Embrace That Vampire - Chapter 9

The night before moving out, Pei Yun squatted on the floor packing his things.

He didn’t actually have much, but his belongings were eclectic—a table full of messy, useless trinkets, including more than ten small rubber ducks he had collected from food deliveries, all lined up neatly in a corner of the desk.

After organizing his clothes, he put the rubber ducks into a storage box one by one. Du Jian leaned beside him, picking up a duck and squeezing it, making it squeak.

“Pei-bao, give me one as a souvenir?” he asked.

Pei Yun shook his head, looking serious. “No can do. Three generations are living together here as a complete family. Giving you one would break them apart.”

Du Jian: “Don’t they all look exactly the same?”

Pei Yun stingily snatched the duck back, turned it around, and pointed at its bottom. “I labeled them with numbers. This one is the son.”

After saying that, he tossed the “son” into the storage box and closed the lid.

Du Jian: “…” He swallowed the “friendly greetings” on the tip of his tongue. “God damn it, do you have to force me to curse at you on such a sad day?”

Pei Yun continued to bury his head in packing. “Is that so? What’s sad about it?”

Du Jian: “In the future, we won’t have the chance to play games as a four-man squad in the dorm anymore. You might even be stared at by Professor Lu while you study. Is that not sad?”

Pei Yun: “Not sad. While you guys play games in the dorm, I’ll be secretly writing papers and doing practice exams at my little uncle’s house, out-competing all of you.”

Du Jian was speechless. “Your mom! —Fine, I’ll endure! I won’t let you have your way. Anyway, the dorm head is about to cry. His precious son, whom he raised with painstaking care for three years, is going away to suffer.”

Pei Yun’s movements slowed down. He thought for a moment and said to Du Jian, “I think the public might have a misunderstanding of my little uncle—including myself.”

“He’s actually not that cold and heartless.”

Throughout the entire weekend, Pei Yun had lived in fear, worrying that the truth would be leaked at any moment and that he would be finished sooner or later.

But as two days passed, the only person who knew the truth acted as if nothing had happened. His calm and unruffled demeanor made Pei Yun start to wonder if he was making a mountain out of a molehill—maybe this wasn’t such a big deal after all.

On Sunday, during their return trip, he finally couldn’t help but ask Lu Que why he hadn’t sent him to the Supernatural Research Institute.

At that time, the look Lu Que gave him was borderline strange. “You really want to go in?”

“Of course not!” Pei Yun shook his head frantically, then rubbed his nose. “I just thought it was strange. A lead professor of the Research Institute would actually cover for a vampire—”

“Not a lead professor,” Lu Que interrupted, focusing on the road ahead. “Just a nominal professor. I have the qualification to know research techniques, but I don’t participate in modification research.”

You can be a nominal professor? Pei Yun was inexperienced and very surprised. “Why not participate?”

“Different paths, I don’t think highly of it, so I don’t participate,” Lu Que said. “You are fine as you are now. I won’t send you in.”

His tone was calm, carrying a hint of nonchalant casualness. A few simple words, but they gave Pei Yun a lot of peace of mind.

“But what if I’m discovered?” He still had one concern. “Covering for me, you’ll be punished, right?”

“I won’t let you be discovered.”

The car stopped at the gate of Ning University. Lu Que pulled the handbrake. “If you feel uneasy, you can think of it as helping me conduct a close-range observation experiment.”

Pei Yun was a bit dazed. “Huh? Observing what?”

“A vampire’s full awakening process.”

Lu Que tapped his fingers on the steering wheel and turned his head to look at him. “For example, right now, you can try to show me your red eyes.”

Pei Yun instinctively followed the instructions. Like a cat’s pupils dilating, his original amber color was gradually replaced by an expanding dark red.

Lu Que watched for two seconds, then lowered his head to pull out the car key. “Let’s go, get out of the car.”

“?” Pei Yun watched Lu Que, who was about to get out. “Wait, little uncle, that’s it? That’s too casual. Aren’t you going to say anything about the observation results?”

Lu Que stopped by the car door. “The ornamental value is quite good.”

Leaving Pei Yun in a daze, he swung the door shut.

