The next day, the students in Dorm 323 had an early start at 8 AM.
Lu Yuxing's internal clock had not been affected by his amnesia, and he woke up before the other two. Last night, he spent a few minutes trying to figure out the password for the academic system. Once he successfully logged in, he downloaded his class schedule.
After washing up, he followed the course names to grab a few books that looked like textbooks from the bookshelf and stuffed them into his backpack. Just as he was about to check his class schedule on his phone, a message popped up.
[Shang Jue]: Good morning, babe.
“…”
Lu Yuxing expressionlessly swiped away the message notification. After checking the class schedule, he opened the chat window and replied with a simple “Morning.”
The other party quickly sent another message.
[Shang Jue]: It seems our two classes are together for the first two classes this morning?
[Lu Yuxing]: Yeah.
[Shang Jue]: I want to sit on you.
Lu Yuxing’s eyelid twitched violently.
[Shang Jue]: I mean, sit.
“…”
It took Lu Yuxing half a minute to steady his breathing.
[Shang Jue]: Typo, babe.
[Shang Jue]: Don’t be mad~
Lu Yuxing stared at that flirtatious wave emoji for several moments.
[Lu Yuxing]: I’ll sit with my roommates.
No reply came from the other end. Lu Yuxing put his phone face down on the table, trying to avoid seeing any more heart-attack-inducing messages.
He had just returned to school yesterday, and today was the first day of classes since the accident. Ge Zhicheng had been nagging him in the dorm all night, insisting that Lu Yuxing stick with him and his roommate for meals and classes over the next few days to avoid getting lost.
Lu Yuxing sat below, waiting for the other two to wake up, flipping through a first-year mathematics textbook for a while. By the end of high school, he had nearly completed three years' worth of math knowledge. Although he didn’t remember much from the last two years of high school, he found first-year calculus manageable.
As for the second-year textbooks…
What kind of cryptic texts were those?
Today, Ge Zhicheng and Lin Xuying surprisingly did not linger in bed, only coming down about ten minutes after Lu Yuxing. The three of them left the dormitory early.
Walking down the familiar paths of the school, which he had traversed a thousand times, Lu Yuxing found that he had no mental images of them. He silently committed the surroundings and routes to memory.
The sense of losing control in his life didn’t cause Lu Yuxing too much panic. His calm and composed personality allowed him to remain steady even in the most extreme situations. The only exception was Shang Jue, who seemed to be an unexpected variable.
Lu Yuxing spent the two morning classes self-studying.
Perhaps it was unnecessary; after all, Dr. Cheng had said his condition would typically improve within a week or two. At that point, the cryptic texts would return to being simple and readable, and he wouldn’t need to struggle to understand them as he was doing now.
Still, he persisted. This seemingly pointless activity provided him with a sense of security.
However, there was always someone he was trying to avoid who would pop up to bother him every little while.
[Shang Jue]: Nice jacket.
Lu Yuxing looked down at his jacket—black and simple, nothing particularly special.
[Shang Jue]: It’s matching with mine.
“…”
Lu Yuxing raised his eyelids and scanned the entire classroom, easily spotting a familiar black-clad figure in the front row.
The jacket did look quite similar to his.
He turned back to the book, pretending not to notice.
[Shang Jue]: You’re sitting too far back.
[Shang Jue]: I can’t see you in class.
Lu Yuxing thought to himself, Thank goodness for that.
[Shang Jue]: I’m sleepy.
Lu Yuxing glanced at the time and decided to reply only to the last message.
[Lu Yuxing]: Five minutes until class ends.
The implication being: Hang in there.
He had to admit that if Lu Yuxing ever ended up in a relationship, he would probably be the worst boyfriend in the world—he would never learn what it meant to be considerate.
“Lu Ge, who are you chatting with?” Ge Zhicheng leaned over to take a look.
Lu Yuxing quickly shut off his phone. “No one.”
“...Oh.”
As soon as the class bell rang, the lecturer adjusted his glasses and promptly announced, “That’s all for today…”
Before the words even finished, the students who had already packed their bags surged out of the classroom.
“Can we just swipe our student cards in the cafeteria?” Lu Yuxing asked.
