Jiang Luo was originally just a bit stuttery, but after being called out by Gu Shiyue, he turned into a complete stutterer: “I, I… d-don’t… I-I’m not… uncomfortable.”
After saying that, he spitefully pinched his own lips, thinking to himself, What is wrong with you, Jiang Luo?
Since there were others in the dorm, Jiang Luo took his phone to the balcony. The weather had turned cold, and a chilly wind was blowing outside. Jiang Luo’s cheeks were burning, so he used the cold wind to naturally cool down. His windbreaker was too effective at retaining heat, and he had already broken into a sweat.
There was no sound from the other end of the line. Jiang Luo whispered, “…Senior?”
Gu Shiyue replied, “Hmm.”
“Why are you… not saying anything?”
“Giving you time to collect yourself.”
Jiang Luo rubbed his cheeks, fell silent for a moment, and changed the subject: “…What are you doing?”
“Reading.” Gu Shiyue asked him, “Are you collected now?”
The subject change didn’t seem to work. Jiang Luo tugged at his earlobe, already resigned to his fate: “I don’t know.”
Jiang Luo was definitely uncomfortable in that situation earlier; there’s no way two guys helping each other get dressed would normally end up like that—it completely exceeded the bounds of normal social distance.
Gu Shiyue knew this perfectly well.
“Looks like you’ve collected yourself,” Gu Shiyue said. “You’re not stuttering anymore.”
Jiang Luo looked down and smiled, tugging his ear while muttering, “I’m not a stutterer; my little mouth is actually quite talkative.”
Gu Shiyue’s gaze remained on the page as he smiled silently.
“Senior,” Jiang Luo looked down at his outfit, “can I discuss something with you?”
“Hmm, go ahead.”
“Can you… return these outdoor items you bought for me?” After saying it, Jiang Luo hurriedly explained, “It’s not that I don’t like them, I just think they’re a bit expensive. Or, I can transfer the money to you… I can’t take these for free.”
“These have already been offset by the cost of you feeding the cat without pay; you’re not taking them for free,” Gu Shiyue said. “Unless you’re not coming to feed the cat anymore.”
Gu Shiyue accurately grasped Jiang Luo’s psychology. Hearing this, Jiang Luo immediately said, “I’ll come, I’ll come! I can keep feeding the cat for you.”
Gu Shiyue raised an eyebrow slightly and asked, “How long is ‘keep’?”
“As long as you need me…” Before he could finish, Jiang Luo suddenly clamped his mouth shut, not daring to continue.
That sounded way too weird.
Gu Shiyue’s fingers, which were resting on the spine of the book, twitched. He turned his head toward the phone beside him, hummed, and said, “Remember what you said today.”
Before Jiang Luo’s brain could even process that, he heard Gu Shiyue say, “Sleep early. Hanging up.”
The hiking trip for this weekend was set for Saturday morning, which Gu Shiyue had told Jiang Luo about a few days in advance. They agreed to meet at the school gate. When Jiang Luo walked out, he saw a business van parked nearby. The horn honked, and the back door opened automatically.
Jiang Luo walked over. This hike wasn’t just him and Gu Shiyue; there were five other people in the van. Gu Shiyue was sitting in the very back row, with the seat next to him empty. Jiang Luo stood at the car door with his backpack on, the eyes of everyone in the car landing on him.
Xiang Qin was there, sitting in front of Gu Shiyue. Gu Shiyue had only said he was bringing someone along without mentioning who, but Xiang Qin guessed it was Jiang Luo, so he wasn’t surprised to see him. He smiled and greeted him, “Long time no see, Junior.”
Jiang Luo smiled back: “Long time no see, Senior.”
“Oh? You know him too?” The boy sitting next to Xiang Qin, wearing a duckbill cap, glanced at him.
“I do,” Xiang Qin said.
Jiang Luo looked toward the back seat and met Gu Shiyue’s eyes. He quickly lowered his head, then heard Gu Shiyue say, “Get on.”
Jiang Luo boarded the van. It was very spacious, and he paused in front of the empty seat next to Gu Shiyue without immediately sitting down. He hadn’t expected that after a week, seeing Gu Shiyue in person would still be a bit awkward.
Gu Shiyue seemed to see right through him: “Where else do you want to sit?”
Jiang Luo’s lips moved slightly. With his backpack on, he sat down next to him and said, “Senior.”
The people in the front seats turned around to look back, and Gu Shiyue introduced them, “Jiang Luo.”
Jiang Luo gave them a polite smile: “Hello everyone.”
Gu Shiyue also introduced the people in the car to Jiang Luo. The introductions were very simple, just a circle of names.
