“Why are you so slow this time?” Jiang Wenyan casually took a few fruit candies from Jiang Wan’s school uniform pocket.
“Damn, Jiang Wenyan, you’re even stealing candy from a patient!” Xu Yichen said, also quietly reaching toward Jiang Wan’s pocket.
“Smack!”
Jiang Wenyan’s slap landed without mercy. “This is my brother. Keep your hands to yourself.”
“You fu—”
Just as Xu Yichen was about to say something to express his anger, Jiang Wenyan casually tossed a candy, hitting Xu Yichen’s palm with perfect accuracy.
Jiang Wenyan: “Hmm?”
“…You’re damn right.” Xu Yichen said, “He’s your brother, your brother.”
After the exam, only the three of them remained in the classroom. As soon as the exam bell rang, Lu Xingheng left the exam hall, leaving his pencil case on Jiang Wan’s desk.
Jiang Wenyan and Xu Yichen spoke softly, their voices overlapping in a muffled way… Jiang Wan was very sleepy, dizzy and uncomfortable, not catching a single word. He had long since propped his head against the window and fallen asleep.
“Shh! Little brother.” Xu Yichen glanced at the clock. “It’s just past seven. Why is the class monitor asleep again?”
Jiang Wenyan frowned. “Did he take his medicine this afternoon?”
Xu Yichen: “Didn’t notice.”
“He did.” Lu Xingheng’s voice was very soft. He had just returned from the cafeteria, still holding an umbrella.
Jiang Wenyan relaxed. “Then it’s fine. Probably just tired from studying for the exams these past few days, not getting enough sleep.”
“Hey, Lu Xingheng, is that rice ball from the cafeteria?” Xu Yichen pointed at the small bag Lu Xingheng had just placed on the desk. “Are you still going to eat it?”
Lu Xingheng didn’t speak.
Xu Yichen sounded a bit unsure. “The class monitor likes rice balls from the fourth cafeteria. He… has a congenital cold constitution.”
“He can’t eat most things from the cafeteria, and the class monitor is picky—”
“Stop rambling.” Jiang Wenyan couldn’t take it anymore and pulled Xu Yichen aside. “Sister Yun needs us for something. My brother has low blood sugar. I can transfer you the money for the rice ball.”
Jiang Wan’s fingers curled slightly as he leaned closer to the wall. Xu Yichen and Jiang Wenyan instantly quieted down, lowering their voices when they spoke again. “We’ll wake him up in a bit.”
Lu Xingheng responded softly, “Mm.”
He wasn’t someone who liked to meddle in others’ affairs, especially trivial matters like this. He usually refused outright.
Lost in thought, Jiang Wan rubbed his neck, struggling to wake up, and managed to ask, “What are you looking at?”
Lu Xingheng: “The rice ball.”
At this moment, Jiang Wan’s logic sharpened again. “The rice ball is on the desk. You were just looking out the window.”
Lu Xingheng: “…”
Jiang Wan opened the window and glanced outside, muttering softly, “There’s no rice ball out there.”
The late summer rain came suddenly, and the wind was cool, carrying a chill that drifted into the classroom through the window, rustling the pages of books.
Jiang Wan couldn’t help but shiver slightly, his head dizzy and throbbing. His hand, pulling the window, was pale and tinged with blue, the veins on the back of his hand throbbing violently before suddenly losing strength.
Jiang Wan closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them again, a pair of slender, pale hands appeared before him. Lu Xingheng leaned slightly forward, his shadow falling over him, covering most of the desk.
Jiang Wan’s eyes were unfocused. He stared at the shadow for a while, then reached out and placed his hand on the only sunlit corner of the desk, completely covering the entire table.
But it only lasted a few seconds. The window was closed. The person who closed it withdrew his hand, and the shadow dissipated.
Only a small patch of shadow remained cast in front of Jiang Wan.
“Your rice ball.” Lu Xingheng pushed the packaging bag forward.
Jiang Wan’s palm, numb from the cold, suddenly came into contact with warmth, and his fingers instinctively curled.
Lu Xingheng opened his mouth but said nothing. He turned to close the front and back doors of the classroom. When he returned, Jiang Wan was staring blankly at the packaging bag, occasionally tugging at the seal.
