Thread by @bingjiuwus

#liujiu divorce EXTRA ENDING 3: FIRST LOVE, SECOND CHANCES

*

"I... don't know if that's a good idea." Shen Jiu hesitated. "We're both different people now. What would we even talk about?"

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"Anything you want," Liu Qingge said. "What you had for breakfast, what cute cafes you went to lately, what's going on in your job and who's pissing you off right now. I want to hear it all."

"You're serious," SJ said in disbelief. "And that's all? You just want to talk?"

"Yes," LQG said.

"... alright, then." SJ studied him, as if trying to see through him. "Well," he added, clearing his throat. "I'm pretty busy nowadays, so I don't know if I can make time right away. You can... give me your number first."

LQG's heart leapt in his chest.

"Still the same," he croaked. "Haven't - never changed it."

"Of course you haven't," SJ said with a snort. "I should have known better than to assume."

The conversation drifted off into an awkward silence, neither of them unsure whether to keep going.

"_Well_," SJ said finally. "I'll... see you around, then? I have to make sure Hualing doesn't get wasted and embarrass herself out there."

"Oh, right. Of course," LQG said, and just... watched, as SJ stepped past him to the door.

His ex lingered for just a moment to look back at him. "Bye, Qingge," he said in his soft voice, then left.

Once he did, LQG definitely didn't sink to his knees and scream into a velvet cushion at what had just happened.

Definitely not.

He just... thought about it a lot.

*

SJ didn't contact him right away. Mingyan informed LQG with a wry expression that SHL had to fly to New York for an advertising campaign, and obviously SJ would be going with her.

Now that LQG knew SJ was SHL's manager, he could all but predict his ex-husband's schedule by what SHL posted on her Weibo. First, she was in New York, then Toronto. Then she was in Osaka, randomly, then in Belgium.

Such was the chaotic life of an It Girl, one supposed, but one wondered how she stayed sane from the constant jet lag (or suffered from it at all).

She never mentioned her manager online, of course; not only was SJ an incredibly private person, but considering his own infamous background it was for the best.

The last thing SHL would want when posting a promotion for a perfume campaign was nosy trolls asking why she had a cheater working for her. Couldn't she find anyone else? Had Luo Binghe put her up to this and she couldn't say no, was that it?

Who knew. But as time passed and SJ didn't contact LQG, even as he'd kept the same phone number from school, his heart began to lurch in agony, bittersweet. Maybe the distance had made his ex-husband rethink things after all.

He had so much going on with his life nowadays, maybe he'd just figured it was more trouble than it was worth reconnecting with LQG after all these years.

If that was SJ's choice, then LQG would accept it. Didn't harangue Mingyan for updates about what SHL was doing in a cheap bid to find out what _SJ_ was doing.

It was just...

LQG missed him.

*

The text came out of the blue one day, when he was taking a water break during practice.

_Back in Shanghai for a bit. Hualing has wedding planning to work out, and I guess that makes me free for a bit. Coffee?_

The wedding, of course! Mingyan had been doing much of the work, but this was a two-bride show after all, and if SHL was going to stay until then -

The wedding was a month away. Did that mean SJ would stay in Shanghai the whole time?

(Did that mean LQG could get to see him more than once, even?)

He didn't dare look that gift horse in the mouth yet, though he did nearly spill Gatorade all over his phone trying to get the nerves to respond. _I'm free anytime,_ he managed to type with shaking fingers.

_Okay,_ SJ responded, and sent a date and address of a Korean-style cafe. _See you then._

It was a date. (It definitely wasn't.)

*

LQG arrived at the cafe half an hour early the day of their meeting, then for lack of anything better to do, ordered a small black coffee and sat there awkwardly without taking a single sip.

This cafe was definitely the style SJ liked, with lavish colourful cakes and lavish colourful drinks that cost a fortune.

When they were together, they used to pop into places like these when walking around the city on their days off.

LQG never ordered anything, but SJ would always look comically cute holding his giant icy drink laden with fruit and cream and syrup against his thin body, sipping on it the whole day as they meandered through parks and dilly-dallied like they were teens again.

"I'm drinking my calories today," his husband would sniff when they stopped at a street stall to buy roasted sweet potatoes because LQG was hungry.

