Han Shuo rested his elbow on the table, grinning as he watched Meng Yuxiu eat with such elegance.
“Meng Yuxiu.”
“Yeah?”
“Honestly, after everything that’s happened, I really admire you. You’ve completely changed my view of you.” Han Shuo gave him a thumbs up. “If it were me this morning, even if it was unexpected, I would’ve definitely given you a hard time. I never thought someone your age could be so sensible.”
Meng Yuxiu snorted lightly, “No need to flatter me. You’re just afraid I won’t do the tasks with you, right?”
“Damn!” Han Shuo was indeed worried about that, but being seen through by Meng Yuxiu made his earlier gesture of giving him a tea egg and saying those words seem hypocritical. Han Shuo wasn’t happy about that. He could guarantee that at least a third of his compliments were sincere.
“Is that how you see me? What do you mean? You think I’m just using you and trying to sweet-talk you?”
Meng Yuxiu didn’t respond, just gave Han Shuo a sidelong glance, the meaning clear without words.
Han Shuo gave in. Although they were partners, he was a straightforward person who couldn’t quite grasp Meng Yuxiu’s personality. He always felt that Meng Yuxiu could easily manipulate him with just a look or a tone.
“Yes, yes, yes, I didn’t like you at first, but we’ve been so close for so long. Even if there’s no emotional connection, there’s at least… some physical intimacy, right?”
“Cough, cough, cough…” Meng Yuxiu was caught off guard by his words and started coughing, patting his chest.
Han Shuo quickly patted his back. “Eat slowly, I’m not going to steal it from you.”
“…” Meng Yuxiu calmed down a bit, frowning. “Can you think before you speak? Are you really twenty-two?”
“I’m just trying to show you that I’m not just sweet-talking you. I genuinely admire you. Let’s put it this way, from now on, if you don’t want to do the tasks, I won’t force you!”
That statement was too absolute. Han Shuo thought it over and felt it was a bit inappropriate, so he softened his tone and continued, “Actually, I didn’t like you at first. When I found out you were my partner, I almost blacked out. But after getting to know you, I realized you’re actually pretty decent. Just for your sensibility and not taking your anger out on me, I’ve decided you’re my brother! Even if we go back to the 21st century, I won’t forget you. I’ll definitely bring stuff to visit you at school. Of course, in this world, it’s even more so. If anyone bothers you, just tell me, and I’ll deal with them for you. And if I have anything good, I’ll remember you.”
After saying that, Han Shuo raised his eyebrows at Meng Yuxiu.
“…” After Han Shuo finished speaking, Meng Yuxiu was momentarily speechless.
Meng Yuxiu had rushed out in the morning, only taking his bike, leaving his backpack at Han Shuo’s place. Now he was using his deskmate’s books to study.
Having eaten Han Shuo’s eggs and been showered with compliments, the anger Meng Yuxiu felt in the morning dissipated. He decided to go back to the dormitory with Han Shuo to get his backpack.
Han Shuo’s dormitory was lively, especially the large bunk bed where a dozen male students were playing cards.
When Han Shuo appeared at the dormitory door with Meng Yuxiu, everyone inside froze.
Then the guys on the top bunk started howling and even whistling, making Han Shuo feel like he had brought a girlfriend instead of Meng Yuxiu. As expected, the guys in this world were at it again.
Each one teased Han Shuo and Meng Yuxiu.
“Han Shuo, are you two dating?”
Han Shuo: “Get lost, always thinking about nonsense. Can’t I have a pure friendship with Meng Yuxiu?”
Meng Yuxiu originally planned to grab his backpack and head back to the classroom to study. But Han Shuo, wanting to bond and get closer, wouldn’t let him leave.
“We’ll be going to the canteen soon. Going to the classroom is a waste of time. If you want to study, just do it here.”
Meng Yuxiu thought for a moment and didn’t refuse. He took off his shoes and climbed up to the top bunk with Han Shuo.
While the others played cards, Han Shuo, who rarely shared an interest with these kids, joined in. Meng Yuxiu sat on the side, opened his backpack, and took out his books.
He was the type who wouldn’t be disturbed by his surroundings as long as he focused. But after the morning’s events, Han Shuo was now very loyal, occasionally turning his head during the card game to ask if Meng Yuxiu was being disturbed.
But whenever Han Shuo and Meng Yuxiu spoke, the card-playing boys would start making faces and monkey noises, making Meng Yuxiu uncomfortable.
Maybe it was because he had kissed Han Shuo, but he always felt like their secret was exposed.
“Just play your cards, don’t mind me.”
“Alright.”
Han Shuo continued playing cards, but after a while, the dormitory stopped playing cards and started talking about other things.
“Xiaodong,” Han Shuo gestured with his cards to a classmate who had just climbed up, “Did you eat lard? Your mouth is so shiny.”
The tall, skinny, tanned boy named Pan Xiaodong was also a playful student. He proudly said, “Eat lard? You have no idea. I just came back from kissing a guy.”
