Chapter 57 – Just Passing By
Hu Pang’s building-sweep operation got wrecked the moment Zuo Kuan hollered, which incidentally saved most of the couples on campus. From then on, Zuo Kuan earned himself a new nickname at Nancheng No. 7 High: the Matchmaker Hero.
To show his gratitude, Zhu Xu bought him breakfast for a week.
There was a price, of course. Hu Pang tallied up all of Zuo Kuan’s recent violations, slapped him with a minor demerit, and ordered a 3,000-character self-critique to be read at next week’s flag-raising ceremony.
So on Monday, Zuo Kuan’s deliberately stretched-out drawl filled the school speakers.
“…So I reflect on my behavior. I should not have skipped class, should not have smoked at school, and I definitely should not have shouted when Director Hu was catching people,” he droned for over two thousand characters, then blinked and veered off, “but I also think Director Hu should not have twisted my ear. That really hurt, and it was embarrassing. I was planning to get my ear pierced last weekend, and in the end I couldn’t—”
The sound system gave a sharp squeal, and his mic cut out. Hu Pang stormed up to the stage, patting his head as if to keep the smoke from coming out.
He had been teaching for years; his chesty voice did not need a mic to carry. “What’s a big boy like you getting an ear piercing for? You want me to escalate that to a major demerit?”
Zuo Kuan: “Come on! It looks cooler on guys!”
The drowsy students below the stage paused, then burst into laughter.
Wang Lu’an was doubled over. “Sh***, why is he such a drama queen? Is he really getting it pierced or just trying to piss off Fat Tiger?”
Head down, Yu Fan yawned, radiating sleepy gloom. “Dunno.”
“Man, you didn’t see it live. Hilarious. When you didn’t come back forever, Zuo Kuan wanted to find you and smoke together. We’d just slipped out of the field when we saw Fat Tiger sneaking with a squad toward the lab building. Zuo Kuan took one look and yelled before he could go up the stairs. Fat Tiger actually flinched, hahahaha!”
Remembering that night, Wang Lu’an thought of something else. “So where did you end up sneaking a smoke? I waited ages with Zuo for you in the classroom and never saw you. Zhu Xu said you were with the top student?”
Yu Fan’s fingers curled in his pocket. A spark of clarity flashed through his eyes. Two seconds later, he said, “…Found a random corner. Ran into him on the way back.”
“Oh, pity. You missed the best part.” Wang Lu’an was too busy watching Zuo get scolded to notice how off his buddy felt. He turned back to the stage.
All three grades were crammed onto the field, shoulder to shoulder, half a step between them at most.
With the faint mint scent behind him, Yu Fan thought slowly: it was fine.
Not much of a pity.
A hand smacked his shoulder. Yu Fan lifted his eyelids and, turning his head, instinctively checked behind him first. He met Chen Jingshen’s gaze, paused, then angled back toward the handsy culprit, Zhuang Fangqin.
“Stand up straight. What do you call that posture? Hands out of your pockets,” she muttered with a frown. “Can’t you learn from Chen Jing Shen?”
She had braced for backtalk, but Yu Fan went quiet, turned his face away, and lazily straightened up.
She blinked. The homeroom teacher from Class 8 leaned closer and said, “Let it go, Teacher Zhuang. Yu Fan’s been great lately. If he’s a bit crooked, so be it. Better than the one from my class who wound up on stage.”
Zhuang Fangqin laughed. “I heard Zuo Kuan gave Director Hu a scare last week?”
They whispered together. The other teacher shrugged. “Who knows, I wasn’t there. By the way, I heard the director caught two couples that night. Any of yours?”
“None,” said Zhuang.
“None of mine either. Must have gotten away. Honestly, he made it way more complicated than it needed to be. You don’t need that much fuss to catch young love. At this age, spring fever is impossible to tamp down. I can spot it in one glance,” the other teacher drawled. “The ones doing homework for each other, the ones wandering the paths in pairs after class, the ones hauling books and chairs, passing notes in class… too obvious.”
