After a stroll to digest their lunch, Xie Ruan and Bo Jin returned to the classroom.
Most of the class was already there—some discussing the morning’s test, some resting with their heads on their desks, others hurriedly reviewing for the next subject. In this calm setting, Sun Haoxiang and He Mingjie, who were flicking dice and tapping each other’s heads, stuck out like a pair of llamas lost among a flock of gentle sheep.
Xie Ruan set down his backpack and planned to solve a few problems but couldn’t focus. Giving up, he tossed his pen aside, turned to Sun Haoxiang and He Mingjie, and said, “Count me in.”
Such games were more fun with more people, and Sun Haoxiang and He Mingjie welcomed him eagerly. “Come on, come on! We’re playing for points. Whoever rolls the lowest number gets flicked on the forehead.”
Xie Ruan nodded in understanding.
“Finally, someone to share the pain,” He Mingjie sighed, handing Xie Ruan the dice. “My forehead’s probably bruised from all the flicks.”
“Don’t kid yourself,” Xie Ruan smirked, “I’m here to turn up the heat.”
“Oh?” Sun Haoxiang raised an eyebrow, teasing him, “Feeling confident, are we, Little Xie?”
“Absolutely,” Xie Ruan said, placing the dice between his palms and giving them a firm shake, his brow lifting slightly. “Today, I’ll show you what I’m made of.”
As he shook the dice, his shirt sleeve shifted, revealing a thin wrist with a faded red string against his pale skin, giving off a striking appearance.
Bo Jin averted his gaze, his expression slightly darkening.
“Watch this.” Xie Ruan gave the dice a few more shakes before letting them roll.
Several pairs of eyes followed the dice as they spun on the table, only to settle… on a one.
Xie Ruan: “…”
Silence fell.
A few seconds later, He Mingjie finally burst out laughing. “Wow, we’ve truly witnessed your skills!”
Sun Haoxiang was laughing too hard to speak, just giving Xie Ruan a thumbs-up.
“Ugh!” Xie Ruan muttered, feeling embarrassed. He caught Bo Jin’s amused gaze, which made his ears heat up.
“That was just a fluke. Let’s go again.”
With that disastrous roll as a baseline, He Mingjie seemed to gain confidence, straightening up and flicking Xie Ruan’s forehead hard. “Let’s go!”
Sun Haoxiang followed with another flick, leaving two red marks on Xie Ruan’s pale skin.
Bo Jin’s brow furrowed slightly.
Xie Ruan had fair skin, and with Sun Haoxiang and He Mingjie not holding back, two solid flicks landed on his forehead, leaving two red marks.
Bo Jin’s brow furrowed ever so slightly.
Xie Ruan initially thought that getting a score of one on his first throw was just a fluke. He was sure he’d dominate from there on, flicking Sun Haoxiang and He Mingjie until they called him “dad.” But reality proved otherwise.
Maybe he was just unlucky at gambling, but after ten-plus rounds, he never scored more than four.
The area on his forehead where he’d been flicked had gone from a light pink to a bright red, stark against his pale skin and looking especially eye-catching.
In the end, even the carefree Sun Haoxiang and He Mingjie felt a little embarrassed to keep flicking him. They suggested, “How about we make it five rounds per game? We’ll hold off and flick all at once after five rounds.”
Two negatives make a positive—maybe Xie Ruan’s luck would turn around after all.
Continuing this way would be a bit like winning unfairly, wouldn’t it? Hahaha.
Xie Ruan angrily wiped his face, saying, “Fine.”
He refused to believe that he couldn’t roll a six even once with so many chances!
But they had all underestimated Xie Ruan’s bad luck. He really couldn’t roll it. After five rounds, Sun Haoxiang and He Mingjie had their share of wins and losses, but Xie Ruan remained firmly in last place, always the one getting flicked.
Sun Haoxiang was laughing so hard his stomach hurt. “Sorry, bro, I really tried.”
Looking at Xie Ruan, who seemed surrounded by a cloud of bad luck, he mischievously blew on his knuckles. “Come on, Little Xie, a bet’s a bet.”
Xie Ruan wasn’t the type to avoid punishment; even though he felt frustrated, he still closed his eyes and leaned his head forward without hesitation.
