| BYSG | Shower | 18
Although he had long been prepared, when he actually saw the news, Shen Yu's heart still started racing as if it had just taken a 90-degree dive on a rollercoaster.
Cheng Mofei was Cheng Mofei—always passionately unreserved.
No matter when they met, his heart would flutter countless times.
Today, he had been so immersed in shopping with his mom that when he found his phone had run out of battery and shut down, he thought the school was nearby, so he could just go back to the dorm to charge it later.
Afterward, his mom had sent him to the school gate, saying that someone was coming to pick her up. When he walked into the school, he secretly glanced back.
The one coming to pick her up should be her current husband.
He had a good impression of this "uncle"—at least he was sure that he treated his mom sincerely, and that was enough.
Just as Shen Yu was about to open the message input box to reply to Cheng Mofei and let him know he was safe, a call suddenly came in.
It was Cheng Mofei.
Shen Yu quickly pressed the answer button.
"Shen Yu?" Cheng Mofei called out his full name anxiously.
Shen Yu made a soft sound, placing the phone against his ear, his fingers gripping it so tightly that they turned white.
He gently explained, "I'm fine. It got cold, and after I finished eating, I bought some new clothes outside. I came back late, and my phone ran out of battery and shut off. I’m already back in the dorm."
Cheng Mofei quietly listened. After Shen Yu finished speaking, there was a two-second silence, followed by Cheng Mofei sighing in relief and saying, "That's good."
It wasn’t that he was overreacting.
It was almost time for the dorm curfew, and Shen Yu still hadn’t given a reply.
Cheng Mofei had first asked a classmate who lived next door and hadn't left the school to knock on the door.
When there was no response at all, he contacted the counselor and the dorm supervisor.
The school paid special attention to the safety of students staying on campus during the National Day holiday, which led to the scene Shen Yu had witnessed when he returned.
Fortunately, it was just a false alarm.
"I'm sorry, I worried you," Shen Yu apologized decisively, his tone soft.
Cheng Mofei naturally didn’t hold it against him. "It’s fine as long as you're okay. About your phone..."
Cheng Mofei hesitated for a moment, then after thinking for a while, he said, "I have a power bank on my desk. You can take it with you next time you go out."
"Okay," Shen Yu remembered the power bank. It had an orange design on it. "When I’ve saved enough money from my part-time job, I’ll buy a better phone next month."
It sounded a bit heartbreaking.
Cheng Mofei's heart tugged a little.
He had never seen such a resilient little bitter gourd like Shen Yu, someone who made people worry but was also capable, giving people reassurance, as though nothing could really defeat him.
Before Cheng Mofei could say anything, the sound of footsteps and a door opening suddenly came from the other side.
Shen Yu entered the bathroom of the dorm, turned on the light, and said, "The hot water's almost gone. I’ll go take a shower first."
Although the dormitory didn't lose power, the hot water would be turned off at midnight.
"Okay. Remember to report in the dorm group as well. Xiao Xiong and Xinghe are both worried about you."
After ending the call, Shen Yu sent a voice message in the dorm group to let them know he was safe. He then scrolled through the previous messages.
It was clear that Cheng Mofei was very anxious, searching everywhere for him.
Unfortunately, Xiao Xiong and Sun Xinghe had no news about him either and could only share in his worry.
Shen Yu felt a bit embarrassed, knowing he had made those around him worry, but he also felt very warm inside.
At dinner, he and his mom added each other on WeChat. His mom also sent him a message asking if he had reached the dorm, and Shen Yu replied to her as well.
Shen Yu continued charging his phone, threw the new clothes he bought tonight and the clothes he changed out of after his shower into the washing machine, quickly took a shower, hung the clothes to dry, and then curled up on Cheng Mofei's bed.
Perhaps because he had been walking around shopping with his mom all day, Shen Yu fell asleep quickly.
……
On the other side, in a hotel suite.
When Cheng Mofei hung up the phone, Cheng Mofei's mother and father, who were sitting on the sofa opposite, asked with concern, "Is Xiao Yu okay?"
Cheng Mofei shook his head and explained the false alarm to them.
