5
It wasn’t too late when we got back. We hit rush hour, and the bus was packed.
Pressed almost flush against Cố Hoài, I said glumly:
“We should’ve just walked…”
It was so cramped I could barely breathe.
Cố Hoài gripped the overhead rail with one hand and braced the other against the window, hemming me in. He reassured me gently:
“I’ll take driving lessons tomorrow and get my license. Hang in there.”
A little flustered, I tried not to look at Cố Hoài:
“Then… I’ll hang in there a little longer…”
The stuffy air inside the bus seemed to fade beneath Cố Hoài’s faintly cool aura. Half held, half supported in his arms, I could feel it so clearly… our knees brushed, radiating heat.
Every time the bus braked suddenly and the crowd swayed, those accidental touches felt like a current running through me, making my heart pound wildly.
Before long, the bus stopped at our stop. At the gate between our two houses, Cố Hoài asked:
“Are you coming to my place, or going home?”
“My place.”
I pointed at the gate in front of us and started to walk.
But before I could take a step, someone tugged me backward by the collar—it was Cố Hoài.
“Your aunt asked me to take care of you. Aren’t you afraid to be alone? Besides… you haven’t had dinner. Want me to cook for you? Or come over to my place—I can make your favorite sweet-and-sour ribs.”
I swallowed, pushed Cố Hoài’s hand away, and said firmly:
“No need. There’s food in the fridge that my mom left behind.”
Normally, I wouldn’t hesitate to run straight over to Cố Hoài’s place.
But today… I’d better not.
I still couldn’t face the fact that Cố Hoài liked me, while I… didn’t seem to mind?
I needed time. I needed to seriously rethink my sexuality.
Cố Hoài seemed to realize I was avoiding him. His gaze dimmed a little, and he sighed:
“Okay… call me if you need anything.”
Watching Cố Hoài walk away, I felt a little uneasy.
When I got home, I flopped onto the bed, opened my phone, and posted on a forum, asking the all-knowing internet:
【What should you do if your best guy friend confesses to you?】
【This is urgent, answer fast…】
Lots of people were online that night, so replies came quickly:
【Slap him across the face and knock some sense into him.】
【What happened? Can you give us more details?】
【If he confessed, just get married. Congrats!】
【Best to let him down gently and stay away from him.】
…
After reading the comments, I was even more confused.
But one comment sounded pretty reasonable:
【Set him up with a girlfriend and get him back on the straight and narrow. He’s probably just been single too long and gotten temporarily confused.】
It hit me!
That’s right!
I scrolled through my contacts—but then I remembered that Cố Hoài wasn’t even interested in the prettiest girl in class. His standards had to be sky-high.
Maybe she just wasn’t his type?
The class beauty was sweet and girly, so maybe I should try another type—a tough big-sister type?
So I messaged my cousin, who was in college, for help.
At first, she flat-out refused. But when I sent her a picture of Cố Hoài, she went quiet for a few seconds, then immediately changed her tune:
“Oh my god! Why didn’t you send me his picture sooner!? This is no problem—I’ve got it! I’m the light leading the lost back to the right path!”
Me: …what a hopeless man-crazy girl!
I breathed a sigh of relief. Hopefully she could help, so I wouldn’t have to keep tying myself in knots over all this nonsense.
But in less than ten minutes, my cousin came back utterly crushed.
6
Here’s what happened:
【Cousin】: “Hey, underclassman~ Do you like me~?”
【Cố Hoài】: “No.”
【Cousin】: “Haha, me neither. I like… Confucius.”
【Cố Hoài】: “Laozi, Confucius, and you—I don’t like any of you.”
My cousin was so embarrassed she could only send a Mickey Mouse-head sticker.
【Cố Hoài】: “I don’t like that Mickey Mouse head, either.”
【Cousin】: “Hello? Why are you coming after me like this!? I’m out, I’m out!”
My maternal grandma was a great beauty when she was young, and her good looks were split evenly between my cousin and me. Ever since she was little, my cousin had been a “queen of gossip,” the kind of girl who used her looks to conquer the world.
