As soon as the sound effects started, He Chao grabbed Xie Yu's hand. His whole body stiffened, and he struggled to hold back the curse words that were on the tip of his tongue.

Damn.

It was quite thrilling.

"I know this one. It's based on a novel, and the original work was written really well. When I was a kid, I read it and couldn't sleep for two nights," Wan Da said, only realizing afterwards that the two big shots had just said something. "What did you say earlier, Brother Yu?"

Then He Chao heard his heartless boyfriend beside him change his tune and say, "Nothing, this is not bad."

Wan Da asked, "Right, Brother Chao?"

Xie Yu's finger bones pressed against his palm, and He Chao's grip tightened.

"I don't think it's that great," He Chao's acting skills were top-notch, and there was no trace of a flaw in his performance. "The styling is cliché, it's too fake, and there's no atmosphere. You can't even sleep for two nights because of this?"

The others didn't notice anything wrong and were completely convinced by his words.

Xie Yu couldn't help but say, "Can you let go before you say that?"

He Chao replied, "No."

After the lights were turned off, the dormitory was pitch black, and they couldn't see their hand even if it were in front of their face.

The light from the phone screen shone on their faces, and with the sound effects, it was strangely eerie.

Xie Yu didn't react much to the horror plot, but it was all thanks to this group of people who kept jumping and raising the atmosphere of the poorly made and mysterious horror film to an unexpected level.

"Oh my god!"

"Is this person going to die too?"

"My hand is a bit sore, I'll find a place to prop this up..."

He Chao could only show off in front of the Wan Da and the rest, but when they were completely immersed in the movie plot, he whispered, "This movie is too damn scary."

Xie Yu retorted with what he had just said, "The style is cliché and there's no atmosphere."

He Chao reminded him, "That's enough."

He Chao held his hand tightly.

Xie Yu didn't say anything else, his eyes fixed on the phone screen, his wrist moved, and then his five fingers slowly squeezed into the gap between He Chao's fingers.

The person holding the phone was getting tired from holding it up for so long on the low table and was searching for a place to prop it up.

Suddenly, a scary scene with a ghost appeared on the screen, causing one of the nearby brothers to panic and grab onto whoever was closest. In the commotion, he accidentally threw the phone out of his hand.

Watching the hour and a half long movie was a difficult task, as the phone was flung across the room three times.

"Hold on, don't throw it again. Don't you still want this phone..."

"I'm holding it steady, but someone keeps pulling on me."

As the movie came to an end, the group hesitated before leaving and considered forming a team to walk back together. "I live on the fourth floor, does anyone want to come with me?"

Walking back down the hallway, Wan Da couldn't help but admire them: "The big shots are truly big shots. They were calm and totally unfazed."

However, one of these big shots who was praised for being calm and even expressed deep disdain for those who "dare not sleep at night" turned around and asked, "Sleeping together?"

Xie Yu sat on the bed and looked at him, "Don't tell me you're afraid to sleep alone."

He Chao was flexible, "I am."

"..."

This late-night movie was probably the only entertainment for these boarding students during this period of time.

Third year, college entrance exams.

This topic had been brought up since they first entered high school, but they never felt any urgency. They always thought there was plenty of time, that it was still far away.

However, this joint ranking of four schools made all the second-year students feel the pressure of the college entrance exams.

It was also the first time they felt that they were taking a step forward in this stage of their lives.

Taking another step forward, they would be in their third year.

"If nothing unexpected happens, you'll have to return to school early this summer. The school plans to give you some extra classes and aim to complete the first round of review during the summer."

After the mid-term exams, it was time to prepare for the final exams. Many students were looking forward to the break, but Old Tang gave them a heads up: "Don't worry if your ranking isn't ideal this time. We still have over a year to go..."

During morning self-study, Old Tang went on a 360-degree tangent about summer remedial classes, and eventually veered off into other topics. Xie Yu stopped listening halfway through.

He had squeezed into a bed with He Chao for the night, and woke up feeling uncomfortable all over. He wished he could kick He Chao back to his own room.

But He Chao's morning grogginess was particularly soothing, and it rubbed away Xie Yu's temper.

He had a habit of sleeping in, and even if he was awoken, he would stand behind him with his toothbrush in his mouth, half-closed eyes, and chin resting on his shoulder, complaining of being sleepy.

Before, they used to share a room often, but now that they lived together, he felt that something was different.

Xie Yu propped up his head and glanced at the person beside him, thinking of what He Chao had said when they were moving in together, "I can open my eyes and see you."