Chapter 2

I was pleasantly surprised by the news, but also felt pressured. The pressure of repeating a grade is immense, and I wasn't much better off. I had decided to skip a grade so I could spend more time with my brother. Now that I've achieved that goal, I have no further ambitions.

...

Who says you don't have goals to strive for? My brother told me to work hard so we can get into the same high school!

Dry.

The repeat class ended at 12:10 pm on the fifth floor of Wenya Building, while the ninth grade class ended at 11:40 am on the third floor of Zhiyuan Building. There was a street and a school building in between.

It's so far... Every day after class, I would wait downstairs in the Wenya Building to have dinner with my brother. Luckily, there were only three classes in the repeat year, and my eyesight is pretty good, so I could always spot Su Yu's fair face at a glance.

He told me several times to go ahead and not wait for him. I always refused, insisting on going with him. He said, "How can brothers in the same school be separated?" He laughed at my twisted logic.

But every time, he makes a point of looking for me. Does he think I didn't notice? Stupid.

I won't let my brother miss me at all.

One day, I was still waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs.

One minute

Five minutes

Ten minutes,

Twenty minutes...

My brother came down with huge double eyelids, a sign that he had been crying.

I quickly got up and ran over to him. He was still looking for me, so I grabbed his shoulder and asked him what was wrong.

I used to say he was a crybaby, but that's not true at all. My brother's tears are more precious than gold. If something can make him cry, it must be something incredibly important.

"Have you been waiting for me? If you haven't seen me, go eat. Are you hungry?" Su Yu didn't answer me, so I asked him what was wrong.

"The cafeteria is probably out of food, but I have some bread. Have some to tide you over."

I stopped moving and stood in front of him.

"What is it that you can't even tell me? You got dumped by a girl?"

My heart skipped a beat when I said the second half of the sentence.

"That shouldn't be the case. What could possibly stump the ever-smiling Su Yu? Tell me so I can have a laugh."

I noticed Su Yu wiped her eyes while adjusting her glasses.

"Damn, why is he crying again? It's okay, it's okay, just tell me and your brother will take care of it."

"He didn't do well on the midterm again. What big deal could a student possibly have?"

My brother sniffed, then smiled and looked up.

I saw a tear slide down his cheek and land on his shoulder.

I pressed down on the spot that was soaked with tears and patted it hard.

"This is indeed a sad thing, but these two exams really won't determine your high school entrance exam. Your grades weren't bad before."

"Brother, I'll be there for you through your darkest times, and I'll be there for you when you rise again."

As we turned into the dormitory building, my brother lightly kicked me, saying, "You smooth talker."

Seeing my brother like that, how could I, as the younger brother, possibly fall asleep during my afternoon nap?

...

"Su Yu, Su Yu, Su Yu, hurry up, we're five minutes late!"

I was woken up by that damned Fang Lin, no, in this situation I should be called a godfather.

"Su Yu, you're already in your final year of junior high and you're still not nervous. Stand outside for five minutes to clear your head before coming in."

Five minutes is enough for me to catch up on my sleep. I was nodding off in drowsiness when someone tapped me on the head.

"You're wearing the wrong shoes... you idiot."

A familiar voice reached my ears, and when I opened my eyes, I saw my brother and classmate walking by carrying a trash can. Su Yu smiled, as if the world had become clear again.

I walked into the classroom with my head held high and chest out; anyone who didn't know better would think I had just gone to receive an award.

Sure, thank you Fang Lin, thank you teacher.

My brother's smile is the best thing ever.

My brother is the greatest reward the world has given me.

During the first Chinese class, I secretly wrote a note to my brother under my desk, predicting that the teacher would go overtime and that I would go to find him during the second break.

To my surprise, my brother came to find me during the first class.

Seeing him secretly hiding behind the door, looking for me, I wished I could just disappear underground to find him.

"get out of class dismissed, the rest of us... Hey Su Yu, what's the rush!"

Having extracted the keywords, I rushed out the door first, narrowly avoiding bumping into my brother. Although he's quite resilient, I couldn't bear to see him get hurt.

"Did I disturb your rest at noon? I wore the wrong shoes this afternoon, maybe next time..."

I understood what my brother meant, and that was the first time I interrupted him.

"What do you mean? What's it to you? What are you thinking? We're in the same school, which makes it easier for us to take care of each other. Don't be so formal."

"Didn't you still..."

"What? What? My roommate kept pestering me to help him with his homework. Besides, I'm the type who can't wake up once I start sleeping."

"Okay, okay, I'm going now. Pay attention in class, and let me know if you need anything."

I casually slipped the note into my brother's school uniform pocket, hehe.

In my eyes, Su Yu is like a giant panda; no matter how important the matter is, I can't trouble him at such a crucial moment.

Something huge has happened.

Su Yu got into a fight with someone.

Su Yu, got into a fight.

?

My brother might not be the epitome of gentle and refined, but in my memory he's definitely not the type to wield weapons.

I've even been in a fight before, and Su Yu got involved. He's truly my brother.

If I don't see my brother after school, he must be in his office.

