When Lin Shiyu walked into the classroom, he was first hugged and checked from head to toe by Mao Silu and Shen Ziyi, then received friendly condolences from Tao Chen and Chen Xiaoxin. Even Li Zhong and Jin Yezhi called him to the office to ask about his illness, before he finally returned to his seat.

Mao Silu bounced over and sat down next to him, pushing a box of cookies towards him. “Shiyu, these are from Kai Kai to apologize to you.”

“There’s no need to apologize.”

“Of course he needs to apologize! He misunderstood you and even got angry at you.” Mao Silu shoved the box into Lin Shiyu’s hands. “Just take it.”

Lin Shiyu held the box, feeling that Ruan Zhikai didn’t misunderstand him, but Mao Silu insisted that he accept this apology gift. He had no choice but to put the cookies in his drawer and casually asked, “Why did he ask you to pass me this?”

Chen Xiaoxin chimed in, “Ruan Zhikai is socially dead.”

Lin Shiyu wasn’t very active online and hadn’t heard of this new term, almost getting scared. “What do you mean dead?”

Mao Silu explained, “Yesterday, Old Li played a video in class of you and Kai Kai holding hands in the office and complimenting each other.”

Lin Shiyu: “…”

That was too harsh.

A paper ball flew over and hit Lin Shiyu’s head.

Lin Shiyu, confused, picked up the paper ball and unfolded it to reveal a line of text.

[Wait for me at lunch.]

The concise and forceful font, with an inexplicable tone of wanting to be punched, clearly indicated that it was thrown by Zhong Qi.

After writing a few words, Lin Shiyu folded the paper back up. Looking around, he realized the distance was too far, and the aim wasn’t accurate enough.

He reluctantly handed the paper to Mao Silu. “Pass this to Zhong Qi for me.”

The paper was passed from hand to hand until it reached Zhong Qi with a reply of just two words: [Not waiting.]

The paper was passed back with another message: [You promised to support me this month.]

Returning it, Lin Shiyu wrote: [Stop it! When did I promise?]

Mao Silu accidentally saw the contents of the paper and was very curious. He added a sentence before passing it back: [Why is Shiyu supposed to support Zhong Qi?]

When the paper returned from Zhong Qi’s side, the top was Zhong Qi’s handwriting: [Do you want to see me starve to death?]

The second line was Ruan Zhikai’s wild and unrestrained handwriting: [Lin Shiyu, I apologize to you.]

Lin Shiyu: [Go ask someone else for a free meal.]

Mao Silu: [Kai Kai, be nicer to Shiyu in the future.]

Zhong Qi: [No.]

Ruan Zhikai: [Lin Shiyu! Don’t ignore me! I’m apologizing to you!]

The paper was passed around again.

Lin Shiyu: [I’m not ignoring you! I got it.]

Chen Xiaoxin: [Are you sure you want to pass notes so openly in Old Li’s class?]

Shen Ziyi: [Oh, Ruan Zhikai, you’re in for it today, making you kneel! Hahaha!]

Zhong Qi: [Lin Shiyu, don’t run after school, got it?]

Lin Shiyu: [I’m still not over it! Don’t bother me.]

Mao Silu: [Zhong Qi, just coax Shiyu, he’s easy to coax.]

Chen Xiaoxin: [I think Lao Li saw you guys, really.]

Shen Ziyi: [Coax him! Coax our Lin Bro!]

Ruan Zhikai: [Who’s coaxing?]

A hand reached over and picked up the note from Ruan Zhikai’s desk.

Ruan Zhikai froze, while the others tacitly turned their heads away, pretending not to see.

“Well, coax our Lin Bro.” Li Zhong leisurely read the note. “Oh, not bad, Ruan Zhikai, taking the initiative to apologize.”

Everyone listened as Li Zhong read the note, the note passers sitting up straight, and the onlookers suppressing their laughter until their faces turned red. Li Zhong threw the note back. “It seems that everyone is in good spirits in my class. Since you’re all so lively, each of you who participated in the chat room today will write a five-hundred-word report expressing your love for biology class, to be handed in to me before the end of class.”

Lin Shiyu, who had just recovered from his illness and returned to school, was already angry about being tricked into writing a report by Zhong Qi.

