SAYE

“Can’t,” Gu Fei said. “I was wrong, Cheng-ge.”

         Since Jiang Cheng started at Fourth High, this was the first time he didn’t finish his homework.

         He had written half of it during the self-study, and was planning to write the rest that evening. But the Li Baoguo problem stressed him out, and completely put him out of the homework mood. Not to mention, sitting there chatting idly on and off with Gu Fei, he didn’t feel like moving at all.

         It wasn’t until he reached for his phone and saw that it was almost 2 AM, that he reluctantly sat up, “How is it so late already.”

         “I won’t be able to get up tomorrow,” Gu Fei sat leaning against the headboard. “You head to school on your own tomorrow when you get up, no need to wake me.”

         Jiang Cheng glanced at him, “You haven’t been late at all lately, must’ve been really hard on you.”

         “What can I do, it’s not my fault my boyfriend is an overachiever.” Gu Fei said. “Babee just suffers quietly on the inside, it’s not usually verbalized.”

         “Get outta here,” Jiang Cheng got off the bed and opened his wardrobe. “Let’s sleep, you can wear my pyjamas.”

         “You only have that one lone pillow right?” Gu Fei asked.

         “Mhm,” Jiang Cheng took out a set of pyjamas and tossed it to him. “You can take a blanket and roll it up.”

         “I’m not sleeping on that thing.” Gu Fei replied.

         “Then you sleep on the pillow, and I’ll sleep on the blanket.” Jiang Cheng said.

         “No.” Gu Fei said.

         “You want me to smack you?” Jiang Cheng looked at him.

         “I want it to be the same height, can’t have one higher than the other.” Gu Fei said.

         “What kind of bizarre rule is that.” Jiang Cheng threw the blanket on him. “You can make it the same height yourself.”

         “Alrighty!” Gu Fei stood up.

         When Jiang Cheng came back to the bedroom after washing up, he discovered his lone pillow had been moved to the desk. The spot at the head of the bed had been usurped by a blanket shaped into a long roll.

         “……What the shit?” Jiang Cheng was baffled.

         “Now it’s the same height,” Gu Fei clapped his hands together. “A couple’s pillow…… Do you have a toothbrush for me?”

         Jiang Cheng took out a toothbrush from the drawers and handed it to him, then looked at the bed again. If only he went ahead and bought a couple’s pillow that day. At the end of the day he was still too innocent, when buying bedding he never thought to question how many people will be sharing his bed.

         “Why isn’t this toothbrush in its packaging,” Gu Fei waved the toothbrush in front of his face. “Is it because Pan Zhi used it?”

         “It was a set of two, after I opened it……” Jiang Cheng stopped halfway through, and narrowed his eyes at him. “Yes you’re right it was used by Pan Zhi, it was too dear to throw away.”

         “That’s great,” Gu Fei said as he walked out the room. “So Pan Zhi, has a pretty good face, and personality wise, is even better than you……”

         Jiang Cheng didn’t answer. He watched Gu Fei go into the bathroom, then walked over and pulled the door shut.

         “Trying to lock me in the bathroom?” Gu Fei said from the other side as he laughed. “Do you overachievers all lack common sense, bathroom doors are usually locked from the inside.”

         Jiang Cheng smirked, “You slackers really do have poor perception skills.”

         Previously, this apartment was only occupied by the middle-aged landlady. And probably for safety…… He reached out and flicked a tab on the bathroom door handle, locking the door from the outside.

         Gu Fei’s voice suddenly stopped. This was followed by the sound of him jiggling the doorknob.

         “There’s a whole world for you to explore.” Jiang Cheng said leaning by the door.

         “The fuck?” Gu Fei knocked on the door as he continued to jiggle the doorknob. “You can’t be serious, what is this behaviour, it’s the middle of the night.”

         “A strike,” Jiang Cheng said. “For payback.”

         “I was wrong.” Gu Fei said immediately.

         “……What,” Jiang Cheng was amused. “Can you have a little more integrity please, don’t forget you’re the Mini Tyrant of the Steel Works.”

         “Can’t,” Gu Fei said. “I was wrong, Cheng-ge.”

         “Can you please follow the script,” Jiang Cheng said. “At least act tough and threaten me a little, and then beg for forgiveness?”

         “Cheng-ge I was wrong,” Gu Fei leaned on the door and gently tapped on it over and over. “Can you let me ouuut, I was wrong.”

         “……Have some grit will you!” Jiang Cheng said.

