Chapter 24 Part 1

When they got in the car to head home, Qin Zui paused for a second by the door.

Jiang Chu didn’t think much of it at first. He just assumed Qin Zui would naturally go sit in the back with his friend who’d shown up out of nowhere.

But when he caught Liang Xiaojia’s stare in the rearview mirror, he realized Qin Zui still hadn’t gotten in properly.

A weird feeling hit Jiang Chu, one he couldn’t quite put his finger on.

He couldn’t pinpoint exactly what felt off, but in general, guys were pretty casual about stuff like this. Especially when they were really tight. They usually didn’t care who sat close to who.

They didn’t care if they hadn’t seen each other for a while or if their reunion wasn’t dramatic enough.

And they definitely didn’t care about having to squeeze shoulder-to-shoulder in a car.

He couldn’t help but size up Liang Xiaojia again in the rearview mirror.

This kid Liang Xiaojia had one thing in common with Qin Zui: they both had this calmness beyond their years, like they each had a two-hundred-pound anchor tied to their souls.

The difference was that while Liang Xiaojia kept his expressions and emotions in check pretty well, he was also obviously someone who overthought everything.

Like back at the inn, when Jiang Chu said he could either get a hotel or come home, Liang Xiaojia had put his crossbody bag on the bed first. That little move.

And then there was that look he just gave.

Too deliberate.

This kind of personality wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it rubbed Jiang Chu the wrong way.

Especially when he thought about how Liang Xiaojia and Qin Zui might be in that kind of relationship. It just made him feel even more uncomfortable.

In the span of a couple of glances, the passenger door opened, and Qin Zui settled into the seat beside him.

Jiang Chu immediately felt like a massive gossip. He kind of wanted to see if Liang Xiaojia looked disappointed.

But he couldn’t be too obvious about it, so he didn’t peek back in the rearview mirror or look at Qin Zui. He just stepped on the gas and drove home.

Three people in one car, and no one said a word the entire drive.

Jiang Chu’s mind was elsewhere. He was still trying to figure out the relationship between Liang Xiaojia and Qin Zui, why Liang Xiaojia had suddenly shown up, and if it had anything to do with that phone call Qin Zui made last night.

Liang Xiaojia actually talked the most on the way back. He started by thanking Jiang Chu politely. Jiang Chu just smiled and said, “It’s nothing.”

Then he chatted with Qin Zui about some people from their old school. Jiang Chu didn’t know any of the names they mentioned, so he stopped eavesdropping.

The first thing he did when they got home was order Qin Zui to open the windows for some fresh air and clean up the cat poop from the last two days. Jiang Chu himself rushed to turn on the air purifier because the whole place smelled like it was fermenting.

Zhou Teng had been pawing at the door handle before they even got in. As soon as he saw Qin Zui, he was on his back, meowing his head off, rubbing against his legs like crazy, completely ignoring Jiang Chu.

“Shameless little thing.” Jiang Chu laughed, tossing his bag on the shoe cabinet as he walked in.

Zhou Teng was mid-meow when Liang Xiaojia walked in. The cat immediately shut up, puffed his tail, and scurried off to the living room.

“Bro, you have a cat?” Liang Xiaojia smiled.

“Oh, yeah, forgot to mention it.” Jiang Chu grabbed him a pair of slippers, washed his hands, and got two cold drinks from the fridge. He tossed one to Liang Xiaojia and opened the other for himself. “You’re not allergic or anything, are you?”

“To cats? No, I actually really like them.” Liang Xiaojia took the drink and thanked him again.

Jiang Chu didn’t bother acknowledging the thanks. He’d heard more “thank yous” from Liang Xiaojia today than he had in the past year and a half of running his company.

But Qin Zui looked at Jiang Chu when he heard the word “allergy,” a faint smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

It was true. Jiang Chu was extra careful about that kind of thing because of Qin Zui’s sudden allergic reaction back then. After all, in all his life, Qin Zui was the first person he’d ever met who was actually allergic to something. The worst he’d seen before was that intern at his company, Tang Cai, who’d get hives when the wind picked up.

Meeting Qin Zui’s gaze, Jiang Chu took a big gulp of water and then, out of habit, held out the half-empty bottle to him.

He was used to eating the watermelon Qin Zui had already dug into, smoking his cigarettes, drinking his beer, soda, and water. He never thought anything of it. When he was too lazy to get water at the office, he’d just drink from Da Ben’s cup. He’d often just shove his own cup at Qin Zui.

It was only when he was halfway through handing it over that he remembered Liang Xiaojia was there.

And not just any Liang Xiaojia. This was the sensitive, overly-thoughtful Liang Xiaojia, who might have something going on with Qin Zui.

Jiang Chu pretended to stretch his arms and yawn, casually pulling back the water bottle he’d offered and setting it on the dining table.

Qin Zui had already been reaching for it out of habit. He watched Jiang Chu’s back disappear into the bedroom and his eyes narrowed slightly.