“Lin Bro, Lin Bro, Lin Bro.”

Shen Ziyi popped out from the corner, beckoning mysteriously to Lin Shiyu. Lin Shiyu looked around and saw Shen Ziyi jump up anxiously. “Hey, I am calling you! Come on, come on.”

After school, the classroom was bustling. Lin Shiyu didn’t understand why as he walked over to her. Shen Ziyi immediately grabbed his wrist, dragging him along. Mao Silu immediately squeezed in beside him. Before Lin Shiyu could react, the two of them were already clamoring and dragging him away.

“What’s going on?” Lin Shiyu was dragged all the way to the school gate, then pushed into a taxi. Shen Ziyi didn’t sit in the front passenger seat and insisted on squeezing in with them in the back. She pulled out three tickets from her backpack and waved them excitedly at Lin Shiyu. “Shiyu, look, I got something good for you.”

Beside him, the towering Mao Silu also squeezed in and enthusiastically said, “Student discount tickets for Happy Valley. It’s group tickets for three or more people, super cost-effective!”

“The weather is nice today, there’s not much homework, and Lin Bro just recovered from a minor illness. It’s the perfect time to go to the amusement park!”

“Roller coasters! Sun God Chariot! Freefall!”

“Stop.” Lin Shiyu was completely bewildered by the two of them who spoke as if they were one. “Why do we suddenly have to go to Happy Valley? And today isn’t even the weekend.”

Shen Ziyi didn’t care at all. “We should just go if we want to.”

“I still need to go to the hospital to see Gao Jie…”

“Oh, that fatty is fine, lying in bed all day eating three big bowls of rice.”

Lin Shiyu was completely overwhelmed by the two of them, but unfortunately, his phone rang at this moment. He struggled to take out his phone from his backpack and saw that it was Zhong Qi calling.

He was about to answer when Shen Ziyi acted faster than him, slapped his hand over and hung up his phone.

Shen Ziyi held his phone, looking serious. “No one is allowed to answer Big Pig’s phone today. If you answer one more, I’ll confiscate your phone.”

Lin Shiyu: “Are you guys fighting?”

“Just a little.” Shen Ziyi snorted. “Who let them treat you badly, misunderstand you, and be so annoying? They think they can do whatever they want just because they’re handsome. Who’s going to indulge them? Hey, Er Mao, you’re not allowed to answer calls from Ruan Zhikai, that idiot. Let them be anxious.”

Mao Silu nodded vigorously. “I absolutely won’t answer.”

Lin Shiyu was finally amused by their nonsense. He relaxed a bit and leaned against Mao Silu’s shoulder. After a moment of silence, he spoke, “You don’t need to comfort me, I’m not upset. He’s just worried about Gao Jie, after all. Gao Jie is his friend–”

“You’re his friend too.” Mao Silu looked at Lin Shiyu seriously. “You are. So Kai Kai shouldn’t have gotten mad at you, it’s his fault.”

Lin Shiyu looked down uncomfortably, nervously running his hand through his hair. Shen Ziyi interjected angrily, “Let me make it clear: I’m not friends with idiots like Ruan Zhikai and Zhong Qi. Lin Bro is my friend.”

“You can’t say it like that…”

“Why not?!”

“As long as they admit their mistakes and change, it’s fine.”

“No, I won’t listen!”

The two of them argued around Lin Shiyu. Shen Ziyi even reached out to hit Mao Silu, who quickly hid behind Lin Shiyu. Lin Shiyu almost got squeezed under the car seat by the two of them, but with one hand pressing on each side, they finally calmed down.

After the seventh call, Zhong Qi glanced at his phone, standing at the school gate.

Next to him, Ruan Zhikai’s call to Mao Silu also rang a few times before hanging up. The two of them stood on the bustling street, looking at each other in silence, then turned away.

Zhong Qi patiently waited for a while before making the eighth call to Lin Shiyu.

Fortunately, this time someone finally answered. Zhong Qi breathed a sigh of relief, about to speak when a noisy girl’s voice exploded on the phone. “Why are you calling?! You’re so annoying! Lin Bro is with me!”

“Shen Ziyi.” Zhong Qi tried to remain as calm as possible. “What are you doing with Lin Shiyu?”

