Chapter 11: Messages

Qiu Shun had been lost in thought about that mysterious Alpha when he heard the cautious tone in Qiu Sui’s question. He couldn’t help but look up.

His brother was clutching his phone, its screen glowing brightly, pretending to stay calm as he stared at him. But the micro-expressions on his face betrayed his anxiety, like he was terrified of some secret being exposed.

Qiu Shun’s emotions churned complexly as he opened his mouth, but in the end, he only said, “It’s fine. You can keep it.”

Qiu Sui was sweating bullets from nerves. He’d already poised his finger to delete the WeChat contact, so it took him a beat to process the words. He blinked sluggishly and let out an “Ah?”, nodding uncertainly. “Oh, oh.”

By the time they returned to the sports field with the milk teas and found Qiao Keren, the stage was alive with an energetic dance performance amid waves of cheers. Flickering lights played across Qiao Keren’s face, revealing his thrilled expression.

As he took the milk tea from Qiu Sui, he said regretfully, “You were gone so long—you missed some super exciting acts!”

Then he spotted Qiu Shun right behind Qiu Sui and lit up with surprise. “Eh!” In his bouncy way, he craned his neck to chat with him.

Beating that Alpha to the ground in the garden had felt way more exhilarating to Qiu Sui than watching the gala. The only pity was that he hadn’t caught the guy.

At the thought, the iced fruit tea in his hand lost some of its chill. Qiu Shun was focused on Qiao Keren’s chatter, so Qiu Sui stealthily pulled out his phone and opened his texts.

That Alpha must’ve gotten beat bad this time, he thought. No message yet.

Riding the high of victory, Qiu Sui typed out a warning: Stop harassing me.

But given how the Alpha had kept stalking him even after multiple blocks, Qiu Sui figured he’d probably revert to his old ways once the gala ended.

Whether Qiu Sui had finally hit him hard enough to instill some fear and make him back off, though, there were no replies that night when they got back to the dorm—not like before.

Instead, Shen Zhixiao—whom he hadn’t chatted with on WeChat since adding him, despite what he’d just told Qiu Shun—suddenly popped up with a message.

Qiu Sui had just finished showering. When he saw the red notification dot on that gray avatar, he nearly flung the towel he was using to dry his hair.

The message wasn’t anything special—just a friendly greeting, asking if he was asleep.

But to Qiu Sui, it was pure terror: My little brother’s potential future boyfriend suddenly messaging me? Especially right after I denied any connection to him in front of Qiu Shun?

Why is Shen Zhixiao messaging me all of a sudden? Does he need something? But we’re not close, right?

Qiu Sui stopped drying his hair, cradling his phone in both hands as wild thoughts raced through his mind for ages. Finally, he swiped lightly to exit the chat, set the phone far away, pretended he hadn’t seen it, and grabbed the hairdryer to blast his hair on high.

Once dry, he distracted himself by heading to the balcony to brush his teeth and wash up. During that time, he heard several message pings, and his shoulders twitched sensitively with each one.

His brain rapidly replayed a ton of the original novel’s plot. Shen Zhixiao reaching out must be about Qiu Shun.

Qiu Sui glanced at their three-person group chat, where Qiu Shun and Qiao Keren had shared a Doudizhu mini-game. Sleep my ass. I know he teamed up with Qiao Keren, and they lost all their Gold Beans again.

But just as Qiu Shun wouldn’t rat him out, Qiu Sui never snitched on Qiu Shun either. He cheerfully pocketed the money while assuring his mom he was heading to bed right away.

In truth, though, Qiu Sui couldn’t sleep.

Shen Zhixiao’s unread message nagged at him. Close his eyes, and the chat interface loomed in his mind, preventing any rest.

Is this a key plot point? Does he want Qiu Shun’s WeChat through me?

For my brother… With great reluctance, he sat up in the dark, took a deep breath, and finally opened Shen Zhixiao’s chat. He typed slowly.

To head off any tricky follow-ups while the “typing” indicator was still there, Qiu Sui struck first: Do you need something?

The indicator paused, then resumed. Seconds later:

Shen Zhixiao: Yeah.

As expected, Qiu Sui thought, perking up. Curious if he wants Qiu Shun’s WeChat or something else. In the dim room, he sat up straight, phone in hand, eyes glued to the screen for the next line.

Shen Zhixiao: Xiao Sui.

Shen Zhixiao: Can I call you that?

Shen Zhixiao: Saw your birthday on your WeChat—younger than mine.

?

Qiu Sui, fully braced, watched a question mark rise slowly over those messages as he puzzled it out.

Is he trying to get chummy?

Unsure, he stared, struggled, then typed—nearly blunt: Just say what you need. No need for this.

But the reply ignored that: Got it, Xiao Sui.

Who straight-up asks if you blocked their Moments like that?! Doesn’t he feel awkward? How do I even reply?

Face burning crimson, brain short-circuiting from the directness, Qiu Sui rolled around under the covers like he’d lost half his life force.

As if sensing the silence, Shen Zhixiao gracefully offered an out.

Shen Zhixiao: Did Xiao Sui accidentally hit block when adding me?

Shen Zhixiao: I make dumb mistakes like that sometimes ^^

Qiu Sui lay still under the covers forever before accepting the absurdity. Finally, dejected, he emerged from the stifling heat, phone aloft: Yeah.

Different goals, he thought while tweaking the settings. He’s cozying up for Qiu Shun’s sake. But something still felt off.

Settings changed, he added: Done. Anything else?

Ask about Qiu Shun before he sleeps.

Qiu Sui perked again at the word, heart racing. Here it comes!

The “typing” flickered, then:

Shen Zhixiao: It’s late.

Shen Zhixiao: Xiao Sui, rest up. Training early tomorrow.

?

Qiu Sui’s brain filled with question marks again.

What? Too shy to ask since we’re not close?

Qiu Shun’s sleeping.

Qiu Sui checked the time—nearly midnight.

No wonder he stopped. Conscience kicked in after I dragged this out.