It's ridiculous.
After being discharged from the hospital, Cheng Xiaorui stood at the entrance tying his shoelaces. He took a deep breath calmly and stuffed the medicine bottle into the innermost secret pocket of his schoolbag.
"Cheng Cheng..." Cheng Zhixu chased to the door with freshly heated milk, half of the account book sticking out of his apron pocket, "Can you take another day off?"
Cheng Xiaorui turned and took the milk. The warm cup reminded him of the glass of water Lu Ziyi had handed him at the hospital. He deliberately tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp. With milk stains on the corners of his mouth, he smiled at his mother, "I'm really okay. Teacher Li is handing out the midterm exams today."
He went forward and hugged Cheng Zhixu, burying his face in her shoulder. There was a white hair hidden in the tangled hair on the back of his mother's neck. Cheng Xiaorui quietly twisted it between his fingers and then gently let it go.
"But..." Cheng Zhixu stroked his back and felt the protruding shoulder blades, "You clearly..."
"Mom," Cheng Xiaorui took a step back and shook his schoolbag, "If we don't leave now, we will miss the morning reading class." He blinked.
The noise in the classroom suddenly quieted for a second when Cheng Xiaorui pushed the door open. As he walked to his seat, he heard a muffled sneer from the back row: "Poor guy still coming to school? Who are you pretending to be?"
"Can't you just change the name... or why is it that a rich person like you is attending the same school as a poor person like me?" Cheng Xiaorui retorted.
Teacher Li knocked on the podium, and chalk dust flew in the sunlight: "Well, next, let's talk about the results of the midterm exam! Be quiet!" She picked up the report card.
"Cheng Xiaorui is among the top ten students in the midterm exam and ranks first in the class." As sparse applause rang out, an eraser with a pig's head drawn on it with a marker hit the back of Cheng Xiaorui's head.
"Second in the class, Lu Ziyi, in the top 20 in the grade." As soon as Teacher Li finished speaking, Zhao Dakun screamed, "Brother Lu is awesome! Beat the first place next time!" He deliberately threw the textbook on the table and looked at Cheng Xiaorui provocatively.
Lu Ziyi leaned lazily back in the chair, and the pen spinning between his fingers suddenly stopped. The sunlight just happened to fall on the tips of Cheng Xiaorui's hair, giving it a slightly golden hue.
When the bell for the last self-study class rang, Cheng Xiaorui finally mustered up the courage. He walked over to Lu Ziyi's desk and pinched a crescent shape on his palm with his fingernails: "Let's talk."
As soon as he called people out, Zhao Dakun and Zhou Mingxuan followed Lu Ziyi happily, so Lu Ziyi had no choice but to tell them not to follow him and went to the bathroom.
"Why is it the toilet again? Don't you mind the stink?" Cheng Xiaorui said speechlessly.
"Where else do you want to go?"
“…” Now that I’ve said that, if I don’t want to be heard, there’s really nowhere else to go.
In the cubicle, Lu Ziyi's lit cigarette swirled in the humid air. He deliberately blew smoke rings into Cheng Xiaorui's face, looking at the other's eyes, which were red from choking. "What's going on?"
"How much is the medical bill? I will pay it back." Cheng Xiaorui stared at the black mold in the cracks between the tiles and added, "I don't want to owe you anything."
Lu Ziyi frowned. The words "I owe you too" twirled around on his tongue, eventually turning into a chuckle.
He suddenly put out his cigarette, sparks flying onto the sink: "Gastroscopy, IV drip, medicine..." He grabbed the back of Cheng Xiaorui's neck and pressed his thumb on the mole, "Do you have the money to pay it back?"
"I can pay in installments."
"No need." Lu Zi also let him go.
"Go ahead."
Lu Zi also began to get impatient. His thumb rubbed Xiao Rui's dry lower lip. "How about..." Before he could finish, the other party suddenly pushed him away, and the compartment door hit the wall with a loud noise. "Do you want to make love?"
In the corridor, Zhao Dakun's shoe just stepped on Cheng Xiaorui's shadow. "Oh, you dare to stare at me?" He reached out to grab Cheng Xiaorui's collar.
Suddenly there was a scream, and Lu Zi appeared out of nowhere and twisted his wrist with such great force that Zhao Dakun was stunned.
"The patient just came back, don't bully him..." Lu Ziyi smiled, and when he saw Zhao Dakun's frightened expression, he immediately let go of his hand.
"Ah? Oh...I'm just kidding."
Cheng Xiaorui: “?”
-------
The steam rising from the cafeteria carried the aroma of food, and the clinking of stainless steel plates echoed incessantly. Cheng Xiaorui sat alone in a corner, mechanically chewing his rice.