“Playing! I brought my Lin Bro to Happy Valley to play. Hey—there’s no place for you, back off.”

The call ended, leaving Zhong Qi and Ruan Zhikai hanging on the side.

“Charge—”

The roller coaster roared down, looped several times in mid-air, then thundered down again. Shen Ziyi and Mao Silu shouted excitedly, while Lin Shiyu looked around curiously. It was his first time at an amusement park, and with friends. Everything looked fresh, and his mood gradually improved.

Shen Ziyi and Mao Silu dragged Lin Shiyu around to play. Since it wasn’t crowded today, they tried almost every thrilling ride. When they came down from the roller coaster for the third time, they went to line up for the drop tower.

“I told you it would be fun! I’ll be on their official website to find discount tickets. From now on, we can come here every day.” Shen Ziyi ate fries happily. “Later, we’ll go on the water ride, the splash will be big.”

Mao Silu showed Lin Shiyu the photos on his phone. “I took a lot of pictures, look.”

While eating fries, Lin Shiyu leaned over to look at the photos. Just as he was about to reach for another fry, his cap was suddenly hooked, and he was pulled away.

The three turned around to see Zhong Qi and Ruan Zhikai, two tall figures, standing behind them. Ruan Zhikai was sweating from the sun. “We almost turned the entire Happy Valley upside down looking for you guys! Damn, I’m so tired.”

Zhong Qi pulled Lin Shiyu over. Seeing his messy hair, reached out to smooth it down before speaking. “Why did you suddenly come here to play?”

“Hey hey hey, what are you doing? You’re acting too familiar with Lin Shiyu, touching him all over the place.” Shen Ziyi slapped Zhong Qi’s hand away and pulled Lin Shiyu back beside her, even holding his arm possessively. “Don’t touch him, it’s annoying.”

Zhong Qi said, “Let go.”

“No way!”

Zhong Qi reached out to grab him again, but Mao Silu quickly intervened. Just as they were about to board the last ride, Shen Ziyi dragged Lin Shiyu up the stairs, shouting triumphantly at Zhong Qi, “Big Pig, you specially bought tickets to come in and find someone. Tut tut tut!  The three of us have a group ticket. It’s so cheap, we won’t take you with us, we’ll just annoy you!”

Ruan Zhikai stood with his hands on his hips behind the railing. “Shen Ziyi, are you childish or what!”

Mao Silu followed Shen Ziyi, making faces at them. “We’ll just annoy you.”

“Mao Silu, you–”

Zhong Qi watched Lin Shiyu’s figure. Then after a while, he pulled down his backpack, and sat down on the bench on the sidewalk. He stretched out his long legs, took out his phone, and started playing games, obviously intending to wait for them.

Ruan Zhikai also sat down beside him, crossed his legs, and looked around boredly. The amusement park was cute, the children were cute, the toys were cute, only the two of them were not cute.

Ruan Zhikai asked, “Are you waiting for Lin Shiyu?”

Zhong Qi focused on playing the game on his phone. “Mm.”

No one asked him, so he muttered to himself, “Then I’ll wait for Er Mao.”

“Let’s ride on the next one!”

Shen Ziyi rushed ahead. Mao Silu pulled Lin Shiyu along behind him, running past Zhong Qi and Ruan Zhikai. They ran back and forth in front of them, but didn’t invite them to play. Lin Shiyu glanced back and said, “Why don’t you guys play together?”

 

Shen Ziyi turned around, grabbed him, and dragged him away with the help of others.

“Alright, take a break.” The three of them were stopped halfway by the other two. Zhong Qi handed Lin Shiyu a drink he had bought. “Have some water.”

Ruan Zhikai held up a box of fried chicken and offered it to them.

Shen Ziyi scrutinized them, snatched the drink and the fried chicken, and dragged Lin Shiyu away again.

The three of them went on the water rides twice, and their raincoats were useless. By the time they got off, they were soaked from head to toe. Lin Shiyu, with a flushed face from having fun, shook his wet hair and was stopped by Zhong Qi halfway, who handed him a tissue to wipe his face. “Don’t play with water. You just recovered from a fever.”

