Qi Nan was writing with flourish, then suddenly remembered something and said, "Oh right, last time you left Yinan's in such a hurry, my mom told me to give the two hundred yuan back to you."

Zhuang Fanxin had already forgotten about it. He had offered to treat them that day, but it was Gu Zhuoyan who ended up throwing down the money and leaving. Besides, two slices of cake didn't cost nearly two hundred yuan. He held out his hand, "Where's the money?"

"I'll pay you back another day." Qi Nan grinned cheekily. "I used it to top up my game account."

Zhuang Fanxin playfully punched him a few times, then pulled two hundred yuan from his wallet and walked to Gu Zhuoyan's desk. He stopped beside the desk, clutching a pen cap in his left hand and the bills in his right, and asked, "Are you used to sitting here?"

Gu Zhuoyan replied, "It's nice, thank you for wiping the desk for me." There was a faint, clear sheen of water on the desktop, as if it had been wiped several times.

"You're welcome." Zhuang Fanxin held out two closed fists. "Guess which hand has the pen cap?"

As childish as teasing a kid, Gu Zhuoyan tapped his left hand. "This one."

He opened it, and the pen cap lay in his palm. Zhuang Fanxin opened his right hand as well and congratulated him, "You guessed right, the prize is two hundred yuan." Seeing that Gu Zhuoyan wasn't taking the money, he stuffed it into his pencil case. "This is for the cake the other day, take it."

Just then, Qi Nan finished his essay and the homework was collected. Zhuang Fanxin walked out carrying a large stack of workbooks. Gu Zhuoyan got up, followed him, and without a word, took a large half of the stack.

"I'll help you carry them," Gu Zhuoyan said. After some thought and conclusion, he believed that the fast and effective way to pursue someone was none other than these few points—praise them, help them with their tasks, and give them gifts.

Of course, the premise was that you had to be decent-looking. If you were ugly, it was better to just have a secret crush.

The two of them walked out of the classroom, one after the other, slowly following the wall along the corridor. They delivered the homework to the office, and on the way back, Zhuang Fanxin told Gu Zhuoyan about the temperaments and personalities of the teachers for each subject.

Gu Zhuoyan wasn't listening very carefully; he was mulling over something else. To increase the intimacy between them, they needed more contact. That being the case, he wanted to go to and from school with Zhuang Fanxin. According to unofficial popular statistics, many high school romances began with traveling to and from school together.

Traveling to and from school together in high school, eating together in university, and living life together after graduation.

Getting no reaction from the person beside him, Zhuang Fanxin asked, "What are you thinking about?"

Gu Zhuoyan said, "I'm thinking of buying a bicycle."

Zhuang Fanxin's face lit up. Not many classmates traveled the same way as him. If Gu Zhuoyan bought a bike, he'd have company going to and from school in the future. That expression was exactly what Gu Zhuoyan wanted to see. He said, "I just don't know where to buy one."

"I know, I know." Zhuang Fanxin immediately took the bait. "I'll go with you."

There wasn't much to do on registration day. After the big clean-up, the head teacher nagged for a bit before dismissing the class. A group of students went to Yinan's to enjoy the 20% discount, while Zhuang Fanxin accompanied Gu Zhuoyan straight to a bike shop.

Around noon, there weren't many customers. The two of them wandered slowly through the bicycle section, their eyes overwhelmed by the choices. Zhuang Fanxin spotted one with a nice design and said, "Do you like that one? Want to take it for a spin?"

Gu Zhuoyan glanced at it. "The color is so ugly."

Zhuang Fanxin looked at another one. "How about that one? It's pure black."

"The seat is designed too low." As if that wasn't enough, Gu Zhuoyan added, "It would probably be about right for you."

One shouldn't point out others' shortcomings. Zhuang Fanxin was displeased and stopped making recommendations. Gu Zhuoyan hated himself for always speaking the truth. He put an arm around Zhuang Fanxin's shoulders and rubbed them, making a peace offering. "I'll listen to you. Whichever one you tell me to pick later, I'll pay for it immediately."

Zhuang Fanxin didn't believe him at all. They entered the next section, a bicycle collection exhibit, which displayed old-fashioned bicycles. The new bikes for sale were also designed based on the old models.

He found it novel and joked, "Then you should buy one like this."

Gu Zhuoyan said, "Okay."

Zhuang Fanxin thought he was just kidding, but to his surprise, Gu Zhuoyan really picked one out to test ride. It was a 28-inch model with a high crossbar in the front; you couldn't even reach the pedals if your legs weren't long enough.

Gu Zhuoyan rode a loop and came back, supporting himself with one leg on the ground. "It's quite light. This is the one."

After paying and getting the receipt, the retro bicycle belonged to Gu Zhuoyan. Zhuang Fanxin was a little dazed, finding it hard to believe Gu Zhuoyan had actually bought such a bike. When they left the shop and got to the street, Gu Zhuoyan mounted it, hung his schoolbag on the handlebars, and squeezed the crisp-sounding bell.

