Chapter 10

“Oh!” Mu Chi quickly pulled his hands away from Song Wenzhou, “Sorry, I forgot.”

Mu Chi didn’t like sleeping with clothes on. He always felt that he would get tangled in them while sleeping, regardless of whether it was summer or winter. If he was sleeping alone in a bed, he would always sleep naked. He would rather add an extra blanket than wear pajamas.

In the dorm, Mu Chi would still wear underwear, but at home, he would just strip down to nothing every night before going to bed.

Mu Chi turned on a light, and the bright light made Song Wenzhou squint. It also allowed Mu Chi to see his pale face clearly.

“You’re sweating,” Mu Chi said as he wiped the sweat off Song Wenzhou’s forehead with his thumb. “Hold on, I’ll get dressed right away.”

Song Wenzhou nodded and caught sight of Mu Chi, who was only wearing tight black underwear. Mu Chi walked over to the wardrobe, opened it, and casually pulled out a set of clothes. After putting them on, he grabbed a jacket and walked over to Song Wenzhou, wordlessly taking his hand and guiding it into the sleeve.

“The temperature dropped recently, and it’ll definitely be cold in the middle of the night,” Mu Chi said as he spoke, quickly putting the jacket on Song Wenzhou. Afterward, he found their shoes and put them on, saying, “I’ll carry you.”

“No need,” Song Wenzhou propped himself up on the bed’s edge, standing up. “I can walk.”

Mu Chi didn’t say much. He first put their phones into his pockets, then went over to open the door. Turning back, he half-squatted in front of Song Wenzhou and insisted, “Get on.”

The sound of the door opening woke up Qi Ling and Zhang Feiyu. Qi Ling rubbed his eyes, half-sitting on the bed. Seeing the two of them in such an odd position, he asked curiously, “What are you two doing?”

“Song Wenzhou has a stomachache. I’m taking him to the hospital,” Mu Chi replied. When he saw Song Wenzhou still trying to refuse, he directly reached behind him, grabbed his thighs, and pressed him against himself.

Song Wenzhou, weak and lacking energy, leaned forward as he was pressed, instinctively reaching out to grab Mu Chi’s shoulder.

In the next moment, Mu Chi lifted him by the hips and securely carried him on his back, walking out.

“Wait, we’re coming with you,” Zhang Feiyu said, already getting out of bed.

“I can’t wait for you guys,” Mu Chi said without stopping, heading out of the dorm. “Feiyu, please close the door.”

Mu Chi walked quickly and urgently. The motion-sensing lights in the hallway turned on, lighting the path from the fourth floor to the first. Each step of the stairs witnessed the bond between the two young men.

The main door of the dorm was already locked, but fortunately, the dorm aunt lived in the lounge on the first floor.

The aunt, woken up by Mu Chi’s knocking, put on her clothes and opened the door, asking what was going on.

Mu Chi quickly explained in a few words, and with the dorm aunt’s concern, he carried Song Wenzhou out of the dormitory building.

Song Wenzhou, being a young man who weighed over 100 pounds, was quite heavy, and carrying him for long distances was physically demanding.

Mu Chi’s breathing became heavier, and he bounced Song Wenzhou on his back twice. Looking at him from the side, Mu Chi asked with a smile to ease the mood, “What are you thinking about? Does it still hurt badly?”

Song Wenzhou shook his head, then remembered that Mu Chi might not be able to see it, so he sniffed and, with a nasal tone, replied, “It doesn’t hurt anymore.”

Mu Chi smiled but didn’t point out that Song Wenzhou had been secretly crying. He knew that Song Wenzhou wasn’t telling the truth.

After a while, Mu Chi set Song Wenzhou down, took out his phone to unlock it, and handed it to Song Wenzhou, then lifted him back up and continued walking. “Call our homeroom teacher. We might need him to talk to the security guard so we can leave the school.”

Song Wenzhou wrapped one arm around Mu Chi’s neck and used his other hand to find the homeroom teacher’s number in Mu Chi’s contacts. He dialed it and then held the phone to Mu Chi’s ear.

“You can’t say it yourself?” Mu Chi chuckled helplessly.

The phone rang several times before being answered. Mu Chi quickly explained the situation to the person on the other end with just a few words, then said, “We’re almost at the gatehouse. Please, Teacher Li, tell the security guard to let us out. This is a matter of life and death. Time is crucial!”

“Don’t say such things,” Teacher Li, naturally concerned about the students’ well-being, quickly responded. “Alright, I’ll call the security office right now. You two be careful on the road, and if there’s any problem, call me.”

By the time they reached the school gate, the security guard had already opened the small gate to wait for them and kindly offered to accompany them.

