Footsteps and the beam of a flashlight came from the hallway. Shen Shi lay on the bed like a corpse.
The little square window on the door was lit up brightly. He could vaguely hear the dorm supervisor auntie muttering to herself: “230… one person, right bed… mm.”
She checked off a box on her inspection sheet and then raised her voice: “Everyone stay quiet and rest. No turning on lights, no talking in the middle of the night. Anyone caught will lose class points!”
“Points deducted will be reported directly to your homeroom teacher. Pay attention! Or you’ll end up cleaning the assigned area!”
Her footsteps gradually faded away.
Shen Shi listened absentmindedly. In the dark, every sound seemed amplified infinitely.
A faint breath brushed against his arm under the blanket. The boy’s warm, delicate skin pressed tightly against him. Summer nights were hot, and even with the air conditioner on, the places where they touched grew sweaty.
Even now, Shen Shi still didn’t understand how he had been tricked or bewitched into getting onto Ye Ran’s bed.
The single bed wasn’t big. To prevent the supervisor from noticing, Ye Ran could only lie on his side, tucked into the blankets. Shen Shi couldn’t tell whether it was intentional or not, but he felt Ye Ran’s hair brushing him, fine strands teasing his arm, itchy and tingly.
A bit numb.
Half of Shen Shi’s body had already gone numb. He immediately pulled his hand out and said in a low, deliberately normal voice: “She’s gone.”
The person under the blanket answered with an “oh,” and only after a long time did he slowly crawl out.
Ye Ran’s hair was a mess. A thin flush spread across his snowy face as he smiled. “Sorry, I think I bumped into you just now.”
“It’s fine,” Shen Shi said, tone unchanged, using a calm voice to hide the burning of his ears. “Where’s the AC remote? It’s too stuffy in here.”
Ye Ran: “No idea. Probably at the headboard. Look for it.”
Ye Ran was a very meticulous person.
There was a small cabinet by the headboard with little items and a vocabulary book.
Shen Shi fumbled in the dark for a while but found nothing. Ye Ran seemed to sense his growing impatience from his increasingly rough breathing and spoke: “Want me to find it?”
He propped himself up as he said it.
The collar of his sleep shirt slid down with the motion, revealing a patch of smooth, tight skin. Maybe it was the angle, but from the corner of his eye, Shen Shi caught sight of two small fruits.
Unripe. Shy. Not fully grown. But one could tell, one bite would probably be very sweet.
His brain buzzed loudly. His face burned. His nerves jumped again and again. Only after a long struggle did he grit out a few humiliated, angry words from between his teeth: “You… watch yourself!”
Why were gays nowadays so open!
Wearing something this short to sleep!
Ye Ran was so sleepy his eyes could barely stay open. He didn’t feel like dealing with the explosive-tempered little Shen Shi.
He casually replied, coaxing him: “Alright, alright, don’t get mad. I’ll lower the temperature now.”
Shen Shi was like a furnace. Even with a thin summer blanket, he somehow heated the entire bed until it was stifling.
Ye Ran was sweaty too. The black ends of his hair were damp against his neck. He reached out and quickly found the remote. Leaning against the wall, eyes lowered, he lazily adjusted the temperature.
When he set it to 20°, he realized Shen Shi hadn’t spoken for a long time. “Shen Shi, is 20° okay?”
Silence.
Boys this age all had strange tempers. Ye Ran understood, so he gently asked again: “Shen Shi? Are you asleep? Is 20° okay?”
This time, Shen Shi finally said: “…Okay.”
His Adam’s apple moved. He stared at that pale, slender wrist in the dark and watched Ye Ran put down the remote, tilting his head as he prepared to lie back under the blanket.
“I’ll go sleep on the other bed,” Shen Shi finally forced out, embarrassed. “…This bed is too small.”
Ye Ran paused mid-movement.
The fog of sleep cleared instantly.
