Desk-mate, Do You Like Me? - Chapter 34

Chapter 34

The next morning, the school bulletin board was crowded with people.

Bai Sheng was given a major demerit for intentional harm, announced school-wide, and ordered to publicly apologize to Li Mo and cover all medical expenses.

There was much discussion in front of the bulletin board. Some sighed with regret, some felt the punishment was too light, but more were impressed that Xu Qing had found the key evidence.

Li Mo was scrolling through messages in the class group chat in the ward. Shen Wang sat nearby, munching loudly on an apple: “Bai Sheng finally got what he deserved. He was so arrogant at school, serves him right.”

Li Mo didn’t respond, his gaze fixed on Xu Qing’s chat window on his phone.

After he said “I like you” last night, the atmosphere between the two of them had become subtle. Although Xu Qing only replied with “Whatever you say,” Li Mo could feel that something was indeed different.

Just as he was thinking, the ward door was gently pushed open. Xu Qing walked in, holding a notebook and a thermos.

“For you,” he handed the notebook to Li Mo. “Yesterday’s class notes, I organized them.”

Li Mo took the notebook and opened it. The handwriting was neat, like printed text, and key points were highlighted in red pen.

He looked up at Xu Qing, who was placing the thermos on the bedside table.

“What’s this?” Li Mo asked.

Xu Qing cleared his throat: “My mom heard about it and specially made it for you. She originally wanted to come and see you, but… she couldn’t get away.”

This was the first time Xu Qing had brought something made by his family. Li Mo felt a warmth in his heart. Just as he was about to say thank you, he saw Xu Qing turning to leave and quickly stopped him: “Aren’t you going to sit for a while?”

Xu Qing paused, hesitated for a few seconds, then sat down on the chair by the bed, his long legs crossed, his face serene.

Silence fell in the ward, broken only by the sound of the IV fluid dripping.

Shen Wang tactfully stood up: “I suddenly remembered I have something to do. You guys chat.” He slipped away faster than anyone, winking at Li Mo before he left.

And he had skipped class for several days.

After Shen Wang left, Li Mo looked at Xu Qing and couldn’t help but ask: “Your dad… didn’t make trouble for you again, right?”

Xu Qing lowered his eyelids, unconsciously picking at the cuff of his school uniform: “No.” His voice was very soft, carrying a trace of imperceptible exhaustion.

Li Mo knew he might not be telling the truth but didn’t press further.

He lifted the blanket, got out of bed, walked over to Xu Qing, and squatted down to look into his eyes: “Xu Qing, I meant what I said. You have me from now on.”

Xu Qing’s eyelashes trembled. He abruptly turned his face away, the tips of his ears starting to turn red again: “Got it.”

Li Mo couldn’t help but smile, reaching out to touch his face, but he was afraid of making him uncomfortable, so he retracted his hand: “I’ll drink the porridge, and I’ll read the notes too. Will you… come over for lunch together?”

Xu Qing was silent for a moment, then nodded.

At noon, Xu Qing came as promised, also bringing a boxed meal. The two sat at the small table by the bed, eating. Occasionally, they would look up and meet each other’s eyes, then quickly look away, the atmosphere filled with a clumsy sweetness.

Halfway through the meal, Li Mo suddenly remembered something: “Oh right, how did you know Bai Sheng was in the grove that day? And how did you get that photo?”

Xu Qing paused with his chopsticks: “I went to the equipment room to return something on the day of the sports meet and happened to see him coming out of the grove with something in his hand. As for the photo… it’s a close-up from the surveillance. I asked the security guard to help me take a screenshot.”

Li Mo suddenly understood, and felt a pang of concern: “You suspected him that day? Why didn’t you say so earlier?”

“No evidence,” Xu Qing said faintly. “No one would have believed me if I did.”

Li Mo took his hand resting on the table. Xu Qing’s hand was still cold, but he didn’t pull it back like last time. “I believe you.”

