After the Beautiful Omega Was Targeted by His Straight Roommate - Chapter 7

The general elective course consisted of three small sessions with two breaks in between, making the process feel tedious and long.

Tao Ran spent the first session buried in his own world, listening dejectedly. When the bell for the first break rang, the flushed heat on his cheeks had yet to fade.

Qi Yuxiao glanced sideways and caught sight of Tao Ran’s earlobe. The fair, delicate skin was tinted a faint pink, looking like a translucent crystal pendant.

He lowered his gaze and spoke indifferently, “Do you need something?”

Qi Yuxiao had actually taken the initiative to speak to him. Tao Ran lifted his head from his state of embarrassment and nodded. “Yes, I forgot to settle the account with you the other day.”

Qi Yuxiao: “?”

Seeing the other’s expression, Tao Ran realized that his hurried words sounded like he wanted to pick a fight. He waved his hands and said, “Ah, no, I did not mean it that way.”

He explained, “I meant the night you accompanied me to the hospital. How much was the taxi fare, the medical expenses, and the dinner? I will pay you back now.”

Qi Yuxiao remained silent for a moment, then lifted his eyelids to look at him. “You came over just to tell me this?”

“Yes, I originally planned to leave after asking, but I did not expect the teacher to arrive so quickly,” Tao Ran answered honestly. He suddenly remembered that when he entered, Qi Yuxiao had been sitting alone. Although the surrounding seats were full and many people were stealing glances at him, no one dared to sit next to him.

“Do you dislike sitting with others?” Tao Ran asked tentatively. “How about you tell me the cost now, I will pay you back, and then I will find another seat.”

Qi Yuxiao replied nonchalantly, “No need.”

“Okay.” Tao Ran subconsciously thought Qi Yuxiao was being kind, sparing him the trouble of moving.

Qi Yuxiao added, “I am referring to both the seat and the expenses.”

“Ah? How can that be!” Tao Ran said hurriedly. “I am already very grateful that you accompanied me to the hospital. How can I let you pay for the extra costs?”

It was simply inappropriate.

The two of them were not close. Even if Qi Yuxiao was wealthy and did not care about such small matters, Tao Ran’s conscience would still bother him.

Qi Yuxiao repeated, “I said no need.”

Tao Ran’s voice was so low it was almost a whisper. “Please, let me pay you back.”

Seeing that Qi Yuxiao remained silent, Tao Ran grew anxious. He moved a bit closer without realizing it, his voice carrying a hint of a plea. “Please, just tell me.”

Qi Yuxiao’s gaze fell on Tao Ran’s face.

Tao Ran’s face was as small as a palm, with delicate and beautiful features that lacked any hint of aggression. The corners of his eyes were rounded, and his double eyelids traced a lively line toward the ends of his eyes. His pupils were a pure, clean black.

His beautifully shaped lips parted and closed slightly, revealing a rounded labial tubercle in the center that rested softly on his lower lip when he was not speaking.

After a short while, Qi Yuxiao withdrew his gaze. “50 yuan.”

“Huh?”

Tao Ran’s movement to pull out the hundred-yuan bills froze. He asked in disbelief, “Is it that little?”

Genuinely shocked by the number, he confirmed again, “Does that include the medical fees, the car fare, and the dinner?”

“Yes,” Qi Yuxiao stated plainly. “That is all.”

Unexpectedly, Tao Ran frowned. His fingers rubbed the cash in his pocket, feeling troubled.

If Qi Yuxiao had said three or five hundred yuan, he could have pulled it out immediately. But he never expected it to be fifty yuan. The ATM only provided hundred-yuan bills; where was he supposed to find fifty yuan in cash for Qi Yuxiao on such short notice?

Tao Ran fell silent for a long time, unable to think of a solution. Finally, he said in a muffled voice, “How about I pay you back the next time you return to the dorm? I do not have fifty yuan in cash right now.”

Cash transactions were already rare in university. Qi Yuxiao asked in confusion, “Do you usually use cash?”

“No, I use online payments.”

“Then why did you specifically withdraw cash to pay me back?” Qi Yuxiao said. “Just use WeChat transfer. Do not make it so complicated.”

Tao Ran went silent.

After a long time, he said in a very small voice, “Because we have not added each other as friends yet.”

Qi Yuxiao: “…”

Having been rejected before, Tao Ran was afraid of being misunderstood by Qi Yuxiao and quickly explained, “I do not mean you have to add me. You can just give me your QR code for receiving payments.”

Qi Yuxiao opened his phone, tapped the screen a few times, and then told him, “Added.”

?

Tao Ran opened his phone and found that he had received a friend request.

This situation was entirely unexpected. Tao Ran’s mind went blank.

Was it really this easy to add him? Then what was the point of his previous efforts?

He dazed-ly clicked “Accept.” A chat box with Qi Yuxiao popped up: You have added each other as friends. You can now start chatting.

Tao Ran immediately transferred 50 yuan to him.

After a moment, the chat page showed that the other party had accepted the transfer.

“Thank you,” Tao Ran said softly.

Having finally settled the debt, the awkwardness and embarrassment in Tao Ran’s heart finally dissipated.

The class bell rang again.

The teacher finally turned on the projector and asked everyone to scan the QR code to check in.

Qi Yuxiao logged into the software to scan for himself, then switched accounts and scanned again.

He received a prompt on WeChat right on time.

