Chapter 25 Is My Roommate’s Wrist Really That Soft?

Chapter 25: Is the Roommate’s Wrist This Soft?

Bypassing the subway commute with a single thought, Lin Jianyuan headed straight home.

It was almost ten o’clock, and the temperature was no longer as sweltering as during the day.

The residential area had grown quiet, with cicadas chirping from every tree along the way.

Sparse evening stars dotted the night sky. Dragging his tired body upstairs, Lin Jianyuan took out his keys.

The key slid smoothly into the lock.

He expected to hear the familiar "You're back," but when he pushed the door open, he found the apartment completely dark.

Was his roommate not home?

Click. Lin Jianyuan turned on the light, and the cold fluorescent light illuminated the rented room.

The window was closed, the air conditioner was off, and the room had a stagnant feel, as if it hadn’t been aired out all day.

Lin Jianyuan casually placed the things he brought back on the table and went inside to grab clothes to shower.

The weather was too hot, so Lin Jianyuan took a cold shower.

The cold water washed away the sweat and his fatigue.

As he squeezed body wash into his palm and rubbed it haphazardly over himself, a sudden odd thought crossed his mind.

He glanced around.

The small shower was dimly lit. The shelf on the tiled wall held simple items: a large bottle of shampoo, a large bottle of body wash, and a bar of soap.

Everything here was his. He hadn’t seen any of his roommate’s things.

Suspicious, he picked up the shampoo, hefted it, and put it back. He did the same with the body wash.

The weight didn’t seem to have changed since the last time he used them.

The soap was the same. It looked like no one but him had used it.

Had his roommate not used his things? Then what did his roommate use to shower?

The more Lin Jianyuan thought about it, the stranger it seemed.

He quickly rinsed off the foam, grabbed a towel, and stepped out of the shower.

A lone toothbrush cup sat by the sink, with a toothbrush inside.

The toothpaste tube was flattened and tossed aside. It was a struggle to squeeze out every time—time to buy a new one.

Lin Jianyuan noticed there were none of his roommate’s personal items on the sink. Or by the washing machine or towel rack. The entire bathroom only had Lin Jianyuan’s toiletries.

What was going on?

…Could it be that his roommate made a point to put his things away after every use?

That was just too weird!

Lin Jianyuan was baffled and momentarily speechless.

Whatever, he wasn’t going to dwell on it. It wasn’t the first time his roommate had been odd.

He had his own mental problems anyway—who was he to judge others?

Lin Jianyuan haphazardly dried himself, pulled on a pair of underwear, and walked out while drying his hair.

As soon as he left the bathroom, he heard a familiar voice.

"I’m back."

Lin Jianyuan paused drying his hair and responded casually, "Yeah."

"What’s this?" In the living room, the pink intestines approached the dining table, its attention caught by the potted plant on the table.

Lin Jianyuan: "A perk from work. The dish you made last time, that vegetable was really good, so I just snagged a plant from the office. Next time you make it, you can pick fresh leaves."

Fresh mint leaves should make the dish taste even better, right?

"Ah." The roommate’s tone was amused, its soft intestines coiling around the potted plant as if examining it with interest. "Your company’s perks are really weird."

"Okay, actually, it wasn’t given by the company. I swiped it," Lin Jianyuan said. "A colleague in the office was growing it. I once had a sudden idea to soak it in chrysanthemum and Cassia seed tea, and it grew like crazy."

The entire office wall was almost covered. The place was turning into a tropical rainforest.

Roommate: "Chrysanthemum and Cassia seed tea?"

Lin Jianyuan: "It’s tea made with goji berries, chrysanthemums, and Cassia seeds. Good for the eyes."

Roommate: "Oh."

Lin Jianyuan was mostly done drying his hair and was about to go into his room when the roommate suddenly said, "Wait."

Lin Jianyuan turned around and saw the intestines pulling a phone out of the gallbladder.

Lin Jianyuan felt as if he’d been struck by lightning.

How could a gallbladder even fit a phone?

Wait, more importantly, who the hell stores their phone in their gallbladder?!

