Lu Li’s school uniform was two sizes too big for Jiang Yi.

Reluctantly, Jiang Yi put it on, realizing immediately that the uniform hung loosely on his frame. The hem almost reached his thighs, and the sleeves were so long that they completely covered his hands.

He tugged at the hem, trying in vain to make the oversized uniform fit a little better.

“Jiang Yi.”

Liu, the teacher in charge of checking student appearance, gave him a sharp look. Normally, Jiang Yi was always neat and proper in his uniform, but today, it hung on him like a sack, looking oversized and ill-fitting.

Jiang Yi tensed up. But to his surprise, the next words out of the teacher’s mouth were, “You need to make sure you not only do your homework but also keep up with physical exercise.

“Remember, a strong body is the foundation of success. Make sure you’re getting enough rest.”

Jiang Yi stood there, dumbfounded, before hurriedly nodding in agreement.

Seemingly satisfied, Liu continued inspecting the rest of the class.

Cai Fang, holding a book in front of his face, whispered, “Jiang Yi, did you grab someone else’s clothes by mistake during P.E.?”

“You should check the lost and found after class. Maybe you can find your uniform there.”

Jiang Yi rolled up the sleeves of the too-big jacket and rubbed his nose awkwardly. “It’s fine, I just grabbed my friend’s by mistake.”

Cai Fang immediately assumed it was probably that boy from Class Eight, Ying Zhuohan, since he often saw him chatting with Jiang Yi since the start of the term.

With a hint of envy, Cai Fang sighed, “Your friend must be really tall. His jacket goes all the way down to your thighs.”

Jiang Yi silently pulled at the hem of the jacket again, exposing his legs a little more.

Cai Fang encouraged him, “You should hang out with him more often. Maybe if you’re seen with such a tall friend, the kid from the international class(Lu Li) will think twice before messing with you.”

Jiang Yi nodded seriously, feeling like it might be a good idea to spend more time with Lu Li. Maybe drinking milk and eating beef with him could help him grow taller too.

After the first period, Jiang Yi took off the jacket and headed to Class 2 of the international division.

During the break, the international class was as noisy as ever.

Lu Li was lounging on Jiang Yi’s jacket, catching the faint scent that lingered on it. They both used the same detergent, but the smell of Jiang Yi’s clothes was different—faint and addictive, like it could become a habit.

Lu Li’s sharp canines tingled with a strange urge. It must have been the lingering scent, so familiar yet enticing, that stirred something primal inside him. He suddenly had an impulse, like back home, to bite Jiang Yi—just for comfort.

He didn’t quite understand this wild, almost possessive urge, but it felt natural. So, he didn’t hesitate.

“Hey, look outside—”

“Whoa, what’s Rocket Class doing here? Are they here to deduct points?”

Several students in the international class perked up at the mention of the Rocket Class, a group known for its elite students who were often in charge of handing out demerits for school violations.

The chatter in the classroom grew louder, and Lu Li heard a tap on the window next to him.

Jiang Yi stood outside, holding up Lu Li’s jacket and gesturing toward the one on Lu Li’s desk. He leaned closer to the glass, lowering his voice, “I grabbed the wrong jacket this morning. Let’s switch.”

Lu Li looked at him lazily, not moving for a moment, before slowly responding, “No.”

Jiang Yi blinked in surprise. “Why not?”

Lu Li replied lazily, “It’s not like you haven’t worn my clothes before.”

Jiang Yi: “…”

The eavesdropping students nearby were left wide-eyed and speechless.

When they first saw Jiang Yi, the top student from the Rocket Class, knocking on their window, they’d all expected some drama. Qin Lan and his friends were particularly excited. After all, they knew Lu Li had a longstanding grudge against the Rocket Class.

Ever since the Rocket Class started having extra lessons, Lu Li’s face had been dark as a thundercloud. And when they participated in school volunteer activities like pulling weeds, his scowl could last all day.

It looked like he wanted nothing more than to rip up the entire lawn just so those goody-two-shoes from the Rocket Class wouldn’t have an excuse to play the hero.

Qin Lan turned to the others, stunned, “What did Lu just say?”

A dazed boy beside him murmured, “He said, ‘It’s not like you haven’t worn my clothes before.’”

“…”

Qin Lan hesitated, “Doesn’t Lu Li have a thing about cleanliness?”

The boy opened his mouth to respond but couldn’t think of anything to say.

The whole group watching from the sidelines fell into silence, with most of the class gawking at the unlikely interaction by the window.

Jiang Yi, feeling helpless, said, “They’re going to check our appearance during the class exercises.”

Lu Li raised an eyebrow, “Oh, right.”

He thought for a moment, then leaned halfway out the window, grabbed his jacket from Jiang Yi’s hands, shook it out, and skillfully slipped it onto Jiang Yi, zipping it up in one smooth motion.

The entire process took less than five seconds, fluid and effortless.

Jiang Yi: “…”

Lu Li looked satisfied with his work. With the zipper pulled all the way up, Jiang Yi’s face was mostly hidden by the jacket collar, leaving only his eyes visible. His dark hair fell messily over his brows, giving him a soft, obedient look.