Ge Zhicheng replied, “Yes!”
“Okay. You and Lin Xuying can go ahead; I’ll head to the cafeteria on my own.” Lu Yuxing wasn’t used to doing everything in a group.
“Wait, Lu Ge, let us go with you!” Ge Zhicheng insisted.
“No need, I want to stay in the classroom a bit longer.”
Ge Zhicheng scratched his head, conflicted for a moment. “...Alright then.”
At that moment, a slightly slender boy from the back row approached them, greeting the group.
At first glance, the boy had a somewhat refined appearance, although his downward-turned eyes were a bit unflattering. Fortunately, his thin-framed glasses helped mask that flaw, making him look presentable.
He was always smiling while talking, giving off the vibe of someone who had a notable presence in class.
“Tian Miao…” Ge Zhicheng called out to him, his tone casual. “Here to ask Lu Ge a question again?”
Tian Miao smiled and nodded. “What can I say? Classmate Lu is the top student in our grade.”
His gaze then shifted to Lu Yuxing, who, upon realizing he was the one being addressed, raised his eyelids and glanced at him indifferently.
Tian Miao was used to Lu Yuxing’s expressionless demeanor and didn’t notice anything unusual about him.
“Hello,” Lu Yuxing greeted as per usual before getting straight to the point. “Who are you?”
Tian Miao froze for a moment, a hint of embarrassment flashing in his downward-turned eyes behind his glasses. He had known Lu Yuxing for six months, often approaching him after class with questions, yet Lu Yuxing couldn’t even remember his name?
“Uh, Lu Ge, Tian Miao is from Class Three of the Mathematics Department,” Ge Zhicheng explained briefly.
Lu Yuxing then asked, “Is he a friend?”
“Cough cough!” Ge Zhicheng nearly choked on his own words.
Not Lu Ge, how should I answer that in front of him?
He glanced at Tian Miao’s expression and leaned in closer to whisper in Lu Yuxing’s ear, “He probably wouldn’t consider it that way…”
Ge Zhicheng remembered that before the accident, Lu Yuxing didn’t seem to have much impression of someone like Tian Miao. There was even a time when he had finished helping Tian Miao with a question, and afterward, Lu Yuxing frowned and asked Ge Zhicheng, “Is he from our class? Why does he always come to me with questions?”
Hearing this, Lu Yuxing nodded, “Mhm.”
Since they weren’t friends, there was no need to elaborate. He just wanted to keep his brief amnesia to himself, without it becoming common knowledge.
Tian Miao held the textbook from the last class, which Lu Yuxing now deemed a kind of heavenly scripture.
He genuinely couldn’t answer Tian Miao’s questions, so he calmly started to say, “Sorry, I—”
“Shang Jue!”
A loud male voice suddenly echoed from the classroom door, cutting off Lu Yuxing’s words.
Upon hearing that name, Lu Yuxing instinctively turned his gaze toward the source of the sound.
The loud voice calling out was He Yang, who strode into the classroom and headed straight toward the boy sitting in the central front row, lazily packing his bag.
Most of the students in the room had already scattered, eager to rush to the cafeteria and skip a lengthy line. Thus, the boy leisurely organizing his books stood out distinctly.
Shang Jue moved slowly, exuding an air of nonchalance that hinted at his sleepiness.
He Yang rolled his eyes, “Tsk, you’re way too slow. I’ve come down from the sixth floor, and you still aren’t done packing. Hurry up! My takeout’s been waiting forever.”
Shang Jue continued at his leisurely pace, “I didn’t ask you to come find me.”
“I ordered way too much food, and your schedule shows you’re in Building Three…”
Shang Jue cut him off, “I eat in the cafeteria.”
He Yang smiled confidently, “But I ordered seafood!”
Shang Jue: …
How can someone have such a bad memory?
He had just mentioned his seafood allergy to this guy yesterday. He Yang, oblivious, didn’t even catch the cold glare from Shang Jue and cheerfully threw an arm around his shoulder.
Lu Yuxing watched the backs of the two for a few seconds. The boy he had seen in Shang Jue’s car last night was indeed this one. According to Shang Jue, he was just an ordinary friend.