He raised a brow, studying Shen Shi with a meaningful expression, as if he could see through every flimsy excuse the boy was trying to use to save face.
A few seconds later, Ye Ran lowered his gaze and said dejectedly: “But the supervisor checks rooms at night… If she finds out, I’ll get punished and have to clean the assigned area.”
Shen Shi’s breath ran hot. He fought to suppress the chaotic thoughts running wild in his head and forced out, stiffly: “It’s fine. I’ll clean for you.”
“But Teacher Yang…” Ye Ran said, “I want him to have a good impression of me.”
“He—” Shen Shi stumbled, “he doesn’t care about that stuff.”
Ye Ran: “Really?”
Shen Shi: “…”
He had no answer.
Yang Wei truly didn’t care about a few demerits. But Ye Ran was new and shouldn’t make mistakes.
After a while, Ye Ran seemed to understand what he meant and murmured: “Forget it. You can sleep on the other bed. I’ll be fine alone. But I don’t have a spare blanket. You’ll probably have to sleep on the bare board.”
Shen Shi frowned tightly. Everything felt uncomfortable. He wanted to leave cleanly and quickly, yet for some reason, his body seemed to have gained a will of its own, sticking to Ye Ran’s side without moving.
The room cooled as the air conditioner blew. The chill contrasted sharply with the warmth under the blanket.
He endured it for a while before saying: “Forget it. I’ll sleep here.”
“Really?” The person beside him brightened. When he spoke, a faint breath brushed against Shen Shi, very close.
Shen Shi hummed in reply.
Silence settled again.
It was late. They should sleep.
But Shen Shi couldn’t sleep at all. His body was unbearably hot. With his eyes closed, cut off from sight, his other senses sharpened and focused entirely on Ye Ran: his breathing, his shifting, the touch of his skin.
At one point, Ye Ran’s foot touched his leg.
Just for a moment, yet Shen Shi’s scalp tingled violently. The place touched felt like an oil droplet had splashed onto it, boiling and igniting.
He stiffened, wanting to turn over and put some space between them.
Before he could move, Ye Ran suddenly spoke. “Shen Shi.”
Shen Shi flinched, heart stopping for an instant.
He heard Ye Ran ask, distressed: “I feel like you have some kind of misunderstanding about me? Can we talk about it?”
Shen Shi: “…”
He lay utterly still, expression blank. “Okay.”
The strange late-night conversation began.
Ye Ran lay on his side, seemingly unaware of Shen Shi’s body stiff as a board.
“I heard from Chen Lang that you came to the dorm because you were looking for me. Then why didn’t you come in earlier?” he asked.
Little Shen Shi was interesting, but temperamental like a tiny fire dragon. Too hard to read. Ye Ran decided to play straight ball, understand his little thoughts during this stage, then prescribe the right medicine… the right stimulation.
He listened carefully, only to hear a cold snort.
“Because you were washing your feet in the dorm.”
Ye Ran: “?”
Ye Ran was baffled. “Hm? You can’t wash your feet in the dorm?”
He knew Shen Shi had OCD, but back in university he wasn’t even this strict with Little Fatty and the others. How did he become more severe now than in the future?
Shen Shi said coldly, “Is the dormitory a place for washing feet?”
Ye Ran was baffled, but still went along with his young lover’s temper: “Alright, then I won’t wash my feet in the dorm anymore.”
“No need,” Shen Shi said again. “I’m not that feudal of a person.”
Ye Ran: “……”
And just like that, the conversation was killed by Shen Shi.
Ye Ran was both annoyed and amused. After a while, Shen Shi suddenly spoke, breaking the silence: “You really are gay?”
They finally reached the topic.
Ye Ran’s nerves tightened. While thinking up an explanation, he also tried to guess Shen Shi’s thoughts. “I am—”
“Sorry,” Shen Shi cut in quickly, brutally cold. “I probably can’t have contact with homosexuals.”
Ye Ran choked on the words in his throat.
