My Online Date is My Roommate - Chapter 15

Focused on grinding through the main storyline to level up, Jiang Mingbo kept his headphones on, blocking out the world. He played until he lost track of time. By the time he managed to climb another two levels, he glanced up to see it was already past midnight. He instinctively rolled over to go to sleep, but suddenly pressed against the burn on his back. The sharp pain nearly made him bolt upright. Grimacing, Jiang Mingbo sat up and reached back to touch the area, discovering that the scald on his back had already begun to blister.

“Damn you, Fei Wenxu!” Jiang Mingbo cursed under his breath. Carefully bracing himself with his arms, he prepared to switch sides to sleep.

Suddenly, a faint, ghostly voice drifted from the entrance of his bed curtains.

“Cursing me for what?”

“Holy crap!” Jiang Mingbo jumped, startled. Squinting through the darkness at the spot where their beds connected, he could just make out a silhouette. It seemed Fei Wenxu had been climbing into bed at the exact moment he was being bad-mouthed.

Is there anything more awkward than being caught red-handed while talking smack about your roommate?

On the opposite bed, Tan Rui was already letting out light snores, and the light inside Yu Xuan’s curtains had long since vanished. Jiang Mingbo didn’t bother pretending anymore. He lowered his voice and raised a leg threateningly. “Believe it or not, I’ll kick you right off there.”

Fei Wenxu gave a light huff, ignored him, and with a graceful show of strength, flipped himself onto his own bunk.

Jiang Mingbo rolled his eyes privately. He found Fei Wenxu more annoying by the second. He vowed to level up quickly; sooner or later, he would stir up enough trouble in the game to ensure the guy never had a moment’s peace.

The next day in class, Jiang Mingbo wasn’t in the best spirits. First, he had stayed up late, and second, the friction between his T-shirt and the burn on his back made him feel restless. He had to keep his back as straight as possible, leaning forward to avoid touching the injury.

During the break, Wu Shuang noticed his strange posture and leaned over. “Bo-er, what’s wrong with you?”

Jiang Mingbo waved him off irritably. “I got burned. There are blisters on my back.”

Wu Shuang leaned in to see the wound, casually lifting Jiang Mingbo’s loose shirt before he could dodge. The purplish-red burn was exposed, along with a significant portion of his lower back.

“Hey! What are you doing?” Jiang Mingbo punched the other guy. “Don’t get all handsy with me.”

His resistance wasn’t particularly forceful. As he casually shifted his gaze away, he locked eyes with Fei Wenxu, who was just walking through the door. Fei Wenxu gave him a fleeting glance, his eyes following Wu Shuang’s movements and taking in their current “intimate” posture.

Jiang Mingbo quickly looked away, feeling increasingly unlucky. He was running into Fei Wenxu every time he turned around these days, and it was getting on his nerves.

The first thing Jiang Mingbo did upon returning to the dorm was change into a loose tank top. His back finally felt liberated. Without a word, he washed his feet and climbed into bed to start leveling up.

Since he planned to pester Fei Wenxu into carrying him through dungeons, his current level simply wouldn’t do. For the next two days, he kept his head down and ground through the main quests. He was so quiet that the entire dorm found it abnormal, but no one asked questions. Fei Wenxu assumed the other was just in a bad mood from being outmatched the other day, while Tan Rui and Yu Xuan thought he simply wasn’t in the mood for antics because of the burn.

Under his dedicated “cultivation,” Jiang Mingbo finally hit level 100 on Friday. Letting out a sigh of relief, he poked his head out from his curtains.

Fei Wenxu was nowhere to be seen; it seemed he hadn’t returned to the dorm yet.

Jiang Mingbo opened his profile interface, took a screenshot, and sent a WeChat message directly to “Fish.”

Little Fishy: [Image] Little Fishy: I hit level 100! I can play everyone’s dungeons now!

The reply came quickly.

Fish: Faster than I expected.

Even while focused on leveling, Jiang Mingbo hadn’t forgotten to flirt with Fei Wenxu on WeChat from time to time. Looking back, the two of them had actually chatted every single day.

Little Fishy: Hehe, I had to catch up to your footsteps! I couldn’t just stay in one place forever, right?

Jiang Mingbo was now an expert at “scratching the itch” with his flirtatious talk. He looked at his reply with pride, feeling it would be a waste of talent if he didn’t pursue professional online flirting.

Before Fei Wenxu could reply, he continued his assault.

Little Fishy: Am I impressive or what? Little Fishy: [Hands-on-hips.jpg]

Fish: Impressive. You stay up every night running maps; how could you not be?

Jiang Mingbo immediately caught the key point.

Little Fishy: How do you know I stay up every night? Are you secretly watching me? Little Fishy: [You’re-not-being-honest.jpg] Little Fishy: Tell the truth, are you stalking me? Little Fishy: [Shy.jpg]

Bombarded by the influx of messages, Fei Wenxu felt a bit helpless. He wasn’t intentionally tracking how long the other stayed online; it was just that every time he logged in, he would instinctively see Little Fishy’s “last online” time. A quick deduction made it obvious the person had been pulling all-nighters to level up.

