Chapter 14: The Back-to-School Gift

By the time the two of them lay down beneath the covers, the lights had already been turned off for a long time.

Ji Xu lay on his side facing the window.

A sliver of streetlamp light leaked through the gap in the curtains, casting a thin, bright line across the floor.

His breathing was steady.

However, he knew Rong Du was not asleep either.

The breathing frequency of the person beside him differed from his own.

It was slightly faster than his, carrying a subtle rhythm unique to someone who was awake.

A faint breeze from the air conditioner circulated inside the room.

It gently rustled the edge of the thin blanket up and down.

Rong Du turned over.

The bed mattress springs let out a soft creak.

He turned to face Ji Xu’s direction, extending an arm onto the bedsheet beside Ji Xu’s waist.

His fingertips rested less than an inch away from Ji Xu’s back.

“Ah Xu.”

His voice sounded lower in the dark than during the day, carrying a faint rasp of weariness.

Ji Xu turned over as well.

The two lay side-by-side facing each other, separated by half an arm’s distance.

In the darkness, their outlines were mere blurry silhouettes.

Yet the warm airflow of their breath could be clearly felt.

Once Ji Xu’s eyes adapted to the dark, he could see Rong Du’s eyelashes fluttering slightly.

His gaze was fixed right on him.

“Sorry, Ah Xu,” Rong Du said, his voice dropping even quieter.

“I won’t be able to accompany you to school tomorrow.”

“Things have been busy at the company these past two days, and I couldn’t get leave.”

Ji Xu blinked in the dark.

In truth, he had already guessed this outcome.

Over the past couple of days, Rong Du had been leaving early and returning late.

Every time he returned, his shirt was soaked with sweat.

He worked overtime at the company until eleven or twelve at night before coming back.

“It’s fine, I can go by myself,” Ji Xu said with a smile.

His smile was invisible in the dark night, yet the warmth in his voice could not be hidden.

“I’m not a kid anymore who needs someone to walk him to school.”

What he did not say out loud was that he had actually gone through almost all major moments in his life alone since childhood.

When entering elementary school, other kids were escorted right to the classroom door by their parents holding their hands.

He had carried his own backpack alone, following the teacher’s instructions to find his seat.

When moving and transferring schools in middle school, he was also the one hopping off the bus with his luggage.

He had stood in front of the unfamiliar school gate for a long time before bringing himself to walk inside.

On the morning of the college entrance exam, it was raining.

He walked into the test site holding an umbrella.

While others were surrounded by parents repeating “don’t be nervous,” he sat alone on the steps at the end of the hallway waiting to enter, listening to raindrops hitting the tin roof.

He was used to all of this.

He was accustomed to the person he needed being absent whenever he needed someone.

Rong Du was different.

Rong Du was the very first person in his life who made him feel that “having someone around is truly nice.”

Yet precisely because of this, he did not want to make things difficult for Rong Du just to keep him company.

Rong Du fell silent in the darkness.

Then, his arm reached across, wrapping around Ji Xu’s waist to pull him closer into his chest.

Ji Xu yielded to that force and leaned into him.

Their foreheads met, their noses overlapped, and Rong Du’s breath brushed across his upper lip.

Then Rong Du buried his head into his shoulder nook, his forehead pressing against his collarbone while his nose rubbed against the skin of his neck, slowly and deeply inhaling.

The suppressant patch was still stuck onto Ji Xu’s gland.

He had put a new one on after taking a shower last night.

That thin layer of gel sealed the pheromones away thoroughly.

Rong Du had to lean in to almost zero distance to catch a tiny, faint hint of sweet honey scent seeping from the edge of the patch.

That faint, lingering scent hovered around the tip of Rong Du’s nose.

It was like a delicate trace of floral fragrance wafting from a distant garden, impossible to catch yet impossible to fade.

Ji Xu’s shoulders stiffened for a split second.

His hand hovered mid-air, his eyes staring at the ceiling, his mind racing through countless thoughts.

Sleeping in each other’s arms was far from being a first.

Ever since Ji Xu’s very first night in Haicheng, they had slept in the same bed.

Almost every morning when Ji Xu woke up, he was inside Rong Du’s arms.

Yet those were things that happened naturally after falling asleep—groggy, unconscious, half-dreaming and half-awake.

To be pressed so closely together like right now, with both of them wide awake, eyes open, and heartbeats clearly audible, made Ji Xu suddenly feel at a loss for where to place his fingers.

