I Don't Want To Be Hated By Everyone. - Chapter 5

“I do not dislike you. I cannot speak for others, but I will never dislike Ningning, never.” This sudden declaration made Zhou Xundu look at the youth’s fair face, his light brown eyes filled with tenderness. “Why would you think that, Ningning? Did something happen? You can tell me.”

The man’s excessively gentle voice made Cheng Shuoning feel unconsciously relaxed. He turned to look into his eyes and heard the thought echoing in his mind: ‘I love Ningning too much to ever dislike him; Ningning is the cutest.’

He shook his head and offered a faint smile. “It is nothing. I am just afraid that I am too much of a burden and that I am annoying you.”

The youth, with his delicate and beautiful features, looked incredibly soft and well-behaved when he smiled. He looked like a rabbit, making one feel the urge to pet him.

Zhou Xundu let out a low laugh and reached out to tuck away some stray hair from Cheng Shuoning’s forehead, but before he could touch him, Cheng Shuoning dodged. Zhou Xundu’s fingers froze in the air before he retracted them naturally. “Do not overthink it, Ningning. You are not a burden, never. Did you have a fight with Han Tian?”

Cheng Shuoning’s eyelids twitched. He rolled up the car window, realized his hair was messy, and smoothed it down. “No.”

The way he clearly looked like he wanted to say “yes” made Zhou Xundu chuckle. “It seems Han Tian has upset you.”

Cheng Shuoning replied vaguely, “It is really nothing; it is just that Han Tian has been acting a bit strange.”

“Han Tian has always been strange.” The light turned green, and the cars ahead began to move. Zhou Xundu released the brake, watched the road ahead, and said softly, “Ningning, do not be unhappy because of him. The thought of you being so upset over someone other than me makes me sad too.”

Cheng Shuoning was startled. The words felt easily misinterpreted, but Zhou Xundu’s face remained as gentle as ever, revealing nothing else. He pretended not to hear the remark and asked, “Big Brother Zhou, where are we going to eat?”

“My place.”

“Big Brother Zhou, do you know how to cook?” Cheng Shuoning was surprised. In all the years he had known him, he had never seen Zhou Xundu in a kitchen.

“I do,” Zhou Xundu smiled. “It just will not taste as good as food from a restaurant. You cannot hold it against me, Ningning.”

“I will not.” His previously stifled mood vanished after chatting with Zhou Xundu. Cheng Shuoning leaned against the car window and looked outside. By the side of the road, a pair of parents were nervously holding onto their child’s hand, speaking with solemn expressions. Cheng Shuoning guessed they were teaching their child how to cross the street safely. Watching them, he suddenly thought of his own parents.

They were very busy and hardly returned home even once a month. They would call to chat occasionally, but due to their work, the calls would only last a few minutes before they hung up. Cheng Shuoning had not seen them in nearly two months, and he had not even told them about his hospitalization.

With that thought, he took out his phone and sent a message to his mother: “Mom, Dad, when are you coming home?”

The car pulled into the shopping mall’s underground parking lot. After browsing the supermarket for half an hour, they came out carrying groceries. Cheng Shuoning noticed an ice cream stand nearby and pointed at it with a smile. “Big Brother Zhou, I want that.”

As Zhou Xundu walked over to buy it, Cheng Shuoning realized his mistake and stopped him just as he was about to pay. “Let me.”

He bought two, one for Zhou Xundu and one for himself.

“Ningning?” Zhou Xundu held the ice cream without joy, recalling how Cheng Shuoning used to act spoiled to get him to buy it for him. He asked, “Why are you doing this?”

Cheng Shuoning took a bite of the ice cream; the cold, sweet sensation melted on his tongue. He curved his dark eyes and explained after hearing Zhou Xundu’s remark, “I used to always make you buy it for me, and I felt it was not right.”

“What is not right about it?” His behavior, which clearly created distance, made Zhou Xundu sigh helplessly with a smile. “Have you not bought things for us before? Do not do this again. Come to think of it, you seem to have changed since I came back; you have become less inclined to act spoiled.”