Cheng Mofei's mother sighed. "That child really has it tough. You should take care of him more often."
Cheng Mofei nodded.
That is natural.
Cheng Mofei's father said, "The phone I replaced is still perfectly fine. I should have given it to Xiao Yu."
"It's fine. He's really capable. He can earn a lot of money on his own, and next month he’ll be able to buy himself a new phone," Cheng Mofei said, his tone carrying a barely noticeable hint of pride.
People are often drawn to the weak and admire the strong, and Shen Yu just so happened to embody both qualities.
……
The second day of National Day.
Shen Yu specially wore the new clothes his mom bought for him and went out to tutor for the entire day. By the time he returned in the evening, it was already dark.
This time, he had brought Cheng Mofei's power bank with him, keeping his phone on and charged, so that no one had to worry about him anymore.
Cheng Zhiyu also went out to play during the National Day holiday, so no tutoring was arranged for her.
Over the next few days, Shen Yu would need to tutor the students he worked with today once again, but the rest of the time he could finally rest properly.
Finally, on the third day of National Day.
Shen Yu only went to the cafeteria for meals, spending the rest of his time holed up in his dorm, constantly being checked on by Cheng Mofei.
Cheng Mofei assumed that Shen Yu must be bored staying alone in the dorm, so he kept him company by chatting and sharing his experiences from his trip.
Finally, the time came for the evening's musical.
Cheng Mofei: [I’ve taken my seat, it’s about to start. I don’t have much of an artistic sense, so I’m not sure if I’ll end up dozing off.]
Shen Yu: [I don’t have any artistic sense either.]
One was in finance, the other in chemistry. Together, neither of them could even read a full music score.
Shen Yu never had the opportunity to develop artistic hobbies when he was young, while Cheng Mofei simply lacked any natural talent.
He had tried music, dance, and painting, but in the end, he was most enthusiastic about activities like skateboarding and skiing. Cheng Mofei's parents had supported him in whatever piqued his interest.
Cheng Mofei: [After the show, my parents are meeting the actors, so I’m planning to sneak back to the hotel first.]
Shen Yu was startled by this.
It seemed that in his past life, Cheng Mofei had been involved in a car accident because of this very thing—trying to leave alone.
Shen Yu: [Can I call you after the show? There’s something I want to talk about.]
Cheng Mofei: [Of course, what’s up?]
Shen Yu kept him in suspense: [I’ll tell you later.]
Cheng Mofei’s curiosity was piqued: [It’ll probably be done by 9. I’ll call you then.]
Shen Yu: [Okay.]
For someone like Cheng Mofei, who had no artistic sense, the musical didn’t capture his interest nearly as much as the "thing" Shen Yu mentioned.
The hours felt like an agonizing wait for Cheng Mofei, but he gritted his teeth and endured it to avoid disappointing his mother.
But Cheng Mofei wasn’t the only one who was nervous. These hours were equally excruciating for Shen Yu.
Even though he had made thorough preparations, Shen Yu still couldn’t help but worry about any potential mishaps.
He didn’t want to see Cheng Mofei hurt again.
……
At 9 p.m., the musical finally came to an end. Cheng Mofei hurriedly stood up, briefly spoke to his parents, and then left the theater while dialing Shen Yu's WeChat call.
The call was almost instantly answered.
"I’m done. So, what did you want to talk about?" Cheng Mofei asked, his interest finally piqued, he was no longer tired.
Shen Yu could clearly hear the noise of the crowd around Cheng Mofei, but instead of answering the question, he used his awkward acting skills from two lifetimes, sniffing loudly and trying to sound like he was crying.
"What's wrong?" Cheng Mofei stopped in his tracks, furrowing his brows, now fully caught.
Shen Yu: "Can you go somewhere quiet? It’s a bit noisy, I can’t really hear you."
Shen Yu's voice was very soft, and with the noise around Cheng Mofei, he couldn’t hear him clearly.
Cheng Mofei had originally planned to head straight back to the hotel, but hearing Shen Yu like this made him worried. He immediately turned around and went straight to the VIP lounge.
His parents were also there, meeting with the actors, and the lounge was much quieter—just the right place to wait for them to return to the hotel together.
