TWSITAOCP Chapter 51

Many faces flashed through Yu Sui’s mind.

Not many girls from Class 3 Arts came; but girls from other classes were there, and they all seemed to get along well.

When he opened the door, his attention wasn’t on the people around the corner, so he didn’t notice anyone.

Yu Sui awkwardly took the keychain and examined it in his palm. He didn’t see any special carvings on it, but the two medicines for Yan Xiu seemed more casual. Zhao Ru may have just carried them, and Yan Xiu happened to need them.

He let out a shameful sigh, then took another, while still holding the keychain, unsure what to say.

There weren’t many days before or after today that were particularly suitable for giving gifts to classmates, only these two days might be an excuse to congratulate him on his nomination.

“So, do you still need them?” Yu Sui glanced at the two medicines.

Yan Xiu placed them on the table: “Use them if you need them.”

He returned the favor by asking Yu Sui, “Do you want to accept them?”

Yu Sui could tell this wasn’t a question. He placed the milk and keychain together, sighing in defeat, “Can’t return it.”

He could only act nonchalant, letting the matter pass by quietly, making it someone else’s forgotten memory of youth.

This wasn’t the first time Yu Sui had encountered something like this, but it was the first time he’d handled it in front of his boyfriend. He secretly grabbed Yan Xiu’s hand when he wasn’t looking, saying, “Anyway, I’ll only ever have you,” then pulled up the covers and slipped under it, leaving with a “goodnight.”

They hadn’t brought two blankets. So the young master immediately grabbed Yan Xiu’s half as soon as he got in.

“Hey,” Yan Xiu could only clutch the other corner of the blanket, his lips twitching. It was hard to tell if he was speechless or smiling.

Yu Sui opened one eye and was immediately amused by this.

Yan Xiu glanced at the keychain one last time, making a final reconciliation with himself. He nudged Yu Sui, unable to contain himself any longer, and said, “If you laugh again, I’ll kiss you.”

Yu Sui laughed even harder.

After a long and tiring day, they didn’t stay up too late and went to sleep early.

In the middle of the night, Yan Xiu blocked Yu Sui’s outstretched hand, silently opening his eyes: “…”

This person’s sleeping posture was always particularly obedient.

Yan Xiu half-sat up, pulled the towel blanket from the other side and draped it around his waist, skillfully pulling Yu Sui into a hug through the blanket.

Yu Sui finally stopped moving.

 

In the middle of the night, Yu Sui woke up feeling hot. He groped around aimlessly with his eyes closed, finally touching Yan Xiu’s arm, before moving down to the culprit draped over his waist.

Yu Sui suddenly opened his eyes, first staring blankly at Minister Yan, who was so close to him. He frowned, touching the arm he had just touched again.

It felt like touching small bumps on other’s arms.

Yu Sui shifted, crawling out a little, then reached for his phone on the bedside table by memory. He turned on the light and shone it on Yan Xiu’s arm.

Bumps of redness covered the pale skin.

“…”

An allergic reaction.

That night, the commotion wasn’t too loud, but Yan Xiu had Yu Sui wake him up once. He applied the medicine in front of Yu Sui, and that was the end of it.

 

The next day, Yu Sui called the hotel doctor early in the morning. Ji Jiangwu and Professor Xu, having received the news, also came over.

Only one of the hotel’s assigned doctors woke up, a female doctor. She gently rotated Yan Xiu’s arm from side to side: “Have you had your allergies checked before?”

Yan Xiu’s voice was slightly hoarse from just waking up: “I’ve had it checked before.”

“Let me see the prescribed medication.”

Yu Sui handed over Yan Xiu’s medicine bag. After thinking for a moment, he put in the two medicines Zhao Ru had given him as well.

The female doctor didn’t prescribe any new medication after examining it, and Yan Xiu seemed quite used to it. He’d probably had many allergic reactions, just the kind that were scary each time but subsided quickly. If his roommate hadn’t noticed, he probably wouldn’t have said a word.

“It’s okay, relax. Be careful not to scratch it, and apply the medicine properly. If you had come to me any later, it might have already gone away.” The female doctor knew they had a competition today and half-jokingly tried to ease the atmosphere, smiling at Yu Sui. “There aren’t many attentive guys these days. You must be very popular.”

But after she said that, the atmosphere didn’t ease at all. The two boys glanced at her simultaneously, then quickly looked away.

“He’s not careful, but he’s still in high demand,” Ji Jiangwu teased bluntly, interrupting the female doctor’s thoughts. He glanced at the time after speaking and instructed, “Alright, time’s almost up. If there’s nothing else, hurry up and get ready.”

He was still worried about Yan Xiu: “Don’t push yourself. If you’re really feeling unwell, tell your teacher.”

“It’s alright,” the female doctor interjected. “If he’s really unwell, it can’t be something like an allergy.”

Yu Sui saw the three of them out, closed the door to block the curious glances from passing students, and then exchanged a look with Yan Xiu.

Luckily, the female doctor and Ji Jiangwu hadn’t lingered on the details. Otherwise, the conversation could have veered to “How did you find out?” and then to discovering the suitcase spread out on the other bed, and that both pillows were on the same bed.

Actually, close friends can have a thousand reasons to sleep in the same bed, but explaining them always takes effort.

Yan Xiu lowered his gaze and took out the ointment. He had barely unscrewed the cap when he let Yu Sui take it: “I’ll do it.”

