A new Monday. The classroom was much noisier than usual.
“For all the pain caused by stubborn love~”
“I’ve never seen someone get drunk and cling to the microphone like their life depended on it, almost deafened me.”
“Shut up!” Chen Xingchi covered his ears, “I don’t remember anything, telling me is useless!”
Friday night, many people drank too much. Some still remembered what happened that night, and early in the morning, with nothing else to do, they started teasing Chen Xingchi about what he did at the KTV.
“It’s fine if you don’t remember, we’ve got recordings! How about a little reminder, King of Karaoke?” Someone joked.
Jiang Heng wasn’t in the best spirits today. He had run a few laps around the school track in the morning and was now lying on his desk, trying to rest.
But the group was too noisy.
Jiang Heng twitched his fingers as Chen Xingchi banged the table, frantically trying to shoo people away.
Seeing Chen Xingchi like this, Jiang Heng felt a rare bit of sympathy.
What’s worse than getting drunk and acting out is remembering everything the next day, with others helping you recall it.
It’s better to remember nothing and just laugh it off when others bring it up.
Thinking this, Jiang Heng’s eyelids fluttered, and the memories of Saturday flooded back.
Shen Huaizhi wasn’t helping him remember but twisting the facts, and Jiang Heng had to pretend he didn’t know and couldn’t argue back.
For the first time, Jiang Heng realized how much Shen Huaizhi enjoyed teasing people.
Even knowing Jiang Heng remembered everything, Shen Huaizhi pretended otherwise, deliberately making things up.
Yet, Jiang Heng found himself not getting angry at all.
With his eyes closed, Jiang Heng fumbled in his desk for a piece of candy, popped it into his mouth, and bit down.
The sweet, cloying taste spread instantly, clearing his mind.
He wasn’t fond of sweets, especially candies with too much artificial sweetener, but he had discovered that they helped him stay awake in class, so he kept a few in his desk.
“You guys enough! I really don’t remember! Even if you play the recording, I won’t remember!” Chen Xingchi kept denying.
“It’s okay, just listen to the recording, and you’ll remember.”
Chen Xingchi: “…”
Seeing someone actually pulling out their phone.
“Enough.” A tired male voice suddenly interrupted.
Jiang Heng propped his chin with one hand, glancing behind him. He wasn’t fully awake, his eyelids half-closed, looking irritated at having his sleep disturbed. There was no trace of a smile on his face, making him seem rather unapproachable.
The boys who were joking around immediately fell silent. While they felt comfortable teasing Jiang Heng when they ate together, they were genuinely afraid of his ability to throw a punch.
Whether Jiang Heng was woken up by the noise or not, no one wanted to risk his ire.
“We’ll start studying right away!”
“Yeah, yeah, Jiang Heng, keep sleeping!”
“Where’s the class monitor? Class is about to start. Let’s go back to our seats! Damn, you guys are so annoying, crowding in the back of the classroom this early.”
“Jiang Heng, do you want to hear the recording?” Someone boldly asked.
Chen Xingchi: “…”
Chen Xingchi looked at Jiang Heng with a conflicted expression. He genuinely couldn’t remember anything, not even how he got home.
Despite feeling a bit embarrassed by their teasing, he was still curious.
Chen Xingchi had thought Jiang Heng would join in the teasing. But after the question, Jiang Heng lifted his eyelids lazily and, in a slightly commanding tone, said, “Bring the recording here.”
Seeing Chen Xingchi in this state, Jiang Heng guessed he probably remembered everything but had to pretend he didn’t in front of everyone. Jiang Heng decided to be kind for once.
After Jiang Heng spoke, the person who mentioned the recording paused, “No, there’s no real recording. We were all having too much fun at the time to actually record anything. We were just messing with you.”
He was telling the truth. When they were at the KTV, everyone was too caught up in having fun to bother with recording. The mention of a recording was just to tease Chen Xingchi.
Seeing that Jiang Heng wasn’t too angry, the group dispersed, nudging each other as they left.
Once they were gone, Chen Xingchi sighed with relief, “Just got drunk once, was it really necessary?”
Jiang Heng, leaning back in his chair, nodded in rare agreement.
Just got drunk once, was it really necessary?
He couldn’t control his reaction to tension either.
Chen Xingchi, surprised at Jiang Heng’s agreement, said, “Luckily, I don’t remember anything.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Heng turned to him and asked, word by word, “You don’t remember anything?”
Hearing the slightly menacing tone, Chen Xingchi nodded blankly.
Jiang Heng felt a vague sense of disappointment.
“Let go,” Shen Huaizhi said softly. “Are you still mad at me?”
“How about I let you scold me instead?” He seemed genuinely serious about the suggestion.
“Who wants to scold you?” Jiang Heng couldn’t help but turn around as soon as Shen Huaizhi finished speaking. His voice was a bit loud, drawing the attention of several classmates.
However, they only dared to take a quick glance.
By now, everyone in the class knew that the two of them had argued.
This was quite a rare occurrence.
Everyone had always seen how Shen Huaizhi treated Jiang Heng and how Jiang Heng acted around Shen Huaizhi. It was hard to imagine the two of them getting into a fight.
Seeing Jiang Heng looking a bit angry, Shen Huaizhi pressed his lips together. “It’s not that you want to scold me; I’m letting you scold me.”
“I’m the one who made you angry.”
His tone was so gentle, nothing like his earlier teasing manner. Jiang Heng’s words, though not a confession, felt like a pebble dropped into a calm lake, sending ripples that refused to settle.
