Chapter 13

Pei Ran stood by the window for a long time. Even with it closed, he could still hear those sounds.

Only when he turned on the bathroom light and looked in the mirror did he realize his cheeks and ears were red.

He washed his face, left the bathroom with the back of his hand pressed to his cheek, and picked up his phone again.

Pei Ran had received plenty of confessions. His first love letter had come in elementary school. The fifth-grade girl had worn a ponytail, and even her smile had the refreshing tang of lemon. Blushing, she had pressed the letter into his hand and told him to wait until he got home to read it.

Back then, he hadn't so much as blinked twice. He had politely pushed the letter back and said, "Sorry. Thank you."

Luo Qingshan had received an apology from him too.

He took a sip of water and thought, I'm probably only reacting like this because it startled me.

Why would Yan Zhun like him? Before this break, their paths had never crossed. They hadn't had any intimate contact or even exchanged a single unnecessary word.

Pei Ran unlocked his phone. The screen was still on his conversation with Yan Zhun.

In the darkness, his phone vibrated again, making his palm tingle slightly.

[Yan Zhun: I was just explaining, not confessing. You don't need to rush to answer.]

"..." Pei Ran froze for a moment.

So that didn't count as a confession?

His rejection seemed to lodge in his throat, unable to go up or down.

[Yan Zhun: But from now on, I won't call you boss anymore.]

The rain was easing. Yan Zhun leaned on the balcony railing, letting the breeze wash over him. Only after sending that message did he back out to check his already overflowing notifications.

They were from the group he'd played with earlier, clamoring for him to get online and keep killing people.

Before Yan Zhun could reply, an impatient voice call popped up. He declined once, but they called again. In the end, he could only answer with a frown.

"Bro, what are you doing? Why'd you hang up on me?" Lin Xuhuan asked.

"Busy."

"What could you be busy with this late?"

"Waiting for a message."

Lin Xuhuan paused. "Huh?"

Yan Zhun couldn't be bothered to explain. "What did you call for?"

"Get online and keep playing. Old He and the others are all up. We're just waiting on you." A gruff male voice could be heard repeating Yan Zhun's name in the background.

"I'm a student," Yan Zhun said. "I have school tomorrow."

"Aw, Old He says to skip class and come hang out at the base for a couple of days."

"Not skipping. Hanging up."

Lin Xuhuan stopped him. "Hey, talk a little longer. Everyone in my stream wants to hear your voice. Don't be in such a hurry to hang up."

"I'm in a big hurry," Yan Zhun said.

"For what?"

Yan Zhun held his phone, his voice mingling with the wind. "To find you a sister-in-law."

The other end went quiet for a few seconds.

"?" Lin Xuhuan said. "Holy shit! Seriously? You actually like women?"

"I like men," Yan Zhun said evenly.

"Hahaha!" Thinking Yan Zhun was messing with him, Lin Xuhuan burst out laughing. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. I didn't mean anything by it. I just thought you'd be single for life... What girl is so damn amazing she managed to catch your discerning eye?"

"He is pretty damn amazing." Yan Zhun asked, "Anything else?"

Lin Xuhuan finally took the hint. "Are you waiting to call my sister-in-law?"

"We're not together yet. Don't call him that." Looking at the moon, Yan Zhun said, "I'm waiting for him to reply."

Unfortunately, he hadn't received a new message by the time the call ended.

Yan Zhun figured he probably wouldn't get a reply tonight. He closed the balcony window, tossed his phone beside his pillow, and got ready to sleep.

After he'd stared at the ceiling for who knew how long, his phone screen suddenly lit up.

[Pei Ran: Okay.]

Forty minutes had passed since the previous message.

The corner of Yan Zhun's mouth lifted. Fighting his sleepiness, he opened the keyboard and casually typed a few words.

[Yan Zhun: Going to sleep, Pei Ran.]

The next day, Pei Ran turned down his driver's offer of a ride and took the bus back to school himself.

When Pei Ran reached the dorm, his roommate had just finished a round. Taking off his headset, he asked, "You haven't checked the class group chat?"

Pei Ran lowered his head to unpack. "No. What's up?"

"It's about the sports meet. There aren't many guys in our class, so the counselor wants all of us to sign up. They're taking registrations now." His roommate asked, "What do you want to enter? I'd say just do the hundred meters. Placing doesn't matter, as long as we finish."

Pei Ran thought for a moment. "The three thousand meters."

His roommate said, "Oh," and calmly replied to his girlfriend's message. A few seconds later, he turned around in shock. "Huh?"

His roommate couldn't be blamed for reacting so strongly. Though Pei Ran was tall, his overall impression was rather frail. His roommate had once suspected he was thinner than the girls in their class.

But Pei Ran had never taken off his clothes in front of him. He even took a change of clothes into the shower, so his roommate could only make a rough judgment.

Pei Ran signed up under his roommate's skeptical gaze. Looking up and meeting his eyes, he couldn't help laughing. "I really can finish it. Don't worry."

He had just finished unpacking when he received a message from Lin Kang asking if he wanted to have lunch together.

Remembering that he'd offered to treat him, Pei Ran readily agreed. They arranged to meet at a Western restaurant near campus.

"I was going to ask if you wanted to head back to school together today, but by the time I finished playing basketball, it was already late." Lin Kang took a sip of lemon water and asked quietly, "Isn't this place a little expensive? Why don't we get malatang instead? I'm not picky."

"It's fine," Pei Ran said. "I'm a member. I get a discount."

So people who rode around in Maybachs used discounts too.

So down-to-earth. Lin Kang felt a little closer to Pei Ran.

