Ke Bu rolled back and forth across the bed. “I’m bored. Unbelievably bored.” He stretched out one leg and nudged Zhi Li’s chair with his foot. “Hey, I’m so bored. Talk to me for a while.”
“Do you think I have nothing better to do?” Zhi Li replied coldly, twirling a pen in one hand while playing a game on his phone with the other.
“I’ve just realized there are far too many things in your life that matter more than I do. Drawing, phone games, drinking milk…”
“What, am I supposed to be surprised that it took you this long to notice?”
Ke Bu glared at him irritably. “Your incomparably beloved Ke Bu is suffering from boredom. How can you bear to abandon me like this?”
“Ke Bu, have you noticed something?”
“What?”
“You’ve been remarkably pleased with yourself lately.”
“Now that I’ve finally let go of the whole situation with my parents, of course I’m in a different mood. Tell me, do you think I can call Lan Yin and Zhi Zuo Si Mom and Dad from now on?”
“I suggest you stop dreaming.”
“I feel like once I have those two backing me up, I’ll be able to run wild under heaven. The chancellor, the teachers—I won’t have to take any of them seriously. I’ll make them lick my feet!” Ke Bu shamelessly revealed his depraved ambitions.
The pen moved swiftly between Zhi Li’s long fingers. “I really don’t want to hurt your feelings, but as far as they’re concerned, you’re merely an outlet for my needs.”
“You’re obviously saying that precisely because you want to hurt my feelings. Fine, an outlet is an outlet. I’ll make the most of my value while I still have it.”
Zhi Li gave Ke Bu a sidelong glance. “I never imagined you would sink this low.”
“I owe it all to your excellent teaching.”
Zhi Li checked the time. “Conversation over.”
“Are you serious? That’s all the time you’re giving me? I’m bored. I’m so bored I’m about to cough up blood.” It was not entirely Ke Bu’s fault. The first-year students had brought all their initial enthusiasm onto campus, making the place unbearably lively. Some were falling in love, some stood beneath the dormitories loudly declaring their feelings, and others spent their time discussing which girls were attractive. Ke Bu felt allergic to such a cheerful, harmonious atmosphere, so he had simply remained in the dormitory.
“Zhi Li~~” A girl called from downstairs, followed by a chorus of teasing cheers. This was another thing Ke Bu hated. Zhi Li’s shamelessly attractive face had successfully captured the hearts of the younger girls, who were now brazenly launching their attacks on him.
“Oh, someone’s calling you.” Ke Bu climbed off the bed, his voice sour with jealousy, and straddled Zhi Li’s lap. Staring at his face, he said, “I’m going to splash sulfuric acid over this face of yours that attracts every girl in sight.” Silence followed. Ten seconds passed. Then twenty. Then an entire minute. Ke Bu suddenly pressed his forehead against Zhi Li’s cheek. “What am I supposed to do? I really like this troublesome face too.”
Zhi Li pushed Ke Bu’s face away. “Get off me.” He stood, and Ke Bu, deprived of his support, slid down Zhi Li’s legs until he ended up sitting on top of his feet. Zhi Li pulled his feet free without the slightest sympathy. “Let’s go.”
“Where?”
“Aren’t you bored? We’ll find something to pass the time.”
Ke Bu patted his backside and stood. “Oh? Since when did you suddenly become so considerate?”
“Because you’re my incomparably beloved Ke Bu,” Zhi Li said without a trace of emotion.
Ke Bu lightly shoved him from behind. “Get lost. Could you be any more nauseating?” Apparently, Ke Bu was allowed to say such things, but no one else was.
Zhi Li kicked him lightly in the shin.
“What was that for?!”
“To remind you that I’m still willing to hit you.”
“……………………”
Warm sunlight spilled down without end, washing their love in warmth. Ke Bu followed behind Zhi Li, staring at the back of his neck. When Zhi Li was bored, he caused trouble. When Zhi Li was bored, he tormented Ke Bu to his heart’s content. When Zhi Li was bored, he beat people up. Never once had he taken Ke Bu out simply because he had nothing else to do. Ke Bu found himself caught between delight and unease. He was delighted that Zhi Li had suddenly become so considerate, but uneasy because—would Zhi Li ever truly become considerate without an ulterior motive?
They boarded a bus heading into the city. They had traveled this route together many times, yet Ke Bu never tired of it. He liked the gentle swaying of the bus, which occasionally made their shoulders and arms brush against each other. That faint, almost accidental contact brought with it a quietly intimate thrill.
“Keep your eyes closed for the rest of the way.”
“It’s not my birthday. There’s no need to make such a grand production of this.” Despite what he said, Ke Bu willingly closed his eyes.
“If you dare peek, I’ll gouge out your eyes.”
Ke Bu was about to retort when Zhi Li added in complete seriousness, “I’m not joking.”
“Walk straight for two hundred meters.”
“Aren’t you going to hold my hand?”
“Who would do something that disgusting?”
“……”
“Turn left and continue for five hundred and fifty meters.” Zhi Li paused for a suspiciously long time. “There’s a utility pole.”
“Ow~~ Couldn’t you have said that sooner?~~ That pause was absolutely deliberate.”
“What?”
“Why aren’t we there yet?!” Ke Bu complained ten minutes later.
“Uphill.”
Ke Bu’s sixth sense told him that this road was familiar—extremely familiar. So familiar, in fact, that an ominous feeling descended over him from head to toe. At that moment, Zhi Li caught the back of Ke Bu’s collar and forced him to stop. Ke Bu heard him knock lightly on a door, which soon opened. An even more familiar voice came from inside. “Ke Bu, don’t you have class today? Why are you home? And who is this?”
At that moment, Ke Bu wanted to keep his eyes closed forever. In the end, however, he opened them and found Ke Qin standing before him. He swallowed nervously, but before he could speak, Zhi Li slipped both hands into his trouser pockets and shrugged with complete indifference. “Since we were bored anyway, I thought we might as well use the time to settle this.”
“When you aren’t bored, you draw or play games on your phone,” Ke Bu said with unnatural calm. He paused for several seconds. “But when you are bored, you come here to deal with my parents? Do you have any idea what ‘priorities’ means?!!”
He finally lost control and screamed.