Desk-mate, Do You Like Me? - Chapter 62

Chapter 62

The next morning, the hustle and bustle of the first day of school swept through the city like a punctual bell, undeniable and irresistible.

Li Mo was jolted awake by his alarm, groaned, and buried his head in the pillow, trying to resist reality. In contrast, Xu Qing was already fully dressed, standing by the bed, calmly watching him perform his usual “difficulty getting up” routine.

“Five more minutes… just five minutes…” Li Mo’s voice was muffled and indistinct in the pillow.

Xu Qing didn’t say anything, but simply reached out and precisely pulled away the blanket wrapped around him.

The chill of early spring hit instantly. Li Mo jolted wide awake but didn’t forget to put on an act: “Qingqing! You are cold and ruthless! You’ve broken my poor heart~”

Xu Qing, without changing his expression, placed the neatly folded school uniform by his bed: “Ten minutes. Wash up, eat breakfast.”

With that, he turned and left the bedroom, leaving Li Mo to grimace at his retreating back.

Despite his antics, Li Mo scrambled up quickly.

On the first day of school, a strange, mixed feeling of anticipation and a fresh start diluted the laziness of the holiday and the reluctance toward schoolwork.

He quickly washed up. When he rushed to the dining room, Xu Qing was already sitting at the table, quietly drinking milk, with hot fried eggs and toast laid out before him.

They ate breakfast in silence and then left the house, one after the other.

The morning air carried a biting chill, and their breath turned into white mist. Li Mo wrapped his jacket tighter, sped up a couple of steps to walk side-by-side with Xu Qing, and habitually slipped his slightly chilled hand close to Xu Qing’s jacket pocket to warm it up.

Xu Qing’s body stiffened imperceptibly. He glanced sideways at him.

Li Mo immediately flashed a grin, revealing two pointed canine teeth, with a hint of appeasement: “I’m cold.”

Xu Qing said nothing, turned his head forward, and let him walk close to him. They walked in silence down the familiar street toward the school, surrounded by other students in uniforms, rushing along. The disciplined rhythm of collective life slowly returned.

Stepping into the classroom, the familiar smell—a mix of books, chalk, and young boys—hit him.

The classroom, which had been somewhat deserted during the holiday, was now bustling. Students gathered in twos and threes, excitedly sharing holiday stories, complaining about unfinished homework, creating a lively atmosphere.

As soon as Li Mo entered, someone clapped him hard on the shoulder from behind.

“Li Mo! Where the hell did you go during the holiday? You didn’t reply to any messages!” Tang Dawei’s voice was as loud as ever.

“What else would I do? Closed-door cultivation, of course,” Li Mo laughed, punching the other boy back, his eyes unconsciously glancing toward Xu Qing.

Xu Qing had already walked straight to his seat, seemingly oblivious to the surrounding noise, and took out a wet wipe to clean the already spotless desktop and chair. He seemed to carry a transparent shield around him, keeping all the clamor out.

Tang Dawei followed Li Mo’s gaze. Thinking of scenes he had witnessed before, he lowered his voice: “Tsk, still the same, an iceberg.” He nudged Li Mo with his elbow. “Speaking of which… how did you two get together? Xu Qing’s type, the one who can freeze people to death, seems really hard to win over…”

Li Mo raised an eyebrow, his tone carrying a protective edge he didn’t even notice: “What do you know? My Qingqing is just reserved.”

After saying that, he ignored Tang Dawei’s winks and walked toward his own seat—right next to Xu Qing’s.

…

The bell for morning self-study rang, and the classroom gradually quieted down. The class teacher, Qi Miao, walked in with her lesson plans and delivered the usual back-to-school pep talk—new semester, new start, refocusing on studies, and another step closer to the Gaokao.

Li Mo was a bit distracted below, twirling his pen, his eyes occasionally falling on Xu Qing’s focused profile.

Until Qi Miao announced the change of seats.

As usual, seats were slightly adjusted after every major exam based on performance and discipline.

Li Mo’s heart skipped a beat, and he subconsciously straightened up. He had tried hard during the holiday, but his previous foundation… He looked at Xu Qing nervously. Xu Qing remained calm, as if this matter had nothing to do with him.

Names were called one by one, and students began to move positions. Li Mo strained his ears, his heart beating a little fast.

“…Li Mo,” Qi Miao tucked a few stray hairs behind her ear, looking at him. “You showed improvement this term, especially in Physics. Your seat remains the same. Keep up the good work.”

