Chapter 43
Ever since Lin Huaixi transferred over, Sun Baiyi had been like someone soaked in honey water, so happy he could hardly stand it. Every now and then he would grin foolishly at nothing at all, and because of that, he had already been called out by teachers several times.
He had always been popular. Not long after school started, he already had a whole group of good brothers. As the organizer, he was supposed to be the one keeping everyone together and calling the shots, but lately all his attention had gone to Lin Huaixi, to the point that his good brothers could often not even find him anywhere.
Sun Baiyi had just been made to stand for half a class by the Chinese teacher because he kept grinning idiotically. As soon as class ended, his friends took advantage of the fact that his legs were numb and blocked him at his desk. “Sun Baiyi, what have you been busy with lately? Why don’t you come play basketball with us anymore… Is it because of those two guys? We heard they’re your old classmates from junior high. You can’t have old classmates and forget your new classmates!”
Sun Baiyi slowly shook his head and corrected them seriously, “You got it wrong. They’re not just junior-high classmates. They’re elementary-school and junior-high classmates.”
Seeing how earnestly Sun Baiyi corrected that detail, everyone around him fell silent at how utterly disloyal he was being.
Sun Baiyi’s deskmate quickly changed tactics. “Since you’re all that close, then call them out with us sometime and we can all hang out together.”
“No way!” Sun Baiyi reacted as though he were guarding his favorite toy. “Qi Wang is already annoying enough to look at as it is. If Xixi gets to know all of you too, what if he has even less time left for me!”
That sentence shocked all the boys crowding around him. After staring blankly for a few seconds, they exchanged glances right in front of Sun Baiyi, practically plotting aloud.
Sun Baiyi frowned tightly and said in an unfriendly tone, “What? Do you people have a problem with me or with Xixi?”
One of the boys bumped shoulders with him. “Everyone’s just hanging out. We’re all good brothers here. What problem could we possibly have? We just think there’s no need for you to be jealous.”
“Jealous?” A huge question mark practically popped up over Sun Baiyi’s head.
The boy patiently explained, “If I got to know that Lin Huaixi better and ended up getting closer to him than you are, would you be upset with me? Would you feel like you and I weren’t spending enough time together anymore?”
The moment he heard that, Sun Baiyi immediately broke out in goosebumps from how gross it sounded and even took a wary step back, glaring at the other boy. “Don’t pull this disgusting act on me. What exactly are you trying to do?”
The boy clicked his tongue twice. “See how double-standard you are? If it’s Lin Huaixi, then you get jealous. If it’s me, you think it’s disgusting.”
“How can Xixi be compared to you guys?” Sun Baiyi blurted out without thinking. “I’ve known Xixi since first grade. Back then he was especially cute, his little face all round, and his eyes were round too, like a little rabbit. Everyone in the class liked him and fought to play with him. If I hadn’t kept a close watch, I wouldn’t even be in line now. Maybe Xixi wouldn’t even know who I am anymore!”
Hearing Sun Baiyi say this, the others all did their best to imagine it.
Lin Huaixi had grown taller and turned into a clean, youthful boy, but among boys his skin was still very fair, his eyes were still big, and when he smiled he had two dimples, making him look especially delicate and refined. In everyone’s imagination, Lin Huaixi transformed into an oversized bunny.
He really was quite well-behaved, and sweet too. Having a friend like that from childhood onward… they really would not… still, they simply could not understand Sun Baiyi’s behavior.
Sun Baiyi was immersed in his own world and had no intention of making anyone else understand.
He just thought Lin Huaixi was the best person in the world. He just wanted to be with Lin Huaixi every single day, and he did not want Lin Huaixi getting too close to anyone else—especially Qi Wang!
Birds of a feather flock together. The people Sun Baiyi got along with were all blunt, easygoing types, and barely any of them had “awakened” in that way yet, let alone understood feelings between the same sex. Since they could not come up with an answer, they simply shoved the issue aside and pressed a hand onto his shoulder. “Anyway, we’re all in the same school now. That’s fate. Next time during PE when we’re short a person for basketball, bring Lin Huaixi over.”
