Gu Fei rode ahead, keeping a moderate distance from him. Jiang Cheng sometimes felt irritated by Gu Fei's keen observational skills and high emotional intelligence that kept him out of other people's business.  

He pulled his face mask up to catch the tears dripping down.

It would take about ten minutes to ride from here to Gu Fei's shop. That was enough distance for him to freely let the tears fall as he followed behind Gu Fei.

He didn't actually know why he suddenly started crying.

He didn't feel any urge to shed tears, nor was there anything that made him want to cry. He had felt like he no longer had a home or parents since the day he was told he was adopted.

This feeling had become clearer and clearer since coming here. So why did he suddenly start crying after saying he was an orphan?

As expected, sickness made people more sensitive.

By the time they neared the intersection, he had stopped crying. The tears were mostly dried by the wind, leaving only a slight swelling in his eyes.

He parked the bike neatly by the wall after reaching Gu Fei's shop. Gu Fei looked back at him and said softly in surprise, "Oh dear."

"What is it?" Jiang Cheng leaned the bike against the wall.  

"I..." Gu Fei hesitated. "Didn't expect you would cry like this."

Jiang Cheng suddenly felt like laughing. Even someone as good as Gu Fei at easing awkwardness couldn't pretend otherwise. He rubbed his eyes, "Is it very red?"

"Quite red," Gu Fei said. "Why don't you wait here? I'll get you anything you need. Li Yan's inside."

"It's fine," Jiang Cheng rummaged through his bag and took out a glasses case. He put on a pair of sunglasses. "I came prepared."

"You look..." Gu Fei stared at him.

"Cool, right?" Jiang Cheng looked at his reflection in the clinic's window next door. "Every time I walk past store windows, I get amazed by how cool I look."

"Yes," Gu Fei nodded. "You do look...very cool."

The two walked into the shop together. Li Yan was moving around clumsily between shelves on Gu Miao's skateboard. Gu Miao leaned against the cash register counter with his arms crossed, watching coldly.

Seeing them come in, Gu Miao ran to Jiang Cheng's side and craned his neck up curiously to look at the sunglasses on his face.

"You're that bored, huh?" Gu Fei said.

"Exercising," Li Yan glanced at Jiang Cheng. "Yo, I thought some gangster came to collect protection money."

"Hand over the money then," Jiang Cheng said.  

"It's in the drawer," Li Yan pointed at the cash register.

"When are you going home?" Gu Fei asked Li Yan.

"Don't worry about me," Li Yan continued to wobble on the skateboard. "I'm meeting Liu Fan for dinner later. You guys coming?"

"I'm not going," Jiang Cheng said.

"We're not going," Gu Fei pulled Li Yan off the skateboard. "We have midterms tomorrow."

"What do midterms have to do with you?" Li Yan said. "Mr. Study God needs to study, but you, Mr. Blank Test Sheet..."

"I've never turned in a blank test sheet," Gu Fei corrected him.

"Oh right, you filled them all in," Li Yan nodded.

"Yes," Gu Fei also nodded.

"Alright, guess you're not going then," Li Yan grabbed his coat. "I'm off."

Jiang Cheng browsed through the shelves, picking out daily necessities and food. Gu Miao followed him curiously, staring at his sunglasses.

Finally, he had to take off the sunglasses. After a while, his eyes probably weren't too red anymore. He put the sunglasses on Gu Miao's face.

Gu Miao adjusted the sunglasses, expressionless.

"Very cool," Jiang Cheng gave him a thumbs up. "You'll definitely be much cooler than your brother when you grow up. And very handsome too."

Gu Miao didn't say anything. She turned around, picked up the skateboard, and headed out.

"Hey!" Gu Fei called out. "Take off the sunglasses! They might drop and break!"

Gu Miao ignored him and stylishly slid out on the skateboard still wearing the sunglasses.

"It's fine if they break," Jiang Cheng said. "I've worn them for a long time already anyway."

"You've already bought a 200 yuan bike, you can't afford to replace the sunglasses if they break," Gu Fei leaned against the counter looking at him.

"Wouldn't you have to replace them if they broke?" Jiang Cheng smiled.

"Oh, right," Gu Fei thought about it. "Yes."

Jiang Cheng put the things he picked out on the counter. "How much."

"Um..." Gu Fei hesitated.

"No," Jiang Cheng said.

Gu Fei smiled. He went behind the counter and started scanning the items one by one. Then he bagged everything up. "123.20 yuan in total. Let me round it down to 120 for you."

"Okay." Jiang Cheng paid him.

With no one watching the shop, Gu Fei closed up after they left.

"Lost business because of me huh?" Jiang Cheng felt a little bad.

"There's not much business during dinner time anyway. Just people coming by because they're cooking and realize they're out of salt or oil," Gu Fei got on his bike and rode out.

