Chapter 3

Le Cheng thought for a moment and decided to start his experiment in a low-key way.

He opened the chat window and sent a message to Zhou Shiru.

[“Orange” patted you]

[Orange: What are you doing? Did you go play basketball?]

After a moment’s thought, Le Cheng sent another [bunny rolling around] emoji.

He expected Zhou Shiru wouldn’t reply quickly, but within just two minutes, he heard a “ding-dong.”

[Brother: Mm.]

Le Cheng raised an eyebrow.

… That was pretty cold.

But that’s okay; the colder the response, the lower the tolerance for his antics, which meant the greater the homophobia. If he acted up just a bit, Zhou Shiru would probably get fed up with him in no time.

With the plan in place, Le Cheng fiddled with his phone screen.

[Orange: Can I come and see?]

He clicked send, but after five minutes, Zhou Shiru still hadn’t replied.

Le Cheng waited and waited, feeling that Zhou Shiru was probably being deliberately unresponsive.

[Orange: Have you arrived?]

[Orange: I want to come. Is that okay?]

[Orange: Please, pretty please~]

[Orange: Kitty rolling around and sending love.jpg]

After sending the messages, Le Cheng looked at the screen full of green bubbles and smiled with satisfaction.

— He was quite the annoyance 😀

Rule number one for being a drama queen: Have a terrible temper! If your boyfriend isn’t around, bombard him with messages!

Le Cheng figured Zhou Shiru probably wouldn’t respond anymore, so he decided to quit while he was ahead, ending his drama for the day.

— After all, he couldn’t scare him off right away.

If he was too annoying, Zhou Shiru might not compensate him later.

Le Cheng put down his phone and took out the original owner’s tablet and iPad. They looked like they hadn’t been used for quite some time, but their specs were much better than those he bought before crossing over. A quick check on the shopping platform showed that even the pen tips were compatible.

Le Cheng was pleasantly surprised as he touched the tablet and prepared to try it out on his computer.

“Ding-dong—”

The phone vibrated once, and the screen lit up.

Le Cheng glanced down.

[Brother: Come if you want]

Just four simple words.

Le Cheng was momentarily stunned, then picked up his phone, feeling a bit hesitant.

If he refused now, it would seem like he was being overly considerate, which would ruin his carefully crafted image.

… He never thought he’d have to agonize over being impolite one day.

But after finishing his meal, his entire body felt lazy, and he just wanted to stay with his beloved tablet, becoming a cat that only knows how to draw, with no desire to go out.

Le Cheng thought for a moment, then stood up and decided to go out.

At the basketball gym.

A dozen or so tall young men were sprinting on the court, the wooden floor squeaking under their movement. Zhou Shiru shook his head, walked to the sidelines, and bent down to pick up a bottle of water.

He tilted his head back, took a few swigs, and his Adam’s apple moved. A drop of sweat slid from his pronounced brow to his chin, almost falling off.

“Hey? Who’s that?”

“Not sure.”

“Looks like it might be Brother Rui’s boyfriend?”

“Brother Rui is straight, don’t make things up.”

Suddenly, there was a stir on the court. Zhou Shiru lifted his eyes to see, and a figure in light yellow unexpectedly entered his line of sight.

“Zhou Shiru.”

A voice, neither too loud nor too soft, with a clear tone. Zhou Shiru paused slightly and saw Le Cheng, who was wearing a white canvas backpack. As soon as Zhou Shiru looked up, a smile suddenly spread across Le Cheng’s face. His big eyes squinted, looking a bit shy, but he jogged up to Zhou Shiru and blinked twice, pulling a bottle of Vitality from his small backpack.

“Uh…” Le Cheng blinked, “After you finish your water, have this too.”

Zhou Shiru’s gaze dropped slightly to the hand Le Cheng extended.

Le Cheng’s fingers were slender and delicate, with very fair skin. The blue veins were faintly visible, and his nails were neatly trimmed and healthy-looking, tinged with a touch of pink, evoking an inexplicable fantasy.

Zhou Shiru took the bottle from him.

Seeing him take it, Le Cheng breathed a sigh of relief. He wanted to say something but was a bit at a loss for words. Although the other guys nearby hadn’t said anything, they were clearly watching. He felt awkward and hesitated before saying, “Well, keep it up. I’ll be watching from the sidelines.”

Zhou Shiru responded quietly, “Mm.”

Le Cheng’s mind whirred, and he added, “Oh, and don’t have too much physical contact with them.”

Zhou Shiru asked, “Hmm?”

Le Cheng whispered, “Because I’ll get jealous.”

“Jealous?”

“Yeah.” Rule number two for being a drama queen: Make some unreasonable demands!

Le Cheng decided to be a bit more assertive to make his behavior seem even more petty. “Because you’re my boyfriend.”

He actually wanted to say “you’re mine,” but that sounded too embarrassing, and Le Cheng felt it would burn his tongue to say it.

Zhou Shiru frowned slightly, not liking the term and finding the demand a bit excessive. However, when he saw Le Cheng’s clearly flushed earlobes and evasive gaze, he bit his lip and said nothing.

He replied, “Mm, I’ll try.”

Le Cheng let out a long sigh. Seeing Zhou Shiru frown, he guessed he had probably annoyed him.

Zhou Shiru turned to rejoin the game, and Le Cheng found a spot to sit with his small backpack.

He didn’t particularly enjoy watching competitive sports. Within a few minutes, he grew bored and pulled out his phone, casually scrolling through it.

He accidentally opened WeChat, and the “Brother” chat window suddenly popped up.