Gu Zhuoyan asked, "Are you sitting on the crossbar or the back seat?"

What would it look like to sit on the crossbar... Zhuang Fanxin sat on the back.

The wheels were large, and they easily overtook other pedestrians. The cool breeze put Gu Zhuoyan in a good mood. He said, "Put on a song."

He thought, 'I should put on an old song. This bike is so cool, it's perfect for some rock music from Black Panther.'

Just then, an intro started playing from behind him. It was lingering and ridiculously gentle. The intro ended and the singing began: Sweet as honey—your smile is sweet as honey—

Gu Zhuoyan's grip on the handlebars wavered. "Are you kidding me?"

The volume wasn't loud. Zhuang Fanxin held up his phone. "Haven't you seen the movie 'Comrades: Almost a Love Story'? Leon Lai giving Maggie Cheung a ride, they were on this kind of bicycle."

Gu Zhuoyan was too embarrassed to admit he hadn't seen it, so he had to yield to the voice of Teresa Teng. By now it was afternoon, and after all that running around, they still hadn't had lunch. As they passed a McDonald's, he braked by the roadside. "Maggie Cheung, are you hungry?"

Zhuang Fanxin hadn't even eaten breakfast; he was already starving.

The two went inside to eat. There were very few people at this hour. After ordering, they casually picked a spot in the vast expanse of empty seats. With a full tray of food, Gu Zhuoyan took a sip of Coke and then silently ate his Big Mac.

Zhuang Fanxin held an ice cream cone in one hand and fries in the other, sometimes dipping the fries into the ice cream. Gu Zhuoyan glanced over and implemented "help him with his tasks." He tore open a packet of ketchup, squeezed it out, and said, "Here, dip."

Zhuang Fanxin shook his head. "I don't eat ketchup."

This guy was a picky eater. It was a bit strange to love fries but not ketchup. Gu Zhuoyan asked, "Why not?"

Zhuang Fanxin mumbled, "I used to love it when I was a kid. One time I opened my paint box, saw the red paint looked like ketchup, and tasted a bit. After that, I never wanted to eat it again."

Gu Zhuoyan laughed. "Silly kid." After saying that, he thought, 'Helping him with tasks isn't working, so I'll praise him.' "...You're really cute."

Zhuang Fanxin shyly gnawed on a Spicy Wing, pretending he hadn't heard. After chewing quietly for a moment, he would occasionally glance up at Gu Zhuoyan's smile, but when Gu Zhuoyan looked back, he would quickly lower his eyes.

After this happened a few times, it was hard for Gu Zhuoyan not to notice. But since his hands were occupied, he had no choice but to kick Zhuang Fanxin's foot under the table. Zhuang Fanxin yelped, just like a cat or dog whose tail had been yanked, and said anxiously, "Don't you step on these shoes!"

Gu Zhuoyan turned to look and saw they were the pair he had given him. He then escalated his teasing, saying, "It's fine, if they get ruined I'll just buy you another pair."

Zhuang Fanxin took a sip of Coke, tucked his feet under the chair, and glared up indignantly. Gu Zhuoyan met his gaze, their eyes locking. He asked bluntly, "Is there something you want to say?"

He was very curious, because he couldn't figure out what Zhuang Fanxin wanted to say. Zhuang Fanxin's current expression, his gaze, held a hint of probing, and he didn't understand why he was being probed.

Gu Zhuoyan felt there was no need for that between friends, unless it involved privacy.

Zhuang Fanxin wiped his mouth and asked, a little seriously, "Has your mood improved?"

Gu Zhuoyan was puzzled. "My mood wasn't bad to begin with."

Zhuang Fanxin said, "I mean during your time here in Rong City. I know you were unwilling to come here at first. After all this time, I wanted to know if you've become a little more willing?"

Gu Shibo hadn't asked this question, nor had Xue Manzi. Gu Zhuoyan never expected that after more than a month, Zhuang Fanxin, whom he had known for just over a month, would remember to ask him if his mood had gotten any better.

He answered from the bottom of his heart, "I really like it here now."

Zhuang Fanxin let out a sigh of relief. "School started today, which means you've temporarily settled down in Rong City." He paused, his tone becoming exceptionally gentle. "Forget about the unpleasantness from before you came."

Gu Zhuoyan was taken aback. "Unpleasantness?"

"Actually," Zhuang Fanxin said, "I know the reason you came here."

Suddenly, Gu Zhuoyan's mind went blank. Zhuang Fanxin knew the reason? Knew that he had passionately come out of the closet, causing a sensation throughout the school, leading to a falling out with his father, and then being exiled to this... place with really awesome greenery?

How could Zhuang Fanxin know?!

That day at the airport, could it have been those three bastards with Lian Yiming who spilled the beans?

