Ye Zhou didnât know how he came back; he only remembered that heâd almost ridden the bike into the flower beds several times.
Ye Zhouâs heart was still beating like thunder as he locked the bike in a fluster and climbed up the stairs.
âEh, werenât you just going to take a shower? How did you come back from the outside?â Liu Yutian came out from visiting the dorm next door and saw Ye Zhou just passing 404.
âAh?â Ye Zhou said incoherently, âI just went out for something. Iâm going to shower.â
Liu Yutian followed behind Ye Zhou and saw that there was an empty place on the flower stand by the doorway. He asked, âWhat about Shang Jinâs strawberry?? It wouldnât have been carried away by birds, right!!â
Ye Zhou still held the two white flowers in his hand, but at the moment, theyâd been kneaded together into a lump: flowers that were no longer flowers. He put his hand behind his back and said, âIâŠI donât know.â
The students from 404 and 403 came out when they heard the commotion and surrounded the flower stand. In a moment, they poked their heads to look downstairs to see that it hadnât fallen, and in another moment, they looked nearby to see if someone had played a prank and carried it away.
Taking advantage of everyone not paying attention to him, Ye Zhou grabbed his clothes and dived into the bathroom.
He showered and quickly went to bed. Facing the white wall, he didnât dare to turn his head.
Ye Zhou didnât dare to face Shang Jin, but he also didnât understand why he didnât dare to face Shang Jin.
Obviously heâd told the truth and all of this was Shang Jinâs misunderstanding, but it was also Shang Jin whoâd eavesdropped on his and Su Yinâs conversation first.
Obviously, from any way he looked at it, he shouldnât have a guilty conscience.
But whyâŠ
The dorm door was pushed open and Ye Zhouâs heart tightened.
âWhy hasnât Shang Jin come back yet?â
âI didnât see him when I returned to the dorm.â
âWithout rhyme or reason, how can the strawberry disappear!â Liu Yutian clicked his tongue and looked up, âZhou, why are you sleeping so early today?â
âLower your voice. I saw that he was just very out of it,â Wen Renxu pulled Liu Yutianâs sleeve and whispered, âDidnât you see that he turned a deaf ear when you mentioned Shang Jinâs strawberry? If it were usual and Shang Jinâs matter was brought up, heâd be the first to jump up.â
Ye Zhou grasped the sheets. For the first time, he realized that he had such an image in the eyes of others.
âShang Jin, youâre back. Your strawberryăŒâ Liu Yutian stared at the cage in Shang Jinâs right hand and said, âYou took the strawberry out?â
âYeah, took it for a walk.â Shang Jin returned the cage to its place. Entering the dorm, he saw that Ye Zhou was facing away from him and he quickly removed his gaze. âYouâve all washed up?â
âWashed, washed.â Liu Yutian gathered by Shang Jinâs side, looked at Ye Zhouâs bed and asked, âWhatâs wrong with him?â
âNot too clear.â Shang Jin went to the sink, turned on the faucet and forcefully threw the cold water on his face.
Since Shang Jinâs return, Ye Zhou had his ears perked up all along. When he heard this sentence, he was furious in his heart: Youâre the one whoâs clearest!Originally, the two people were good. Why did he have to say such a thing? Otherwise, why would he need to lie in bed nowâŠif it were usual, they would certainly observe the strawberry flowers together, and then theyâd discuss whose strawberry would bear fruit first. Not like now, the flowers were plucked, and people wereâŠ
It was still a month away from summer vacation. How would he survive during this timeâŠ
Because Ye Zhou went to bed early this night, the other three people in 405 were very quiet all night.
In his sleep, Ye Zhou seemed to have returned to the bamboo grove, but there wasnât a shadow of Shang Jin at the stone table, leaving only a pot of strawberry flowers gently swaying in the night breeze. He walked to the table and saw the two plucked strawberry flowers drift up from the table to the sky. In a gust of wind, the petals scattered and were soon blown away without a trace. In a moment of distraction, even the strawberry on the table disappeared.
