Chapter 15 An Unremarkable Special Admit

Chapter 15 An Unremarkable Special Admit

At ten-thirty in the evening, Pu Yu had just finished writing today's review report on "The Black Rose Campus."

He wrote it with great care and detail. After finishing, he reviewed it from start to finish, checking his wording to ensure it was objective and tactful, fearing that "The Cat Who Doesn't Eat Fish" might react poorly.

Only after completing this did he check his phone. There was a message from Mrs. Pu sent over an hour ago: "Don’t forget to give the nutritional supplements to Xiao Song."

Knowing that Mrs. Pu was also a night owl and likely still awake, he replied: "I gave them to him."

Mrs. Pu responded quickly: "Aren’t you asleep yet?"

"In a bit."

Their conversation was brief.

Mrs. Pu said: "This child is quite well-behaved and quiet. Don’t be too distant. Your mother doesn’t mean anything by it; having more friends is always good."

Pu Yu thought about Ning Song playing games with Pu Ying and then about Ning Song around Qiao Qiao.

He wasn’t that well-behaved or quiet.

He was only quiet in front of them.

But he still replied to Mrs. Pu: "Mm."

After replying, he thought of Ning Song and sent him a message.

He wasn’t jealous of Ning Song’s friendship with Qiao Qiao. He genuinely meant what he said about milk and fruits being bad for Ning Song, as they could be harmful to someone with a weak constitution, especially at night.

Ning Song was clearly one of those very frail individuals.

He had never seen such a thin and weak boy before.

He had looked at the nutritional supplements Mrs. Pu gave while in the car; they were already rich in nutrients.

Yet, Ning Song didn’t even know who he was.

He was sensitive, particularly when it came to interpersonal relationships. Ning Song felt distant from him, a natural estrangement. The sweet, ingratiating smile never reached his eyes, and Pu Yu could see through it.

They were brought together by their loving mothers, but how could they become friends?

He didn’t need any friends; chatting with an online cat was enough.

Even though he knew the cat flirted with him just for fun and didn’t have genuine feelings for him.

He felt conflicted about his subtle affection for the cat, not because it was inappropriate, but because the internet felt too unreal. In reality, many people liked him, yet he remained indifferent, choosing instead to develop feelings for someone he barely knew online. It seemed absurd and strange.

He wasn’t sure if this vague feeling counted as affection, as sometimes it made him feel restless.

As he pondered this, he received a text from Ning Song.

"Thank you, Little Fish, for your concern."

Seeing these words, he almost thought he had switched to the wrong page.

After confirming the message was from Ning Song, his blood surged with a strange shock.

He read it over and over, even checking the game forum.

Then he sent Ning Song a question mark.

But Ning Song didn’t reply.

So he sent another question mark.

Ning Song went completely silent.

This left Pu Yu restless, feeling unusually unsettled.

He switched back to the game forum and looked at his chat history with "The Cat Who Doesn’t Eat Fish," stopping at their conversation from the afternoon.

The other person had said: "Visiting a less familiar mute colleague’s home."

When Ning Song fell asleep, he started running a fever by midnight.

His first reaction was, damn, the medicine was useless.

Ning Song had experience with illness, not just from coming here but from his time in high school after leaving the orphanage. He lived in the dorms and worked part-time during holidays. Once, due to exhaustion, his health deteriorated. He suffered from food poisoning one night, vomiting and having diarrhea, unable to go to the hospital. The pharmacy delivery app showed no open pharmacies, so he endured until morning, in pain and alone in the dorm. He feared he might die alone.

When the pharmacy opened at eight, he limped there to buy medicine. It wasn’t raining, but it was snowing heavily. Midway, he vomited again and couldn’t get up from squatting on the ground.

He didn’t know why he dreamt of these things, but as he woke up groggily, he heard his phone vibrating.

Qiao Qiao was calling him.

As soon as he answered, he heard two loud knocks on the door.

Dizzy, he got out of bed and opened the door for Qiao Qiao.

Qiao Qiao glared at him: "Are you sick?!"

Ning Song, with burning eyelids, saw Master Pu at the door.

He coughed twice and said: "I’m a bit feverish."

As soon as he finished speaking, Qiao Qiao's hand was already on his forehead.

"Holy shit, it's so hot!"

"I'll go to the infirmary in a bit," he said.

He noticed Pu Yu staring at him and glanced back.

Pu Yu saw the fever-reducing medicine on his desk and asked, "Have you taken your medicine?"

"Yeah," Ning Song replied, "but it's not very effective."

Ning Song put on his clothes, and as soon as he moved, he started coughing. His chest felt tight, and every cough sounded like a heavy wheeze. Qiao Qiao was genuinely alarmed and supported his arm, fearing he might faint.

Ning Song remained calm: "It's fine; I always get like this when I have a fever."

Pu Yu followed behind, locking the door for him. "Do you want to be carried or should I carry you?"

This time, both Ning Song and Qiao Qiao were startled.

Qiao Qiao supported Ning Song and turned to look at Pu Yu, who seemed serious.

"I can walk myself," Ning Song panted, "I'm not that weak."

"You're barely catching your breath," Pu Yu said, "The infirmary is either by the office building or between dorms two and three, quite far away."

Hearing Ning Song's labored breathing, Qiao Qiao felt his hair stand on end, fearing Ning Song would suffocate any second. "Why don't you let him carry you? The drains downstairs are clogged with water, it's freezing."

Ning Song noticed their wet shoes and pant legs.

Seeing Ning Song's silence, Pu Yu reached out to carry him, but Ning Song quickly stopped him. "Carry me, then. Carry me."

How did Pu Yu become so assertive!

Pu Yu responded with a "Hmm" and squatted down in front of him.

