A shameful thought suddenly surfaced—
He felt that Lu Xianyan’s arm would probably be better to bite than chopsticks.
Shu Ci immediately chased the thought out of his head. He apologized to Lu Xianyan and used washing his face as an excuse to hide in the bathroom.
Lu Xianyan remained where he was, staring at his retreating figure for a long time.
Shu Ci’s pajamas were soft and fluffy, and the rabbit ears on the hood swayed rhythmically with his steps.
Lu Xianyan made no move to leave. He locked the door, then bent down to tidy up the trash bag Shu Ci had dropped, placing it neatly in a corner.
After that, he lowered his gaze, seemingly lost in thought.
Only when the phone beside him vibrated did he look up.
Shu Ci’s phone was on the shoe cabinet by the entrance. The incoming number had no saved name.
The sound of running water came from the bathroom. Lu Xianyan didn’t go to disturb him, nor did he answer the call at first.
But the number kept calling persistently.
On the third attempt, Lu Xianyan finally picked up. “Hello.”
He had assumed it was a delivery or takeout call. Instead, after a few seconds of silence, a low, young male voice came through.
“Who are you?”
Lu Xianyan’s pupils contracted slightly, and he frowned.
There was no caller ID, and the other party hadn’t stated his identity, but a certain instinctive sense of rivalry made him guess who it was.
He didn’t explain his relationship with Shu Ci. Instead, lowering his voice, he spoke in a tone as though he was used to handling situations like this.
“Are you looking for Shu Ci? Sorry, he’s busy.”
As if he often answered calls on Shu Ci’s behalf. As if he frequently used such words to send people away.
On the other end, Fu Zhiheng’s brows pressed down. His originally impatient expression stiffened.
So late at night, Shu Ci was with another man?
It left a bitter taste in his chest, yet in front of his friends, he pretended not to care.
But his tone could no longer maintain that indifference.
Coldly, he asked, “Where is he?”
It sounded almost like a demand.
Lu Xianyan replied unhurriedly with two words:
“In the bathroom.”
One minute.
Two minutes.
…
Shu Ci removed the towel from his mouth and finally managed to calm down.
His condition seemed to be getting worse.
The doctor hadn’t prescribed him any medication. Aside from suggesting he find a close friend to cooperate with treatment, it was all the usual advice—regular meals, more exercise, no staying up late.
Shu Ci couldn’t manage a single one of those.
Including finding a friend to help with treatment.
He hadn’t even told Zhou Mingran about it.
He thought it would be troublesome.
After all, no one would be willing to be bitten out of nowhere.
And Shu Ci knew his bites hurt.
He also hadn’t told Zhou Mingran that part of the reason he pursued Fu Zhiheng was for the sake of treating his condition.
During the most anxious low point of his life, Fu Zhiheng’s white-moonlight halo had shone brightly. Without thinking, Shu Ci had treated him like a lifeline, hoping he could save him the way he once had in childhood.
Now, karma had arrived as expected.
The white moonlight had tarnished.
And he had dragged kind-hearted Lu Xianyan into an awkward situation.
Shu Ci sighed silently, washed his face, and stepped out of the bathroom.
The moment his eyes met a pair of dark, heavy ones in the living room, he froze—
Lu Xianyan was still there.
Thinking of Lu Xianyan’s usual serious and composed demeanor, Shu Ci unconsciously sat up straight on his bed. Even answering the phone carried a subtle tension.
“Hello.”
His voice was soft and light, tinged with the faint hoarseness of just waking up.
There was a two-second pause on the other end.
“I’m in the lab right now. It’s inconvenient to text.”
Shu Ci: “Mm…”
He didn’t know what to say. “Is something wrong?”
“That call last night was probably from him. He may have misunderstood.”
Shu Ci paused.
He knew “him” referred to Fu Zhiheng.
Zhou Mingran disliked Fu Zhiheng so much that he refused to even say his name, replacing it with “that person.” Lu Xianyan occasionally joined their gatherings and didn’t participate much in discussions, but he must have heard enough.
If the call last night had indeed been from Fu Zhiheng, then the “I have a boyfriend” message made sense.
He must have mistaken Lu Xianyan for his boyfriend.
After piecing it together, Shu Ci still hadn’t figured out how to explain when Lu Xianyan spoke again.
“I’ll keep it confidential.”
It almost sounded… as if Shu Ci had been secretly seeing someone outside.
Embarrassed, Shu Ci rubbed his ear. “I have nothing to do with him. You don’t need to mind it.”
Lu Xianyan gave a quiet acknowledgment.
Silence fell again, broken only by faint static from the phone.
Shu Ci felt it was about time to hang up.
Just as he was about to speak, Lu Xianyan suddenly added, “You don’t need to worry on my end. I don’t have a partner.”
Shu Ci had never inquired about Lu Xianyan’s private life and didn’t know whether he had ever dated.
Back in school, he probably hadn’t.
Lu Xianyan came from a good family, was outstanding in appearance, and excelled equally in academics and sports. Logically, he should have attracted plenty of confessions.
Yet among the three of them, he had received the fewest love letters.
Zhou Mingran, with his personality, was more popular with girls. Even Shu Ci himself had received more letters than Lu Xianyan.
Maybe Lu Xianyan was simply too cold. A single glance from him was enough to make people retreat.
Shu Ci came back to himself.
“Mm… I understand. I’ll keep it confidential too.”
Silence again.
Occasionally, faint breaths could be heard.
Shu Ci felt it was definitely time to hang up, but suddenly the man on the other end asked:
“Is your mouth okay?”
Hm?
“Sorry. I might have used too much force last night.”
Shu Ci instinctively pressed his lips together, not knowing how to respond. Just then, someone on the other end called out to Lu Xianyan. Seizing the opportunity, Shu Ci told him to get back to work and hung up without answering.
Phew—
Talking to Lu Xianyan felt burdensome.
As for what he’d just said… Shu Ci was rather slow in this area. He thought Lu Xianyan was simply asking out of courtesy, though the question had been overly direct. He didn’t think any further, nor did he realize—
It sounded more like a subtle form of teasing.
He replied to Fu Zhiheng, telling him that he’d been with a friend the night before.