Xu Xing stared at the five words on his phone screen: “He said he had a broken heart.” First, he was dumbfounded. Then, surprised—

Broken heart? What nonsense is that?

Who gave you permission to be heartbroken!

Xu Xing’s quiet heart suddenly came alive with shock and disbelief, filling him with a desperate need to see Lu Che, to confront him face-to-face and demand: What gives you the right to say you’re heartbroken?

It was clearly you who changed seats.

It was clearly you who stopped talking to me.

It was clearly you who stopped loving me.

Xu Xing’s mind was a mess, his thoughts scattering like a flurry of snowflakes falling in all directions, overwhelming him.

Until—

Suddenly, someone took his phone from his hand.

The homeroom teacher stood in front of Xu Xing, confiscating his phone with a displeased expression, saying, “Come with me.”

Xu Xing, startled, hunched his shoulders. “…”

He quickly stood up and followed the teacher.

Once they were outside in the corridor, the homeroom teacher crossed her arms, frowning sternly, causing Xu Xing to look down. Even his rebellious thoughts dared not act out in front of her.

The teacher then asked, “Are you in a relationship?”

“…”

Xu Xing was stunned by the question, stammering, “N-No, I’m not…”

Seeing his reaction, the teacher seemed to understand immediately. “So, you’ve had a breakup?”

“…”

Caught off guard by the second question, Xu Xing was left speechless, only shaking his head.

The teacher softened her tone, saying, “I don’t object to young romance. It can affect studies, sure, but unrequited love or a one-sided crush can sometimes have an even greater impact. I just hope you can balance between relationships and studies. Even if it’s a breakup, it’s no big deal, right? You’re the class president, after all. Look in the mirror, read some books, and you’ll soon be over it.”

Understandingly, she patted Xu Xing on the shoulder to cheer him up.

After hearing her talk, Xu Xing stopped insisting that he was single, and instead focused on his phone still in her hand, forcing a smile, “I promise I won’t use my phone in class again. Could I…have it back?”

The teacher smiled in return, saying, “No.”

“…”

“The phone is confiscated; that’s the rule and your penalty. Come see me on Saturday after school to get it back.”

Xu Xing was sent back to the classroom to work on his test paper. He was anxious but couldn’t do anything about it. After enduring until the break, he tried to use Wang Zicong’s phone to send a message to Lu Che, only to find Lu Che wasn’t on his contact list. Adding him temporarily didn’t get a quick response either.

Unable to sit still, Xu Xing rushed downstairs, intending to head to the athletic training field to find Ke Di. Coincidentally, he saw Ke Di rushing over from the sports field, with Zhou Mang following close behind.

“Ke Di—”

Xu Xing called out, and by the time Ke Di turned his head, he’d already caught up to him.

“Class president?” Ke Di frowned slightly.

Xu Xing asked straight away, “Where’s Lu Che?”

At his words, Ke Di exchanged a subtle look with Zhou Mang, then replied, “We’re on our way to him.”

Xu Xing: “Huh?”

Ke Di: “Ah Che’s in a bit of trouble right now.”

Students from grades 10 and 11 were allowed to leave school early on Friday afternoon after the last two classes. Ke Di and Xu Xing hurried out among the crowd of younger students.

There was a central square just across the street, about a few hundred meters from the school, where Ke Di’s group often went to settle “personal matters.”

The last fight had been due to an internal conflict among the sports students. This time, though, it was unclear why Lu Che had arranged this meet-up. All Ke Di had heard was that Lu Che had gone alone, and his opponent had even threatened to break Lu Che’s hand…

Xu Xing’s heart pounded with fear as he ran with Ke Di and Zhou Mang to the square, disregarding the fact that he was skipping class for the first time in his life.

The square was large, but thanks to Ke Di’s familiarity with the place, they arrived quickly. The scene was one against five, with four people surrounding one in the center while Lu Che stood alone on the other side.

“Ah Che!”

Ke Di ran over. Lu Che’s school jacket was tossed aside, and his clothes were smeared with dirt and blood, looking rather battered despite the injuries being mostly minor scrapes.

Lu Che looked over at the sound of his name. When his eyes landed on Xu Xing, he froze, then turned and angrily snapped at Ke Di, “Why did you bring him here!”

The “him” in his sentence referred to Xu Xing. Lu Che’s angry shout was loud enough for even the tall figure among his opponents to pause, mid-motion, as he removed an earbud.

One of the other side’s group taunted, “Did Ke Di bring a new helper? Our leader said he’s determined to break Lu Che’s hand today, so any bystanders better scram while they still can.”

A few athletes on the other side sneered.

And then—

The tall boy in the middle, who was respected and called “Ze Ge,” suddenly spoke, saying, “Shut up.”

“…”

The athlete who had made the threat was now dumbfounded, a bit stunned by being shut down by his own ‘big brother.'^[1]Not brother by blood but Big Brother also refers to someone who is older than you to show respect.

Yi Ze had just arrived and hadn’t even dropped his backpack yet. He didn’t plan on putting it down now either. He pushed through the crowd and walked towards Xu Xing. Lu Che frowned, stepped aside, and blocked in front of Xu Xing.

