| BYSG | Dark Circles | 7
Cheng Mofei fumbled around in his pocket for a long time but couldn’t find any tissues. He could only pat Shen Yu on the back and wait for him to calm down a bit.
Shen Yu’s shoulders trembled slightly as he struggled to suppress his sobs. If he could control it, he wouldn’t have wanted to shed tears in such a public place either.
Cheng Mofei’s heartfelt efforts had always been there, yet Shen Yu, until the end, had only thought of them as his superstitious quirks. He had even criticized and lectured him about it many times and once lost his temper at him while he was sick.
But Cheng Mofei had always been patient with him, comforting and coaxing him.
The subway was crowded. Cheng Mofei kept one hand on Shen Yu’s back and raised the other slightly to shield him as they moved to a corner.
Feeling the warm palm gently patting his back, Shen Yu finally managed to control his tears and emotions. He sniffled and mustered the courage to lift his head, his watery eyes meeting the face of the person who was still soothing him.
They had reached the underground level B1. There was no sunlight, and a chill seeped in from an unknown source.
The light brown eyes, so close to his own, were filled with worry.
They were exactly as he remembered.
“I’m sorry, I just thought of…” Shen Yu’s voice still carried a hint of a sob as he told a little white lie, “I thought of my grandmother.”
Cheng Mofei had heard Shen Yu mention his grandmother before, the only person in his family who had treated him well, but she had already passed away.
Thinking about it carefully, most elderly people who passed away at this age did so because of illness.
He hadn’t expected his sharing to touch on Shen Yu’s painful memories.
Cheng Mofei couldn’t help but feel a pang of guilt.
It wasn’t just boys—girls at their age wouldn’t easily shed tears in front of others either. Yet he had caused Shen Yu to cry so heartbreakingly…
As he stared at Shen Yu’s tear-streaked cheeks, Cheng Mofei suddenly grabbed the hem of his shirt and clumsily offered, “Do you want to wipe with this?”
Shen Yu blinked, looking at Cheng Mofei’s foolish gesture, and couldn’t hold back a laugh.
Cheng Mofei froze for a moment, then started laughing along with him.
“No need,” Shen Yu said, raising the back of his hand to wipe his face again. “I’m fine now. Let’s go.”
“Alright.” Cheng Mofei carefully followed, not daring to ask any further questions.
On the subway ride back, Shen Yu seemed unusually quiet.
Cheng Mofei didn’t disturb him, sitting quietly by his side and giving him enough personal space.
Although Shen Yu had stopped crying, his eyes were still red and a little swollen, with traces of moisture lingering at the base of his lashes.
When they got off the subway and returned to campus, they passed a bubble tea shop near the dormitory. Cheng Mofei suddenly suggested, “How about I get you a cup of iced milk tea to use as a cold compress for your eyes? They look a bit swollen.”
Shen Yu was well aware of the puffiness in his eyes but didn’t agree. Instead, he replied, “I just had iced tofu pudding. No need to get milk tea.”
With Xiao Xiong and Sun Xinghe having classes in the afternoon, there wouldn’t be anyone else in the dorm to drink it either.
Cheng Mofei hesitated for a moment, then seemed to spot something and said, “Then I’ll ask for some ice cubes to use as a compress.”
He saw the person from his club working part-time at the bubble tea shop.
Most bubble tea shops provide ice cubes for free, and with a familiar face there, it would be easy to borrow some.
“Alright,” Shen Yu agreed.
There was a line at the ordering counter, and since Shen Yu’s eyes were still red, he didn’t follow Cheng Mofei. Instead, he found a quieter corner to wait for him.
The bubble tea shop wasn’t very large. In one corner, there were some tables and chairs for customers to rest. With the heat outside, the air conditioning inside was cool and pleasant, and all the seats were already taken.
Shen Yu stood quietly, slightly lowering his head as he stared off into space, lost in thought.
At the same time, snippets of whispered conversation drifted into his ears.
“Wow, look at those two good-looking guys over there.”