Ye Zhou suddenly opened his eyes and the sky was already bright. He turned and carefully looked at Shang Jinâs bed.
He didnât expect that Shang Jinâs bed was already empty. The quilt was stacked neatly on the bed and the sheet didnât have a trace of a wrinkle. Casting his gaze down, the messy tabletop last night was also tidied up.
Ye Zhou took a moment to wake up. He lifted off his quilt and jumped out of bed. When he opened the door, there was only his own solitary strawberry left on the huge flower stand.
He took out his cell phone, opened Shang Jinâs number, and pressed the dial button for half a day without letting go.
What do you think youâre doing? Even if it went through, what could you say?
Ye Zhou looked at the contact and hesitated. Seeing Shang Mingâs name under Shang Jin, he was suddenly ignited by an impulse and simply packed his luggage. After washing, he didnât even eat breakfast and rushed to the train station.
Meanwhile, Shang Jin carried his strawberry seedling and returned home.
âShang Jin, youâre back.â The aunt at home was pleasantly surprised when she saw Shang Jin at the door, âJust right, Youyou has been shouting for her brother everyday.â
âAunt Zhang, is there something to eat? A bit hungry.â Shang Jin changed his shoes and placed the strawberry seedling on the windowsill. The strawberry flowers glittered in the sunlight and the breeze ruffled the leaves. Shang Jin saw a flower had withered under the leaves and a small green fruit grew out from the middle. âIt actuallyâŠbegan to fruit.â
The long-awaited scene appeared at this time.
There was no excitement of the unexpected, only a sense of disappointment and frustration.
If Ye Zhou hadnât so obviously avoided him, he wouldnât be afraid that Ye Zhou would be uncomfortable when he saw him and so rushed home early in the morning.
âBig brother!â Shang Youyou ran downstairs skipping and jumping. Qin Fei braced the side of her arm against the bannister and told Shang Youyou to slow down a bit while carefully descending the staircase.
Qin Fei breathed a sigh of relief and said, âI was just thinking of asking you to come back for the weekend.â
Shang Jin nodded to Qin Fei. Shang Youyou hugged his thigh and stood on tiptoes to look at the windowsill. Shang Jin picked her up and, sitting in Shang Jinâs arm, Shang Youyou asked, âWhy does the flower have to be in the cage?â
âSo the birds canât harm the flowers.â
Shang Youyou suddenly realized and reached out several times, wanting to touch the flowerpot. In the end, the cage net was too close together and Shang Youyouâs hand could only go in a little bit. Worrying that her hand would get caught, Shang Jin placed Shang Youyou on the ground, undid the triangular clasp on the cage and took out the flowerpot.
Shang Youyou stood on the small bench with her two hands propping up her head. She looked at the flowers and looked up at Shang Jin again. âItâs so beautiful.â
âYouyou, help me look over them. Donât let the birds hurt them, okay?â
Shang Youyou nodded and in a moment, she looked around vigilantly as if facing a great enemy. Her arms guarded on both sides of the flowerpot, lest a bird emerged to snatch the flowers.
âShang Jin, can I trouble you to come home everyday during this time?â Qin Fei said carefully, âIâll be due in a few days, YouyouâŠâ
âNo problem.â Shang Jin took the bowl of millet porridge and took a sip. âAnyway, I wonât have any classes in a week. At that time, Iâll come live at home.â
âThatâs great.â Qin Fei breathed a sigh of relief. âIâll be going to the hospital soon, and itâs inconvenient for Youyou to follow me in the evening. If youâre home, sheâll feel at ease.â
After a few mouthfuls, Shang Jin finished drinking the millet porridge and he put the bowl down. âWhen will you be hospitalized?â
Qin Fei touched her belly and said, âIâm afraid Iâll be going in two days.â
Shang Jin said, âWell, I will stay at home from now on. It only takes half an hour to drive to and from school. During the day, I can help you send Youyou to school.â
Qin Fei was startled. Although sheâd hoped that Shang Jin would come back, but Shang Jin being so articulate was actually a bit unusual. Before, heâd been too lazy to make a trip back home even once during a semester, but now he actually volunteered to come back everyday. Qin Fei asked tentatively, âIs everything okay at school?â
âWhat can happen to me?â Shang Jin scoffed. It was only that he didnât want to make things awkward for Ye Zhou. That fool always thought for others. Originally, it was he who had broken the harmonious relationship between the two people, but in the end, it was Ye Zhou who was full of guilt and didnât dare to face him.
