Are All You Straight Guys Like This Chapter 77

On the way to the cafeteria, Ye Ran was in a good mood. When Zhang Xuyang called him, there was still a trace of fading laughter in his eyes.

“Ye, Ye Ran, where are you going?” Zhang Xuyang hesitantly caught up to him.

It was already dark.

Haicheng No.1 High had an hour and a half break after school in the afternoon. Boarding students could use this time to eat, wash their hair, and do laundry, while day students also had plenty of time to go home for dinner.

The long corridor was half-bright, half-dim under the incandescent lights. Ye Ran stood at the stairwell corner, eyes surprised: “I’m going to eat. Do you want to come with me?”

Zhang Xuyang paused, then still walked downstairs beside him: “I, I won’t eat. My mom prepared my, my dinner.”

Ye Ran knew he didn’t come chasing after him for food. Sure enough, a minute later, the silence was broken again by Zhang Xuyang.

“That… Ye Ran,” Zhang Xuyang said softly, “you shouldn’t, shouldn’t go against Shen Shi.”

Ye Ran raised his eyebrows, gaining a bit of interest: “Is Shen Shi very fierce?”

Fierce?

Not really.

He was obviously just a stubborn and arrogant little kid.

He commented silently in his heart.

Just now, in the classroom, puffed up like an angry pufferfish, he was the cutest.

“N, no!” Zhang Xuyang waved his hands repeatedly. He was timid and cautious by nature. Only after confirming no one was around did he reluctantly say, “Shen, Shen Shi is very bad.”

He didn’t notice Ye Ran’s expression falter.

Zhang Xuyang continued stammering, trying to convince him: “I once, once saw him fight. With Lu, Lu Wen from the vocational school next door. They fought really fierce. I heard it was, was because of a boy.”

“Because of… a boy?” Ye Ran’s eyes moved. He pressed down the bit of displeasure that had risen earlier and motioned for him to continue.

Seeing that he seemed to be understanding, Zhang Xuyang let out a breath: “Mm. That boy… I’ve never seen him. B, but that day, I heard Lu Wen say he would never let Shen Shi go, nor that boy.”

He held back for a moment, face flushing red, disgust nearly spilling from his eyes: “He said they… they were dog-boyfriends.”

When the words fell, the stairwell fell completely silent.

This time, Ye Ran seemed to be thinking. His eyelashes hung low and dense; he didn’t speak easily.

After a long moment, just before Zhang Xuyang sensed something was wrong, Ye Ran suddenly let out a laugh.

For some reason, the laugh made Zhang Xuyang feel uncomfortable. He looked at Ye Ran in confusion, only to see Ye Ran calmly nodding, slowly and unhurriedly repeating, “Dog-boyfriends, huh…”

The dim stairwell light fell across his face. Ye Ran lightly held the railing. His brows and eyes were still delicate and gentle, his slender, flexible figure wrapped in the loose school uniform. His skin had a refined, translucent look that spoke of a pampered upbringing. The whole person carried a strange charm beyond his age.

Zhang Xuyang was momentarily dazed. Then he saw Ye Ran show a small smile, warm and gentle, no different from before. That instant of mature charm, like the mellowing of time, felt almost like an illusion created by shifting light.

“Thank you,” Ye Ran said to him. “I’m going to eat now.”

He sped up. His tone and expression were both natural. Zhang Xuyang instinctively followed, stammering, “Th, then… do you still need me to, to pick up your books?”

“Hm?” Ye Ran seemed surprised. He stood on the landing between two stair flights, looked up at him, his features hidden behind a layer of shadow, and said gently: “Of course not.”

Zhang Xuyang didn’t know whether he should feel relieved or disappointed.

He quietly watched Ye Ran’s departing back, unsure whether what he said earlier was right or wrong.

A strange intuition told him that the “someone” Ye Ran said would help carry his books… referred to Shen Shi. The intuition came from nowhere. Yet somehow, he had still gone to find Ye Ran and told him all that.

Zhang Xuyang felt what he did was low. But… he repressed a thought in his heart… but Shen Shi already had so many friends. Why did Ye Ran, Ye Ran also have to associate with someone like Shen Shi?

This meal, Ye Ran ate slowly.

He was no longer a teenager, so naturally he wouldn’t believe Zhang Xuyang’s one-sided words. Zhang Xuyang didn’t know Shen Shi well. Forming an opinion from a single encounter was inevitably biased.

Ye Ran admitted he was a bit partial.

But he wouldn’t explain anything to Zhang Xuyang on Shen Shi’s behalf.

Ultimately, this world was only Shen Shi’s conscious world. He was here for Shen Shi. Other than Shen Shi, no one else deserved his extra attention.

