Lu Manman’s words drew Liang Zhixia’s gaze to that profile picture. He pointed at L’s black background avatar and asked, “Is this the black picture Manman was talking about?”
A surge of inexplicable absurdity welled up in his heart, along with doubts and confusion that wrapped around him like wildly growing vines.
The little kid nestled in his arms kicked his tiny feet playfully, poking the avatar with a chubby finger. “Yeah, Brother’s is black like this too.”
Liang Zhixia stared blankly for a moment, the confusion in his eyes gradually fading. Lu Manman must have meant that Lu Quan had an account with a black background image too.
That didn’t prove anything.
He slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, his shoulders relaxing along with it. For a second there, he’d actually thought Lu Quan was L. He reached out and pinched little Lu Manman’s cheek, muttering softly, “You scared me half to death.”
Little Lu Manman had no idea what was going on. He clutched the remote control, pressing buttons happily and lost in his own world.
Messages from L kept popping up on his phone.
L asked if he had time for a video call that evening.
Liang Zhixia held Lu Manman with one arm and typed with his head lowered.
His fingertip hovered over the “No,” but then he suddenly deleted it and sent a “Sure” instead.
His soft fingertips gently rubbed Lu Manman’s baby-fat cheek, his gaze drifting unconsciously to the cartoon playing in front of them.
On screen, the superhero protagonist tossed a photo in front of the defeated villain and burst out laughing. “Your plan was busted ages ago! You think slapping on a fake profile pic would fool us?”
The photo clearly showed the villain sneaking a bite of a durian-flavored little cake.
The superhero went on, “Only you would eat durian-flavored little cake—that’s your Achilles’ heel!”
Liang Zhixia pressed his lips together, his eyes darkening with inscrutable thoughts.
Eight o’clock that evening.
The butler came over and said, “Mr. Lu and Mrs. Lu are on their way back. Are you planning to leave now, or…?”
“—I’m leaving now!”
Liang Zhixia had no desire to run into Lu Manman’s parents.
The butler promptly arranged a driver for him. As the car pulled out of the neighborhood gate, a sleek, low-key luxury black sedan drove past the window.
Liang Zhixia had his suspicions about it. He withdrew his gaze and focused on the road ahead.
Lu Manman’s words kept flashing through his mind, along with that vaguely familiar photo in Lu Quan’s phone album.
No… it couldn’t be.
He wasn’t so sure anymore.
Lu Quan wouldn’t do something that pointless.
It had to be coincidences.
Back at the dorm, Lu Quan wasn’t there.
After his shower, Liang Zhixia sprawled over his desk, sketching comics for a bit before checking the comments on his Weibo account.
Right at nine o’clock, his phone rang with the video call tone.
He answered it.
The screen showed only an office chair—no sign of L.
He frowned, puzzled. “L?”
“Right here.” L’s voice came from off-screen, followed by a hand entering the frame. Pale, slender fingers hooked around a coffee mug and set it on the desk. “Did Zhizhi miss me?”
Lu Quan sat in the chair, dressed in a crisp white custom-made shirt. He leisurely undid the top button, revealing refined collarbones, then fixed his deep gaze on the phone screen. He lifted the coffee for a sip, his Adam’s apple bobbing slightly.
“Zhizhi?”
“Huh? Oh.” Liang Zhixia responded a beat late. “Yeah.”
Lu Quan’s fingers twitched slightly, his smile faltering. “What’s up with Zhizhi? You seem distracted.”
Off-screen, Liang Zhixia pulled his hand away from the screenshot button and faked a couple of coughs. “Nothing. Just haven’t seen you in days. Kinda missed you.”
He’d never said anything so sappy to L before, but it worked—L dropped the subject of his earlier daze.
The man chuckled softly. “I missed Zhizhi too.”
At the same time, Lu Quan opened the surveillance footage on his computer. Liang Zhixia’s figure appeared on screen instantly.
The young man wore an oversized, faded pajama shirt, curled up in his chair with a cup of milk tea in his hands.
Lu Quan’s gaze softened involuntarily. In a gentle voice, he asked, “How did Zhizhi miss me?”
A flicker of embarrassment crossed Liang Zhixia’s face. He scratched his head, then flipped open the notebook on his desk to the page with study notes.
“Every minute of every day. Eating, sleeping, in class—I think of you.”
He didn’t give L a chance to reply and turned the question back. “What have you been up to lately? You seem super busy.”
Lu Quan’s brows relaxed. Zhizhi was actually asking about him.
“I’m on a business trip,” he said, “but I promise to make time every day to chat with Zhizhi.”
Liang Zhixia propped his chin on his hand and slurped a pearl from his milk tea, mumbling through a full mouth, “You left for your trip today?”
Lost in the warmth of Zhizhi’s concern, Lu Quan blurted out on the video feed, “Yeah, headed out this afternoon. Brought two assistants and four other staff members.”
Liang Zhixia had only wanted to pin down the timeline, not grill him.
But L seemed to think otherwise, rattling off details nonstop.
“The assistants booked four rooms—two of them sharing, me in my own.”
To prove it, L even picked up the phone and panned around the hotel suite, showing every corner.
“…”
Liang Zhixia said, “I believe you.”
L replied, “I want you to check.”
Liang Zhixia fiddled with the edge of his phone case, his eyes darting around.
