Gu Qianran was dozing groggily when he heard his phone ringing. Eyes still closed, he fumbled for it, answered, and held it to his ear. “Hello?” His voice was weak and listless.
The voice on the other end, however, was full of energy. “Hello, Senior Brother. It’s me.”
“Mm…” Gu Qianran was so sleepy he could barely open his eyes. He answered indistinctly.
The person on the other end chuckled softly. “Senior Brother, are you still in bed? Hurry and get up. I’m coming to pick you up now, and I brought breakfast. Do you want something Chinese or Western? Japanese is fine too.”
Gu Qianran did not hear what he was saying clearly. He only caught that the other person seemed to be asking him to choose, so he replied perfunctorily, “Anything. I’m hanging up.”
With that, he tossed aside his phone, pulled the covers over himself, and went back to sleep.
He had no idea how much time passed before the doorbell rang. It kept going without pause, like some infernal sound drilling into his ears. Gu Qianran pulled the blanket over his head, trying to shut out the noise, but soon his phone began ringing along with the doorbell.
At the end of his patience, Gu Qianran sat up in one motion, grabbed his phone, and answered. “What!” he snarled. He had always been a terrible morning person. Whoever woke him up was as good as dead!
The person on the other end seemed startled. After a moment of silence, he said cautiously, “Senior Brother, are you still not up? I’m at your door.”
Clutching his phone, Gu Qianran got out of bed and stalked toward the door, murder in his eyes. Very good. This person had some nerve. He would kill him right now!
But the moment he opened the door, before he could even make out what was happening outside, the world spun around him. Someone had scooped him up.
A mildly reproachful voice sounded beside his ear. “How many times have I told you, Senior Brother? You can’t walk around barefoot. You’ll catch a chill.”
Gu Qianran ignored him completely. At that moment, he had only one thought: dizzy.
He was so dizzy he felt like he was going to throw up.
After clinging to the other person’s neck and recovering for a good while, Gu Qianran finally began to feel better. He was just about to demand an explanation when he looked up and saw the face of the person holding him. His mind went blank. Who was this?
He blinked several times.
Seeing him frozen, the other person called out worriedly, “Senior Brother?”
Gu Qianran remembered. This was his nominal boyfriend, Yan Lu.
“Senior Brother, are you all right? You look awfully pale.” Concern filled Yan Lu’s eyes.
Gu Qianran thought, Obviously. He had stayed up studying until after five, slept for less than two hours, and then been rudely awakened. Who would look well under those circumstances?
“Wait, what time is it?” Gu Qianran suddenly remembered something and asked him.
Yan Lu looked up at the clock hanging in the living room, and Gu Qianran followed his gaze.
“Seven twenty,” Yan Lu said.
Gu Qianran blinked, then cried out in horror, “Aah! I’m going to be late!”
“Put me down, put me down! I need to wash up and get dressed. I’m late, I’m late!” Gu Qianran hurriedly directed him.
Yan Lu watched him flail around and chuckled. Gu Qianran glared at him. How could he still laugh at a time like this?
After being glared at, Yan Lu restrained his smile and patted Gu Qianran twice on the back in reassurance. “Senior Brother, don’t worry. We need to be at school by eight. There’s still time. No need to panic.”
He carried Gu Qianran over to the sofa and set him down, then fetched his slippers and put them on his feet. After that, he raised his face to look at Gu Qianran.
To Gu Qianran, he looked like a puppy that had done something good and was gazing up at its owner, waiting for praise. So Gu Qianran reached out and roughly tousled his hair. “Thanks, thanks.” Then he immediately got up and dashed toward the bathroom. He was going to be late, he was going to be late!
Yan Lu’s face broke into a satisfied smile after having his head rubbed. Watching Gu Qianran scramble about, he could not help laughing again. Then he got up, went to the door, and brought in the insulated food container he had brought with him. He also went to the kitchen for a bowl and spoon.
Gu Qianran washed up as quickly as possible. When he came out, an enticing aroma greeted him.
“Senior Brother, I brought you duck porridge and steamed dumplings.” Yan Lu noticed him and smiled as he displayed his lovingly prepared breakfast. “They’re both warm, not hot. You can eat them now.”
Just as he finished speaking, Gu Qianran’s stomach let out a timely, hungry growl. Gu Qianran swallowed. Fine, filling his stomach came first. He walked over to Yan Lu.
He sat down at the dining table, took the spoon from Yan Lu, scooped up some duck porridge, and put it in his mouth.
It was exactly as Yan Lu had said, not hot at all, just the right temperature. The porridge was soft and smooth, and the duck was tender and delicious, not tough in the slightest. In short, there were only two words to describe it: delicious!
“Is it good?” Yan Lu asked with a smile, watching Gu Qianran eat with bliss written all over his face. There was a hint of eager anticipation in his voice.
“Mm!” Gu Qianran nodded vigorously and ate another spoonful of porridge.
Yan Lu sat across from him, watching him eat with complete focus. He looked just as happy.
After finishing breakfast, Gu Qianran stretched contentedly. Now that he was full and satisfied, he should go back and catch up on some sleep. Wait, no!
Gu Qianran suddenly remembered what he was supposed to be doing. He glanced at the clock. Seven forty. He was going to be late!