“You won’t fit in my jacket,” Jiang Yi pointed out.

“Who cares?” Lu Li shot back.

Qin Lan and the other students exchanged confused looks. Were they arguing? Or not?

When the bell rang, Jiang Yi was still wearing the oversized jacket as he returned to class.

As soon as he sat down, Cai Fang leaned over nervously, “Jiang Yi, why do you have Lu Li’s jacket?”

Jiang Yi, completely calm, replied, “Found it.”

Cai Fang scratched his head, puzzled, “But they’re saying Lu Li has your jacket too.”

Jiang Yi: “…”

Cai Fang raised his phone, showing a rapidly updating group chat full of gossip about the top student from the Rocket Class and the international class.

Jiang Yi gently pushed Cai Fang’s phone back into his hand. “Do you want to copy my notes?”

Instantly forgetting the gossip, Cai Fang eagerly nodded, “Yes!”

Jiang Yi sighed in relief and handed over his notebook.

Over the next few days, Jiang Yi noticed more and more students from the international class pretending to walk past his class.

Every time, it was a different group, but they all had one thing in common—they couldn’t stop staring at him, as if they were trying to figure something out.

Meanwhile, Qin Lan and a few others were crouched near the Rocket Class, looking unusually serious.

“We’ve matched up the timeline. One of my old classmates said Jiang Yi and Lu Li were desk mates for six years straight, never switching.”

“Jiang Yi joined the math competition prep in third grade.”

“And the basketball game incident fits too. Jiang Yi didn’t show up that day.”

“…”

One by one, the clues started adding up. The boys looked at each other in shock.

“A boy?”

“A childhood sweetheart?”

“…”

They fell silent, tacitly agreeing to say no more.

Later that evening, Lu Li found them. Kicking Qin Lan’s backside, he raised an eyebrow, “What are you guys doing here?”

Qin Lan, thinking about Jiang Yi, inwardly muttered, We’re talking about your ‘childhood sweetheart,’ but outwardly, he just grinned, “Nothing much.”

Lu Li cleared his throat and announced, “I’m not going to basketball practice tonight. He’s got tutoring, so I’ll wait for him and walk home together.”

Qin Lan: “…”

Why did it feel like he was showing off rather than informing them?

By 7 p.m., Jiang Yi climbed onto the bus with his backpack. He spotted Lu Li already sitting there, looking like he had fallen asleep waiting.

Trying not to disturb him, Jiang Yi sat down quietly at a distance, but Lu Li still stirred.

Without even opening his eyes fully, Lu Li grumbled in a hoarse voice, “What kind of messed-up tutoring runs this late?”

“Don’t they realize students are human too?”

Jiang Yi placed his bag down and reassured him, “We’re preparing for the competition. Everyone’s just trying to get in a bit more practice. It’s not just me.”

Lu Li still looked displeased.

He’d never liked the Rocket Class, thinking the school’s approach to education there was just an excuse to squeeze every last bit of energy out of the students.

Later, back at Lu Li’s house, he turned off the lights in the study at 9 p.m. and practically dragged Jiang Yi to the bedroom.

Ten minutes later, Lu Li shut off the lights in the bedroom and commanded, “Close your eyes. Time to sleep.”

Jiang Yi, eyes still open, mumbled a slow “okay.”

But two minutes later, Lu Li realized that under the covers, Jiang Yi was still mentally solving problems, his fingers tracing out equations.

How did Lu Li know?

Because Jiang Yi’s hand had strayed to his stomach, and he was unconsciously drawing X’s and Y’s on it.

Lu Li was silent and observed for a few seconds. Just when he was about to say something, he realized that Jiang Yi was lost in thought, absentmindedly tracing the same X’s and Y’s over and over again on his waist.

Jiang Yi’s body temperature had always been lower than his, with cool fingertips gliding across his warmer skin. The sensation left Lu Li feeling both ticklish and numb, causing his breath to quicken unexpectedly. That strange urge to bite someone was back, stronger than ever—like a bottle of soda shaken for too long, ready to explode and find release.

Lu Li remained still in the darkness.

As Jiang Yi finally figured out most of the problem he was working on, he suddenly felt a sharp pinch on his earlobe—more of a playful bite than anything else, as if someone were letting off some steam.

Unfazed by the gesture, Jiang Yi casually pushed the golden-haired head away, then said seriously, “Do you know why you like to bite people?”

Lu Li blinked, retracting his sharp canines. After a moment of confusion, he replied, “I don’t know.”

Jiang Yi, completely earnest, explained, “I asked a doctor. He said you might be low on calcium, zinc, or maybe even have elevated lead levels, which could trigger unusual behaviors like this.”

“So it’s probably an illness. We should go to the hospital and get it checked out.”

Lu Li felt something wasn’t quite right with that explanation, but he couldn’t quite figure out why. After a long pause, he said, “Oh, is that so?”

Jiang Yi, trying to be comforting, added, “It’s not a big deal. You’ll be fine after taking some supplements.”