The sink and storage cabinets were clearly spacious, yet Chen Yu’s belongings only occupied a small corner, making him look pitiful.

I looked at him and tentatively asked if he was facing any trouble.

He lowered his eyes and hesitated before telling the truth.

“My roommates say I speak and act too slowly, call me effeminate, and don’t like interacting with me. So, I spend most of my time outside doing part-time jobs and don’t like coming back to the dorm.”

“Why don’t you switch dorms?”

“The counselor said there are no available spots right now.”

I clenched my teeth, deeply disliking this kind of bullying behavior.

I told him to get some rest and mentally noted this matter.

---

By the time I rushed to the classroom building, one class had already passed.

During the break, I walked into the classroom.

The only seat left in the front rows was next to Ji Huai’an.

This calculus teacher had a rule: no students were allowed to sit in the back rows, and he especially liked picking on students to answer questions.

I frowned and reluctantly sat beside him.

As class started, I flipped through my book and softly asked, “Can I borrow your notes from last class to copy?”

Ji Huai’an glanced at me indifferently. “Skipping class just for someone else, and now you want notes?”

“…”

I bit my lip. As expected, ex-boyfriends are always petty.

Just as I was about to borrow notes from the guy in front, Ji Huai’an grabbed my wrist, stopping me.

We locked eyes, and I tried to pull away.

He wouldn’t let go, silently challenging me.

The calculus teacher must have noticed something was off because he suddenly called my name to answer a question.

I was dumbfounded, not having listened to the question at all.

The only thing that popped into my head was the teacher’s warning that not paying attention would result in deductions from participation grades.

I’m doomed!

I stood up slowly, about to make up some random answer, when the person beside me slid his book over and circled a number with his pen.

After I answered, the calculus teacher told me to sit down and pay attention.

I stared at that circled number, unable to help but remember how Ji Huai’an used to help me like this in high school.

“Aren’t you going to copy the notes? Hurry up,” Ji Huai’an said coldly, snapping me back to reality.

---

When morning classes ended, it started to rain outside.

The class monitor, carrying an umbrella, approached Ji Huai’an, asking him to go to the cafeteria together.

Ji Huai’an glanced at me, hesitated for a few seconds, and left without saying anything.

Watching them leave, I couldn’t help but think of the past.

The day we broke up, it was raining too.

Before that, Ji Huai’an and I had promised to take the entrance exam for Lantong University together, so he tutored me every day.

But my family situation was bad. My father was a gambling addict who often found my mom and me, beat her up, and stole money.

I had to move again, take care of my injured mother after school, and worry about next semester’s tuition.

At that time, I was completely overwhelmed, and as a result, I flunked my midterms, dropping over 30 spots in the rankings.

Ji Huai’an asked me what was going on, assuming I hadn’t been working hard and had gotten lazy.

But I was exhausted, and as a teenager, I felt too ashamed to tell him the truth, so we ended up fighting.

“Stop worrying about me. I’m just not cut out for studying,” I said, tired.

“Are you feeling unwell? If you want, I can shorten our study sessions at night.”

“No, don’t you get it? I don’t want to be pushed so hard anymore. I can’t get into your dream university anyway.”

“It’s fine, you can apply somewhere nearby, and we can still go together.”

Ji Huai’an was trying his best to stay by my side, but I was too irritated and worn out.

We argued, and in a moment of anger, I said it.

“I’m tired. Let’s break up!”

He froze, grabbed my collar, and said, “Say that again if you dare.”

I was about to speak, but he cut me off.

“Liang Yi, is it really that easy for you to say those words? Am I someone you can just give up on, like that?”

“…”

I lowered my eyes, unable to look at him.

After a long, tense silence, he angrily pushed me away and never spoke to me again.

Later, I studied on my own, telling myself that if I got into the same university, I’d make up with him.

If not, we’d part ways.

Luckily, Lantong University lowered its admission score by a few points, and I just barely made it.

But unfortunately, Ji Huai’an no longer waited for me.

---

Thunder rumbled outside.

I snapped back to reality, slowly packing my things, planning to wait until the rain let up a bit before heading back.

As I walked out of the classroom and down the stairs, I ran into Ji Huai’an coming up.

He was holding a new umbrella, looking at me with a dark expression.

“You…”

“Let’s go.”

He cut me off, opened the umbrella with a huff, and we walked out of the building together.

He tilted the umbrella towards me, and I didn’t get wet at all.

I stole a glance at him, feeling like a cat scratching inside me.

I wanted to ask if he had come back just for me, but looking at his stern face, I didn’t dare.

Ji Huai’an suddenly spoke up, “If you’ve got something to say, just say it. You’re about to go cross-eyed.”

I pursed my lips. “Why haven’t you added me on WeChat? Aren’t we supposed to be strangers now? So why come back to get me?”

“You deleted me first. Why should I add you? I only came to get you so you wouldn’t catch a cold and infect me.”

“…”

I swallowed my pride, pulled out my phone, and said, “I’ll add you now. Make sure you accept it.”

I awkwardly added, “Since we’re roommates now, it’ll make it easier to stay in touch.”

The moment I unlocked my phone, a message from Chen Yu popped up.

He said he felt better after sweating a bit and told me not to worry about bringing him lunch, adding a cute emoji.

Ji Huai’an saw the message and snorted. “Made a new friend already?”

Didn’t he get along with the class monitor just fine?

I shrugged. “Same goes for you.”

---

After that day, Ji Huai’an, who had always been in good health, caught a cold.

Seeing him cough miserably, I went to buy him some medicine and throat lozenges.