Sun Baiyi immediately put on a proud expression. “Xixi is amazing at basketball! And he’s studied martial arts for seven or eight years. He can knock down a kid with one punch. The few of you together still wouldn’t be enough for him!”
“Fine, fine, none of us can compare to him,” his deskmate said helplessly when he saw Sun Baiyi looking like he was about to jump out of his seat. “Just hurry up and go find him already.”
Before he had even finished speaking, Sun Baiyi had already shot out like an arrow.
Lin Huaixi lived on the top floor, while he himself was on the first floor. Every time he went looking for Lin Huaixi, he had to climb six flights of stairs. Break time was short to begin with, and after all that running back and forth, even less time was left. Once he arrived, they could barely exchange more than a few words, but Sun Baiyi never thought it was tiring. As long as he got one look at Lin Huaixi, he would already feel incredibly satisfied.
The bread he brought for Xixi—he wondered if Xixi had eaten it yet. He had carefully tried one bread after another at the shop and ranked them all, finally choosing the one he thought tasted best. There was also soy milk. He had heard that drinking the stuff was good for the brain. Xixi was already so smart. If he drank soy milk for three years, he’d definitely get into a top university.
Then didn’t that mean he should drink some too? Otherwise he would never catch up to Lin Huaixi, and then how could he go on staying his classmate?
Sun Baiyi’s thoughts began wandering off. Realizing the seriousness of the matter, he almost wanted to go buy a whole case of soy milk right then and there, replace water with it completely, and pour it down his throat every single day.
But no matter what it was, as long as it was related to Lin Huaixi, he would be interested and happy.
Sun Baiyi had clearly still been worrying just a moment ago, yet for no reason at all he suddenly started smiling again. Taking a long step, he skipped straight over three stairs at once and looked upward.
But the instant he looked up, the smile froze on his lips. His pupils contracted sharply, and he held his breath in panic. It felt as though his entire heart had been lifted up and crushed tightly in someone’s hand.
Lin Huaixi was standing on a higher stair, his body tipping backward like a little bird falling from the sky.
Those few short seconds felt like a whole century to Sun Baiyi. His body moved on instinct. Practically breaking past his own limits, he took one step that spanned four stairs at once. Before he had even steadied himself, his arm had already shot out toward Lin Huaixi.
Bang!
The combined weight of the two of them hit the ground hard, making even the stairwell tremble.
Sun Baiyi was sprawled on the floor. Forcing himself to lift his chin, already bruised and scraped purple, he looked toward Lin Huaixi in the distance.
Those few seconds had still been too short. He had not made it in time. All he had managed to do was get his hand under the back of Lin Huaixi’s head. Seeing Lin Huaixi lying there without making a sound, panic surged through him. His muscles ached faintly from lack of oxygen. He wanted to help Lin Huaixi up, but his hand no longer obeyed him and would not move at all.
Lin Huaixi had fallen hard enough that his vision went black. Only after coming back to himself did he begin coughing violently. His eyelashes trembled twice, and he slowly opened his eyes.
With that single sound, the world that had drifted away rushed back around Sun Baiyi. He suddenly heard all the noise around him again, and color gradually returned to the environment.
Sun Baiyi felt like he had come back to life, regaining control over his body. Half crawling and half scrambling, he hurried over to Lin Huaixi and helped him sit up.
Lin Huaixi stared at him for a few moments before seeming to recognize him. “Sun… Baiyi…”
He had originally wanted to ask what are you doing here, but the moment he opened his mouth, his voice trembled because of the piercing pain.
“Xixi, what’s wrong with you? Where does it hurt?” Sun Baiyi considered himself a real man and had not cried since first grade, but right now his voice was already edging into a sob.