“Where? Where?”
“Over there. The one standing still with red eyes, like he just cried. The other one’s probably buying milk tea to cheer him up.”
“Oh my gosh, they’re so cute. Could they really be a couple?”
“I think so too—such a classic pair: the fragile, crying sick beauty and his doting boyfriend.”
“Hehehe.”
Shen Yu: “…”
Although he was secretly delighted at being paired with Cheng Mofei, could those two classmates speak any louder?
Luckily, Cheng Mofei had gone to get ice cubes and was far enough away not to hear.
“He’s back, he’s back. Looks like he didn’t buy milk tea. Is that... ice cubes in his hand?”
“Probably to help his sweetheart's eyes.”
“Oh my gosh, that’s so sweet...”
Shen Yu hurriedly caught Cheng Mofei’s gaze as he returned with the ice cubes.
Before Cheng Mofei could react, Shen Yu took a quick step forward, grabbed his arm, and led him briskly out through another door.
There was no way Cheng Mofei could hear that conversation.
If he did, there was a good chance he’d feel awkward or even start keeping his distance.
“What’s wrong?” Cheng Mofei asked, looking puzzled but obediently letting Shen Yu lead him away without resistance.
Shen Yu replied, “…There’s someone from our class over there. I don’t want them to see me like this.”
Perfect. Telling lies to Cheng Mofei was becoming second nature to him.
Cheng Mofei didn’t doubt him, as usual.
The two of them returned to the dormitory with the ice cubes. After a while of cold compresses, Shen Yu’s eyes finally no longer showed signs of crying, just in time before their other two roommates came back.
Tomorrow marked the start of military training, so Shen Yu, as usual, went to bed early that night.
Before he turned in, Cheng Mofei handed him a steam eye mask, orange-scented.
At midnight, Shen Yu was already deep in slumber, the steam eye mask snugly covering his eyes.
Xiao Xiong and Sun Xinghe were still awake, while Cheng Mofei idly scrolled through something on his phone.
By 1 a.m., Shen Yu was still sleeping soundly. The steam eye mask had lost its warmth, and its weight on his eyes had become slightly uncomfortable. In his sleep, Shen Yu lazily pawed at it but didn’t manage to remove it.
Xiao Xiong and Sun Xinghe had also fallen asleep by then, leaving only a faint glow from Cheng Mofei’s phone on his bed.
At 2 a.m., the room was silent except for the steady rhythm of breathing from its occupants.
In Room 520, everything was quiet except for the occasional soft snores of its sleeping occupants.
Cheng Mofei had one earbud in, listening to a suspense film from a few years ago playing on his phone. From time to time, he glanced at the bed across from him, though in the dim light, he couldn’t see much.
Still, he could tell that Shen Yu was soundly asleep and hadn’t started sleepwalking.
That’s right—Cheng Mofei was staying up this late specifically to monitor Shen Yu’s sleepwalking.
At the hospital earlier that day, the doctor had advised them to continue observing Shen Yu’s sleepwalking patterns for a while.
Although Shen Yu hadn’t explicitly asked him for help, Cheng Mofei had been the one accompanying him to the hospital. He’d heard the doctor’s instructions and, living together as they did, naturally took it upon himself to handle the task.
Stifling a yawn, Cheng Mofei thought back to the night before. Shen Yu had started sleepwalking sometime after 2 a.m.
Better wait a little longer.
At 3 a.m., Shen Yu’s bed was still completely quiet. Cheng Mofei, however, was struggling against a barrage of yawns.
Having been lying there for over three hours, the suspense film had reached its climax, and he was beginning to feel the need for a bathroom break.
Carefully and quietly, Cheng Mofei climbed out of bed.
In the dark, Cheng Mofei accidentally knocked something off the edge of the lower bunk, creating a noise that was neither too loud nor too soft.
Across the room, Xiao Xiong’s snores paused for a few seconds before resuming. The other two remained undisturbed.
