"Have you eaten lunch yet?" Lin Murun asked.
Si Bin replied, "Sort of. I had a meal box on the plane."
Lin Murun checked the time on his phone. "The cafeteria probably doesn't have anything left by now, and we can't leave the school grounds..."
"There's a vending machine in the library," Si Bin said. "You can get snacks there."
"I was actually heading to the library myself," Lin Murun said. "Want to go together?"
"Sure," Si Bin agreed with a smile.
The two walked side by side toward the library, chatting idly.
Whenever a stray gust of wind blew past, Lin Murun would cough twice from the chill. Si Bin noticed that Lin Murun had a habit of squinting his eyes whenever he hit a draft, looking very much like a cold-fearing cat that had just crawled out of its nest.
He pulled a fresh mask out of his backpack and handed it to Lin Murun. "Put this on. It'll block the wind."
Lin Murun thanked him and put on the disposable mask.
Along the way, Lin Murun wanted to ask about Si Bin's father several times, but the words died in his throat each time.
Everything he knew about Si Bin's family matters had come from Gao Yuan; Si Bin himself had never brought them up. It might seem intrusive to ask out of the blue.
Coincidentally, Si Bin didn't mention Lin Murun's illness again either. After hearing him cough, he simply said, "You need to take better care of yourself from now on." He seemed to have forgotten how he had lost his temper just a few days ago because Lin Murun had collapsed and been hospitalized.
It was as if they were both guarding an invisible line. Staying too far from it felt distant, but crossing it felt presumptuous. And so, their conversation circled around their studies and the cats. Throughout the entire walk, neither spoke of what was truly on their minds.
The weather was too cold, so the library's entrance was covered with heavy plastic curtains to keep out the wind and rain. They pushed through the curtains and went to the public study area on the second floor.
The public study area was located in the hallway, consisting of several sets of armchairs and small tables. It was often borrowed by the Literature Club or the Oral English Club as a study corner.
Since classes were currently in session, the library was quiet, with hardly a student in sight.
Si Bin walked over to the vending machine and scanned a code to buy some food.
Lin Murun moved a pothos plant from the table to the windowsill and reflexively took the bottle of rock sugar pear juice Si Bin handed him.
It was only after they sat down that Lin Murun noticed the trash can next to the armchair had been knocked over.
He walked over and set the bin back in its place.
"A stray cat probably did that," Si Bin told him.
Lin Murun was surprised. "Stray cats?"
"Yeah," Si Bin nodded. "During the lunch break and evening self-study sessions, stray cats sneak into the library to look for food."
"There are two late-night study rooms downstairs. The graduating students spend all day reading there, and the stray cats wait by the trash cans to scavenge for their leftover snacks and takeout," Si Bin explained.
Lin Murun nodded and asked, "Do you go to the study rooms often?"
"Sometimes," Si Bin said. "Before final exams, I usually review in the study rooms downstairs."
Lin Murun looked out the window toward the first floor.
"December is coming soon. The library will be packed with people trying to claim seats then." Si Bin unscrewed the pear juice and handed it to Lin Murun. "Want to come study together? We can pick a good spot while it's still quiet."
Lin Murun nodded. "Today?"
Si Bin laughed. "Next week. There's no rush. You just got over your fever; you need to rest properly."
After agreeing on a study time, Lin Murun took out his booklet and began memorizing key points. Si Bin ate quietly beside him, and they exchanged low whispers from time to time until the bell rang, signaling the end of the period. Only then did they leave the library together.
After turning in her test, Yu Qianyi had been waiting for Lin Murun to return to the classroom. When she saw him, the girl waved and said, "I didn't get a chance to finish earlier. That senior asked me roughly when you'd be discharged. I was worried Senior Wu Chuchu was anxious about you, so I told them your discharge date."
Lin Murun nodded.
"The senior said he'd come looking for you again today," Yu Qianyi added. "Senior Wu Chuchu has something to give you."
Lin Murun took off his mask and asked, "Is she coming too?"
Yu Qianyi thought for a moment and replied, "I'm not sure, he didn't say. He just told me to tell you that he'll be waiting for you at the milk tea shop after evening self-study."
Lin Murun nodded and thanked her.