He never got an answer from Lin Huaixi. A teacher, having just received the news, rushed over. One look at the two of them and the teacher was so frightened that it seemed as though their hair was about to stand on end. They hurried over and, in a flurry, began emergency measures.
Lin Huaixi was carefully lifted up by several people and rushed toward the infirmary. Sun Baiyi’s eyes never left Lin Huaixi, and he stood up too, instinctively chasing after them.
But after only a few steps, he heard someone scream.
Sun Baiyi’s thoughts were interrupted, and he turned blankly in that direction, only to see the utterly horrified face of a girl.
Then, all at once, he realized something. Slowly, he lowered his head and saw that his left hand was hanging at a twisted angle, blood dripping steadily downward and leaving bloody footprints along the path he had just walked.
When he had slipped his hand beneath the back of Lin Huaixi’s head, he had felt nothing at all, only a little wetness.
That scream seemed to flip some switch. A sharp, drilling pain tore through him, and the whole left side of his body turned sore and numb. His legs nearly gave out, and he almost dropped to his knees.
But Sun Baiyi could not care less about that. He only stared in the direction Lin Huaixi had been taken, and when he noticed that Lin Huaixi’s hair was still dry and clean, he finally let out a breath.
Thank god. The blood was all his.
Sun Baiyi had acted too normally before, so all the teachers had overlooked him. But now that they realized there was another injured student here, they were so startled their souls nearly flew away. They hurriedly sent Sun Baiyi to the infirmary as well.
The infirmary had limited resources. After basic treatment, both of them were sent on to the hospital.
…
Three hours later.
Lin Huaixi came out of the hospital room sitting in a wheelchair, one leg wrapped in plaster and bandages. Behind him came Sun Baiyi, his arm in a sling and wrapped up in bandages too.
Lin Huaixi pressed his lips together and looked around somewhat awkwardly. “There’s no need for the wheelchair. Just give me a crutch. I can hop back.”
“Oh, cut it out. Broken bones and injured tendons take a hundred days to heal. The doctor said you’d better not move around much for a while. Besides, since a wheelchair is available, why on earth would you insist on using a crutch?”
Lin Huaixi kept stubbornly talking back. “It’s fine. I’m still young. Look, even old grandpas use crutches.”
Sun Baiyi gave in at once. “Then wait here. I’ll go borrow that grandpa a wheelchair too.”
“…” Seeing him really turn to go, Lin Huaixi quickly stopped him. “All right, all right. I’ll sit in the wheelchair. Just don’t run around anymore.”
He looked anxiously at Sun Baiyi’s injured arm. “I can push it myself. The doctor said your injury is serious too, so you need to rest properly.”
Sun Baiyi still wanted to act tough. He tried lifting his left hand to show that he was fine, but the instant he moved it, the pain made him suck in a sharp breath.
Lin Huaixi instinctively tried to stand up from the wheelchair to help him, but his own leg betrayed him, and the pain was so intense his vision went black. For a moment, the two of them were competing to see who could hiss in pain harder.
After recovering a little, they looked at each other, and for some reason it struck the exact same funny nerve in both of them. At the same time, they burst out laughing.
“Come on, let’s both just behave ourselves,” Lin Huaixi said as he looked at Sun Baiyi. “You stay on the left side and don’t push the wheelchair anymore.”
Sun Baiyi stayed right by his side every step of the way. Only after seeing that Lin Huaixi could push it along without much effort did he relax. “Just stay in the wheelchair these next few days. Once you get to school, you’re not switching to crutches either.”
“And you too. Keep that arm in the sling properly. Don’t go play basketball again.”
The two of them exchanged a few more reminders, and then Lin Huaixi’s expression suddenly changed, his voice turning hoarse. “Thanks a lot. If you hadn’t been there, I’d really be done for this time. But you got dragged into it because of me too, and now your arm is hurt like this.”
At that moment, the doctor’s earlier words rang in both their ears again.