Roommate: "Add me on WeChat?"

The intestines waved the phone in front of him.

…The intestines are so soft.

The way the intestines waved the phone around was like sea anemones drifting in the deep sea. The whole scene was just bizarre.

The thought that the sea anemones—no, the intestines—weren’t just intestines but his roommate’s hands made it even stranger.

Is the roommate’s wrist this soft? So good at swaying.

Lin Jianyuan went into his room to get his phone and added him on WeChat.

The roommate’s phone looked new at first glance, but upon closer inspection, it was an old model from years ago.

Ding. The new friend request was accepted.

Lin Jianyuan: "OK."

Roommate: "Are you going to sleep?"

Lin Jianyuan: "Yeah, getting ready to sleep. What's up?"

"Then sleep well, good night." The roommate tucked the phone back into his pocket, sat down at the dining table, and began playing with that potted plant.

For some reason, the lively ivy at the company becomes as quiet as a mouse once it gets home.

Even when Pink Sewer poked its leaves with a finger, all the leaves curled up like a mimosa.

The entire potted plant trembled violently as if it had Parkinson's disease.

Lin Jianyuan looked at the plant and then at his roommate.

He felt that the roommate who stored his phone in his pocket was a bit more imaginative.

The air conditioner in Lin Jianyuan's room had been fixed. He walked into the already cooled room shirtless and instantly felt refreshed, with all his pores tingling.

Comfortably lying on the bed, Lin Jianyuan pulled the blanket up to his navel and played a few rounds of Candy Crush on his phone.

After getting tired of playing, he casually opened his social media feed.

Pei Shuo went to play badminton tonight and posted a selfie of his buddy and him with arms around each other, smiling brightly.

Qin Shi went out for a fancy meal with her bestie, accompanied by a nine-photo spread of beautifully plated food, with one photo in the middle showing her and her friend giving a peace sign in front of a table full of delicious dishes.

Neither of the girls showed their faces; only their neatly trimmed fingers were in the shot.

Lin Jianyuan had quite a fondness for unpainted nails—slender, clean, with a faint pink hue, looking very healthy and vibrant.

Jiang Chen reposted: "People born in the Year of the Monkey will have a prosperous career this month, and working overtime will bring surprises!" What an idiot. He ignored it immediately.

Another post from Jiang Chen: "Top Ten Office Feng Shui Taboos, Repost to Revive Your Projects!" Why does this idiot talk so much nonsense?

Yet another from Jiang Chen: "Goal for the second half of the year: triple the performance! Let’s charge ahead, wolf pack team!"

Lin Jianyuan: "..."

Enough already.

Lin Jianyuan's anger flared up again. He directly clicked on Jiang Chen's profile and blocked him from his social media feed.

Wait, let’s check the roommate’s. He still didn’t know which university his roommate attended or what he was studying.

Lin Jianyuan opened the chat history. The roommate’s username was XY, with a default gray silhouette as the profile picture, standing out awkwardly among the diverse array of contact avatars, making it very easy to spot.

Quite a character, Lin Jianyuan thought as he clicked on the roommate’s profile.

There was no option for a social media feed.

Lin Jianyuan: "Huh??"

For a moment, Lin Jianyuan was confused. He swiped back to the main interface and clicked on someone else’s profile.

Pei Shuo’s social media feed thumbnail appeared on the screen.

Suspiciously, Lin Jianyuan clicked back into the roommate’s profile. Still the same.

Other people’s profiles showed:

"Friend Info"

"Friend Permissions"

"Social Media Feed"

But the roommate’s only had the first two.

There was absolutely no "Social Media Feed" option!

Lin Jianyuan froze for a second before it dawned on him.

The roommate had blocked him.

The roommate had added him on social media but hadn’t granted him access to the feed.

So he couldn’t see the roommate’s social media posts.

...Damn. Seriously? Was he really that wary of him?

What, did the roommate think he had ulterior motives or that he was just annoying?

Lin Jianyuan felt incredibly irritated and thought that bringing the potted plant back was a stupid idea.

