Yun Ci made it to class just in time, but Yu Xun wasn’t as lucky. Before leaving, Yu Xun was reminding his now-clear-headed aunt to take her medicine and missed the bus.
After regaining her senses, the woman was like a completely different person from yesterday. She spoke softly, as if she had just woken up: “Why are you back? Did your classmate come too? Do you want breakfast? I’ll make breakfast for you, and you can go to school after eating.”
She seemed to have no memory of her episode from the previous day.
Yu Xun had no intention of telling her, as if yesterday was just an ordinary, uneventful day: “My classmate and I went to see a movie. It ended late, and the school gates were closed, so we stayed at home for the night.”
“What movie? Was it good?”
“It was okay,” Yu Xun casually replied, “an action movie, you wouldn’t like it.”
The woman’s voice was very gentle: “Oh, you should communicate more with your classmates.”
“……”
It turned out she didn’t remember anything after her episode.
Yun Ci thought, if he hadn’t seen it, all the chaos and the sharp screams from yesterday would be remembered only by Yu Xun.
The first class in the morning was jurisprudence.
The jurisprudence teacher had just started speaking when he stopped and theatrically pointed to the back door: “Class, let’s turn our attention to the back door—”
“Let’s warmly welcome this student who not only missed the exam but is also late.”
Yu Xun, half-bent over trying to slip in unnoticed, straightened up: “So enthusiastic?”
The jurisprudence teacher: “Need us to be more enthusiastic?”
Yu Xun: “Sure, why not?”
After entering the classroom, he wore a smile on his face, hands in his pockets, tilting his head slightly as he suggested: “How about another round of applause?”
In response, the teacher threw a blackboard eraser at him.
“Sit down and attend the class,” the teacher said, “come to my office during the break for a make-up exam.”
Yu Xun strolled to the back row and sat down.
Taking advantage of the teacher’s inattention, Liu Zi quickly bent over and crossed three or four rows to sit next to him.
“You weren’t here yesterday?” Liu Zi asked. “Disappearing again, just like in high school. I asked you, but you wouldn’t say.”
“Gao Pingyang asked me, and I told him you lost your phone recently. Make sure to match that story.”
Liu Zi was genuinely worried: “I don’t know what’s going on, but hasn’t it been resolved yet?”
Yu Xun merely replied with an “ah” and said, “Sort of.”
Liu Zi: “Is it tricky? Should we use some ‘underworld’ methods?”
Yu Xun thought for a moment and casually said: “Then get me a few hundred people. We’ll gather at the school gate tomorrow afternoon and use ‘underworld’ methods to solve it.”
Liu Zi was shocked: “That many people? Who did you offend?”
Yu Xun looked at him: “That was an obvious joke, and you believed it?”
Liu Zi: “……”
He felt like an idiot. He actually believed it.
As they chatted, they noticed the teacher’s focused gaze on them, and Liu Zi fell silent again.
After he quieted down, he accidentally noticed that Yu Xun’s gaze had been fixed on another row.
Following Yu Xun’s line of sight—
It was that familiar jacket. It was that familiar rival.
Liu Zi stared at the jacket and said seriously: “Seems like you noticed too, the jacket he’s wearing.”
Yu Xun responded with an “Mm”: “It’s mine.”
Liu Zi nodded.
Yes.
It’s exactly like yours.
Staring for so long, you must want to silently keep this in mind.
After a while.
Yu Xun seemed to remember something and specifically reminded him: “By the way, there’s something I want to talk to you about.”
Liu Zi was drowsy from listening to their professional course and said, “Go ahead.”
Yu Xun was also a bit sleepy, and to avoid dozing off, he propped himself up and casually said, “Now that we’re in college, people should learn to mature and stop calling for backup at the drop of a hat.”
As he spoke, he emphasized again, “Stop calling people to deal with him all the time. Next time you see him in the dorm, be polite.”
Both of them knew exactly who “him” referred to.
However, these words, in Liu Zi’s ears, went through an automatic translation process, and the final interpretation was: In college, we can’t be too blatant. It’s not like high school anymore. We need to be more mature, and our methods should also upgrade accordingly. Calling for backup is too obvious. From now on, keep a low profile on the surface and strike in secret whenever possible.
“……” Liu Zi nodded seriously, “I understand.”
Liu Zi forced himself to stay in their classroom for another ten minutes, but he couldn’t take it anymore and was about to sneak out through the back door. At that moment, Yu Xun, propping his chin up, seemed to unintentionally tap the desk with his fingers: “Wait.”
Liu Zi, who was about to get up: “?”
Yu Xun: “I have a question.”
Yu Xun’s Adam’s apple couldn’t help but move, and he lowered his voice: “If someone accidentally confesses half of their reason for liking someone—would it be too obvious? Would the other person easily figure it out?”
Liu Zi struggled to understand the question: “That depends on the reason.”
Yu Xun: “Being brave.”
Liu Zi blurted out: “? What kind of shitty reason is that? It’s so vague, no one would notice.”
Yu Xun’s hand stopped tapping the desk.
He responded with an “Mm” and said, “You can leave now.”