         “Will not,” Gu Fei continued to say in a pitiful tone. “I was wrong, I won’t get randomly jealous again, please let me out Cheng-ge.”

         “Wash up first, stop wasting time!” Jiang Cheng said. “Look at how late it is!”

         “Oh.” Gu Fei answered.

         Then came the sounds of his washing his face and brushing his teeth. Jiang Cheng went to his room and came back with his phone.

         “Cheng-ge,” After the water sounds stopped, Gu Fei’s voice reappeared behind the door, still woefully pitiful. “Cheng-ge, are you out there?”

         Jiang Cheng pressed record, and pressed his phone to the door, “Say that again.”

         “Cheng-ge I was wrong.” Gu Fei said.

         “The line before that, the really pitiful one.” Jiang Cheng said.

         “Cheng-ge are you ouuut there?” Gu Fei was very cooperative, he even scratched the door a few times. “Can you let me out pleeease.”

         “Let’s hear a little more of that begging, make it sincere.” Jiang Cheng held in his laughter.

         “I’m begging you Cheng-ge,” Gu Fei said in a small voice. “I won’t dare to do this again in the future, I was wrong, please let me out.”

         “Tell me, who are you.” Jiang Cheng said.

         “I’m Good Little Bunny.” Gu Fei said, still with the small voice.

         The fact that a persona like the one Gu Fei usually put up, with a face as cold as a flower on a high cliff that once dropped was enough to give one chills, could so naturally play cute like this…… It deluded him into thinking that perhaps Gu Fei had always been a delicate flower.

         Jiang Cheng almost wanted to go and touch Good Little Bunny’s head to see if there really was a little floret sticking out the top. After happily saving the recording to his phone, he opened the bathroom door, “I’m telling you……”

         He didn’t get to finish, when the door was suddenly yanked wide open by Gu Fei. Next, Jiang Cheng felt like a gust of wind rushed out, and before he was able to react, he already grabbed the phone out of his hand. Gu Fei then locked Jiang Cheng in his arms and bit down hard on his neck, “You even made a recording?”

         “The fuck?” Jiang Cheng was a little stunned. Where was the promised Good Little Bunny?!

         “Enjoying yourself aren’t you!” Gu Fei bit him again, then pushed him roughly into the bedroom. “Cheng-ge!”

         Jiang Cheng let out an amused giggle, “Shit, was I too careless?”

         “Way too careless!” Gu Fei pushed again, and shoved him straight onto the bed. He jumped onto Jiang Cheng, grabbed him, and started pelting him with kisses. “The bunny’s desperate for some meat.” 

         “Get out!” Jiang Cheng felt for his leg and pinched it. “Damn it quit fooling around, it’s too late. By the time we finish frolicking and clean up, you can forget about sleep tonight!”

         “Roger that,” Gu Fei instantly released him and got up. He picked up the pyjamas, and said as he started to change out of his clothes. “See, aren’t I great at turning it on and off at will.”

         Jiang Cheng lay on the bed and couldn’t stop laughing…… until he couldn’t laugh anymore. Once Gu Fei was stripped all the way down to his underwear, Jiang Cheng felt his breath hitch.

         But before he could get his visual fill, Gu Fei already pulled on the pyjama bottoms, so he could only stare at the waist and back. This time he only got a few glimpses before Gu Fei started to put the shirt on too.

         “Wait.” Jiang Cheng reached out his Er-kang hand.

         “Hm?” Gu Fei looked back, his hands paused in the middle of pulling his shirt down.

         This exact position…… he simply could not deal. Jiang Cheng stared at the back of Gu Fei’s waist — the only strip of shameless real estate on Gu Fei’s body aside from Gu Fei’s face that was still exposed to his view.

         “Don’t move.” Jiang Cheng said.

         “What’s wrong?” Gu Fei asked incredulously. 

         Jiang Cheng quickly pulled his hand back and felt below his nose. Fortunately, no nosebleed. Next, he sprung up from the bed and threw himself around Gu Fei, biting down on his waist.

         “AHH——” Gu Fei howled, and tried tugging on Jiang Cheng’s hair but wasn’t able to pull his head away, so he resorted to grabbing his shoulders and forcing it back. “Jiang Cheng did you ingest some fucking acid that burned down your brain or something!”

         Jiang Cheng ignored him and continued biting. His hand slid down, pulled down Gu Fei’s pants, and grabbed hold.

         “I……” Gu Fei’s body immediately tensed, his grip on Jiang Cheng’s shoulder also tightened. His other hand braced against the desk for balance. “Didn’t you say yourself that it’s too late and that after…… we still have to……”

         Gu Fei tilted his head back, sucked in a breath, and didn’t end up finishing the rest of the sentence.