The place Lin Huaixi had fallen from was right beside the stairs. If the back of his head had hit them directly, the consequences would have been severe. He might still be unconscious right now. It was only because Sun Baiyi got there in time and put his hand under his head that he had been saved.
Seeing Lin Huaixi’s face full of guilt, Sun Baiyi felt something in his chest tighten painfully and deliberately pressed his good hand over his injured one. “Don’t think too much.”
Then he thumped his chest with his good hand, looking full of brotherly bravado. “If I were the one in trouble today, you would’ve come to save me too. Between the two of us, who even needs to say thanks? Don’t say that ever again!”
Lin Huaixi pressed his lips together, feeling even more bitter inside. Not wanting to affect Sun Baiyi’s mood, he did not continue the subject and instead asked, “How did you just happen to be there?”
“I went looking for you because…” Sun Baiyi suddenly remembered the real reason and asked at lightning speed, “Does soy milk help your brain? If I drink it like water and keep at it for three years, maybe I can get into the same university as you.”
“…”
With difficulty, Lin Huaixi said, “The thing that’s supposed to be good for your brain is walnuts, isn’t it? But even too much of that is bad for your body. If you really want to get into a good university, don’t count on this kind of thing. Just study properly instead.”
Sun Baiyi drooped for a few seconds, then perked right back up again. “Don’t worry. I’m pretty smart too. If I work hard, I’ll definitely be able to go to the same university as you. Then I can keep watching over you there too. I’ve got experience now. If something like this happens again, I’ll definitely throw myself over and catch you.”
Lin Huaixi joked, “Could you maybe think of me a little more positively? Let’s not have something like this happen again.”
Sun Baiyi frowned, suddenly sensing something was off. “How did you even fall down the stairs for no reason? Did you just lose your footing?”
At those words, the smile slowly faded from Lin Huaixi’s face. He bit his lower lip, and his lowered lashes covered the complicated emotions in his eyes.
Sun Baiyi’s brain finally kicked into gear. Even without getting an answer, he guessed what it meant. “You didn’t fall by accident, did you? Did someone push you?!”
Lin Huaixi had just opened his mouth to answer when he suddenly heard someone anxiously shouting his name. It was a voice he knew very well.
Lifting his head, Lin Huaixi saw Qi Wang running toward him, out of breath, and he swallowed his unfinished words back down.
Qi Wang had a mild obsession with neatness and appearance, and usually cared a lot about how he looked. But now his hair was blown messy by the wind, his loose school uniform hung crookedly on him, and his eyes were bloodshot, as though he had gone several nights without sleeping.
Yet when he saw Lin Huaixi, he did not feel reassured in the slightest. It was as if his chest had been cinched tightly with ropes, leaving him without the courage to take even one more step closer.
On the way here, his mind had been crammed full of chaos.
He regretted it. He loathed his own arrogance.
He had believed he could take care of everything himself. He had not wanted to ruin Lin Huaixi’s good mood because of this, so he had kept hiding things, arrogantly and foolishly convinced he could maintain their old life exactly as it was.
But that had only been his own wishful thinking.
And in the most vicious, most damaging way possible, he had dragged Lin Huaixi into it.
If he had only told Lin Huaixi the truth from the start, if Lin Huaixi had at least been mentally prepared, perhaps things would not have turned out like this.
Qi Wang shackled himself layer by layer. Iron chains wrapped tightly around his neck and chest until he could barely breathe, and every part of him hurt. He could scarcely force himself one more step forward, almost drowning completely in guilt and self-reproach.
But the moment he saw Lin Huaixi, everything was given back to him.
Lin Huaixi had been implicated by him, pushed down the stairs because of him, forced into a wheelchair, enduring piercing pain, his face pale. Yet when he looked at Qi Wang, his eyes were still as clear and clean as ever, without accusation, without anger, without resentment.
Only worry.
Lin Huaixi was worrying about him.