"You sure you don't want any?" LQG would ask dryly, peeling back the purple skin so SJ could see the tempting roasted sweet potato and his mouth water despite itself.

"Just a little bite, I guess," SJ said, and open his pretty mouth to be fed directly because his hands were obviously full, Qingge!

So cute. Everything about him was cute.

LQG was so enamoured with the memories he didn't realise who was in front of him until there was a sigh and a snapping of fingers right in front of his eyes.

"Earth to Qingge," the present SJ said. "What could you possibly be thinking about right now?"

LQG jolted to his feet. "A'Jiu!" he said dumbly. "I didn't - I wasn't - "

Daydreaming? Definitely.

"Yeah, okay." SJ looked at him fondly, looking sleek and beautiful all in black. It was still cold out, and he had on an elegant coat that showed off his lined well.

He could model, LQG thought absurdly. Forget SHL, the real beauty was right here all along.

"I guess you ordered already," SJ said, looking at LQG's cold coffee with a wry expression. "Let me get mine, then - "

"My treat," LQG burst out. "Let me - "

SJ shook his head, laughing. "I think I can afford a little coffee on my own," he called back as he walked away to the counter. "Just sit back down and wait."

LQG sat back down and waited for him.

Despite the weather, SJ ordered an iced matcha latte heaping with cream and a matcha crepe cake. He sipped his drink and nibbled on his cake as daintily as a model, though when he got a smear of cream on his lip LQG wanted nothing more than to lick it off.

Instead, he settled for asking about SJ's day.

"It's been alright," SJ said with a raised brow. "I'm just happy Hualing didn't make me a part of the wedding preparations for once - I do literally everything for her otherwise.

Once, we were in the French countryside for a campaign, staying in this really beautiful chateau while we were there, and instead of all the great food around us she just wanted lo mein noodles all day."

"Did you get them for her?" LQG could imagine SHL being that demanding.

"No, I told her to take a hike." SJ sniffed. "Of course, I forgot how rich she was. Just one text to Daddy, and he flew in a Chinese chef from Paris so she could have fresh lo mein noodles every meal for a whole week! Unbelievable..."

_Mingyan, you're on your own,_ LQG thought.

"Any other crazy stories?" he asked, captivated by how lively SJ looked.

"Oh, come on, you know rich people better than I do," SJ scoffed, yet with just a little more prodding he let loose a flood of blackmail material against LQG's future sister-in-law.

SJ spoke more about his job and what it was like in this one conversation than he had ever had during their marriage.

No, that wasn't right. It wasn't that he never talked about it, it was that LQG hadn't asked enough. SJ's job as a civil servant had consisted largely of approving development permits.

Not even the big real estate deals either, but small neighbourhood stuff, like restaurants and hair salons.

SJ had always been shy when the Lius asked what he did for a living; most people in his position, having married a successful athlete from a wealthy family, would have gleefully transitioned to being an online influencer and flashing expensive cars and bad nose jobs for a living.

The only concession SJ had ever made to making his life a little easier after he'd gotten married was letting LQG drive him to work on days he didn't have to be at the training centre,

and even then he would flush and peck LQG on the cheek before telling him to leave and not show off his fancy Maserati to all his middle-aged colleagues and bosses.

His husband had always been a hard worker. LQG had thought he'd known that - look at how maniacally SJ had studied in high school, in university, when he started his job, never failing to do the bulk of the household chores either, and just marvelling with good-natured snark if

LQG didn't mix up the colours when it was his turn to do the laundry and burned only _two_ pans when he tried to surprise his husband with breakfast in bed for the weekend.

Working for someone as busy and important as SHL had boosted SJ's workaholic nature to the extreme.

LQG didn't even have to ask much before SJ was talking about everything under the sun. "God, I forgot how _busy_ I was," the man said with a small laugh. "It's so nice to talk to someone I'm not working with for once."

LQG couldn't help but notice the faint shadows under SJ's eyes, even behind the concealer. "You don't want a break sometimes?"

SJ shrugged. "I like what I do," he said. "Besides, it's not like I have a lot going on at home right now."

"Oh." Just like LQG, then. "You don't have a cat or anything?"

"I barely have the time to water plants, where in the world would I even have the time to keep a cat," SJ said.

"And," LQG said, desperate as ever. "You're not seeing anyone either?"

