The basketball court of the School of Management was separated from the dormitory area by a concrete road. Twelve pairs of basketball hoops were set up on the plastic court. The perimeter of the court was enclosed by wire mesh, creating a relatively isolated space.

　　Gu Pan used to be a regular here. Before moving out of the dormitory to live off-campus, he would come every other day with his own basketball to practice at night. With few people around during this time, shielded by the cover of night, he could practice his shooting skills with confidence.

　　Gu Pan had never expressed how envious he was of those classmates with developed athletic abilities and outstanding talents in sports. But when he heard the high-pitched cheers of female students outside the wire mesh or on the stands, he couldn't help but look back. Even though he knew those cheers were meant for someone else.

　　Persisting until late autumn arrived, Gu Pan's basketball skills had slightly improved. And it was at this time that Yu Yan's request for "cohabitation" unexpectedly came. From then on, there was one less young figure among those practicing basketball at night.

　　The summer break was already halfway over. At five o'clock in the afternoon, Gu Pan, one of the few students returning to the campus, stood by the bushes outside the wire mesh. Su Chiyuan had invited him to meet here.

　　After a brief wait, footsteps approached from afar. Dressed in casual sportswear, Mr. Su jogged over. Spotting Gu Pan from a distance, he waved his hand. "Sorry, got detained by security for quite a while..."

　　"No worries, I just arrived too."

　　"I always end up giving others the impression of being late, quite frustrating, heh." Su Chiyuan's face showed embarrassment.

　　"It's not always like that. Mr. Su has always been punctual. Unexpected incidents happen to everyone," Gu Pan reassured.

　　"Okay. Um, I feel like the security here is stricter than before..." Su Chiyuan's words trailed off, as if blocked by a sudden warning sign in his mind. Realizing the imminent loss of words, he quickly adjusted his posture and gazed aimlessly down the deserted road to ease the awkwardness.

　　"How so?" Gu Pan, curious about the abrupt halt in Su Chiyuan's speech, asked.

　　"Uh... let's keep moving!" Su Chiyuan briskly headed towards a relatively hidden small door behind the lush foliage. His steps were firm, without hesitation.

　　"Mr. Su has been here before?" Gu Pan's eyes, squinting slightly in the sunlight filtering through the trees, returned to their normal state due to his surprise. He was astonished that Mr. Su seemed to know the shortcuts developed by the campus residents so well.

　　"Oh, it was still Gu who showed me the way! The timing was just right, with the weather and temperature all suitable..." Su Chiyuan intentionally stepped back two paces.

　　With the hem of his jersey brushing against the tall weeds and his legs, Su Chiyuan followed Gu Pan through the wire mesh.

　　The court was vast, incredibly so. It was divided into various-sized blocks by white lines, some with irregular curved shapes.

　　Su Chiyuan pointed to a spot ahead. "There, let's play under that hoop? It's the third one from south to north, three is my lucky number..."

　　"Sure!" Gu Pan agreed with Mr. Su's random choice of location. He didn't see much difference between hoops one through twelve anyway.

　　They exchanged roles in offense and defense several times during their one-on-one game. The sky gradually shifted from blue to gray, with stubborn streaks of gold and pink. Meanwhile, Su Chiyuan's jumps and the pace of his offense and defense gradually diminished as the sun sank in the west.

　　Glancing at his watch, it seemed he was tightly controlling the time. Finally, he gestured defeat to Gu Pan, running towards the hoop and grabbing the towel draped over his backpack. "Age catches up with us, young man. Let's call it a truce!"

　　Gu Pan didn't persist, despite his high spirits. Relying on basic common sense and his experience as an average athlete, he judged that Mr. Su was far from reaching his physical limit.

　　He felt there must be another reason for his opponent's eagerness to "surrender." In this contest, Su Chiyuan clearly hadn't exerted his full effort. If you were to calculate the average competitiveness of all boys on the sports field worldwide, Su Chiyuan's would obviously be below that average. This seemed unreasonable coming from a man who initiated the challenge.