Leaving his hand at his side felt wrong.

Resting it on Rong Du’s back felt too heavy.

Dangling it mid-air felt even more awkwardly bizarre.

He felt Rong Du’s forehead pressing against his shoulder.

The warm airflow of his breathing brushed rhythmically over his neck.

He could hear Rong Du’s heartbeat through two thin layers of T-shirt fabric.

It beat steadily and powerfully.

Yet his breathing rhythm was slightly deeper than usual, as if he were intently and focusedly drawing something out of Ji Xu.

Ji Xu’s wrist moved slightly.

In the end, he lifted his hand and rested his palm on the back of Rong Du’s head.

Rong Du’s hair felt soft and fine between his fingers.

He curled his fingers to gather that small section of hair, gently stroking it, as though soothing a large animal using him as a bolster.

“I’ll come visit you often,” Ji Xu said softly, his voice slightly muffled since half his face was pressed down by Rong Du.

His fingers slid down the back of Rong Du’s head to the nape of his neck.

There lay a small patch of warm skin.

Betas had no glands, feeling smooth and flat to the touch.

Rong Du’s body tensed up for less than a second under that touch before relaxing once more.

“Mm,” Rong Du’s voice came out from his shoulder nook, muffled with a slight nasal tone.

The two of them held each other like that, neither saying another word.

After an unknown period, Ji Xu felt Rong Du’s breathing turn smooth and long.

The head resting on his shoulder slowly sank down a bit further.

He tilted his head slightly, using the light leaking through the curtain gap to check Rong Du’s side profile.

His eyelashes were closed, his lips slightly parted; he had already fallen asleep.

Ji Xu gently pulled his arm out from beneath his neck.

He pushed him slightly onto the pillow so he could lie down more comfortably.

Rong Du knit his brows in his sleep, but did not wake up.

Ji Xu lay back down, watched him on his side for a moment, and then closed his eyes as well.

When Ji Xu woke up in the morning, the other side of the bed was empty.

Morning light flooded into the living room through the window, bathing the floor in a warm wooden glow.

When Ji Xu rubbed his eyes and walked into the living room, his footsteps suddenly paused.

Three white boxes were arranged neatly on the dining table.

Square and clean, one large and two small, set side-by-side on the tabletop.

The large one was the packaging box for a laptop, flat and wide.

Among the two smaller ones, one was of regular dimensions—a tablet box.

The other, narrower and flatter, was a smartphone box.

The paper shells of the three boxes glimmered with a soft matte finish in the morning light.

Pressed underneath them was a light yellow sticky note.

Ji Xu walked over and picked up the paper note.

Rong Du had beautiful handwriting.

It was the kind of vigorous, clean running script that his middle school language teacher used to praise.

The strokes carried a serious, meticulous elegance.

Only four words were written on the note: Back-to-school gift.

Ji Xu’s throat suddenly felt a bit tight.

He set the note down and reached out to open the narrowest box.

Inside lay a new smartphone.

The screen still bore the factory protective film.

The phone casing featured a smooth white back.

The fresh scent of new electronics blended with the paper pulp smell of the box.

He then opened the boxes for the tablet and laptop.

Every single item was brand new, perfectly packaged, and the latest model on the market.

Adding all these things together would easily cost nearly twenty thousand yuan.

Ji Xu sat on the chair in front of the dining table, staring at the neatly arranged boxes before him while thoughts churned in his head.

How much was Rong Du’s monthly salary?

After rent, utilities, and food, there wasn’t much left over.

How long did he have to save up to pull out such a sum of money all at once for these items?

Ji Xu recalled that light blue short-sleeved shirt Rong Du had worn for who knows how long.

He remembered those old sneakers with worn-down soles.

He remembered that calm face whenever Rong Du said, “I have some savings.”

He picked up his phone, opened his chat box with Rong Du, and hovered his fingers over the screen for a moment.

He typed out a line: “These things are way too expensive.”

Then he deleted it, retyped it, and hit send.

The reply came back swiftly, so fast it seemed Rong Du had been holding his phone waiting for his message all along.

Rong Du’s chat bubble popped up, and when Ji Xu saw the words, the bridge of his nose stung again.

“It’s a gift for Pretty Little Ji, no matter how expensive, it’s worth it.”

A few seconds later, another message came through.

“Rest assured, I still have this bit of money, don’t worry.”

Ji Xu stared at those two lines of text.

He lowered his head, pressed the phone against his chest, and took several deep breaths to suppress the surging emotions within.

He picked his phone back up and typed out an “Alright then,” followed by a tiny, cute emoji sticker of a chubby rabbit rolling around while holding a heart.

He added another line: “Rong Du, you really are the best.”

After sending it, he set the phone down and carefully carried the three boxes back into the bedroom.

The laptop and tablet were tucked into the padded compartment of his backpack.

He swapped his SIM card into the new phone.

When he turned it on, the screen lit up.

The morning Haicheng sunlight shone onto the pristine screen glass, reflecting a bright arc of light.

He transferred the important data over from his old phone.

His fingertips slid across the smooth touch interface of the new device.

After swiping a few times, he stopped, set the phone down, and lifted the suitcase he had already packed last night.

He treated himself to a rare luxury and did not crowd onto the bus, choosing instead to hail a ride via a ride-hailing app.

When the car pulled up at the entrance of the alley, he dragged his suitcase and got inside.

The driver was a Beta uncle.

He glanced at his luggage and asked if he was going to school.

Ji Xu nodded, and the uncle enthusiastically struck up a conversation.

He shared that his daughter was also attending university in another city, coming home only twice a year, and that her mother cried every time she left.

Ji Xu leaned against the car window and listened.

His gaze traced the Haicheng cityscape slowly receding outside the glass.

The plane trees lining both sides of the road shone a vivid green under the sunlight.

Electric scooter riders zipped past the window, and the Chinese roses in the flowerbeds were in full bloom.

When the car pulled up right in front of the main gate of Shangnan University, Ji Xu got out.

He raised his head to look up at the magnificent school gate.

The gate was a deep gray stone structure.

Engraved upon it in large golden characters were the four words: “Shangnan University.”

Ivy crawled halfway up the pillars on both sides of the gate, shining a luminous green beneath the midsummer sun.

Numerous people were already bustling in and out at the entrance.

Some were dragging suitcases, some carrying bedding, others holding storage boxes.

Freshmen and parents stood together in crowds.

Some held department orientation signs at the entrance to welcome new students.

Others kept their heads down looking at phone maps to find their way.

Ji Xu stood there looking up for several seconds, the corners of his mouth slowly curling up.

He pulled out his new phone from his pocket, snapped a photo of the school gate, and then dragged his suitcase inside.

The Literature Department of Shangnan University was located in that grayish-white academic building in the East Campus.

Ji Xu followed the road signs to find the freshman registration tent.

He signed his name on the form and collected his dorm key alongside his campus ID card.

His dormitory was located in Building No. 7.

The exterior walls were painted a warm cream yellow.

Light gray floor tiles paved the corridors, while the elevator doors gleamed with bright reflections.

He dragged his suitcase into the elevator and pressed the fourth floor.

The hallway was quiet.

groundwater was freshly mopped, still carrying a damp scent of disinfectant.

A list was posted on the door of Room 404.

Printed upon it were two names: Ji Xu, and another roommate he had not yet met.

He pushed the door open.

The dorm room was larger than expected.

Two beds were arranged on opposite sides of the room, both featuring a bed-over-desk layout.

The desks were spacious, with bookshelves at the head of the beds.

Beside the bed stood an independent wardrobe and storage locker.

Ji Xu placed his suitcase beside the empty bed near the window.

He pushed the window open.

The breeze outside blew in, carrying the crisp scent of grass from the direction of the sports field and the faint aroma of food from the distant dining hall.

He climbed up onto his bed.

He smoothed out the mattress topper he brought, fitted the bedsheet, and stuffed the duvet core into the cover.

He moved nimbly through the entire process, finishing the setup in less than twenty minutes.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, he kicked his legs slightly.

The bed frame was solid, not wobbling in the slightest.

He pulled out his new phone.

He snapped a photo of the window view looking out from his bed.

Then he took another photo of the freshly made bed and clean desk, picking a nice one to send to Rong Du.

Just as the message sent, a flock of pigeons happened to fly past the window.

Their white wings fluttered and sparkled beneath the sunlight.

He jumped down from the bed and stood beside the window, watching the pigeons fly farther and farther away until they merged into Haicheng’s bright blue skyline.

The phone vibrated.

Rong Du’s reply popped up: “Looks nice. Ah Xu’s new nest.”

Seeing the word “nest,” Ji Xu smiled, finding it strangely cute.

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