After the flag-raising, lines broke up. It was only when Yu Fan sat in class, chin propped up while the physics teacher began, that he counted it up in his head.
F***. Close. Almost a full bingo…
Something poked his arm. Yu Fan slid his eyes over. His deskmate pressed something to the edge of Yu Fan’s desk with his pen and, without a word, let go.
A folded slip of paper.
Yu Fan stared blankly for a beat.
He looked at the neatly creased note, then at his deskmate’s cool face. After repeating this three times, he finally picked up the slip.
…Great. Full bingo.
He kept his face stiff and unfolded it.
“Want to see a movie this weekend?”
Chen Jing Shen was jotting down mistakes when a note fluttered onto his thumb and fell by his pen.
He opened it. The once clean slip had been thoroughly vandalized by his boyfriend’s pen.
“Why pass notes when you are right next to me, you don’t have a mouth?” Scrawled, then scratched out, but not enough to erase.
“Stop passing me notes.” Ditto.
“What movie?” Ditto.
At the bottom, under a thicket of chaotic strike-throughs, there was only one graffiti mess of a word left: “Oh.”
These days the temperature in Nancheng was pushing forty. Yu Fan disliked sleeping with the fan on; he always woke with a sheen of sweat at his hairline.
So by Saturday noon, he woke, took a shower, and stood by his desk, towel-drying his hair while he checked messages.
The class group chat was as noisy as ever. He opened it to find Wang Lu’an comparing answers with someone.
Finals were scheduled for the seventh of next month. They had just finished their last monthly exam yesterday.
【Wang Lu’an: What? Question 7 is C? No way! @s Top student, back me up!!】
【Zhang Xianjing: You think top student will talk to you?】
【Zhang Xianjing: Give it up. I just asked Ting-bao. She picked C like me.】
【Wang Lu’an: @- Yu Fan, what did you choose?】
【Zhu Xu: …Incredible. A once-in-a-lifetime sighting: someone asking Yu Fan what answer he picked. (shocked bunny jpg)】
【Zuo Kuan: Zhu Xu, quit using your girlfriend’s sticker packs. Doesn’t suit you.】
【Zuo Kuan: Seventh Class, chill. All this studying talk is corrupting our vibe. Come play pool. @everyone】
【s: C.】
Seeing Chen Jing Shen’s avatar pop up, Yu Fan’s towel slowed. A second later, a private message appeared.
【s: How about this one? [image]】
Yu Fan glanced at the showtime and, without even reading the title properly, replied with an “oh.”
They agreed on a time to meet. Yu Fan tossed the towel aside and went out to the balcony to air-dry his hair.
Sitting in the lazy heat, he wondered if this counted as a date.
Leaning against the security bars, he swiped at his screen for ages before inevitably opening the search bar to type: things to keep in mind when watching a movie with your boyfriend?
…Am I sick? What is there to keep in mind? You sit side by side and watch a screen. How is that different from class.
He cursed himself under his breath and tapped in anyway.
When he read “There are cameras in theaters. Do not get handsy with your boyfriend,” Yu Fan reached for his cigarettes by instinct, paused, and shoved a piece of gum in his mouth instead.
Finals were close. Teachers were loading them with extra worksheets, and he had been up till one in the morning most nights. Between that and the exam, he had barely spent any time alone with Chen Jing Shen this week.
The theater was out too.
He thought about it with feigned indifference and scrolled on. After a long pile of nonsense, the article’s conclusion read: “Lastly, be careful your lipstick doesn’t stain your teeth, and wear something pretty!”
Yu Fan frowned, belatedly realizing he had searched “boyfriend,” so the answer assumed he was a girl.
F***… useless.
Once his hair was dry, he went inside, picked something from his embarrassingly empty closet, pocketed the gum, and headed out.
Buses were empty at noon. Yu Fan sprawled alone in the last row by the window, legs loose, playing on his phone.
He opened Chen Jingshen’s chat and actually looked at the e-tickets this time.
