Dating
As soon as the bell for evening self-study stopped ringing, the students in the teaching building rushed to the playground like a jar of crushed sugar. Li Huaizhou followed at the end of the group, holding a plastic stool. The stool legs scraped against the concrete floor, making a small "creaking" sound that mixed with the laughter of the surrounding students and drifted on the late September breeze. It was already dark, and the streetlights at the edge of the playground came on. The dim light, wrapped in the fragrance of osmanthus, fell down, landing on the shoulders of his school uniform, tinging them with a sweetness.
The screen was already set up, and the white cloth was gently swelled by the wind, like a piece of freshly washed cotton. Li Huaizhou found a seat in the back, and the plastic stool touched Ji Jiancheng next to him. He nudged Li Huaizhou with his elbow, turned around and handed him a mint candy: "I heard it's another old movie, why don't you go to the Internet cafe to play games?" Li Huaizhou took the candy, holding the candy wrapper with his fingertips without unpacking, his eyes fixed on the screen.
Soon, the movie began. The stirring soundtrack pounded into his ears, and onscreen, soldiers, holding red flags, charged forward. The cacophony of gunfire and slogans mingled, almost suffocating. Li Huaizhou furtively pulled out his phone and glanced. It was 7:10, with an hour and a half left until the end. He glanced around. His homeroom teacher, Zhou Yu, stood to the side of the group, his hands behind his back, watching the movie, his profile half-lit and half-dark under the streetlight. The girls gathered together, gossiping. The boy in the front row was secretly playing with his phone, the screen light flickering on his face.
Li Huaizhou yawned, his fingertips picking at the cracks in the stool unconsciously - if he had known it was such a movie, he would rather have slipped away to play games. The wind blew again, bringing a bit of coolness. He gathered his school uniform jacket, and suddenly an idea came to his mind: why not find an excuse to slip out. He slowly stood up, crouched over and moved towards Zhou Yu. The plastic stool was gently put in its place without making any sound. "Sister Zhou," he moved closer to Zhou Yu, deliberately lowering his voice, rubbing his stomach with a frown, "I have a stomachache." Zhou Yu looked back at him with a bit of confusion in her eyes - before Zhou Yu could speak, he added, "I'll be back soon. I'll be back after watching this part so I don't delay anything."
Zhou Yu nodded and waved his hand to show he understood. The iron gate at the playground exit was ajar. When Li Huaizhou pushed it open, the hinges creaked slightly. The evening breeze, wrapped in the silence of the teaching building, blew over, much cooler than the playground. He had just taken a step when he heard a familiar voice behind him, a hint of laughter in the ending tone: "Baby?"
Li Huaizhou turned around and saw Xie Mo standing under a streetlight not far away, holding a physics workbook in his hand. His long hair was blown by the wind, revealing his smooth forehead. Xie Mo was not wearing a school uniform jacket, but a black hooded sweatshirt with the cuffs rolled up to his forearms, revealing the faint blue veins on his wrist bones. Usually he always wore school uniforms properly, but at this moment, he looked more casual than when he was helping him with the questions in the bar with his head down. "Why are you out too?" Li Huaizhou was stunned and subconsciously took two steps towards him.
"Teacher Zhou asked me to send this back." Xie Mo shook the exercise book in his hand, with a bit of cunning in his eyes. "By the way, catch someone and take him back." Li Huaizhuo couldn't help laughing, and the tension just now instantly dissipated - Xie Mo was always like this. He obviously escaped on purpose, but he could always find a perfect excuse seriously. He followed Xie Mo to the teaching building. The cobblestone road under his feet was illuminated by the street lights. The shadows of the two were stretched very long. Occasionally they touched each other, and then quickly separated.
"Is the movie good?" Xie Mo suddenly spoke, breaking the silence. Li Huaizhou curled his lips, with a hint of complaint in his tone: "It's more boring than math class." Xie Mo chuckled, and touched his arm lightly with his fingertips, which felt a little cold: "That's perfect, let's go back to the classroom, it's more comfortable than blowing the cold wind on the playground." The teaching building was very quiet, and the corridor was empty, with only their footsteps echoing. The light from the street lamps shone through the window and fell on the ground, forming patches of bright spots. Li Huaizhou's classroom was on the third floor. The two walked up the stairs, Xie Mo walked in front, and Li Huaizhou followed behind, staring at his back - there was a little dust on the back of Xie Mo's white shirt, which should have been rubbed when he was sitting in the playground just now. He wanted to reach out to help him brush it off, but his fingers were raised in the air and retracted again, for fear that touching his skin would make his heart beat irregularly again.
When the classroom door was opened, moonlight poured in from the window and fell on the desks. Li Huaizhou walked to his seat and was about to sit down when Xie Mo grabbed his wrist. "Don't sit down," Xie Mo's voice was low and a little hoarse, like the evening breeze brushing against the leaves of a sycamore tree. Before Li Huaizhou could react, Xie Mo gently pushed him to the desk - the desk was made of wood and the surface was polished very smoothly. Xie Mo stood in front of him, with his hands on both sides of the desk, holding him in his arms. The smile in his eyes slowly sank and turned into a gentle gaze.
Li Huaizhou's heartbeat suddenly quickened, his fingertips clutching the corner of his school uniform, and the tips of his ears began to burn. He could smell Xie Mo's scent, a woody shower gel mixed with the coolness of shampoo, and a hint of mint. Xie Mo slowly bent down, resting his forehead against his, his breath gently falling on his face, a little cool: "Do you miss me?"