“You two chat. I’m gonna take a shower first.” Jiang Chu didn’t notice. He grabbed some loungewear, sniffed his collar and arm as he headed to the bathroom. “Rolled around a mountain all day. Didn’t even get to shower yesterday.”

“Which room are you in, Little Brother Qin Zui?” Liang Xiaojia looked around. When he heard the water start running in the bathroom, he asked Qin Zui quietly.

“Have a seat first.” Qin Zui pointed at the couch. He shook the trash bag in his hand at Liang Xiaojia, signaling he was going to throw it out.

Liang Xiaojia didn’t sit. He followed Qin Zui to the entryway and watched from the door as he tossed the bag.

Qin Zui went to the storage room in the hallway, threw the trash in the bin, and came back to find Liang Xiaojia still standing by the door. He decided not to go back inside, lit a cigarette, and waved Liang Xiaojia over, telling him to close the door behind him.

“Why’d you come all of a sudden? You didn’t even let me know.” Qin Zui asked.

Liang Xiaojia stared at him for a moment. He opened his mouth, and his eyes started to get red.

“Stop that.” Qin Zui knew Liang Xiaojia was about to bring up that phone call from last night. He frowned, his voice low.

Liang Xiaojia lowered his eyelids, pursed his lips, and rubbed his nose.

Qin Zui watched him, let out a quiet sigh, and flicked the brim of his cap. “Xiaojia, haven’t I made myself clear enough? We can only be friends. There’s no chance of anything more. Either that, or we end our friendship right here, after all these years.”

Liang Xiaojia didn’t say anything. When his cap was flicked, it was like he’d been poked. He flinched, quickly covering the back of his head with his hand before pulling it away just as fast.

Qin Zui’s expression changed. He tilted his head, spat out the cigarette in his mouth, and stepped forward. Without a word, he pressed his hand on the back of Liang Xiaojia’s neck, using the other to carefully take off his cap.

Seeing the small, crooked gauze pad stuck to the back of Liang Xiaojia’s head, the tape already curling at the edges from either medicine or sweat, Qin Zui pressed his lips together tightly.

Liang Xiaojia didn’t struggle or dodge. He just hung his head and let Qin Zui hold him.

After a long silence, Qin Zui asked softly, “Your dad start hitting you again?”

“Only when he’s drunk. It’s not even broken, just a little scraped. Looks worse than it is.” Liang Xiaojia reached back and touched it. “The swelling’s gone down. You know my mom, she puts that purple medicine on everything.”

“I just… I just wanted to see you.” He managed a smile at Qin Zui. “I’m not used to not having class with you this semester. And it’s the National Day holiday, so… after I got off the phone with you last night… I don’t know, I just acted on impulse and bought a ticket.”

His voice got softer and slower as he talked. Qin Zui frowned and peeled back the gauze for a look. There really wasn’t much of a wound.

But with Liang Xiaojia standing there with a bump on his head, it was impossible to pick up the conversation they’d just cut short.

Just then, they heard the bathroom door open from inside the house. Qin Zui picked up his cigarette butt and flicked it into the trash can, his eyes darkening. “Go inside first.”

When Jiang Chu came out of the bathroom, neither of the kids was in the living room. He thought they’d holed up in the bedroom.

He was just wondering if he should shamelessly press his ear to the door when he heard a noise from outside. He looked back, wiping his hair, as Liang Xiaojia and Qin Zui came in one after the other. Liang Xiaojia was hanging his head like a scolded student, the tip of his nose a little red.

“What’s wrong?” Jiang Chu asked, noticing the gauze on the back of Liang Xiaojia’s head. “How’d you hurt your head?”

“It’s nothing.” Liang Xiaojia smiled, reached up, and ripped the gauze off, crumpling it into a ball in his palm. “I just went to throw out the trash with Little Brother Qin Zui.”

“The trash can’s over there.” Jiang Chu gestured with his chin toward the corner of the living room table, then glanced at Qin Zui.

Qin Zui didn’t offer any explanation. He just walked straight to the bathroom to wash his hands.

These two little brothers had way too many secrets.

Jiang Chu was so curious it was getting annoying, but he couldn’t exactly ask.

For most of the afternoon, Jiang Chu almost felt like he and Zhou Teng were the ones just crashing there. Even though the two of them weren’t in a room whispering to each other, they were perfectly normal, watching TV and chatting in the living room. They were even polite enough to actively steer the conversation towards Jiang Chu so he could join in. But the sound of their voices, that particular “one of us” vibe that only old friends have, was like an invisible, transparent barrier that said “none of your business.”

And to be honest, Jiang Chu was a little surprised and a little jealous.

Yeah, jealous.

That bastard Qin Zui was always so quiet and tight-lipped around him. He never imagined the kid could actually talk this much.

Even if most of the time it was Liang Xiaojia doing the talking and laughing, and Qin Zui just chimed in here and there, he’d still said more in that one afternoon than he had in all the days he’d been staying with Jiang Chu.