Gu Zhuoyan stared at Zhuang Fanxin in astonishment. Zhuang Fanxin looked back at him, calm and gentle.

In fact, Zhuang Fanxin had seen from the very beginning that Gu Zhuoyan was unwilling to come here, which was why he was so cold at first. That time they were having drinks at Yinan's, Gu Zhuoyan mentioned his old school while on the phone, and the attitude he showed toward his parents further confirmed Zhuang Fanxin's thoughts.

He was basically certain that Gu Zhuoyan had been forcibly sent to Rong City by his parents, but he didn't understand at the time what kind of conflict would be so serious as to require transferring schools to another city.

Unless, he could no longer study in peace at his old school.

Zhuang Fanxin even came up with a few hypotheses. One, Gu Zhuoyan was a victim of school bullying, but he quickly dismissed that. Looking at the guy's grades and appearance, it was more likely he was a campus star. Two, Gu Zhuoyan made a mistake and was expelled, but he could just transfer to another school, not necessarily to another city. Three, Gu Zhuoyan was in an early romance, and his parents forced them to break up.

After thinking it over and over, Zhuang Fanxin concluded that Gu Zhuoyan was sent to Rong City by his parents because of a relationship issue. He was forced to break up with his girlfriend and be in a different city, which would also explain the family conflict.

That day at the airport, Lian Yiming and the others had said some things to him, like "girlfriends and whatnot aren't necessary," and entrusted him to get along well with Gu Zhuoyan. He felt something was off at the time, but only later did he figure it out: it was because Gu Zhuoyan was heartbroken from a breakup, and Lian Yiming and his friends wanted him, as a friend, to comfort him more.

Zhuang Fanxin verified his guesses bit by bit, until today, when Gu Zhuoyan introduced himself, that he was finally sure.

His skill with claw machines was because he'd won them for girls many times—he must have won plenty of dolls for his girlfriend.

Zhuang Fanxin had no intention of exposing the other's sore spot, he just wanted to offer comfort. "You're not in the wrong. Although it's easy to be impulsive at our age, as long as you don't go against your own heart, it's fine."

Gu Zhuoyan's Adam's apple bobbed. It seemed Zhuang Fanxin really did know about his business. His public coming out had indeed been a bit impulsive, but it had also been true to his heart's desires, so he had never regretted it.

Seeing him stay silent, Zhuang Fanxin added, "Your parents couldn't accept it, right?"

"...Right." For a rare moment, Gu Zhuoyan was a little dazed.

"Actually, many parents can't accept it." Zhuang Fanxin sounded like he was coaxing someone. "Just... give each other some time."

Gu Zhuoyan understood all these principles, and he didn't need any comfort. At this moment, he was more interested in knowing how Zhuang Fanxin would see him after learning about his sexual orientation. If he felt resistant, he would cut his losses and stop pursuing him, to avoid embarrassing himself.

Gu Zhuoyan didn't like to beat around the bush. He asked crisply, "Since you know, what do you think of me?"

"The same as before." Zhuang Fanxin's sincerity was tinged with a hint of surprise. "There's nothing wrong with you, and you're not at fault. When I gave you the painting, I said I hoped you could hold the hand of the person you like in the future. My blessing hasn't changed."

A wave of softness washed over Gu Zhuoyan's heart. The stone that had been hanging in his chest slowly descended to a safe place. This was the most moving thing he had heard in months.

After a long moment, afraid of seeming sentimental, he said stiffly, "Hurry up and eat, the fries are getting soggy."

Zhuang Fanxin ate slowly and methodically. After being considerate, he became a little gossipy. He couldn't help but wonder, had Gu Zhuoyan and his girlfriend really broken up? Or were they secretly in a long-distance relationship?

"Um," he asked in a low voice, "are you single right now?"

Gu Zhuoyan looked over suddenly. "I am."

Zhuang Fanxin thought that was for the best. A clean break was better than prolonged suffering. He hoped the other would find someone he truly liked soon.

All the way home on the bike, Gu Zhuoyan remained in a daze. Zhuang Fanxin was dozing against his back, but he didn't even feel the warmth. After they arrived, Zhuang Fanxin got off the bike and went inside, and he even forgot to say "goodbye."

Gu Zhuoyan only sobered up a little when he heard a dog barking at home. He carried his schoolbag upstairs, with Gu Baoyan trailing him to his bedroom.

"Ge, Grandpa picked me up from school, and we went shopping!"

"Oh."

"We also saw a movie. Mom and Dad never have time to take me."

Gu Zhuoyan flopped onto the bed, staring at the ceiling light, his mind filled with the image of Zhuang Fanxin comforting him... Just then, Gu Baoyan shook his shoulder. "Ge, Grandpa doesn't know how to win at the claw machine. Can you take me some other day?"

Gu Zhuoyan gave a perfunctory reply. What dolls? He was the one at a complete loss.