When Pu Yu actually picked Ning Song up, his heart truly trembled.

Because Ning Song was so light.

So light that Pu Yu's heart softened, feeling even more damp than the rainy campus.

He found Ning Song pitiful.

Ning Song's chest felt tight, and he tried to turn his head when he coughed, not wanting to spit on Pu Yu's face.

The rain had temporarily stopped, leaving a chilling dampness. The white poplars looked defeated. Ning Song, used to being alone, found this care strange. Pu Yu was slim but had broad shoulders, holding his calves steadily as he walked. Looking at Pu Yu and Qiao Qiao, Ning Song inexplicably recalled his dream of lying in the snow yesterday, thinking how fortunate he was compared to his past life.

As they descended the stairs, they encountered Chen Mo.

Chen Mo paused upon seeing Pu Yu carrying Ning Song, but quickly regained his composure and asked, "What's wrong with Ning Song?"

"Fever," Pu Yu replied.

Together, they took Ning Song to the infirmary near the office building. As they entered, Qiao Qiao noticed a school bus parked at the entrance of the office building.

Several boys stood up inside the bus, wearing formal gray suits instead of Upper East School uniforms, some with dark blue ties. They were getting off the bus, chatting and laughing while carrying their bags.

He saw Jin Yang jump off the bus first from their class.

Had they returned from their exchange trip to the European Federation so soon?

"President, tell the principal about the flooding when it rains!" Jin Yang shouted as he landed.

Whenever Ning Song had a fever, he easily developed pneumonia, which required at least two to three days of intravenous treatment. Feeling drained and weak, he lay on the hospital bed and said to Chen Mo, "I can manage on my own; you don't need to stay here. Isn't it almost time for class?"

There was only one cello class today, but it was nearly time for it to start.

"I'll stay here. Class monitor and Brother Yu should go back to class," Qiao Qiao said.

"That works," Chen Mo said, looking at Pu Yu.

Pu Yu added, "I've already called Teacher Chen and Teacher Jiang to ask for leave."

Teacher Chen taught their cello class, and Teacher Jiang was in charge of their sophomore year.

Qiao Qiao: "..."

No wonder he heard him making a call outside earlier.

Pu Yu looked at him: "Go to class. I'll take him back later. Qiao Qiao can't carry him."

"I can carry him! He's so light!" Qiao Qiao protested angrily.

Chen Mo smiled slightly and said to Pu Yu, "Call if anything happens."

He and Qiao Qiao left together, and it started drizzling again outside, misty and foggy.

He asked Qiao Qiao, "How did Pu Yu come with you?"

"He was already downstairs when I arrived," Qiao Qiao explained, worried Chen Mo didn't know about Ning Song and Pu Yu's relationship, "Aning's parents work for the Pu family; they know each other."

Chen Mo responded with a "Hmm" and didn't say anything else.

"It's raining again outside?" Ning Song asked.

Pu Yu pulled the blanket up for him and responded with a "Hmm."

Ning Song felt that today's Pu Yu was strangely different.

"Qiao Qiao, how did you pull him over here?" he said.

"I sent you a message yesterday, but you didn't reply. I was worried and came to check on you. I just happened to run into him."

Pu Yu looked at him; his pupils were very dark, and that face was indeed delicate, with truly sharp eyebrows: "Did you see the message I sent?"

"No," Ning Song touched his pocket with one hand. "I left my phone in the dorm. What did you send?"

Pu Yu said, "You called me Xiao Yuer (Little Fish) yesterday."

Ning Song: "!!! Really? Did I?"

Pu Yu: "Was it a mistake?"

Ning Song coughed awkwardly, and Pu Yu placed his hand on Ning Song's chest.

"It might have been a mistake. You sent the message when I was about to fall asleep. I might have mistaken you for a friend of mine."

"What kind of friend?"

Ning Song glanced at Pu Yu, "An online friend."

Pu Yu's eyes suddenly sparkled strangely. From where he lay, he could see the mole below his Adam's apple, a very tempting mole. As his Adam's apple moved, the mole seemed to half-hide under his collar, almost showing but not quite.

It made him want to bite it.

Pu Yu hummed, and the rain outside grew louder. Pu Yu felt a damp joy.

He hadn't intended to develop anything further with "Xinxin de mao" (A Cat That Doesn't Eat Fish). Similarly, he had no special feelings for Ning Song. But now that they were the same person, Ning Song became very special to him.

He looked down at him. Ning Song still seemed a bit unfamiliar and awkward, so he closed his eyes and turned slightly to the other side, saying, "I'm too tired. I'll take a nap."

"Sleep," Pu Yu said, "I'm here."

After saying this, Pu Yu lowered his head, feeling a pulsating excitement.

Ning Song really fell asleep. He didn't know how long he slept, but he woke up once in the middle. Pu Yu asked him what he wanted for lunch and went to get it.

He wasn't very hungry and said he wanted some porridge before falling back asleep. In a daze, he heard voices, and someone pulled back the curtain beside his bed. He vaguely saw the outline of the person.

He couldn't make out what they were saying, only feeling the light dazing him, so he reached up to cover his eyes. His face was small, but his hand was thin and long, almost covering his entire face except for his rather pointed chin.

"Ning Song, how are you doing?"

He moved his hand, adjusting to the light, and saw a face full of spring warmth and sunshine.

He was surprisingly refined and handsome, with round-rimmed gold glasses framing a pair of phoenix eyes. When he smiled, his lips and teeth seemed to carry the fragrance of a young man, as if the spring rain had just subsided, and the sunlight was warm and gentle.

"Author's Note"

Easter Egg: Shen Lingsi's glasses were covered in raindrops. He pursed his pale lips and suddenly reached out to pinch Ning Song's chin.