Sun Haoxiang smirked, stood up, and gathered all his strength, just about to flick, when a hand stopped him.
Sun Haoxiang was surprised. “Brother Bo?”
Bo Jin lifted his eyelids and looked at him briefly. “Class is starting. Get back to your seat,” he said calmly. Then he pulled Xie Ruan back. “You seem to be having a lot of fun—must’ve done well on this morning’s exam.”
Xie Ruan actually thought so, too.
But under Bo Jin’s gaze, for some reason, he suddenly felt unsure. In front of Bo Jin, not even Pan Yu would dare to claim he did well on an exam.
Xie Ruan sulkily turned around and pulled a book from the shelf.
Class started? Sun Haoxiang looked up at the clock hanging above the blackboard, almost thinking he was seeing things. There were still ten minutes left, plenty of time, so how could class have started?
He wasn’t as clueless as He Mingjie, who was oblivious to everything. He glanced at Bo Jin’s unbothered face, then at the red mark on Xie Ruan’s forehead. There was no doubt about it.
Looks like Bo Jin was unhappy with them teasing Xie Ruan.
Normally, Bo Jin was the one picking on them, but today, they had finally found his Achilles’ heel!
Sun Haoxiang clicked his tongue, casting a playful look back and forth between the two of them. “Already coming to his defense, huh, God Bo?”
He Mingjie didn’t understand at first, but when he saw Sun Haoxiang’s look, he caught on and joined in, “What’s going on, Brother Bo? We’re all brothers here. Why are you just standing up for Xie Ruan?”
Xie Ruan felt uncomfortable with all the attention. He threw down his book and turned away. “If you want to tease, then tease. Just stop talking so much!”
Sun Haoxiang wasn’t serious about it anyway—he just wanted to rile up Bo Jin. So, with a challenging look, he raised his hand, “Come on, Little Xie…”
He didn’t even finish his sentence before Bo Jin abruptly stood up.
Startled, Sun Haoxiang thought he was about to lose his temper. He pulled back instinctively, guarded. “What are you planning to do?”
Bo Jin ignored him and simply extended his hand toward Pan Yu. “Hand me the discipline record.”
Their class had a discipline record book used to log any misbehavior during self-study sessions. The class monitors took turns holding it, and every morning it was handed over to Sun Fuan for review.
Pan Yu, ever obedient to Bo Jin, handed him the record book without a second thought.
Bo Jin smiled at Sun Haoxiang and, under his astonished gaze, turned to the latest page and wrote in bold strokes: “Sun Haoxiang—fooling around during lunch break.”
Recalling Sun Fuan’s hefty hand, Sun Haoxiang sucked in a sharp breath, shouting angrily, “Bo Jin, you b*stard! That’s abuse of power!”
He Mingjie, delighted by the chaos, slapped the desk, stirring things up. “Class monitor’s abusing his power!”
Other classmates, who had been secretly watching the commotion, took advantage of this rare chance to tease Bo Jin. “Hey, hey, God Bo, we’re all classmates here. Why are you so biased toward Xie Ruan?”
“So, what’s the deal between you two? Come on, tell us—we’re open-minded!”
“What’s our relationship?” Bo Jin propped his chin up with one hand, smiling at Xie Ruan. “Well, that’s something he should explain.”
After a pause, with meaningful looks from their classmates, he added, “Whatever he says, that’s what it is.”
The room fell silent for a second, and then came a wave of cheers and whistles so loud it could have blown off the roof.
Xie Ruan’s ears turned red, and he raised his head with a forced calmness, slamming the desk, glaring. “Are you going to sleep or not?!”
Xie Ruan was a former fighter with a bit of a reputation, so the class quickly settled down, scattering like birds.
Xie Ruan gave Bo Jin a hard look and, without a trace of politeness, snatched Bo Jin’s pillow, lying down with it on his desk to hide his flushed ears.
He wasn’t actually angry; he was even a little happy.
Xie Ruan’s lashes fluttered slightly. He liked the word “biased.” For so many years, this was the first time anyone had chosen him over others…
Bo Jin let Xie Ruan take his rarely lent pillow, then contentedly pulled out a colorful book from his desk and started reading.
