Xu Xing took a step back, glaring at Lu Che with annoyance. Just then, he heard his mom on the phone asking, “Hey—is that Lu Che?”

“…”

Xu Xing grumbled a response, “Yeah.”

His mom said, “Perfect! Xingxing, invite Lu Che to come over for dinner. Are you done with what you’re doing?”

“…”

Xu Xing gave a reluctant grunt, “Yeah.”

He unwillingly glanced at Lu Che. Lu Che, leaning against the corridor wall, smiled at him as soon as their eyes met.

Xu Xing hung up the phone and struggled to speak, “My mom said… she asked if you want to come over to my house for dinner.”

He quickly added, “It was her idea, not mine—I don’t want you to come at all.”

Lu Che’s eyes were practically overflowing with amusement as he immediately replied, “Sure, I’ll go.”

Lu Che even went back to his dorm to grab a backpack he’d never used before, wearing it as they headed out.

Xu Xing shot him a disdainful look and asked, “Why are you bringing a backpack?”

Lu Che smiled and said, “Last time, I didn’t make a great first impression on your parents. I’m hoping that if I pretend to be a hardworking student, I can fix that.”

“…”

Xu Xing’s first thought was that Lu Che had packed a change of clothes, but seeing the deflated bag with only two books inside, he couldn’t be bothered to respond.

They hailed a cab at the school gate, sitting in silence for most of the ride. The only exchange was when Xu Xing accidentally bumped Lu Che’s injured left hand. He apologized, and Lu Che chuckled softly, “It’s just a surface wound. I had it treated at the hospital, but the nurse wrapped it like I was holding a knife. Tsk.”

The young nurse, eager to spend more time with Lu Che, couldn’t resist wrapping a few extra layers of bandage around his hand.

The two of them stood downstairs waiting for the elevator. In front of them, two elderly women were holding their young grandchildren. One of the little kids rested on his grandmother’s shoulder, showing only a pair of large, dark eyes, which stared intently at Lu Che. Unfortunately, the big brother’s gaze was fixed solely on the other brother beside him.

The child’s eyes shifted, following Lu Che’s gaze toward Xu Xing.

Xu Xing stood in front of the elevator door, appearing calm on the surface, but internally, his emotions were in turmoil.

There were two voices in his head. One, calmly chanting like a monk with a wooden fish, repeated, “It’s just a meal, it’s just a meal.” The other, frantically wailing, cried, “Inviting him to dinner is like inviting him to bed!”

“…”

As Xu Xing wrestled with his thoughts, he suddenly felt a hand rub his furrowed brow.

He turned his head and saw Lu Che’s bright eyes smiling at him. “What are you thinking about? Your brows are all knotted up.”

Xu Xing jerked his head away without a word.

Just then, the elevator doors opened, and they followed the elderly women inside, walking one after the other.

They arrived home.

As soon as Lu Che entered the house, he greeted cheerfully, “Hello, Uncle. Hello, Auntie.”

Xu Xing’s mom came out holding a plate of food, saying, “Lu Che, you’re here! Come and sit down, we’re about to eat.”

Xu Xing’s dad put down his tablet and said, “Come join us for dinner.”

Lu Che followed Xu Xing to wash his hands first. As soon as they sat down at the table, Xu Xing’s mom handed him a bowl of rice, and Xu Xing’s dad placed a piece of fried fish in his bowl.

Xu Xing’s dad enthusiastically said, “Try your Auntie’s cooking. Her crispy fried fish is really something.”

Xu Xing, chewing on his chopsticks, couldn’t help but glance at Lu Che.

The crispy fried fish was drizzled with fresh tomato sauce. As it sat on the rice, the thick tomato juice slowly seeped into the white grains, turning them red.

Lu Che’s hand holding the chopsticks paused for a moment. He politely thanked Xu Xing’s dad for the fish, but as he stared at the piece in his bowl, his movements were hesitant.

Xu Xing suddenly remembered that Lu Che never ordered braised fish at school and that he had a peculiar habit of being particular about cleanliness while eating. Xu Xing wasn’t sure if Lu Che disliked fish or was just uncomfortable with his dad’s chopsticks—even though his dad hadn’t used them yet.

Without thinking much further, just as Lu Che’s chopsticks touched the rice, Xu Xing picked up Lu Che’s bowl and swapped it with his own.

Xu Xing took his own chopsticks and said to Lu Che, “I haven’t touched this rice yet.”

Then, he addressed his dad, “You don’t even know if he likes fish. Let him serve himself next time.”

His dad, hearing this, apologized to Lu Che, “In that case, have more of the other dishes.”

Lu Che looked at the fresh bowl of white rice that Xu Xing had given him, feeling a warmth in his heart. He explained to Xu Xing’s dad, “When I was a kid, I often choked on fish bones, which left me a bit traumatized. I’ve avoided eating fish ever since.”