Expressionless, he glanced at Shen Shi’s leg pressed against his own. That leg was sticking to him in a half-reluctant way, like it wished he would kick Ye Ran away again.
He: “……”
Very 6.
He instantly lost all interest in speaking and deeply realized how punchable little Shen Shi was.
Shen Shi didn’t hear him respond. His heart grew irritable, mixed with a vague unease. After a few seconds of silence, he moved his arm, “accidentally” brushing Ye Ran’s arm, and said, “I’m straight, so from now on I’ll keep my distance from you. But since you helped me today, if you need anything in the future, I’ll help you.”
Ye Ran didn’t want to talk.
Shen Shi, oblivious, pressed on: “Ye Ran? Ye Ran, are you asleep?”
Ye Ran replied coldly, “I’m not sleeping. I heard you.”
Only then did Shen Shi relax. The sweat that had gathered in his tense palms finally eased. Feeling that Ye Ran should understand his meaning now, he said casually, “How did you know you were gay?”
Then he thought of something and his voice tightened unconsciously. “Have you dated before?”
The waiting felt unbearably long.
Shen Shi’s heart sank little by little, a chilling hostility rising in his eyes. He thought calmly, if he doesn’t answer, that means yes. If yes, that means Ye Ran has dated someone. If he has dated, then he was bent by someone. If he was bent, that means that boy must have had physical contact with him.
He didn’t realize how terrifying his face looked: cold, dark, and frightening.
An unconscious possessiveness spread from him, like he wished he could drag that boy out and tear him apart.
His thoughts and consciousness began slipping out of control. He clenched his jaw—
When suddenly a soft sigh sounded beside him.
The boy next to him moved. His arm pressed against Shen Shi’s forearm. The moment their skin touched, Shen Shi forgot everything. His mind went blank. All he sensed was a sweet scent and a soft touch.
It drifted from Ye Ran’s body, floating toward him.
A soft foot pressed lightly against his lower leg. But none of that compared to the faint breath and voice near the side of his neck.
“What are you imagining?” Ye Ran said. “I was born this way.”
Shen Shi was a beat slow before reacting.
Born this way… meant he had never dated.
His ears flushed red. Without meaning to, he turned his head slightly and glanced at Ye Ran out of the corner of his eye.
Ye Ran’s eyelids were lowered, the thin lids tinted with peach pink. His black lashes were thick and fine like crow feathers. His nose was elegant, his lips plump and a vivid red, his expression quiet and contained, like a carved jade figure asleep.
Lying in the blanket, resting against his shoulder… truly, truly beautiful.
Although Shen Shi was arrogant, he admitted Ye Ran was extremely capable of attracting both men and women.
Not only beautiful, but with a very good personality.
If he really wanted to date someone…
…It would be easy.
Shen Shi’s throat tightened. He cleared it and asked with forced casualness, “Have you ever thought about dating?”
Ye Ran was such a well-behaved model student. Even though he was gay, that group was small, and supposedly unreliable. Shen Shi thought that as long as Ye Ran was rational, he wouldn’t—
“I’ve thought about it,” Ye Ran said, sleepy and distracted. “If fate comes, I’ll date.”
Shen Shi’s expression darkened instantly. A strange anger flooded his chest. His voice turned ice-cold. “You’ve thought about it?! You actually have?!”
“What’s wrong?” Ye Ran said lazily. “Haven’t you thought about it?”
“Of course I haven’t—” Shen Shi stopped mid-sentence, swallowed the words, and stubbornly corrected himself. “Of course I’ve thought about it too.”
“That’s normal,” Ye Ran said with a relaxed smile. “People our age have the strongest hormones. If you want to date, then date, just don’t let it delay your studies.”
He glanced at little Shen Shi’s gloomy expression and felt this conservative temperament was really not it. So in this mental world, he and little Shen Shi could only be classmates? They couldn’t even date?
