Shang Jue lay there, unable to fall asleep even after Lu Yuxing emerged from the bathroom. Their eyes met in the dim light, and both felt awkward.
Lu Yuxing had been in there for quite a while, but he managed to appear composed as he asked, "Still not asleep?"
Shang Jue chuckled lightly. "Haha... not really tired."
Lu Yuxing found it strange; he distinctly remembered Shang Jue being half-asleep before he went to the bathroom.
At the foot of the bed lay a neatly folded set of dark blue pajamas. Shang Jue’s voice was hoarse with fatigue as he said, "I washed these. I don’t wear them often, but you should be able to fit."
Since Lu Yuxing was only a few centimeters taller, he could make do with Shang Jue's clothes. He thanked him and turned to change. As he pulled off his sweater, his well-defined muscles were revealed, and his slim waist showcased a particularly attractive physique.
Shang Jue had touched his body once before, convincing himself it was just stone. Seeing him clearly now made him feel sour, like he had bitten into a lemon. He teased, "Do you still work out regularly?"
Lu Yuxing replied, "I can't remember. But I have sports headbands and wristbands in my dorm. I should have developed a habit of exercising these past two years."
After he finished changing his top, he tugged at the waistband of his pants, pulling it down a couple of centimeters as he glanced at Shang Jue.
Shang Jue stared at the faint lines of Lu Yuxing's abdominal muscles, feeling an unpleasant twinge of jealousy but maintaining a playful smile. "Oh? What's wrong, baby? Don't want anyone looking?"
"..." Who was the one claiming to be reserved?
Lu Yuxing felt his face grow warm. "No, go ahead and look."
Though he spoke casually, he had mentally prepared himself, his entire body tensing in anticipation. However, as he actually pulled his waistband down, Shang Jue quickly turned his face away, leaving no glances behind.
Lu Yuxing felt a mix of embarrassment and confusion as the brief moment of intimacy shattered. Even a strange sense of disappointment flickered through him, but he couldn’t help the corner of his mouth lifting as he watched Shang Jue’s back, who was now finishing getting dressed. Shang Jue then lay down energetically on the other side of the bed, mimicking how he had covered himself with the blanket.
After Shang Jue turned off the lamp, the room was plunged into complete darkness, and silence enveloped them.
Lu Yuxing desperately wanted to say something, but the atmosphere was too charged. He worried that if Shang Jue spoke first, he would lose control and feel compelled to get closer.
Both of their heart rates were far from conducive to sleep, and taking advantage of the darkness, they lay wide awake, eyes open.
Eventually, neither of them knew exactly when the other fell asleep.
The next day, neither of them woke up at their usual biological clock, and they both slept in much later than normal.
Since it was the weekend, Lu Yuxing stayed at Shang Jue’s house until the afternoon, also taking care of their brunch.
When he returned to dorm 323 in the afternoon, the place was empty, and he half-heartedly attempted to study.
In the evening, Ge Zhicheng and Lin Xuying returned from outside, and upon seeing Lu Yuxing, they exchanged knowing glances, teasing each other for a while.
Lu Yuxing almost worried that their faces would cramp from all the winking and nudging.
Ge Zhicheng spoke in a suggestive tone, "Lu Ge, are you hiding a girlfriend from us?"
Lu Yuxing was taken aback.
Ge Zhicheng laughed strangely. "Hey, don’t tell me you were rushing out in the middle of the night last night to find Yun Sheng!"
"…"
Lu Yuxing pursed his lips, opting to stay silent.
Lin Xuying chimed in, "Do you have a picture of the girl?"
Lu Yuxing replied, "…No."
"Wait, what?!" Ge Zhicheng suddenly dropped the teasing demeanor, looking utterly shocked. "Lu Ge, you really are dating someone!"
It dawned on Lu Yuxing that the two were fishing for information. But since the cat was already out of the bag, denying it would be too futile. He simply nodded in acknowledgment. "Yeah."
Ge Zhicheng pressed on, "Who is she? From our courtyard? Did you date her before or after your memory loss? It can't be someone from before…"
Lu Yuxing paused for a moment before asking, "Why not?"
"Before your memory loss, you weren’t like you are now… sneaking out every now and then, being mysterious and secretive. Back then, we all hung out together in the dorm every day. You usually spent your weekends in the library or at the gym."
"…"
Is that really how I was?
—
Lu Yuxing thought it was incredible. If he didn’t see Shang Jue for a few days, he would definitely struggle to cope. However, Shang Jue probably hadn’t moved out yet, so it made sense that they kept their relationship discreet at school.