Who knew she’d run into Cố Hoài, who was so cold that… he “knocked her right out of her daydream”?
It took me ages to comfort her and get her out of her “existential crisis.”
But before I could even catch my breath… a new problem came knocking.
“Bro! Help! You’re the only one who can save me this time!”
The person yelling into the phone was Vu Phi, my childhood buddy, a textbook rich kid. As for our grades… one of us was second-to-last and the other dead last all year.
“What do you need me to save you from? What could possibly be hard for Young Master Vu?”
“I’m serious! I’m not joking. You had Cố Hoài—the real-life cheat code—get you into S University, and once my parents found out, they teamed up and gave me a good old-fashioned beating, mom and dad style. I’m still lying facedown on the bed!”
I usually found other people’s misery entertaining. I tried to hold back a laugh:
“Well, they’ve already beaten you. What can I do now?”
“That’s not all! The worst part is they’re making me go on a blind date! And guess who I’m supposed to meet? A total ‘green tea’—my sworn enemy! Please save me, or I’ll hang myself outside your house!”
I scratched my head, still not sure how I was supposed to help:
“How… am I supposed to help? I can’t go on the blind date in your place. What if she ends up liking me?”
“Easy. I’ll take you with me that day. We’ll put on a little act and make it look like I’m into guys. I guarantee she’ll take the hint and back off!”
I was speechless. I snapped:
“What kind of ridiculous idea is that? Aren’t you afraid your parents will find out and give you another mom-and-dad beating?”
“Heh-heh~ You don’t get it. I’m the only boy in my family line for five generations. They can’t just give up on me. If you help me get rid of that ‘green tea,’ I can handle whatever comes next. My parents won’t listen to a word I say now, so I have to make a big move!”
I thought it over, but something still felt off. I hadn’t even figured out what to do about Cố Hoài; my mind was a tangled mess. Getting dragged into Vu Phi’s problem now would just be asking for trouble.
So I said plainly:
“Vu Phi, this is a lot of trouble. Find someone else. Why does it have to be me?”
Vu Phi put on a wheedling voice:
“You’re more handsome than she is. Think about it—if I brought along a huge guy built like a telephone pole and stood there pretending to be gay, she’d laugh me out of the room. She’s my lifelong nemesis. I can’t let myself get humiliated!”
Me: “...Yeah, that actually makes a lot of sense.”
“But...”
“You’re my best friend! Please help me out this once! I won’t ask you to do it for free—I’ll give you a PS5 as payment!”
I started to waver. I’d wanted that console for ages, but...
I still tried to stand firm:
“It’s not about the console. I have principles!”
“I’ll throw in the latest gaming console from ‘Le Tao,’ too!”
“Deal!”
My mouth moved faster than my brain, and I sealed the deal before I could think.
Damn it! Rich people are the worst!
I hate rich people—but I just can’t hate money...
The next day, after visiting Grandma, I made an excuse to slip away from Cố Hoài, so Vu Phi could pick me up in his flashy red supercar.
Even so, I still felt uneasy and asked again:
“Isn’t this... going too far? If your parents find out, they definitely won’t let you off the hook.”
Vu Phi looked at me with a cheeky grin and clapped me on the shoulder like some worldly old uncle:
“I’ll take the blame! Don’t worry, I’ve got a ‘secret weapon,’ too. Let’s go over the plan now so we don’t mess up later.”
We soon arrived at the meeting spot—a garden-style restaurant, decorated with exquisite taste and understated elegance.
But... what was going on?
Across the table, two girls... were holding hands.
And me... I was holding Vu Phi’s hand.
7
Both sides were a little taken aback by the situation, but they quickly composed themselves.
Vu Phi made the first move:
“Tô Hạ! I like guys! This is Trình Ngôn, my boyfriend. Please stop getting your hopes up!”
He slung an arm around my shoulders, and I reluctantly leaned my head against his chest to play my part.
Across from us was a girl who looked like a delicate, innocent white lotus—presumably Vu Phi’s blind date: Tô Hạ.
But she was clearly no pushover, either. Tô Hạ gave a cold laugh:
“What a coincidence!”