Xu Xing looked at the back of Lu Che in front of him, his emotions stirred. He reached out and gently grabbed Lu Che’s wrist—

He felt Lu Che stiffen at once.

Yi Ze gave Lu Che a disdainful look, his gaze directly passing over him, and asked, “Are you Xu Yin’s brother?”

Hearing Xu Yin’s name, Xu Xing instinctively sized him up and answered, “Mm.”

Yi Ze’s gaze swept over Xu Xing’s hand, still gripping Lu Che’s wrist.

That wrist, just an hour ago, Yi Ze had said he would break.

“…”

After an awkward silence, Yi Ze turned to the others and said, “Get back to school.”

“??”

Yi Ze was known for his volatile moods, and though they all silently cursed him, they had to keep smiling. They couldn’t help but glance at Xu Xing, who was behind Lu Che, before reluctantly scattering.

Before leaving, Yi Ze said to Xu Xing, “I’ll keep your skipping class a secret, you keep mine too. Otherwise, Xu Yin will be angry.”

Xu Xing stood there in a daze and replied, “Okay…”

Seeing Yi Ze leave, Ke Di, still puzzled, asked, “What just happened…?”

Zhou Mang glanced at Xu Xing and Lu Che and said to Ke Di, “Let’s go back first.”

Ke Di wanted to ask more, but was persuaded by Zhou Mang’s “we don’t need to wait for the others” excuse. So, he followed Zhou Mang and left.

The vast square was now empty, with only a few tiny figures in the distance. In this corner, only Xu Xing and Lu Che remained.

Lu Che stood with his back to Xu Xing, silent and unmoving. Xu Xing still held onto his wrist. Without any movement from Lu Che, Xu Xing moved in front of him, bending down to see a cut on Lu Che’s left arm, furrowing his brows as he asked, “Does it hurt?”

“…”

When he didn’t get a response, Xu Xing looked up at Lu Che, confused.

Lu Che, who had once mischievously told Xu Xing, “You need to love me properly, I’m really afraid of pain,” now seemed oblivious to the gaping wound on his arm, the blood oozing out. He was utterly unmoved, his eyes completely emotionless, staring at Xu Xing without blinking.

Xu Xing furrowed his brows slightly and said, “I’m asking you something.”

After a brief silence.

Lu Che’s thin lips moved, his voice hoarse, “It hurts… it hurts so much I feel like I’m dying.”

Xu Xing’s expression tightened immediately and said, “Let’s go, we’re going to the hospital now.”

He tried to pull Lu Che along, but Lu Che didn’t budge.

Xu Xing turned to look at him, and Lu Che softly said, “It’s not my hand that hurts… it’s my heart. Can a doctor fix that?”

Lu Che’s gaze locked with Xu Xing’s.

Xu Xing suddenly remembered something he’d heard earlier that day—how Xiong Huan had acted so cold after Fu Dai left, and Tang Mian had joked about it: “Otherwise, should he be more hysterical? It’s just a façade of strength.”

Ever since the red string had been cut, Lu Che had become indifferent and irritable, easily losing control of his emotions. He was like a matchstick, ready to burst into flames, even irrational at times.

Xu Xing had originally assumed that Lu Che despised him, so he kept his distance. In the two weeks they had been apart, he had almost never dared to look Lu Che in the eye. He was afraid of seeing coldness and disdain there, but he had overlooked the subtle sadness in Lu Che’s eyes. Lu Che had put up sharp thorns all over himself, just to hide his soft and scarred heart—it was all just a façade of strength.

They had both misunderstood each other, avoided each other, and yet kept hurting one another.

Xu Xing leaned forward and gently kissed the spot near Lu Che’s chest.

He lifted his head and asked, “Does it still hurt?”

Lu Che, still a little dazed, replied, “It hurts…”

Xu Xing kissed him again, this time on his lips.

He pulled away, and asked again, “Does it still hurt?”

Lu Che blinked and said, “My lips hurt now.”

Xu Xing stood upright, grabbed the collar of Lu Che’s shirt, and without hesitation, kissed his lips again. This time, the kiss was soft and gentle. Lu Che didn’t try to take control as usual. He simply let Xu Xing kiss him, obediently.

Xu Xing released Lu Che and asked, “Does it still hurt?”

Lu Che chuckled lightly, and with genuine sincerity, replied, “It hurts down there.”

“…Get Lost!”

Lu Che was finally joking around and teasing him again. But Xu Xing still felt that something was different. If he had to pinpoint the change, it would be that Lu Che was now… too well-behaved?

Xu Xing concluded that Lu Che must be lacking in a sense of security, so he said seriously, “Who allowed you to experience heartbreak? I didn’t allow it. Did you hear me?”

Had this been before, Lu Che would have clung to Xu Xing, not letting him go.

But now…

Lu Che, unsure, asked, “Is this… all caused by what you said, the red string?”

“…”

Xu Xing was caught off guard by Lu Che mentioning the “red string” again. He was momentarily stunned, unable to speak.

The boy in front of him, who had once been arrogant and carefree, showered with love and always the center of attention, now seemed uncertain as he faced Xu Xing’s confession.