Lu Yuxing retracted his gaze and turned back to continue the previous conversation. “Sorry, I can’t solve your problem.”
Tian Miao froze.
…He hadn’t even gotten to the question yet!?
“Classmate Lu” he forced a smile, “Is it that I have too many questions and you find it annoying? If so…”
“It’s not that. I genuinely can’t help you; you should ask someone else.”
“…”
Lin Xuying, aware that Lu Yuxing truly couldn’t help, interjected, “Yeah, there’s still the top student in the classroom. Why don’t you ask Shang Jue?”
He didn’t lower his voice, causing both boys in front to turn their heads.
Shang Jue tilted his head slightly, pointing to his own nose with his finger, and asked with a grin, “Were you calling me?”
He didn’t mind spending his time, cheerfully asking, “What do you want to know?”
Beside them, He Yang suddenly frowned, his gaze unfocused as he stared at the few people in the back, seemingly lost in thought.
Seeing this, Tian Miao chuckled awkwardly and said, “Thanks, classmate Shang,” before mustering the courage to step down from the tiered seats to ask a question about an example problem discussed in class.
As Shang Jue began explaining, Tian Miao appeared attentive, though he wasn’t really focused.
“Got it?” Shang Jue asked.
“Yeah, I understand. Thanks a lot!”
Shang Jue noticed but chose not to comment on the oddity of the situation. If he didn’t want to hear it, why go through all this trouble to ask Lu Yuxing?
Tian Miao was ready to head back with his textbook when his gaze collided with He Yang’s, who was staring at him with a fixed expression.
Tian Miao hesitated for a moment before redirecting his attention elsewhere, the smile on his face becoming strangely sincere.
Only a few students remained in the classroom as they filtered out one by one.
After Tian Miao left without getting any response from Lu Yuxing, he decided not to prolong the awkwardness and passed by He Yang, offering him a friendly smile.
Once he exited, He Yang’s expression abruptly shifted from his previous goofy demeanor to one of shock as if struck by lightning.
“What the hell.”
Shang Jue: ?
“What the hell!!”
Shang Jue: “Speak clearly.”
“He’s the one from last night!!”
“? Who?”
“The gay one… from the bar… that one…”
Shang Jue finally realized, “You mean the one who touched you…?”
“That’s him!” He Yang hastily interrupted, unwilling to dwell on the embarrassing memory.
The two were speaking loudly, and Lu Yuxing heard every word clearly.
Bar?
His brow furrowed. While his boyfriend is in the hospital, this guy goes to a bar at night?
He chose to believe, for now, that this so-called boyfriend of his hadn’t cheated.
Shang Jue realized this was not something that should be known to others and quietly asked, “Are you sure?”
He Yang gritted his teeth, “Damn, it’s definitely him! He wasn’t wearing glasses last night, and I just felt he looked really familiar.”
It wasn’t until Tian Miao smiled at him that his expression was exactly like the guy from last night! It instantly woke him up.
“You believe me? I’d recognize him even if he turned to ashes!”
Shang Jue remained silent.
He wanted to believe it. But He Yaung’s poor memory was really hard to put into words…
“Shang Jue, thanks for that earlier.”
Lin Xuying hadn’t really paid attention to their conversation and was putting on her bag as she came down with Ge Zhicheng.
“I didn’t listen to the class with Zhicheng, so I had to let him come ask you.”
Ge Zhicheng also said, “Yeah, sorry to bother you during your meal.”
Shang Jue replied, “It’s nothing.”
As the two of them walked out, Shang Jue heard Ge Zhicheng casually complain, “You know, Lu Ge isn’t even a teacher and can’t give Tian Miao extra points. What’s with him always trying to butter up Lu Ge…”
He paused at that, suddenly recalling the clingy, almost sticky gaze Tian Miao had when he was near Lu Yuxing.
“...What the hell?”
He Yang was fuming and noticed that Shang Jue was lost in thought, then suddenly started laughing for some inexplicable reason, clearly hit by a strange sense of humor.
Shang Jue turned his face away, his shoulders shaking.
He Yang frowned, thinking he was being mocked.
“Let’s break up.”
The response he got was a slightly breathless “Okay.”
He Yang: …