My Online Date is My Roommate - Chapter 3

It was Friday, and Friday afternoons meant no classes. The plan for the dorm was simple: nap until evening. With the weather heating up, everyone decided to take a quick shower first.

Yu Xuan went in first. While he was in there, Tan Rui hopped on his computer to run his daily quests in the game, and Fei Wenxu hung out on his phone with the game running in the background. Jiang Mingbo scrolled through videos at his desk, the dorm quiet except for the low hum of the air conditioner.

Guys shower fast. Once Yu Xuan finished, Tan Rui headed in. When he emerged, he wore a sheepish grin as he apologized to Jiang Mingbo. “Bo-er…”

The tone was overly sweet never a good sign. Jiang Mingbo looked up warily. “Spit it out.”

“I totally forgot to buy more body wash, right? I figured I’d keep using yours for a bit, but… I just ran out of yours too.”

Jiang Mingbo snapped, “Holy crap, you really don’t hold back, do you?”

Because Jiang Mingbo was usually easygoing, Tan Rui didn’t stand on ceremony. He just chuckled. “That’s because we’re bros, right?”

Gving him a glare, Jiang Mingbo grabbed his change of clothes and headed for the bathroom. Tan Rui continued shamelessly, “Brother Fish, do you have any body wash left? Let our Bo-er borrow some.”

Fei Wenxu didn’t even look up. “Help yourself.”

Jiang Mingbo laughed out of sheer annoyance. “Why didn’t you ask him first? You should have just borrowed his from the start.”

Tan Rui scratched his head. “Well, Brother Fish treated us to a big meal today. You can’t just keep shearing the same sheep… and Xuan uses bar soap, so I couldn’t exactly borrow that, could I?”

“Oh, so you’re the logical one now?” Jiang Mingbo looked ready to jump up and take a swing at him. Tan Rui yelped a few “ay-ay-ays” and scrambled up to his bunk, pulling his curtain shut.

At that moment, Fei Wenxu finished replying to a message and looked up with a smile. “It’s fine, Bo-er. Just use mine. No need to be polite.”

Jiang Mingbo smiled back tightly. “I didn’t really sweat today, so I’m fine without it.”

“You ate hotpot, though; you’ll smell like it. Why are you acting like a stranger?” Fei Wenxu continued to smile.

Jiang Mingbo didn’t say another word. He would rather walk downstairs under the scorching sun to the campus supermarket than touch the other man’s things. He grabbed his pajamas and ducked into the bathroom.

He ended up washing his hair and stayed under the cool water for an extra two minutes before coming out. As he wiped the water from his hair, he glanced at his phone and froze. Just that morning, he had been lamenting that he’d never spoken more than a few words to that girl from International Trade and now, there was a message from her on his screen.

Was today his lucky day?

Chen Xian: [Knock knock, are you there?]

Jiang Mingbo’s movements slowed. Confused, he unlocked his phone, having no idea how to respond.

There was movement behind him; he assumed it was Fei Wenxu jumping down from his bunk to shower. Right now, Jiang Mingbo couldn’t be bothered to give him a second glance. He gripped his phone, staring blankly.

How do you chat with a girl you like? Waiting online! Urgent!!

A sudden, inexplicable sense of danger crawled up his spine. Jiang Mingbo spun around to find Fei Wenxu standing directly behind him. They were startlingly close. Startled, Jiang nearly jumped out of his skin. “Holy shit! Fei Wenxu, what are you doing? You scared the hell out of me!”

The commotion caused the other two to poke their heads out from behind their curtains. “What happened? What’s going on?”

Fei Wenxu blinked. “Nothing.”

He then turned back to stare at Jiang Mingbo. “You were just standing there like a statue. I thought you’d been possessed by a ghost.”

Only then did Jiang Mingbo realize he was blocking the narrow walkway. Given Fei Wenxu’s large build, it was impossible for him to pass without being right up against him. He hastily backed up two steps. “Sorry.”

Fei Wenxu shook his head with a light laugh. “You’re still treating me like a stranger. It’s just body wash; no need to be so formal.”

Jiang Mingbo knit his brows. He realized that when Fei had been that close, he must have smelled the lack of scent on him. Goosebumps broke out over his skin, but he couldn’t exactly blow up at the guy. He gave a dry laugh. “Yours is too fragrant; I’m not used to it.”

Fei Wenxu didn’t argue, simply let out a hum of amusement and walked out to the balcony.

Jiang Mingbo rolled his eyes. What a psycho.

He pulled his attention back to his screen, staring at the message for a long time before finally steeling himself to reply.

[Knock knock, I’m here.]

He followed up with a sticker he thought was cute. Girls like those, right?

She replied quickly: [I have a favor to ask.]

Jiang Mingbo was curious. What could she possibly need his help with? He felt a nagging sense of unease.

His intuition was usually spot on. Chen Xian’s next sentence made Jiang Mingbo wish he could just bash his head against a wall.

Chen Xian: [Are you and Fei Wenxu from your class roommates?]

Jiang Mingbo stared at the message so hard he nearly set it on fire. He squinted, trying to calm his rising anger.

When he didn’t reply for a while, another message popped up.

[Is that a yes?]