Cheng Shuoning finished the ice cream in a few bites. The coldness made him pay little attention to what Zhou Xundu said. By the time he regained his focus, Zhou Xundu had already picked up the bags and was heading toward the parking lot. Cheng Shuoning followed and tried to take some bags, but Zhou Xundu refused. When Zhou Xundu stared at him, he smiled and explained, “It is so heavy; I cannot let Big Brother Zhou carry it all alone.”

Zhou Xundu remained silent for a moment, then sighed softly, filled with resignation.

It was nearly midnight when they arrived at Zhou Xundu’s home. Cheng Shuoning opened the shoe cabinet to take out his slippers and discovered an extra pair besides theirs. His own were pink with a rabbit pattern, and the extra pair shared the same pattern but was blue.

Cheng Shuoning moved slowly, feeling strange.

Noticing his gaze, Zhou Xundu closed the cabinet after changing his shoes and said, “The housekeepers wear those when they come to clean.”

Cheng Shuoning’s stomach was growling from hunger, so he did not think much of it. He took the groceries into the kitchen and was about to start washing them when Zhou Xundu took them away. “Go sit on the sofa; stay out of the kitchen.”

Cheng Shuoning had wanted to try cooking. “I will help you.”

“No need.” Zhou Xundu pulled him to the sofa, placed the remote in his hand, and smiled. “Your task is to watch TV.”

“Okay.” Cheng Shuoning smiled with curved eyes and did not insist.

As soon as he entered the kitchen, Zhou Xundu’s phone in his pocket rang. He took it out and glanced at the screen. He kept his gentle smile, but his eyes were cold and devoid of any warmth. His long fingers tapped on the keyboard, sending the message: ‘With Ningning, busy.’ He then deleted the message completely.

“Is it work?” The kitchen had gone quiet after the phone rang. Cheng Shuoning could not help but say, “If you have work, you should handle it. I can order takeout.”

Zhou Xundu tied his apron and poked his head out, speaking softly. “It is just someone unimportant. If you are hungry, Ningning, you can eat the snacks on the table, but not too many, or you will not be able to eat dinner.”

Cheng Shuoning nodded, grabbed a small bag of chips, turned on the TV, and sat on the sofa snacking while watching.

Not long after, the phone sitting on the sofa slipped through the cushion, making a sound. He knelt on the floor to pick it up. As he stood up, he saw something else under the sofa and pulled it out. It was a necklace that looked very familiar; one he had only ever seen on Cheng Meng.

Zhou Xundu came out of the kitchen just then to put some fruit on the coffee table. Seeing the necklace in Cheng Shuoning’s hand, he smiled. “Is that a necklace you bought, Ningning?”

“No,” Cheng Shuoning looked at Zhou Xundu. “I found this under the sofa. Is it not yours?”

Zhou Xundu shook his head and pondered for a moment. “Nobody has been here lately except for the housekeeping staff.”

He thought to himself: ‘Did the housekeeper drop it?’

Cheng Shuoning set the necklace aside and said nothing more. He washed his hands and ate a few cherry tomatoes. Zhou Xundu returned to the kitchen to finish cooking. Cheng Shuoning looked back at him and rubbed his temples.

Am I too deeply influenced by Han Tian? Now he was actually starting to feel that Zhou Xundu had ulterior motives, or even that his kindness was just a mask.

The phone on the table rang, breaking his train of thought. It was Han Tian; when the call was hung up, he called again relentlessly.

Cheng Shuoning answered. The person on the other end said anxiously, “Where are you now?”

“At Big Brother Zhou’s place.”

“Why did you go to his house?”

“To eat dinner.”

“He did not answer my calls or messages; it is obvious he did that on purpose,” Han Tian said angrily. “Ningning, why did you go with him? I was planning to come pick you up and take you home.”

Cheng Shuoning did not answer but asked instead, “Have you finished changing your clothes?”

Last night, Han Tian had said he would go home to change and come back. Cheng Shuoning had waited from six in the morning until ten, and even after being discharged, Zhou Xundu had arrived, and he still had not seen Han Tian.

After a moment of silence, Han Tian said apologetically, “Something came up, and by the time I processed it and got to the hospital, I could not find you. I am sorry, Ningning. Will you forgive me?” His tone was filled with a hint of grievance.

