It was true that Wen Yan wasn’t exactly a "good person." He was constantly saying ambiguous things without so much as a blush or a skipped heartbeat. Su Jingming felt nothing but pure admiration for his composure.
"Do all top-ranked students talk in such... R-rated ways?" Su Jingming managed to choke out after a long silence.
Wen Yan replied, "You forgot, you’re the top-ranked student now."
"..."
"Besides, you were the one who told me not to take responsibility." He paused. "Was it the kind of responsibility I’m thinking of?"
Su Jingming clamped his mouth shut and refused to say another word.
For those set to become seniors in the latter half of the year, the curriculum for the second semester of sophomore year was incredibly dense. The teachers moved at the speed of light; a single moment of distraction meant losing the thread entirely.
Ren Wei and Li Yang suffered greatly in this regard.
In the past, they could at least pretend to follow along, but now the two of them spent class staring blankly at each other, occasionally glancing over at the "top-tier duo" nearby.
It was yet another confirmation of the fact that they were useless.
Being useless wasn't the problem; the problem was having others around to highlight exactly how useless you were. There was a fundamental difference between the two.
The weather in Liangcheng remained fickle, alternating between hot and cold. Branches grew wildly, cicadas chirped noisily, and the mundane bustle of life filled the long alleys and the heavy traffic of the old streets. In April, Liangcheng was prone to rain.
No. 2 High School hadn't previously forced day students to attend evening self-study; it had mostly been voluntary. Now, the rules had changed, making it mandatory.
Su Jingming lived relatively close to the school, but with the constant rain lately, the back-and-forth commute became a hassle. He decisively applied to live on campus. It wasn't until he went home to pack his bags that Su Qicheng realized he was moving into the dorms.
Su Qicheng didn't oppose the idea. Instead, he asked worriedly, "Summer is coming soon. Does the dorm have air conditioning? Be careful not to get heatstroke. If you don't have enough money, just tell me."
Su Jingming nodded without saying much else. As he left, he made sure to pack the two Ultraman Tiga figures—one large, one small—that had been sitting on his desk.
The school worked efficiently, assigning Su Jingming to a four-person room. He had no roommates.
When Su Jingming heard the news, he raised an eyebrow. He figured he was just lucky—there were no other vacant beds, so they had given him a room to himself. He doubted anyone else would suddenly decide to move into the dorms mid-term.
With that pleasant thought in mind, he happily unpacked his belongings. Once everything was sorted, he took a moment to inspect the moderately sized room. It had a private balcony and bathroom, and the window faced the sports field, providing good natural light. Aside from the surrounding noise, everything was perfect.
As noon approached, Su Jingming grabbed his school jacket, planning to head to the cafeteria to see what was for lunch.
The moment he opened the door, he found Ren Wei and Li Yang standing outside with curious expressions. Ren Wei’s hand was still frozen in mid-air, poised to knock.
Su Jingming gave them a flat look, then noticed the two suitcases behind them.
Without a second thought, he slammed the door shut.
"???"
"???"
Ren Wei and Li Yang thought they were hallucinating. Ren Wei immediately began pounding on the door. "Ming-ge! Open up! Open the door! We moved in to keep you company!"
"Yeah, Su Jingming, open the door!"
Standing behind the door, Su Jingming’s eyes darkened as he took a deep breath.
Ren Wei shouted from outside again, "We thought you’d be lonely and cold all by yourself, so we came to live with you! We can study together and grow together!"
"Right, right! It would be fucking perfect if we could even do our homework together!"
The two outside sang in harmony, and the dormitory hallway began to stir. Since it was noon, many students were around, and they looked over curiously at the two boys standing by the door.
"Hey, isn't that fucking Ren Wei?"
"What a coincidence, you're living on campus too?"
"Yeah, just moved in."
"Which room are you in? Let me see... 505? I'll come find you later. I gotta go grab some chow first!"
"Sure, sure, go get your food!"
Li Yang watched the person who had spoken to Ren Wei walk away. "I didn't realize you were so popular. You even know the seniors."
"Basketball court friendship. I don't even know his name."
Ren Wei resumed knocking. After a few thuds, a gentle male voice came from behind them. "What's wrong? Su Jingming won't open the door?"
Su Jingming wouldn't forget that voice even if it were turned to ash. It was Wen Yan.
Ren Wei asked, "You finished your paperwork too? Ming-ge won't open up. What do we do?"
"Since he won't open the door..." Wen Yan chuckled softly. "Then we'll just wait here."
The words had barely left his mouth when the door swung open. Su Jingming stood to the side, his expression stiff. "Get in."
Ren Wei: "..."
Li Yang: "..."
The group hauled their luggage inside. Ren Wei and Li Yang were the first to claim their beds, leaving the one right next to Su Jingming's. Su Jingming wasn't sure if they had done it on purpose. He wanted to tell Ren Wei to take the bed next to him, but he couldn't find the right words.
Ren Wei and Li Yang moved quickly, expertly making their beds.
They both jumped down to the floor at the same time and exchanged a look.
"Chow time!"
"Let's go, move it!"
Su Jingming witnessed the explosive power of athletes once again. Wen Yan let out a few soft chuckles. He had just finished putting on his duvet cover when Su Jingming asked dryly, "Do you need help?"
Wen Yan hummed. "No need."
"Oh." Su Jingming sat at his desk, resting his chin in his hand as he stared at the two Ultramen. Even now, his palms felt slightly warm. Wen Yan had moved in too, bringing those two nuisances along with him.
After a moment of silence, noticing Wen Yan had stopped moving, he asked, "Why did you decide to move into the dorms?"