Late at night.

Lin Jianyuan had long turned off the lights, with only the indicator light on the air conditioner still glowing.

Moonlight crept in through the window, gently illuminating his soundly sleeping face.

He slept sprawled out, wearing only a pair of briefs, with most of his body exposed, save for a corner of the thin blanket covering his navel.

A red, shadowy figure arrived as scheduled, skillfully climbing onto Lin Jianyuan’s bed.

Squeeze Toy: "."

Little Stone: "."

With a gulp, a python-like maw swallowed Lin Jianyuan’s head whole.

With teeth carefully retracted, the digestive system happily began its nightly meal.

Today’s Lin Jianyuan was full of energy, his negative emotions gushing out like a geyser, his resentment so strong that even a passing dog would get slapped twice.

The throat contracted, and the digestive system let out a pleased sigh from deep within the esophagus.

It was really starting to love this flavor—so delicious, and there was plenty of it. Best of all, it didn’t have to search for it; every night, it could just enter the room, open its mouth, and eat.

So satisfying.

"Mmm... mmm..." The digestive system enjoyed its meal, so pleased that even its body began to sway.

"Is it stomping its feet because it’s so tasty?" Little Stone whispered.

Squeeze Toy sharply commented: "Just eat, why make such lewd noises? Pervert!"

Little Stone: "Keep it down, that’s the Evil Domain we’re talking about. Don’t let it hear us..."

Fortunately, the digestive system was too immersed in the joy of eating to care about the two little toys gossiping in the corner.

For some reason today, Lin Jianyuan was radiating particularly heavy negative energy.

The digestive system gulped noisily, dense, intense emotions pouring down the esophagus like viscous honey, flooding into the stomach.

The gallbladder and pancreas nestled limply together, while coiled intestines squirmed and churned continuously.

Only the duodenum stuck up like a little tail, swaying playfully.

Drowsy.

It rarely felt "sleepy." Maybe today it had eaten too much.

Just like humans. What was that called again? Food coma.

Haaah—

It yawned, smacked its lips a few times, and finally, reluctantly, spit out the tasty lollipop.

Sleepy.

The digestive system plopped right on top of Lin Jianyuan.

Its soft, tender liver pressed against Lin Jianyuan’s chest, while its curling intestines wormed under the blanket, snuggling against the human’s warm insides, separated only by a thin layer of abdominal muscle.

This could be considered a little perk for the lollipop.

The weather was hot, and Lin Jianyuan liked to sleep while cuddling it.

“Haaah—” The digestive system yawned again, its soft, slender esophagus slowly stretching out, looping around Lin Jianyuan’s neck.

The human’s Adam’s apple was like a small lollipop. Just as it was about to mouth this little lollipop and drift off peacefully, Lin Jianyuan suddenly shoved it away!

Digestive system: “?”

Little Stone: “Yikes! Is he awake?”

Squeeze Toy: “Doesn’t seem like it? Not sure, let’s see.”

The digestive system wasn’t sure either, so it leaned in for a closer look. Lin Jianyuan’s eyes were still tightly shut, his brow slightly furrowed, his hands shoving it clumsily toward the edge of the bed.

Lin Jianyuan’s breathing was even, his heart rate steady—he didn’t appear to be awake.

But he kept pushing it away. After pushing, he even rolled over, turning his back to it.

Like he was grossed out and didn’t want to touch it anymore.

Digestive system: “.”

The digestive system crouched at the foot of the bed. Motionless, lifeless, like a heap of actual guts.

Little Stone: “Whoa! Is Evil Domain pissed?!”

Squeeze Toy: “Oh no, oh no… quiet means trouble’s brewing…”

Squeeze Toy and Little Stone shivered and clung to each other, scared.

Sure enough, the next second, the silent digestive system abruptly erupted, its intestines snapping down like vines!

The strike was swift and heavy, whistling through the air. Yet, the direction of the lash wasn’t toward Lin Jianyuan—but—

The air conditioner on the wall?!

Squeeze Toy and Little Stone gawked in disbelief.

