The chaotic night finally passed.
Ye Ran had no classes the next morning. He heard Shen Shi calling the teacher to request leave — after a night at the hospital, he too needed rest.
They took a taxi straight back to campus.
By the time they arrived, it was already past seven. The tree-lined paths were full of students rushing to eight o’clock classes. The cafeteria buzzed with chatter. Under the morning light, the quiet campus was fully awake.
Ye Ran and Shen Shi took a side path back to their dorm. Along the way, people from the finance department greeted Shen Shi one after another.
Their eyes lingered curiously on Ye Ran.
“Oh, you’re Brother Shen’s roommate, right?”
“Brother Shen, class is starting soon — not heading to the lecture hall?”
“Hey, roommate student! What were you two doing, back so late?”
…
After such a long night, Ye Ran was too tired to respond much, but he still managed polite smiles.
“Put your hood on,” Shen Shi said suddenly after a few steps.
Ye Ran blinked, confused, but before he could react, Shen Shi reached up and pulled the loose hood of his sweatshirt over his head. The brim dropped low, hiding most of his face from curious gazes.
The rest of the way, Ye Ran stayed silent and didn’t greet anyone else.
Dorm 211 was on the second floor. The windows were closed, and the soft early autumn light wasn’t too harsh. Through the blue curtains, a quiet shadow fell across the room.
Little Fatty and Brother Shu were still asleep — they didn’t have morning classes either.
Dorm 211 was a “mixed major” dorm — and a very uneven mix at that.
Ye Ran was in the art department, Shen Shi studied finance and management, Little Fatty (full name Lin Feipeng) was in computer science, and Brother Shu (full name Cheng Shu) was in literature.
By some twist of fate — or the school’s confusing dorm allocation system — the four of them had ended up together, forming a cross-department bond. Because of their different schedules, though, it was rare for them all to eat or hang out together.
The weather was still warm for early autumn.
Before leaving, the doctor had reminded Ye Ran not to get wet and to keep warm.
Ye Ran found clean clothes from his closet and headed for the bathroom.
“What are you doing?”
The voice came from behind him. He turned to see Shen Shi taking off his jacket. Under the dim light, his tall figure stood straight. His pale, slender fingers gripped his sleeve, the bones faintly visible, veins tracing a faint blue under his skin.
Shen Shi looked at him, eyes calm beneath his dark hair. “Didn’t the doctor say no bathing?”
“I wasn’t going to shower, just wipe down a bit.”
Seeing Shen Shi unmoving, Ye Ran blinked and said, “Oh… you’re showering first?”
Shen Shi gave him another glance, then continued taking off his clothes. “You go first.”
Ye Ran fetched a basin of hot water and wiped himself down twice. During this process, he once again reaffirmed his belief in never eating anything insanely spicy again. Being sick was such a hassle.
When he came out of the bathroom, the room was dimly lit by a soft glow.
The light came from Shen Shi’s desk. The boy, wearing only a white short-sleeved shirt, leaned lazily back in his chair. One long leg was casually bent, and he held his phone in one hand, replying to messages.
Ye Ran carried his dirty clothes toward the balcony. As he passed Shen Shi, he caught an unintentional glimpse of his screen — the WeChat interface was full of little red notification dots.
…So popular.
He clicked his tongue inwardly.
After putting away his dirty clothes, he quietly stepped back into the room. When he lifted his head, he met Shen Shi’s gaze.
Those eyes were dark and narrow, the double eyelids deeply folded, the outer corners slightly tilted up. When half-lowered, they carried a hint of weariness. Even with no change in expression, that faint look held an air of depth and unintentional tenderness.
No wonder the campus forum said that whenever Shen Shi looked at someone, it always seemed full of affection.
In the quiet room, Shen Shi was the first to speak. “Finished washing?”
“Yeah,” Ye Ran replied, coming back to himself. Thinking Shen Shi might have been waiting impatiently, he explained, “The water didn’t heat up last night, so it took me a bit longer.”
“Mm.”
Shen Shi stood up and went into the bathroom.
Ye Ran climbed into bed. The bed frame creaked faintly beneath him, and across the room, Little Fatty stirred drowsily, fumbling for his phone and muttering, “T-Tuesday… no, no class…”
Then he fell right back asleep.
Ye Ran couldn’t help smiling a little.
Before sleeping, he set a vibration alarm.