Even Shen Huaizhi was struggling to maintain his composure.
Jiang Heng probably didn’t realize how endearing he looked, how much he tugged at one’s heartstrings.
Hearing that Jiang Heng couldn’t stay angry with him was probably the sweetest thing Shen Huaizhi had ever heard.
And it came from Jiang Heng.
Shen Huaizhi hesitated for a moment before reaching out to touch Jiang Heng’s cheek, realizing it was burning hot, though his face didn’t show any blush.
Feeling the warmth of the Alpha, Jiang Heng instinctively shrank back and muttered, “It’s because you were talking nonsense.”
Shen Huaizhi didn’t find Jiang Heng’s evasive reaction problematic. Realizing Jiang Heng was embarrassed, Shen Huaizhi’s heart melted even more. He softened his voice, “Jiang Heng.” He called Jiang Heng’s name and then chuckled.
Jiang Heng: “…Don’t laugh.” Was it really that funny?
It seemed he only now realized what he had said sounded like a confession. Feeling both embarrassed and annoyed, Jiang Heng turned his head away. “Alright, let’s focus on class.”
As he spoke, he pushed Shen Huaizhi’s arm away. “No touching during class.”
Shen Huaizhi chuckled softly. “Alright, no touching.” He paused. “But class hasn’t started yet.”
He sounded like he was reminding him. “Do you want to hold hands?”
He was afraid that if he didn’t do something, he really wouldn’t be able to hold back.
After Shen Huaizhi spoke, Jiang Heng paused for a moment, his gaze wandering. “You initiated it.”
Shen Huaizhi laughed and readily admitted, “Yes, I initiated it.”
Jiang Heng stiffened his neck, his voice a bit shaky. “Then, I guess it’s fine, but just for a little while.”
Before he could finish speaking, his hand was firmly grasped by the Alpha. Shen Huaizhi’s fingers forcefully intertwined with his, holding his hand tightly. The hand that had felt cool just moments ago was now warm.
Holding hands openly in the classroom felt thrilling, even more so than when they had secretly held hands during class last time.
The significance was different.
Before long, the bell signaling the start of class rang.
When the teacher entered the classroom, there were still murmurs of conversation.
“Still chatting! There’s just over a month left until the final exams!” The teacher slammed the test papers onto the desk. “After the New Year, you’ll be preparing for senior year! And you’re still fooling around?”
After the New Year, the current seniors would be left with endless mock exams and reviews. Their success or failure would depend entirely on themselves, and the teachers wouldn’t push them as hard as before. The pressure would shift to the current juniors, who would soon become the new seniors.
With that, the classroom fell silent.
“Why are you looking at me? Look at your books!” The teacher, seeing everyone staring solemnly at him, felt his temper rise. “Last class, we covered the third section. Who’s going to read it?”
At the mention of reading aloud, everyone quickly lowered their heads like quails, hoping not to be called on.
The teacher, suppressing his anger, scanned the classroom.
The only one sitting upright was Shen Huaizhi. No matter when, Shen Huaizhi always sat with his back straight, attentively watching the blackboard and listening to the teacher. He was the ideal student in the teacher’s eyes.
In contrast, Jiang Heng, who had been Shen Huaizhi’s deskmate for so long, showed none of Shen Huaizhi’s studiousness. Instead, he seemed to be shrinking to the side, hiding behind a book. Even though he was hiding, his movements were fully visible from the podium. It was unclear what he was up to.
The teacher’s brows furrowed. “Shen Huaizhi, you read.”
Hearing his name, Jiang Heng tried once again to withdraw his hand. To avoid being noticed, he hunched down as much as possible, his right shoulder drooping. The drowsiness he had felt earlier was completely gone.
But today, for some reason, Shen Huaizhi refused to let go. Despite saying they would only hold hands for a little while, he continued to grip Jiang Heng’s right hand, not allowing him to pull away.
“The teacher called your name,” Jiang Heng whispered, keeping his head down.
Shen Huaizhi acknowledged with a hum and stood up. His left hand remained out of sight, still tightly holding Jiang Heng’s right hand. As he stood, Shen Huaizhi even scratched Jiang Heng’s palm, as if to comfort him. Jiang Heng, led up by Shen Huaizhi, was still a bit dazed.
“But, class monitor, why did you bring me here?” During the day, Jiang Heng had already sensed that something was off. Ever since he had said those words, Shen Huaizhi had been unusually clingy.
It wasn’t exactly wrong, just overly affectionate.
He’d heard that when an Alpha went crazy, they might even take their Omega along for the ride. The rooftop was quite high, making it a fitting place.
These thoughts popped into Jiang Heng’s mind, yet he didn’t feel particularly scared.
Noticing Jiang Heng’s thoughts, Shen Huaizhi sighed and ruffled his hair, a hint of laughter in his voice. “It’s a date.”
“I got the key from the dean.”
Good students had their privileges.
Jiang Heng glanced around. The school’s teaching building was quite tall, offering a great view from the rooftop. There were still some people in the school, but they appeared as tiny dots from this height.
“Why did you suddenly think of a date?”
Before Jiang Heng could fully process Shen Huaizhi’s answer, he was abruptly pulled into an embrace. Unprepared, he found himself wrapped in the Alpha’s arms the next second.
Author’s note: Shen Huaizhi: I can be clingy, even clingier than you.
1TL: YSIAD “You can support me if you like my translations by leaving a comment below, or by sending me a Ko-fi. Thank you and Enjoy reading ❤️”