The dormitory erupted again. They were all teenage boys, and in this era, they weren’t as mature as modern people. So they immediately started bombarding Xiaodong with questions.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk…” Hearing about kissing a guy, Han Shuo got goosebumps, his face scrunching up. He wasn’t interested, so he turned to check on Meng Yuxiu.
Doufu asked Pan Xiaodong, “What’s it like to kiss?”
Pidan: “What’s there to feel with lips touching lips?”
Pan Xiaodong: “What do you know? That’s not kissing…”
Meng Yuxiu wasn’t interested in this either, still focused on his book. But Pan Xiaodong’s words interrupted his thoughts.
He suddenly looked up and asked Pan Xiaodong, “What did you just say?”
Pan Xiaodong was taken aback.
Han Shuo tilted his head, not understanding why Meng Yuxiu suddenly spoke, but he nudged Pan Xiaodong’s leg, “Tell my buddy, what did you just say?”
Pan Xiaodong was confused, “Which part?”
Meng Yuxiu: “The part after you said that’s not kissing.”
Pan Xiaodong: “Oh! I said what Pidan described isn’t kissing. I had a proper kiss. Do you know what kissing is? It’s when tongues intertwine and you exchange saliva. Just touching lips isn’t kissing.”
Now even Han Shuo realized, and he and Meng Yuxiu exchanged a look, both feeling like their nerves had snapped.
While others were surprised that a good student like Meng Yuxiu was interested in such things, they heard him frown and ask again.
“Just touching lips isn’t kissing, then what is it?”
Pan Xiaodong chuckled, “That’s just kids playing house!”
The next second, the guys on the top bunk watched in surprise as Han Shuo and Meng Yuxiu quickly climbed down, put on their shoes, and rushed out of the dormitory together.
Pidan asked, “What’s up with them?”
Doufu shook his head, “No idea, maybe the canteen’s open.”
Han Shuo and Meng Yuxiu tacitly ran to a quiet corner outside the playground.
Earlier, they felt clever for completing tasks with just lip contact. Now, after hearing Pan Xiaodong’s words, their hearts sank.
Han Shuo asked, “How long have we been playing house?”
Meng Yuxiu replied with difficulty, “I noted it down every time we finished a task, three hours.”
“Damn!” Han Shuo was frustrated, “So we’ve been kissing for three hours for nothing?”
Meng Yuxiu coolly said, “You should be glad it was only three hours and not three hundred.”
“…” True, that was a small blessing. If it had been three hundred hours, Han Shuo felt he would’ve coughed up blood by now.
“What do we do now?”
Meng Yuxiu closed his eyes, then opened them, taking a deep breath, “Start over.”
Han Shuo hadn’t planned to bring up the task today, wanting to give Meng Yuxiu time to recover from the morning’s incident. But since Meng Yuxiu mentioned it, there was no choice. After all, kissing was more challenging than just touching lips.
Similarly, the two who had almost gotten used to kissing over the past few days had to mentally prepare themselves again.
They arranged to meet under the ginkgo tree on the playground after evening self-study. This time, without Meng Yuxiu’s reminder, Han Shuo brushed his teeth on his own.
“Did you brush thoroughly?”
“Of course!” Han Shuo opened his mouth wide for Meng Yuxiu to see.
Meng Yuxiu even borrowed a flashlight from someone, shining it into Han Shuo’s mouth, inspecting his clean teeth.
“Don’t worry, I even brushed my tongue clean. I guarantee you won’t find a single leaf.”
“…” Meng Yuxiu frowned at his words.
“Alright, now it’s my turn to check.”
Han Shuo said, taking the flashlight and having Meng Yuxiu open his mouth.
After both were done inspecting, they looked at each other, struggling internally once more.
“I’ve never kissed before,” Meng Yuxiu said, “I don’t know how.”
Han Shuo scoffed, “If anyone should say they don’t know how to kiss, it’s me. At least you know how to stick your tongue out…”
Before Han Shuo could finish, Meng Yuxiu’s gaze swept over him again.
“…”
Meng Yuxiu awkwardly said, “Teach me.”
“?”
“You’re a few years older than me, you must know a bit.”
Han Shuo chuckled internally, thinking, “Now you don’t say I don’t look twenty-two?”
But since Meng Yuxiu was humbly asking for guidance, Han Shuo felt flattered and said, “Well, I do know a bit more than you. It’s not that hard. Didn’t Xiaodong say? Tongues intertwining, saliva exchange, and also exploring the mouth.”
Meng Yuxiu was taken aback, frowning, “Exploring the mouth?”
Han Shuo opened his mouth, gesturing to Meng Yuxiu, “See, the roof of the mouth. I don’t know what those annoying novels mean by kissing, but since we’re doing it, we might as well cover everything. We don’t want to miss anything and waste our efforts, right?”
Meng Yuxiu furrowed his brows deeply, contemplating, and finally agreed with Han Shuo. Neither of them wanted their efforts to be in vain.
But he made one last request to Han Shuo.
“Then you…” Meng Yuxiu seemed to compromise, “Don’t produce too much saliva…”