Yue Zhishi suspected that while he was praying for a protective charm, someone else had prayed for rain.

In Jiangcheng's June, the rainfall was even measured using East Lake as a unit of measurement. The locals would just say, 'A few more East Lakes fell today.' Yue Zhishi estimated that at least six had fallen over the two days of the college entrance exams. Six was a good number; his brother's exams had to be auspicious.

The examination site where Song Yu was located was very low-lying and had flooded into a vast expanse. The sunken playground had practically become a lake. Yue Zhishi sat in Lin Rong's car, watching the time. Less than five minutes remained.

Rain streamed down the car window, blurring Yue Zhishi's view of the outside. He secretly rolled down the window a little. The parents holding umbrellas were blocking the school gate, and rain surged through the gap in the window, soaking Yue Zhishi's hair.

Before long, he saw a tall figure holding an umbrella emerge from the tightly packed crowd of parents not far away, walking toward them.

“Brother is out.” The moment Yue Zhishi finished speaking, he opened the car door and waved at Song Yu. The heavy rain poured straight into the car, and Yue Zhishi, wearing only a short-sleeved shirt, shivered.

Song Yu's steps visibly quickened. He stooped to get into the car, closed the door, and locked the rain outside.

The seat was covered with Yue Zhishi's review materials. He hurriedly tidied them up to make room for Song Yu.

“Your father is still in a meeting.” Lin Rong took a neatly folded dry towel out of a large tote bag and turned to hand it to Song Yu. “He’ll meet us at the restaurant later. What do you want to eat?” Although she asked, she knew that Song Yu would most likely just say 'whatever'.

Song Yu placed the soaked umbrella by his feet. “Crayfish.”

Yue Zhishi was happier than anyone to hear this. “I want to eat crayfish too.”

Lin Rong was a little surprised, not expecting him to actually want to eat that. “Alright, I’ll let your dad know.”

They drove to the restaurant. The rain grew heavier on the way, and thunder started to roll. Yue Zhishi's fear of thunder was a purely physiological reaction. The moment a clap sounded, he couldn't help but tremble. This habit was manageable when he was a child, but it always embarrassed him as he grew older, so he tried his best to hold it in and stop himself from shaking. Everyone in the car was chatting, but Yue Zhishi, being too scared, had automatically tuned out of the conversation.

Song Yu noticed, took out the clear bag he used for the exam, placed it between them, and said in a low voice, “The thing you gave me was very useful.”

Yue Zhishi's attention was quickly diverted. He turned to look at Song Yu's face and asked in a very quiet voice, “Really? Did you do well on the exam?”

Song Yu nodded.

Yue Zhishi quickly became happy, but his joy didn't last long. A clap of thunder struck just as he opened his mouth. He trembled again, his voice shaking slightly, “That’s great...”

Song Yu found him a little cute like this. He lowered his eyes and leaned back against the seat.

Yue Zhishi found a pair of headphones that could completely cover his ears, put them on, and played rock music. Then, he picked up the large bag he had placed in the corner, set it to his left, and turned his body, practically burying himself in it as he rummaged around.

He first pulled out a small purple bento box, turned, and placed it directly on Song Yu's lap. Then he quickly turned back, took out a bottle of soda water, and handed it to Song Yu.

His hands never stopped moving, but he didn't speak, like a very busy mime artist. Song Yu opened the lid of the bento box. Inside were sliced mangoes, strawberries, and peeled grapes and lychees, drizzled with a little golden syrup, looking shiny and delicious.

Yue Zhishi turned his face, handing him a fork. The music in his headphones was very loud, and he seemed to have forgotten that the other person could hear him speak, so he just made a fruit-cutting gesture and finally pointed at himself.

While waiting at a red light, Lin Rong happened to see them sharing the fruit. “Lele just prepared that. He was so meticulous, he even removed all the grape seeds.”

Song Yu ate a grape. It was very sweet. Yue Zhishi also took a small fork, speared a piece of mango and popped it into his mouth, then speared a piece of lychee, leaned forward, and offered it to Lin Rong's lips.

The three of them finished the small box of fruit, with Yue Zhishi eating the most in the end, so much so that when he sat down at the restaurant, he started to worry about his appetite. Song Jin arrived just as the first cold dish was served. His shirt was a little damp, a clear sign he had rushed over. Lin Rong thoughtfully took a silk handkerchief from her bag to wipe him down.

When the crayfish arrived, Yue Zhishi suddenly remembered that they had also eaten shrimp after his brother's junior high entrance exams. This gave him a feeling akin to a ritual, and his mood improved even more.

He looked forward to Song Yu peeling shrimp for him like he did three years ago, but with a mother figure like Lin Rong present, Yue Zhishi's supply of shrimp meat was never an issue, so he never got to wait for shrimp peeled by Song Yu.

No one was too worried about Song Yu's performance. At the dinner table, they enthusiastically planned a family trip for after Yue Zhishi's exams. Song Jin suggested Europe, but Lin Rong wanted to go to Egypt more. The two of them listed the benefits of each, letting Song Yu choose, but Song Yu said he wanted to go to Japan.

Yue Zhishi popped a plum-pickled cherry tomato into his mouth. It burst with juice when he bit down, a feeling that mirrored how he felt hearing Song Yu's suggestion.

He nodded repeatedly and swallowed the tomato. “I want to go to Japan too. I want to go to Akihabara.”

No amount of cultural heritage or beautiful scenery could outweigh the wishes of the two younger ones in the Song family. Once the location was decided, Song Jin called his assistant to arrange the itinerary and book flights and hotels. The family enthusiastically discussed the travel plans, with only Song Yu, the one who had proposed the destination, remaining silent.