Jiang Cheng followed behind on his bike.

"I'll bring the sunglasses back tomorrow," Gu Fei said.

"No need, I think Gu Miao really likes them," Jiang Cheng said. "Let her play with them, just tell her not to wear them too much. It's not good for a child's eyes."

Gu Fei smiled.

Jiang Cheng wasn't too familiar with this area. The landlord had given him the address that day and it took him half a day to find the place. Coming back today, the rows of similarly dilapidated houses... He actually couldn't remember which one was the place he rented.

"No, I remember it was just past a certain intersection, then there were several houses that looked alike..." Jiang Cheng felt very depressed.

"Which intersection?" Gu Fei asked.

"I..." Jiang Cheng was stumped for a long time before taking out his phone. "Let me ask the landlord again."

The landlord laughed and gave him the address again: "Don't come back too late young man. I turn my phone off at night. If you get lost, you'll have to spend the night outside!"

Gu Fei was quite familiar with the address. He cycled ahead again. "It's this way."

"I thought it wasn't so far." Jiang Cheng felt confused.  

"You can't even remember the name." Gu Fei said.

Jiang Cheng sighed. "It's not that I can't remember. I'm just too lazy to. My brain's not a landfill. Of course I should only remember useful stuff."

"Yeah, remembering roads isn't that useful," Gu Fei nodded.

"Shut up," Jiang Cheng said.

When Gu Fei brought him to the building he rented, Jiang Cheng looked around carefully. "Alright, remembered it."

"Go put your stuff upstairs then we'll go eat," Gu Fei said.

"Okay." Jiang Cheng brought him upstairs. The landlord's place was on the second floor. It was old and shabby, but furnished. The furniture was all there, though old, it was quite clean. At least no rats and cockroaches like at Li Baoguo's place.

"Seems alright," Gu Fei looked around the living room.

"Yeah," Jiang Cheng put the things on the table. "I'll get the internet set up in a couple days, then it'll be good... Oh right, do you know where to buy bedding and stuff?"

"Bedding?" Gu Fei was puzzled.

For some reason, as soon as Jiang Cheng said those words, his mind went in a dirty direction. Seeing Gu Fei's reaction, he probably thought the same.

They looked at each other. Gu Fei laughed first. "Oh, bedding. I know a place."

Jiang Cheng didn't say anything. He suddenly couldn't stop laughing and guffawed by the window until his cheeks hurt.

"Damn," Gu Fei rubbed his face.

"Let's go buy it after eating then? I can't wait to order online," Jiang Cheng said.

"Then we should go buy first before eating," Gu Fei checked the time on his phone. "There's a fabric market that sells ready-made bedding, sheets, blankets, pillows etc. But they close around 7-8pm."

"Okay." Jiang Cheng nodded.  

"Then..." Gu Fei pointed at the door. "Shall we?"

Jiang Cheng didn't say anything. He stood there a while longer before walking over to Gu Fei and putting his arm around his shoulder, hugging him tightly.

Gu Fei was puzzled at first, then gently patted his back twice. "What's up?"

"Nothing," Jiang Cheng still held him tightly. "Have you ever felt especially unsettled before? Aimless, like you can't grab hold of anything, and there's nothing under your feet."

Gu Fei was silent for a while. "Yes."

"I figured you would've felt it before too," Jiang Cheng said. "I'm stepping into an abyss. I'm starting to fly away, lost while rising, hear you say this world is empty..."

Jiang Cheng sang the last line softly and lowly.  

Gu Fei was surprised, not just by Jiang Cheng remembering the melody and lyrics after only hearing it once, but also by the sexy huskiness in his singing voice. It sounded very nice.

He could relate to Jiang Cheng's current feeling of emptiness, even though their experiences differed. But he understood that panicked feeling of having no steady ground beneath one's feet.

The two stood quietly in the room for a very long time. He could hear Jiang Cheng's stifled, barely perceptible sobs next to his ear.

"Brother Cheng," Gu Fei said softly, gently patting his waist. "Actually I'm not very good at comforting people either. The only person I've comforted is Er Miao... I just mean, if you want to cry, it might feel better to let it out."

Jiang Cheng was silent for a moment next to his ear. After coughing twice, he suddenly started sobbing out loud.

It sounded very reluctant, mixed with anger, helplessness and grievance.  

It seemed he cried quite fully, from starting out sobbing loudly, to ending with venting yells while grasping at Gu Fei's shirt.

"Damn you," Jiang Cheng said tearfully.  

"Mm," Gu Fei responded softly, still gently patting him and turning to plant a kiss on the tip of Jiang Cheng's ear.

