This dates back to when Xu Zhi was admitted to the university where Zhou Mu is enrolled.
That was the second time Zhou Mu saw him, after Xu Zhi turned 17.
Xu Zhi started school in September, but since he had a residence off-campus, he didn’t need to move his belongings. When Zhou Mu saw him, Xu Zhi was squatting under a big tree near the school gate, idly playing with his phone.
Not even a backpack on him.
Zhou Mu walked in front of him and cast a small shadow on Xu Zhi’s body.
Xu Zhi looked up at Zhou Mu. It was near noon, and because the sun was a little dazzling, Xu Zhi squinted his eyes a little.
Zhou Mu felt a chill in his heart, thinking that this heartless kid really didn’t remember who he was.
“I’m Zhou Mu,” Zhou Mu nodded towards him, “Wen Shuyao asked me to pick you up.”
Xu Zhi didn’t care very much. He seemed to be playing on his phone in a large area of flowers. After Zhou Mu watched his hands operate a few times, the game interface exited, revealing a pure white wallpaper.
He pressed his phone to lock the screen before standing slowly.
He was shorter than Zhou Mu, and he had to look up slightly even if he stood up.
Zhou Mu discreetly assessed him.
Over the past two years, Xuzhi had grown taller, but he still carried an air of innocence, although now with a touch of unwelcoming maturity compared to two years ago.
“Let’s go.” Zhou Mu turned around, leading him towards the school. As they walked, he continued, “I’ll take you to complete the registration first.”
“Okay,” Xu Zhi responded lazily, his eyes hanging, looking like he had woken up.
“Did you have lunch?” Zhou Mu asked him back, “I can bring you somewhere to eat in a while?”
“No need,” Xu Zhi walked next to him, holding his phone. “I live nearby; this area is already quite familiar to me.”
Zhou Mu raised his eyebrows, some surprised, “When did you move?”
During the summer break, Xu Zhi moved here. Sometimes, when he didn’t know what to eat, he would go to the school cafeteria. However, he didn’t want people to think he was kicked out by his family, so he said, “Not long; I’m just getting familiar with the place.”
Without asking further, Zhou Mu led Xu Zhi to the new student registration area and stood in line with him.
The line at the registration area was quite long, and Xu Zhi’s spot had no shade, leaving him exposed to the scorching sun.
His skin was very white, and after a while, he became a little red. From the perspective of Zhou Mu, the root of Xu Zhi’s neck had begun to have a very thin and dense sweat.
Zhou Mu moved forward calmly to help Xu Zhi block the sun from behind.
They waited for more than half an hour, and after completing the procedures, Xu Zhi’s counselor warmly invited him to join the class group chat.
Xu Zhi seemed uninterested and remained silent for a moment.
“Teacher,” Zhou Mu took over, “his phone is out of battery. Could you send the group chat number to me? I’ll make sure he joins when we get back.”
Xu Zhi glanced at Zhou Mu and remained silent, standing expressionless on the side.
The counselor hesitated, looked at both of them, and then agreed without much objection.
It wasn’t until Zhou Mu saved the group number for Xu Zhi’s class and walked out of the crowd with him that Xu Zhi finally spoke, “Thank you.”
Zhou Mu said, “What for?”
It seemed that no one had said this to Xu Zhi. Xu Zhi didn’t know what to answer for a while. He looked at him for a while and then asked, “Can I invite you to eat?”
“Okay.” Zhou Mu agreed quickly.
Perhaps he agreed too quickly, without the expected stage of hesitation that Xu Zhi had anticipated. In an instant, a twisted expression appeared on Xu Zhi’s face.
So Zhou Mu didn’t hold back and laughed.
Xu Zhi seemed to be accustomed to the demeanor of a young master and had a generally bad temper, especially since he lacked regular social interactions.
As soon as Zhou Mu laughed, Xu Zhi’s face turned dark.
Unhappy and silent, he glared at Zhou Mu with a fierce look, his round eyes showing a hint of ferocity.
“Don’t laugh.” Zhou Mu stared at him, no longer laughed, and asked him, “What do you want to eat?”
Xu Zhi was used to being alone and often relied on outside food and the cafeteria. He had no concept of where to go or what to eat when it came to inviting someone for a meal.
In the end, he had to go home with Zhou Mu.
After Zhou Mu went home with him, Xu Zhi led Zhou Mu in front of the refrigerator.
Zhou Mu looked at Xu Zhi very puzzledly.
Xu Zhi opened the refrigerator and took two cans of iced cola, handed one of them to Zhou Mu, and pointed to a lot of business cards posted on the door of the refrigerator. Asked Zhou Mu, “What do you want to eat?”
Zhou Mu found that what was posted on the refrigerator door was a lot of fast-food restaurants.