As they chatted, Lin Kang suddenly received a call from Luo Qingshan. He glanced awkwardly at Pei Ran, who was looking down at the menu, completely unaffected.

After hanging up, Lin Kang cleared his throat. "He asked where I'd put the basketball."

Pei Ran nodded and looked up from the menu. "Shall we order a set meal?"

Lin Kang hurriedly agreed.

After they'd sat for a while, Lin Kang finally couldn't hold back. "Um, Pei Ran, I'm not trying to gossip. I'm just curious... Did you and Luo Qingshan really break up because you weren't right for each other?"

"What do you think?" Pei Ran asked back.

"How could I just make random guesses?" Despite saying that, Lin Kang continued, "It wasn't because of Su Nian, was it?"

Pei Ran's hand paused as he turned the menu page, and he said nothing.

Lin Kang was a thoroughly clueless straight guy, the kind who took hours to realize his girlfriend was angry. If a friend hadn't mentioned it last night, that possibility would never have occurred to him.

The thing was, when he thought about it afterward, those two... really were pretty fucking strange.

"So it really was? Holy shit, no wonder Su Nian was being so snide in the group chat that day..." Lin Kang said. "Do you need any help? Just say the word. I can't stand this kind of thing."

"No. We've already broken up." Pei Ran didn't really want to continue the topic.

But Lin Kang didn't catch his meaning. "Don't stand on ceremony with me. I might know Luo Qingshan better, but I side with whoever's right, not whoever I'm close to. How about I give him a good scolding for you?"

If this went on, there would be no end to it. Pei Ran thought for a moment, then chose his words carefully. "There's really no need. But there's something I wanted to ask you."

Lin Kang hurriedly asked, "What is it?"

"Did Yan Zhun go to Manzhong too?"

"Yeah... Huh?" Lin Kang was bewildered.

"I don't think I ever really saw him before," Pei Ran said.

"No way?" Lin Kang was immediately diverted. "He was pretty well-known in high school. He was in my class, but our classroom was on the ground floor, several floors away from yours. Oh, right, he even won a PUBG tournament at an internet café. You never heard about that either?"

PUBG had been all the rage back then. A high school student winning a gaming tournament drew more attention than coming first in the city on an exam.

Pei Ran unconsciously squeezed his glass with one hand and shook his head.

"Then you really were... focused on studying," Lin Kang said. "It wasn't just people at school. Someone took a photo of him at the tournament and posted it online. Just a profile shot, and it got over twenty thousand reposts. Pretty incredible."

At that, Pei Ran remembered.

Not Yan Zhun, but that Weibo post.

When it appeared in his feed, the keyword "Mancheng" had caught his eye, and he'd even opened the full-size image. But before he could get a clear look at the person, Luo Qingshan had covered his phone, joking with a smile that he wasn't allowed to look at other guys.

"I think... I vaguely remember," Pei Ran said.

"What did you remember about me?" A familiar voice came from behind him.

Both of them froze, especially Pei Ran. His eyes suddenly widened, his face full of the panic and embarrassment of being caught.

He turned stiffly and met Yan Zhun's gaze through the artificial greenery behind him.

Pei Ran rarely wore that sort of expression. Yan Zhun watched him for a few seconds before glancing at Lin Kang beside him and explaining, "I wasn't eavesdropping. I've been sitting here for ages."

Partitions stood between every table in the restaurant, making it hard to notice anyone without looking closely. Lin Kang recovered. "I really didn't see you... You're eating out alone?"

"Got stood up." Yan Zhun glanced at the customers lining up outside the restaurant. "Mind sharing a table? Lots of people are waiting outside."

As soon as Yan Zhun sat down, Pei Ran felt that the table for four had become a little crowded.

He'd never talked about someone behind their back before. He hadn't expected to get caught... on his very first try.

Clutching his phone, Pei Ran lowered his eyes and kept quiet, trying to make himself as inconspicuous as possible.

"What were you talking about?" he heard Yan Zhun ask lazily.

"About you winning that tournament in high school," Lin Kang said. "Pei Ran didn't even know you went to the same school."

Yan Zhun didn't bother being modest. "He's a top student. It's normal for him not to follow gaming."

Lin Kang looked down at his phone and complained, "Why is the class group chat so noisy? It's just a sports meet. Can't everyone just sign up for an event to make up the numbers? What did you guys enter?"

"Haven't signed up yet," Yan Zhun said.

Feeling both their gazes on him, Pei Ran answered obediently, "The three thousand meters."

"Impressive. Forget it, I'll just coast along." With that, Lin Kang picked up his phone and stood. "I'm going to the restroom. I'll call the counselor while I'm at it."

Once Lin Kang left, silence fell over the table.

Pei Ran unconsciously pressed his lips together, searching his mind for an excuse to leave.

If I can't ease the awkwardness, I'll avoid it.

He'd finally managed to come up with a reason when Yan Zhun suddenly spoke, asking again, "What did you remember about me just now, Pei Ran?"

Like a student hoping to skip class only to be called on by the teacher, Pei Ran answered resignedly, "...I remembered that Weibo post Lin Kang mentioned."

Yan Zhun thought back. That profile shot had been pretty blurry, but at least he hadn't looked ugly.

"They were just exaggerating. I'm not as good as they made me sound."

Pei Ran murmured in acknowledgment.

The restaurant's tables weren't large. Lowering his head, he could see Yan Zhun's casually spread legs. His sneakers were also a certain brand's limited edition for the season.

...So how had I fallen for it when Yan Zhun said he needed money and wanted to be a paid gaming companion?

Lost in thought, he saw Yan Zhun's shoe suddenly turn and lightly touch the side of his own.

Yan Zhun lowered his eyes and compared them for a while before concluding, "Your feet are pretty small."