Shen Shi had been taking care of him at the hospital all night — he might not wake up by noon. Once Ye Ran woke, he’d go buy lunch, and bring back the most sought-after, hardest-to-get duck leg rice on campus for Shen Shi.
It had been nearly two months since the semester began, and Ye Ran had only managed to eat it five times. Seniors often joked on the school’s confession wall: “No duck leaves Beijing University alive.”
That alone was proof of how delicious it was.
Thinking of the juicy, tender, perfectly seasoned duck leg, Ye Ran couldn’t help but swallow.
As for himself… he’d have to stick to plain congee.
Being sick was terrible.
With that sad thought, he closed his eyes.
***
He slept heavily. When his alarm vibrated, he still felt groggy and sat on his bed for a while before slowly climbing down.
The dorm was quiet.
Half an hour earlier, Little Fatty had texted him:
[Brother Shu and I are heading to the student council interview. No need to keep the door unlocked for lunch.]
The university’s student council and clubs were recruiting new members in late October.
For days, the small and large campus plazas had been filled with tables and chairs, senior students enthusiastically handing out flyers and warmly greeting every passing freshman.
Little Fatty and Brother Shu were both social butterflies. Back during military training, they’d already made connections with a senior in the student council. So when recruitment was announced, the two immediately began preparing.
When Ye Ran entered the cafeteria, a wave of cool air hit him.
It was only ten-thirty, but the hall was already packed — some were eating, others studying, some chatting with their partners.
A long line had formed in front of the duck leg rice counter. Ye Ran swiped his card for a meal ticket and quietly joined the end of the line.
Halfway through, his phone buzzed.
It was a message from his childhood friend.
Childhood friend: [Ranran, awake?]
Ye Ran: [Awake. You’re still up? It should be the middle of the night in London, right?]
Childhood Friend: [Couldn’t sleep. Out drinking with my roommate. He invited a few guys — not a single handsome one! And they can’t even dress properly, my God!]
Ye Ran chuckled.
[Don’t stay out too late. Get some rest early.]
Childhood Friend: [We’re leaving soon. But my roommate is so weird. Ever since I told him I’m gay, he keeps trying to set me up with people! Please, I’m not unable to find men — I just don’t want to find one right now!!]
Ye Ran: [Then just turn him down.]
Childhood Friend: [No can do, he doesn’t understand human language. And we’ll be stuck together for four years, same major — I can’t exactly start a war with him. Anyway, forget him. How’s your ridiculously handsome roommate?]
When it came to describing what it was like living with Shen Shi, no one had more authority than Ye Ran.
He paused for a few seconds, and his friend immediately sent a rapid burst of messages:
[Do random strangers still “accidentally” walk into your dorm? I’m telling you, they’re NOT going to the wrong room — they’re doing it on purpose!]
[Is this what passes for manners among college students now?? What kind of moral education did they get for the past eighteen years? Where’s the decency? The restraint? The photos? The WeChat?]
Ye Ran: “…?”
[—Quick, let me see just how handsome your roommate really is!!]
Ye Ran: “……”
His friend might be overseas, but his heart was clearly still with the motherland.
On Ye Ran’s very first day of university, that same friend had somehow heard about a super handsome new student at Beijing University — and immediately sent the gossip to him.
So when Ye Ran learned his new roommate had the same name as that “super handsome guy,” his first reaction wasn’t curiosity but dread — terrified that his friend might fly home by instinct.
But the days that followed quickly swept away any such worry. Secret photos, “accidental visits,” attempts to strike up conversation, asking for WeChat — each incident was more unbelievable than the last.
Ye Ran: [I don’t have any photos of him.]
After all, seeing that face every day — sleeping on the bunk across from him — he’d almost developed immunity.
His friend strongly disagreed:
[NO! I could look at hot guys forever!]
Ye Ran laughed again.
Childhood Friend: [Is your roommate nearby? Take a picture for me, quick! I swear I’ll delete it right after — no leaks, promise.]
…Take a picture?
Ye Ran: [He’s not here right now. I’ll look for a photo of him on the forum later and send it to you.]
Childhood Friend: [Okayyy!] wink emoji [Love you, babe, mwah mwah mwah!]
The chat came to a pause, and his childhood friend was about to head home.
Ye Ran reluctantly put away his phone. While waiting for his meal, he absentmindedly recalled an incident from the past.