Normally, Cheng Shuoning would have smiled and said it did not matter, but in this moment, he only felt that this lie was poorly told; so poorly that he felt Han Tian was treating him like a fool. Otherwise, why tell a lie with such little effort?

“Dinner is served.” Zhou Xundu placed the dishes on the table, glanced at Cheng Shuoning on the phone, walked over, and took the phone. He smiled and said, “Ningning is staying here tonight, so he will not be going home.”

“Mhm, thank you for your concern. Ningning is fine; you do not need to come pick him up.”

“Ningning and I are going to eat; I will not talk to you anymore.”

Before Zhou Xundu hung up, Cheng Shuoning could still hear Han Tian’s roar: “Zhou Xundu, you bastard, you just wait!”

“You are staying here tonight, and I will take you to school tomorrow morning.” Zhou Xundu handed the phone back to Cheng Shuoning. “Come eat.”

The house was quite far from school, so Cheng Shuoning nodded, thanked him, and went to sit at the dining table. Four dishes and one soup, all of which looked very appetizing. Cheng Shuoning tasted one, met Zhou Xundu’s expectant gaze, and smiled. “Delicious.”

“Then I am relieved.” Zhou Xundu let out a breath of relief and served him a bowl of soup.

The house had three bedrooms. Cheng Shuoning had stayed here a few times, and later, Zhou Xundu had decorated one room exactly to his liking; it became his exclusive room, located directly across from Zhou Xundu’s bedroom. Cheng Shuoning pushed open the door; it was the same as before, nothing had changed, except for the clothes in the closet; Zhou Xundu had bought him several more outfits. He left his pocket money on the desk to pay for them, took his clothes, and entered the bathroom for a hot shower.

Zhou Xundu remained in his study working. Cheng Shuoning had nothing to do, so after drying his hair, he made up the schoolwork he had missed during the week.

The next morning, after breakfast, Zhou Xundu drove Cheng Shuoning to school. The car stopped at the school entrance, and the man stepped out first, opened the passenger door, and asked softly, “Shall I pick you up tonight?”

Cheng Shuoning shook his head. “No need. I am going home tonight.”

“Alright.” Zhou Xundu did not say anything further.

Just as Cheng Shuoning was about to leave, he was pulled back by his hand. The handsome man leaned in close and slightly lifted his hand. Cheng Shuoning did not know what he was doing, so he pulled his hand away and took two steps back, offering a gentle, distant smile. “What is it, Big Brother Zhou?”

“You had a leaf on your head.” Zhou Xundu sighed. “Ningning, why do you seem so resistant to me now?”

“No, I just feel that being too close is not very appropriate.” Cheng Shuoning touched his head, took the leaf off, and walked toward the school. “Thank you, Big Brother Zhou. I am going in; you should go back.”

“Alright.” Zhou Xundu waved his hand with a smile and watched his silhouette gradually disappear. Behind his glasses, his eyes, which should have been filled with lingering tenderness, turned cold and pitch-black.

Zhou Xundu returned to the car and turned it around to leave.

There was still over half an hour until class started, so the classroom was sparse and quiet. Cheng Shuoning walked in and immediately saw Xu Wangzhi sitting at his desk, head bowed, writing an exam paper.

He walked over, sat down cautiously, and his gaze inadvertently fell on Xu Wangzhi’s arm. The youth had cold, fair skin, making the scars on his arm very prominent; they looked much worse than the wound on his forehead.

Cheng Shuoning took out his textbook and placed it on the desk. Thinking back to their encounter in the hospital restroom, he stole a glance at the cold youth and could not help asking in a low voice:

“Is your injury okay?”

“Does it still hurt?”

“Will this scar disappear?”

The wind moved the curtains, and the first light of dawn streamed in, landing on the desk. A blurry sound of cicadas entered the classroom, and the air already carried the restlessness of early summer.

Xu Wangzhi’s hand paused in his writing. He turned his head to look at the person beside him, who was smiling so brightly it was almost blinding. His hand gripping the pen tightened.

He stayed silent, but his heart beat wildly in his chest.

Xu Wangzhi pressed his thin lips together and gave an answer that was a complete lie:

“You are so annoying.”