Liu Zi didn’t really want to leave. He was curious why Yu Xun would ask such a strange question and was about to sit down and have a proper chat.
Yu Xun skillfully changed the topic: “Did you copy the notes?”
Liu Zi: “?”
Yu Xun: “Since you’re here, couldn’t you help me copy the notes?”
“……”
Liu Zi: “I didn’t.”
Yu Xun continued, “If you didn’t copy them, did you bring me a notebook, textbook, and pen?”
Liu Zi: “……”
Yu Xun waved his hand: “Forget it, next time. Remember it next time.”
Liu Zi: “……”
–
yx: [Lend me a pen.]
yx: [Didn’t bring one.]
Yun Ci only took out his phone during the class break. He saw the two messages sent by the black avatar during the class, and when he looked up, Yu Xun had already been taken away by the jurisprudence teacher for a makeup exam.
Since the person was gone, he might as well borrow a pen from the jurisprudence teacher.
So he ignored the two messages and scrolled down to find messages from Li Yan.
Li Yan’s message was startling and shocking: [Why did you buy the same clothes as Yu Xun?]
yc: [?]
Li Yan: [Didn’t you go to class early this morning wearing a jacket exactly like Yu Xun’s?]
Li Yan: [Could my information be wrong?]
Li Yan: [My undercover in Liu Zi’s group told me.]
Li Yan: [It shouldn’t be wrong. I even saw a screenshot. Liu Zi hates you so much that his teeth itch. He thinks you’re playing a new kind of dirty trick.]
yc: [……]
Yun Ci was speechless at this world full of rumors and disputes.
He lowered his head to type, wanting to explain: [I didn’t buy the same clothes. I’m wearing his…]
Wearing his.
…
Damn. That’s even weirder.
In the end, he deleted every word he typed and felt that it was better to admit it than to explain. So he replied: [Yes, I’m dirty.]
Li Yan was impressed: [The war between you two has escalated again without me knowing.]
Li Yan: [I have to say, your new tactic is quite novel.]
“……”
Yun Ci, unable to deal with it anymore, directly exited WeChat.
He casually opened the news headlines to browse, but his thoughts were scattered because of the jacket, and he couldn’t focus on the webpage.
Rushing to class in the morning, he didn’t have time to worry about the jacket. Now, sitting still and looking at the jacket’s cuff, he realized belatedly that Yu Xun’s jacket was quite large.
The cuffs were a bit long, covering half of his palm.
The fabric was a bit slick, made of nylon, stiff.
It seemed to have been washed recently.
The smell of laundry detergent was very clear, enveloping him.
…
And he had worn this jacket before.
Noticing these details made Yun Ci feel increasingly uncomfortable.
–
There were no classes that afternoon.
After eating at the cafeteria with Li Yan, Yun Ci returned to the dormitory and found that Yu Xun didn’t go to work today and was catching up on homework in the dormitory.
Seeing Yu Xun, he paused while pushing the door open.
Yu Xun also looked up, seeing him and the jacket he was holding instead of wearing: “Why aren’t you wearing it?”
Yun Ci, feeling awkward, had taken it off: “A bit hot.”
Yu Xun: “It’s almost winter, and it cooled down today.”
Shivering, Yun Ci replied: “…Just finished running. Hot.”
Yu Xun responded with an “Oh” and didn’t say anything more.
Yun Ci, enduring the cold, stood at the dormitory door with the air conditioning on for a few seconds.
After seeing Yu Xun, the jacket felt uncomfortable even just being held, so he handed it back to him: “Here.”
“I don’t need it,” he said, “I have clothes in my bag.”
Yu Xun put down his pen, ready to take the jacket.
Just a second before handing over the clothes, Yun Ci remembered something and stopped halfway: “I’ll wash it before I return it.”
After all, he had worn it.
It wouldn’t be proper to return it as is.
But just as he was about to take the clothes back, Yu Xun pressed down on his hand.
Yu Xun’s warm palm pressed against his, and he said, “No need.”
The dorm was actually quite noisy. Luo Sifang didn’t have any classes either and the room was filled with the sound of him playing games, chatting on his headset, and frantically typing on the keyboard.
Yu Xun’s voice seemed to cut through all other sounds: “I don’t mind that you’ve worn it.”
“……”
Yun Ci felt a tingling sensation again.
Just like when he heard that aunt speak at Yu Xun’s house.
Since Yu Xun said that, Yun Ci pulled his hand back as if he had been scalded, then maintained a composed face and said, “That’s true.”
“It’s just a jacket,” he said, “No need to be so particular.”
“……”
After he finished speaking, there was another inexplicable moment of silence between the two of them.
Since Yun Ci had lied about going for a run, he reluctantly grabbed a towel and went to the bathroom to take a shower.
When he came out after his shower, Yu Xun had finished his homework and was being dragged by Luo Sifang to rank up in the game.
Luo Sifang was shouting, “Bro, today you are my real brother.”
“Go get him, aim, yes, yes, yes!”
“If I wasn’t in bad form today, I would’ve already blown his head off.”