         Jiang Cheng pulled him backward, and the two of them fell onto the bed with two hard thumps.

         Jiang Cheng even took a second in the midst of the shameless activity to reflect on the audible impact. He figured the bed was bound to collapse sooner or later.

         The hard-working citizens of this neighbourhood were more industrious than the residents around Li Baoguo’s home. They were earlier risers, and with louder voices too. If there were no special circumstances, Jiang Cheng rarely overslept.

         And yet, he overslept that day. After all, a bad-mood-induced late night conversation with his boyfriend followed by a most enthusiastic and energetic handshake certainly counted as a very special circumstance.

         Which was why when he opened his eyes and felt for his phone to check the time, he saw that it was almost the end of the first period.

         “Shit.” Jiang Cheng tossed his phone aside and closed his eyes. Late…… So he was late, oh well. It would be a little time-off for himself.

         After another few minutes spent in a half-awake daze, he reached back to feel around, when his hand touched Gu Fei’s butt.

         Gu Fei didn’t move, likely still sound asleep.

         Although…… Jiang Cheng propped himself up and glanced behind. He remembered when they fell asleep the night before, Gu Fei was wrapped around him in the so-called most popular spooning position. And yet when he woke up in the morning, the dude had his back to him.

         Tsk.

         Not sweet at all.

         Jiang Cheng grabbed his shirt and haphazardly threw it on before getting out of bed. He leaned close to look at Gu Fei again. To be honest, he had seen Gu Fei in his various different states, but he didn’t really have a chance to see Gu Fei when he was asleep, the way he was right then.

         Gu Fei was a rather solid sleeper, even his sideways position was very on point. Half of his face was buried beneath the covers, and his eyelashes rested quietly on his cheeks. Jiang Cheng watched for a while, and couldn’t resist the urge to reach out and touch his eyelashes.

         Gu Fei’s eyelid quivered, and Jiang Cheng drew his hand back. A few seconds later he reached over and touched it again.

         “Imma smack you.” Gu Fei said with his eyes closed and still buried within the covers, his voice was heavy with the dregs of sleep.

         “Crap,” Jiang Cheng grinned. “You’re awake?”

“You sir are so handsy, as if I even had a choice.” Gu Fei opened his eyes. “Staring at me first thing in the morning, did you notice any eye goop?”

         “No,” Jiang Cheng thought about it for a second, and immediately took a few steps back and rubbed his eyes. “Do I have any?”

         “Dunno,” Gu Fei said. “I didn’t get a chance to look.”

         “Are you getting up? It’s almost the end of the first period.” Jiang Cheng said as he started putting on his pants. “Why do you sleep with your back to me?”

         “Ayy…” Gu Fei turned over to lie flat on his back. “I was going to hold you, but you’re real fucking eccentric when you’re asleep. As soon as I reached over, you immediately gave me an elbow, almost broke my ribs. It’s a wonder I didn’t move to the sofa.”

         “No way?” Jiang Cheng blinked. “But I wasn’t like that the last time I slept at your place.”

         “No shit,” Gu Fei sighed. “I didn’t touch you back then, did I. And you were ready to fight me just for climbing over you.”

         “…… Come on come here, let Cheng-ge massage it for you.” Jiang Cheng reached out and touched Gu Fei’s flank.

         Gu Fei stretched out on the bed, “You go on first. If we’re late to school at the same time, then show up at the same time, you wanna bet the forum will implode today.”

         “Mmn,” Jiang Cheng smiled. “You’re enjoying this huh? Look, the forum imploded because of me, and I, am the drop-dead freestyle_handsome; I, am also the dashing hotness_overload.”

         “Dumbass.” Gu Fei laughed.

         Jiang Cheng hadn’t been in the best mood the night before, but it was soothed after the physical activity, and continued to rise when he saw Gu Fei after he woke up in the morning. As he walked out the door, he thought of Li Baoguo again, and his mood suddenly dropped. He quickly took out his phone and pulled up Gu Fei’s photo to take a hit……

         Jiang Cheng wrote his name down on the late register at the security guard’s post.

         “Jiang Cheng ah,” The guard took a look at him. “Top of the grade and you’re late?”

         “Uh huh,” Jiang Cheng answered. “Top of the grade also has days when he can’t wake up.”

         He entered the classroom just as the bell rang for the second period. Jiang Cheng sat down at his seat in the very last row. As his butt touched the chair, Zhou Jing turned around, “You’re a whole period late?”

