Chapter 6: The Gift

“I guess it’s because you fed it last night, and now it remembers you,” Zhu Yu said, walking over to pick up Liu Bo, who was tangled around Bai Chen’s feet.

Bai Chen casually scratched Liu Bo’s chin and asked curiously, “So you kept it because you fed it?”

“Yep!” Zhu Yu nodded emphatically. “When I first came to the UK, my bank card hadn’t been frozen yet, so I splurged a little and bought it some cat food. After that, it started waiting for me downstairs every day, and over time, I just brought it home.”

It seemed like someone who appeared to dislike Liu Bo so much, but still managed to make him so fat.

Zhu Yu, alone in this unfamiliar place, said he adopted and took care of it, but in truth, it was Liu Bo who kept him company during those long, lonely nights.

“It’s too smart,” Bai Chen said with a smile.

He then checked his watch and said, “Zhu Yu, I have to head home now.”

Unknowingly, it was already past nine in the evening. He explained, “I have an appointment tomorrow and need to wake up early.”

“Oh, right, then go ahead and get some rest. I’ve kept you for quite a while,” Zhu Yu said, his tone a bit guilty, knowing that most of Bai Chen’s evening had been spent with him.

Bai Chen looked at him. “It’s fine. If we’re good friends, then it’s not a disturbance.”

He turned to leave, but Zhu Yu suddenly seemed to remember something and hurriedly grabbed his sleeve. “Wait, Bai Chen!”

“I have a little gift I want to give you!” Zhu Yu pushed Liu Bo into Bai Chen’s arms. “Wait here, I’ll be right back.”

Zhu Yu ran back to the kitchen, stood on his tiptoes, and grabbed a storage box from the top of the cabinet.

Inside, he took out a colorful porcelain cup, which seemed to be the same style as the bowl he had used for dinner.

He placed the porcelain cup into a transparent gift box, then quickly ran to the door, all in less than a minute.

“Bai Chen, this is for you.” Zhu Yu handed the gift box to Bai Chen.

Then, seeing the confused look on Bai Chen’s face, he explained, “I painted this myself. If you look closely at the design on it, I also designed it myself.”

“I painted it alongside the design on the bowl I used for dinner earlier.”

No wonder Bai Chen thought the design on it looked familiar.

He had noticed the pattern on the bowl when Zhu Yu was eating, and originally thought it was just the style. He hadn’t realized it was something Zhu Yu had painted himself.

But it seemed perfectly natural that it was Zhu Yu’s work.

Zhu Yu seemed to be a lively and creative person, and perhaps all those beautiful things in his house were things he had made himself.

“Thank you,” Bai Chen said.

Zhu Yu took Liu Bo back into his arms. “No need to thank me. This is a gift for you making me dinner and… for becoming my friend!”

The corridor lights were very bright, and Zhu Yu, looking up at Bai Chen as he spoke, had eyes that shimmered like stars under the light.

“Alright, I’ll accept it,” Bai Chen said, reaching out to take the gift box.

“Mm-hmm!” Zhu Yu nodded. “Goodnight, get to bed early!”

Zhu Yu waved at Bai Chen and then tapped Liu Bo’s backside. “Liu Bo, say goodbye.”

Liu Bo immediately responded, meowing in a flattering manner, “Meow.”

Bai Chen smiled again.

Both of them returned to their respective homes.

After arriving home, Bai Chen took the cup that Zhu Yu had given him and placed it in the living room display cabinet.

The cabinet only contained a few dark-colored cups and some tools he needed for his profession.

Zhu Yu’s cup was placed in the center, its vibrant colors making it the most eye-catching item in the display.

It seemed to glow, casting a colorful hue over the surrounding dark-colored objects, creating a somewhat mismatched effect.

Bai Chen stared at the porcelain cup for a while before eventually putting it away in the very back of the drawer.

—

The weather in the UK in September was much colder than back home.

And it rarely cleared up.

After one night, the window was covered with a layer of mist, and the wind blew the leaves, bringing a chill to the air.

Zhu Yu got up and pulled the curtains open. The bright light from outside pierced his eyes, making it hard for him to keep them open.

He cracked the window open slightly, and the cool air rushed in, instantly waking him up.

It had rained last night, but not heavily, and now the rain droplets from the night before hung on the leaves outside.

Yesterday, Professor Mayra had sent him an email saying they would meet at the school at 9:30 AM today.

Zhu Yu had taken two hours off from August.

After the lesson he learned yesterday, Zhu Yu wasn’t as sluggish today and left at 8:30 AM.

He turned back to look at dorm 514 and suddenly remembered that he still hadn’t added Bai Chen as a contact.

Hopefully, tonight, he would be able to exchange contact information.

After a brief prayer, Zhu Yu put on his white knitted hat and left.

Due to the sharp drop in temperature, his brother Zhu Ting had sent him a message this morning, reminding him to dress warmly. So today, Zhu Yu wore a thicker white hoodie.

He was carrying his backpack, hands tucked into the pockets of his hoodie. The cool breeze blew through, making the tip of his nose turn red, while the hair that wasn’t covered by his hat was tousled by the wind. The stray strands of hair on his forehead nearly blocked his vision.

Fallen leaves gently landed on his shoulder before being blown away by the wind.

The direction he was walking in was not toward the school.

Zhu Yu took a detour from the small park beneath the apartment building and went toward a nearby abandoned, unfinished building.

He looked around, confirming there was no one in the area before pulling a few cat treats out of his pocket.

“Meow meow.” Zhu Yu lowered his voice, mimicking the sound of a cat meowing.