Little Fishy: Tsk, no fun. You’re so hard to tease.

Jiang Mingbo knitted his brows, wondering why Fei Wenxu had suddenly gone silent. Was he actually scared off?

Fish: I see everyone’s online status when I log in. I just happened to notice.

Little Fishy: That’s it?

He seemed quite dissatisfied.

Fish: That’s it.

Fei Wenxu wasn’t telling the whole truth. This “incidental” observation never happened with other guild members. Even if others stayed up all night running maps, this guild leader who usually lied through his teeth wouldn’t have spared them a second glance.

Little Fishy: Fine, let’s drop it. You only say things I don’t want to hear. Now that I’m level 100, take me to a dungeon! I saw so many maps that can be run as a duo. Hurry, hurry, I can’t wait!

Fish: Have someone else from the guild take you first. I have some business and haven’t logged onto the game yet. We’ll talk tonight.

Jiang Mingbo suppressed the urge to curse. He had rushed over to share his joy, and this Fei Wenxu was being so unappreciative. What a waste of emotion.

Little Fishy: Okay then. I guess I’ll just run around and look at the scenery while I wait for you to get online~

He spitefully replied with two emojis of a panda crying.

Fish: Sorry. I’ll take you once I’m back at the dorm.

Jiang Mingbo took the opportunity to fish for information.

Little Fishy: What are you doing? Why aren’t you back after class?

Fish: Boxing practice.

While Jiang Mingbo cursed him for being a “poser” internally, his fingers typed out something sticky-sweet.

Little Fishy: Wow! Let me see the abs. Little Fishy: [Lustful-eyes.jpg]

Fei Wenxu had grown accustomed to the constant teasing. Shaking his head, he turned off his phone and finished his rest period between sets.

Jiang Mingbo put his phone down in frustration. He glanced at his own arm muscles though there were lines, they weren’t prominent. Compared to Fei Wenxu, it was like a small pebble next to a mountain.

Fei Wenxu was taller, more disciplined, and had a much better physique. The thought felt like a weight on Jiang Mingbo’s chest. After sulking for a long while, he let out a heavy sigh and sat up abruptly.

The bedboards creaked loudly, startling Tan Rui. He turned to look at the suddenly agitated Jiang Mingbo and asked in confusion, “Bo-er, what’s up with you?”

“I’m going for a run to exercise,” Jiang Mingbo declared.

Tan Rui’s eyes widened. “Huh? Running?”

Jiang Mingbo’s gaze was determined. “There’s a first time for everything. I feel like I’m going to grow mold just lying here.”

Tan Rui couldn’t wrap his head around it. He shook his head in disbelief. “Bo-er, did something trigger you? I thought you hated running more than anything.”

Jiang Mingbo jumped down from the bed and stretched his legs. “Everything is hard at the beginning. I won’t hate it later.”

Tan Rui watched in shock as the other changed into running shoes and headed out. Just then, Yu Xuan returned from buying groceries.

“Where is Bo-er going?” Yu Xuan asked. He had caught a glimpse of Jiang Mingbo, but the guy had vanished before he could say hello.

Tan Rui twitched his lips. “Him? He went running.”

Yu Xuan blinked in surprise. “Huh?”

“Strange, right? I’m still trying to figure it out…”

“I always thought Bo-er hated exercising…”

Tan Rui waved a hand, sighing with mock tragedy. “Exactly. Looks like from now on, you and I are the only shut-ins left in this dorm.”

Yu Xuan smiled. “I’m not fat, though.”

Tan Rui protested, “Hey, who are you pointing at? I’m not fat either. I play basketball every day, okay? This is called being ‘sturdy.’ Ever heard of ‘paper-wrapped chicken’? It’s all muscle under here.”

Yu Xuan set his groceries down one by one and nodded solemnly. “Mhm… sturdy.”

“What’s with that face?!” Tan Rui shouted.

As they joked around, the door pushed open again. Thinking Jiang Mingbo had finally realized he wasn’t built for sports and had retreated, they both looked up, only to meet Fei Wenxu’s calm gaze.

Seeing their unusual expressions, Fei Wenxu set his bag down and asked casually, “What’s up?”

Tan Rui laughed. “Nothing. I thought Bo-er was back.”

Fei Wenxu was puzzled. He instinctively glanced at the bed curtains. Lately, the guy would pull his curtains shut the moment he got back and wouldn’t speak to anyone. One might think he was hiding something scandalous in there. Was he actually out today?

“He went out?”

Tan Rui got excited again. “I’m telling you, Bo-er must have taken some adrenaline today. He went running!”

