Chapter 27: Watching Fireflies

A firefly flew toward the tent’s entrance. Lin Hexi stood up from between You Chong’s legs, opened the curtain, and let it out.

You Chong’s expression returned to normal as he sat cross-legged inside the tent. “You woke me up just to show me this?”

Lin Hexi hesitated for a moment but still nodded under the moonlight.

Noticing the emotions on his face, You Chong suppressed the thoughts lingering in his mind and didn’t press further. He only said, “Then you can leave now.”

Lin Hexi slowly stretched out his leg to put on his shoes.

You Chong had already lowered his head to look at his phone, seemingly no longer paying attention to him.

Lin Hexi finished putting on his shoes and stood outside the tent. “I’m leaving.”

Without looking up, You Chong said, “Help me close the curtain.”

Lin Hexi obediently lowered the tent’s curtain for him but didn’t leave immediately.

The moonlight was shut out, and the tent once again plunged into darkness. You Chong didn’t hurry to lie down; instead, he held his phone between his fingers and waited for two seconds.

The sound of footsteps not leaving his ear was delayed, and after a moment, the tent’s curtain was lifted again from the outside. Lin Hexi’s beautiful face peeked in from the moonlight. “After thinking about it, I still feel it would be a shame not to go. It’s not much fun to watch alone. So,” he paused, and a slight smile appeared on his face, “do you want to go into the woods with me to see the fireflies?”

You Chong’s face showed an expression of unsurprised expectation. “Then let’s go.”

Lin Hexi, who had been mentally preparing himself repeatedly, let out a soft laugh subconsciously when he heard this and continued his persistent attempt to convince him. “Isn’t it boring just to lie here and sleep? Not only will you be woken up by me, but you’ll also be disturbed by those who return from stargazing. Instead of—”

He stopped halfway, suddenly widening his eyes in surprise, staring straight at You Chong, who had already stood up.

The other person lifted his eyes and looked at Lin Hexi, who was still blocking the entrance, and asked irritably, “Are you going or not?”

Lin Hexi immediately broke into a wide, happy smile, stepping back quickly to make way for him. “Going, of course, I’m going.”

Before entering the woods, they turned off the lights on their phones.

The forest was very dark, and the underbrush was thick. You Chong, who seemed to have good night vision, walked faster than Lin Hexi. After a while, noticing the footsteps behind him growing quieter, You Chong stopped in place to wait for him. His deep, pleasant voice spread through the night, “You’re so tall, but you walk slower than a woman.”

The faint sound of pant legs brushing against leaves became clearer as Lin Hexi caught up, also lowering his voice, “It’s too dark here; I can’t see the path.”

You Chong mercilessly teased him, “You should eat more carrots.”

Lin Hexi casually lifted his lips in the darkness, not bothering to comment on his suggestion.

You Chong extended his arm, seemingly handing something to him.

The next second, Lin Hexi’s hand brushed against the solid, hard surface of a phone. Confused, he asked, “Why are you giving me your phone?”

You Chong replied concisely, “Hold onto it.”

Lin Hexi instinctively reached out his hand but ended up holding You Chong’s warm, broad hand.

In the silent darkness, where vision was almost useless, the warmth and texture under his fingertips were magnified infinitely in his mind. Lin Hexi held the back of You Chong’s hand, uncharacteristically lost in thought for a second.

You Chong’s slightly annoyed voice pulled him back to reality, “I told you to hold the phone, not my hand.” Even though it couldn’t be seen, his tone suggested his face had darkened a bit. “How long do you plan on holding my hand?”

Lin Hexi retracted his hand a bit and finally managed to correctly grasp You Chong’s phone. He murmured softly, “Your phone is so small; it would be strange not to accidentally touch your hand.”

You Chong, unwilling to argue further, simply held the other end of the phone and led him forward.

Lin Hexi was momentarily stunned before realizing what You Chong intended, muttering to himself in exasperation, “He’s really a complete straight man.”

The fireflies seemed to have shifted locations, and it wasn’t until they reached the middle of the forest that they saw a vast, beautiful sea of flickering fireflies.

You Chong withdrew his phone from Lin Hexi’s hand, crouched down in the grass, and opened the camera app. He manually adjusted the camera settings, intending to take a few photos of the fireflies.

Following suit, Lin Hexi crouched down beside him and glanced at the phone screen. “Are you into photography?”

You Chong replied, “No.”

Lin Hexi raised his eyebrows with interest but didn’t have a chance to speak before You Chong added, “But I’m also not an idiot who only knows how to use the automatic settings on a phone camera.”

The “idiot” who only used automatic settings wasn’t offended at all; in fact, he even chuckled softly.

After taking some photos, they planned to head back the way they came. However, a small mishap occurred. The reason? They ran into the group of people who had been out stargazing in the forest.

At first, Lin Hexi was puzzled. This forest was clearly in the opposite direction from the swamp, so he couldn’t figure out how those people had managed to circle around. It wasn’t until he heard someone excitedly shout, “I told you I saw fireflies!” that understanding dawned on his face.

The chaotic sound of overlapping footsteps was getting closer. If the two of them stood up now, they would inevitably run into those people head-on. Lin Hexi didn’t seem to mind much; he slowly turned his head and silently looked at You Chong beside him.

Among the approaching group were Zhou Xuan and Zhao Du. It was evident that You Chong wasn’t too keen on being seen alone with Lin Hexi by them.

He didn’t get up; instead, he bent his long legs slightly and sat back down on the spot.

Seeing this, Lin Hexi cooperatively crouched down in place as well, not moving.

The sudden arrival of the large group startled the fireflies, causing the large patches of glowing yellow lights floating in mid-air to scatter and gradually disappear into the dark trees. The students, who had been brimming with excitement moments before, now sighed in disappointment. One by one, they turned on the lights on their phones and slowly made their way through the darkening forest.

The warm yellow light beams flickered through the bushes, sweeping randomly across the area. Just before the light could shine directly on them, You Chong lowered his head and simultaneously pressed Lin Hexi’s head down as well.

The two were extremely close, with You Chong’s hand resting on the back of Lin Hexi’s head. From behind, it looked as though he was gently holding Lin Hexi, with his hand on top of his hair.

Lin Hexi, who had been crouching for so long that his legs had gone numb, couldn’t help but shift his weight toward You Chong’s left side, subtly lifting his right foot to ease the discomfort.

As the light from a phone swept over them again, You Chong noticed Lin Hexi’s conspicuous tea-brown short hair and pressed him down even further. Caught off guard, Lin Hexi lost his balance and tilted toward the ground on his right side.

Falling to the ground and making a noise would have been a costly mistake. In an instant, the hand on Lin Hexi’s head slipped to his shoulder, and You Chong pulled him closer, holding him steady against his own body.

Lin Hexi, struggling to keep his balance, instinctively placed his hands on You Chong’s waist, his face pressed downward into You Chong’s chest as he was pulled into his embrace.

You Chong suddenly froze, his jawline unconsciously tensing, but he still didn’t push Lin Hexi away.

Through the broad, firm chest, Lin Hexi could hear the steady, strong heartbeat inside You Chong’s chest, gradually syncing with the sound of his own heartbeat.

With You Chong holding him close, the spot on his waist where Lin Hexi’s hands touched felt a faint warmth, and his nose was filled with You Chong’s scent.

And both of them found themselves in a moment of subtle, complex emotions.