This action was beyond his own expectations. He wasn't sure why he did it, but Jiang Cheng didn't give him time to think about it. He turned his head and kissed Gu Fei on the lips.

His slightly salty, tear-dampened tongue prodded in aggressively, as if wanting to start a fight.

Caught off guard, Gu Fei was knocked back a step by his almost savage intensity. Jiang Cheng seized the momentum to fiercely shove him back against the wall behind them.

He kissed Gu Fei again.

Like the drunken kiss from Jiang Cheng the other day, this kiss was also unrestrained. But it was much more sober than that day since he hadn't drunk the liquor. So everywhere his tongue went seemed to be staking a claim.

I want this! I want that! I want this spot! I want that spot!  

I'm drawn a circle here! Here, here, and there, all mine!

Gu Fei originally had no intention of doing anything. But being overrun by him like this brought to mind Captain Wang Xu's self-criticism.

On this day of spring's return when flowers bloom across the land...

He grabbed Jiang Cheng's arms and swung him over onto the sofa.

Jiang Cheng was heavily thrown onto the sofa. As Gu Fei pressed down on him, he casually flipped up Jiang Cheng's shirt and vigorously rubbed his body a few times.  

Jiang Cheng's breathing hitched. He grabbed Gu Fei over his pants.

"Fuck," Gu Fei suppressed his voice. "Go on, grab harder and just crush it completely."

Jiang Cheng smiled and slipped his hand into Gu Fei's waistband.

After the room quieted down again, Gu Fei could hear children who finished dinner running and shouting outside.

"Guess how long more it'll take before you squeeze me off the sofa," Jiang Cheng lay on the sofa with one leg dangling off the side on the floor.

"I'm not fully on it either," Gu Fei was half sprawled over Jiang Cheng with one leg still propped on the tea table. "If I relax this leg I'd slide right off."

Jiang Cheng looked at his leg and laughed for a long time.

Gu Fei didn't laugh with him. As he propped himself up, he casually brushed Jiang Cheng's eye corner.

"I'm fine now," Jiang Cheng slapped his hand away.

"Go buy bedding... we should hurry," Gu Fei neatened his clothes as he spoke. "If we go later only those roadside shops will still be open. Won't have much to pick from."

"Yeah," Jiang Cheng also got up and washed his face in the bathroom. When he came out, he seemed a little worried. "Go quickly wash your face..."

"What, afraid your snot got on my face?" Gu Fei asked as he headed into the bathroom.

"I was worried you'd be embarra..." Jiang Cheng said halfway and suddenly realized. "Fuck! Don't tell me it did?!"

"...No," Gu Fei washed his face in the bathroom.  

Jiang Cheng stood in the living room and sniffed his nose. It was clear now, so it probably didn't get on Gu Fei's face.

More than doing something so shameless while sober, he was speechless at himself for being more concerned about the snot issue.

Only after confirming there was no snot did that indescribable, vaguely floating embarrassment gradually surface.  

When Gu Fei came out of the bathroom with water droplets on his face, he even had some difficulty meeting Gu Fei's eyes, his gaze kept shifting as if he had spiked Gu Fei's drink.

"Let's go," Gu Fei wiped his face. He also seemed infected by the awkwardness and used some tissue to dry his face before heading to the door.

"Mm," Jiang Cheng looked at the tissue on the floor. He wanted to clean up but oddly felt too embarrassed to, so he ignored them and followed Gu Fei out.

Other than the dilapidated area near Li Baoguo's place, the mental map of this new area that Gu Fei introduced him to was about the same. Mostly just as rundown, but much better lit.

These kinds of brightly lit old neighborhoods give a sense of having many stories.

And there certainly were many stories. Just Li Baoguo's family alone already had so many stories, as well as Gu Fei... He glanced over at Gu Fei.

"It's just up ahead," Gu Fei said. "There's a market on the right with quite cheap produce if you want to cook for yourself."

"Mm," Jiang Cheng responded.

"Behind the fabric market is the clothing market. They sell cheap and ugly clothes," Gu Fei looked at him. "If you want to save money you can shop there."

"...Mm," Jiang Cheng smiled.

"Then there are places to eat. I'll take you after you buy your sheets and stuff," Gu Fei said.

"Okay," Jiang Cheng nodded.

Many shops at the fabric market were already closed. Fortunately the ones facing the street were still open. Jiang Cheng had no concept of what to look for in these things, he just went by color.

"This set," he felt a wide striped 4-piece set.  

"That wears easily," Gu Fei said.

"Oh," Jiang Cheng retracted his hand and felt another set. "Then this..."

"No difference. Can't you feel it?" Gu Fei said.

"Fuck," Jiang Cheng shoved his hands in his pockets. "Why don't you just pick a couple sets then."

Gu Fei smiled and rummaged through them. He picked out a set, "This one..."

