Chapter 34 Liar
On Saturday night, Li Zimai drove to pick up the birthday boy. In addition to Cheng Che and Yang Mingxi, there was also Liang Jiayao from the next dormitory and his girlfriend Wei Han.
Yang Mingxi had originally planned for Liang Jiayao and Wei Han to sit in the back, and he would have to sit with the couple. Fortunately, the large off-road vehicle driven by Li Zimai had plenty of space. However, he never expected that Cheng Che would get in first and sit in the back. He looked at Li Zimai as if for help, but the other party showed no expression and only said, "You're the birthday boy, you sit in the front."
This is not the way to be a birthday boy. He doesn't want to sit in the exclusive seat of Li Shen's partner. He is just an ordinary cannon fodder. But Li Zimai gave him a glance, and Yang Mingxi had no way to refuse. In just one night, he clearly felt that the relationship between the two roommates had become worse.
Along the way, Yang Mingxi saw Li Zimai casually glancing at the rearview mirror several times, looking at Cheng Che, but the other party stared out the window motionlessly, like a sculpture.
"Wu Yi and the others have arrived. Should I ask them to go in first?"
Liang Jiayao finally got the chance to speak. He had always heard that the two great masters in the academy had an absurdly good relationship, but now it seems that this is completely untrue.
Yang Mingxi nodded vigorously, "You can order first! The braised prawns there are especially delicious."
He turned to Cheng Che and asked, "Don't you have any dishes you want to eat? Ask them to order them first."
Cheng Che came back to his senses and met Li Zimai's eyes in the rearview mirror. He subconsciously avoided them and said, "It's all right."
"What about you, Li Shen? Is there anything you want to eat?"
Li Zimai withdrew his gaze, his palms on the steering wheel tightened, and he felt indescribably irritated and uneasy. "Anything is fine."
The only lady said: "Is there anything lighter? It's been a bit greasy lately..."
The eerie atmosphere was finally broken by the food. Along the way, everyone chatted about everything from the local food scene to the fun clubs in the university town. Liang Jiayao took the opportunity to quickly mention the progress of Jiali's godly friend.
Yang Mingxi is a simple and gullible male college student. He has no idea that his so-called friend has other intentions, nor can he see that Wei Han and Liang Jiayao have a relationship that is seemingly harmonious but actually distant.
Li Zimai asked someone to scan the QR code, but did not click the "Agree" button. He turned his head to look at Yang Mingxi, shook his head slightly, and sighed.
Yang Mingxi sensed love and care in the other person's expression and was flattered. He didn't expect Li Zimai to be so friendly to him. He immediately decided to help Li Zimai ease his relationship with Cheng Che.
It was the weekend and the area was full of college students coming and going. There were few parking spaces. Li Zimai dropped the person off at the door of the B&B and drove around the parking lot for a long time before finding a parking space. He took out the birthday present and cake from the trunk and put them on the ground. Just as he was about to lock the car, someone picked up the cake box.
Li Zimai followed Cheng Che, and the two walked in silence for a long time before Li Zimai asked in a low voice, "When did you return to the dormitory yesterday?"
"When else?"
Cheng Che's tone was a little unfriendly. He didn't know what he was unhappy about. It was just because Li Zimai said, "If you are in a relationship, tell me and I won't bother you."
"when."
Li Zimai asked persistently, wanting to hear his true answer.
Cheng Che stopped and a few girls happened to pass by. After receiving some ambiguous instructions, Cheng Che said coldly, "Why are you asking this? Didn't we agree to mind our own business?"
One sentence from him could ruin Li Zimai's mood for the whole day. Li Zimai replied sarcastically: "Okay, do whatever you want. I can't control you. I'm not related to you."
"I'm glad you know."
Cheng Che has this ability. With just one sentence, he can make the elegant Li Zimai so angry that he blows his nose and glares.
The two walked all the way with bated breath. When they were about to enter the house, Li Zimai surrendered. He complained aggrievedly, "How did I offend you? Why do you treat me like this?"