The one driving and the one in the passenger seat were Gu Shiyue and Xiang Qin’s direct seniors, who had already graduated and were working.
The one in the passenger seat was named Yao Zhiqing. He wore thin-rimmed glasses and had a very friendly smile. He glanced at Gu Shiyue: “When you said you were bringing someone, I thought you were bringing your significant other, not a handsome young man.”
Xiang Qin’s eyes narrowed into a smile: “What kind of talk is that? Does bringing a young girl automatically mean she’s a significant other? Besides, why can’t a handsome young man be a significant other? Are you discriminating against gay people?”
Yao Zhiqing chuckled: “Oh my god, you better watch your mouth, lest Yue beats you up.”
Xiang Qin smiled without a word.
Jiang Luo’s smile felt a bit stiff. What is even happening right now?
“What year are you in, Junior?” Yao Zhiqing asked.
“Sophomore.”
“You look so young.”
Xiang Qin laughed: “That’s because he’s only a sophomore; he’s young by nature.”
“I mean he looks small for his age. When I saw him walking over, I thought he was a high schooler. His face is so delicate.”
The driver was named Yan Yang. Even in this month, he was wearing a T-shirt, and the muscles on his arms were visible as he gripped the steering wheel. He was chewing gum and didn’t say much.
The boy wearing a duckbill cap next to Xiang Qin was named Xia Yi. He used to be in the same college as Gu Shiyue and Xiang Qin; the three of them were classmates during their freshman year. Xia Yi was the son of Professor Xia from their major. Under pressure, he chose the path his father had arranged during the college entrance exam, but after one year, he transferred to a major he actually liked. He did it without telling anyone, which almost sent his father to the hospital. His current major was on a different campus, so he didn’t see Gu Shiyue and the others often. Xia Yi was a year younger and had a very childish, rowdy personality.
Xia Yi, sitting in front of Jiang Luo, turned around to talk to him: “Hello, Junior.”
Jiang Luo smiled: “Hello.”
“You’re so handsome, practically a beautiful boy.” Xia Yi was very easygoing and direct in his compliments. He asked Jiang Luo, “Is this your first time hiking?”
Jiang Luo nodded: “Yes.”
“No wonder, I was wondering why Yue chose such a short and simple route this time.” Xia Yi stared at Jiang Luo’s face, then made a hissing sound: “Junior, I feel like you look familiar. Have you ever acted in any TV shows?”
Jiang Luo laughed: “Of course not.”
Xiang Qin, listening from the side, laughed: “You look familiar because you’ve seen him before.”
Xia Yi turned to look at him: “What?”
“The cosplayer Yue met last time. Silver hair, white shirt—no impression?”
Xia Yi looked sharply at Jiang Luo: “So it was you! I knew you looked familiar!”
Jiang Luo remembered. When he first met Gu Shiyue, there was a business van parked outside the window, and these people must have been sitting inside.
Xiang Qin laughed: “Your memory is actually pretty good, looking familiar after seeing him just once.”
“That’s me.” Xia Yi clicked his tongue: “I said the cosplay was so handsome, turns out the original model is just that top-tier.”
Gu Shiyue remained silent the whole time, and Jiang Luo didn’t look his way, just sat there stiffly with his hiking backpack, feeling a bit constrained.
The people in the front were chatting away excitedly, while only the two of them had no interaction. The silence in that small, open space felt as if an invisible barrier had been set up, separating them from the front seats.
“Planning to sit there with your backpack on all the way to the destination?” Gu Shiyue broke the silence.
Jiang Luo was stunned for a moment, then immediately took off his backpack. The back seat was quite spacious; it could seat three people, and there was still a distance between Jiang Luo and Gu Shiyue. Jiang Luo simply put his bag on the seat, which happened to create a gap between him and Gu Shiyue.
He hadn’t intended it; it was just a natural move. There had been empty space between them anyway.
Gu Shiyue turned to look at him. Jiang Luo sat with his hands on his knees, looking straight ahead like a soldier.
Gu Shiyue said in a flat tone, “Does sitting next to me make you feel so reluctant?”
Jiang Luo turned his head sharply and shook it immediately: “No!”
Gu Shiyue lowered his eyes to scan the bag on the seat: “Move the bag.”
Jiang Luo picked up the bag, looked around, and wanted to put it on the floor, but Gu Shiyue took it from his hands and shoved it behind himself into the corner.
Fearing that Gu Shiyue would feel crowded, Jiang Luo whispered to him, “Senior, shift over to my side; it’s a bit cramped on your side.”
Gu Shiyue moved closer to him, and his scent slowly enveloped Jiang Luo.