"Um." SJ pinked. "No, not really. I'm always working, so it wouldn't be fair, you know..."

"Mm."

The conversation drifted off after that, but they (mostly SJ) had been talking for a while, and the other patrons in line beginning to glare at them for taking up a table long after they'd finished their drinks.

Eventually SJ got a buzz on his phone and winced when he took it out. "No rest for the wicked," he muttered as he got up. "Sorry, I have to - "

"It's fine." LQG didn't want to bother him. "You have to work, I get it."

"Yeah." SJ huffed. "Listen, Qingge... it was nice talking to you again. Maybe if I have another free day while I'm here, we could..." He trailed off.

"Yes, of course," LQG said immediately. "Anytime, anywhere."

"Okay, okay." SJ laughed softly. "Don't sound so desperate, please. Your fangirls would kill me."

He waved LQG shyly goodbye before he left, and LQG sat in his seat a little longer, hopelessly entranced.

Wasn't it obvious? Wasn't it clear?

He was in love again, just like that.

(Just like that.)

*

After the coffee not-date came a dinner at an Italian restaurant, then surprisingly, a double date affair at the wedding boutique of the designer who was making SHL's wedding gown.

Mingyan's gown was already done, but SHL was still getting hers put together, and moreover, she wanted photographs for memory's sake and to put on Weibo.

Ergo, who else but her manager to snap 4K shots of her while she blew kisses at her would-be wife and LQG was there for moral support, though for who exactly he didn't know.

Unsurprisingly, SJ and Mingyan still got on well long after the divorce, looking through his photos of SHL together, and SHL just teasingly asked LQG if he wanted to pay for her gown as his wedding present to her.

LQG balked; he'd _seen_ how much handmade lace was on her gown, no thanks.

(His plan was to get her a set of beginner weights. Sure she was a model, but she was practically a noodle - the girl needed muscle tone!).

Despite his own words, SJ was clearly a part of the wedding planning, and LQG showed up because he had nothing better to do and Mingyan had yet to beat his ass for saying that one flavour of wedding cake tasted the same as the rest.

Honestly, he hadn't been so happy in years.

So naturally, someone had to ruin it.

*

Even though Mingyan had elected to plan her own wedding since she was an adult and all, she was still the future CEO of Liu Industries (not LQG, thank god) and the family was paying for the wedding.

SHL's father, the shipping tycoon Jiuzhong-jun, was paying for the newlyweds' house, a grand villa built just for them in one of Shanghai's most exclusive suburbs, though with how busy both women were LQG thought they'd probably stay there maybe five nights a year.

He should have realised his family would drop by one of the wedding planning sessions soon enough. He hadn't - after the fallout from the divorce, LQG hadn't exactly gone to family events with a thrilled heart.

Hearing his relatives talk freely about how stuck up SJ had always seemed and that LQG was better off without him was not his idea of a good time. Not to mention, he couldn't exactly punch anyone there (unless they were a younger cousin, maybe).

So LQG had been ignoring most of his family, save his parents and Mingyan, since his divorce. Didn't much care to be matched up with his aunts' best friends' daughters either.

It wasn't even money they were after, since they came from families just as rich as the Lius, but bragging rights that their daughters had snagged an Olympic champion for a husband.

(No wonder SJ had always looked so miserable when he was at high society events with LQG.)

But LQG had let his guard down, let himself enjoy the minutiae of talking about flowers and cloth napkins and the wedding DJ with Mingyan and SHL and stealing a moment away with SJ for a coffee.

Enjoying just being around his ex-husband, even if nothing they did technically counted as romantic, as flirting.

Just being around SJ was enough.

And then one day one of LQG's aunts came back from France to surprise Mingyan, apparently, and saw SJ at the wedding venue with her and SHL and LQG.

And the first thing she did was tell _everyone._

*

_The cafe near my place has this new drink I think you'd like._

LQG sent SJ a photo of a poster of a butterfly pea flower tea drink on a cafe window. _Wanna go sometime?_ he added awkwardly, and received no response.

It had been three days since LQG's aunt had seen SJ at the wedding venue and asked LQG, flabbergasted, what he was doing with "that whore" again.

The entire venue had frozen over at that comment. "Gugu!" Mingyan said, horrified, and SHL's expression turned to ice.