He stepped over a dried-up drain, crouching as he searched and gently called, “Are you still here?”

“Meow—” A tentative meow came from the corner.

Zhu Yu followed the sound and saw a tabby cat hiding in the corner. Not far away, there was a bowl with unfinished cat food.

Zhu Yu raised an eyebrow, as if both angry and amused. “I was wondering why you haven’t come to block me these days. Turns out, someone else has been feeding you.”

He tore open the cat treats in his hand, crouching down in front of the tabby. “Don’t remember me?”

The tabby cat, with big round eyes, stared at Zhu Yu for a few seconds. The next moment, it dashed out from the corner and ran to Zhu Yu’s feet.

Its head gently rubbed against his ankle, making soft, affectionate meows.

Zhu Yu squeezed out some cat treats and fed it, “Eat, eat, I’ll be leaving soon.”

He patted its head and mumbled, “I thought something happened to you and that’s why you didn’t come looking for me.”

“Looking at the food left in your bowl, you’ve met a benefactor, huh? You still don’t know to cling to their leg and go home with them?”

“Just cling to their leg, meow a couple of times, and they’ll definitely soften up,” Zhu Yu said, giving it the same advice Liu Bo had once given him.

But the kitten didn’t understand.

Zhu Yu took out his phone and snapped a photo of himself with the tabby cat, posting it on his social media as a record.

After the tabby finished the treats, Zhu Yu stepped on the dry leaves as he left the abandoned building. The sound of crunching leaves underfoot mingled with the howling cold wind, which made the area around his eyes redden.

East Asian faces were not uncommon at this international school, but faces as refined as Zhu Yu’s were rare.

He could be considered handsome, the kind of handsome where even with pink-dyed hair, earrings, and glowing white skin, he didn’t look feminine at all. There was always someone whose gaze would follow him.

Zhu Yu arrived at the school around nine o’clock.

Professor Mayra had asked him to wait for her at the café inside the school.

She and her husband, Vera, were on their way.

Zhu Yu found a seat by the window. His recent social media post already had a lot of likes and comments.

He picked through a few replies, ignoring any comments asking about his recent activities.

“Welcome.”

“Hello, we have a reservation.” Zhu Yu, who had been engrossed in his phone, heard a familiar voice and his ears twitched.

He quickly put his phone away and looked up in the direction of the voice.

“Professor Mayra, I’m here!” Zhu Yu waved to the two people at the door.

Only Professor Mayra and her husband, Vera, walked in.

Zhu Yu didn’t see the student Professor Mayra had mentioned.

The couple walked over to Zhu Yu. “Yu, sorry we’re late.”

Professor Mayra hugged Zhu Yu.

“This is my husband Vera, you’ve met him before,” Mayra said as she introduced the man beside her.

Zhu Yu’s memory wasn’t bad, and he of course remembered Vera. He smiled and greeted him, then they shook hands.

Professor Vera had a circle of graying facial hair. With age, his eyelids had become heavy, and his deep-set eyes held blue irises. He wore a well-tailored suit and jacket, looking very sharp.

“Professor, the student you mentioned didn’t come with you?” Zhu Yu, not seeing the third person, finally asked.

Mayra explained, “He’s parking outside. Vera injured his foot a while ago, and it was him who drove us here this morning.”

Zhu Yu nodded, expressing concern for Vera’s health. He then waved over a waiter and ordered a coffee for each of the three of them.

Zhu Yu sat across from the couple. Vera looked at him gratefully and said, “Yu, Mayra told me you’ve agreed to help him. You’re such a kind-hearted child.”

“Professor, you’re too kind. Professor Mayra has always been very good to me, and now I’m just doing what I can to thank you both.”

Just as he finished speaking, the waiter at the door spoke again:

“Welcome.”

“Hello, I have a reservation.” A polite young voice responded to the waiter.

The three of them turned to look in the direction of the voice, and Zhu Yu’s gaze fell on the face of the person who had entered.

Professor Vera waved at him, “Bai Chen, we’re here.”

Zhu Yu had been staring at Bai Chen’s face in a daze, but he was snapped back to reality when Professor Vera, sitting across from him, suddenly spoke.

He looked at Bai Chen, who was approaching, with confusion, and then glanced at the two people sitting across from him, both of whom were gazing at Bai Chen with affectionate expressions.

Zhu Yu’s mind momentarily stopped for two seconds.

“So the student you were talking about is Bai Chen?” His voice unconsciously rose in excitement.

When Mayra heard Zhu Yu’s words, she was also surprised and looked at him, “Yu, do you know Bai Chen?”

“Yes, we’re neighbors.” By the time Zhu Yu answered, Bai Chen had already reached their table.

Zhu Yu shifted slightly toward the window to make room for Bai Chen.

“That’s great! I didn’t expect you two to know each other. Looks like we don’t need to worry about you not getting along,” Mayra said, clasping her hands together and letting out a relieved sigh.

No wonder Zhu Yu had always thought she looked worried before.

Bai Chen sat down next to Zhu Yu.

The last two times Zhu Yu had seen Bai Chen, he was wearing white casual home clothes, but today he was dressed in autumn formal attire, with a beige long coat.

The coat was slimming and elongating, hiding Bai Chen’s well-toned muscles beneath, while making his already tall frame look even taller.

But Zhu Yu swore, he wasn’t intentionally staring, he just happened to catch sight of Bai Chen’s shirt buttons straining across his chest.

Zhu Yu quickly turned his head away, flustered.

“Teacher.” Bai Chen greeted the two of them as he sat down.

Then he turned to look at Zhu Yu, a faint smile on his lips, “Zhu Yu, what a coincidence.”