What blew their minds even more was yet to come—the digestive system’s strike could have smashed the AC to bits, but it didn’t!

The intestines stopped just 1 millimeter away from the AC unit!

Cold air blew steadily; the air conditioner, clueless it almost got wrecked, kept dutifully blowing air up and down.

Little Stone: “What’s going on?”

Squeeze Toy: “How should I know… Holy crap, Lin Jianyuan?!”

Little Stone was startled and quickly turned to look at Lin Jianyuan.

It thought Lin Jianyuan had woken up, but the scene before it was even more shocking.

Lin Jianyuan rolled over, his arm landing right on the digestive system’s liver.

Probably feeling the cold, Lin Jianyuan frowned in his sleep and jerked his arm back a little.

But this time, he didn’t push the digestive system away in disgust.

Instead, he yanked the blanket.

He clutched the thin blanket; Lin Jianyuan pulled it over, covering half of the digestive system’s organs.

His arm rested on the digestive system’s liver and pancreas, his thigh slung over, squishing down on the coiled-up intestines.

The soft intestines were still slowly writhing, their chilly mucous lining seeming to chill him again.

So he crooked his ankle.

Just like that, he tugged over another part of the blanket, covering the digestive system entirely.

Lin Jianyuan remained sound asleep throughout.

Just like that, in his sleep, he hugged the digestive system close and bundled both of them up cozy under the blanket.

Digestive system: “.”

Squeeze Toy & Little Stone: “…………”

The pink intestines hovering 1mm from the air conditioner gradually withdrew, all the way back under the covers.

The Class S heretic “Evil Domain.”

Just like that, it was soothed with a blanket.

Little Stone: “This is weird.”

Squeeze Toy: “Something’s off!”

The Class S heretic couldn’t be bothered with what the Class A losers were muttering.

Feeling cheerful, it decided to celebrate by having another nibble.

Its soft, cool esophagus coiled around Lin Jianyuan’s throat once more.

No matter how much Lin Jianyuan resisted and pushed, it didn't let go of him.

"Mmm..." Feeling discomfort in his sleep, Lin Jianyuan could only furrow his brows, his throat bobbing slightly.

A delicious little lollipop slid across his tongue.

The digestive system felt as if its lining was getting goosebumps.

The experience was so incredibly delightful that the digestive system couldn't help but wrap around the little lollipop, gulping it down greedily.

Sucking and sucking. Suddenly.

*Crack.*

It stopped eating.

Squeeze Toy: "Why does this look familiar?"

Little Stone: "Don't even say it - me too..."

The two stress-relief toys watched uneasily from the bedside as the pervert heretic, which had been sucking and nibbling at the human’s Adam's apple, slowly raised its throat.

The human’s Adam's apple, reddened from the sucking, was slick with digestive juices, his neck and chin shimmering.

The more the two stress-relief toys watched, the more familiar the scene felt.

Sure enough, the next second, the digestive system opened its mouth wide and shoved its own intestines down its throat.

Digging and digging, digging and digging.

It pulled out a black crystal from deep in its throat.

Digestive System: "..."

Squeeze Toy & Little Stone: "..."

The digestive system fell silent.

The digestive system stared at the crystal.

The digestive system decisively threw the crystal away.

And went back to sucking on the lollipop.

A few seconds later. *Crack.*

It turned and spat it out.

A few seconds later. Another *crack.*

Digestive System: "………………"

Squeeze Toy & Little Stone: "..." Too scared to speak!

The digestive system, repeatedly interrupted during its meal, was really pissed this time.

Furious, it snatched up the black crystal it had spat out and tossed it into its mouth, chewing it angrily, crunch-crunch.

The black crystal was completely crushed! Pulverized!

The digestive system finally turned its "head," gaping in disbelief at the person who was dead asleep, cuddling most of its organs in his arms.

"Friend Circle?!"

...Your human world is so complicated!

Digestive System: (Pissed) First I need to get a phone! Then set up WeChat! And after adding you, I still have to turn on Friend Circle!

So damn annoying!