On the other side, A City train station.
âTootăŒâ
The train whistle sounded. Ye Zhou sat in the train, watching the scenery gradually receding out the window.
âToo cowardly!â Ye Zhou clenched his fists. Yesterday, it could have been better if heâd replied to Shang Jin, but he actually fled without turning his head back.
He grabbed his hair. What was he going to do with Shang Jin later on?
Not sleeping well at night, Ye Zhou sat in the car and dazedly fell asleep. Half asleep and half awake, he felt that the people around him were all walking. Ye Zhou opened his eyes and saw that most of the passengers were carrying their suitcases and getting ready to off-board the train. Ye Zhou carried his backpack and hurriedly followed behind them.
From the station, he took a direct bus to Shang Mingâs school. After forty minutes, Ye Zhou stood at T Uniâs gate. Taking out his cell phone, he listlessly gave Shang Ming a call.
âCome and pick me upâŠâ
Shang Ming blanked first and then an exclamation burst out, âYou came to my school??â
âYeah.â
âComing at once!â
Twenty minutes later, Shang Ming rushed over on a lady bicycle.
Ye Zhouâs mood lifted a bit when he saw a familiar person. âYour aesthetic is a bitâŠyou wouldnât have turned girly after staying with girls for so long, right?â
âGirly, your sister! My bicycle doesnât have a backseat, so I borrowed one from a girl.â
Ye Zhou pulled his mouth. The backseat was almost as high as his knees. Can he really sit on it?
Shang Ming braced on the ground with one leg, rested his elbows on the handlebar and said, âQuickly get on.â
âI came all the way here and this is how you treat me?â
âItâs better than your wonderful broken pedicab.â
Once the pedicab was mentioned, Ye Zhou remembered Shang Jin and immediately didnât have the inclination to jest anymore. He wanly squatted on the bicycle backseat and, clutching Shang Mingâs clothes, said, âWhy so many words. Ride on.â
Shang Mingâs legs pedaled and laboriously dragged Ye Zhou slowly forward. Even more laborious were Ye Zhouâs shoes. Even if his legs were curled up to the extreme, the shoes were still inseparable from the ground.
In T Uniâs campus, two boys who were nearly 1.8-meter tall crowded onto a small lady bike. The scene was comparable to a circus bear riding a buggy, comical and hilarious, and it attracted countless T Uni students to stop and take pictures.
Ye Zhou buried his face in Shang Mingâs back and gnashed his teeth. âYou deliberately set me up!â
Shang Ming also didnât expect the consequences would be so âeye-catchingâ. He hatefully said, âWhere have you seen someone messing with people also messing with himself!â
After twenty endless minutes passed, Ye Zhou and Shang Ming finally arrived safely at the dormitory.
There was no one in the dorm on the weekend.
Shang Ming poured out a glass of water for Ye Zhou, sat him in his chair and dragged another stool to the computer. âYouâre not an impulsive person like me. Say it: whatâs the problem?â
Ye Zhou grabbed his sleeve and said, âShang Jin really confessed to me!!â
âOh.â Shang Ming looked indifferently at his heart-in-a-panic appearance, pried opened his fingers and said with an expressionless face, âMy heart has no fluctuation and I even want to laugh a little.â