On Saturday, Sun Zhuoyu woke up early and got both Mao Xin and Lu Ze out of bed as well. Mao Xin yawned endlessly. “It’s only six o’clock… Do we really need to get up this early?”
Sun Zhuoyu pushed him into the bathroom. “You two need to dress up properly, especially you—don’t dress too casually.”
Mao Xin laughed. “Brother Yu, you’re the one confessing, not me. I’m just here to make up the numbers.”
Sun Zhuoyu clicked his tongue. “Even so, you still need to look sharp.”
Leaning against the wall with his eyes closed, Lu Ze was barely awake. Sun Zhuoyu called to him from below the bed. “Master, please wake up already.”
Lu Ze, still drowsy, muttered, “…I’m handsome even without dressing up. If I do, I’ll steal your spotlight.”
Mao Xin burst out laughing while Sun Zhuoyu pointed at him angrily. “You’re so arrogant just because you’re good-looking!”
Lu Ze chuckled and finally opened his eyes. He grabbed his phone to check for messages but saw none from Liang Xiao.
They had agreed to meet at the school gate, but he wasn’t sure if Liang Xiao was awake yet.
After washing up, Lu Ze sent a message: [Xiao-ge, are you up?]
Liang Xiao replied: [Yes.]
Lu Ze smiled and texted: [Yu Zi says we should dress sharply.]
Liang Xiao: [Ok.]
Lu Ze stared at the “Ok” and laughed for a while. He had only been joking, but Liang Xiao seemed to take it seriously—almost like treating him as a client.
Lu Ze: [Have you had breakfast? Want me to bring you something from the cafeteria?]
Liang Xiao: [Sure, thanks.]
Lu Ze mimicked him: [You’re welcome. Soy milk or milk?]
Liang Xiao: [Soy milk.]
Lu Ze: [Got it.]
Despite claiming he wouldn’t dress up, Lu Ze didn’t go too casual either. He wore a loose printed T-shirt, white casual pants with side stripes, comfortable dad sneakers, and topped it off with a baseball cap.
As he walked out with Sun Zhuoyu, the latter sighed. “Good thing we don’t like the same type of person; otherwise, what chance would I have?”
“You just like older women,” Mao Xin teased.
“Exactly…” Sun Zhuoyu paused and then looked at Lu Ze suspiciously. “Wait a minute—Liang Xiao is older than you too! Since when do you like people older than you?”
Lu Ze spun his phone in his hand. It was true that he usually liked girls his age or younger, but maybe it was different with guys… He thought about it seriously for a moment before suddenly realizing something was off—when did he start liking guys?
Shaking his head with a smile, Lu Ze began whistling a tune.
·
Meng Qian and her friend were still getting ready and said they’d eat in their dorm before meeting up. The three guys had breakfast at the cafeteria while Sun Zhuoyu nervously rehearsed his confession plan again.
After buying breakfast for Liang Xiao, Lu Ze returned to find Sun Zhuoyu still rambling on nervously. Smiling, Lu Ze said, “Relax. The senior likes you too—you don’t need to be so tense. Just focus on having fun during the day.”
“Ze-ge, is this for your boyfriend?” Mao Xin asked.
“Yeah.”
“So thoughtful.”
Lu Ze clicked his tongue. “You make it sound like I wasn’t thoughtful before.”
Mao Xin lowered his voice. “Your previous partners were all girls. I thought having a boyfriend would be different from having a girlfriend.”
Lu Ze paused for a moment. “What’s so different? It’s the same.”
In truth, he wasn’t sure if it was the same or not. After all, a relationship was a relationship—any differences wouldn’t be too significant.
Lu Ze sighed inwardly, feeling that ever since breaking up with Han Jing, many unexpected things had happened. Despite all his past relationships, he had never imagined he’d one day have a “boyfriend.”
The group gathered at the school gate, and Liang Xiao arrived by taxi. As soon as he got out of the car, everyone froze—even Liang Xiao himself paused for a moment.
Standing just a few steps away, Lu Ze looked at the incredibly handsome and cool Liang Xiao in his loose T-shirt, casual pants, sneakers, and baseball cap. He was practically…
“Damn! Couple outfits!” Mao Xin exclaimed on Lu Ze’s behalf.
“You two are too much,” Sun Zhuoyu said as he scrutinized them. “We know you’re a couple—you didn’t have to make it so obvious.”
Liang Xiao walked closer and said, “We… didn’t plan this. It’s just a coincidence.”
“That’s quite the coincidence,” Meng Qian said with a laugh.
“Exactly,” Sun Zhuoyu added. “What are the odds of something like this?”
Lu Ze snapped out of it, coughed lightly, and changed the subject. “You haven’t met Senior Meng’s friend yet, right?”
Meng Qian quickly introduced her friend. “This is my friend Lu Xuan. You don’t need to call me ‘Senior.’ Just use my name.”