Cheng Mofei breathed a sigh of relief, using the faint light from his phone to pick up the fallen item. Then, he made his way toward the bathroom.
Once inside, he shut the door, turned on the light, and used the toilet. Afterward, he yawned as he approached the sink and splashed cold water on his face.
The chill of the water jolted him awake, shaking off some of his drowsiness.
Not long after, he suddenly heard some noise coming from outside.
Was Shen Yu finally sleepwalking?
Hurriedly, Cheng Mofei turned off the tap, wiped the water off his hands, and rushed to the door.
As he opened it, he almost collided head-on with Xiao Xiong, who was walking toward him.
The sudden encounter startled Cheng Mofei.
“Brother Fei, you’re still up?” Xiao Xiong mumbled groggily. Clearly also up for a bathroom break, he yawned, his sleepy eyes half-closed and reaction sluggish. He seemed entirely unfazed by the near collision.
Cheng Mofei gave a soft hum in response, stepping aside to let Xiao Xiong pass before exiting the bathroom himself.
Shen Yu was still sound asleep in his own bed.
Cheng Mofei let out a small, helpless chuckle and climbed back into his own bed.
After all the commotion, any lingering drowsiness had vanished completely.
Cheng Mofei put on his headphones and found another movie to watch.
Not long after, Xiao Xiong returned from the bathroom. Half-asleep, he glanced at his phone to check the time—it was nearly 3:30 a.m.
Before slipping back into unconsciousness, he couldn’t help but wonder why Cheng Mofei was still awake at this hour.
Xiao Xiong was a homebody who occasionally stayed up all night gaming when he didn’t have class. Sun Xinghe, on the other hand, sometimes stayed up late chatting with his partner on weekends.
But Cheng Mofei almost never stayed up this late.
Cheng Mofei, known for his active participation in various clubs and college events, and his love for sports and basketball, had always been the one with the healthiest routine among them.
Too tired to think further, Xiao Xiong quickly fell back asleep.
—
The next morning, the other three were puzzled as they observed the dark circles under Cheng Mofei’s eyes.
“Why didn’t you sleep well last night? Those dark circles are huge,” Sun Xinghe asked.
Cheng Mofei mumbled a vague response.
He had only managed to catch a brief nap when the sky began to lighten. With an 8 a.m. English class requiring attendance, he had no choice but to get up, planning to catch up on sleep during the lecture.
Although Shen Yu hadn’t sleepwalked at all the previous night—which meant a fruitless night of observation—it was ultimately a good sign.
Xiao Xiong, however, wore a peculiar expression.
Squinting his already-small eyes, he slowly remarked, “At around three last night, when I got up to use the bathroom, Brother Fei was in there doing something and still hadn’t gone to bed. When I finished and came back, his phone screen was still on. I don’t know what he was watching.”
“Oh?” Sun Xinghe immediately became interested.
Cheng Mofei: “……”
Cheng Mofei: “Of course I was using the bathroom. I was just watching a movie…”
Sun Xinghe patted his shoulder understandingly and interrupted, “Brother, we all get it.”
Xiao Xiong also gave his shoulder a playful tap. “We’re all brothers, there’s no need to feel ashamed. If you’ve got any good movies, send it my way and I’ll appreciate it too.”
Cheng Mofei couldn’t miss their implied meaning. They both thought he had gone into the bathroom last night to watch some adult film and… well, do inappropriate things.
While that might be considered normal for boys of their age, that wasn’t the case here! Please, don’t tarnish his reputation, okay?
“Get lost,”
Cheng Mofei shot a glance at the two of them, giving them an exasperated look, before his gaze landed on Shen Yu, who was silently changing into his military training uniform.
Unlike those two mischievous guys, his little junior was different.
Shen Yu blinked blankly at him and, under his gaze, slowly spoke up, “I want to watch too.”
Cheng Mofei: “……”
Cheng Mofei quickly reached out and ruffled Shen Yu’s hair, then gently scolded, “What are you looking at, little kid?”
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