Xu Zhi spoke matter-of-factly, completely unaware that this expression of gratitude was quite unusual. So, Zhou Mu casually pointed to a restaurant and suggested, “How about having porridge?”
Xu Zhi took out his phone and called the delivery. After ordering, he walked to the sofa and laid on his back, holding a can of cola in his hand.
There was absolutely no self-awareness about having guests at home.
Fortunately, Zhou Mu had no other requirements for Xu Zhi. As long as he could stay with Xu Zhi, he felt very good, so he also took a can of cola and sat down.
Xu Zhi wore loose shorts, and his long legs casually rested on the coffee table. The shorts slid down, revealing a small edge of black boxers.
Zhou Mu sat back on the sofa, leaning against it. His gaze wandered on Xu Zhi’s fair and slender thighs for a moment before settling on Xu Zhi’s face.
Drinking cola in sips, Xu Zhi asked displeased, “What are you looking at?”
“Xu Zhi,” Zhou Mu’s upper body was slightly lower, and closer to him, “Do you really not remember me?”
Xu Zhi frowned, and his legs slowly sat up. His eyes swept a few laps on Zhou Mu’s face. “Have I ever seen you?”
“Yes,” Zhou Mu nodded, “at Wen Shuyao’s house.”
“On the balcony.” Zhou Mu added.
Xu Zhi held the cola can, squinted his eyes, and leaned forward to look at Zhou Mu. After a while, he suddenly exclaimed as if he had just realized something.
“Oh, remembered, didn’t you?” Zhou Mu took a sip of cola, looking somewhat pleased.
“No,” Xu Zhi said indifferently, and he leaned back to the sofa lazily after speaking, “Who are you?”
Zhou Mu: “…”
“Even if you can’t remember me,” Zhou Mu said, taking out his phone. “Give me your contact information.”
“Why?” Xu Zhi took a sip of cola and let out a small sigh.
“Because I want to call you,” Zhou Mu said.
“Why?” Xu Zhi asked again.
His cola was finished, and he couldn’t be bothered to get another can from the fridge. Without any hesitation, he directed Zhou Mu, “Go and get me another can of cola.”
Zhou Mu stood up and walked to the fridge. Once again, Xu Zhi called out, “Pick a cold one!”
“I know.” Zhou Mu responded and picked a less cool one.
He walked back to the sofa with Cola, was about to open it, and was stopped by Xu Zhi.
“I want to open by myself,” Xu Zhi stretched his hand.
Zhou Mu handed him Cola and touched his cool fingers, but Xu Zhi didn’t notice.
“Why?”Xu Zhi, holding the cola, sat up and transformed into a human version of ‘a hundred thousand whys,’ persistently asking again, “Why call me?”
Xu Zhi’s circle of friends has been limited. After he was diagnosed, no one wanted to call him, so Zhou Mu’s move was suspicious in Xu Zhi’s view.
And Xu Zhi is really curious.
“Xu Zhi,” Zhou Mu picked up his own can on the table and looked at him, “There’s no reason.”
“Huh?” Xu Zhi murmured, very dissatisfied.
It feels like all the kids in the world are sharing a secret, except for Xu Zhi.
Xu Zhi rubbed his fingers against the pull tab of the soda can, no longer pressing for an answer.
After watching him for a few seconds, Zhou Mu asked, “Do you really want to know?”
Xu Zhi snorted and didn’t speak.
Suddenly, Zhou Mu leaned in, and the distance between them narrowed to less than 5 centimeters. Xu Zhi was startled; he let out a soft gasp but forgot to move away.
Xu Zhi stared at Zhou Mu, and in his eyes, he caught a glimpse of his own slightly panicked expression.
“Has anyone ever told you,” Zhou Mu said slowly, “that you’re very handsome?”
Xu Zhi’s eyes blinked a few times and reacted to what Zhou Mu was doing, and his face turned red all of a sudden.
He pushed Zhou Mu away and shouted at him, “Am I the one with the mental illness, or is it you? I think we should call Wen Shuyao back to treat your brain!”
Zhou Mu was pushed back, leaning against the back of the sofa.
At that time, Zhou Mu was just a twenty-year-old youngster, undergoing the transition from adolescence to adulthood, where he could make decisions on various matters himself. His thoughts were shallow, and whenever he was with Xu Zhi, he couldn’t control himself.
He held the cola in his hand, slowly turning it around, staring at the ceiling, and said, “Xu Zhi, are you falling in love?”
Xu Zhi gripped the unopened can of cola in his hand, contemplating whether assaulting someone with a mental illness was considered illegal.
“Are you?” Zhou Mu turned his head and looked at him.
“What does it have to do with you?” Xu Zhi said.
“Then if I chase you,” Zhou Mu asked seriously, “can I?”