“Did you eat breakfast?” Gu Shiyue asked.
“I did.”
“Hmm. It’s an hour’s drive, you can sleep for a while.”
Gu Shiyue knew Jiang Luo worked part-time on weekends, so he hadn’t picked a place too far away, planning to finish early that day.
Although the trip was only an hour, they had to take the highway. Jiang Luo had woken up early, and since he had been a bit excited and hadn’t slept well the night before, he drifted off to sleep soon after the car started. He woke up only when they arrived at the destination.
Jiang Luo opened his eyes hazily. He was covered with a jacket, half his face hidden beneath it, and the scent of something familiar and pleasant filled his nose.
The smell made him feel safe and comfortable. Still half-asleep, Jiang Luo closed his eyes and huddled further beneath the jacket. Now, his entire face was covered, and he intended to keep sleeping.
“Hahaha, sleeping that soundly?” Xia Yi’s hearty laughter came from the front, and Jiang Luo opened his eyes wide.
“We’re here,” Gu Shiyue’s low voice sounded by his ear.
Jiang Luo slowly poked half his face out from behind the jacket, exposing his eyes. He blinked and met Gu Shiyue’s gaze.
Gu Shiyue was wearing a light shirt; he had taken off his jacket, which was now covering Jiang Luo.
Xia Yi rested his arms on the headrest and turned to look at Jiang Luo: “You slept like a log. Didn’t you sleep well last night?”
Jiang Luo nodded and sat up straight, the jacket sliding down to his lap.
“Look how thoughtful your Senior Yue is, he even gave you a little blanket.” Xia Yi said this while looking at Gu Shiyue: “How come I never got this treatment when I fell asleep next to you? Is it too late for me to change majors and become your junior again?”
Xiang Qin added: “Then you’d have to get held back a year.”
The group burst into laughter.
Jiang Luo was usually quite outgoing and could keep up with banter, but today he couldn’t. Perhaps it was because the banter was aimed at him and Gu Shiyue, and he couldn’t quite handle it—or perhaps he was just… embarrassed.
Jiang Luo packed the jacket and handed it to Gu Shiyue. Having just woken up, his voice was a bit hoarse: “Thank you, Senior.”
Jiang Luo didn’t know how long Gu Shiyue had been without his jacket. Although the car wasn’t cold, the heating hadn’t been turned on, and he was worried Gu Shiyue would get sick just like last time.
“Senior, are you cold?” Jiang Luo asked.
Gu Shiyue put on the jacket and glanced at him.
Jiang Luo whispered, “The temperature isn’t high today. You were wearing just that one layer earlier, and I’m afraid you’ll get sick.”
Gu Shiyue’s fever last time had probably implanted the impression in Jiang Luo’s mind that he had a weak constitution. Gu Shiyue didn’t say anything, just lightly touched the back of Jiang Luo’s hand with the back of his own hand.
Jiang Luo was stunned.
“Cold?” Gu Shiyue asked. “My hand.”
Jiang Luo shook his head: “…Not cold.”
“Reassured?”
Jiang Luo nodded.
The group got out of the car. Gu Shiyue was the last one to exit, walking to the trunk to get his bag. It wasn’t until he slung the bag on that Xia Yi noticed a Q-version doll felt keychain hanging from it.
The fact that Gu Shiyue would hang such a cute object on his bag was completely out of character.
“What on earth is this?” Xia Yi was very surprised and picked up the keychain to take a look: “This is so cute.”
Hearing the sound, Jiang Luo looked over and noticed the keychain on Gu Shiyue’s bag for the first time.
Xia Yi pinched the face of the Q-version doll. When a guy hangs a keychain on his schoolbag, nine times out of ten it’s a gift from a girlfriend. He had never seen Gu Shiyue hang anything on his bag before, and the appearance of this keychain felt very strange. Xia Yi sensed something unusual: “…Holy crap, don’t tell me this was gifted by your significant other?”
The words “significant other” made Jiang Luo’s temples twitch. Before Gu Shiyue could speak, Jiang Luo, as if triggered, stopped in his tracks and turned around sharply: “It’s not!”
Everyone was stunned and stared at him in unison.
Gu Shiyue was looking at him, too.
Jiang Luo’s ear tips were bright red, and he stood frozen there.
With Jiang Luo reacting so strongly, Xia Yi was bewildered: “What’s the situation…”
Xiang Qin joined the chaos, asking with a smile: “If it wasn’t gifted by a significant other, then who gave it to you?”
Gu Shiyue turned his head toward Jiang Luo, watching as his earlobes turned red, little by little.