novelraw Chapter 44 The wall was two meters high, and you fell into my arms at just the right moment.
Chapter 44 The wall was two meters high, and you fell into my arms at just the right moment.
Wednesday, 6:30 a.m.
When Su Yu arrived at the company, Cai Xiubin was already standing like a gatekeeper at the iron gate. Unlike usual, she wasn't huddled by the window, but instead leaned against the iron gate, holding the tube of ointment in her hand, applying it to her face in front of her phone's front camera.
Hearing footsteps, she looked up and saw that the redness and swelling on her left cheek had subsided by more than half, but the remaining purplish-blue mark was particularly conspicuous in the morning light, as if someone had casually smeared it with a cheap paintbrush.
"Are you a Rooster? What time do you get up?" Su Yu took out his keys and opened the door.
"5:30. Applying the ointment is a delicate task; I have to wait for it to dry completely before I can put on makeup, otherwise it will cake up." She stuffed the ointment back into her pocket and followed her in like a little tail. "There's a wall-climbing scene today, so I need to warm up my body beforehand."
Su Yu slammed his backpack on the table and turned to look at her. She was dressed in a black tracksuit, her ponytail was tied very tightly, her forehead was smooth and shiny, revealing a stubborn widow's peak.
"Does your face still hurt?"
"It doesn't hurt, it's just itchy." She touched her cheek. "Brother Yin said that itching means the flesh is growing, which is a good thing."
Su Yu pulled the apron out of the drawer and tossed it to her: "Eat breakfast first. Climbing over walls is hard work; how can you fall if you don't eat?"
What are we eating today?
"Seaweed rice rolls. Double portions, all you can eat."
Her eyes lit up, and she took the apron, putting it on and tying a pretty bow at the back. Su Yu unfolded the folding table, its metal legs creaking. The lunchbox was opened, revealing two neat rows of seaweed rice rolls, the seaweed glistening and tempting.
"What time did you get up to make this?" She grabbed a piece and stuffed it into her mouth, her cheeks bulging.
"5:30."
She paused, almost choking: "You're also at 5:30?!"
"Didn't you say the early bird catches the worm?" Su Yu leaned against the table, a half-smile on his face. "I'm that worm. If I don't get up early, I'm afraid you, the bird, will swallow me whole, bones and all."
She rolled her eyes, but couldn't suppress the smile on her lips, and continued to eat with her head down.
Nine o'clock in the morning, on the film set.
The wall was at least two meters high, made of brick and plastered with cement. Due to years of disrepair, the paint was peeling and looked like it said "keep away." There was a thick mat at the base of the wall, even thicker than the one used in the scene where he jumped off the building. Yoon Shi-yoon was already standing in front of the wall, dressed in black, with his hands in his pockets, his face clearly saying "keep away."
Cai Xiubin walked over, looked up at the top of the wall, and his neck ached from craning his neck. "Is this wall deliberately trying to mess with me? It's taller than me."
"How tall are you?" Yoon Shi-yoon asked coolly.
"One six three."
"The wall is two meters high. If you jump from the spot, you probably won't even touch the top layer of plaster."
Cai Xiubin's eyes widened: "Brother Yin, are you trying to comfort me or launching a personal attack?"
"State the objective facts."
Su Yu walked over, stood by the mat, and clapped his hands: "Wall climbing isn't about height, it's about technique. Your legs may be a bit short, but your explosive power is good. Running start, pushing off the wall, hand support, sideways movement, and the vault—all done in one smooth motion."
"You make it sound so easy, are you just a keyboard warrior?" Cai Xiubin took a deep breath. "Talk is cheap, show me how to translate something!"
Su Yu glanced at her, took off his coat and threw it on the ground. He took a few steps back, ran up, pushed off the wall, braced himself against the top of the wall, turned his body to the side, and took a long stride—the movements were smooth and fluid, except that he stumbled a couple of steps when he landed before he could stop.
Cai Xiubin clapped: "Not bad, not bad, but the last two steps look a bit like a penguin's walk."
Su Yu rolled her eyes and looked back: "That was to demonstrate an incorrect landing posture. Don't you understand art?"
"Keep making things up, keep making things up."
Yoon Shi-yoon stepped forward expressionlessly: "Move aside, let's see the professionals."
He stepped back, sprinted, and leaped. He was as light as a black cat, bracing himself against the wall, twisting his body to the side, and landing silently and steadily. Su Yu glanced at Cai Xiubin: "Did you see that clearly? That's what you call scaling a wall; what you just saw was acrobatic."
Cai Xiubin gritted her teeth: "Fine! I'll do it too!"
She took a few steps back, took a deep breath, roared to bolster her courage, and charged forward. She pushed off the wall with her feet and barely reached the top with her hands, but her core strength clearly couldn't keep up. She ended up hanging on the wall like a salted fish, unable to go up or down, creating a very awkward situation.
Su Yu walked over helplessly, supported her waist with both hands, and "plucked" her off the wall. Due to inertia, she lost her balance when she landed and fell solidly into his arms.
In that instant, the faint scent of her ointment and shampoo filled my nostrils. Not far away, Yoon Shi-yoon silently took out his phone, pretending to check stocks, his back view screaming, "I don't know these two people."
Cai Xiubin's face instantly turned bright red, burning from the base of her neck all the way to behind her ears, like a ripe tomato. She placed her hands on Su Yu's chest, but didn't push him away, only stammering, "Su Yu..."
"Hmm?" Su Yu looked down, his chin almost brushing against the top of her head.
"Your hand...is it in the wrong place? That's too...too honest."
Su Yu calmly released her hand, even straightening her collar which she had just disheveled: "I was just supporting your waist. Otherwise, would you just stand there like a gecko, waiting to collect admission fees? Besides, if I didn't rely on you and you fell and broke something, I'd be the one paying for it."