Li Mo said earnestly, “No matter what, I believe you.”

Xu Qing looked up, and the usual lifelessness in his eyes finally gained some light.

He looked at Li Mo, the corner of his mouth curving into an extremely slight smile. Although it quickly vanished, Li Mo captured it firmly.

In the afternoon, Bai Sheng came to the ward to apologize, accompanied by his parents.

He kept his head down, his voice muffled, clearly still unconvinced, but under the gaze of his parents and the principal, he said what needed to be said.

Li Mo didn’t pay much attention. He was more concerned about Xu Qing, who stood silently beside him.

After Bai Sheng left, the principal chatted with Li Mo for a few more minutes, instructing him to rest well and assuring him that the school would arrange teachers to help him catch up on missed lessons.

Li Mo agreed to everything, but his gaze kept drifting unconsciously towards Xu Qing.

In the evening, the setting sun shone through the window into the ward, coating everything with a layer of warm gold.

Xu Qing helped Li Mo tidy the table, preparing to leave.

“Are you coming tomorrow?” Li Mo asked, his tone carrying a hint of expectation.

Xu Qing reached the doorway, looked back at him, softly hummed “Mhm,” and then pushed the door open and walked out.

Li Mo watched his silhouette disappear down the corridor and couldn’t help but smile. He touched the lingering warmth on his wrist from Xu Qing’s touch and felt that life in this ward wasn’t so difficult after all.

The sycamore leaves outside the window rustled gently in the evening breeze, as if sending a silent blessing to the quietly changing relationship between the two teenagers.

…

On the day of discharge, Xu Qing and Shen Wang had a monthly exam and couldn’t spare the time to come.

What Li Mo didn’t expect was that Yu Wenxiu also came.

Downstairs from the inpatient building, the October wind was cool. Yu Wenxiu stood quietly in her trench coat, her expression not very pleasant.

Li Mo’s arm was still bandaged. He hopped down the steps in a few strides and looked up to see Yu Wenxiu.

He froze in place.

It had been over a week since Yu Wenxiu left that day, and the mother and son hadn’t even sent a single WeChat message to each other.

Li Mo looked around, not seeing Ye Jinlun’s figure.

To be honest, while packing in the ward, Yu Wencheng came, Ye Zhong came, and not seeing Yu Wenxiu felt lonely.

But actually seeing Yu Wenxiu, Li Mo became flustered again.

“Mom,” he called out dryly.

Yu Wenxiu turned her head, hiding the emotions in her eyes, and put on an unpleasant smile: “Mo Mo, how have you been resting lately?”

“It’s… it’s alright.”

Despite being mother and son, the atmosphere between them was so awkward.

It was Ye Zhong who took Li Mo’s hand, led him a few steps forward, and closed the distance.

“Mo Mo, your mother and I are heading back to C City tomorrow morning. How about we have dinner together tonight?” Ye Zhong said, his tone gentle, like a kind father.

Ye Zhong was indeed a very good father; he was gentle and rational. It was just that Li Mo couldn’t accept this fatherly love; he didn’t know how to accept it.

Li Mo secretly looked at Yu Wencheng, seemingly seeking help.

Yu Wencheng shrugged and quietly took a step back.

The decision was in Li Mo’s hands.

After a long pause, Li Mo nodded: “…Okay.”

Afterward, Li Mo was taken home by Yu Wencheng.

As soon as he got home, Li Mo immediately ran back to his room, burying his head in the bed to COS a corpse.

He was annoyed, but he couldn’t quite pinpoint what he was annoyed about.

Annoyed at Yu Wenxiu and Ye Zhong? Or annoyed at the tight bandages on his arm?

Amidst his frustration, the phone in his pocket buzzed.

Li Mo didn’t want to answer, wanting to wait for the other party to hang up.

It hung up, then rang again. Hung up, rang again.

Li Mo was truly annoyed: Who could be looking for him so urgently? A TV interview or an insurance company?