         “Yeah,” Jiang Cheng said. “Great mathing there.”

         “You’re late?” Zhou Jing continued.

         “Yeah,” Jiang Cheng took out his books. “I skip class too.”

         Zhou Jing continued on, “You……”

         “Shhh,” Jiang Cheng put a finger. “Shut up or I’ll smack you.”

         Zhou Jing tsked unhappily and turned around. Then turned back not two seconds later, “Hey Jiang……”

         Jiang Cheng reached over and flicked his head hard.

         “Ah!” Zhou Jing covered his head. “Damn it, so vicious! I was just asking if there are mosquitos already!”

         Jiang Cheng looked at him, not quite understanding what he was talking about.

         “Your neck.” Zhou Jing pointed.

         Neck.

         What Jiang Cheng felt at this moment was an urge to leap up and silence Zhou Jing on the spot, permanently. 

         He didn’t even need to touch or see or think about it, just hearing the word was enough for him to understand what Zhou Jing saw!

         It was Gu Fei’s bite from the night before!

         He fucking bit him right on the neck!

         The dog-fucking bastard bit pretty hard too!

         It must’ve left a teeth mark!

         And due to his muddled mental state this morning, he didn’t even get to carefully inspect his own handsome face and handsome neck! 

         Oh fuck!

         “I guess.” Jiang Cheng said.

         “It’s only May……” Zhou Jing rubbed his head as he turned around, all the while still mumbling to himself. “Does your family keep a lot of flowers and plants or something……”

         Fortunately the second period is Lao-Lu’s class. He bellowed out as soon as he walked to the lectern, “ARE YOU ALL AWAKE YET!”

         Jiang Cheng could feel a whole bunch of lowered heads around him lift up at the same time. Zhou Jing’s memory was naturally also jumbled by the booming noise, and he let go of the mosquito bite.

         “COMMENCING CLASS!” Lao-Lu roared out.

         Jiang Cheng put his head down, took out his phone, and quickly turned on the front-facing camera. He pretended to be playing on his phone, and pointed the camera toward his neck.

         Fuck.

         There really were two obvious red dots left behind by Gu Fei’s fangs. The only consolation was that the round imprint had faded somewhat after a night’s rest, one couldn’t tell it was a ring of teeth mark unless they leaned in close.

         He took a photo of his neck and sent it to Gu Fei.

         – look what you fucking did!

         Gu Fei replied very quickly.

         – you have such a beautiful neck, boyfriend!

         – get out!!!!!

         – I have band-aids in my desk drawer, you can stick some on it

         Jiang Cheng put down his phone, and reached into Gu Fei’s drawer, and found a box of band-aids. He took out two, and while everyone around him was in a state of shock from Lao-Lu’s yelling, quickly opened them and stuck them onto the teeth mark.

         He picked up his phone and checked again, making sure there were no other mosquito bites, and finally let out a breath of relief.

         All the way until the end of third period, Gu Fei still hadn’t come to school. Jiang Cheng was just about to send him a message to ask if he’d gotten out of bed yet, when he heard girls screaming on the walkway outside.

         “My god I’m going crazy, is he crazy?!”

         “I think it looks really good, aaaaahhh it looks so cool! Don’t you think it’s cool!” 

         “Ahhh but I like the way he looked before!”

         “It’s not like his face is ruined, I think the way it looks pretty awesome the way it is now……”

         Jiang Cheng turned and saw a row of girls leaning over the railings looking down.

         “Who are they looking at?” Wang Xu was beside him. “What kinda cool person could this school possibly have, bunch of ignorant fools.”

         “I’ll go see,” Zhou Jing eagerly got up and walked out of the classroom. He leaned over the railing to look, then immediately whipped his head around. “Oh shit, Gu Fei!”

         “What about him?” Wang Xu blinked.

         “He shaved his head bald,” Zhou Jing said, then took another look. When he turned around he couldn’t stop laughing. “He’s standing on the field talking to Lao-Xu right now.”

         “Oh crap let me see,” Wang Xu immediately squeezed by behind Jiang Cheng. “Don’t we have school rules that say we’re not allowed to shave our heads bald……”

         “We have school rules?” Zhou Jing’s deskmate said, bewildered.

         Gu Fei’s hair… shaved off just like that. Gu Fei didn’t even mention it this morning when he left. Jiang Cheng sat unmoving on the chair, his insides were a little jumbled.