The movie started at 3:00 p.m. It was 1:40 now, good timing. He could play Snake and break Chen Jingshen’s high score first.
The title was Summer, Full Moon and You, premiering today, with a face he recognized from somewhere but couldn’t name, probably pretty famous.
The seats were in a couples theater. Seat numbers: 520A and 520B.
“…”
【-: ?】
【s: ?】
Who the hell said you could buy cou—
He typed it, then quietly deleted it.
Oh. He and Chen Jing Shen were dating.
Expression blank, he typed: 【What do you want to eat? Popcorn or curly fries.】
Chen Jing Shen bought the tickets, so snacks were on him.
【s: Coconut chicken soup. 】
【-: I set a table inside for you? 】
【s: After the movie. 】
【-: …Oh. 】
When he got off the bus, Yu Fan was still searching for nearby restaurants that served coconut chicken soup.
He picked the highest-rated one, took a screenshot, and was about to send it when Wang Lu’an’s name popped up with a call.
He almost never called for real when voice messages would do. Yu Fan’s eyelid twitched. He stopped outside the mall and answered.
“Yu Fan, where are you? Something big just happened!!” Wang Lu’an’s voice was heavy and urgent, the same kind of panic as when Yu Fan got cornered by those knife-carrying jerks from the other school. “Zuo Kuan is surrounded by a dozen guys at the pool hall!!!”
Before leaving home, Chen Jingshen had been circling around Fanfan endlessly.
Hooking two fingers under the dog’s collar, he eased him back and sat on the little stone bench in the garden to negotiate. “I’ll have Auntie take you out later.”
Fanfan clearly disapproved and gave two pitiful whuffs.
“I can’t hang out with you today.” Chen Jing Shen patted his face. “Be good.”
After soothing the dog, he was about to stand when his phone buzzed.
【-: Something came up. Can’t make it. Next time. 】
His gaze paused on the screen. He sat back down and typed:【What happened? 】
On the other end, there was tapping for nearly ten minutes.
【-: The little girl upstairs is home alone. She’s scared. 】
【s: When is next time? 】
More minutes passed.
【-: Any time except today. 】
【s: Tomorrow? 】
Behind the pool hall, in the old park, twenty-odd boys were brawling, chaos everywhere.
Yu Fan grabbed a man by the collar and slammed him into the wall, then jammed an elbow into his back. As the guy howled, Yu Fan typed back a quick “Okay.”
Zuo Kuan had asked Wang Lu’an to play pool. The guys at the next table got bored and challenged him to a wager.
Zuo Kuan might be trash at studying, but he was infuriatingly good at everything that did not matter. The other side lost to him again and again, got salty, and muttered snide comments when they finally paid up.
Zuo Kuan could not swallow that. He shot back with “trash player, big addiction,” then added, “mangy dog, quit barking,” and topped it with, “If you can’t afford it, beat it.”
Sensing trouble, Wang Lu’an speed-dialed backup.
Zhu Xu arrived with a squad of PE boys. Yu Fan ran into them on the way. By the time they reached the park, the two idiots, Zuo and Wang, had already been worked over a bit.
Once the reinforcements showed, the tide flipped. The other side had numbers, but this side had seventeen- and eighteen-year-old PE kids. The only non-PE kid could really fight. Ten minutes later, their opponents turned tail and ran.
Face swollen and proud as a conquering general, Zuo Kuan declared he was buying milk tea for everyone.
In the shop, he crossed one leg over the other and swore, “F***ers. Lost to the end and then accused me of cheating. Ran their mouths like cowards. You think I’d let that slide?”
“Big bro, can you read the room? It was just the two of us,” Wang Lu’an said.
“How was I supposed to know he had like a dozen brothers waiting outside?” Zuo looked innocent.
Wang Lu’an rubbed his shin, still sore from a kick. “Forget it. I’ll just call it bad luck that my beautiful Saturday died because I checked your group chat.”
“…”
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed their other friend leaning against the wall, face cold, staring at his phone like it had hypnotized him.
“Yu Fan, you hurt anywhere?” Wang Lu’an asked.