Le Cheng glanced back nervously, ensuring no one was watching, before continuing to look at his phone.

… He truly felt that calling him that was embarrassing and had a bit of an inexplicable flirtatious vibe.

However… if he remembered correctly, Zhou Shiru was a junior in college, so he was indeed a year older than him. Calling him “brother” didn’t seem too out of place.

Le Cheng reached out and tapped the screen, long-pressing to pin “Brother” to the top of the chat.

After doing this, he finally took a moment to glance at the court.

Most of the players on the court were tall with long legs, wearing jerseys. However, Zhou Shiru still stood out with a strikingly aloof handsomeness, like a crane among chickens.

The ball suddenly came into Zhou Shiru’s hands, and Le Cheng felt a bit nervous.

The surrounding players reacted quickly, closing in on him. Zhou Shiru made a move to the left, but it was a fake, and in that brief moment of opening, he jumped high, his long and solid arms shooting upwards.

“Bang—!”

The basketball arced through the air and swished through the hoop.

A perfect three-pointer.

“Damn! Nice shot!!”

The court erupted in excitement, but Zhou Shiru remained expressionless. His deep-set brow, chiseled side profile, and the sweat trickling down his forehead gave him a cool, intense look. He took off his glasses with one hand and casually lifted his shirt hem to wipe his face.

Due to the angle, Le Cheng even caught a glimpse of his abdominal muscles from that instant.

The combination of coldness and raw sex appeal, coupled with his long, attractive muscle lines, stunned Le Cheng for a second. He quickly turned to grab his tablet.

— How could he not sketch such a stunning physique!

But as soon as he touched his bag, Le Cheng realized he hadn’t brought anything. This wasn’t the dormitory, so he quickly pulled out his phone and started drawing on the notes app.

His basics were solid, and he didn’t mind the tools; the notes app would have to do for now.

Le Cheng’s slender fingers moved over the screen, quickly sketching out the precise lines and muscle contours.

By the time Le Cheng finished, Zhou Shiru was just stepping off the court.

Le Cheng, feeling a bit guilty, closed the screen and stood up. “Are you leaving?”

“Mm.” Zhou Shiru casually held the bottle of Vitality he had just finished, tilting his head back to drink the rest. His Adam’s apple moved, and the elegant line of his neck was on display.

Le Cheng, feeling a pang of guilt, instinctively stepped closer to Zhou Shiru and reached out. “Let me take the bottle, I’ll throw it away. You go change clothes first.”

But Zhou Shiru took a small step back, leaving Le Cheng standing there somewhat dumbfounded.

“There’s sweat,” Zhou Shiru said concisely.

“Huh?” Le Cheng tilted his head, momentarily confused, but then realized he misunderstood Zhou Shiru’s meaning. “Oh, I have some paper here. Let me wipe it for you.”

He quickly pulled out a stack of tissues, hesitated for a couple of seconds, and pressed one against Zhou Shiru’s prominent chin.

He moved a bit too fast, his index finger brushing against Zhou Shiru’s lower lip through the tissue. Zhou Shiru didn’t feel it, but Zhou Shiru did.

A subtle sensation stirred in Zhou Shiru’s heart.

He turned his face slightly, avoiding Le Cheng’s finger and holding the tissue in place.

“I’ll do it myself,” Zhou Shiru said.

“Oh, okay.” Le Cheng blinked, looking obedient.

Zhou Shiru found it hard to tell if Le Cheng was being deliberate.

He wiped himself off quickly, the tissue crumpled in his hand. Le Cheng, holding the bottle of Vitality, unscrewed the cap and blinked at him. “Quickly throw the tissue into the bottle.”

“?” Not understanding, Zhou Shiru complied.

Le Cheng screwed the cap back on, turned to find a trash can. Zhou Shiru watched him. Although the angle was somewhat obscured, he still saw clearly that Le Cheng shook the empty bottle up and down in front of the trash can, as if shaking a can of soda. After shaking it, Le Cheng turned around with a satisfied expression.

“…………”

A peculiar little habit.

After throwing away the trash, Le Cheng turned back to find Zhou Shiru but noticed that the court was empty, suggesting he had gone to change clothes.

The sports facility had separate changing rooms. Le Cheng waited in place for a moment, and the image of Zhou Shiru’s muscle lines from earlier flashed through his mind.

… Hmm, really quite impressive.

Honestly, Zhou Shiru was very suitable as a subject for figure drawing.

Before crossing over, Le Cheng used to practice figure drawing every day, and his standards for anatomical aesthetics were almost harsh. In reality, he never encountered such a figure and could only practice on models.

Although he hadn’t seen Zhou Shiru’s muscle lines in full, Le Cheng roughly estimated that they would be quite beautiful.

Le Cheng unconsciously drifted to the door of the changing room but didn’t go in, as he had no real reason to. Team members gradually came out, none of whom he knew, so he just stood by, playing with his phone.

“Uh, ah—!”

Suddenly, a pained groan came from inside the changing room. Le Cheng froze for a moment, then instinctively pushed open the door and rushed in.

However, the scene he imagined didn’t occur. Zhou Shiru was standing there perfectly fine, wearing casual pants with his upper body bare and glistening with a few droplets of water. His abdominal muscles were distinctly defined, tight and attractive. When their eyes met, Zhou Shiru clearly froze for a moment.

Le Cheng’s face turned red, feeling a bit embarrassed. “Um…”

Zhou Shiru, however, had already lowered his head, calmly wiping his abs with a towel before putting on a shirt.