During military training, Shen Shi had been selected as an exemplary cadet. At noon during breaks, he often had to attend extra practice. One day, after finishing lunch in the dorm, careless Little Fatty had forgotten to close the door. Male students kept walking by, laughing and joking, some holding phones, secretly taking photos.
Their words weren’t exactly clean either: “Hah… what’s so handsome about him? What kind of taste do girls have nowadays…”
Ye Ran sat back-to-back with Shen Shi, clearly hearing the flashes from cameras in his peripheral vision.
In the corner of his eye, he saw Shen Shi rise to his feet. His fingers hung loosely by his side, slightly curled. Some inexplicable sixth sense told Ye Ran that what happened next wouldn’t end easily.
Ye Ran, who had lived lazily and timidly for eighteen years, acted impulsively for the first time. He darted past Shen Shi and slammed the door shut.
“Bang!”
After closing the door, his mind went blank. He nervously swallowed and froze for a moment before saying something to the silently staring Shen Shi.
He no longer remembered what he said, but that night, when he recounted it to his childhood friend, the friend teased him for three whole days.
“Hahaha, why are you so embarrassed?”
Ye Ran, both awkward and suffocated, buried himself in the blanket and explained, “I don’t know… I just felt that if I didn’t close the door, things would have gone badly. It won’t happen again…”
Though he said that, for more than a month afterward, anytime Shen Shi was in the dorm, Ye Ran would quietly make sure the door was closed.
He had basically become the unofficial “door guardian” of Dorm 211.
Little Fatty and Brother Shu caught on to the meaning and several times tried to hand the key to him, looking at him with respect.
Ye Ran: “…”
Help.
Not what I meant.
…
“Hey, student, what do you want to eat?” The lady at the food counter called out loudly.
Ye Ran snapped out of his mortified thoughts. The cafeteria was noisy and bustling.
He put away his phone, ordered a portion of duck leg rice, and went to the first-floor porridge counter for a cup of porridge and some vegetables.
Back in the dorm, the room was still dim.
Ye Ran quietly switched on a desk lamp, dimmed it to the lowest setting, hesitated for a moment, then stood under Shen Shi’s bed and called, “Shen Shi?”
No response from behind the drawn bed curtain.
He raised his voice slightly, calling again, “…Shen Shi?”
At that moment, the tightly shut door suddenly opened.
Light poured in.
Little Fatty and Brother Shu entered one after the other, each carrying meals, muttering: “Are they messing with us? They say join the student council but really just want us to show up…”
“Eh? Ye Ran,” Little Fatty spotted him and waved, “why are you standing under Shen Shi’s bed? Didn’t he leave already?”
Brother Shu had gone to open the window. The blue curtains slid aside, and the room brightened instantly.
Outside, the sun blazed. The dorm walkway was crowded with students leaving school, and the aroma of food drifted in the hall. Ye Ran stood there for a moment, slow to realize the situation.
“Oh,” he said, returning to his spot. “He went out?”
“Yeah, left at nine. I think he set an alarm…?”
Brother Shu added: “Yeah, vibration alarm. You wouldn’t hear it normally. I asked what he was up to, and he said student council. The council calls him every day, pushing him to join.”
“D*mn!!” Little Fatty was unusually angry. “Why do we get ignored and Shen Shi is so in demand? Not fair!”
“What do you expect,” Brother Shu said quietly, “if I had Shen Shi’s face, would I even hang out with you?”
“What did you say? Don’t blame me for your ugly face!” Little Fatty shot back.
Brother Shu: “? Who are you calling ugly?”
The two started bickering endlessly. Ye Ran’s head hurt. He rubbed the warm duck leg rice and spoke up to interrupt them.
“Have you eaten yet?”
“Just about to, why?” Brother Shu replied in the brief pause.
Ye Ran smiled and waved the food in his hand. “My stomach’s been bad the past couple days; I can’t eat meat. Do either of you want it?”
After a short silence:
“Me!” Little Fatty exclaimed.
“Me!” Brother Shu chimed in.
Ye Ran handed them the meal, letting them choose. He opened his porridge container and sighed at the plain watery broth.
Behind him: fierce arguing.
In front of him: bland food.
Being sick is really scary.
Ye Ran scooped a spoonful of porridge, feeling a twinge of sadness.
Never getting sick again.