Lu Xingheng: “Why aren’t you eating?”
When Jiang Wan looked up at him, his eyes were red. Lu Xingheng froze for a moment.
Jiang Wan quickly lowered his gaze and began unwrapping the packaging again. “No, just tired.”
His voice was hoarse.
After a while, Lu Xingheng responded softly, “Mm.”
Jiang Wan wasn’t very hungry and only took a few casual bites, not even tasting the flavor.
“Is it still warm?” Lu Xingheng asked.
Jiang Wan: “No.”
He was even feeling quite cold.
Lu Xingheng frowned. “Then don’t eat it.”
Jiang Wan: “…”
Jiang Wan reached out to shield the rice ball, looking protective of his food. “What are you doing?”
“Buying a warm one.” Lu Xingheng grabbed his umbrella and headed out, leaving the classroom in just a few steps.
“Lu Xingheng.” Jiang Wan followed him.
Lu Xingheng paused, his hand on the door. “Speak.”
“No need.” Jiang Wan leaned against the first-row desk, his knees slightly bent. “The rice ball is warm, and I’m not hungry anyway.”
Lu Xingheng: “I’ll eat it myself.”
Jiang Wan: “Oh.”
…
During exam week, there were no evening classes, and students could choose to study in the classroom. However, the top students of Class A scoffed at the idea—why stay in the classroom when the dorm was cozy and comfortable? They couldn’t understand why regular classes even needed designated study rooms, calling it a “supernatural phenomenon.”
Jiang Wan didn’t linger long, slowly making his way back to the dorm, where he unexpectedly ran into Lu Xingheng, who should have been at the cafeteria.
At this hour, the cafeteria was crowded, and it would take at least ten minutes to get served.
Lu Xingheng was holding a plastic bag, fluttering loosely in the wind, with the infirmary logo printed on the packaging.
“Lu Xingheng.” Jiang Wan called out with a lazy, amused tone. “Weren’t you going to the cafeteria?”
Lu Xingheng brushed it off. “Already ate.”
Jiang Wan coughed a few times, choked by the wind. “What did you eat?”
Lu Xingheng: “…Rice ball.”
Jiang Wan pressed on. “Was it good?”
Lu Xingheng: “Heading back now.”
Lu Xingheng walked quickly, his shadow sliced and dampened by the streetlights, disappearing around the corner in an instant. Jiang Wan was left far behind.
They arrived at the dorm about ten minutes apart.
The rainy weather was damp, and Jiang Wenyan and Xu Yichen, being particular, had brought their food back to eat.
One was eating spicy hot pot, the other sour cabbage fish, filling the dorm with the rich, stimulating aroma of their meals.
Outside, it was cool and rainy, but inside the dorm, it was stiflingly hot. They had even turned on the air conditioner for a while and had just turned it off not long ago.
Cold air seeped through the door crack. Jiang Wan hesitated for two seconds before pushing the door open, leaning against the wall outside for a moment.
The small electric fan hummed softly, making their conversation barely audible.
“Maybe we should turn on the heating mode. We just had it at 16 degrees—the class monitor will definitely freeze when he gets back.”
“Who knew he’d come back so soon? I thought he’d at least finish two practice tests.” Jiang Wenyan went to the balcony to open the window. “Let me air out the smell first.”
Xu Yichen: “We haven’t even finished eating. Why are you airing it out now?”
“Huh?” Jiang Wenyan said with a serious expression. “My brother said you have to ventilate the room after using the air conditioner.”
Xu Yichen shoveled rice into his mouth, mindlessly agreeing. “Alright, alright, if the class monitor says so, it must be right!”
“Hey, Lu Xingheng, what are you looking at?”
This was already the seventh time Xu Yichen had noticed Lu Xingheng glancing out the window.
The dormitory window connected to the balcony, facing the final stretch of road from Duxing Building to the dormitory. But at this moment, it was quite dark outside, and almost nothing could be seen.
Lu Xingheng: “How long does it take for Jiang Wan to get back?”
Xu Yichen turned around and shouted toward the balcony, “Jiang Wenyan!”
“What is it? Spit it out.”
“That math problem—how many meters per minute does your brother walk again?”