In the back of the room, in the Math, Physics, and Chemistry Desperation Club, He Mingjie’s phone was firing off—
[He Mingjie]: “Hey, what do you think—if I go grab Brother Bo’s pillow now, will he let me use it?”
[After repeatedly turning down the school beauty, Sun Haoxiang]: “Dream on. He’d just print out that story about you eating expired seafood and getting sick in freshman year, then post it all over school.”
[He Mingjie]: “D*mn it, can you drop that already?!”
[He Mingjie]: “We’ve been bros for years. Brother Bo wouldn’t do that to me…right?”
[After repeatedly turning down the school beauty, Sun Haoxiang]: “You can try. Since when has he let anyone else touch his stuff?”
[He Mingjie]: “Then why does Xie Ruan…”
[After repeatedly turning down the school beauty, Sun Haoxiang]: “Are you dense? Just think about what you feel for Lin Lu. That’s what he feels for Xie Ruan.”
[Vice Monitor – Pan Yu]: “Spring is here.”
[After repeatedly turning down the school beauty, Sun Haoxiang]: “Right on, Old Pan. Even a tough old dog has its springtime.”
[He Mingjie]: “…”
Although lunchtime was short, Xie Ruan had a restful nap. When he woke up, he felt refreshed and full of energy.
His classmates were all gathering their things to head to the exam hall. With little to bring, Xie Ruan just checked the pens in his case, made sure everything was set, and got ready to leave.
Bo Jin noticed his movement from the corner of his eye, put down his book, and stood to make way.
But Xie Ruan didn’t leave right away.
“What is it?” Bo Jin asked, puzzled.
“You…” Xie Ruan stammered for a moment, like he was struggling to speak. He hesitated, but no words came out.
It was rare to see him like this, and Bo Jin, intrigued, waited patiently for him to continue.
Cursing himself silently, Xie Ruan took a breath and tried to look calm. “Well, I want to do well in the exam, you get it?”
Even if he didn’t get it at first, by now he did. Bo Jin barely held back a laugh but kept a straight face. “Mm, I get it.”
Under Xie Ruan’s expectant gaze, he replied seriously, “Then study hard. Every day you’ll reach the stars, right?”
Xie Ruan: “…”
Seeing that subtlety wasn’t working, Xie Ruan resorted to directness. Avoiding Bo Jin’s gaze, he tried to act as casual as possible. “Can I—can I hug you for a bit?”
Xie Ruan thought that his decent performance in the morning was not just due to hard work but also a bit of luck. Tradition was tradition for a reason, right? Or else, how would these customs be passed down?
So he had to “borrow” some of the study god’s luck for the afternoon exam, too.
With one hand casually tucked into his pocket, he looked as if he didn’t care, but the slight blush on his ears betrayed his real feelings.
Bo Jin’s lips curved up involuntarily—he really couldn’t understand how anyone could make such clumsy attempts at flirting seem so adorable.
He really wanted to… wanted to…
Xie Ruan waited a few seconds after speaking, but seeing that Bo Jin hadn’t moved, almost as if he were reluctant, he felt a wave of embarrassment. Fine, if he didn’t want a hug, he’d just find someone else! There were plenty of top students—he could ask Pan Yu, He Mingjie, anyone else who’d agree!
Just as Xie Ruan pursed his lips and was about to step away, Bo Jin pulled him into a firm hug.
Between boyhood and adulthood, Bo Jin had a lean yet sturdy frame, a chest already broad enough to offer a sense of security.
Finally, he’d gotten that “borrowed luck.”
Xie Ruan relaxed, relieved—now he’d feel more confident during the exam.
While he was thinking, Bo Jin’s voice sounded right above his head, “Actually… there’s something even better than just a hug.”
Intrigued, Xie Ruan looked up, “What?”
Bo Jin leaned close to his ear and, with a smile, said, “For example, the study god’s long-saved first kiss…”
Xie Ruan: “…”
He pushed him away and dashed out of the classroom without a backward glance.
Bo Jin watched his slightly stumbling retreat and couldn’t help but laugh quietly.