A pity. And he couldn’t resist teasing him: “Dating isn’t that scary. Just hold hands, hug, and when the moment is right, kiss. That’s normal.”
“How do you know so clearly?” Shen Shi asked, suppressing his anger, voice steady.
Seeing him so calm, Ye Ran turned his head. “I’m guessing. Isn’t it like that? Otherwise… want to try?”
Shen Shi’s head whipped around. In the darkness, he stared at him without blinking, body rigid, voice strained. “What did you say…!”
“I said…” Ye Ran leaned closer. His breath was warm, steady, carrying a sweet scent as he spoke slowly, “You’ve never dated, right? I’ve never dated either. If we kiss a little, you’ll know how to date…”
“You’re gay!” Shen Shi said in humiliated fury yet his eyes fell on Ye Ran’s lips, and his Adam’s apple bobbed unnaturally.
“Then forget it.” Ye Ran didn’t care. He was only teasing him because Shen Shi’s moral-guardian attitude was amusing.
If he wanted to date pure little Shen Shi, it would take time.
Ye Ran thought vaguely. Sleepiness washed over him. He closed his eyes slowly, feeling the familiar warmth and presence beside him, leaning onto Shen Shi’s shoulder. He felt safe, and drifted into a deep sleep.
Once he slept deeply, he lifted his arm, naturally wrapped it around Shen Shi’s waist, and burrowed into Shen Shi’s chest.
This long-lost embrace made him unconsciously sigh.
The breath slipped from his lips onto Shen Shi’s neck, staining that patch of skin red.
Unlike him, Shen Shi was wide awake. His dark eyes stared at the ceiling like he was staring at an enemy. His gaze was heavy and cold, his mood incredible vexed.
When Ye Ran’s arm wrapped around his waist, his breathing hitched. He glanced at Ye Ran’s quiet sleeping face, then looked away after a long moment, his mind in chaos.
What did Ye Ran mean by those words?
He thought grimly.
What does “kiss a little and you’ll know how to date” even mean?
Are gays nowadays all this casual?
Washing feet in the dorm, then proposing something that violates social morals.
As a man, the most important thing is responsibility.
Ye Ran’s mindset was far too forward. Since he helped him tonight, he must find a chance to explain the pros and cons to him. Even if he was gay, he couldn’t just date anyone he came across.
And kissing…
Shen Shi tossed and turned. In the darkness his eyes were frighteningly black. He turned his head, gaze lowering to Ye Ran’s lips.
Ye Ran’s lip shape was beautiful: soft, red, full, plump like berries filled with juice. A single lick and sweetness would spill out.
As if sensing something, Ye Ran’s mouth opened slightly and he breathed.
The soft, red tongue-tip flickered faintly behind his teeth, wet with saliva, looking like no matter how much you sucked it, it would always be filled with sweetness.
Shen Shi froze. His gaze felt burnt and he jerked it away.
Then stared at the ceiling and forced himself to hold out the entire night.
…
In the middle of the night.
At the hour of absolute silence.
Ye Ran was sleeping deeply, body weak, limbs soft, cheeks flushed.
He was pushed awake. A burning hot hand kept touching his waist. The dorm was silent, only the soft hum of the air conditioner.
Amid the strange stillness, he finally opened his eyes. The corners were tinted transparent red. Moisture gathered, making his gaze hazy. Lifting his eyes slightly, he murmured, “Mm?”
“…Ye Ran.”
He heard Shen Shi’s extremely hoarse voice.
After fighting societal morals all night, Shen Shi’s eyes were dark and heavy, staring straight at his lips. His Adam’s apple rolled as he rasped, like a starved wolfdog, “I think… we can try it.”
Ye Ran: “?”
Try what.
Shen Shi seemed unable to endure his dazed just-woke-up look. Grinding out his words, he urged, “Kissing. Try it.”
“I agree.”
Author’s note: Next chapter they kiss.
Yes, the progress is that fast.
