do it.

Yan Yan didn’t understand this; he only knew it was thrilling. When he landed on the beach, he was still laughing. Initially, Zhuang Yiyun planned to take him for one experience, but he was too excited. Not only did he have no aftereffects from the first jump, but he also shouted that he wanted to go again.

Zhuang Yiyun took him for two more jumps, but they didn’t do any risky maneuvers. Before the last jump, Yan Yan asked him, “Is it boring for you to jump with me? Are you planning to solo jump later?”

Zhuang Yiyun was surprised, he hadn’t expected Yan Yan to be concerned about this. Originally, he had intended to solo jump later, but he changed his mind suddenly.

“It’s a lot of fun, I just want to do a wingsuit jump later. Do you want to watch from the sky?”

“You can do wingsuit flying too?!” Yan Yan turned around in surprise, almost bumping into Zhuang Yiyun’s face.

His excited smile was still on his face. If it weren’t for the restraints, Zhuang Yiyun suspected he might jump up on the spot. He was too dazzling; Zhuang Yiyun couldn’t help but think, the next time he came, he wanted to embrace him and kiss him in mid-air.

“You need 500 jumps to get an E-certificate from APF, but you can learn wingsuit flying after 200 jumps.”

“I want to see!”

“Then let Old Zheng take you flying later. We can jump together.”

Yan Yan looked at him sideways. They had long surpassed the boundaries of social distance and he could see his expressions clearly. Normally, Zhuang Yiyun was profound and reserved. Later, he discovered that this person could ignite a wildfire when flirting. Only this time did he see Zhuang Yiyun’s truly unrestrained appearance.

He still didn’t show much expression, but his sharpness was evident.

Wingsuit flying is a sport with an extremely high fatality rate, some say up to 30%, so it was a truly extreme sport. A scientist using skydiving to vent stress was one thing, but why would he play such a dangerous sport as wingsuit flying? Was he really not afraid of death, or was he simply indifferent?

Yan Yan didn’t voice these questions. His curiosity about the man in front of him had reached its peak.

Is the soul beneath the iceberg like a volcano? Hot enough to burn everything, like lava.

They jumped separately at the final jump. Zhuang Yiyun jumped first, and Yan Yan watched him flip and glide in the air, like a true bird. Then, Old Zheng took him flying, and they got close. After Zhuang Yiyun opened his parachute, they looked at each other in the sky.

Although Zhuang Yiyun wore a helmet and be couldn’t see his eyes at all, he had a feeling Zhuang Yiyun was staring at him. It was a mysterious and profound gaze, and Yan Yan looked away first. It was their last jump; the sky and the mountains and seas were so beautiful. It would be a pity not to look more.

They stayed in Dongfang for a day, had dinner with Old Zheng in the evening, bid farewell to him the next day, and continued southward.

Sanya was a popular tourist city they had both visited. Neither of them had any intention of staying, so they drove past Sanya and arrived in Lingshui. Yan Yan had booked a room at a seaside wooden cabin on Fenjiezhou Island. They planned to stay for two nights, relaxing, and diving.

Everything was fine except that during the Spring Festival, accommodations were really tight. There were only a few wooden cabins on the island, and they had only booked one. After sleeping separately for two nights, they had to squeeze into one room again.