Even LQG wanted to throttle the shit out of her. "Mind your own business," he'd snarled at her - his own gugu, who had bought his first training bike when he'd been a boy - but it was too late.

Because even before he spoke, SJ, blank expression and all, had just walked away from them and turned his phone off.

Even Mingyan wouldn't tell him where he was, though she did let him know SHL was furious with their gugu for what she'd said. "Great family we have," she said, unhappy herself.

LQG's phone buzzed and rang with endless harangues from family members asking if he'd lost his mind, and he blocked all of them.

He had - after the divorce, he had admitted, to his self-loathing, that SJ had never cheated on him and it had been a mistake on LQG's part, not his, but as far as most of his family was concerned SJ had already committed the crime of being a miserly ungrateful stick in the mud,

and it didn't matter that Luo Binghe had "only" kissed him in public - SJ had let it happen, and not even grovelled to LQG to make up for it, but chose his own stubborn pride and to walk away.

LQG's contact list in his phone dwindled to just about nothing after blocking every family member he could think of save Mingyan.

Even his _mother_, when she finally called him, before she could speak LQG said, "Mom, I don't give a shit. You know A'Jiu never hurt me, that I was the one who fucked him over instead. I still love him and I don't care if everyone else is pissed at me for it.

They can all fuck off."

"Qingge," Mom said. "They're just worried about you."

"No, they're not," LQG said. "They just want to hurt my husband."

He hung up then, and realised what he'd have to do.

*

LQG had never called a press conference on his own before.

Oh, he'd had stuff arranged for him post-competitions, post-Olympics, post-PR bullshit, but even then LQG had always made a miserable interview

because he gave out one-syllable answers and provided no inspirational insight, no advice to would-be hopeful runners who needed less in the way of encouraging quotes and more to just put on their sneakers and _run_.

But for once, LQG wanted to talk to the media, and clear the air.

Even if his manager and coaches had no idea he was doing this.

Even if he was certain this was going to immolate his reputation as China's favourite son and reveal him as the dipshit who had destroyed his own marriage for a fake green hat of all things.

Even if SJ might already be abroad during his radio silence and never _see_ this press conference, whether in clips or in agonising full 4K detail -

How long had his husband lived with people still thinking him a cheater, a golddigger? LQG had never addressed the scandal publicly, even after his divorce, and his family and coaches protected him from having to answer anything he didn't want to.

But who had protected SJ, made sure he didn't have to relive the most humiliating moment of his life over and over again?

Luo Binghe, that was whom! Who gave SJ a fucking job and dragged him out of his depression...

What had LQG done in comparison? What had he done to protect his husband, since or ever?

Nothing worth a damn.

Well, LQG thought grimly as the reporters began to file in curiously, things were about to change.

(Even if he was sure SJ would still want nothing to do with him after this.)

*

"Ge, you have lost your fucking mind," Mingyan said blankly in LQG's apartment a mere few hours after the press conference of the century.

"I cannot _believe_ you just talked about what happened back then like that. The reporters were laughing at you at the end!"

"Yeah," LQG said. Actually, it had been pretty horrifying, but just proved to him how stupid he had been all along. "Turns out I'm a moron."

"It's not doing this will even make Shen-ge want to see you again," his meimei said. "You get that, right? Maybe Gugu just fucked it up forever, and he's done with us now. Honestly, I'm just glad Hualing's dad is crazy too, otherwise..."

"What," said LQG. "You want to marry out now?"

"I'm just saying." Mingyan sighed. "What a mess. I'm surprised none of your coaches are calling you right now."

"Phone's turned off."

"Oh." She coughed. "Still, ge. You're gonna have to lay low for a while, you know that, right? You can't just - "

Her own phone buzzed, and she took it out to read a text, only to gasp.

"What, did Hualing call off the wedding?" LQG said.

"Oh fuck off, not funny." Mingyan glared and shoved the phone in his face. "It's Shen-ge."

The text read: _Mingyan, tell Qingge I want to see him at _____ right now or I'm never talking to him again.

PS I want to kill him. Again._

"Good luck," Mingyan said, then added: "I'll help bury the body."

LQG didn't hear her; he was already running.

*

The first thing SJ did when LQG finally met him at the appointed destination was turn to see him, and with a blank face, slap LQG so hard he fell on his ass.