Yan Xiu stared at the crown of his head for a moment, then gently hooked his finger: “Don’t be so nervous.”

“…I know,” Yu Sui said, “I haven’t taken care of many people. Let me have my fun.”

He could only have his fun for a little while.

 

The concert hall was more crowded than before. Those students eliminated the day before were wandering back and forth between the two competition areas, and the atmosphere was even more heated than the day before.

The competition concluded in the afternoon, with the awards ceremony taking place in the concert hall.

The students from No. 26 High School were grabbing anything they could reach and waving it around, practically going crazy.

Yan Xiu, rarely sharing the stage with Yu Sui, turned sideways and looked in his direction from afar.

The last row of students was the only one there. The three students next to Yu Sui were from the affiliated high school, followed by No. 26 High School. So in terms of sheer numbers, the affiliated high school had a slight advantage this time.

Yu Sui seemed so lost in thought, looking at the audience below the stage. But you can never see clearly from the stage, so he seemed to be staring at the spotlights at the edge of the stage.

For a moment, it felt like he had been standing there waiting for a long time.

Until the host’s microphone blared, Yu Sui suddenly snapped out of his reverie and looked around.

He waved towards No. 26 High School, then turned his head and met Yan Xiu’s gaze.

Then his gaze moved down, landing on Yan Xiu’s arm. Yan Xiu noticed and pulled the arm behind his back, hiding it in the shadows.

Yu Sui mouthed, “I’ll see it in a bit.”

Yan Xiu clicked his tongue lightly.

 

The competition ended on a Tuesday. School buses were waiting outside, and students from other schools, whom he’d met over the past couple of days, gathered to make plans to meet again or discuss the upcoming art exhibition.

Yan Xiu didn’t think he knew many people, but quite a few at the competition recognized him, and groups of them blocked the entrance. He turned and led Yu Sui out the back door, disappearing quickly.

Yu Sui was amused by his unusually introverted behavior, laughing as they walked. Even after getting into the car, he squatted on the steps and laughed for a while. Then, when Yan Xiu came over to playfully punch him, he grabbed Yan Xiu’s hand, his fingers darting inside, mischievously tickling him.

If this had happened when the class assignments were first announced, Yu Sui would never have imagined he’d dare do something like this to the Minister of the disciplinary committee.

Minister Yan probably didn’t expect it either. He calmly pulled Yu Sui up, and the two of them retreated to their secluded spot.

Perhaps it was because they had indulged too much these past two days, and the transition from luxury to frugality was difficult, the sudden restraint upon returning to school felt rather irritating.

The school used videos filmed during their competition to promote their school spirit, instantly putting them into the spotlight. And whenever Yu Sui and Yan Xiu were mentioned, many students would recall the “official CP” thread on the online forum.

Even if Yu Sui were just a little close to Yan Xiu outside the classroom, he could hear gasps from some students.

This meant that, under the watchful eyes of everyone, not only was their interaction seen, but even that fleeting glance they exchanged on stage that day was repeatedly analyzed.

This continued until Friday, when Yu Sui unexpectedly received a call from Yu Jingyuan.

Perhaps distance truly does create beauty. In the past six months, Yu Sui and Yu Jingyuan had only met a handful of times. With time, their sharp edges had temporarily been concealed.

Lao Gu wrote the assignments on the blackboard and had them copy them down. The back row was bustling with activity, and some people even took pictures of the blackboard with their phones.

“Finished the competition?” Yu Jingyuan asked.

“Yeah.” Yu Sui put down his pen before hiding his hand under the desk, and touched Yan Xiu’s arm.

Yan Xiu was working on a problem and instinctively reached out to grab Yu Sui’s hand.

Yu Jingyuan: “How was it?”

Yu Sui: “Pretty good.”

Yu Jingyuan stopped and said something to the person next to him that Yu Sui couldn’t hear.

To be honest, it was a bit strange that his dad suddenly called. He thought his dad had come back, but Yu Sui recognized the voice of the person next to him—it was his dad’s assistant.

Yu Jingyuan said, “Go back and have Aunt Sun make you a big celebration.”

“You guys…”

Yu Sui pondered the situation, figuring that Yu Jingyuan probably meant for him to take Yan Xiu back. Although he felt that Yu Jingyuan didn’t need to call specifically about this, it was exactly what Yu Sui wanted, so he didn’t say anything or ask if “you guys” meant what he thought.

After hanging up, he gently tugged at Yan Xiu: “Want to come to my house?”

Yan Xiu finished writing and put down his pen, agreeing. Just as he was about to say something, the student in front of them suddenly turned around to borrow a notebook, and the two quickly separated their hands under the table.

After the student in front of them took the notebook and turned back, Yan Xiu closed the book and threw it into his desk, turning to ask, “Why not come to my house?”

Yu Sui had indeed visited Lao Yan’s house very few times.

There are clearly even fewer people in the Yan family.

Because his desk mate openly approached him in the classroom, Yu Sui paused before slowly saying, “I don’t know. I just feel guilty when I see your parents.”

Yan Xiu found it somewhat amusing: “Guilty about what?”

Yu Sui said irritably, “What do you think?”

On the classroom platform, Lao Gu put away his lesson plan and announced the end of class. The sound of desks and chairs being pulled out immediately echoed from all directions.

After the noise subsided a bit, Yan Xiu reached out and ruffled the young master’s hair, coaxingly saying, “Don’t be afraid.”

 

Author’s Note: Getting some rest early today.