Lin Xuying, who had been gossiping, suddenly fell silent, his expression peculiar and thoughtful after hearing the conversation.
"Lu Ge, is your girlfriend pretty? She must be really beautiful. When can we meet her?" Lin Xuying asked.
Lu Yuxing replied, "She's really pretty. Maybe… in the future? She doesn't want to go public yet."
Ge Zhicheng seemed puzzled. "Wait, there’s someone who doesn’t want to make your relationship public? Not that I doubt you, but you have a great reputation in the department. You’re outstanding in every aspect—except maybe being a bit antisocial. I just can't understand why someone would date you and not want anyone to know."
"Lu Ge, when you asked 'why' it couldn’t be before your memory loss, does that mean you and that girl were dating before your accident?" Lin Xuying suddenly asked.
"…Sort of."
"Are you sure? We’ve lived together for over a year. Unless you’ve been extremely secretive about your relationship, Zhicheng and I would’ve noticed something," Lin Xuying frowned. He felt that the old Lu Yuxing didn’t seem like someone in a relationship; his life felt too monotonous, like a salt-dried rice ball without any flavor.
"…Lu Ge, I’m not trying to think the worst of your girlfriend, but there are a lot of girls at school who like you. There could be some weird ones among them; you should be careful… don’t get tricked because of your memory loss."
Lu Yuxing paused for a moment before saying, "It won’t happen."
When Lin Xuying heard his firm tone, he asked again, "Well, she should have some evidence of your relationship, right?"
"She knows me really well. And," Lu Yuxing lowered his eyes, realizing that he had been feeling warm in the face more often lately. "And she’s really good; she’s definitely my type."
"Just knowing you isn’t enough evidence. Zhicheng and I know you too," Lin Xuying said, clearly worried. "There should be other evidence, right?"
"Yeah, we have our chat history." Although there was only one message, the transfer record between him and Shang Jue was indeed from before the accident.
"Oh!" Lin Xuying finally let out a sigh of relief.
Ge Zhicheng was slightly stunned by Lin Xuying's speculation, remaining silent for a while.
When he finally came back to his senses, he clapped his hands and said, "Right, even if someone wanted to trick Lu Ge, they would at least know about your memory loss first, right? Only the three of us know about it, oh, and Shang Jue too, I guess. Haha! Could it be that Lu Ge’s girlfriend is actually Shang Jue?"
As he said this, he amused himself, bursting into laughter and looking at Lu Yuxing.
Lu Yuxing: ………
He maintained a calm expression, but being inadvertently exposed to the truth made him feel slightly guilty.
Lin Xuying relaxed and smiled, "That’s possible."
Feeling a bit embarrassed, Lin Xuying scratched his face. His suspicious nature wasn’t great for him.
"Sorry, Lu Ge, I just said that in passing. Don’t tell your girlfriend about it, okay?"
"…Yeah."
At that moment, his phone pinged with a message from "Boyfriend."
Lu Yuxing unlocked his screen to take a glance, his heart lifting lightly.
【Boyfriend】: The sky looks nice.
Lu Yuxing leaned back in his chair and turned to look out at the balcony. Unfortunately, the balcony faced east, so he could only see a stretch of lead-gray sky and no sunset.
【Boyfriend】: [Image]
Shang Jue said the sky looked nice, but the photo sent wasn’t of the sky.
In the picture, two slightly blurred girls stood together, both holding their phones, looking up to take pictures of the sky.
Lu Yuxing quickly replied.
【Lu Yuxing】: Why not take a picture of the sky?
【Boyfriend】: The phone can’t capture it well.
【Boyfriend】: But the little girl passing by is taking pictures, and she reflected how nice it looks.
Lu Yuxing’s lips curved up slightly as he stood up and went downstairs to enjoy the sky.
—
Outdoor Basketball Court
He Yang came down from the court and saw Shang Jue sitting on a bench in the waiting area. He raised both arms and waved his hands like a clown performing at a circus, shaking his head and being goofy.
Shang Jue looked at him for two seconds, rolled his eyes, and then mimicked He Yang, lifting his arms and perfectly replicating He Yang’s silly waving motion. He managed to copy He Yang’s ridiculousness completely.
Several girls nearby stared in shock at the super handsome guy on the bench seriously engaging in performance art.
He Yang: …
Shang Jue always had a way of making him acutely aware of how ridiculous he could be, so He Yang silently lowered his hands.
The outdoor temperature was close to zero, yet He Yang was hot from exercising and had removed his jacket, wearing only a thin hoodie.