He ate lazily, sorting scallions out of his food with a cold gaze.

Haicheng No.1 High’s cafeteria was very well built. As a city-level model school, it was clean, hygienic, and offered a wide variety of dishes.

As his meal was nearing its end—

Ye Ran raised his brows and witnessed a good show.

…

The seating layout of Haicheng No.1 High’s cafeteria was interesting.

In the middle were the long tables and benches commonly seen nationwide.

But along the walls and windows were four-person booths. The seats were sofas. The tables could hold hotpot, casseroles, and stir-fries—meant to help students improve their meals.

At that moment, in a row of window-side booths, hotpots were bubbling, steaming.

One pot was a light tomato pork soup; the other, a spicy, oily duck-blood pot.

The duck-blood pot released an aroma that stirred the appetite.

But the atmosphere at the table was taut.

Even Jiang Yun, who usually lacked awareness, kept his eyes lowered, annoyed and stifled, but not daring to look around, only sneaking glances toward Shen Shi.

Shen Shi was lowered-eyed, idly playing with his phone. His posture was casual, leaning against the sofa back. His long, defined fingers slid across the screen. A lazy lethargy radiated from him, the kind that came from having no energy to spare.

Occasionally he responded absentmindedly. His voice was cold. Anyone could hear the perfunctory tone.

“Jiang Yun, I remember you like this.” A soft male voice drew attention back. Jiang Yun silently bared his teeth at Yu Ting, then looked up at the boy across the table.

The boy was pale and sickly. His wrists were so thin they looked like they could snap. Yet his eyes were extremely dark; when they fixed on someone, they made people uneasy.

Jiang Yun got goosebumps, curled his lip, “Oh. Thanks.”

He bypassed the food he passed him and reached for something else.

The boy’s eyelashes trembled. He put down the serving chopsticks, lifted a ladle from the tomato pot, and carefully scooped broth. He was about to pour it into Shen Shi’s bowl when someone intercepted it midway.

Yu Ting beamed, holding the bowl with feigned surprise: “Xu Qingshu, how did you know my stomach was upset today and I wanted something light?”

Xu Qingshu froze. His voice was soft and slow: “If you still want some, I can go buy more.”

Yu Ting tugged the corner of his lips, hearing the displeasure in his tone. He slowly set down the bowl. He had originally intended to give him some face, but this person, from head to toe, was filled with the words “Shen Shi.” Naturally, he looked down on the rest of them.

Yu Ting found it absurd.

Back then, it was Jiang Yun who stepped in to help when Xu Qingshu fainted. It was Yu Ting who helped him up and took him to the hospital. Shen Shi’s only contribution was seeing him cry, finding it noisy, and tossing him a pack of tissues. How did that end up being the one thing that made Xu Qingshu fixate on him, from freshman year all the way till now?

He watched coldly as Xu Qingshu scooped another ladle of soup. Before he could pass it to Shen Shi, Shen Shi stood up, impatient. He glanced over with cold indifference and asked, voice void of emotion: “How much longer are we eating?”

A shadow pressed down from him.

Darkness fell across the table.

The two pots still bubbled inside the shade, steaming, but no one cared anymore.

Jiang Yun, sharp-eyed, noticed Xu Qingshu’s trembling fingers and dazed expression. He immediately said, “I’m done!”

“I’m done too.” Yu Ting hid his cold smile and stood.

The three of them were good-looking. Even in the noisy cafeteria, many people glanced over. After Shen Shi left with Yu Ting and Jiang Yun, the four-person booth held only Xu Qingshu.

His head was bowed. His slightly long bangs hid his eyes. His fingers had stopped shaking.

No audience meant no need to keep acting.

…

Ye Ran retracted his gaze, hearing quiet whispers from a group of girls at the next table, also watching the drama.

“Xu Qingshu is pestering him again?”

“Just looking at that sickly face makes me mad.”

“What can you do even if you’re mad? No one dares provoke him. Back in freshman year, he had an asthma attack and fainted right on the track. I heard he even went into shock. Even the teachers don’t dare raise their voice at him… let alone Shen Shi.”

No one wanted to mess with someone like that. Especially someone with a bit of eerie energy about them.

When he stared at someone, those pitch-black eyes were scary.

There were a few sips of soup left in Ye Ran’s bowl.

Scallions floated on top. Ye Ran stirred them indifferently. His gaze lowered, thick as raven feathers, casting a shadow. No one knew what he was thinking. A moment later, he stood up and left as well.

He headed toward the school’s fruit shop.

After he walked away, the girls at the next table suppressed excited squeals.

“Holy cr*p holy cr*p! His uniform has two stripes, he’s a junior?”