When Zeng Yichen returned from class, Pei Yun had finished packing and was ready for bed. They met on the balcony, and Pei Yun greeted him cheerfully, “Good evening, dorm head.”

Zeng Yichen gave an “mhm” and opened his mouth as if to say something. Pei Yun stood in place and waited patiently. But in the end, Zeng Yichen gave up and only said warmly, “If you want to come back, come back anytime.”

After the lights were out, Pei Yun lay on his pillow playing with his phone. He received a few photos from his little uncle, along with a text message:

Lu Que: Which room do you want to stay in?

The photos were real shots of the rooms. Pei Yun clicked on the full images and swiped through, choosing the last one with a curved floor-to-ceiling window. The room was very spacious, and with the curtains drawn back, the view was incredible.

Pei Yun saved the photo and sent it back: Pei Yun: [/Image] Pei Yun: [This one]

Lu Que: [Mhm.] Lu Que: [Go to sleep early. I’ll pick you up after class tomorrow.] Pei Yun: [Okay, thank you little uncle.]

He put down his phone to sleep and looked up to find that Zeng Yichen, in the bed opposite him, wasn’t asleep yet. Zeng Yichen had the most regular schedule in the dorm, and it was already past their usual bedtime.

“Dorm head, aren’t you sleeping yet?” he asked softly.

After asking, he realized the dorm was pitch black. Logically, he shouldn’t have noticed. He quickly covered his mouth, wanting to laugh it off and brush it over, but Zeng Yichen seemed preoccupied and didn’t notice the anomaly. He just muttered “Going to sleep now,” turned over with his back to Pei Yun, and pulled the quilt over half his head.

Pei Yun blinked and breathed a sigh of relief.

The next day, there were only two classes in the morning. After finishing class and returning to the dorm to move his things, he sat in the car and messaged his roommates:

Pei Yun: [Children, my ‘free-range’ life with all-inclusive food and housing is about to begin! /Strong/Strong] An Lan: [Congratulations.] Dorm Head: [Eat well, come back to play anytime.] Du Jian: [I suddenly remembered, you haven’t told us why you’re suddenly moving out.] Pei Yun: [Because you always sleepwalk at night and fart on my bed.] Du Jian: [?] Pei Yun: [And you run away right after doing it.] Du Jian: [??? I fucking don’t!!] Du Jian: […] Du Jian: [Wait, for real?]

Pei Yun smiled, his eyes curving. Pei Yun: [Just teasing you. My parents found out about the time I fainted from low blood sugar, so they wanted me to move to my little uncle’s place so he can keep an eye on me.] An Lan: [What a worrying IQ.] Du Jian: [You! Fucking! Piece of!] Du Jian: [You have to treat me to hot pot at your house as an apology!] Pei Yun: [You think I’d dare to mention such a bold suggestion to Professor Lu?] Du Jian: [You’re such a little brother (weak)!] Pei Yun: [I’m a little nephew.] Pei Yun: [Rabbit being cute.jpg]

“I had some school matters yesterday and didn’t have time to buy daily necessities for you,” Lu Que said. “We’ll go home first to drop off your luggage, then I’ll take you to the supermarket.”

Pei Yun immediately put away his phone and sat up straight. “Okay.”

Lu Que’s apartment was in Nanhu Jingyuan, not far from the school—a 20th-floor unit with an excellent view. It was a three-bedroom apartment with light colors and a simple, low-key, yet luxurious decoration. It was the kind that screamed “quietly wealthy.”

He found the room he had picked last night. Upon entering, he realized the room was even more spacious than it appeared in the photos. Pei Yun loved it. If Lu Que hadn’t been watching from the door, he would have definitely jumped onto the bed and rolled around in the quilt first.

Lu Que glanced at the time. “You pack first. I’m going to the study. Come find me when you’re done.”

Pei Yun gave a “good kid” nod. “You go ahead and be busy, little uncle, don’t worry about me.”

Lu Que hummed in response. He had only taken a few steps before being called back.

“There’s a tie here.” Pei Yun stood in front of the closet, holding a light grey tie toward him. “Little uncle, why is your tie here?”

Lu Que: “I left it behind when I moved rooms last night.”