Wen Yan climbed down from his bed. "Then why did you decide to move in?" He walked over, his tall frame blocking out most of the light.
"We have evening self-study now. Commuting back and forth is too much trouble," Su Jingming said. "What about your sister?"
"Wen Miao moved into the dorms at the start of the semester. I'll just pick her up on weekends," Wen Yan said, picking up the two Tiga figures from the desk. "I didn't expect you to bring these too."
Su Jingming paused. He hadn't originally planned on bringing them, but he couldn't bear the thought of only seeing them once a week. He licked his lips. "...I just felt like bringing them."
Wen Yan raised an eyebrow and suddenly called out, "Little Hero."
In the confines of the dorm room, that "Little Hero" sounded exceptionally intimate.
"...Yeah?"
Wen Yan set the Ultramen back down properly, then leaned down. He whispered into Su Jingming’s ear, enunciating every word: "Actually, you're quite happy about this too."
Su Jingming didn't know what Wen Yan meant by that. He only knew that his hurried escape to the cafeteria was incredibly pathetic.
After a few days of living on campus, Su Jingming finally got used to Ren Wei’s snoring, Li Yang’s teeth grinding, and waking up to see a sleepy-eyed Wen Yan.
Su Jingming couldn't quite describe the feeling.
But he really liked quietly watching Wen Yan when he had just woken up, hearing him call his name in a low, raspy voice.
Every day, Su Jingming was the first to finish washing up. He would sit at his desk and read for a while, waiting for his roommates to finish their routines before heading to class together.
As the "other" top student in Room 505, Ren Wei felt a pang in his heart every time he stepped out of the bathroom and saw this scene.
"As the top of the grade, you already work harder than everyone else. Why do you have to put in an extra thirty minutes every morning? How are the rest of us supposed to live?"
Su Jingming turned a page. "I just don't want to fight you guys for the bathroom in the morning."
Ren Wei changed his clothes and threw on his school jacket, leaning one hand against the railing of Su Jingming’s bed. "Let's make a deal. Don't read in the morning anymore. The visual impact is very unfriendly to the rest of us."
"When you stop snoring, I'll stop getting up early to read." Su Jingming closed his book, looking at Ren Wei with a hint of a smile.
Ren Wei fell silent. There was absolutely nothing he could do about that.
As the group left the dormitory, Wen Yan pulled a carton of milk from somewhere and handed it to Su Jingming.
Su Jingming raised an eyebrow, while Ren Wei and Li Yang immediately protested.
"Why does he get one and I don't?"
"Yeah, why don't we get any?"
Wen Yan said flatly, "You're both 1.8 meters tall and you're still trying to fight someone for milk?"
Su Jingming suddenly felt like the milk in his mouth didn't taste so good anymore...
To "look after" the sub-1.8-meter Su Jingming, Ren Wei and Li Yang would occasionally bring him dairy products. Su Jingming would accept them expressionlessly and eat them expressionlessly.
In Ren Wei’s words: "Before you turn eighteen, there's still a chance you might grow a bit more."
Su Jingming decided to act as if he really could grow more, eating and drinking whatever they gave him.
In the blink of an eye, Wen Yan’s birthday was approaching.
Two days before the birthday, Song Yifei came looking for them. Seeing the group living together in harmony made him green with envy. He immediately said, "Speaking of which, I still don't have your WeChat. It's such a pain to find you."
Su Jingming was puzzled. "Why are you looking for me?"
"To drink!"
Hearing this, Su Jingming looked away. "No need for drinks. You can't handle it."
"?" Song Yifei slammed the table and jumped up. "Who says I can't handle it?"
Song Yifei pulled out a short video Wen Miao had sent him, fast-forwarding straight to the part featuring Su Jingming.
Su Jingming’s face went from expressionless to stony, then to a deep, burning red.
Song Yifei praised him, "Impressive, your face changed colors just like that."
Su Jingming gripped his pen tightly. Fortunately, he was the only one in the dorm right now. He said in a low voice, "You just wanted to add me on WeChat, right? It's not a big deal." He took out his phone and opened his QR code.
Satisfied, Song Yifei added him, then pulled over a chair and sat down. "What are you planning to get Wen Yan for his birthday? His parents can't make it back, and it happens to fall on a weekend."
Su Jingming paused. He still hadn't decided what to give Wen Yan.
Seeing his reaction, Song Yifei understood the situation. "It's fine, I don't know what to get him either. Why don't we brainstorm together?"
Su Jingming asked, "Don't you think you're acting like a weasel right now?"
"How so?"
"Up to no good."
Song Yifei cursed. It was a miracle Su Jingming had survived for seventeen years with a mouth like that.
Suddenly, Song Yifei looked at Su Jingming with a mischievous grin that made Su Jingming’s skin crawl.
"Actually, I know what Wen Yan wants."
Su Jingming looked up, appearing somewhat interested.
Song Yifei said slowly, "Heh, but I'm not telling you. I'm just messing with you."
***
**Glossary**
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
---|---|---
限制级 | R-rated / Explicit | Literally "restricted level," used here to describe Wen Yan's suggestive flirting.
准高三生 | Rising seniors | Students about to enter their final year of high school.
走读生 | Day students / Commuters | Students who live at home and commute to school.
住校 | Living on campus / Boarding | Students who live in the school dormitories.
晚自习 | Evening self-study | A common practice in Chinese schools where students study in classrooms at night.
迪迦奥特曼 | Ultraman Tiga | A popular Japanese tokusatsu superhero.
干饭 | Chow down / Hit the cafeteria | Modern Chinese slang for eating heartily or focusing on food.
黄鼠狼 | Weasel | From the idiom "The weasel pays a New Year call to the chicken—up to no good."
