Xiao Maiguo"s phone rang as he chewed on the last piece of pizza. He picked it up and rolled his eyes. "Oh my G.o.d! He"s calling me again." He complained."Who"s calling you again?" Xuan Chaya asked as he walked towards the kitchen sink to wash his hands.
"Ben. Who else?" Xiao Maiguo"s voice was filled with anger.
"Oh!" Xuan Chaya mumbled.
"I don"t believe it. I turned my phone off for so many days. It hasn"t even been up to an hour since I turned it on."
"Just pick up the call. Maybe he has something important to say."
Xiao Maiguo sighed, picked up the call and pressed it to his ears. After exchanging a few words with Ben, he cut off the call and hissed loudly.
"I"m guessing he didn"t have anything important to say."
"No, he didn"t. He just kept asking me stupid questions like if I"ve eaten and all that c.r.a.p. Then he asked if I would like to hang out with him because he"s bored."
"Next time he calls, just be straightforward with him and tell him you have a boyfriend."
"You don"t understand, Xiao Maiguo. Everything about this man p.i.s.ses me off. Even his voice. I never want to talk to him again."
"Why don"t you tell him that next time he calls?"
"Isn"t it a bit rude?"
"It"s not a bit rude. It"s very rude but I bet he"ll never call again after that."
The phone rang again and Xiao Maiguo waved it at Xuan Chaya so he immediately understood Ben was calling again. "I"m going to put it on loudspeaker."
Xuan Chaya nodded and Xiao Maiguo answered the call.
"h.e.l.lo," Ben"s voice echoed into the room.
"Hey," Xiao Maiguo said calmly.
"I wasn"t done talking before you disconnected the call. There probably was a problem with your connection or something."
"No, there wasn"t a problem with my connection, I disconnected the call."
"Ouch!" Xuan Chaya mumbled quietly while holding his chest. In a whisper, he added, "Too harsh."
Xiao Maiguo rolled his eyes and ignored him.
"Were you busy?" Ben asked after being silent for a while.
"No." Xiao Maiguo said. "I didn"t want to talk to you anymore."
Ben"s laughter echoed through the phone puzzling both Xuan Chaya and Xiao Maiguo who made gestures at each other. Each asking the other why Ben was so amused.
"That"s brutal," Ben commented when his laughter subsided. "But... I like it."
"..."
"Are you still there? You didn"t answer my question earlier. Would you like to hang out with me sometime?"
"No. No Ben, I wouldn"t like to hang out with you sometime."
"Why not?"
"First, I"m busy. Second, I don"t like you. Or your voice. Don"t you ever call me again, alright?" Xiao Maiguo snapped.
"You don"t like my voice? I"ve been told that my voice has a very s.e.xy baritone to it."
Xuan Chaya nodded in agreement and Xiao Maiguo held the bridge of his nose in frustration.
Ben continued. "I"ve never met anyone who doesn"t like my voice. This is a first for me and it makes me like you even better."
"Alright!" Xuan Chaya sighed. "Hey, Ben."
"Hi, who are you?" Ben asked.
"I"m Xiao Maiguo"s boyfriend. And I"m not comfortable with you calling my boyfriend as often as you do."
Xiao Maiguo smiled.
Xuan Chaya continued. "You stay away from him, okay? Otherwise, I"ll find you and get you arrested under charges of hara.s.sment."
"Hey, chill dude. I was just messing around with him."
"Then... Don"t mess around with him anymore. I"m very uncomfortable with it."
"Okay. Bye then."
"Bye." Xuan Chaya said. Before he could disconnect the call, Ben disconnected it on the other end.
"That was very nice, Xuan Chaya." Xiao Maiguo complimented with a big grin on his face.
"Yes." Xuan Chaya nodded. "It"s not that difficult to pretend to be someone"s boyfriend, is it?"
Xiao Maiguo rolled his eyes. "I"m not going to pretend to be your boyfriend. Haven"t you got any replies from the people you messaged?"
"I messaged five people, Xiao Maiguo. Two are yet to reply. One of them types very slowly. The other one, I can barely understand what he"s typing. The fifth sent me a picture of his p.e.n.i.s." Xuan Chaya cringed his face in disgust. "What am I going to do with a picture of a p.e.n.i.s?"
Xiao Maiguo smirked. "Send it to me. I know what to do with it."
Xuan Chaya shook his head. "I"m getting fed up."
Just then, Xiao Maiguo"s phone beeped. After looking at it, he hissed loudly and tossed it aside.
"Ben?" Chaya asked.
"Yes." Xiao Maiguo said. "He sent me a text saying, "You asked your BOYFRIEND to talk to me to scare me off. I"m not even p.i.s.sed. I actually thought it was cute. Talk to you later.""
Xuan Chaya sighed. "He"s too much. Just block his number."
"I don"t know how to."
"Give it here," Xuan Chaya collected the phone from Xiao Maiguo and started looking for the blacklist option on the latter"s phone.
Xiao Maiguo stood up and took off his s.h.i.+rt. "While you do that, I"ll go freshen up."