         It didn’t matter to him whether Gu Fei shaved his head or not. Based on Gu Fei’s attractiveness, as long as it wasn’t male pattern baldness on his crown, he could pull off just about any hairstyle.

         But the fact that Gu Fei was suddenly a baldy still left him in shock. Though after the shock he also wanted to laugh.

         He very much wanted to follow the crowd and lean over the railing to take a look, but the anxiety of being discovered overruled that desire. He ultimately decided to stay in his seat.

         Gu Fei was going to come up in a while anyway. Not only could he look, he could even touch, and kiss……

         He wondered how it would feel to kiss it.

         After a few minutes, when the bell rang for the next period, Gu Fei rolled in from the front door of the classroom with a baseball cap on his head.

         There was a chorus of whistling and desk-banging right as he stepped in, mixed in there were barely suppressed screams from the girls.

         Gu Fei slowly ambled up to Jiang Cheng’s side and sat down, his face blank.

         Jiang Cheng also kept his face blank. He could see a dark fuz showing from the edge of Gu Fei’s hat. Technically, he didn’t shave it off completely, it stayed very close to the scalp, but visually it had the same impact as a clean shaved head.

         “Gu Fei,” Zhou Jing bumped their desk, and turned around. “Hey Gu Fei, Gu……”

         Gu Fei pointed a finger at him. He stopped, then two seconds later continued, “Take off the hat so we can see, did you shave it all off?! What did Lao-Xu say?”

         “Go away.” Gu Fei answered simply.

         Zhou Jing tsked disappointedly and turned back around.

         Beside him, Gu Fei cleared his throat. Jiang Cheng twisted around to look at him.

         Gu Fei also turned and looked back at Jiang Cheng. The two of them stared blankly at each for a long time, then Gu Fei asked quietly, “What do you think.”

         Jiang Cheng collapsed on the desk with his face down, and burst out in laughter, he was practically coughing from laughing too hard.

         “Wait,” Gu Fei also hunched over the desk. “Is it that funny?”

         “Dunno,” It took Jiang Cheng a while to calm down. “You didn’t say you were going to shave your head this morning.”

         “I said yesterday that I was going to shave my head.” Gu Fei said.

         “A man of his words.” Jiang Cheng looked around, and detected quite a number of gazes directed this way. “Ayy, I was gonna ask you to take off the hat so I can see.”

         “You want to see?” Gu Fei touched the brim.

         Immediately there was a low level of commotion around them. Jiang Cheng shook his head, “Forget it, they’re all waiting to see.”

         “It looks pretty good.” Gu Fei said.

         “Then don’t take it off,” Jiang Cheng said in a low voice. “Let me take my time to appreciate it when we get back.”

         Gu Fei quirked a smile, “I think Er-Miao is going to touch it for at least half an hour tonight.”

         “Why did you decide to shave it off?” Jiang Cheng asked quietly. “Wasn’t it fine the way it was.”

         “That design,” Gu Fei took out his phone, slumped over his desk, and swiped at it. “Didn’t want to keep it anymore.”

         “I never asked you,” Jiang Cheng considered for a second. “That music note you had, was it a set with the one on Ding Zhuxin’s ear?”

         “……Something like that, we got it together.” Gu Fei said hesitantly. “It’s been a pretty long time, just never changed it.”

         “Oh,” Jiang Cheng said quietly. “When you were in a band together?”

         “Mhm,” Gu Fei nodded, then gave him a look. “You’re actually……”

         “What?” Jiang Cheng asked.

         “Not jelly?” Gu Fei said.

         “Huh,” Jiang Cheng blinked. “Oh shit, I forgot.”

         Gu Fei giggled at his phone screen.

         Jiang Cheng tsked audibly and didn’t say anything.

         When it came to jealousy, he simply blinked and forgot to be jealous. It could be because at this point in their relationship, with everything he felt when he was with Gu Fei, there simply wasn’t room for jealousy.

         But once he remembered it, he felt like he might as well not let the jelly go to waste.

         Even though it wasn’t a couple thing, it was still a unique connection between Gu Fei and Ding Zhuxin. When he thought of it that way, Jiang Cheng was suddenly a little peeved in the same manner as “even Lao-Xu knew you drink tea but I don’t”.

         A couple thing. 

         It was frankly kind of childish. He’d always thought these things were silly and only enjoyed by people in grade school. But now…… he peeked at Gu Fei. He felt a strong urge to leave his mark somewhere on Gu Fei’s body.

         Tsk tsk.

         By an overachiever’s logical analysis, what he was feeling at the moment was known as the intense possessiveness that arose as a result of liking someone too much.