After thinking for half a second, I quickly ran to the convenience store and bought a bunch of snacks, stuffing all four pockets full. I then squatted in the corner waiting for my brother. I also wanted to see what kind of creature would dare to hit him.

My brother didn't come out of the office until the sun was only half-reflected. He was holding something in his hand.

I squinted and looked...

Damn, it was the note I gave him.

My face flushed red. Su Yu carefully folded the note and put it into her school trouser pocket.

When I came to my senses, I immediately stood up. After a few seconds of blackout, I stumbled and flew right in front of my brother. The screeching sound of my sneakers seemed to echo throughout the entire school. My brother started laughing again, first a faint laugh, then a laugh so hard he couldn't straighten up.

I stood there, stunned. I didn't care anymore; if my brother was happy, I was happy. Then a man with a short haircut followed behind me. As soon as I stepped outside, the smell of sweat hit my forehead and made me feel uncomfortable.

I was about to rush forward and give him a flying kick when my brother, like a dog trainer, pinned me down and shook his head. Su Yu led me down the other side of the stairs and then pulled a bag of spicy strips from my pocket.

If Su Yu is in a good mood, then everything is fine. As for why he got into a fight, he can tell me if he wants to, but I won't press him if he doesn't. I don't want to bring up painful memories.

"On the way back, I took out your note and put it in my pencil case, thinking I'd look at it after class."

My heart skipped a beat, but I acted as if nothing was wrong.

"That guy insisted on taking it out to look at it. I was wiping my glasses when he came over, smelling of sweat."

If they dare to offend my brother's stench, I'll be furious.

"Then he kept muttering to himself, 'He already has a bad reputation in class, and he still does this kind of thing.'"

"I was thinking of just laughing it off, but then he mentioned you. How could I, as his older brother, tolerate that? I'll just vent all the pressure I've been under lately on him."

Su Yu swore!!! No... Su Yu has been under a lot of pressure lately?

"Give me a hug, brother. You've worked so hard these past few days."

I hugged my brother with my bulging pockets and patted his back hard twice, so hard that some snacks fell out.

Su Yu froze for a moment, then burst into tears, unable to hold back her sobs any longer. Seeing this, I first frantically picked up the snacks, then...

He brought the two unopened packs of paper back to my dorm room.

Su Yu didn't say a word, he just kept crying. I didn't mind, I wiped his tears as soon as they fell to his chin, took out the beer that Fang Lin had secretly hidden, opened a can and handed it to him.

My brother was laughing so hard snot bubbles were coming out of his nose, and then he choked on his drink. I patted his back, and he almost passed out.

I didn't dare move. I just stood there watching my brother. He opened a snack and shared some with me, so I snuggled up and took a couple of bites. Actually, I didn't do anything, but when we went back to class, my brother thanked me.

Fine, whatever he says goes.

Wait, why did I hear someone call him Brother Yu?

Since we've been on the same schedule, I go home with my brother every week, mostly by bus. A dozen or so stops is no joke; I'm fast, so every time the bus comes, I put in four coins and sprint to grab a seat. My brother gets dizzy on the bus, so I have to crack the window open a little. He sits inside, and I sit outside.

What a coincidence! That sweaty guy was sitting in front of us. My brother was already half asleep, so I tiptoed over and put a mask and hat on him. He was sleeping so soundly, he didn't wake up at all.

After isolating myself from the stench, I took out a book and fanned myself with it. I deliberately made a lot of noise, and the man with the missing lip turned around and glanced back.

"Excuse me, someone came up here and smelled awful, it was really sweaty."

He turned his head again and smelled himself a few minutes later.

At the next stop, a mother holding her daughter sat down next to him.

"Mom, this brother smells so bad, we don't want to sit here." There were quite a few students from our school on the bus, and they all turned their attention to us in an instant.

The mother covered the little girl's mouth and moved to another seat.

The next day, Su Yu told me that the man had sprayed cheap perfume on him, which made their English teacher stay on the podium for the entire class because of the stench.

However, I still don't understand why some people call him Brother Yu.

- The high school entrance exam is over.

The three-month vacation has begun! Before the exams, my brother and I made plans to go here and there, but looking back, that was just motivation. We didn't go to the grasslands or the ocean; all we did was use our new big bed at home every day.

"Yu Yu, do you remember the yearbook you wrote in elementary school?"

I don't remember.

"Of course, how could I forget something so meaningful?"

I've completely forgotten.

"Think about what you wrote in the 'favorite food' column?"

"Hmm...how about some barbecue? Or should we go eat there later?"

"You wrote my name."

?

"The girl was opening and looking at it in the classroom when she suddenly started shouting my name noisily."

"I thought it was great, but adding pinyin to it is completely useless."

...

Su Yu took me to eat barbecue.

I feel like my brother has an air of otherworldly wisdom, and I feel like a fool next to him.

Whether he's a fool or not, my brother's good looks make me proud.

Guess who I ran into while eating barbecue? My godfather, Fang Lin! After we made eye contact, my brother asked if I wanted to say hello. Hmm... my godfather isn't as important as my brother, so I'll just send a WeChat message as a token gesture.