“……”
Yu Xun sat in front of Luo Sifang’s computer, wearing the jacket Yun Ci had just returned to him. The oversized jacket hung loosely on him as he lazily typed on the keyboard.
Yun Ci closed the door, the towel he used to dry his hair hanging around his neck.
He sat at the other end of the long table, planning to do his homework.
Just as he opened his textbook, Luo Sifang called out to him: “Ci-ge, want to play?”
Yun Ci: “No, I’m preparing for exams.”
Luo Sifang thought he was going to hear the familiar and absurd “preparing for the CET-4 and CET-6.”
Yun Ci gave an equally absurd reason: “Preparing for finals.”
Luo Sifang: “…………”
Luo Sifang got to the point: “If you’re not playing, can I use your account? This season is brutal, I’m struggling at this rank and want to use a smurf account to wreck some noobs.”
Yun Ci didn’t mind lending his account: “Sure.”
“But I don’t remember the account details,” he said, holding a pen, “You’d better borrow someone else’s.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Yu Xun expertly typed a few keys on the keyboard and said, “Logged in.”
Luo Sifang: “Logged into what?”
Yu Xun: “His account.”
Yun Ci: “……”
He endured and endured, holding the pen so tightly it hurt, but he couldn’t hold back and finally squeezed out through gritted teeth: “…You remembered that string of gibberish just from our PK at the internet cafe?”
If it were the past, Yun Ci would never have said this.
But lately, especially after last night.
It seemed a peculiar crack had formed between him and Yu Xun.
Some things that couldn’t be said before were gradually becoming easier to voice.
The computer screen’s glow illuminated Yu Xun’s face, his eyes reflecting the light.
Yet Yu Xun said: “Yes.”
The next second, he added, “But not entirely.”
Yes, but not entirely.
So, is it or isn’t it?
Yun Ci was confused by this inexplicable answer.
Yu Xun held the mouse, just finishing logging in, the string of gibberish displayed on the game’s main screen, with a small line of text beside it [Welcome player].
He looked at this ID, his memory drifting back a few years.
At the end of the first year of high school. During the holiday after Yun Ci called the police, West High arranged some courses.
Many chaotic voices emerged from his recollections.
One sentence after another, like countless hands tightly restraining him.
—”He suddenly returned, and your aunt’s condition worsened.”
—”In this situation, hospitalization for a period is recommended.”
—”As for him, the police can’t help, and as a doctor, I can’t think of any way to assist you either. Try not to go out alone, and don’t stay at home. Discuss with your teacher about living on campus.”
Then came his aunt’s screams.
Continuous, unending screams.
The woman on the floor, pulling her hair, screaming hoarsely, making rough, inhuman sounds from her throat.
During that time, he often went to the internet cafe after school.
That black internet cafe outside the school.
Many students from West High went there, and Class 7 and Class 1 had even fought there before.
But when he went alone, the internet cafe wasn’t very “lively.”
Although Liu Zi occasionally accompanied him at night, he couldn’t stay up too late. After midnight, the internet cafe was almost empty except for him and a few unemployed people who stayed overnight.
He ordered a cup of instant noodles and a bottle of water, sitting in a corner.
“Student, here’s your noodles and water,” the admin brought the items to him, “Hot water is outside, help yourself.”
It was very late, and the admin, yawning wearily, looked surprisedly at the student’s screen: “You’re actually watching a math public class. You’re not the kind of student who skips classes, has problematic thoughts, and is on the verge of dropping out due to internet addiction?”
“Tough job, huh,” Yu Xun glanced at him, “Saying such a long sentence in one breath.”
Admin: “A bit.”
After saying that, the admin left.
A few minutes later, the admin returned, this time with someone else.
“This computer is better,” the admin turned on the computer for the newcomer, “Sit here, sit opposite him.” He added at the end, “Student.”
It was past midnight.
Yet there was another student coming to the internet cafe.
Yu Xun’s gaze shifted from the computer screen to the person opposite him.
Taking advantage of Yan Yue’s sleep, Yun Ci, who had sneaked out in the middle of the night, had slightly messy hair and wasn’t wearing his school uniform. Instead, he wore a simple white shirt, standing there with a cold expression, looking down at him a bit condescendingly.
“What are you looking at?” Yun Ci said, standing there, “Surprised?”
Yu Xun raised an eyebrow: “Quite surprised.”
With a cold face, Yun Ci continued, “—You think you’re the only one who can come to an internet cafe in the middle of the night to practice game skills?”
He looked at Yu Xun, almost letting out a cold snort.
“From today on,” the young man said, extremely childish yet infinitely sharp, as he turned on the computer, “I’ll practice as long as you practice. Don’t think about sneaking in practice. Get on and let’s duel.”
Yu Xun raised his hand and closed the online course page on the computer.
The internet cafe’s previously broken overhead light flickered a few times, then the circuit returned to normal, and the whole dimly lit internet cafe brightened up a bit.
He looked at the white figure opposite him, and through the gap in his line of sight, he saw the young man gripping the mouse with his hand.
After a while.
Yu Xun tilted his head and smiled: “…Caught me sneaking in to practice, huh? Fine, let’s duel.”
Oh but he really did figure it out… XD