Two minutes ago. Jiang Zhao: [Dear Brother Xiao, the teacher has released the check-in! Don’t forget to help me sign in! (Rose)(Rose)(Rose)]

One minute ago. Jiang Zhao: [Image] Jiang Zhao: [Image] Jiang Zhao: [Image] Jiang Zhao: [What is going on???] Jiang Zhao: [I only skipped one session, and you already found a new class partner so quickly???] Jiang Zhao: [Why aren’t you replying? Do you have a guilty conscience?] Jiang Zhao: [Hurry up and confess, who is this new favorite!]

Qi Yuxiao glanced at Jiang Zhao’s spam messages. He wasted a few seconds of precious time because the messages were all nonsense.

Qi Yuxiao: […] Qi Yuxiao: [He is my roommate.]

His fingertip slid to the photos and he clicked one at random.

It was a view from the back of the classroom. The center of the photo was focused on him and Tao Ran.

Qi Yuxiao clicked another one. This time it was a view from the same row, clearly capturing Tao Ran’s profile as he quietly read his book.

Qi Yuxiao: [Aren’t you lying at home? Where did these photos come from?]

Jiang Zhao: [You’re still asking! Right now the forum is buzzing with photos of you two in the same frame! My status is in jeopardy!] Jiang Zhao: [Roommate???!!!]

After a while, Jiang Zhao sent another message: [You didn’t tell me, but I recognized him! Isn’t this Tao Ran from the Academy of Fine Arts!] Jiang Zhao: [Wait.] Jiang Zhao: [Your roommate is Tao Ran?? Why haven’t I heard you mention this?]

Qi Yuxiao: [You know him?]

Jiang Zhao: [Of course I know him! He is so good-looking. Many seniors I know like him, and several of my classmates in physical education have asked me if I have his WeChat.]

Jiang Zhao and Qi Yuxiao were childhood friends whose families had been close for generations. They grew up in the same compound and were classmates in high school, though Jiang Zhao pursued the path of a physical education student.

He had two major hobbies: listening to gossip and playing matchmaker, even though he had been single since birth.

Jiang Zhao was popular and loyal. Whenever a friend told him they had a crush on someone from a certain academy or class, he would be the first to help get their contact information. He never took money for this; he did it out of pure passion.

Qi Yuxiao looked at the messages, his brow furrowing slightly as his fingers tapped the screen.

Qi Yuxiao: [Physical education students?] Qi Yuxiao: [Men?]

Jiang Zhao was likely enjoying himself in the dorm at this hour, as his replies were lightning-fast.

Jiang Zhao: [Yeah.] Jiang Zhao: [The circles of those PE students in our academy are a mess. Many of them swing both ways. If you added up all the exes in one dorm, you could form a national football team. Compared to those trashy people, I, with my history of only two failed crushes, am so pure!] Jiang Zhao: [But seriously, many gay guys in our sports academy like Tao Ran’s type. Someone in the dorm next to mine wants to pursue him.]

Qi Yuxiao: […]

Jiang Zhao: [Ah, sorry. I got carried away and forgot you’re homophobic.]

Knowing that Qi Yuxiao was straight and disliked same-sex attraction, Jiang Zhao stopped there to avoid making him feel disgusted.

However, he could not stop his matchmaking addiction from resurfacing.

Jiang Zhao: [Hehe… Brother, since you are Tao Ran’s roommate, you must have his WeChat. Hurry, hurry, hurry, push it to me!]

Qi Yuxiao: [Don’t you claim to be able to get anyone’s WeChat?]

Jiang Zhao: [If you give it to me, won’t I have it?] Jiang Zhao: [They used to play basketball at the court under Dormitory Building 4. They often saw Tao Ran coming back from class in the evening. A few of them went to ask for his contact information, but they ended up scaring him away. A bunch of useless losers; I have to take action in the end.] Jiang Zhao: [You have no idea. This Tao Ran’s WeChat is the hardest one to get that I have ever seen, besides yours.] Jiang Zhao: [He doesn’t join clubs or participate in activities. He is always alone. I seriously suspect he has social anxiety!]

As they chatted, Qi Yuxiao suddenly stopped replying.

Jiang Zhao: [?] Jiang Zhao: [Where are you?]

The bell finally rang, signifying liberation from the three grueling sessions.

Everyone felt relieved, packing their things and rushing out of the classroom.

Only Qi Yuxiao remained sitting lazily in his seat, looking relaxed and not at all in a hurry.

Tao Ran glanced at Qi Yuxiao, then looked down to put his textbook into his bag. He looked at him again, zipped the bag, and looked at him once more. He could not help but ask, “Qi Yuxiao, are you not going back?”

The teaching building was quite a distance from the dorms. When Tao Ran usually walked back, it would already be past 10:00 PM. Furthermore, Qi Yuxiao lived off-campus, so his commute would take even longer.

Only then did Qi Yuxiao slowly stand up and stuff his textbook into his bag. He asked him, “Which way do you usually take back to the dorm?”

Tao Ran answered truthfully, “Um… I used to take the path past the basketball court under Dormitory Building 4. That way is the shortest and the lights are the brightest.”

As if remembering something, his eyes dimmed, and his voice lowered. “But I have changed my route now. I take the path by Dormitory Building 8 instead.”

the path by Building 8 was narrow and rugged, surrounded by lush greenery and close to an artificial lake. It had the most mosquitoes at night, and the streetlights were old and in disrepair, making the light dim and the path difficult to walk.

Every time Tao Ran walked there, he was extremely careful, yet he still could not avoid being bitten several times.

Qi Yuxiao: “Are you going back now?”

Tao Ran was confused but nodded. “Back to the dorm.”

Qi Yuxiao stood up, stuffed his textbook into his bag, and looked up at him. “Let’s go together.”

“Huh?”

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