“Thank you, Uncle, but it’s fine. Don’t you still have to be on duty?” Mu Chi kept walking. “I’ll take my classmate, no need for you to worry.”

Once outside the school, Mu Chi set Song Wenzhou down by a streetlight and went to the side of the road to hail a taxi.

However, the school was in a rather remote area, and at this late hour, private cars passed by only occasionally. There was not a single taxi in sight.

What a terrible road! Mu Chi cursed inwardly, thinking back to Sunday afternoon when the traffic jam was so bad it was like dog poop. As soon as he wanted to hail a cab, there were none to be seen.

Mu Chi was starting to feel anxious. He turned back to check on Song Wenzhou and saw that he had squatted down on the ground, clutching his stomach, his face contorted in pain.

“Damn it!” Mu Chi quickly turned around and helped him up. “I’m so stupid. I should have called a cab earlier when we were in the dorm.”

Song Wenzhou couldn’t speak but weakly shook his head as he held onto Mu Chi’s wrist.

“Let’s go,” Mu Chi said, lifting Song Wenzhou up again. “We’ll walk a bit further to get a taxi.”

About 500 meters away from Experimental High School, there was an intersection where more vehicles passed by.

Song Wenzhou tightly gripped Mu Chi’s shirt, and in a muffled voice near his ear, he said, “My phone…”

Half a minute later, Song Wenzhou held his phone up to Mu Chi’s ear, showing a contact named “Mom” on the screen.

The call was answered, and Ren Suyi’s voice, heavy with sleep, could be heard. “Zhouzhou, what’s wrong?”

“Hello, Auntie, I’m Song Wenzhou’s deskmate,” Mu Chi explained the same thing for the third time. “It’s like this…”

“We’ll be able to get a ride to the hospital soon. Song Wenzhou was crying from the pain earlier, and he might be feeling a bit fragile. Please come to the hospital to keep him company.”

“Okay, okay,” Ren Suyi replied repeatedly, asking which hospital they were going to. She then gratefully added, “Thank you so much, young man. Wenzhou’s father and I will be there soon.”

After hanging up, Song Wenzhou softly protested, “I didn’t cry.”

“What didn’t you do?” Mu Chi shifted his position to lift him slightly and teased, “Oh~ you didn’t cry, huh? Well, if you say you didn’t, then you didn’t~”

Song Wenzhou didn’t mind Mu Chi’s sarcastic tone. In reality, he wanted to explain that he hadn’t cried because of the pain, but as for why he wanted to cry at that moment… he couldn’t explain it. The tears just appeared on their own, beyond his control.

“By the way, is ‘Zhouzhou’ your nickname?” Mu Chi asked.

Song Wenzhou hummed in response. Actually, in his memories, when he was very young, the elderly in his family used to call him “Xiao Chuan” (Little Boat)” which should have been his real nickname.

Later, in order to take care of his stomach, Ren Suyi had him drink porridge almost every morning, and that’s how he came to be called “Zhouzhou.”

They were still 300 meters away, and Mu Chi’s arm was starting to ache. His fingers were too sweaty to hold on, causing Song Wenzhou to gradually slide down his back. If they didn’t stop soon, Mu Chi would have to shake him up again.

“Get ready, the sprinting phase is coming,” Mu Chi panted, “Hold on tight, Zhouzhou.”

Song Wenzhou wrapped both arms around his neck.

“Wait a minute, cough cough…” Mu Chi said, “Are you trying to strangle me? I’m taking you to the hospital, not planning to go in with you.”

“Sorry,” Song Wenzhou quickly apologized and tightened his grip on Mu Chi’s shirt.

Mu Chi started jogging with Song Wenzhou on his back. On the cool autumn night, he was sweating profusely. “It doesn’t look far, huh, but, phew, it feels like we’re walking forever…”

Song Wenzhou, riding on his back, was also shaken by each step, panting in several breaths, but his gaze stayed fixed on Mu Chi’s profile.

When they reached the intersection, Mu Chi shouted, “Finally here!” and carefully set Song Wenzhou down before bending over, propping his hands on his thighs, and taking deep breaths.

Song Wenzhou looked at him. His forehead was soaked with sweat, a few strands hanging down. The front of his shirt and jacket was crumpled with marks where his hands had gripped. The hands that had been holding his thighs were now slightly trembling.

Mu Chi took several deep breaths, finally catching his breath. He turned to look at the dazed Song Wenzhou and asked with a smile, “What are you looking at?”

Song Wenzhou clenched his fist and sincerely said, “Thank you.”

“No need to thank me,” Mu Chi, thinking he looked quite cool, but actually looking quite handsome, brushed his hair back with one hand and grinned. “Who told you to be my deskmate?”