After dinner, they didn't stay out for long, as Yue Zhishi still had to review for his exams. Back home, Yue Zhishi reviewed his mistakes until twelve o'clock and was starting to doze off when his phone vibrated twice, waking him up. He rubbed his eyes and saw that Jiang Yufan had sent him a problem, asking how to solve it.

Coincidentally, Yue Zhishi had just seen a similar type of problem. He quickly flipped to that page in his mistake notebook, took a picture, and sent it to him.

The class group chat had been lively earlier, but Yue Zhishi hadn't participated. Now, he casually clicked into it and scrolled through the chat history, only to realize everyone was teasing someone. It started because a girl from Class 7 gave her nameplate to a boy in their class. A classmate saw it and started joking about them in the group, saying the boy was now off the market.

[Heard you two are childhood sweethearts? Live across the hall?]

[This is totally a plot from a novel]

[When will it be my turn for a sweet puppy love...]

Yue Zhishi was a bit confused. He exited the group chat to ask Jiang Yufan.

[Lele: What's the big deal about giving a nameplate?]

Jiang Yufan hadn't replied instantly when he asked about the problem, so he thought he had gone to sleep. Unexpectedly, he perked up as soon as this topic came up.

[Fan Zi: Doesn't the nameplate have your name on it? Anyway, in our school, it's been a tradition since way back when. Giving your nameplate to someone at graduation means that person is very important. Some people ask for them too. Getting one is the best outcome. If the other person refuses to give their nameplate, it means "I don't like you at all."]

So Peiya had a custom like this. Yue Zhishi stared at the screen for a while, then asked a question that Jiang Yufan found strange.

[Can a boy give one to a boy?]

A moment later, Jiang Yufan replied, [Well, there's no rule against it. What, you're not planning to give it to me, are you? Don't give me something so precious, a basketball is enough.]

Yue Zhishi was amused by him and replied with a sticker.

He was still a bit sleepy and wanted something cold to drink, so he went downstairs by himself.

It was too late, and the downstairs was pitch black. He was too lazy to turn on the lights, so he felt his way along the wall to the kitchen, opened the refrigerator, and took out a chilled kiwi juice. He drank a glass; it was sour and so cold it made his brain tingle. He poured another glass and carried it upstairs.

Song Yu's bedroom door was always tightly closed, but this time it was open a crack. A sliver of light leaked out, making Yue Zhishi irresistibly draw closer and do something he hadn't planned on.

“You’re not asleep yet?”

Hearing the voice, Song Yu looked up toward the door and saw Yue Zhishi standing there in a loose, oversized, milky-blue T-shirt and white shorts, holding a glass.

“Why aren't you asleep yet,” Song Yu threw the same question back at him. “No classes tomorrow?”

“I was just reviewing. Want some juice?”

Hearing no refusal, Yue Zhishi came in on his own. Song Yu was lying in bed watching a new documentary. The footage looked old; a foreigner wrapped in thick clothes was standing at the foot of a snow-covered mountain, explaining something. It looked very cold there, just like this room with the air conditioning blasting.

When he was handed the juice, Song Yu didn't drink it right away but placed it on the bedside table. The lights in his bedroom were all off, with only the projector casting a cold, blue-gray light that fell on Song Yu's face, making his features look even more handsome.

Yue Zhishi yawned. Song Yu told him to go back to sleep, but instead, he sat on his bed and even took off his slippers. “I want to watch this for a bit.”

“You won’t like it,” Song Yu said, direct and cold.

“I do like it.”

'If you like it, I like it.'

Song Yu's bed was always neatly made. The dark gray striped bedding looked devoid of warmth, but once disturbed, with the comforter pushed aside, it seemed exceptionally soft and comfortable.

At first, Yue Zhishi just sat on the edge of the bed. Then he put his legs up too. Later, Song Yu didn't even know how he had managed to shift next to him, even thoughtfully covering his own stomach with a corner of the blanket.

Song Yu wanted to ask him why he was lying down, but Yue Zhishi turned his face, his nose and eyelashes illuminated by the projector's light, and asked in a soft voice, “Can you give me a pillow to lean on? Brother.”

When he called him 'Brother', his voice was always a few degrees softer than usual. He was clearly a boy whose voice had already changed, yet at certain times, he would show a hint of a small child's tone.

Song Yu handed him a pillow but told him he had to go back to his room to sleep in ten minutes.

Yue Zhishi agreed readily and then began to watch the documentary seriously. One moment he would ask which mountain it was, the next he would ask why they were going to the summit and what they were going to measure. With so many questions, Song Yu felt that he was deliberately using this tactic to make him forget the time.

But he wouldn't fall for it.

“You have a lot of questions.”

Yue Zhishi paused, his eyes fixed on the screen. He blinked slowly, then shrank into the blanket until only his eyes were peeking out.

Song Yu knew he was starting to act spoiled and mentally planned to haul him out, but Yue Zhishi managed to explain sullenly before he could be reprimanded, “Your air conditioning is on too low.”

“You won't be cold if you go back.”

“Why are you always trying to drive me away?” Yue Zhishi looked up at him curiously, his eyes innocent, genuinely wanting to know the answer.

Song Yu paused. “Because I like being alone.”

Yue Zhishi fell silent. He felt that Song Yu was lying; no one liked being alone. If they did, it was only temporary.

Perhaps he just hadn't found the person he liked spending time with. If that person appeared, he probably wouldn't be like this. He would laugh, would hope for that person to stay, and would even give her things he considered important.

Like a nameplate, for instance.

Yue Zhishi thought of what Jiang Yufan had said, and a strange emotion welled up inside him. This feeling had been happening frequently lately, making him uncomfortable. Coincidentally, he just had to tilt his head to see the metal nameplate on the bedside table, gleaming in the changing light of the projector.