　　But would it be reasonable to delve deeper into this? Thinking about it, Gu Pan felt that it wasn't fair to scrutinize someone who had been so helpful to him. So, he abandoned speculation and, like Su Chiyuan, went to the hoop to wipe away sweat and pack up, echoing Su Chiyuan's resolute intention to leave.

　　2

　　Su Chiyuan invited Gu Pan to dinner. He drove to a private restaurant in a scenic area of a certain mountain before seven o'clock.

　　The storefront was small, with only a few private rooms available. The difficulty of booking a table was evident. Gu Pan secretly speculated that Su Chiyuan's occasional time-checking on the basketball court in the afternoon might be related to this. But how did a simple dinner turn into such a grand affair? Could there be other guests?

　　In fact, there weren't. Once seated, Su Chiyuan immediately instructed the waiter to bring the pre-ordered red wine. Uncorking the bottle, pouring the wine... Gu Pan remained silent, watching Su Chiyuan's fluid movements with fascination.

　　Perhaps it was the overly bright spotlight overhead that made Gu Pan begin to feel dazed. He was just an ordinary student, so why was he being treated so generously by Mr. Su, a lawyer and a counseling psychologist?

　　"Mr. Su, you've been so generous too many times. I don't quite understand," Gu Pan mimicked Su Chiyuan's gesture of gripping the wine glass and gently shaking it.

　　"What's there not to understand? Friendship shouldn't be limited by age difference or professional disparity. Your trust in me is the best reward. So, don't overthink it," Su Chiyuan patted Gu Pan's shoulder, his smile genuine.

　　Dishes were served one after another. They were exquisitely plated, with names so elaborate that they were hard to remember. In a square blue-painted dish, there were vegetables in three colors: orange, green, and white. When the lid was lifted from the pot, it revealed red wine-braised beef. But the most intriguing dish was the one with the fish. Steamed to perfection, the fish was white and smooth all over, with a delicate purple flower placed beside its head, resembling an ornament adorning a beauty...

　　"How about it, having trouble using chopsticks? Here, let me help you!" Su Chiyuan extended a pair of slender chopsticks towards the "beauty" fish and precisely pierced its eye, extracting a coin-sized solid gel-like substance, placing it in a small porcelain bowl in front of Gu Pan.

　　"I've never tried this before," Gu Pan said, astonished by Su Chiyuan's meticulous demonstration, feeling a bit overwhelmed.

　　"Rich in collagen, something you've always wanted..." Su Chiyuan suddenly seemed to lose his way in expressing himself in his native language, looking at Gu Pan, who was looking at the blob of collagen in the bowl. The two of them burst into laughter inexplicably, and somehow, all the lingering doubts in the air were dispersed in the midst of laughter. After a round of laughter, the dinner officially began.

　　As the dessert brought to close the dinner finally arrived, Gu Pan confirmed that this was no ordinary meal.

　　A square, mysterious glass vessel was brought over by the waiter. When it landed, its true appearance made Gu Pan inwardly marvel at the endless "surprises" of the evening.

　　A intricately crafted cream cake stood in the center. Its base was vibrant green. Neatly arranged and lifelike, there were sunflower-shaped decorations, counted to be eighteen, or was it nineteen? If one ignored the slightly blurry appearance of one on the edge...

　　Whether it was 18 or 19, both were numbers that Gu Pan couldn't decipher the meaning of. Based on his limited understanding of Su Chiyuan, he couldn't connect it to any significant milestones in his life.

　　Perhaps it held special significance? Or was it just random? Gu Pan shook his head. Throughout the day, he had unconsciously questioned Su Chiyuan's words and actions many times. But delving into such meticulous scrutiny was uncomfortable. So why continue to investigate? He shook his head again, but also knew he might not be able to resist.

　　"Hey, lend me a hand!" Su Chiyuan passed the knife to Gu Pan, his eyes warm and indulgent, with a hint of unquestionable determination hidden within. "Would you do the honors and cut it for me?"

　　"If it's a birthday cake, are you sure you don't need candles?" Gu Pan categorized the cake based on his life experience. As for why Mr. Su had concealed it earlier, he couldn't figure it out.