Cheng Che was also annoyed with himself. It was obvious that Li Zimai had done nothing wrong. It was obvious that he was the one who took the initiative first. It was obvious that he had tricked Li Zimai, and now he was still treating him with indifference.
"No, you're not wrong."
He almost said "I'm the one who's wrong, okay?", which was a completely unreasonable attitude. Cheng Che himself didn't even realize that he was feeling as awkward as a little emotional person.
"Don't treat me like this. I have a heart of flesh and blood. I feel bad being avoided and rejected by you every day."
Cheng Che pursed his lips and said nothing.
Li Zimai leaned down slightly, looked into his lowered eyes, and whispered, "Do you know how uncomfortable I have been during this period? I miss you but I dare not bother you, and I have to watch other girls chase you. Why can they get close to you? I can't? Cheche, you are unfair to me."
Cheng Che turned his head away, took a half step back, and still said nothing.
Li Zimai's gaze shifted from his eyes to the corner of his lips. After a moment of silence, he tentatively asked, "Or maybe you really don't like boys, and you don't like me..."
Cheng Che's eyes darkened until Yang Mingxi called him urgently, then he said reluctantly, "...I don't want to..."
"You don't want to be with me, do you?"
Li Zimai answered for him, his voice somewhat helpless, "Then you don't mind if I'm with someone else?"
He was at his wit's end. Waiting was fruitless but he couldn't bear to force Cheng Che. He tried to read what he wanted from the other's expression, but Cheng Che was still on guard against him, refusing to let down his guard and allow him to get close.
Li Zimai suddenly sighed softly, "You're afraid that I'm just acting on impulse and will leave you sooner or later, so you're just not going to start with me, right?"
Cheng Che's heartbeat stopped for a moment, and his palms clenched so hard that it hurt, as if all his inner anxiety and cowardice had been exposed. The sudden feeling of panic and anxiety enveloped him tightly.
People were coming and going at the door of the B&B, the leaves were rustling in the wind, the weather was gloomy, and it seemed like it was going to rain.
"Answer me."
Li Zimai's gaze was somewhat sharp. In Cheng Che's eyes, it was like a newly sharpened blunt weapon, deliberately cutting his skin. Cheng Che couldn't tell whether the knife was too cold or he himself was too cold.
"...yes."
Cheng Che turned away and repeated, "I don't want to start with you."
He spoke each word slowly, as if he was speaking to Li Zimai, but also as if he was speaking to himself.
Li Zimai showed no emotion. After a few seconds, he said, "Okay."
It was raining, and the air that had been gloomy all day finally became moist.
Cheng Che and Li Zimai didn't say a word during the entire dinner. They sat at the round table for eight people, the farthest away from each other.
Yang Mingxi's birthday was spent in anxiety. Fortunately, the three friends from the Academy of Fine Arts brought by Wu Yi were able to chat happily and the atmosphere was not dull. However, the topic of conversation was all focused on Li Zimai. They wanted to establish a good relationship with Li Shen, whom they had finally made an appointment with, but the timing was wrong because Li Zimai was obviously absent-minded.
Cheng Che was also absent-minded. He was a man of few words, and his cold expression made him seem even more withdrawn.
He heard the boy next to Li Zimai talking. The boy's voice was a little soft, not as magnetic as other boys, but he had a very cheerful personality, which was completely different from his introverted self. Cheng Che gripped the chopsticks harder, lowered his head to eat, trying to block out the noise from the opposite side.
"...Wouldn't you like to drink a little?"
"I'm not drinking anymore. I want to drive."
"Are you leaving later? Didn't Xige say we're booked for the whole night? Why don't we play some board games later? It's the weekend tomorrow anyway. How about going to the bar next door?"
"No, I have something to do back home."
"Oh~ Could it be that someone is waiting at home?"
Liang Jiayao suddenly turned his gaze to the unknown Cheng Che and jokingly said, "Is Li Shen dating someone? I saw a post about you and Cheng Che on the school gossip forum a while ago. It was highly recommended, saying that you two were a couple."
The atmosphere became tense for a few seconds after these words were spoken. Everyone could see that the two parties were arguing. Wei Han put down his chopsticks and said unkindly, "You're quite boring."