Pei Yun watched Lu Que take the tie and turn to leave, standing alone in a daze for several seconds.

Last night? Moving rooms? …He moved from this room to another room?

Holy shit! He snatched his little uncle’s room?! Pei Yun was stunned.

After packing with immense guilt, he crept to the door of the study and found it slightly ajar. He poked half his head in and called softly, “Little uncle, I’m ready.”

Lu Que turned off the computer and stood up. “Let’s go.”

The supermarket was nearby, just a few minutes’ walk away. Pei Yun followed Lu Que, hesitating for a long time before testing the waters: “Little uncle, was that room originally yours?”

Lu Que: “Mhm.”

It really was! Pei Yun began to strongly condemn himself in his mind. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know,” he said. “You could have actually refused me, little uncle. I’m not picky; I can sleep in any room.”

“It’s not a big deal. If you want to live there, live there.”

Lu Que took a shopping cart at the entrance. “Let’s go. The daily necessities area is on the second floor.”

Pei Yun had gone to the supermarket with his parents and with Du Jian and the others, but this was his first time with his little uncle. Unlike the previous noisy trips, Lu Que didn’t say much. He followed behind Pei Yun and let him pick everything himself, only speaking occasionally to remind him if he forgot something.

Pei Yun was actually a bit childish, which manifested in various ways. For instance, the water cup he used at home was a green dinosaur with a long tail, his slippers were plush Smurfs, and his toothbrush handle even had a “transformation” button.

It didn’t feel like much when living with his family, but now that he was living alone with Lu Que, he felt embarrassed to follow his usual preferences. He also worried about ruining the overall decor of the apartment.

So, after some thought, Pei Yun decided to pick things based on a “mature man’s” preferences to avoid being too childish and becoming an eyesore to his little uncle.

Toothbrush: Simple blue and white.

Water Cup: Dark blue, “old man” style.

Towels: Basic white with a logo.

Slippers: Simple black style…

Lu Que looked at the items in the cart, a trace of complexity flickering in his eyes. “Are you sure you want these? Do you need a different color?”

“No need.” The little nephew was very satisfied with his own mature vision. “I like these.”

Lu Que nodded and said no more. Pei Yun pushed the cart with light steps toward the next area. Lu Que was about to follow when his phone vibrated. Zhang Liangshen had sent him a photo:

A little girl around three or four years old, cradling a huge stuffed animal and smiling brightly at the camera.

Lu Que: [?] Professor Zhang: [My little niece, cute, right? /Smug]

Lu Que clicked on the full photo, saved it to his album, and used the edit function to circle something and send it back: Lu Que: [What is this?] Professor Zhang: [A big-mouthed bunny plushie, extra-large version. All kids nowadays like to sleep with them.] Lu Que: [Very ugly.] Professor Zhang: [Tsk, what do you know.] Professor Zhang: [And can you focus on the key point? I’m telling you, raising a kid who doesn’t cry or make a fuss is so much fun! You, a lonely person, wouldn’t understand.] Lu Que: [I understand.] Professor Zhang: [? What do you understand?] Lu Que: [A ‘kid’—I have one at my house now too.] Professor Zhang: [???]

Zhang Liangshen sent several question marks in a row, but Lu Que ignored him.

Pei Yun was currently standing in front of a shelf, picking items while listening to a young couple nearby.

The girl said, “That shark is so soft!” The boy said, “Really? I think it’s just okay.” The girl said, “It clearly is! And once this batch is sold out, it’ll be out of production!” The boy said, “But isn’t it too expensive for a plushie? And it’s too big; it looks so childish.” The girl said, “Get out!!!”

Pei Yun smiled at the conversation. Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a shadow flicker, and a huge object was tossed into his shopping cart.

Looking closely, it was a blue, big-mouthed shark with a comical look. It was truly huge; the cart couldn’t even fit it all, and half its tail hung outside.

“Little uncle,” he pointed at the shark that had just been defined as “childish.” “You want to buy this?”

Lu Que: “Mhm. It’s for you.”

He had just looked through the plushie area, and this was the only one that was even remotely acceptable.

Pei Yun was surprised. “Why give it to me?”

Lu Que: “To hold while you sleep at night.”