"What the fuck, Qingge," SJ yelled, not even letting LQG recover from the sting of being hit like that. "Why did you tell everyone what happened? Now you look like a fucking _idiot_. Everyone is laughing at you. That's not - " He shuddered. "That's not what I wanted you to do!"

"I know," LQG said blankly. "But I had to."

"No, you didn't," SJ sneered. "You said nothing for three years, why try and fix it now?"

LQG got up slowly, rubbing his cheek. "Because it's not fair to you," he said. "It's never been fair, but even now people have the wrong idea about you. Because the lies are out there, but not the truth."

"Well, congratulations," SJ said sarcastically. "Everyone knows the truth now, and they're calling you a huge fucking clown over it. Happy?"

"Yeah," said LQG.

SJ stared at him in disbelief.

"Yeah, I'm a clown," LQG said. "I'm a stupid asshole too, and I ruined our marriage because I was complacent and insecure and it was easier to blame you than to wonder if I was pulling my weight in the relationship. People can laugh and mock me; I deserve it."

"No..." SJ shuddered. "No, you don't."

"I've been looked after and protected by so many people over the years, people who always made sure I never had to make the hard decisions," LQG said. "But no one's ever done that for you, not even me."

"So what," SJ sniffled. "I'm not a baby like you, I don't need to be coddled."

"I know," LQG said. "You're the strongest person I know. So brave, and beautiful, and brilliant beyond belief." He took an impossible step forward. "Even now I can't take my eyes off of you."

"If you think you can get into my pants with some cheap words like that...!" SJ cried out. "You want to publicly humiliate yourself out of some sick fetish, that's on you, not me! I never wanted this. Never wanted to hurt yourself because of me..."

"I'm not hurt," LQG said.

SJ trembled.

"I'm - I'm happy," LQG said. "Because for once I did something that needed to be done, even if I am a quote unquote baby like you said." He grinned. "I knew you'd hate it."

"Asshole," SJ said. "So why even do it, then?"

Because...

"Because people deserve to see the real you," LQG said.

SJ's mouth opened in a wide O.

"Because," LQG said, "you're talented and hard-working and _brilliant_, but no one cares to see beyond that because of the shitty rumours out there.

Rumours that _I_ put out there, and never took responsibility for. Because you've been hurt long enough, and you never deserved to be hurt in the first place. For anything." He felt his eyes water. "Even if it's too late for us, I don't care. I just want you to be happy, A'Jiu.

I'll do whatever it takes, anything."

"But maybe I don't want anything from you," SJ whispered, blinking away tears as he looked away. "What then?"

"Then okay," LQG said. "Then I just want to say - thank you, A'Jiu, for loving me, for giving me a chance and opening my eyes to a whole new world. I never knew I could live so well before I met you."

"Yeah, you can't do anything without me." SJ was crying openly now, nose flushed red. "And then, what if I do want something?"

"What?" LQG's heart hammered in his chest.

"I said," SJ repeated, "what if I do want something again from you."

"Then..." LQG closed his eyes in a bid to keep himself together. "I'd worship you every day we were together. I'd kiss your feet when you woke up and the rest of your body just before you went to sleep.

I'd let you crack me open and huddle inside my body for warmth, even if it killed me. I'd do anything and everything."

"I don't need that," SJ sniffled. "I don't need any of that. I just..." He wiped at his eyes with his sleeve. "I just need my idiot again, is that so much to ask?"

"No - no," LQG croaked. "It's not."

"Come here, Qingge." His husband held out his arms, and LQG stumbled forth into his radiance. Let SJ touch his face and kiss him, ever so slightly, on the mouth, their damp cheeks brushing together as he did.

"You're batshit crazy, you know that," SJ mumbled under his breath.

"Being with you in public is going to be a _nightmare_ from now on."

"Mm." LQG couldn't even pretend to care about any of that. "We can just stay inside all day then."

"Yeah." SJ smiled shyly. "Yeah, we can."

And hand in hand, he took LQG back home with him.

END

(THE DIVORCE EXTRAS ARE FINALLY OVER!! Up to you whether LQG has sufficiently proved himself to be in SJ's good graces again, but either way sparks are in the air for these once bitten, twice shy lovers!! Who knows what comes next!!

Thanks for reading, tell me what you liked 😎)