Xu Xing’s mom chimed in playfully, “Well, that’s funny. Xu Xing has loved eating fish since he was little. Maybe it’s because he never got choked by a fish bone while picking them out himself. Now he takes pride in it!”

She wasn’t wrong either. When Xu Xing was younger, he used to sit with his bowl, chewing on a piece of fish and separating the bones from the meat in his mouth. He would stick out his tongue to show the bones to his mom, insisting she praise him before he’d spit them out. He looked so proud while doing it.

Xu Xing quietly ate his rice, not responding.

Xu Xing’s mom hadn’t expected Lu Che to come over for dinner, so she’d only made a few simple dishes: four meat dishes, one vegetable, and a soup. Aside from the crispy fried fish, there were also braised pork ribs, stuffed bitter melon with pork, and sautéed mantis shrimp with scallions.

Xu Xing’s family had a unique skill for eating mantis shrimp. The shrimp had already had its tail spines and sharp whiskers removed. Xu Xing bit off the head and tail first, then nibbled along the seam of the shell, effortlessly peeling it off to enjoy the tender meat—all with minimal use of his hands.

During the meal, Xu Xing’s mom asked about the injury to Lu Che’s left hand, but he brushed it off, saying he sprained it while playing basketball.

Xu Xing grunted inwardly. Though he grumbled, he continued to eat, sneaking glances at Lu Che from the corner of his eye. Lu Che’s chopsticks only wandered between the braised ribs and the stir-fried vegetables. Normally, Lu Che would eat four servings of meat at the school cafeteria, but tonight, apart from two bowls of rice, he only picked at a few ribs and vegetables.

After dinner, Xu Xing’s dad poured himself a small glass of liquor, and jokingly asked Lu Che, “Do you drink baijiu? Want to try a little?”

Lu Che, eager to please, smiled, “I’m not great with baijiu, but I can handle a little.”

Xu Xing immediately intervened, “Dad, he’s still a senior in high school. He shouldn’t be drinking.”

Xu Xing started grumbling to himself. Even if it was just a surface wound, Lu Che shouldn’t be drinking while injured.

Xu Xing’s mom laughed and told Lu Che, “His dad used to joke with friends that once Xu Xing was born, he’d finally have a drinking buddy at home. But it turns out Xu Xing doesn’t touch alcohol at all.”

Xu Xing’s dad added, “They say if you don’t drink, you won’t be able to get married. Besides, once you start working, there’ll be no avoiding it.”

“…”

Xu Xing was hit right where it hurt. Annoyed, he said, “I’ll just drink herbal tea when I get married.”

Lu Che, suppressing a laugh, said to Xu Xing’s dad, “Uncle, the class president won’t let me drink. But after the college entrance exams, I’ll come back and share a drink with you.”

Xu Xing’s dad chuckled, “Alright.”

In Xu Xing’s family, meals were often quiet, but after-dinner chats were a common tradition.

As they casually chatted, time flew by, and soon it was nearly 8 p.m.

Xu Xing got up to leave the table when his mom suddenly asked, “Xu Xing, why did you rush back to school earlier today?”

Xu Xing froze mid-step.

Lu Che, who had just stood up with Xu Xing, paused as well and then looked at Xu Xing with a playful smile.

Trying to stay calm, Xu Xing pushed his chair away and casually replied, “Nothing much. I forgot something.”

He then headed to his room, with Lu Che grinning behind him as he followed.

Xu Xing sat down at his desk, and Lu Che leaned on the back of his chair, slightly bending over with a mischievous smile. “Class president, what did you forget at school that was so important?”

Xu Xing thought Lu Che was being ridiculous and shoved his face away, pulling out a small biology notebook and slapping it on the desk, declaring, “This!”

The amusement in Lu Che’s eyes deepened as he picked up the notebook and flipped through it, casually saying, “Oh, so it was this.”

Annoyed by Lu Che’s teasing tone, Xu Xing immediately said, “You’ve eaten, now hurry up and head back to school.”

But Lu Che ignored the command and instead said, “The weather forecast said it might rain tonight.”

Xu Xing rolled his eyes, “You’re taking a cab, so who cares if it rains?”

Lu Che added, “Cabs can’t drive onto the campus. There’s still a long walk from the school gate to the dorm. I can’t afford to get soaked; you’ll worry if I catch a cold.”

“…”

Xu Xing snapped, “Get out!”

Xu Xing stepped out onto the balcony, looking up at the starry, wind-swept sky with no sign of rain. He called back, “There’s not a drop of rain, so hurry up and get back to school.”

But Lu Che continued to play coy, “No way. In half an hour, it might start raining. I’d get soaked by the time I reach the school.”