He ventured cautiously, “L, remember our deal from the start? The one-month fake dating agreement—do you remember?”
Silence fell on the other end.
Liang Zhixia unconsciously held his breath and asked again. “Do you remember?”
After a long pause—right when he thought the call had frozen—L spoke.
L: “I remember.”
Liang Zhixia hummed in acknowledgment. “Ten days left, then.”
Silence.
More silence.
Finally, after an eternity, L’s voice emerged from the video. “Zhizhi remembers it crystal clear.”
The man’s tone was hoarse and restrained, carrying the menace of an impending storm.
Liang Zhixia licked his lips. At first, he’d braced for L to pester him, but L had only fussed over him with voice and video calls, chatting in that clingy, lovey-dovey way—like they were in the middle of a whirlwind romance.
In a soft voice, he said, “That was the deal—a month of fake dating. You’re not backing out, are you?”
L let out a low chuckle. “Of course not.”
After hanging up, the hotel suite fell quiet. The darkened phone screen reflected Lu Quan’s expressionless face. He rose and stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing out at the city’s sea of lights, his eyes bottomless.
Moments later, the assistant—who’d been stuffing his face outside—got a call from his boss.
“Wrap things up here in four days if you can.”
The ice cream in the assistant’s hand hit the ground with a splat, mirroring his mood.
Four days?
He might as well jump off a building.
Back in the dorm, Liang Zhixia turned off the lights, grabbed his phone and tablet, climbed into bed, and drew the bed curtain closed.
The surveillance feed went dark.
Lu Quan minimized it to a small window and dove back into work. He wanted to get home sooner. Being overseas meant he couldn’t do a thing if something happened.
On the bed, a small desk lamp flicked on, casting a soft, eye-friendly glow that illuminated every corner of the space.
A sheet of white paper lay spread out on the little table. Liang Zhixia uncapped his pen and began scribbling and sketching.
L had said he left for his trip today. Xu Cheng’s social media post said the same about Lu Quan.
L was in A City. So was Lu Quan.
The lamplight reflected in his eyes, making the light brown irises shimmer faintly. L had sent him a package—the delivery guy must have his info on file.
He pulled out his phone and messaged the delivery guy.
The reply came quickly.
“Sorry, company policy—I can’t share customer info.”
Dead end.
He racked his brain, reviewing everything since the semester started. Lu Quan had a severe germaphobia thing and couldn’t stand him.
Until that one night, when Lu Quan’s attitude shifted.
That night, Lu Quan had stumbled back to the dorm drunk out of his mind, clutching the panda plushie he’d given away. Thinking back, he’d acted so weird—and after that, Lu Quan’s germaphobia just… vanished.
The next day, L—who he’d thought had blocked him—sent a message.
Coincidence?
If it was what he suspected, Liang Zhixia’s face flushed bright red. He buried his face in his hands and doubled over, his forehead thumping lightly against the table edge.
Right!
The package!
The delivery guy wouldn’t tell him, but he could check it himself. National Day holiday was just a few days away, and Lu Quan was out on his trip.
Perfect chance.
He eyed L’s avatar on his phone, then flipped to Lu Quan’s account. No resemblance whatsoever.
Though L’s avatar did match Lu Quan’s aloof vibe.
He set the phone down and massaged his throbbing temples. No more overthinking. He’d know the truth soon enough.
The next day.
Liang Zhixia walked across campus and spotted a bunch of canopy tents set up in an open area leading to the academic buildings. Each one had a sign reading “XX Club.”
It was club recruitment day, as the class rep had announced in the group chat.
Some clubs had real showstoppers—even guys in drag, striking awkward poses and dancing in front of their booths.
Liang Zhixia averted his eyes and hurried toward the building for his morning class.
After class, Liang Zhixia headed to the club recruitment area with Jiang Ling and Fan Li. The class president had already shared details on every recruiting club in the class group chat.
Jiang Ling glanced around. “What clubs are you guys thinking of joining?”
Fan Li looked left and right, his voice dry. “I don’t know. My decision paralysis is kicking in.”
Both of their gazes landed on Liang Zhixia, who hadn’t spoken up yet.
Liang Zhixia looked blankly at the clubs surrounding them. “Let’s check them out first.”
The three parted ways from there, each drifting toward the clubs that caught their interest.
Liang Zhixia walked along for a bit before coming to a stop. He had no real desire to join any club, but signing up was the fastest way to rack up credits for his second required course—social practice.
Suddenly, a familiar voice rang out right by his ear.
“Junior!”
Someone slapped his shoulder hard. When Liang Zhixia turned around, he saw Xu Cheng grinning at him.
“Senior.”
Xu Cheng slung an arm around his shoulders with easy familiarity and steered him toward a club booth. With a grand wave of his hand, someone promptly brought over two stools.
Liang Zhixia was firmly planted in a chair. Xu Cheng grabbed a flyer from the table.
Youth Letting Ideals Fly.
Xu Cheng said, “Wanna join? It’s my club. Bro’s got your back.”
Liang Zhixia hesitated. “Is Brother Lu in it too?”
Xu Cheng shook his head. “He skips club stuff. Thinks it’s boring.”
Liang Zhixia eyed the text on the flyer. “Senior, what does this club even do?”
Xu Cheng held up eight fingers. “Eat, drink, play—the works.”