　　"Candles... would you like some?" Su Chiyuan's eyes shimmered with a faint warmth.

　　"Me? Why would I?"

　　"Oh, then never mind. Go ahead and cut it!"

　　"Why isn't Mr. Su celebrating his birthday with his wife and daughter?" Gu Pan grasped the knife handle.

　　"They have other plans," Su Chiyuan gestured for Gu Pan to make the decisive cut. "After we eat, we have another activity... oh, don't worry, I'll call for a designated driver."

　　"Alright."

　　3

　　Gu Pan's only guess about the end of the evening was spot-on.

　　He had explored in his afternoon's trajectory and foresaw that Mr. Su would wrap up the birthday celebration in a manner as dreamy as the sunflower cake.

　　They arrived at the southern foothills of the scenic area, where a lake lay. Across the shore stretched vast farmlands, with the lights of rural homes visible in the distance.

　　Following Su Chiyuan's instructions, the car rolled slowly along the pebbled shore. Accompanied by the sound of water and the chirping of insects, they stopped at a wide-open vista. Su Chiyuan retrieved a plastic tote bag from the trunk and opened it in front of Gu Pan. "Gu, it's been a while since you've played with these, hasn't it?"

　　Gu Pan peeked inside, showing no surprise. "Yeah, it sure has. But I didn't guess the location or the type correctly."

　　"What are you mumbling about?" Su Chiyuan was puzzled.

　　"Mr. Su, happy birthday!" Gu Pan didn't explain further, grabbing two slender sparklers from the bag and reaching out to Su Chiyuan. "Mind if I borrow the lighter?"

　　Summer night, outskirts, by the lake. Two adult males lit up a corner of the deep blue with handheld sparklers known as "fairy wands."

　　Initially reserved, as sparks scattered, the childlike simple joy within them gradually ignited. Gu Pan became more and more at ease, while Su Chiyuan seemed more like a supporting character at this moment. Standing a meter behind Gu Pan's right, he held the same slender wand, its tip blossoming with the same scattered sparks.

　　But what was more captivating was Gu Pan's sparkler, flickering and extinguishing...

　　The freshness of youth at eighteen, embedded against the backdrop of deep blue. Clad in white, shy yet striving to learn how to be bold... It's wonderful, the goodness belonging to the earthly realm. Su Chiyuan gradually couldn't make out Gu Pan's figure clearly, even though he could discern that vitality, it was like ripples on water.

　　"Mr. Su, why don't you join in too? I've already lit more than a dozen! Hurry up and catch up!" Gu Pan's lithe body leaped gracefully under the night sky.

　　"To buy Osmanthus flowers and share wine, but not the same as, traveling in one's youth..." Su Chiyuan's eyes held ripples, softly reciting a line behind Gu Pan.

　　"Mr. Su, happy birthday!" The young man wielded the sparkler, stretching his arms under the night sky, creating graceful arcs of sparkling brilliance. Those wild swings, disregarding conventions, threw beauty beyond the heavens. But none of that mattered in the face of sincere wishes.

　　"Thank you, young Gu!" Su Chiyuan's voice trembled with restraint. "Do you remember who wrote that line? It's only now, at my age, that I truly understand its meaning."

　　"Huh? I didn't catch that!"

　　In fact, Gu Pan did hear the recitation. However, to him, those words sounded more like melancholic reflections on "midlife crisis" from Mr. Su, captured by alcohol. He didn't resonate with it, but he could understand. He had seen this kind of sadness on his father's face, Gu Xueping. But compared to Gu Xueping, Mr. Su was much younger. He didn't have the capital for such sadness. So these words were more likely the alcohol speaking... Gu Pan reconciled with himself in this way.

　　Until the last sparkler burned out, Su Chiyuan remained in the role of a supporting character, watching Gu Pan. It was as if he were an outsider to this Leo's birthday celebration. He indulged Gu Pan's unrestrained exuberance with his eyes and the smile within them. He even thanked Gu Pan, grateful that this green youth didn't insist on probing deeper. It allowed him to find peace beneath the vast sky.