A heavy stone dropped in Li Mo’s heart, and he could barely control the smile on his face. He forced a calm “Yes” and quickly glanced at Xu Qing. The latter was looking down at his book, seemingly unconcerned with the recent announcement.

But Li Mo felt that Xu Qing’s fingertip, as he turned the page, seemed to have paused momentarily.

The morning classes were tight and fulfilling. The brain-storming of Math, the literary complexities of Chinese, and soon the lunch bell rang.

“Time to eat! I’m starving!” Tang Dawei yelled, and the classroom instantly erupted.

Li Mo immediately turned to Xu Qing, his eyes sparkling, clearly conveying a reminder and anticipation: “Shall we go?”

Xu Qing’s movements in organizing his books were unhurried. Just as Li Mo was about to urge him, he finally stood up: “Mhm.”

The two followed the crowd toward the cafeteria. The cafeteria on the first day of school was a battlefield, roaring with voices, with long queues at every counter.

Li Mo looked at the surging crowd, feeling a bit overwhelmed, but thinking that he had “agreed” to this with Xu Qing, he braced himself and subconsciously shielded Xu Qing from the crowd to prevent him from being squeezed.

“What do you want to eat? I’ll queue!” Li Mo raised his voice, asking amidst the noise.

Xu Qing looked at the queues at the various counters and pointed to the vegetarian counter, where fewer people were lined up: “That one.”

“Sure, you go find a seat, I’ll queue.” Li Mo volunteered, shoving his workbook into Xu Qing’s hand, and nimbly squeezed into the line.

Xu Qing paused, watching his figure quickly disappear into the crowd, then found a relatively quiet corner seat.

Li Mo was restless even while queuing, occasionally looking back in Xu Qing’s direction to confirm he was still there. When he carefully maneuvered through the crowd with two trays of food, fine beads of sweat had appeared on his forehead.

“Here’s yours, no green onions,” Li Mo pushed the tray in front of Xu Qing, his tone carrying the pride of a task accomplished.

Xu Qing looked at the visibly meticulously picked-over dishes on the tray, paused for a moment, and said softly, “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it!” Li Mo waved his hand and immediately started wolfing down his food with his chopsticks; he was genuinely hungry.

The cafeteria was incredibly noisy, surrounded by the loud discussions, laughter, and playful teasing of students. Their table, however, seemed a bit too quiet. Xu Qing ate as quietly and refined as always, chewing slowly, contrasting sharply with the environment.

Halfway through his meal, Li Mo found the silence a bit uncomfortable and started making conversation:

“Hey, do you think Old Man Wu will give us a pop quiz in Chemistry this afternoon?”

“Possibly.”

“This braised pork with potatoes in the cafeteria doesn’t taste as good as last time…”

“Mhm.”

“I heard the afternoon PE class is with Class Seven. Apparently, they have a new transfer student…”

His chatter gradually slowed down amidst Xu Qing’s calm eating. Li Mo belatedly realized that Xu Qing might not like to talk so much while eating. He rubbed his nose, closed his mouth, and focused on his meal.

Xu Qing finished eating, carefully wiped the corners of his mouth with a tissue, and then looked up at Li Mo, who was busy eating opposite him. Li Mo noticed the gaze and asked vaguely with a mouthful of food: “What is it?”

“Nothing.” Xu Qing lowered his eyes, and naturally moved a piece of braised pork, which was lean with little fat and untouched on his plate, onto Li Mo’s plate.

Li Mo’s eyes instantly lit up, like a large dog being fed. Just as he was about to grin, he heard Xu Qing’s faint supplement: “Hurry up and eat. It’s almost time for the lunch break.”

“Oh, oh, right away!” Li Mo immediately sped up, finishing the rest of his meal in a few quick bites. He even ate the piece of braised pork cleanly, feeling utterly satisfied.

The two tidied their trays and left the cafeteria. The midday sun dispelled some of the early spring chill, feeling warm on their bodies. Some energetic boys were already chasing and playing on the sports field, the sound of a basketball bouncing loudly.

Li Mo felt a bit eager to join them and nudged Xu Qing: “Want to take a walk? To aid digestion.”

Xu Qing glanced at the time and nodded.

They walked slowly along the shaded path by the sports field. The noise was somewhat isolated, and the atmosphere was much more relaxed than in the cafeteria.