“No way. I’ve seen all the handsome guys in junior year. He must be a transfer.”

“I know… I know this one. He’s in Shen Shi’s class, named Ye Ran. Let me tell you… the reason I was late today was because I saw Shen Shi talking to him in the classroom, holy cr*p holy cr*p! I’ve never seen Shen Shi like that—”

“No way. And you didn’t say anything?”

“You think I dare spread gossip about Shen Shi? And also…”

“And also what?” A calm male voice suddenly cut in.

The girls froze and turned their heads. There stood Xu Qingshu, pale and sickly. He smiled, but his eyes were dead water. Slowly, he asked: “What did you say that transfer student’s name was?”

When Ye Ran came into class carrying a black bag, the room was in chaos.

Noisy, restless.

The bright incandescent lights shone overhead.

The AC vents rotated, humming faintly.

The students in the front rows were doing homework; a few boys in the back were rolling on the floor laughing.

Shen Shi leaned back in his chair. The back-row lighting was dim, casting a shadow over his features.

He played on his phone, indifferent. His wrist was thin, pale, draped lazily over the desk. The cold impatience emanating from him made even the most mischievous boys avoid provoking him.

At a certain moment, the air fell silent.

Someone came to his table and placed a bag down.

A rustling sound.

He lazily lifted his eyelids, only to meet a pair of eyes.

The eyes were slender and soft, shimmering like spring water. The tips lifted slightly, like spring rain on begonia petals, tinged with a faint pink.

Naturally, the person sat in the empty seat across from him.

Shen Shi’s expression froze for a moment. A few seconds later, he recalled the earlier incident. The embarrassment and anger of being humiliated in front of this person made him irritable. Even though Ye Ran smiled like that again, he stiffly withdrew his gaze, cold and indifferent, as if he hadn’t seen anything.

Beside him, Yu Ting curiously leaned over, “Ye Ran, why are you here?”

He had a good sense of people.

It was rare to see someone manage to make Shen Shi leave with a scowl, yet come out completely unharmed.

This made him sharply realize that Shen Shi treated this new classmate a bit differently.

If he weren’t special, Ye Ran would have long been kicked away mercilessly, like Xu Qingshu.

Ye Ran opened the black plastic bag with slightly exaggerated movements. Shen Shi pursed his thin lips, growing increasingly impatient, yet his eyes flicked subtly toward it.

Inside was a fruit salad.

Yogurt and cream adorned mango, green grapes, grapefruit, and more.

A layer of powdered sugar was sprinkled on top.

It was obvious someone had put effort into it.

The irritation in his chest had just begun to dissipate when Yu Ting joyfully exclaimed, “Is this for us?”

This portion was hefty, worth at least tens of yuan.

Shen Shi had only eaten a couple bites of the spicy duck-blood pot earlier. Since Xu Qingshu arrived, he hadn’t eaten more. Now, hungry, seeing the red-and-green fruit salad, still emitting the coolness from the fridge, his mouth watered instantly.

Ye Ran blinked: “This one is for Shen Shi. If you want some, I have more on my table, you can help yourself.”

Even Jiang Yun couldn’t resist. He leaned over, rubbing his hands, “Um… do I get one too?”

“Of course.”

Ye Ran rested his chin on his hand, elbow on Shen Shi’s table. Shen Shi’s table was big, cluttered with books. With Ye Ran leaning like that, his elbow was only a finger-width from the books.

Shen Shi was a bit particular and very self-centered.

He didn’t like others intruding into his personal space without boundaries.

Jiang Yun’s eyelid twitched. He was about to speak but saw Shen Shi merely glance up indifferently.

He quietly shut his mouth and went with Yu Ting to the second row.

Ye Ran had bought five full fruit salads.

Zhang Xuyang had one, distractedly glancing at Ye Ran. Seeing him sitting across from Shen Shi, speaking to him somehow, Zhang Xuyang pursed his lips and withdrew his gaze. Even the sweet aroma of the fruit salad no longer tempted him.

A little later, Yu Ting and Jiang Yun also came over.

Each took a box of fruit. Compared to the one Shen Shi had, theirs had neither powdered sugar nor cream, clearly treated differently.

Even the variety of fruit inside was less complete.

They picked through it, knowing the truth, wasting a little time in the process.

…

After Yu Ting and Jiang Yun left the last row, Shen Shi finally leaned back, put down his phone, and cast a nonchalant glance at the person leaning on his table.

His expression was unchanged, but his hands on his lap curled slightly. He said, “I don’t eat sweet things.”

“It’s not sweet,” Ye Ran smiled, still resting his chin on his hand, staring at him. “Not much powdered sugar was added.”