She glared at him, both embarrassed and indignant, and took a few steps back: "Again! I don't believe it!"
The second time, she pushed off the wall with enough force and braced herself with her hands, but when she landed, her knees slammed hard onto the mat with a dull thud. She lay on the mat, motionless for a long time.
Su Yu walked over and squatted down: "Does it hurt?"
"It hurts so much..." The voice was muffled in the cushion, sounding like a sob.
"If it hurts, get up. You won't die from the fall."
She didn't move, and after a few seconds she raised her head, her eyes red, like a wronged little rabbit: "Su Yu, I might really not have any athletic ability, I can't do the flip."
"You clearly flipped halfway over, but your landing wasn't very graceful."
"Is that called flipping over? That's called landing face down!"
Su Yu reached out and pulled her up, his eyes serious: "Let's do it again. Once you've flipped over once, you'll see the view from up there."
She bit her lip and fiercely wiped her eyes: "Fine! Let's try again! If I don't conquer this wall today, I'm not a Cai!"
The third time. Like an enraged little leopard, she ran incredibly fast, her push against the wall with tremendous force. The instant her hands touched the top of the wall, she used her core strength, twisted her body to the side, and took a long stride—she was steady! Although she stumbled slightly upon landing, she was indeed standing on the other side of the wall.
She froze for a second, then abruptly turned to look at Su Yu, her eyes shining brightly: "Su Yu! I rolled over! I really rolled over!"
"I saw it. But Angoun's character not only has to run out, he also has to run back. Let's try again."
Cai Xiubin's smile froze instantly: "Su Yu, are you even human?!"
Noon, in the lounge.
Cai Xiubin slumped in the folding chair, her legs stretched out straight, a large bruise on her knee. Su Yu squatted in front of her, squeezed out some ointment, and applied it to her knee with a light, gentle touch, using just the right amount of pressure.
"Ouch—that hurts! Be gentle, are you trying to murder me?"
"You can't be gentle when applying the medicine; it won't heal if you don't rub it in properly." Su Yu raised her eyes, a half-smile on her face. "Weren't you quite fierce when you were climbing over the wall? Now you know how to cry out in pain?"
Cai Xiubin bit her lip and looked down at the top of his head. His bangs were a bit long, hanging down and covering his eyebrows and eyes. As if possessed, she reached out and brushed his bangs aside.
Su Yu paused, looked up, and met her gaze: "What?"
"Your hair is too long, you look like a homeless person."
"I don't have time to cut it."
"Then I'll cut it for you."
"You can?"
"No, but I can use you as practice."
Su Yu raised an eyebrow: "Are you trying to settle a personal score?"
She chuckled, her fingers weaving through his hair: "You caught me. If you mess up the haircut, just wear a hat. You're handsome enough to look good even in a burlap sack."
Su Yu screwed the cap back on the ointment, stood up, and concealed the smile on her lips: "Let's get the wall cleared first, otherwise if we mess it up, you'll blame it on my shaky hands."
In the afternoon, Sulli made a surprise appearance on set.
She walked in without saying hello. Wearing a white coat, with long, wavy hair, and carrying a takeout bag, she exuded an aura of authority. Su Yu was visibly taken aback when he saw her.
"What a rare guest! What brings you here?"
"Just passing by, thought I'd drop by your 'cash cow'." She slammed the takeout bag on the table, her gaze sweeping over Cai Xiubin. "What happened to your face? Did someone punch you?"
"When filming fight scenes, the director wanted realism, so the fights were real." Cai Xiubin touched her cheek.
Shirley stared at her for a few seconds, then sneered, "You're really going all out, willing to sacrifice your dignity for fame?" Turning to Su Yu, she added, "And you, didn't you know to stop her? If she gets disfigured, how will she ever get married?"
"She's determined; can I stop her?"
Shirley rolled her eyes. "Fine. I brought you some food. Eat it while it's hot, you'll have the energy to take the beating." She turned and walked to the door, her hand on the doorknob, then suddenly stopped. Without turning around, she called out, "Su Yu."
"Um?"
I watched the third episode twice.
"What's your opinion?"
"Not bad." With that, he pushed open the door and left, concealing his achievements and fame.
Cai Xiubin looked at the swaying door, then at Su Yu: "What does she mean? Is 'not bad' a compliment or an insult?"
"It means you acted well. In Shirley's dictionary, 'okay' is the highest praise, equivalent to an Oscar."
Cai Xiubin nodded as if he understood, but didn't ask any further questions.
That evening, Su Yu returned to the semi-basement.
He pushed open the door and went inside. Water was still dripping from the ceiling, drip, drip, like some kind of eerie metronome. He took off his shoes, his bare feet stepping onto the cold cement floor, and walked to the bed to lie down. The black rubber band under the pillow was still there; he took it out, wrapped it around his fingers a few times, and then loosened it.
The phone screen lit up. Cai Xiubin sent a message: "What time tomorrow morning?"
"Seven o'clock. The company."
"So early? Aren't there no wall-climbing scenes tomorrow?"
"There were no wall-climbing scenes, but there were seaweed rice rolls. Your wall-climbing posture today was too ugly, you need to practice more."
An angry, eye-rolling emoji appeared on the other end. Immediately followed by another message: "Su Yu, thank you for today."
"What are you thanking me for?"
"Thank you for asking me to go up there. If it weren't for you, I might have been hanging on the wall all night."
Su Yu looked at the line of text, a slight smile playing on his lips, and typed a reply: "I'm not asking you. If you hang there and can't get down, it'll be my men who lose face, since they're the soldiers I trained."
She sent a smiley face. Then she sent another message: "Goodnight, Su Yu."
Su Yu replied with two words: "Good night."