Then she pulled the girl in the blazer beside her closer and said, bashful and coy:
“Actually, I don’t like men either. I like women. This is my girlfriend, Chu Khiết. Please don’t flatter yourself.”
Me: “...”
Onlooker:
“Is that for real? The rich sure take things to another level!”
“What a wild plot twist! This gossip is too juicy—I can’t handle it!”
I watched the two sides trade barbs, then turned to look at the girl named Chu Khiết. Our eyes met, and we were both full of questions.
While I was thoroughly enjoying the show, I caught sight of a familiar figure out of the corner of my eye.
I narrowed my eyes—it was Cố Hoài!
I jumped and ducked my head. Why was Cố Hoài here?!
I remembered clearly—he’d told me this morning he was going to the library, hadn’t he?
This was bad. If he saw me here, I was... done for.
“Trình Ngôn, are you looking for something? Why do you keep your head down?”
Vu Phi asked without a care in the world, his voice booming like thunder and making my ears ring.
Just my luck—the very thing I feared had happened.
Even without looking up, I could feel that figure slowly approaching, radiating a bone-chilling cold.
A long, slender hand appeared in front of me, and a voice as cold as ice said:
“Explain.”
The first thing I saw was a pair of long, straight legs. His tall, sturdy frame was outlined by his fitted shirt—he could easily have debuted as a model.
Too bad his face was currently black as a pot.
I cursed my rotten luck under my breath, then forced myself to look calm and raised my head:
“Can I explain later?”
After all, I’d agreed to help Vu Phi. I couldn’t bail on him at the last minute.
But Cố Hoài was clearly not satisfied with that answer. He replied coldly:
“No. Explain now. Didn’t you say you were going to the library?”
In front of me were Tô Hạ and Chu Khiết, looking confused; behind me was Vu Phi, giving me a pleading puppy-dog look.
I was caught between a rock and a hard place, my nerves stretched taut—
“Ten minutes!”
Cố Hoài finally relented with those words. I grabbed at the lifeline and nodded frantically.
Cố Hoài sat down at a table across from me, his eyes fixed on the spot where I sat.
Seeing how tense things were, Vu Phi leaned in and whispered:
“Why is Cố Hoài looking so intense? He looks like he caught someone cheating...”
Across the table, Tô Hạ raised an eyebrow suspiciously, too:
“You two are pretending, right? The way I see it, that guy was the real boyfriend just now.”
“Who’s pretending? I think those two are the ones faking it!” Vu Phi shot back at once.
Chu Khiết looked a little awkward. Tô Hạ froze for a moment, then said stiffly:
“We’re real! Don’t believe me? Watch this!”
With that, Tô Hạ turned and planted a quick kiss on Chu Khiết’s cheek, making her face turn tomato red.
Me: “...”
Vu Phi: “...”
Vu Phi and I stared in shock, our mouths hanging open.
Vu Phi tugged lightly at my shirt. When I turned, I saw him looking eager, ready to make his move.
At that moment, I felt an icy gaze lock onto the place where Vu Phi’s hand was holding me.
Cố Hoài was still seated in the far corner, clutching his glass as if he wanted to crush it, his gaze fixed on the spot where Vu Phi was touching me.
His face showed no emotion—but his gaze was terrifyingly cold. If looks could kill, Vu Phi would have been pulverized by now.
Ever since we were kids, Cố Hoài had hated anyone else touching me. Whenever I got close to someone else, he’d get mad and ignore me for days.
Back then, I thought it was just the usual possessiveness between friends.
But looking back now—it wasn’t.
That was the look of a wolf pup guarding the meat in its bowl, ready to lunge at anyone who tried to touch it.
“What are you thinking about, Trình Ngôn? They’ve gone as far as kissing! You can’t let your buddy lose!”
I turned in surprise—Vu Phi’s face was right up against mine.
Me: “...”
Was he really about to...?!
My eyes widened as I gave him a questioning look.
Vu Phi answered with a firm nod.
Just as there were only a few centimeters between our lips...
—A large hand suddenly yanked me to my feet.
I crashed straight into an embrace as cold as ice—it was Cố Hoài.