Shen Shi: “Then I won’t—”

Ye Ran, unhurried, added first: “It should all be things you like. Want to try?”

Shen Shi was silent for a moment, squinting, examining him: “How do you know what I like?”

“I don’t,” Ye Ran delicately opened the box. Fresh mint leaves garnished the fruit, releasing a refreshing aroma that drew the nearby students’ attention. “So it’s ‘should be’.”

“Pfft,” Shen Shi looked down at him, the meaning of his sneer ambiguous. “You’re quite confident.”

“Of course,” Ye Ran seemed to hear nothing. He tore the spoon’s packaging and handed it to him, eyes bright with a soft water-like gleam. “Try it.”

Under that look, somehow, Shen Shi stiffened, pursed his lips, and took the spoon.

The school fruit salad tasted good. It was from a chain, using the freshest fruit of the day, no shortcuts.

Shen Shi tasted a piece of kiwi: tart and sweet, not overpowering, coated in yogurt and cream, surprisingly delicious.

He picked a piece of mango next. The mango was naturally sweet; combined with yogurt, it balanced the richness.

For some reason, today’s fruit salad was exceptionally tasty.

Shen Shi idly thought, under Ye Ran’s gentle gaze, and soon had eaten more than half.

The tension of hunger from last night eased slightly.

He set down the spoon, leaned back, subtly glanced at Ye Ran. Seeing Ye Ran still smiling at him, his mood inexplicably lifted. The full sensation in his stomach seemed to spread to his heart.

“Speak,” he said, lips slightly raised, casually: “Is there something you want to tell me?”

Nothing comes without reason.

He didn’t believe Ye Ran had suddenly bought him fruit salad for no reason.

Thinking it over, Shen Shi figured it out: Ye Ran probably learned his real grades somewhere and had come to please him.

The information seemed timely.

He thought coolly.

If that was the case, he could explain a couple of problems to Ye Ran—

“It’s like this,” Ye Ran finally spoke, smiling.

Shen Shi suppressed a secret relief, listening as he hesitated: “The teacher asked me to go to the academic office to get some books, but I don’t think I can move them all by myself.”

The smile on his lips was stiff.

Shen Shi slowly looked down. His black eyes seemed to gather a storm. Yet Ye Ran, seemingly unaware, blinked and asked softly, gently, “So… Shen Shi, could you go with me?”

At this moment, Yu Ting, Jiang Yun, and other students listening in all had one thought flash through their minds:

—The new student is crazy.

Never seen anything like this.

Truly never seen anything like this.

Someone actually came to Shen Shi to find a laborer.

This kid really has guts.

Shen Shi, in the midst of the silence, realized it. He closed his eyes briefly. His Adam’s apple rolled quickly. For a moment, he truly wondered if Ye Ran was deliberately provoking him, daring to ask so boldly.

He thought he should be angry, but a strangled breath lodged in his chest, neither going up nor down.

Everyone around watched as Shen Shi’s face grew colder and colder, eyes icy enough to intimidate.

Nearly a minute passed like this. Then Shen Shi abruptly stood up.

Shadows pressed over him like a tide, wrapping Ye Ran tightly inside.

While everyone was watching the drama, a twinge of nervousness arose. They feared Shen Shi might actually fight the new student.

But the next second, they heard a cold, cutting voice.

It came from Shen Shi, controlled but icy.

“Still not leaving?”

Yu Ting: “?”

Jiang Yun: “?”

Other students: “?”

What? You just gave in?

Shen Shi didn’t have time to care about others. Annoyed and impatient, his face tense, handsome face shadowed with coldness. His emotions rippled intensely. One glance showed how fed up he was. He barked at Ye Ran in a bad mood: “Hurry up!”

Only then did Ye Ran smile and stand.

He followed behind Shen Shi, tilting his head at him with a puzzled, innocent voice: “You lead the way. I don’t know where the academic office is.”

Hiss.

Yu Ting’s breath caught. The back door was close. In the night wind, he vaguely heard Shen Shi gritting his teeth, exasperated: “…Ye Ran!”

“Ah?” The new student looked more clueless. “What’s wrong?”

Yu Ting held his breath, a few seconds passing before hearing Shen Shi’s cold laugh. He strode ahead, leaving the new student behind.

He poked his head out, realizing even this cold laugh was all bark, no bite.

Seeing the new student leisurely trailing, Shen Shi finally stopped at the stairwell, face cold, leaning against the wall, restraining his anger.

Only when Ye Ran came close did he go down the stairs together.

Yu Ting watched, amazed.

Looking at Ye Ran’s slim, long figure, seeing how he angered Shen Shi, soothed him, angered him again, and soothed again, he felt awe.

…Shen Shi was completely in someone else’s control.