Fei Wenxu raised an eyebrow, finding it hard to believe. Jiang Mingbo wasn’t an active person. The only exercise he liked was cycling, and his reasoning was that you could do it while sitting down, so it wasn’t tiring…

Had the sun risen in the west? He actually went for a run?

However, Fei Wenxu didn’t waste much thought on it. He changed his shoes and jacket, sat down, and turned on his computer.

Tan Rui rarely saw Fei Wenxu start his computer so quickly, as if someone were waiting for him. He teased, “Brother Fish, moving so fast… what, is your wife inside the computer?”

Fei Wenxu gave him a cold look. Tan Rui froze for a moment, feeling that “Brother Fish” seemed quite different from his usual self.

A second later, Fei Wenxu’s lips curled into a smirk. “Yeah. My wife is inside.”

Tan Rui dismissed his momentary unease and continued joking. Fei Wenxu gave him half-hearted responses while logging into the game, only to find that “Little Fishy” wasn’t online. Her status showed she had been online an hour ago. He frowned at the cute puppy avatar.

Didn’t she say she’d wait for him?

She even learned how to lie.

What a little liar.

The “liar” Jiang Mingbo had caught a stitch in his side after only two laps and immediately regretted his life choices. He had never liked running. Panting and red-faced, he stopped. Not wanting to return in total defeat, he walked the remaining laps before heading back to the dorm.

Upon entering, he ran right into Fei Wenxu, who had already showered and changed into pajamas. Fei Wenxu’s expression wasn’t great. He looked up from his computer screen and shot him a quick glance.

Jiang Mingbo was baffled by the look. This psycho… who ticked him off? Who is he giving attitude to?

The bathroom was empty, so Jiang Mingbo grabbed his clothes and washed up. By the time he was ready to climb into bed, Tan Rui, who was finishing a dungeon, let out a wail. “Brother Fish! Why are you so aggressive today? Leave a couple of enemies for me at least, or I won’t even get a copper chest later!”

Fei Wenxu’s tone was flat. “First come, first served.”

Tan Rui slumped back in agony.

Jiang Mingbo furrowed his brows, pulled his curtains shut, and put on his headphones. He opened the game and checked the guild first. Most people were online. He suddenly remembered it was Friday night—the night for the “Great Wave Gold Rush” dungeon event in Looking East. The event involved teaming up to fight water ghouls in the Min River while scavenging for treasure.

Jiang Mingbo had been so flustered by Fei Wenxu earlier that he completely forgot about the event. Seeing everyone already in teams, he didn’t even know who to ask for a status update.

The guild chat was silent, so he boredly opened his friend list. After playing for a while, he had added two or three other guild members besides “President Lazy” and “Fish.”

Currently, President Lazy wasn’t in a team. Jiang Mingbo instinctively clicked his profile and invited him to run some dailies.

Lazy accepted almost instantly.

Little Fishy: You didn’t go to the Great Wave Gold Rush? President Lazy: This is an alt account. I haven’t reached the level requirement yet. Little Fishy: Hahahaha! Well, look at my level.

Lazy checked. Level 102. Oho, he surpassed me that quickly?

President Lazy: Not bad. That was fast. Little Fishy: You’re just too slow. It’s been so long and you’re still level 93. Little Fishy: [Contempt.jpg] President Lazy: I told you, this is an alt. I don’t play it often. I only hop on when my main is busy.

Jiang Mingbo got curious.

Little Fishy: Then why aren’t you using your main for the limited-time Gold Rush? Isn’t it a waste to be on an alt? President Lazy: My main is being pestered by someone. I’m not free right now…

Jiang Mingbo’s ears perked up. Is there tea to be spilled?

Likely influenced by the gossipy girls in the guild, Jiang Mingbo suddenly felt very nosy.

Little Fishy: Oh? Gossip? President Lazy: Not much gossip. Just ran into a ‘trans’ [a man playing a female character]. He wants my rare gear, so he’s pretending to be a girl and clinging to me, insisting I give him items.

Jiang Mingbo’s jaw nearly hit the floor. A “trans”?

Wait, aren’t I technically a ‘trans’ right now?

Little Fishy: Huh? President Lazy: The main problem is he’s a terrible actor. You can tell at a glance he’s some guy with hairy feet. It’s disgusting! Little Fishy: … President Lazy: Sigh, just my luck. My main has too much gear and I can’t afford to make enemies while representing the guild, so I’m just playing my alt. Little Fishy: … President Lazy: If he were even half as cute as you, I would have made him my ‘CP’ [partner] long ago.

Jiang Mingbo: … Do you even hear the nonsense you’re spouting?

Little Fishy: But I remember you suspected I was a ‘trans’ at the beginning too… President Lazy: Once bitten, twice shy. A ‘trans’ doesn’t act like you do.

Jiang Mingbo: Hehe. Big brother, you clearly haven’t seen enough of the world…

Just as he was about to reply, a notification popped up. Since he had been in the team chat with Lazy, he instinctively clicked it, thinking it was a guild message.

Fish: Who are you teaming with?