Yu Fan shook his head.
Those guys relied on numbers. They were not real fighters. Hardly anyone got a clean shot on him. If anything, the side of his face stung.
“Got a mirror?” he asked.
Wang Lu’an blinked. “No. Want me to hold up my front camera?”
Half a minute later, Yu Fan stared at two scrapes on his cheek and swore inwardly.
Of all places, the face??
Could he still go tomorrow? If he said he fell, would Chen Jing Shen believe it?
What was Chen Jing Shen doing now? Watching the movie? Or did he refund the tickets?
Seeing his expression sink, Wang Lu’an hurried to comfort him. “It’s fine. Compared to your past injuries, this is nothing. Give it a week.”
Irritated, Yu Fan leaned back. “Shut up.”
Zuo Kuan went to buy cigarettes and handed them out. Yu Fan refused and dug out gum, chewing hard.
After the boys finished bragging about their best moves in the brawl, the topic shifted to where to go next.
In the middle of the lively planning, Zhu Xu’s phone rang. He peeked at the screen and instantly gestured for silence.
“Hey, baobao, what’s up?” With the place quiet, he answered. “Me? Nothing. Why didn’t I reply… my phone was on silent, I swear I didn’t hear it. No, no, don’t be mad. Where am I? I’m at the internet cafe with Zuo Kuan and the guys…”
When he hung up, the table burst out laughing.
“Zhu Xu, you are so whipped. One missed text and you sweet talk for thirty minutes?”
“You two are nauseating.”
“And why lie? Just tell her. It’s not like we lost.”
“Can’t. If she finds out I got in a fight, she’ll be mad. I almost failed an exam last time helping Yu Fan. She nearly broke up with me. Good thing I passed the make-up… Anyway, do not mention today in front of her at school, or I’m dead.”
The joking subsided, and everyone nodded. Promise.
“And don’t tell Chen Ji—” The guy in the corner cut in coldly and changed course mid-sentence. “Don’t tell anyone in our class either.”
They all turned. Stunned.
“What do you mean? Zhu Xu has a girlfriend in class, so he has to be careful. But why can’t you say it?” Wang Lu’an asked, baffled.
“It’s not that I can’t.” Yu Fan scowled. “I said don’t. So don’t.”
“What, Yu Fan got himself a girlfriend?” someone else chimed in.
“No,” Yu Fan said. “Shut it.”
“Uh… about that, Yu Fan,” called Zuo Kuan from the door, waving his phone. “I would keep it quiet, but you’re a little late.”
Yu Fan: “?”
“I’ve been live-blogging with photos in the group. Mainly for Zhang Xianjing and the girls, asked if they wanted to come hang and go out after,” Zuo coughed. “But don’t worry, just our small group. I didn’t—”
“Top student?” Wang Lu’an glanced toward the entrance and yelped.
Yu Fan’s jaw paused mid-chew. No way.
Several seconds passed before he slowly turned his head toward the door.
And met Chen Jing Shen’s eyes.
Chen Jing Shen stood outside, silent, expression unreadable. His gaze dropped, calm, to the scratches on Yu Fan’s cheek.
…The sting in Yu Fan’s face seemed to spike.
Lying had never weighed on him. He considered himself low-rent, always acting and talking by mood. Zhuang Fangqin and Hu Pang had heard more crap from him than they could count. Even if someone did not buy it, even if they called him out to his face, he never felt anything. A pig not afraid of boiling water.
But right now, something like guilt surged up like a tide, washing his head cool.
Yu Fan’s lips moved, and nothing came out.
Wang Lu’an said, “Top student, what are you doing here? Did Yu Fan ask you to come hang?”
Chen Jing Shen lifted his eyes and, lightly, put them away again.
“No. Just passing by,” he said. “See you.”
They watched him go a few steps. “He just happened to pass by? That’s some coincidence…” Wang Lu’an murmured.
A gust of wind tore across his face. Before he could blink, Yu Fan had already shot to his feet and slipped outside after him, gone in an instant.
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