Lu Xuan greeted Liang Xiao briefly, and then Sun Zhuoyu’s pre-booked car arrived. The group got into the car: Mao Xin sat in the front passenger seat; Sun Zhuoyu and the two girls took the middle row; Lu Ze and Liang Xiao sat in the back.
After getting into the car, Lu Ze handed Liang Xiao his breakfast and whispered, “I don’t think I told you what I planned to wear today, did I?”
“No,” Liang Xiao replied. “You just told me to dress up.”
Lu Ze chuckled. “That’s amazing.”
Liang Xiao opened the plastic bag to find pan-fried buns and soy milk inside—it smelled delicious.
“Is that enough?” Lu Ze asked.
“It’s enough.”
Lu Ze helped him take out the soy milk. “I bought it after eating myself—it’s still hot…”
He rummaged around for a while. “Damn it—no straw? I asked for one! How are you supposed to drink this…”
“No problem—I have one,” Liang Xiao said.
“You carry straws?” Lu Ze asked in surprise.
Liang Xiao nodded and brought his black bag from behind him to the front. “I think I have some.”
He rummaged through his bag and indeed pulled out a row of straws. Lu Ze stared at him in shock. “Why do you even carry straws with you?”
Liang Xiao smiled faintly and patted his bag. “It’s my treasure chest.”
Lu Ze gave Liang Xiao a thumbs-up and whispered in his ear, “Professionals really are different.”
As they rode in the car, the group chatted about which rides to try first, while Liang Xiao quietly ate his breakfast, not joining the discussion.
Lu Ze nudged him with his knee. “Xiao-ge, you’re not afraid of heights, are you?”
Liang Xiao shook his head. In truth, he used to be a little afraid of high-altitude rides, but over time, he overcame it since many clients invited him to amusement parks. At most, he’d feel a bit dizzy, but he couldn’t let the clients end up taking care of him.
After finishing his food, Liang Xiao took out a wet wipe to clean his hands and mouth. Lu Ze curiously eyed his bag. “What else do you have in there?”
“Everything,” Liang Xiao replied. “Anything you can think of.”
Lu Ze laughed. “Doraemon, huh?”
He realized he preferred this version of Liang Xiao—the lively one sitting right next to him—rather than the cold and distant one behind a phone screen.
Sliding down slightly in his seat so that his knees pressed against the seat in front, Lu Ze asked, “Do you have earphones? I want to listen to some music.”
“I do.”
Liang Xiao pulled out a pair of earphones from his bag. Lu Ze said, “Our phones aren’t compatible. Let’s just use yours.”
“Alright.”
Liang Xiao plugged in the earphones and handed one earbud to Lu Ze. “What do you want to listen to?”
“Your playlist is fine,” Lu Ze replied.
Liang Xiao opened his playlist, and Lu Ze leaned over to take a look, raising an eyebrow. “All English songs?”
“Yeah,” Liang Xiao explained briefly, knowing Lu Ze was an English major. “My English isn’t great; I don’t understand the lyrics—just enjoy the melodies.”
Lu Ze laughed for quite a while. “That’s interesting… Some Chinese song lyrics are awkward for you?”
“Yeah.”
They fell silent after that, quietly listening to the music through the shared headphones. Lu Ze rarely spoke English—it wasn’t necessary and often came across as pretentious. But now, without realizing it, he hummed along with the song in English.
It was the first time Liang Xiao heard Lu Ze speak English. Although Liang Xiao wasn’t fluent himself, he could tell that Lu Ze’s pronunciation was precise and sophisticated—and his singing voice was beautiful too.
Sun Zhuoyu turned around to glance at them. “Tsk, listening to music together?”
“Mhm,” Lu Ze hummed in response.
Sun Zhuoyu’s tone turned sour. “I brought headphones too—who wants to listen with me?”
Meng Qian chuckled. “I’m listening with Xuan Xuan.”
“I’m not interested,” Mao Xin said flatly.
Sun Zhuoyu sighed dramatically, and Lu Ze teased him with a smile: “Isn’t listening alone just as nice?”
Sun Zhuoyu glared at him over his shoulder. “Why don’t you two listen alone then?”
“He’s using my headphones,” Liang Xiao said calmly.
“Fine!” Sun Zhuoyu handed over his own headphones. “We have the same phone model—use mine instead!”
Lu Ze couldn’t stop laughing so hard that one of his earbuds fell out. Liang Xiao calmly put it back on for him and said to Sun Zhuoyu, “He’s not used to other people’s headphones.”
Meng Qian and Lu Xuan burst into laughter from the front row.
“Ugh!” Sun Zhuoyu turned back angrily.
Lu Ze glanced sideways at Liang Xiao and thought: Xiao-ge, you’re really something else—definitely worth every penny of your paycheck!