The afternoon coursework wasn't too heavy. Although Lin Murun had missed two days of school, the class exercises were mostly review-based, so he didn't find them difficult. After finishing his work, he even borrowed notes from Zhou Xuan to start catching up on the lessons he had missed while sick.
Before he knew it, it was dinner time. Zhou Xuan took out his meal card and, as usual, came over to Lin Murun's desk. "Going to the cafeteria?"
Lin Murun looked up and replied, "I'm going to eat out in a bit."
As he spoke, he caught a glimpse of Si Bin's figure outside the classroom.
Lin Murun waved to Si Bin through the window, put down his notebook, and fished out his scarf and mask.
"Let's go. Lin Murun is eating out with Si Bin today," Zhou Xuan said knowingly, turning to Yu Qianyi.
"Oh, right! Wait for me, let me find my card." Yu Qianyi spoke while rummaging through her bag. "It's good for Murun to eat out. People lose their appetite when they're sick, and Si Bin knows what he likes to eat."
Lin Murun heard Yu Qianyi say this just before he stepped out of the classroom.
He looked back, but Yu Qianyi didn't notice his gaze. Having found her meal card, the girl left the classroom through the back door with Zhou Xuan.
"What are you looking at?" Si Bin asked, walking to the classroom door.
"Nothing." Lin Murun put on his scarf and mask and said to Si Bin, "Let's go."
The two followed the crowd out of the school gates and arrived at the small restaurant.
The shop was already packed with students, and the owner was run off his feet.
Lin Murun looked around and tilted his head slightly toward Si Bin. "Should we try somewhere else?"
Si Bin said, "It's fine. It should be our turn soon. Didn't you want to eat the tofu rice cakes here?"
A student sitting inside heard Si Bin's voice and turned to greet him. "Bin!"
Si Bin acknowledged him.
"Want to squeeze in with us, Bin?" the person asked. "There's one spot left here."
Si Bin shook his head and declined. "No, thanks. I'm here with a friend. Two people won't fit."
"Two people... yeah, that won't work," the person said regretfully.
Many students and teachers at No. 1 High School knew Si Bin. He had acquaintances everywhere on campus, which brought him many conveniences. For instance, just now, if Si Bin had been alone, he could have gone straight in to share a table, avoiding the wait in the cold wind.
Lin Murun looked at the single empty seat at that table and turned to Si Bin. "Why don't you go in first?"
Si Bin smiled and said, "I came here with you."
That was a clear refusal.
The line ahead was very long. After a moment's thought, Lin Murun said to Si Bin anyway, "Let's go somewhere else. What do you want to eat?"
"Anything is fine with me," Si Bin replied good-naturedly.
Yu Qianyi's words had been weighing on Lin Murun's mind. He suddenly realized that whenever he was with Si Bin, he was always the one being looked after.
Although Lin Murun rarely asked about others' preferences, he always silently played the role of the considerate one—like habitually taking care of Lin Qingqing, or constantly accommodating Li Menglai's schedule during rehearsals, or even putting up with Cheng Song's snoring and remembering his favorite snacks.
Only when he was with Si Bin did he become the one who was always accommodated.
Seeing Lin Murun's troubled expression, Si Bin took the initiative again. "I remember there's a ramen shop nearby. Their flavors are quite light. A bowl of chicken soup noodles wouldn't be bad when you're recovering."
With that, he led Lin Murun toward another street.
"Actually, you don't have to keep accommodating me," Lin Murun said, looking up at him.
Si Bin smiled. "Then once you're better, you can accommodate me instead."
Lin Murun's face flushed, and he gave a muffled nod.
After dinner, the two strolled back to school. As they passed the milk tea shop, Lin Murun spoke up. "Wait for me a moment."
Si Bin thought Lin Murun wanted milk tea and advised, "You're lactose intolerant. Drinking milk tea when you have a cold might make you feel worse."
"It's not for me," Lin Murun explained. "I'm giving it to someone."
Si Bin nodded and followed him into the shop, finding an empty seat to wait. A short while later, he saw Lin Murun walking over with a bag of milk tea.
He glanced at the drinks in Lin Murun's hand—exactly four cups. "Are you giving those to Zhou Xuan and the others?"
