Author: Angelina
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As if they were going to be separated forever by life and death, the two little devils hugged onto Zhi Li"s legs for a long time, before they were picked up that night. There was a conclusion in Ke Bu"s heart. According to Zhi Li"s logic, whatever he likes would be liked very much and whatever he dislikes would be disliked very much. When the bell for the end of cla.s.s resonated throughout the cla.s.sroom, Ke Bu lifted his hands and stretched, then he straightened his legs, and sat limply in his chair. The beginning of spring impatiently spilled in through the half-opened window. It kept spilling in a lew breeze, a lew sunlight, a lew smell, and a lew atmosphere. Ying Xiujie walked in like it was his own cla.s.sroom. His short blonde hair had already grown a section of black roots and the two different layers were quite obvious. He sat on the table next to Zhi Li. He always had the energetic look, similar to that of someone who had been injected with chicken blood [1], even in this lazy season.
([1] extremely excited or energetic)
"How awesome do you think it would be if cla.s.s hours were swapped with break time; cla.s.s time being ten minutes and break time being forty-five minutes."
"Indulge in your wishful thinking. I had the same thoughts before, but now I"ve clearly recognized the reality." Ke Bu poured cold water on his enthusiasm.
"You admit defeat too easily. I believe that there"ll be such a day."
"I"m afraid you"ll be dead by then."
Chu Haoyu joined in the conversation. "Speaking of swapping things, I think girls" underwear should be worn on the outside. Isn"t it weird? Some underwear is designed to be very pretty and is expensive, but no one can see it when they"re worn inside, so why do girls buy them? It"s gonna be covered by their clothes anyway. It doesn"t make a difference from wearing ordinary ones."
The three boys sunk into contemplation. Chu Haoyu"s words made sense. Girls are definitely hard to read. Ke Bu held his chin. "It"s for protecting their chests. Isn"t it that there"s a saying that you get what you pay for? Maybe the ones that are pretty and expensive will sag at a slower rate."
"That could be a possibility," Chu Haoyu agreed.
"I"m thinking, why do girls wear underwear? Isn"t it tiring to be binded by that thing? Also, it makes it difficult to exercise and is hot in summer. Seems like a ha.s.sle." Ying Xiujie was very simple and pure about this kind of thing. Gong Zhu placed his pens in his pencil case, then he gently pulled up the zip. "It"s probably because the clothes nowadays are getting more and more revealing. In summer, when I usually walk behind girls on the streets, their underwear could be easily seen through their clothes. Maybe that"s why they wear ones that are better looking."
"But summer isn"t the only season of the year. Zhi Li, what do you think? Why do girls buy underwear that are expensive and pretty, even though they can"t be seen by other people?"
The few of them looked at Zhi Li. He thought for a moment, then with a pure and natural expression, he said, "It"s probably to be ready at any moment for people to strip it off."
Chu Haoyu hammered with his fist. "So that"s why."
"That makes it understandable."
"Yeah."
"Don"t agree so easily! It"s not possible when you think about it! Speaking of which, when did we start talking about this question? Ying Xiujie what are you here for?" Ke Bu shouted to stop them.
"I almost forgot it if you didn"t remind me. I"m going to dye my hair. Anyone who needs their hair done? Let"s go together."
Ke Bu ran his fingers through his hair. It was true that he had not had his hair done in ages. Gong Zhu sized up the boys on his four sides and smiled. "I think we should all go together. The more the merrier. Let"s tell Youyan and Xinhe to come too. They can give us some of their opinions."
"Haven"t seen Zhang Lao in a long time."
"Cooped up somewhere. Said he was creating a masterpiece."
"Just him? He probably already had a sudden death in front of the computer."
"This kind death might become very common in twenty years" time."
After school, everyone gathered in front of the school gate. Zhi Li arrived leisurely with his handsomeness. A simple top, a pair of simple jeans, and a pair of simple canvas shoes became a scenery when worn on Zhi Li"s body. His wet hair had the aroma of shampoo, which dispersed into the air.
"Aren"t they gonna wash your hair at the barbershop?" Gong Zhu asked.
"There"s a lot of things he can"t stand." On the side, Ke Bu explained, "He doesn"t like getting his hair washed at the barbershop."
"Why?" Zhou Xinhe also thought it was strange.
"He can"t tolerate being looked down on by someone when lying down to have his hair washed. He also can"t tolerate being touched by people he doesn"t know. His greatest concession is letting other people cut his hair. Tsk, tsk, such an arrogant and willful child. Look at how easy-going I am, freely letting others touch my hair. It doesn"t matter if their old uncles, old aunties, transvest.i.tes, girls, or boys. Just go ahead and touch it." Ke Bu was somewhat pleased with himself.
"Yes, yes, yes, you"re amazing." Zhi Li placed his hand on Ke Bu"s head and ruffled his hair.
"That"s your evil retaliation."
"You"ve seen this through as well."
"Zhi Li, quickly come and see." Zhi Li was called over by Chu Haoyu, who excitedly pointed somewhere not far away. "Look, those two dogs are copulating on the street."
"…" Ke Bu had the urge to spit on Chu Haoyu. He thought it was going to be something significant. Zhi Li looked at the two dogs, then looked at Chu Haoyu. "This must be how the dog at your house got pregnant with you."
Behind them, Ke Bu laughed until his stomach hurt. Su Youyan walked to his side and indifferently swept her eyes on him. "Your mood"s pretty good these days."