"Too ugly," Jiang Cheng immediately said. "Cheap and ugly."

"Then get the shitty ones," Gu Fei laughed. "Expensive, but looks better."

In the end, Jiang Cheng bought one set of each material type. Too lazy to keep browsing, he directly bought the pillows and blankets at this shop too.

"Just one pillow?" The boss lady asked.

"Yeah, I sleep alone," Jiang Cheng said.

"You can alternate them, use the other when one's airing out," the boss lady said. "We're closing soon, I'll give you a discount. And like I said, you're alone now but won't always be in the future."

"I'm...a high schooler," Jiang Cheng still wanted to save money. "By the time it's two people sharing, the pillows will be worn out."

"These pillows are great quality!" The owner held the pillow in front of him, patting it. "Look at the bounce! Besides, lots of high schoolers cohabitate! I've seen so many come buy bedding from me."

"I just...want one." Jiang Cheng was at a loss for words. Usually he would definitely ask Gu Fei for help, but right now he didn't even dare look in Gu Fei's direction.

"His mom goes there every day to check on him. He usually goes to a hotel, so he really doesn't need two pillows in the room." Gu Fei said from behind.  

"The fuck?" Jiang Cheng suddenly whipped his head around.

"Oh - so that's how it is," the shop owner said with an "I knew it" expression. "Then one it is."

After buying everything and tying it all to the back of the bike, which took them forever, the two finally got back to the streetside. In between they had even asked the owner for two pieces of rope.

"We're going to eat like this?" Jiang Cheng looked at the things on the bike. "And carry it all into the shop later?"

"I'll treat you to something simple," Gu Fei got on the bike, "No need to unload."

"...Fine," Jiang Cheng also got on the bike, "What are we eating?"

"Fried rice cakes," Gu Fei said. "Extremely delicious."

"You're treating an orphan to just fried rice cakes?" Jiang Cheng laughed.

"As delicious as Wang Er Xian Bing," Gu Fei said earnestly. "Really."

After buying everything, they finally found the fried rice cake shop. On the way there, the uncomfortable feeling Jiang Cheng had been holding in his chest the past two days finally slowly dissipated. Sitting across from Gu Fei in this streetside fried rice cake shop, the stifled feeling that had been suffocating him the past few days suddenly disappeared along with the discomfort.  

"We can watch the bike outside from here," Gu Fei said after sitting down.

"Mm," Jiang Cheng looked around the shop. Super small, with only enough room for four or five tiny tables. They were squat tables, almost like eating while squatting on the ground.  

Including them, there were customers at two tables right now. The other table had a few young girls, chatting and eating very lively.

In contrast, he and Gu Fei sat in silence, appearing especially quiet.

"I forgot to ask," Jiang Cheng looked at Gu Fei, "Did Boar Head cause any trouble today?"

"No," Gu Fei poured him a cup of tea, "He was just bluffing."

Jiang Cheng drank some tea: "Who are you trying to kid?"

"Really nothing happened," Gu Fei smiled, "Who would dare kid the study god? So smart, even your self-criticism can be done impromptu."

Jiang Cheng didn't reply, just stared at him.

Gu Fei drank some tea. He still continued to stared, so Gu Fei brought his cup to knock against Jiang Cheng's, then drank another sip.

He still kept staring.

"Ah," Gu Fei sighed, "Nothing major, let's talk after exams, okay?"

"He came to arrange a fight right?" Jiang Cheng asked.

"To play basketball," Gu Fei smiled.  

"For people like him, what's the difference between basketball and fighting?" Jiang Cheng drank some tea, then had another thought and felt bewildered. "Wait, what nerve does he have to come invite you? His basketball is so dirty...he could fold his face into a paper plane and fly it around."

"Don't worry about it. Just focus on your exam these next few days, nothing will happen." Gu Fei said.

"You're not worried it'll affect my exam right?" Jiang Cheng asked.

"A little." Gu Fei said.

"Don't worry," Jiang Cheng said. "It's just this little No. 4 High School. I could take the exam with a fever and amnesia and still get first place...do you need to copy? Zhou Jing said you guys don't change seats during exams."

"No need, I'm not worried even if I get a 0," Gu Fei smiled, taking a long time before saying: "Brother Cheng, you really are..."

"Hm?" Jiang Cheng smelled the fragrance of rice cakes and turned to look towards the kitchen.

"In all my years, the most outstanding person I've ever met," Gu Fei said.

Jiang Cheng paused, then turned back without responding.  

"Really," Gu Fei said.

"You're the least gangster-like gangster I've met in all my years," Jiang Cheng said. "You're a warm gangster, and...very good-looking."

"Do I need to return the compliment?" Gu Fei asked.  

"No need, I know I'm handsome," Jiang Cheng said.