He pulled out his phone from his pocket, answered the call, and said impatiently: “No top-ups, no card sign-ups, no interviews, no apprenticeship.”

“…”

“Are you an idiot?”

Li Mo froze.

He looked at the contact note on the screen: Idiot Senior.

I forgot about this guy.

“Holy crap…” Li Mo opened his mouth. “Senior, international calls must be expensive, right?”

“That’s not the point,” Jian Anxun’s tone instantly became serious. “Junior, I heard someone tried to harm you. Are your kidneys still intact? If you really need money, tell me. Don’t go selling yourself…”

Li Mo’s eyelid twitched.

He interrupted: “Stop, stop, stop. What is all this nonsense??”

Jian Anxun was confused: “Didn’t you get scammed into selling a kidney to pay off debt?”

Li Mo was also confused: “No, how the hell did the rumor get twisted like that? Spreading rumors really costs nothing.”

“Then are you okay, Junior? I’m far away across the ocean and I really, really miss you~”

“You miss Shen Shuyi, right?”

“Just checking on Shuyi’s recent situation. Just checking, okay~ ()”

Li Mo: “…”

Even without seeing him, he could imagine how mischievous Jian Anxun’s expression was.

“He’s doing great. Don’t worry,” Li Mo replied dismissively.

Jian Anxun: “Really?”

Li Mo: “Really.”

Jian Anxun: “Really, really, really?”

Li Mo: “…”

“Get lost.” With that, Li Mo hung up the phone without hesitation.

However, Jian Anxun was strangely effective. Li Mo actually felt much better.

No wonder everyone likes to hang out with idiots.

…

That sounds a bit strange.

Li Mo turned over, belly up, and mindlessly clicked on a social media app.

“Qing Ping_X” posted a few minutes ago:

[Perhaps because of you, I’ve started looking forward to snow.]

The accompanying picture was a pencil drawing from a selfie angle: the long-haired man holding the camera, and the fox-eared man leaning against him, both with faint smiles on their faces.

The comment section was filled with praise, and some people asked who the fox-eared man next to him was.

“Qing Ping_X” replied: [Um… he’s my boyfriend, I guess.]

Netizens flooded the replies with multiple rows of [SHOCKED].

[Cute Fish: Politely asking! Does he have a name? Who’s the top and who’s the bottom? Who’s the main character? Please explain, crying (T_T)].

[Qing Ping_X: That silly guy hasn’t decided on a name yet. I’m not revealing the person behind the pseudonym for now. … I’m the bottom.]

[kswl x n] (kswl is an initialism for “I ship it so much it’s making me crazy” in Chinese internet slang)

What does kswl mean?

Li Mo shook his head. He still didn’t understand this circle.

Li Mo gave the post a like.

The next second, a WeChat message from Xu Qing popped up:

[x.: ?]

[Handsome Li Mo: (This handsome guy is here.JPG)]

[x.: Discharged?]

[Handsome Li Mo: No need to worry. I have safely returned home.]

[x.: What are you doing, being crazy.]

[x.: I don’t have important classes tonight.]

[Handsome Li Mo: Wuwuwu, I salute you. I have an appointment tonight. Don’t miss me.]

[x.: Speak human.]

[Handsome Li Mo: My mom and dad asked me to eat. Let’s make it tomorrow.]

Xu Qing tightly squeezed his phone, inexplicably finding that heart emoji very irritating…

Li Mo put down his phone, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Having dinner with Yu Wenxiu and Ye Zhong? Li Mo couldn’t remember how long it had been since he and Yu Wenxiu had sat down for a meal alone.

Before the divorce, the family of three occasionally sat harmoniously at the dinner table.

After the divorce, Yu Wenxiu was busy working every day, and Li Mo often ate alone.

And after remarriage, Li Mo was either staying at school or hanging out with Shi Tou and their group. Even during the Lunar New Year, it was rare for the four of them to sit together happily for a meal.

Troubled, very troubled.