Lin Shiyu wiped his face with his sleeve, but Zhong Qi used the tissue to dry his face thoroughly. Shen Ziyi and Mao Silu stood nearby, dripping wet, watching them. After Zhong Qi finished, he straightened Lin Shiyu’s collar. Shen Ziyi couldn’t stand it anymore and grabbed Lin Shiyu’s hand. “What are you doing? Don’t delay us. Move aside.”

Zhong Qi threw the tissue into a nearby trash can and took a deep breath. “Shen Ziyi.”

“What are you yelling for?” Shen Ziyi rolled her eyes, and the three of them walked away again.

As the sun was about to set, the three of them finally took a break, sitting around a small flower bed, eating the ice cream Zhong Qi and Ruan Zhikai had bought for them. Shen Ziyi didn’t let those two sit with them. They sat on a bench across the sidewalk, watching the three of them whispering secrets.

“Brother Shiyu, you’re too soft-hearted. You don’t hold grudges. How is that okay?” Shen Ziyi lectured Lin Shiyu while eating an expensive ice cream cone. “You can’t pamper them. You also can’t forgive easily, understand?”

Lin Shiyu focused on eating his ice cream. Mao Silu was still a bit confused. “I don’t think Zhong Qi did anything wrong.”

“He made brother Shiyu unhappy, didn’t he? Remember Valentine’s Day? I still hold a grudge. Humph.”

Mao Silu nodded awkwardly. “Okay, I’ll remember that.”

Shen Ziyi started lecturing Mao Silu. “You just nod. You’ve known Ruan Zhikai for so long, and you never fix his bad temper. He snaps at everyone. Did he eat gunpowder or what? Is he the only one allowed to have a temper? I’ll tell you, our Brother Shiyu doesn’t bother to stoop to his level. Back when Brother Shiyu beat up those two seniors, everyone in school knew about it. Does Ruan Zhikai have that kind of record?”

Mao Silu cautiously explained, “Kai Kai was worried about Brother Gao. He was just anxious. He’s actually very loyal and good to friends.”

“Oh, so Lin Shiyu isn’t his friend? Fine, you tell Ruan Zhikai not to talk to Brother Shiyu anymore and not to bother him.”

“I-I didn’t mean that.” Mao Silu stammered, unable to find the right words, and awkwardly said to Lin Shiyu, “Shiyu, I’m sorry.”

Lin Shiyu felt they were making a big deal out of nothing, but since Shen Ziyi kept talking, he didn’t feel right saying anything else, so he ate his ice cream while listening. The more he listened, the more he found it funny yet slightly touching. It seemed like it had been a long time since someone tried to cheer him up and stand up for him.

A pair of shoes stopped in front of them. Zhong Qi squatted down, sitting on a small wooden horse that didn’t fit his size. Shen Ziyi immediately shouted, “Hey, who let you come over?”

“How long are you three going to ignore us?” Zhong Qi asked helplessly. Ruan Zhikai followed, and Mao Silu moved aside to make space for him. In the end, the five of them sat in a circle. The setting sun cast long shadows over their shoulders onto the empty stone path.

Shen Ziyi turned to glare at Ruan Zhikai, clearly holding a grudge. Ruan Zhikai, with nothing to say, sat cross-legged on the ground. After a long silence, he said to Lin Shiyu, “I misunderstood you. Sorry.”

He didn’t have to wait for anyone; he could have gone home directly. Following Zhong Qi around to find them and waiting so long was likely just to say these words to Lin Shiyu.

Lin Shiyu thought, ‘They are serious about this. Whether it’s happiness or mistakes.’

Not like himself, who always thought everything would pass, whether liked or disliked. He would just close his eyes and deal with it casually to avoid regret and sorrow.

He always dealt with himself that way.

“It’s okay.” Lin Shiyu said. Seeing everyone’s expressions, he emphasized, “Really.”

He felt his current life was much better than before and realized that deep down, he wanted friends. Not just for the simple joy in those small moments but also because, even in loneliness, misunderstanding, and sadness, he could gain a sense of reality that a solitary life couldn’t provide.

It was the feeling of gradually emerging from numb pain and decay into a real world.

 

Edited by: Jaisland

Proofreader: 

 

Support translation: