Chapter 39: A Rude Awakening

As the movie reached its climax, the male protagonist on screen confronted the main villain.

There wasn’t any thrilling fight, only a tiresome exchange of verbal barbs.

To highlight the brilliance of this exchange, the film’s score swelled grandly—almost intrusively loud.

The boisterous music roused Chen Lin from his slumber.

‘Not good… did I fall asleep?’

Sucking back the drool that had escaped the corner of his mouth, he forced his eyes open.

His vision was blurry from just waking, but he could make out that the movie was still playing.

Since he was able to wake up, that meant he hadn’t suffered any fatal accident this time.

How long had he been asleep, anyway? How much longer would the movie last?

The answers to these questions would come easily if he just pulled out his phone to check the time.

Just as he was about to reach into his pocket, Chen Lin felt a heavy weight on his shoulders. Glancing left and right, he found Yan and Shihan both leaning against him.

He had no idea how this happened, but now any movement to retrieve his phone would surely disturb them.

Figuring they had simply dozed off and accidentally leaned on him, Chen Lin resisted the urge to grab his phone. Judging from the screen, the movie seemed close to its end anyway.

If he held on a little longer, the film would soon be over.

‘Looks like all three of us fell asleep—this movie really is boring enough.’

He first looked at Yan, who seemed genuinely asleep, her head resting on his shoulder, breathing evenly.

Then he turned his attention to Shihan.

Shihan was Senior Meiyue’s younger sister, and there was a faint resemblance in their features. Chen Lin swallowed hard. He wondered if the texture of her hair was similar to Meiyue’s—after all, he had never touched Senior Meiyue’s hair.

Logically, as sisters, their genetic makeup would be very similar, so the feel of their hair should be about the same.

Could he assume that if Senior Meiyue leaned on his shoulder, it would feel like this?

Unconsciously, Chen Lin projected Senior Meiyue onto Shihan. It was as if the one leaning on him wasn’t Shihan, but a younger Meiyue from middle school, before high school.

The pleasant scent of lavender, like arrows, shot straight into his nostrils.

His earlier composure now shattered. His heart raced—perhaps this was the feeling of infatuation.

A wicked thought crept into his mind. Since Shihan was already resting on his shoulder, couldn’t he take the chance to brush his cheek against her hair and feel the same texture as Senior Meiyue’s?

Even if discovered, he could excuse it, saying she had leaned on him first.

But fortunately, he quickly restrained himself. It would be wrong. Shihan wasn’t a substitute for Senior Meiyue; he shouldn’t see her that way.

Because Chen Lin had slept for so long—long enough that even Yan and Shihan had fallen asleep leaning on him—by the time he woke, the movie was nearing its credits. Soon, the scrolling text of the cast list started projecting onto the screen.

He didn’t want to wake them directly, as that would likely embarrass them. So he coughed loudly several times.

His coughs roused Yan and Shihan.

Yan rubbed her eyes sleepily, not immediately lifting her head from his arm.

Shihan, however, sprang away like a startled bird, her cheeks flushed crimson.

Perhaps she had felt too comfortable and secure leaning on Chen Lin, too distracted to watch the movie, and had fallen asleep without realizing it, only waking at his prompting.

Seeing they were both awake, Chen Lin said, “The movie’s over.”

His unhurried tone made him seem composed, but that composure didn’t last. Suddenly, his stomach felt as if struck by a hammer.

His first instinct was to glance at Yan, suspecting she had hit him.

But Yan was still groggy; it probably wasn’t her.

Could it be Shihan? Though it seemed unlikely, he turned to look at her. She was sitting far away, eyes fixed on the floor, her index fingers twirling nervously.

‘Not Yan, not Shihan—so why does my stomach hurt so much?’

Puzzled, Chen Lin looked down at his abdomen. It was intact, with no signs of injury.

Then the pain struck again, fiercer than before, like waves crashing higher and higher. Surging waves spread from inside his gut.

His expression shifted. He felt like he was about to… erupt. But if he relaxed his muscles now, he couldn’t be sure if it would be a fart or something much worse.

It was the feeling of diarrhea. If he didn’t get to a restroom soon, it would come out.

“I need to go to the bathroom!” Chen Lin shot up, determined not to become a mess. After saying this to Shihan and Yan, he dashed out of the theater without waiting for their reaction, rushing into the restroom.

Luckily, the men’s room had no line. He snagged a stall just in time.

The moment he dropped his pants, he released the pressure—a mere fraction of a second away from disaster. Amid a series of crackling sounds, a look of relief spread across his face.

Good thing he had been cautious and not dismissed it as just gas.

It had been a long time since he last had diarrhea. Sitting on the toilet, he thought carefully and quickly found the likely cause.

Nine times out of ten, the culprit was that can of cold coffee in the fridge.

He had noticed it was only a few weeks past its expiration date, but when he opened it, there was no odd smell, so he drank it anyway.

But expired food really shouldn’t be consumed carelessly. It had only been a few hours, and now he was paying the price.

From the feeling in his gut, it was indeed diarrhea.

Ten minutes later, he finally got off the toilet. The violent episode left his stomach feeling hollow.

Holding his abdomen, he could still feel a churning sensation inside.

He stumbled out of the restroom and found Shihan and Yan waiting outside. They weren’t standing together but at odds on opposite sides, looking like fire and water, not even speaking to each other.

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