Lin Murun nodded.
"Then where's mine?" he asked.
"What?" Lin Murun asked blankly.
"I mean, isn't there a share for me?" Si Bin repeated good-naturedly.
"Actually, I was planning to visit you in the hospital too, but unfortunately, something came up at home," Si Bin said with a smile. "All the classmates who went to see you that day got milk tea. How come I'm the only one who didn't?"
Lin Murun froze for a moment, flustered. "I thought you didn't like it."
"I'm just joking." Si Bin stood up and looked at the sky. "Let's get back to school. It's about to rain."
As soon as he spoke, raindrops began to hit the ground, leaving distinct dark circles on the dry pavement.
"I'll carry those for you." Si Bin reached out and took the plastic bag from Lin Murun. "We'd better run for it."
The two ran back into the school through the light rain. Just as they entered the teaching building, the downpour intensified.
The campus instantly became noisy as students still on the paths threw their school jackets over their heads and dashed for cover under nearby buildings.
"Wipe the water off your hair." Si Bin handed Lin Murun a tissue. "This rain probably won't stop for a while. Did you bring an umbrella?"
"I did," Lin Murun replied, taking the tissue. "It's in my desk drawer."
Si Bin nodded. "After evening self-study, if the rain is too heavy, don't rush back to the dorm. It's too cold; you'll catch a chill if you get soaked."
"Okay," Lin Murun nodded. "You too."
"Go on," Si Bin said. "Get back to class."
Once Lin Murun returned to the classroom, he distributed the milk tea. Yu Qianyi and Li Menglai were thrilled to have hot milk tea and crowded around him to offer their thanks.
"I was just thinking about going to this shop, but then it started raining," Li Menglai said, holding her cup. "We were just about to order delivery." She unlocked her phone and showed the screen to Lin Murun. "Look, Qianyi and I already picked everything out, we just hadn't placed the order yet."
Lin Murun looked at the delivery app interface and asked, "Does that coffee shop near the piano studio deliver too?"
"That one?" Li Menglai put down her cup. "Hold on, let me check for you." She swiped through her phone a few times and then looked up regretfully. "They're closed today. Did you want their coffee?"
Lin Murun nodded.
"I have the owner's WeChat." Li Menglai pushed the coffee shop owner's contact card to Lin Murun. "You can ask him. The owner is really nice; he'll deliver even just one cup."
Lin Murun thanked her and added the owner on WeChat.
The owner must have been busy, as he didn't accept the friend request until the first period of evening self-study.
While the teacher on duty was answering questions for other students at the podium, Lin Murun tucked his phone into his desk drawer and typed with one hand: *Hello, are you still doing deliveries today?*
A moment later, the owner replied: *So sorry, it's raining today, so we've stopped deliveries.*
Lin Murun thought for a moment and negotiated: *Then can I order today and pick it up tomorrow morning?*
*No problem,* the owner replied.
Lin Murun opened Gao Yuan's WeChat and asked: *Mr. Gao, do you know what kind of coffee Si Bin usually likes?*
Gao Yuan, who was stuck at home or in the hospital with a broken leg and nothing to do but play on his phone, replied almost instantly.
*No idea. He rarely drinks coffee.*
Lin Murun stared at the line of text, stunned.
A moment later, another message came from Gao Yuan: *Little Teacher Lin, don't send him coffee. He doesn't like it. I used to give him tons of imported coffee beans, and he's the type who would let a whole tin of beans expire without ever touching them.*
Si Bin doesn't like coffee?
Lin Murun frowned slightly.
That shouldn't be right...
***
**Glossary**
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
--- | --- | ---
豆腐年糕 | Tofu rice cakes | A local specialty dish consisting of sliced rice cakes and tofu.
冰糖雪梨汁 | Rock sugar pear juice | A traditional Chinese drink often used to soothe the throat or lungs.
绿萝 | Pothos | Also known as Devil's Ivy, a common indoor plant.
零点自习室 | Late-night study room | Literally "Zero-hour study room," referring to study areas open late or 24/7.
乳糖不耐受 | Lactose intolerant |
琴行 | Piano studio / Music shop | Referring to the place where Lin Murun and Li Menglai practice.
