Chapter 6

Chapter 6

When Luo Qingshan woke up, it was still dawn.

He squinted his eyes and remained in a daze for a while before struggling to sit up on the bed, his head feeling as if it had been violently stirred by a wooden stick, causing him to grit his teeth in pain.

Luo Qingshan surveyed his surroundings and realized he was in a hotel room. He was shirtless with only a simple pair of underwear on. The greasy sensation from a hangover was missing, indicating that someone had helped clean him up.

A faint sound came from the bathroom, as if something had fallen. Luo Qingshan managed a difficult smile. "Darling, what are you doing? My head hurts so much... Damn, that damn karaoke place must have sold fake alcohol."

He carelessly tousled his hair and was about to pull back the covers when he heard footsteps coming from the bathroom.

"Brother, you're awake? Are you feeling unwell? Should I get you some water?"

Luo Qingshan paused in his movement, turning his head blankly. "Why are you here?"

Su Nian held a freshly washed cup in his hand. "Who else would it be?"

"My darling... Where's Pei Ran?"

"He left last night," Su Nian smiled. "I'll go get some water. You should hurry up and get out of bed, we have class this afternoon."

Luo Qingshan sat with his knees bent, forehead pressed against them for a long while before he could vaguely recall what had happened the previous night.

When he returned from the bathroom, Pei Ran was no longer in the private room, and nothing he said could convince him to come back.

The crucial point was...

Luo Qingshan couldn't resist glancing towards the bathroom again before scrubbing his face hard with his hands.

Damn, he seemed to have kissed Su Nian.

Fake alcohol ruins lives.

In Luo Qingshan's eyes, this was merely an accident, and after being annoyed for a while, he eventually forgot about it. His phone, which had been charging for hours, finally lit up, and he eagerly picked it up.

As soon as he opened WeChat, he couldn't help but laugh—he had sent Pei Ran over thirty voice messages last night, ranging from a few seconds to a full forty or fifty seconds.

Pei Ran must have been driven crazy by him.

Luo Qingshan sat cross-legged, typing away.

"Luo Qingshan: Hahaha, did my messages keep you up, darling?"

"Luo Qingshan: Why didn't you send me back to the hotel last night? [Pouting and patting belly in sadness]"

"Luo Qingshan: You're so heartless, not replying to any of my countless messages."

Su Nian brought over a glass of water, which Luo Qingshan took a sip from. "Thanks. How's your leg? Carrying me yesterday didn't hurt it, did it?"

"No worries, it's almost fully recovered." Su Nian smiled, revealing a dimple on his cheek.

After finishing his grooming, Luo Qingshan checked his phone again but still found no response. He couldn't help but frown.

As Luo Qingshan opened the bathroom door, Su Nian was standing right beside him, fussing with his fringe in front of the mirror.

Luo Qingshan began, "You didn't leave all night? Where did you...?"

The rest of his question was swallowed back as Su Nian suddenly leaned in, lifting his head close to Luo Qingshan.

Luo Qingshan hurriedly took a few steps back. "What are you doing?"

Su Nian pondered for a moment. "A morning kiss?"

Luo Qingshan's eyes widened slightly, his expression shifting from astonishment to shock. After a long while, he said, "Su Nian, are you still drunk?"

-

The sound of a phone ringing echoed in the room for nearly twenty seconds before the person under the covers stirred.

Pei Ran opened his eyes, taking a few seconds to detach himself from the dream he had just been in.

He picked up the call just two seconds before it would have hung up. Still groggy, all he managed was a single syllable. "Mm."

"Darling, it's me... Are you still sleeping? Oh, you don't have class today, right?" Luo Qingshan sounded energetic. "I have class in the afternoon. What do you want to eat? I'll bring it over for you."

Pei Ran replied, "No need."

"Yes, I'm going to send it over. What do you want?" Luo Qingshan looked around at the surrounding shops. "Did you see my message? Why aren't you replying? You didn't reply last night either. You're so heartless, not caring at all about your boyfriend..."

"Qingshan," Pei Ran interrupted him.

"Hmm?"