He picked up the basketball he had not used and walked over to Shang Jue, grabbing the water bottle on the bench to take a few sips. After that, he asked, “What did you want from me last night? You even asked if I was asleep…” Normally, when Shang Jue sought him out, it was for a specific reason, so his sudden inquiry felt awkward.
He was almost convinced that his friend had been possessed.
Shang Jue replied nonchalantly, “Guess what? Zzzz…”
“……” Why are you being so sarcastic with me?
As they chatted, the sun unexpectedly broke through the thick cloud cover, dyeing the sky a large swath of pink and purple.
Someone on the court shouted, “Wow!” and everyone pulled out their phones to take pictures.
Shang Jue stared for a while before picking up his phone to focus on the horizon. He tried to capture the beautiful pink sky, but it didn’t convey half its beauty on the screen.
Students passing by stopped in their tracks, and after a moment of thought, Shang Jue shifted his camera to capture a profile of a passerby.
After taking the photo, he expressionlessly lowered his head to text someone.
He Yang spun the basketball on his finger and asked, “You’re taking pictures and texting at the same time—who are you chatting with?”
Without looking up, Shang Jue said, “My boyfriend.”
He Yang: “……………”
…What boyfriend?
“You!” He suddenly realized, “You actually bent someone over!”
Shang Jue’s eyebrows slowly furrowed as he replied, “Not just one.”
“?”
Shang Jue took a slow sip of water and then fell silent for a moment.
As He Yang was about to grab him by the collar and demand answers, Shang Jue finally spoke with a pout: “I bent two.”
“……”
It took He Yang a moment to understand what he meant. In shock, the basketball he had been spinning on his fingertip fell to the ground with a thud and rolled under the bench where Shang Jue was sitting.
He didn’t go after it and suddenly sat down, asking, “No way, are you actually interested in him?!”
Shang Jue curled his lips, “Maybe a bit…?”
“Oh my god!” He Yang exclaimed in delight, “A straight guy bent over—what a shock! Shang Shang, you’re going to get struck by lightning twice!”
Shang Jue retorted, “If I bend myself, do I still get struck?”
“Hahaha!” He Yang almost laughed himself into a fit. “What do you like about him?”
“Nothing in particular.”
“Wait, you weren’t even into this more than a month ago!”
Shang Jue replied with a chuckle, “Well, I’ve made progress now. I’m dedicated, I’m into it.”
His tone turned slightly cold, which made He Yang feel it was somewhat harsh. He was both surprised and intimidated: “How can you be like this? I’ve never seen someone who likes someone but does so begrudgingly!”
“What do you think?” Shang Jue tugged at his hoodie. “I deceived him; do you think I could genuinely like him? Do I have that thick a skin?”
He Yang replied, “Oh, that makes sense.”
Shang Jue gazed at the vibrant clouds in the sky, his voice softening, “What if one day he remembers everything? Do you think we still have a chance?”
He didn’t wait for He Yang to respond before covering his face, thinking: Okay, I do have a thick skin. I deceived him and still have the gall to ask if that silly dog has any chance…
His feelings were complicated. He didn’t think he liked this guy enough to be desperate without Lu Yuxing. Yet he couldn’t help but ponder other possibilities.
He Yang shook his head and said firmly, “Definitely no chance.”
Shang Jue surprisingly remained calm after hearing this.
Because he had been thinking the same way.
He Yang asked, “So what are you planning to do now?”
Shang Jue let his eyelids droop and said, “I don’t know. Do you have any bright ideas?”
“My bright idea is to squash your feelings before they even take root.”
He Yang crossed his arms in front of his chest, shaking his head dramatically: “You two have no chance.”
Fine…
Shang Jue nodded sadly, “I’ll try to squash them.”
Just as he finished speaking, Lu Yuxing replied to his message.
【Lu Yuxing】: Looks good.
Then, mimicking Shang Jue, he sent a picture taken at the bottom of the boys' dormitory. In the photo, a chubby calico kitten sat at the dormitory door, looking up at the beautiful pink sky in the distance.
The camera angle was low, capturing Lu Yuxing’s shadow as he squatted down next to the kitten.
Shang Jue couldn’t help but picture that tall, goofy guy squatting in front of the kitten, ruining its view of the scenery, and his heart started racing shamefully.
Better to nip this in the bud...
Shang Jue: “……”
Damn it, nip it in the bud? My feelings are about to sprout!
Exciting Updates!
Hey everyone! I’ve got some fantastic news! With new translators joining the team, the quality of our translations will be even better. Plus, we’ll have a fixed schedule for releases!
Stay tuned because we’ll also be dropping a new yaoi soon!
Thanks for your support and for being part of our journey!
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