"I went to the lounge. What’s wrong? What happened?"
Shen Yu hadn’t expected his plan to go so smoothly.
Cheng Mofei had mentioned the lounge before, so Shen Yu had thought about guiding him there to talk, thinking that as long as he didn’t leave the theater, nothing would go wrong.
He could delay things as much as possible to avoid the car accident from his past life.
But… he hadn’t even started guiding Cheng Mofei to the lounge yet; he had only laid the groundwork.
How did Cheng Mofei end up there so quickly?
Shen Yu didn’t dwell on it too much. He strategically sniffed and said, "My mom contacted me, and we met for a bit."
If this were before, mentioning his mom would have made him feel so upset that he wouldn’t have been able to hide it.
But ever since he had met his mom and had a heart-to-heart conversation, all that remained was a sense of relief and happiness.
"Ah?" Cheng Mofei’s expression was stunned. "Is your mom in Yancheng City too?"
He knew about Shen Yu's parents' divorce, but he wasn’t aware of any further details.
"Yes, she moved to Yancheng City to settle down after the divorce," Shen Yu spoke slowly, sharing about his family without holding anything back.
……
"Xiao Fei, let’s go." Cheng Mofei’s mother suddenly patted Cheng Mofei’s shoulder.
"Who are you on the phone with? You’re so serious, I’ve called you several times and you didn’t respond."
Cheng Mofei snapped back to reality and explained, "I was talking to Xiao Yu about something."
Cheng Mofei's mother nodded in understanding. "Alright, let’s go. It’s getting late, we can continue talking when we get back."
"Okay." Cheng Mofei stood up, said a quick goodbye to Shen Yu on the phone, and followed his parents out of the lounge at a leisurely pace.
Shen Yu glanced at the time on his phone, realizing quite a bit of time had passed. He had told Cheng Mofei everything about his family, so hopefully, nothing would go wrong now.
Still, he couldn’t help but remind him, "Be extra careful with traffic safety tonight."
Cheng Mofei reassured him, "Don’t worry, we have a driver, and there won’t be many cars on the road at this hour."
Once in the car, Cheng Mofei didn’t hang up the phone but, with other people around, Shen Yu didn’t bring up family matters again.
Instead, he asked Cheng Mofei to turn on the video, wanting to see the night view from abroad.
Of course, while watching the night view was the excuse, his real concern was Cheng Mofei’s safety.
Cheng Mofei obediently followed the request.
Shen Yu curled up in Cheng Mofei's bed, not turning on his own camera in case Cheng Mofei noticed and teased him.
The night views from most places were beautiful. It had started to rain lightly where Cheng Mofei was, covering everything with a thin, transparent veil.
Shen Yu squinted his eyes, focused intently on the small screen in front of him.
Suddenly, the car came to a stop and made a turn.
Shen Yu furrowed his brow. "What’s going on over there?"
The driver, sitting next to him, explained, "Someone was driving under the influence and crashed into a wall. Fortunately, no one else was hurt."
Shen Yu's heart skipped a beat, and he let out the breath he’d been holding.
It wasn’t until Cheng Mofei and his family had safely arrived at the hotel that Shen Yu was able to relax completely. He curled deeper into the blankets, his entire body finally loosening up.
They had finally avoided the danger.
The hotel was a suite. Cheng Mofei had a room to himself, while his parents stayed in the room next door.
After entering his room, Cheng Mofei closed the door and plugged his phone in to charge. He spoke to Shen Yu, "I’m going to take a shower first. We’ll continue talking later."
Shen Yu, half his face buried in the soft pillow, replied, "Okay."
Cheng Mofei found his clothes and, upon returning, saw that the call hadn't ended.
He blinked and added, "Alright, I’m going now."
Shen Yu’s eyes curved with a smile. "Okay."
He still hadn’t hung up the phone.
Cheng Mofei glanced at his phone’s battery and then brought his face closer, teasing, "Why don’t you hang up? Are you trying to watch me shower?"
Shen Yu, still lost in the relief of escaping the danger, froze for a moment. "…?"
0 Comments
Post a Comment