Pausing for two seconds, Pei Ran said, "Bring me a portion of wontons, please. Thank you."

"For what?" Luo Qingshan chuckled. "Isn't it my duty to get your meals for you…?"

Pei Ran hung up the phone promptly.

He rubbed his face and couldn't help but recall the dream from the previous night.

It was an utterly baffling dream. In the dream, he and Luo Qingshan were climbing a mountain when they encountered a landslide. He hid in a cave, and when he turned around, Luo Qingshan had transformed into Yan Zhun.

Yan Zhun in the dream had the same cold expression as in reality. He told Pei Ran not to be afraid, and they managed to survive until dawn.

Perhaps they had spoken about other things, but Pei Ran couldn't quite remember.

Just as Pei Ran finished washing his face, there was a knock on the dormitory door.

Opening the door, he saw Luo Qingshan lifting a plastic bag. "Shrimp wontons with a slight spicy kick and sesame oil. Are you satisfied?"

Pausing in his act of drying his face, Pei Ran turned back to the washbasin. "Come sit. I'll be right back after I freshen up the towel."

After settling everything, Luo Qingshan pulled over another roommate's chair and sat beside Pei Ran, propping his chin on his hand as he watched him eat.

Luo Qingshan loved watching Pei Ran eat. With excellent upbringing, even after a day of playing sports and being ravenously hungry, Pei Ran's table manners remained refined and graceful, a pleasing sight to behold.

So when Pei Ran put down his spoon and spoke of a breakup, Luo Qingshan still responded with a cheerful "Mm-hmm."

Seconds later, Luo Qingshan's smile froze on his face as he asked in disbelief, "What?"

"I said," Pei Ran repeated, "let's break up."

"Why?" Luo Qingshan could no longer muster a smile. Gradually straightening his back, he grew slightly flustered. "Darling, are you joking?

Pei Ran replied, "I wouldn't joke about this."

Luo Qingshan's Adam's apple bobbed, and it took him a long while to regain his voice. "Why? What did I do wrong? Did I upset you... because I didn't listen to you last night and drank too much? Or did I send too many messages and bother you...?"

As Luo Qingshan glanced out of the corner of his eye at the table, he suggested, "Perhaps you don't like these wontons?"

Pei Ran furrowed his brow in confusion. "I won't get angry over these things."

"I know, I know," Luo Qingshan licked his lips. "That's why I can't find a reason for you to be angry at all..."

"I saw it."

"What?"

"I saw it," Pei Ran paused briefly. "You and Su Nian, by the restroom door."

Just as Luo Qingshan was about to ask what was wrong with being by the restroom door, he felt as if a bolt of lightning had struck him, leaving him frozen in place.

Pei Ran continued packing up the wonton box. "In the three years we were together, you gave me a watch, a few backpacks, and seven pairs of sneakers... I've kept track of them all. When I go back home in a few days, I'll count them and transfer the equivalent value to you. Oh, how much was this bowl of wontons? Let me transfer the money to you now."

It wasn't until Pei Ran opened the WeChat payment interface that Luo Qingshan realized the gravity of the situation.

He instinctively reached out and held Pei Ran's wrist tightly.

"No..." Luo Qingshan struggled to gather his thoughts, speaking incoherently. "It's not like what you saw, listen to me, darling... You're saying that last night, last night, you were there too... I had quite a lot to drink, and my head was a bit dizzy..."

"So you kissed someone else," Pei Ran finished his sentence for him.

Luo Qingshan hastily corrected, "It's... No, it isn't. He was the one who initiated the kiss. It had nothing to do with me. There's not a single thread connecting us..."

Pei Ran continued, "I asked Lin Kang. After you returned to the private room last night, you were still playing dice with them."

Luo Qingshan's words were cut short, leaving him staring at Pei Ran in confusion.

"You even got one of them drunk to the point of incoherent rambling and acting wildly, but that happened later," Pei Ran stated calmly. "So when you kissed Su Nian, you weren't excessively drunk. You had enough strength to push him away if you wanted to."

Luo Qingshan was on the verge of losing it. "That really was an accident! I never expected him to kiss me. Before I could react, it was already over!"

