For He Wei, another shocking event happened today after Gu Yunchi’s willingness to participate in the activity. On the way to the elevators, he leaned close to Lu Heyang’s shoulder and said quietly, “I was just thinking that I could give up my room, sleep in the same room as you, and let Xu Ze have the large-bed room.”
“But you didn’t say it.” Lu Heyang glanced at him. “Aren’t you usually pretty quick with your mouth?”
He Wei was rendered speechless. He stammered a couple of times before answering, “I didn’t expect you to be faster than me.”
“Not necessarily,” Lu Heyang replied.
The remark left He Wei completely confused. After thinking about it for two seconds, he immediately understood. He grabbed Gu Yunchi and pointed accusingly at Lu Heyang, who had already stepped into the elevator.
“He’s actually this kind of person!”
“You got called out, so now you’re lashing out in embarrassment?” Gu Yunchi fanned the flames, asking calmly.
“Get lost!”
The two elevators stopped at the fifth floor at the same time. The alphas staying in twin rooms got off on this floor. As Lu Heyang walked toward the rooms, he looked back and saw that Xu Ze was walking at the very back.
Lu Heyang swiped the key card to open the door. After pushing it open, he did not walk inside. Instead, he held the handle and stood by the doorway, casually inserting the room card into the slot.
About three or four seconds later, Xu Ze reached the doorway. Apparently, he had not expected Lu Heyang to be waiting inside. His footsteps paused for a moment before he quickly stepped into the room and said at the same time, “Sorry.”
Lu Heyang smiled, closed the door, and asked, “What are you sorry for?”
Xu Ze was carrying his backpack and stood in front of the television, looking somewhat stiff and at a loss. He said, “I walked too slowly.”
“No.” Lu Heyang put his bag on the sofa and asked him, “Which bed do you want?”
Xu Ze took off his backpack and held it in his hand. He stared at the aisle between the two beds and said as calmly as he could, “Either is fine.”
“You sleep on the one by the window.” Lu Heyang unzipped his travel bag. “We’re eating at twelve. I’ll sleep for half an hour first.”
“Okay.” Xu Ze continued staring at the aisle.
Lu Heyang took his pajamas into the bathroom. After changing, he opened the door and came out. A series of banging noises came from the room next door—Room 503, the room with the broken water pipe. Someone should be repairing it now.
Xu Ze was sitting at the foot of the bed. Lu Heyang took out an eye mask and earplugs, glanced at his profile, and said, “If I don’t hear my alarm, please wake me up.”
“Okay.” Xu Ze’s tightly interlocked fingers relaxed. He stood up and pulled the curtains shut.
The curtains blocked the light very well, leaving the room dim. Lu Heyang asked, “Are you going to sleep too?”
Xu Ze sat down again at the foot of the bed and said, “I’m not sleeping.”
“Then you don’t have to close the curtains. I have an eye mask.”
“It’s okay.” In the darkness, Xu Ze’s voice sounded a little more relaxed. He said softly, “Get some rest.”
“Mm.”
Lu Heyang lay down on the bed and put in his earplugs, but he did not put on the eye mask right away. From his angle, he could see Xu Ze sitting at the foot of the bed beside him. He was not playing with his phone or watching TV. He was simply sitting there, completely still and very quiet.
The room was dark enough that there was actually no need for an eye mask, but after a while, Lu Heyang put it on anyway.
Xu Ze sat at the foot of the bed for more than half an hour. The room next door was still filled with banging and hammering, but he nevertheless took out his phone very quietly and checked the time. The teacher had sent a message in the group, telling everyone to get ready and come downstairs for lunch at twelve.
He stared at the screen until it went dark. Xu Ze put his phone back into his pocket and sat there for a while longer. Then he turned his head and looked at Lu Heyang, who was still sleeping.
He could not really see anything clearly, only the eye mask covering Lu Heyang’s face. Xu Ze stood up and walked over, his feet making no sound against the carpet. He reached Lu Heyang’s bedside and slowed his breathing, but his heartbeat seemed even louder instead. Even the hand he extended was trembling slightly.
Xu Ze gently patted Lu Heyang’s shoulder.
After waiting for two seconds without a response, Xu Ze withdrew his hand and spoke.
“Lu…”
He stopped after saying only his surname. His voice was a little hoarse, and Xu Ze suddenly felt his ears and face heat up uncontrollably. He reached out with his right hand again and patted Lu Heyang’s shoulder.
The very next second, Lu Heyang suddenly raised his hand and pressed it against the back of Xu Ze’s hand. Immediately afterward, he used his other hand to remove his eye mask and stared at him in the darkness.
Complete silence.
Even the renovation noises from next door seemed to disappear. Xu Ze instantly held his breath, instinctively sensing the danger of the now-awake Lu Heyang.
The two stared at each other for a moment. Lu Heyang moved his hand away, removed his earplugs, and said calmly, “Sorry. I thought something had crawled onto my shoulder.”
Xu Ze straightened up. His left hand unconsciously rubbed the back of his right hand before he answered, “It’s fine. The teacher told us to go downstairs for lunch.”
His phone alarm went off at that moment. Lu Heyang turned it off and then said, “Okay.”
Xu Ze went to open the curtains while Lu Heyang got up and stood beside the bed to change his clothes. Xu Ze looked out the window without turning around when he suddenly heard Lu Heyang say, “There’s a dim sum shop here that makes really good salted egg yolk buns.”
“Salted egg yolk buns?”
Xu Ze thought Lu Heyang had already finished changing, but when he turned around, Lu Heyang was still shirtless. Xu Ze immediately looked away and turned his attention to his own backpack.
“Yeah, but it’s a little far away, in the city.” Lu Heyang pulled on a T-shirt. “Yunchi and I went there last year. I don’t know if it’s still there now.”
Actually, they might not have been that delicious. At the time, he and Gu Yunchi had been trying to ditch their bodyguards, so they had ducked into a maze of winding alleys with one turn after another. In the end, they discovered that little, unknown shop. Maybe food just tasted especially good under circumstances like that.
Now that they had come to this city again, Lu Heyang suddenly remembered the incident, so he mentioned it, but it was really just something he brought up casually. More importantly, he felt that Xu Ze was far too tense. Although he did not know why, perhaps chatting with him could help him relax a little.
It was time to go downstairs. Lu Heyang picked up his phone and was about to leave when he heard Xu Ze ask, “That shop… which street was it on?”
He had not expected Xu Ze to take the initiative to continue the conversation. Lu Heyang thought for a moment and said, “I think it was called Jinqiu Street, but I can’t remember exactly which alley it was in.”
“Then, what was the name of the shop?”
Lu Heyang looked at him. This time, Xu Ze did not avoid his gaze. Instead, there was a hint of seriousness in his expression.
Lu Heyang smiled and answered, “I only remember that there was a ‘Le’ in the name. I forgot the rest.”
Xu Ze nodded and said nothing more.