"Yes." Li Huaizhou's voice was very soft, like a mosquito's buzz, but it was clear. Since the last time they had extra lessons in the bar room, they rarely met alone - there were so many people in the school, and he was always afraid of being seen by his classmates, afraid of being questioned by the teacher. Xie Mo also followed his wishes, only occasionally talking to him on the way home from school, and handing him a piece of paper with the solution ideas written on it. Now alone in the classroom, the surroundings were so quiet that they could hear each other's heartbeats. All those suppressed thoughts suddenly surged up, blocking the throat, burning.
Xie Mo's lips gently touched the corner of his mouth, very lightly, like a feather brushing, with a hint of mint sweetness. Li Huaizhuo closed his eyes, stood on tiptoe, and took the initiative to move closer to him - this time there was no dodging, no hesitation, no need to worry about anyone disturbing him, only the warmth of lips touching, and the sound of heartbeats colliding. Xie Mo's hands slowly wrapped around his waist, and with a little force, he hugged him up a little, letting him sit on the desk, and the distance between them was closer. Li Huaizhuo put his hands on Xie Mo's shoulders, his fingertips clutching his white shirt, and he could feel the warmth of his back and his slowly accelerating heartbeat.
"You know, those who escaped are all young couples who are out on a date... Are we... considered to be on a date..." Xie Mo's voice came over during the gap between Li Huaizhou's calls. It was lighter than the wind, but softer than the drumsticks that Shen Qitang knocked down during the performance. Ji Jiancheng's exaggerated guitar solo also made his heart tremble.
The kiss gradually deepened, and Xie Mo's tongue lightly swept across his lower lip, with a hint of temptation. Li Huaizhou did not push him away, but hugged him more tightly, his cheek pressed against his neck, and he could smell the scent of his collar. The moonlight in the classroom slowly moved, falling on them, overlapping their shadows.
At this moment, the classroom door was suddenly pushed open with a creaking sound, breaking the silence in the room. Li Huaizhou suddenly opened his eyes and froze - Shen Qitang was standing at the door, her eyes wide open, staring at the two people at the desk, her face full of surprise.
Li Huaizhou's face turned pale instantly. The blood seemed to rush to his head and then quickly receded. His hands and feet felt a little cold. He subconsciously wanted to get down from the desk, but was held down by Xie Mo. Xie Mo slowly stood up and looked back at Shen Qitang. There was no panic on his face, but his eyes were calmer than before. His voice was very soft, but with an unquestionable tone: "You go out first, we will be there soon."
Chen Qitang was stunned for a few seconds, then quickly picked up the water cup on the table. Her lips moved, but she didn't say anything. She glanced at Li Huaizhou, then at Xie Mo, and finally turned around and walked out, gently closing the classroom door without making any sound, as if she had never been there. The classroom returned to silence, with only the breathing of the two of them and the occasional chirping of insects outside the window. Li Huaizhou's fingers were still shaking. Chen Qitang's eyes just now were like needles piercing him, making him uncomfortable all over - the thing he was most worried about happened. He was caught by his most familiar friend. What should he do next? Will other classmates know? Will the teacher know...
"Don't be afraid." Xie Mo reached out and rubbed his hair, his movements very gently, as if comforting a frightened kitten, "She...actually knows..." He looked down at Li Huaizhou, with an emotion in his eyes that Li Huaizhou couldn't understand, and gently rubbed his red mouth with his thumb, "She asked me...I admitted it, sorry."
"But..." Li Huaizhou wanted to say something, his voice trembling, his eyes a little panicked, "I'm afraid... I'm afraid that the teacher will find out, I'm afraid that my classmates will talk about me, I..." Before he could finish his words, he was interrupted by Xie Mo's kiss. This time the kiss was very light, just touching the corner of his mouth, with a hint of comfort: "Don't think about these things, finish what you didn't finish just now."
Li Huaizhou's heartbeat began to speed up again, and the panic just now was dispelled by this sudden tenderness. He closed his eyes and hugged Xie Mo's shoulders again, his cheek pressed against his shirt, and he could feel his heartbeat colliding with his own. Xie Mo put one hand behind his waist and held his hand with the other, as if he was afraid that he would run away.
Xie Mo slowly let go of him, helped him straighten his wrinkled school uniform jacket, and gently touched his red ear with his fingertips: "Let's go, it's been too long." Li Huaizhou nodded and jumped down from the desk. Xie Mo still held his hand. His hand was very warm, and he wrapped Li Huaizhou's cold fingers in it and slowly warmed them up.
"It's okay." Xie Mo looked at him seriously. Li Huaizhou's eyes were a little hot. He hummed vaguely and clenched Xie Mo's hand. The two walked out of the classroom side by side and returned to the playground. They each returned to their seats. Shen Qitang came over and whispered, "I won't tell anyone else. Don't worry. In fact, I knew it a long time ago. Xie Mo's discrimination is too obvious."
Li Huaizhou was stunned for a moment. "Thank you." His voice was very soft and a little hoarse, and he didn't know what to say. Shen Qitang smiled and waved his hand. His smile was the same as usual, nothing unusual.
After the movie, the students moved their stools back and could leave school. Li Huaizhou followed Xie Mo in small steps, his tone a little cautious.
"Next time...can you do it the same way next time?"
Li Huaizhou's voice was very soft, afraid of being swept away by the evening breeze. Xie Mo looked back at him with a smile in his eyes, and reached out to touch his cheek gently: "Anytime" The classroom, the corner of the playground, or even the room in the bar, it's all possible... Li Huaizhou's heartbeat began to accelerate again, he lowered his head, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl up
The playground was already bustling with activity. Students were lining up to head to the teaching building. Li Huaizhou's fingertips still held the warmth of Xie Mo's palm. As the group slowly moved toward the building, Li Huaizhou suddenly thought, "They haven't done anything wrong, so why are they hiding? Isn't that what love is all about...?" Blood shattered bones, flowing into hearts unstoppable. Their heartbeats merged, as if they were the only ones in this world.
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