Pei Ran pursed his lips. "Su Nian's social media is filled with your pictures."

"That's his own wishful thinking. I never accepted his confession!"

At the mention of 'confession,' Pei Ran's gaze dropped.

After Su Nian's confession, Luo Qingshan hadn't distanced himself from the other party. Instead, he'd invited him to his birthday party and spent time alone with him.

Perhaps it was due to the immense shock he experienced last night, but he felt unexpectedly calmer now.

"Qingshan," Pei Ran sighed. "Luo Qingshan, let's break up."

Qingshan's eyes reddened instantly.

He clenched his teeth, remaining silent for a long while before he replied, "No, Pei Ran."

"You can't break up with me over something so trivial," Qingshan muttered. "I became gay because of you. You're the one who made me fall in love with men. You can't do this to me."

Pei Ran's back stiffened.

"I studied my ass off just to attend the same university as you. I turned down so many girls, and I even severed a finger for you," Qingshan continued.

The image of Luo Qingshan covered in blood resurfaced in Pei Ran's mind, causing his face to turn pale.

Pei Ran didn't pay much attention to what Qingshan said afterward. It took him a great effort to pull himself away from that gory scene.

"Pei Ran... I really like you," Qingshan said. "I know I messed up last night. I was drunk, please forgive me... I promise it won't happen again. I'll block Su Nian the moment I get home, and I'll never touch alcohol again. Please forgive me, okay?"

Pei Ran gazed at him in silence.

Just as Luo Qingshan thought he was about to soften, Pei Ran abruptly averted his gaze and tightly tied the plastic bag in front of him.

"I'm truly grateful that you helped me get rid of those people back then," Pei Ran spoke slowly, enunciating each word. "I'll pay you back five times the medical expenses, alright?"

"Or if you ever need help in the future, you can come to me. I'll assist in anything within my power, even lending you money," Pei Ran continued with a gentle tone. "Let's break up, Luo Qingshan."

Luo Qingshan returned to his dormitory with a dozen beers.

Upon opening his third can, his roommate finally gave him a glance.

Yan Zhun closed his battle royale game and stood up to place the gift on Luo Qingshan's desk, saying calmly, "Happy birthday. This is for you, a belated present."

"Thanks," Luo Qingshan muttered, casting a sidelong glance at the gift box. It was the latest model of a high-end earphone brand – not cheap.

He was somewhat surprised. After all, his relationship with Yan Zhun wasn't particularly close. He hadn't expected this person to give him such an expensive gift.

Luo Qingshan took another swig of beer. Wiping his mouth, he suddenly asked, "Lin Kang mentioned that you went out with Pei Ran last night? Was he... in a terrible mood? Did he say anything to you?"

Yan Zhun halted his steps. "Why do you ask?"

Luo Qingshan felt as if his mind was in a haze. Yan Zhun and Pei Ran were practically strangers, and with Pei Ran's character, he wouldn't share anything personal with him.

"It doesn't matter," Luo Qingshan leaned back and let out a long sigh.

Yan Zhun asked, "What's wrong?"

Luo Qingshan didn't notice the unusual tone of concern in his roommate's voice.

"I had an argument with Pei Ran," Luo Qingshan scowled. "He even mentioned breaking up... Damn it! It's all Su Nian's fault!"

A barely perceptible quirk of Yan Zhun's brow was the only sign of his reaction. After a long pause, he said, "It's alright, the next one will be better."

"There won't be a next one," Luo Qingshan grumbled. "I'll apologize to him once he cools down."

Yan Zhun didn't respond. He returned to his computer and opened the WeChat message he just received.

"Bu Zhongyao: Dad, you're really not playing? Alright then, we'll play together next time. Carry me to a higher rank."

"Buzhong Yao: No! Next time you log in, call me right away! I'll be at your service anytime, Daddy!"

"Zhunle: Drag me in, I'm still online."

"Buzhong Yao: ???"

"Buzhong Yao: Didn't you say you weren't playing anymore, Daddy? I'll drag you in right away."

"Zhunle: In a good mood, I'll play a couple more rounds with you."