"Brother Lu, why is he acting so strange today..." Zhao Dakun's voice drifted from the next table. He was poking at the braised pork on the plate with his chopsticks. "I went to see him just now, and his tone was really strange..."
Cheng Xiaorui's chopsticks stopped moving, a grain of rice clinging to the corner of his mouth. He was about to raise his hand to wipe it when the plastic chair in front of him was suddenly pulled away. He tensed, thinking it was Lu Ziyi, and prepared to get up and leave.
"Hello!" the boy greeted him with a smile, "Nice to meet you."
The clear voice made Cheng Xiaorui look up suddenly. He saw a strange, smiling face. The man leaned forward slightly, revealing a sliver of his collarbone from his school uniform. Sunlight filtered through his brown hair, casting subtle shadows on the dining table.
"I'm Chen Zihan from Class 4, Grade 12." The boy sat down familiarly and pushed his plate closer.
"Lu Ziyi" and "Chen Zihan"—their names sound like a pair of preordained enemies. Ever since high school, those who approached him had a remarkably similar motive: to cause trouble. So, when Chen Zihan appeared, he almost automatically lumped him in with them. It became almost a reflexive alert.
"Why do you only eat so little?"
Without waiting for an answer, the other party used clean chopsticks to pick up the braised pork ribs and put them on his plate. His movements were so natural that it seemed as if they had known each other for a long time.
"I haven't moved yet, please don't worry." Chen Zihan explained.
"What can I do for you?"
Chen Zihan smiled, revealing a shallow dimple on his right cheek: "Eat first, it won't taste good if it gets cold."
After dinner, they strolled slowly along the tree-lined avenue. The May sunlight filtered through the sycamore leaves, casting dappled shadows on the ground. Chen Zihan suddenly turned, his silhouette gilded in the backlight.
"Shall we be friends?"
These words were like a stone dropped into a calm lake. Cheng Xiaorui's pupils dilated slightly, and the mineral water bottle in his hand crackled. He saw a leaf land on Chen Zihan's shoulder, rising and falling gently with his breathing.
"Why?" Cheng Xiaorui's voice was so dry that it didn't sound like his own.
"Actually, I've been observing you for a long time because you're very interesting." Chen Zihan reached out and brushed away the fallen leaves on his shoulders. "Also..." He pointed to the scoreboard on the distant bulletin board.
"Cheng Xiaorui, who is in the top ten in the grade, and Chen Zihan, who is number one in the grade, are hanging out together. Can't they study together?"
Don’t you think your excuse is funny? Cheng Xiaorui thought to himself.
"Also, you always go to the library alone, eat lunch alone, and—"
"stop!"
Cheng Xiaorui's fingertips unconsciously stroked the label on the mineral water bottle. He suddenly noticed that Chen Zihan's eyelashes appeared transparent amber in the sunlight, and as she blinked, they fluttered gently like butterfly wings.
"There's nothing fun about me," Cheng Xiaorui said, looking away. "Besides, getting too close to me might bring bad luck."
Chen Zihan suddenly laughed out loud, and this smile made him look brighter. "Then let's go eat ice cream! It's so hot."
Before he finished speaking, he had already grabbed Cheng Xiaorui's wrist and ran forward. His strength was not strong, but he was able to hold it tightly. Cheng Xiaorui was forced to keep up with his pace, feeling the warmth from his palm and the rhythm of his pulse.
Wisps of white steam rose from the freezer in the convenience store. As Chen Zihan bent over to select something, a strand of hair stuck unruly at the back of his neck. He turned around, holding two ice cream cones. The strawberry-flavored pink and vanilla-flavored yellow-white were particularly vibrant in the sunlight.
"Which flavor do you like?"
"It's all fine..." After all, my stomach would definitely feel uncomfortable after eating, but this was his intention.
"Here." Chen Zihan handed over the strawberry flavored one, "I heard that sweets can make people feel better."
Yes, but eating too much will make people feel sick.
Cheng Xiaorui took it hesitantly. The moment his tongue touched the cool and sweet taste, his stomach protested slightly. But when he saw Chen Zihan's expectant eyes, he still ate it in small bites.
Ten minutes later, the expected pain did not come. Cheng Xiaorui was surprised to find that this was the first time in a long time that he had not felt any discomfort after eating a cold drink. His mood really improved.
The sunlight felt warm on his face, and he reached out and took Chen Zihan's wrist.
"Thank you," Cheng Xiaorui said softly. He didn't notice Chen Zihan's ears turning red behind him, or the deformed paper in the hands of a figure in the distant teaching building window.
After that, Chen Zihan came to see him whenever he was free, which made Cheng Xiaorui unable to adapt immediately. He was also usually looked at strangely by others, especially Lu Ziyi's eyes, which seemed to hide something unspeakable.
Gradually, Cheng Xiaorui actually got used to the presence of another person around him.
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