"No, it"s only been average."
"It"s because of Zhi Li."
"No, it"s not." Ke Bu guiltily denied, then added, "Although, lately, he has been—how should I say it—compliant or something."
Su Youyan gazed at the sky with a hint of a meaningful gaze. "Carefully cherish this season. After all, summer"s not far away."
"What do you mean!! Can it not be interpreted as Zhi Li perhaps becoming kindhearted? It"s not because this season makes people languid that he has become languid…it"s definitely not because of that." Ke Bu"s voice became more and more quiet. Even he himself had no confidence.
"Is that so?"
"What kind of unbelieving tone is that? I—I believe in Zhi Li."
"Can an equal sign be drawn between your belief and your understanding?"
"No."
The small town"s barbershop was not big, so the few of them had to take turns. The first to have his haircut finished was Ke Bu, who felt refreshed and energized. He stood with Chu Haoyu, who had also finished having his hair cut, as well with Su Youyan and Gong Zhu, waiting outside the door. Chu Haoyu looked at Ying Xiujie through the gla.s.s door. "Youyan, do you wanna emulate the cute ladies in anime by tying up your hair into two pigtails, wear a headband or something?
"I"m not an idiot."
Ke Bu nodded in agreement. "It doesn"t matter if it"s anime or manga, the gap between those and reality is too big. What looks cute in anime, if done by a real person, makes them look like a country b.u.mpkin. Just take hairstyle as an example. The pretty boys in anime always have hairstyles that are quite long and slightly covering their eyes. They couldn"t be more unbearably handsome, but in reality, only tramps and anti-mainstream people would have such a hairstyle. That"s the cruel reality."
"The d.i.c.ks in BL manga are also drawn to be really beautiful, yet in reality…" Su Youyan gave Chu Haoyu, Ke Bu and Gong Zhu"s a sideway glance. Ke Bu used both hands to cover up the important part. "Don"t suddenly come up with things that startle other people!"
Gong Zhu asked, "Then Ke Bu, what kind of hairstyle do you like guys to have?"
Ke Bu frowned in contemplation. If he was to eliminate those disagreeable hairstyles such as those that covered the eyes, had a huge lump at the front, were heavy, slick, and had a center parting, what remained was only…Zhi Li pushed open the gla.s.s door. Ke Bu lifted his head and was dumbstruck. Fine crisp strands of hair were lit up with a faint halo by the orange sunset, as if it was trying its best to set off that pure otherworldly face. To think that he was already good-looking enough, yet he had unexpectedly became even more good-looking. Had he not looked at this person for six years? Not good! His heart was beating. It was beating fast. It thumped in his chest. Ke Bu was worried that the loud noise would be heard by the whole world. What should he do? The more he tried to push it down, the more heated up he became.
Su Youyan helped Ke Bu answer Gong Zhu"s question. "The hairstyle that he likes is already quite obvious.”
Zhi Li took a step in front of Ke Bu and reached out his hand, bending his middle finger and thumb to lightly flick Ke Bu"s forehead. "Mesmerized you?"
"Not telling you."
When Ying Xiujie finished having his hair dyed, the sky was already completely dark. The group of people ahead laughed and chuckled as they made fun of each other"s hairstyles. Ke Bu and Zhi Li walked at the back. Ke Bu occasionally glanced at the side of Zhi Li"s face from the corners of his eyes. How hateful…good-looking…really good-looking. Zhi Li"s really good-looking.
"Oh, that"s right. No matter how much prettier girls" underwear get, you still need to restrain your desire to help her strip." Ke Bu suddenly opened up a conversation from the topic a long ago because he wanted to find a way to comfort his agitated heart.
"Even though I don"t wear underwear [2], don"t act coquettish [3], don"t have cute dresses, don"t give you lunch boxes made with love, and of course won"t be able to bear your children, that doesn"t mean I"m not as good as a girl. I think you should understand these points very clearly," Ke Bu said while biting his lips. Zhi Li did not say anything. The dusky view made it hard to see his expression clearly. Even if it could be seen clearly, it was still difficult to figure out.
([2] The author uses the words 内衣 [nei yi] which means underwear, but in this chapter she seems to use it to refer to bras specifically. Ke Bu probably does wear underwear. Maybe. I think.)
([3] The author uses the words 撒娇 [sa jiao] here, which in Chinese refers to the behavior of acting like a pampered spoiled child as a way of being coquettish. This is generally considered endearing and cute.)
"Am I being too selfish, too willful, and bothering too much?" Ke Bu asked weakly. Zhi Li reached out his hand and messed up Ke Bu"s hair. "Starting to speak idiot language again."
"What?! Trying to pick a fight, is that right?" Ke Bu rolled up his sleeves, appearing as though he was preparing to counterattack.
"So, I was saying…"
"So you were saying…"
"In front of me…"
"In front of you?"
"You can even be a bit more selfish, a bit more willful, and be a bit more bothering."
Ke Bu stood on the spot. In the dark, his pitch-black pupils flickered with a beautiful radiance. Zhi Li took a few steps before discovering the Ke Bu was not following. He looked back and fixed his attention on Ke Bu. Ke Bu pounced forward and held onto Zhi Li"s arm tightly.
"What are you doing?"
"Making the most of treasuring this season of spring."
The touch of spring sifted through the night, continuously sifting through. A lew breeze, a lew sunlight, a lew smell, a lew atmosphere, a lew you, a lew me, and a lew love.