Xu Xing glared at Lu Che’s innocent expression, about to explode, when his mom suddenly entered the room with a thin blanket and a pillow, placing them at the foot of Xu Xing’s bed.

She smiled and said, “I just washed and aired these out in the sun a couple of days ago.”

Xu Xing: “…”

Lu Che beamed, “Thank you, Auntie. Sorry for the trouble～”

Xu Xing: “…”

Lu Che staying overnight was quickly decided, and the person involved shamelessly said to Xu Xing, “Class monitor, lend me some clothes to change into, okay? I didn’t bring any clothes with me.”

Xu Xing got even more annoyed: “You already planned to stay, but didn’t bring clothes?”

Lu Che grinned cheekily, “I’ll remember next time~”

Xu Xing: “Get lost! There won’t be a next time.”

Even though Xu Xing kept scolding him, he still stood up and took out the sportswear he had lent Lu Che last time, tossing it over.

Then, Lu Che asked, “What about underwear?”

Xu Xing: “…”

Xu Xing didn’t have any new underwear in his wardrobe, and while sharing clothes was fine, sharing underwear was out of the question. Xu Xing flatly refused: “None.”

Lu Che, unfazed, said, “That’s fine, going commando can be comfortable too~”

Xu Xing: “…”

His first thought was that his sports pants would now be in direct contact with Lu Che… maybe he should just throw them away.

Xu Xing sat at his desk doing practice problems while Lu Che, with nothing better to do, went to shower.

After a while, as Xu Xing continued working on his exercises, he heard the sound of light rain hitting the balcony, with the slanting wind splashing water droplets, creating tiny bursts of spray.

He stood up, closed the balcony door, and then went to shut the windows in the other rooms on the same side of the house. Xu Xing’s dad was sitting alone at the dining table, sipping on his drink. Xu Xing sat down and couldn’t help but bring up the issue, “Dad, in the future, when we have guests over, please don’t put food directly into their bowl. It’s impolite to use your personal chopsticks, and even with communal chopsticks, it’s not ideal. Sometimes it’s not that people are shy, they just might not want that dish. Don’t you agree?”

His father thought about it seriously, but, out of pride, gave no real response, just grunted, “Hmm.”

Xu Xing had never really noticed this issue before, but after paying attention to Lu Che’s habits, he began to see things differently.

Just as Xu Xing returned to his room from the dining area, Lu Che came in right behind him, using the fresh towel Xu Xing’s mom had given him to dry his hair, looking refreshed from the shower.

Xu Xing glanced at him, didn’t say much, and grabbed his phone from the desk. But suddenly, Lu Che came right up behind him, pressing his body against Xu Xing’s back, and even playfully nudged his hips forward…

Xu Xing exploded instantly.

“You’re insane!”

The moment Xu Xing thought about how Lu Che wasn’t wearing any underwear, his face darkened, and he had the sudden urge to destroy whatever was beneath.

Lu Che just wanted to play a prank and didn’t expect Xu Xing to react so strongly. He quickly tried to calm him down, “Class monitor, don’t be mad. How about you nudge me back, okay?”

Xu Xing: “Get lost!”

Seeing that his attempt to smooth things over wasn’t working, Lu Che pulled down the waistband of his pants and said, “I just wanted to show you, I am wearing underwear.”

With one hand lifting his shirt and the other pulling down his sweatpants, Lu Che proudly revealed his clearly defined abs and the faint edge of his underwear.

Xu Xing glanced at him, and the anger subsided a little: Lu Che was wearing underwear, meaning there had been two layers between them earlier. That was somewhat better than only having the sweatpants between them…

Still irritated, Xu Xing pushed Lu Che away and grabbed his own clothes, heading to the bathroom to shower.

Lu Che, meanwhile, casually grabbed the towel hanging around his neck and continued drying his hair, his eyes landing on Xu Xing’s biology notes on the desk.

By the time Xu Xing finished his shower, it was already 9 PM. He sat cross-legged at his desk doing homework, while Lu Che quietly leaned against the bedhead, flipping through some of Xu Xing’s completed test papers.

The rain outside lasted for more than two hours. By 11 PM, Xu Xing pushed open the balcony door, and the rain had finally stopped. The night breeze after the rain brought a fresh, cool air.

Xu Xing glanced at Lu Che, who also looked up at him.

In a stiff tone, Xu Xing said, “I’m hungry. I’m going out for some grilled skewers. Are you coming?”

Lu Che: “Of course, wherever you go, I’ll go.”

Xu Xing just snorted in response.

Xu Xing was very casual when going out, wearing large shorts, a light sports jacket, flip-flops, and his hair slightly tousled by the night wind.

Not far from Xu Xing’s residential area was a small food street. He sat down in a barbecue restaurant, glanced at the menu, and rubbed his nose, saying, “You order. I can eat anything, I just have a bit of decision anxiety.”