"Dude, don"t wear my clothes after you take your bath, I don"t like it." Xuan Chaya screamed after him.
"Tell that to my middle finger." Xiao Maiguo screamed back.
Xuan Chaya found the blacklist option on Xiao Maiguo"s phone and blacklisted Ben"s number. Almost immediately, his own phone rang. He picked it up and pressed it to his ear.
"Chaya," His mother"s voice echoed at the other end of the line. The soft tone in which she spoke his name immediately told Xuan Chaya she was up to some mischief.
"Mum?"
"Could you come over to my place? I need your help with something."
"Mummy." Xuan Chaya said in a flat voice.
"Son?"
"Do you really need my help with something or do you just want me to come over so you can ask me questions about my boyfriend?"
After a little hesitation, Charlotte replied. "Yes. I threw my back out lifting a box."
"Mummy." Xuan Chaya said flatly.
Charlotte sighed on the other end of the line. "There are many things I need to know. What"s his favorite food and color? What TV shows does he like? How long have you been going out?"
"Mummy. Get a grip of yourself."
"Are you coming?" Charlotte asked in a pleading voice.
Xuan Chaya rolled his eyes. "No. I have something to do, mum. You should save all your questions for when I do bring him over."
"Son—"
"Mum, if you do this, you"ll just freak him out and he might refuse to come with me."
"Oh!" Charlotte paused. "I didn"t think about that. He seems very shy."
"He is. But I"ll talk him into coming, okay?"
"Okay, son."
Xuan Chaya smiled. "How"s your husband?"
"Your father got an important call from the company and had to go back to the US."
"When? What came up?" Xuan Chaya scratched his left ear.
"I don"t know, son. But I"m sure he"ll call you if it"s important."
"Okay, mum. I"ll talk to you later?"
"Okay, son. Mum loves you, okay?"
"I love you too, mum. Bye."
"Bye. Send my love to Xiao Maiguo, okay?"
"Always ma. Bye." Xuan Chaya disconnected the call and sighed at the trap he had put himself in.
In a moment of enlightenment, he picked up his phone and entered Nanpengyou; the dating App. He clicked on the "nearby" link to get recommendations from people either in Tianjin or near Tianjin.
Xuan Chaya chose the "online" filter so only people online would show up on his feed. Lastly, he made sure to avoid choosing the "Elite" filter as he presumed anyone who didn"t have a members.h.i.+p is probably too broke to afford it.
He carefully navigated from profile to profile. Specifically avoiding people who wanted "Flings" or "Friends with benefits" as he a.s.sumed those were the kind who would send him unsolicited pictures of their p.e.n.i.ses.
Soon, a specific profile caught his attention. In the occupation tab, the person had written, "Sells popcorn at Xindong Cinema." Immediately he read this, his heart skipped a beat. This was exactly what he was looking for; a broke person looking for a committed relations.h.i.+p.
Xuan Chaya was so nervous he almost broke into a sweat. He couldn"t help the feeling that if he blew the chance to get this person to be his fake boyfriend, he wouldn"t get another chance.
Taking a deep breath, Xuan Chaya clicked on the "message" b.u.t.ton and typed, "Hi. I need someone to pretend to be my boyfriend. If you can help me out, I"ll be pleased. I"ll pay you for it."
Xuan Chaya stared at his phone for what seemed like an eternity to him as he waited for a response. Every second that went by made his heart beat a little faster.
Finally, the reply came from the other end. "If I wanted to work as an escort, I know where to go."
Xuan Chaya"s eyes almost popped out of his head when he saw the reply. Realizing the person on the other end had misunderstood him, he quickly explained. "I"m sorry, I didn"t mean it like that. My parents were trying to make me marry a girl and I lied to them that I"m gay and have a boyfriend. My mum supports me and has told the other family off. But now, she wants to meet my boyfriend. That"s why I need someone to pretend to be my boyfriend."
"Give me a video call." The person at the other end said.
"Why?"
"Your story is wild. To make sure I"m not being catfished."
"Okay." Xuan Chaya said and called the person on the other end. He smiled at the person, but before he could say a word, the person disconnected the call. Xuan Chaya stared at the screen stupidly. Waiting for the person"s message.
"You have very beautiful eyes." The person said.
Reading the message, Xuan Chaya"s heartbeat skipped and he smiled again. He liked talking to this stranger. "Thank you." He replied.
"I"m Cheng Jian and I"m in desperate need of money at the moment. I"ll actually do anything for some extra cash right now, except exchange s.e.x for it." The person at the other end said.
Xuan Chaya smiled and replied. "I"m Xuan Chaya. I"m willing to pay about any amount of money to get myself out of this mess. And it"s nice to meet you."
"Wait till we actually meet. I"ve got to go now. Bye." Cheng Jian"s last messages read.
Xuan Chaya stared at the messages and smiled. He couldn"t get past the thought that the heavens must have sent him this person to him. Although, he couldn"t quite see what he had ever done to deserve such kindness.