Li Mo started to become lively again, pointing to the newly replaced bulletin board by the field, or a new tender bud on a certain tree, chattering about his discoveries. Xu Qing mostly listened quietly, occasionally uttering a monosyllabic reply, but the lines of his profile softened considerably in the sunlight.

When they reached a tall sycamore tree, Xu Qing suddenly stopped, his gaze fixed on the base of the tree.

Li Mo followed his sight and saw a cluster of very inconspicuous small white wildflowers that had just broken through the soil, trembling slightly in the still-chilly spring breeze.

“Huh? What about that flower?” Li Mo asked, confused.

Xu Qing didn’t answer. He simply squatted down, quietly looking at the cluster of tiny flowers for a few seconds, then reached out a finger and very gently touched one of the delicate petals. The sunlight filtered through the branches and leaves, casting fragmented light and shadow on his lowered eyelashes.

In that instant, Li Mo held his breath. He watched Xu Qing’s focused profile, seeing a fleeting, almost undetectable softness pass through those usually cool-as-ice features.

All the surrounding noise—the shouts from the field, the distant sound of traffic—seemed to recede at this moment. His world was left only with Xu Qing and the insignificant little flower blooming peacefully under Xu Qing’s fingertip.

He realized that Xu Qing would stop for such tiny life.

This discovery stirred something lightly in Li Mo’s heart, like a feather brushing against him—a little ticklish, a little hard-to-describe warmth.

Xu Qing quickly stood up, reverting to his usual demeanor, as if the moment of tenderness had been Li Mo’s illusion. “Let’s go,” he said.

“Oh, okay.” Li Mo quickly followed. This time, he didn’t chatter incessantly, but just secretly watched Xu Qing’s shadow walking beside him. That mixed feeling of anticipation and a new start in his heart seemed to quietly ferment again, becoming more full and concrete.

…

The afternoon classes proceeded as scheduled. The Chemistry class indeed had a pop quiz. Li Mo struggled and barely finished, lamenting his overindulgence during the holiday. Xu Qing, as usual, was steady, finishing early to check his work.

The PE class was shared with Class Seven, and the teacher organized a simple basketball friendly match. Li Mo was in his element, running and jumping on the court like a tireless leopard, drawing the attention and whispers of many girls. After scoring a point, he would subconsciously look toward the sideline for that familiar figure.

Xu Qing did not participate in the game. He sat quietly on a bench by the sideline, holding a book, occasionally looking up at the situation on the court. When Li Mo sank a beautiful three-pointer, eliciting a cheer, he saw Xu Qing’s gaze fall directly on him. Although he still had no expression, Li Mo just felt that he… slightly nodded?

Just this tiny affirmation was enough to energize Li Mo, and he ran even harder in the second half.

The dismissal bell rang, and the full yet slightly chaotic first day of school finally came to an end.

While packing his bag, Li Mo was still excitedly replaying the details of the basketball game: “Did you see that steal? It was absolutely awesome! And that final pass…”

Xu Qing silently organized the crumpled test papers Li Mo had haphazardly shoved into his desk and handed them to him: “Homework.”

Li Mo took the papers, stuffed them into his backpack, still talking: “…Oh right, when you go back to the dorm tonight, can you take a look at this Physics problem for me? Just the last big question. I keep thinking my solution is wrong…” He naturally followed Xu Qing out while talking.

As they reached the entrance of the teaching building, the flow of people began to separate. Most boarding students headed toward the dormitories, while day students streamed toward the school gate.

Xu Qing stopped and looked at Li Mo: “Where’s the problem?”

“Huh?” Li Mo was momentarily stunned, then realized Xu Qing was asking about the Physics problem he had mentioned. He quickly rummaged through his backpack, mumbling, “Wait a sec, let me find the paper…”

While he was searching, Lin Yi, Tang Dawei, Shen Shuyi, and Yang Di walked up, greeting Xu Qing: “Brother Xu, going back to the dorm together?”

Xu Qing responded with a sound and then looked back at Li Mo, who was still fumbling for the paper.

Li Mo finally pulled out the crumpled paper, pointing to the last question: “This one!”

Xu Qing took the paper, quickly scanned it, took out a pen from his neat backpack, and wrote a few lines of clear steps and key formulas in the scratch area, then handed it back to Li Mo: “The thought process is here. Look it over yourself.”