Yang Mingxi didn't expect Liang Jiayao to suddenly do this, which was completely adding fuel to the fire. He clearly felt that Li Zimai's expression turned a little colder, and Cheng Che opposite him became even more silent.
"...Hey, it's just gossip, don't take it seriously."
Yang Mingxi tried to lighten the mood, "Do you want more food? Let's add another dish?"
"What post?" Li Zimai asked suddenly.
His eyes fell on Cheng Che, then quickly looked away. The boy next to him handed him the phone screen, "That's it. Even I, a student from another school, saw it."
The boy half-jokingly said, "It sounds so convincing that all my classmates believed it."
Cheng Che raised his eyes and saw the boy approaching Li Zimai. The Chinese chair clearly had armrests, but he leaned half of his body outward, and his head almost touched Li Zimai's shoulder. An inexplicable fire surged in Cheng Che's heart, an indescribable fire of anxiety.
Fortunately, a few seconds later, Li Zimai leaned back on the chair behind him, leaving the boy's intimate range. He looked at Cheng Che and explained expressionlessly: "It's quite interesting, but we are just ordinary friends."
Cheng Che's throat felt dry and his heart sank. He seemed to suddenly understand what the "OK" in Li Zimai's words meant. "OK" meant that he gave up and no longer liked Cheng Che.
This is so strange. Cheng Che clearly wanted this result. He wanted Li Zimai to treat him as an "ordinary friend" or even an "ordinary classmate." But when he heard Li Zimai say it himself, he felt
It felt like I was being bitten by ants and was stuffy and uncomfortable.
"You guys eat first, I'm going to the bathroom."
Li Zimai took his cell phone and left the private room in silence.
Cheng Che saw that boy also followed him out, and some people were discussing in a low voice, "He Chun doesn't really want to get Li Shen, right?"
Yang Mingxi was shocked. He Chun was not familiar with him at all. It was his high school classmate Wu Yi who said that he would bring two people with him, but Wu Yi did not say who the people he brought were. He looked at Cheng Che tremblingly and found that the other party remained calm, so he breathed a sigh of relief.
Wu Yi sat over and explained in a low voice, "I didn't know He Chun was so bold. Li Shen didn't pay much attention to him. It shouldn't be possible, it shouldn't be possible."
Yang Mingxi scolded in a low voice: "Don't mess with me! They are good friends! Don't bring weird people here."
Wu Yi suddenly said to Cheng Che, "Don't you want to go and take a look?"
Cheng Che said coldly, "What am I going to see?"
Liang Jiayao came over and asked, "Is Li Shen really gay? Damn, that's such a waste! If I had Li Shen's face, I could get any pretty girl."
Wu Yi frowned and glanced at Yang Mingxi, meaning: How do you know such a person?
Yang Mingxi shook his head: He gave me a very expensive gift, so I brought him here. I will go back and return the gift to him.
Liang Jiayao sat down next to Cheng Che and asked tentatively, "Where does Li Shen usually go to play?"
Cheng Che frowned and glanced up at him. Liang Jiayao continued, "I'll go too. It seems like Li Shen only plays with you at school. If he hadn't suddenly come to live in the dormitory last semester, we wouldn't have been able to get in touch with him."
"have no idea."
"How is that possible? Is he hanging out in a bar? I heard that Li Shen was quite playful in high school. Didn't he even drop out for a year to play around?"
Cheng Che didn't say anything. He glanced at the door and then looked back at the dining table. After repeating this several times, he became even more irritated.
After about ten minutes, Li Zimai finally came back. His hair was a little messy, his chin was slightly red, the two drawstrings under the collar of his sweatshirt were of different lengths, and there were water stains on his shoulders. He looked unusually messy.
Cheng Che suddenly lost his temper. He stared blankly at Li Zimai, then at He Chun who walked in afterwards. For the first time, he realized that Li Zimai might belong to someone else.
——If you are willing, I am yours. If you are not willing... I can still treat you well for the rest of my life... as a friend.
Lizimai is a liar.
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