Truthfully, Xu Xing wasn’t actually hungry.

But Lu Che usually ate more than him, and tonight, Lu Che had eaten less than usual, so he must be hungry now.

Lu Che smiled as he took the menu, quickly marking down several skewers and a pot of shrimp porridge.

The barbecue place was bustling, with young customers coming and going. Xu Xing idly fiddled with a pair of disposable chopsticks, watching people as they entered and left.

Most of the customers were young, and a group of girls, after finishing their meal and getting ready to leave, immediately noticed the guy sitting at the table, his elbow resting on the table while he played with his phone.

His handsome and flawless face instantly caught their attention.

The girls couldn’t take their eyes off him, and even as they passed by, they couldn’t resist turning their heads back. But this second glance revealed something unexpected—the guy wasn’t just playing with his phone, he had the camera on, filming the person sitting opposite him.

Their shrimp porridge arrived, and seeing that Lu Che was still playing with his phone, Xu Xing started serving the porridge into two bowls.

Lu Che finally put down his phone and chuckled softly, “If I compliment you for being thoughtful right now, will you get mad?”

Xu Xing took a sip of porridge and replied dryly, “Thoughtful, my ass. You eat more porridge; I’m eating the shrimp.”

With that, Xu Xing scooped shrimp from Lu Che’s bowl with his spoon. It wasn’t until his spoon had dipped into Lu Che’s bowl that he remembered Lu Che’s fastidiousness and frowned, “I forgot you’re picky. Maybe you should just get another bowl.”

Lu Che just smiled, not only declining the offer to change bowls but also scooping all the shrimp from his bowl into Xu Xing’s.

Xu Xing kept his head down, drinking his porridge without saying a word.

After finishing their skewers, the two headed home, arriving past midnight.

The living room was dimly lit with a soft, yellow night light. Xu Xing’s dad, who had waited for them to come back, quietly said, “Get to bed early. Have a good rest.”

Xu Xing’s mom had already gone to bed earlier, but when Xu Xing went to brush his teeth, he noticed a new toothbrush sitting next to the sink, clearly prepared in advance by his mom for Lu Che.

Lu Che squeezed in beside Xu Xing at the sink to brush his teeth, even using Xu Xing’s cup. Xu Xing only gave him a glare but didn’t go as far as to stop him.

The half-body mirror in front of the sink reflected the two of them: one looking annoyed, the other grinning cheekily.

Later.

The bedroom was softly lit by an orange nightlight. Xu Xing and Lu Che lay on opposite sides of the bed. Lu Che behaved so properly that Xu Xing’s lengthy mental list of bedtime rules had nowhere to go.

Xu Xing turned over, now lying with his back to Lu Che, and heard him turn over too, before everything fell quiet.

This peaceful sharing of the bed was miles away from the uncomfortable scenarios Xu Xing had been dreading.

Xu Xing bit his tongue and said quietly, “Hey.”

Lu Che responded softly, “Yeah?”

Xu Xing blurted out something pointless, “I’m turning off the light.”

Lu Che chuckled lightly, “I’ll turn it off.”

Xu Xing heard some rustling behind him, and soon, the small nightlight in the room went dark.

The room, now submerged in darkness, grew silent.

Xu Xing lay on his side for a while, feeling restless. He shifted to lie on his back, closing his eyes tightly for a moment, then gave up and opened them again.

He stared into the darkness, and although the balcony curtains were drawn and the room was pitch black, he still didn’t have the courage to sneak a glance at Lu Che.

But then, he berated himself: Why on earth would you want to look at Lu Che? Have you lost your mind?

He stewed in his own frustration for a while, until a small voice popped up in his head, defending him: Maybe… just to see if there’s a red thread or something…

Xu Xing couldn’t stop his mind from spiraling, reciting ancient texts in his head to calm down, but he kept mixing up the lines. He felt utterly annoyed, but the person lying next to him hadn’t moved or made a sound for a long time—Lu Che was probably already asleep.

Xu Xing forced himself to resist the urge to toss and turn, not wanting to disturb Lu Che.

After a long while.

Xu Xing pulled himself out of the mess of thoughts swirling in his mind—

He felt a light dip beside his pillow. As the weight shifted, the spot beside his pillow sank even deeper. Xu Xing grew inexplicably tense, though he kept his eyes shut.

Then.

Something soft and warm brushed his lips, very lightly, gently, restrained, and fleeting.

Xu Xing made no sound and didn’t dare open his eyes.

He tried hard to steady his breathing, fearing that the wild beating of his heart would give him away.

Xu Xing didn’t dare to “wake up”; he was afraid that if they acknowledged this, he’d lose any chance to pretend nothing happened when facing Lu Che.

Thankfully, the room returned to silence once more.

---

Author’s note: Lu Che had two books and a pair of underwear in his backpack, get √