“Oh… okay.” Li Mo took the paper, looked at the elegant handwriting, then looked up at Xu Qing, who was ready to leave with Lin Yi and the others. A sense of inexplicable loss suddenly washed over him.

He had become used to going to and leaving school with Xu Qing, and even accustomed to squeezing into the same room at night, one being noisy, the other quiet. Now, suddenly having to part ways, watching Xu Qing walk toward another direction he couldn’t follow, the feeling was… a bit empty.

“Wait…” Li Mo couldn’t help but call out to him again.

Xu Qing turned back, his eyes asking for an explanation.

“Are you…” Li Mo stumbled, not knowing what he wanted to say. After struggling for a long time, he blurted out, “Is your dorm room cold tonight? Is your blanket thick enough?” He felt silly even asking the question.

Xu Qing seemed to be slightly taken aback. The people beside him let out low chuckles.

“Enough,” Xu Qing’s answer was still brief. He glanced at Li Mo’s slightly embarrassed expression and added, “Go home and figure out the problem. Don’t get it wrong tomorrow.”

“…Got it,” Li Mo replied glumly.

Tang Dawei laughed twice: “Brother Mo, our honeymoon phase isn’t that long, is it? Can’t bear to be apart for a second!”

Lin Yi sighed: “The world is cold…”

Is that how you use that idiom?

“Let’s go,” Xu Qing said, then casually grabbed Lin Yi by the collar and pulled him away. Seeing this, Tang Dawei and the other two also understood and joined the flow of people heading toward the dormitories.

Li Mo stood rooted to the spot, watching Xu Qing’s slender, upright figure disappear into the entrance of the dormitory building. The empty feeling in his heart became more pronounced.

He squeezed the paper with Xu Qing’s handwriting on it, sighed, and then slowly turned and walked toward the school gate alone.

The walk home seemed longer than usual, and much quieter. Without that quiet figure by his side, even the evening breeze felt colder.

When he arrived home, his uncle, Yu Wencheng, was already back and busy in the kitchen.

“You’re back? Where’s Xiao Qing?” Yu Wencheng poked his head out, asking out of habit.

“He went back to the dorm,” Li Mo threw his backpack onto the sofa, lacking energy.

“Oh right, I forgot about that.” Yu Wencheng wiped his hands. “What’s wrong? You’re not used to having no one to bicker with?”

“Who’s not used to it!” Li Mo immediately retorted like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. “I’m so much more peaceful!”

Yu Wencheng smiled, not exposing him.

In the evening, Li Mo sat alone at his desk doing homework. The room was quiet enough to hear the scratching of his pen on the paper and the occasional car passing outside the window.

He finished Math and picked up the Physics paper, looking at the steps Xu Qing had left. The thought process was clear and easy to understand.

He suddenly remembered that when he encountered difficult problems before, he would just go straight to Xu Qing. Xu Qing would sometimes tease him for his strange thinking, but he would patiently explain until Li Mo understood.

Now, he could only ponder over these few cold lines of handwriting by himself.

“Tsk.” Li Mo scratched his head. For the first time, he clearly realized that the distance between boarding and day students was not just a length within the school campus, but an entire night they couldn’t spend together.

Meanwhile, in the dormitory.

Xu Qing finished washing up and sat down at his desk.

The four-person dorm room was still only occupied by himself, quiet and comfortable.

However, in the pauses between solving problems, his gaze would inadvertently sweep over the empty bed next to him—the spot where Li Mo would occasionally sleep when he came to stay in his dorm.

He would also subconsciously think, upon seeing a slightly interesting problem that required a roundabout solution, If that idiot were to do this, what incredible solution would he come up with?

Realizing he was distracted, Xu Qing slightly frowned and refocused his attention on the book in front of him.

However, on this first night after the start of school, both the day student Li Mo’s home and the boarding student Xu Qing’s dorm seemed overly quiet due to the absence of a certain familiar “presence.”

Li Mo finished his homework, lay in bed, picked up his phone, opened the chat interface with Xu Qing, his finger hovering over the screen for a long time, typing a few words then deleting them, finally sending only one simple message:

Li Mo: [I understood the problem.]

After a while, the phone screen lit up. Xu Qing’s reply was very simple:

Xu Qing: [Mhm.]

Li Mo looked at the “Mhm,” pouted, threw the phone aside, and turned off the light to sleep.

In the dark, he turned over and thought: Being a boarder is such a pain.