Miao Jiayan was staying at Chen Chao's place, and Ding Wentao would always come over to squeeze in.

Two people couldn't sleep on the floor pallet, so when Ding Wentao came, Miao Jiayan and Chen Chao had to squeeze onto the bed. Afraid that Chen Chao would find it too crowded, Miao Jiayan would have to go home.

Chen Chao said, "It's fine."

The three of them started watching horror movies again. Ding Wentao sat on the floor pallet, leaning against the edge of the bed.

Miao Jiayan and Chen Chao sat on the bed, leaning against the wall. Miao Jiayan found it very boring, while the other two were constantly jumping in fright.

"Maybe we should stop watching?" Miao Jiayan said, seeing Chen Chao get scared again.

The plot was at a tense moment. The moment he spoke, the other two flinched again.

"..." Miao Jiayan didn't understand why they insisted on watching when they were clearly scared, but he didn't dare to speak up again. When Chen Chao got scared, he would lean against him. Miao Jiayan smelled of shampoo. It was faint, but quite pleasant.

When he leaned over, Miao Jiayan would pat him. Ding Wentao turned around, saw the two of them, and wasn't having it.

"You two, stop hugging!!" Ding Wentao roared. "We're all scared, so why am I sitting here by myself!"

"So what do you suggest?" Chen Chao said, his eyes still on the screen.

"How about you hug me too!" Ding Wentao stated his demand.

Chen Chao rejected him without hesitation: "Get lost."

The summer vacation after the high school entrance exams was great. It was long, and there was no homework.

Ding Wentao basically became a permanent resident at the Chen Family's house. Every day, he just hung out with Chen Chao. Even though they did nothing, they never felt bored.

Miao Jiayan went to take an exam. Left behind were two tall boys who had just graduated from junior high. Ding Wentao mysteriously pulled a disc from his laptop bag and put it in.

When Miao Jiayan came back from his exam, he told his grandparents and then went to the Chen Family's house.

Chen Chao's room door was shut tight. Miao Jiayan knocked. "Brother Chao?"

"Come in," Chen Chao answered.

"Hey, wait a second!" Ding Wentao added hastily.

"It's fine with him," Chen Chao said.

"That's still not okay, it's so awkward..."

But by the time Ding Wentao said "wait a second," it was already too late. Miao Jiayan had already pushed the door open.

Ding Wentao was seen hurriedly shutting the laptop screen. He cleared his throat, stood up from his chair, and went straight to the bathroom.

Chen Chao sat leaning against the wall, his legs crossed, looking perfectly normal.

Miao Jiayan stared blankly in the direction Ding Wentao had gone and asked, "What's wrong...?"

"It's nothing," Chen Chao said with a smile. "Don't mind him."

It was the age where a boy could get an erection just from wearing pants that were a little too tight.

The "mysterious movie" Ding Wentao had brought over had worked him up quite a bit. He didn't come out of the bathroom for a long time.

At first, Miao Jiayan didn't understand. But after a while, when he inadvertently saw Chen Chao's reaction, he thought about it and understood. His face instantly turned bright red.

"Maybe I... I should go out," Miao Jiayan had already stood up and was about to leave. "Did I interrupt you watching... the movie?"

"Come back," Chen Chao said, exasperated. "We're done watching."

Miao Jiayan looked back at him again, feeling completely at a loss. "I should still... still go first..."

"Where are you going?" Chen Chao kicked his leg lightly.

Miao Jiayan had no choice but to sit down again, not daring to even glance in Chen Chao's direction.

Ding Wentao came back from the bathroom, his face with a satisfied-looking flush.

Miao Jiayan's face was even redder than his. Both of his hands were placed on his own legs, his posture like he was in class.

"What happened here?" Ding Wentao looked at Chen Chao in surprise. "Did you show him?"

"No," Chen Chao said.

Ding Wentao sat down on the floor pallet, let out a long sigh, and closed his eyes with a look of savoring the memory.

Miao Jiayan felt like he was about to catch fire in this room. Ding Wentao wanted to watch more, but Chen Chao said, "That's enough from you. Give it a rest."

"Fine, forget it," Ding Wentao gave up, glancing back at Miao Jiayan. "With someone sitting so bolt upright here, I can't really get in the mood anyway."

Miao Jiayan stood up again. "I..."

"'I' what?" Chen Chao said with a laugh. "Sit down."

Because of this incident, Miao Jiayan was a bit unnatural around Chen Chao for the next few days.

Chen Chao found him amusing and even asked, "What are you so embarrassed about?"

Miao Jiayan stammered and couldn't say anything.

Chen Chao asked him, "Have you hit puberty yet?"

Miao Jiayan exclaimed, "Hey!" and turned to the side. "Why... why are you asking that?"

"Just asking," Chen Chao was still smiling. "Why are you so uptight?"

Even in this state, Miao Jiayan still answered honestly, "...I have."

"'You have'?" Chen Chao laughed out loud. "You say it like you've won the lottery."

Miao Jiayan's face had turned some indescribable color, but Chen Chao was still teasing him: "Had any dreams?"

In Chen Chao's eyes, Miao Jiayan was just a well-behaved little brother. Right now, he was acting like an improper, bad older brother.

Miao Jiayan refused to answer no matter what, rubbing his pants and feeling like he was about to fall apart.

Later, Chen Chao stopped teasing him and ruffled his hair. "Miao'er has grown up too."

Of course Miao'er would grow up; he had always been growing up alongside Chen Chao.

Miao Jiayan wore that dress of his many times during the summer vacation. He had a green hair tie, a very thin elastic band tied into a knot, with two strings hanging down. It looked like a set with the dress. The hair tie was either tied in his hair or on his wrist, and it matched well either way.

Grandma Chen praised him, saying, "Miao'er is getting more and more good-looking."

Being praised like this by someone he was familiar with didn't make Miao Jiayan feel awkward; he would smile happily.

Miao Jiayan often wore the dress and naturally got quite tanned. His two thin arms were no longer so pale, but he was still happy every day.

Time entered August, and Chen Chao was about to leave soon.

He couldn't stay here until school started; he had to go back early to adjust. The only reason Chen Chao hadn't left yet was because his dad hadn't returned.

But Chen Chao had to leave by mid-August at the latest. He had to prepare a lot of things and also settle his mind.

Actually, the original plan was for Chen Chao to travel this summer vacation, but in the end, he didn't go anywhere and just stayed at his grandmother's house.

Grandma Chen secretly wiped away tears several times. Her grandson had lived with her for three years, and now he was leaving. Of course, she was reluctant to see him go.

Even the optimistic Grandpa Chen sighed, a rare occurrence. But they both knew they couldn't keep him any longer.

Miao Jiayan never mentioned Chen Chao's departure, but he often just watched him.

Chen Chao was packing his things. Unknowingly, he had accumulated so many things that he couldn't take them all in one go. Chen Chao didn't pack many of them, leaving them for Miao Jiayan.