“There’s no time! We have to get to school!” Gu Qianran grabbed a tissue to wipe his mouth and made a dash for the door.
“Senior Brother, you haven’t changed yet!” Yan Lu reminded him.
Gu Qianran looked down and saw that he was indeed still wearing his pajamas. Then he looked at Yan Lu. The other man was wearing a dark green school uniform, its cut neat and its fit sharp and tailored.
That was obviously a school uniform. Gu Qianran’s mind went blank. School uniform… school uniform…
Where was his?
Gu Qianran immediately charged into the bedroom. He searched everywhere but could not find the legendary uniform. In the end, Yan Lu, who had followed him inside, opened the wardrobe and took out a set of clothes.
“Senior Brother, your uniform is right here.” Yan Lu handed it to him. “Why are you acting so strange today?”
Gu Qianran’s heart jolted. Had Yan Lu noticed something?
But clearly, he was overthinking it. Yan Lu gave him a gentle smile. “You’re all groggy. It’s kind of cute.”
Gu Qianran got goosebumps all over. Good heavens, in all his years, he was actually hearing another man say cheesy pickup lines to him! How terrifying! Gu Qianran shooed him away. “Cute, my ass. Get out. I’m changing!”
Yan Lu obediently left.
After closing the bedroom door, Gu Qianran patted his heart and began changing. Soon, however, he ran into a new problem. Why was this uniform so complicated?
There was a shirt, a vest, and a jacket. Good grief, there was even a tie!
Once Gu Qianran had changed, he stared helplessly at the tie. What was he supposed to do? He did not know how to tie one!
Could he tie it like a red scarf?
Gu Qianran draped the tie around his neck and tried wrapping it a few times. He nearly strangled himself.
After a few attempts, he decisively gave up. It was only a tie. So what if he did not wear it? Going without one would make him look rebellious anyway! He stuffed the tie into his pocket, grabbed his schoolbag, and opened the door.
“Let’s go,” he said to Yan Lu, who had been waiting outside.
Yan Lu was about to nod and say all right, but after looking him over for a moment, he asked, “Senior Brother, you didn’t tie your tie.”
“Uh…” Gu Qianran was speechless. Could you not worry about such a minor detail?
Apparently noticing his embarrassment, Yan Lu asked, “Where’s your tie?”
Gu Qianran took the tie, now crumpled into a ball, out of his pocket.
Yan Lu took it, carefully unfolded it, and smoothed it flat. Seeing that it was not badly wrinkled, he stepped forward and draped it around Gu Qianran’s neck.
Was he going to tie it for him? Gu Qianran thought. He cooperatively leaned toward him.
Yan Lu held the tie up and tried positioning it a couple of times. His brows drew together slightly, and he looked troubled.
“What’s wrong?” Gu Qianran naturally noticed and asked.
Yan Lu did not answer. After thinking for a moment, he simply moved behind Gu Qianran and reached his hands around to the front.
Gu Qianran’s entire body went rigid. What was he trying to do?
Yan Lu caught hold of the tie hanging down in front of Gu Qianran and began wrapping it deftly.
Gu Qianran felt speechless. So you just can’t tie a tie from the front?
Although he found it rather ridiculous, Gu Qianran still tried to relax and cooperated as Yan Lu tied it for him. The position felt incredibly awkward. Yan Lu was already a little taller than him, and like this, it really looked as though Gu Qianran were being held in his arms.
It was a little intimate.
Fortunately, no one was watching.
Since he had chosen the right position, Yan Lu tied the knot with remarkable ease this time. Before long, a neat Windsor knot appeared at Gu Qianran’s collar.
After tying the knot, Yan Lu helped straighten Gu Qianran’s collar. He carefully smoothed out the creases and adjusted the tie’s position. His movements were gentle, as though he were handling a fragile treasure. As Gu Qianran felt those movements, he could not help feeling a little more precious himself.
When he was finished, Yan Lu looked at his handiwork and nodded with satisfaction. “There. That’s better.”
“Mm.” Gu Qianran lifted a hand and touched the knot. It was a rather novel feeling.
“All right, now we can leave.” Yan Lu smiled.
Gu Qianran glanced at the time. They had wasted another five minutes. It was already seven forty-five. Worried, he asked, “Can we make it to school by eight?”
“Don’t worry. We’ll make it.” Yan Lu pulled him outside, locked the door, and then prepared to drop the key into the mailbox beside it.
Gu Qianran hurriedly stopped him. “What are you doing?”
Yan Lu explained, “Someone will come by to clean later. Leaving the key here makes it easier for them to get in.”
“…Oh.” Gu Qianran nodded to show that he understood. This guy was not an ATM at all. He was practically a live-in housekeeper who handled everything!
Yan Lu stared at him without blinking.
Gu Qianran felt guilty. “W-what is it?”
“You’re really acting strange today, Senior Brother.” Yan Lu looked puzzled. “It’s as though you’ve forgotten everything. How strange…”
“There’s nothing strange about it. I just didn’t sleep well, so my mind’s a little foggy. All right, all right, we’re out of time. Let’s hurry!” Gu Qianran quickly cut him off. If he let Yan Lu say the same cheesy line a second time, he would spell his own name backwards from then on!
Yan Lu did not suspect a thing and nodded. “All right. Let’s go.”