[Yes, why?] Jiang Mingbo wished he had never added her. Their first real conversation was already going south.

Chen Xian: [It’s like this: Fei Wenxu has it set so you can’t add him from group chats. I really want to add him, so I thought I’d bother you for help.]

Jiang Mingbo slammed his phone face down. He angrily wiped his hair dry, then went to the balcony to wash his T-shirt and underwear. After splashing his face with water again, he turned around and ran right into Fei Wenxu, who was just leaving the bathroom.

The other man’s pajama buttons weren’t fully done, revealing a glimpse of a toned chest still glistening with water. Above that was a sharp jawline and striking features. Fei Wenxu was exceptionally good-looking; Jiang Mingbo had always known that, even if he hated admitting it.

But looking at that face now, he wanted nothing more than to punch it. He averted his gaze and picked up his phone again.

Fei Wenxu didn’t say anything either. He could sense the shift in the atmosphere. For a split second, it felt like his “hypocritical” roommate was about to drop the act and pick a fight.

Since Jiang Mingbo hadn’t replied yet, the girl waited patiently without further pestering.

[Ah? I’m not sure if he’ll agree. Is there something specific? I can ask him for you first,] Jiang Mingbo wrote, carefully choosing his words.

[I’ll be straight with you: I want to pursue him, but I couldn’t find his contact info, so I have to trouble you,] she replied. She was being perfectly honest and direct.

[I’ve heard he doesn’t have a girlfriend. If you could just ask if it’s okay to give me his contact info…] Chen Xian continued to twist the knife, leaving Jiang Mingbo’s heart in pieces.

He stared at the words, teeth clenched. [I really don’t know if he’ll agree. Can’t you just find his phone number?]

[I tried, but his phone number doesn’t seem to be linked to this WeChat account, and his ID search is turned off. I’m out of options. Please, just send it to me. I’ll buy you milk tea later! Help a girl out,] she persisted.

Jiang Mingbo didn’t want to agree, but he didn’t want to leave a bad impression with her either. After agonizing over it, he replied: [Tell you what, I’ll give you his number. Just don’t say it was from me. I have no idea how he’ll react.]

She sent back a “Roger that” sticker, looking playful and cute.

Jiang Mingbo bitterly copied Fei Wenxu’s primary phone number and reluctantly sent it over. Part of him wanted to confess right then and there that he liked her to ask her to consider him instead.

The ridiculous thought was smothered the moment it appeared. Wouldn’t that just be asking to be a “spare tire”? Especially since the person she liked was Fei Wenxu…

She sent back several messages of gratitude. A moment later, Jiang Mingbo heard Fei Wenxu’s phone chime with a WeChat notification. Frustrated, he climbed into bed and yanked his curtain shut. What a mess!

Fei Wenxu finished tidying up, turned off the lights, and climbed into his own bunk. Their beds were side-by-side. Jiang Mingbo tossed and turned, eventually laying at the foot of his bed so he could press his ear toward the partition, trying to hear what was happening next door.

But what sound could a text conversation possibly make? After listening for ages and hearing nothing, he fell into a restless, brooding sleep.

He woke up at 6:00 PM, squinting as the bright dorm lights flickered on. He went to turn over, only to realize there was a shadow right in front of him. He bolted upright.

Fei Wenxu was leaning half his body against Jiang’s bed, his head poking through the gap in the curtains, staring Jiang Mingbo in the face.

“Holy shit!” Jiang Mingbo yelped, nearly kicking the man off the bed.

Fei Wenxu held onto the railing with one hand and brushed the curtain away with the other. “Why were you sleeping at the foot of the bed? I almost stepped on you.”

Across the room, Tan Rui had already opened his curtains. He glanced over. “What are you guys doing?”

Jiang Mingbo blinked. “I was… I was going to stay up and play for a bit, but I ended up falling asleep at this end…”

Then he realized: why was he explaining himself to Fei Wenxu? It was weird.

Fei Wenxu stared at him quietly, as if trying to see through the lie.

Checking his phone, Jiang Mingbo saw that Chen Xian had messaged him again mid-afternoon, asking if he was free the next day so she could buy him that milk tea.

He had zero interest in this “reward.” Having the girl, he liked buy him a drink because of another guy was a total humiliation. But he was also inexplicably worried about how things were progressing between those two. He stewed on it until late at night before finally agreeing to the meeting.

He thought maliciously: Maybe tomorrow she’ll tell me what a poser Fei Wenxu is. Maybe she’ll say she chatted with him and realized she was wrong about him.

Unfortunately, reality rarely follows the script. Chen Xian happily thanked him and told him Fei Wenxu was a great person. He hadn’t “led her on” or played games; he’d told her directly that he wasn’t looking to date right now. She said she was happy just to be friends with someone like that. Before leaving, she handed Jiang Mingbo a box of handmade chocolates. “Could you give these to him for me?”

Jiang Mingbo couldn’t refuse. After all, his “helpful and kind” persona was his main brand.

He walked back to the dorm carrying the milk tea. Tan Rui, the human radar, spotted it immediately. “Oh! Bo-er, eating alone, are we?”

Jiang Mingbo set the items on the table, his tone unreadable. “You’ll eat anything. You want some crap too? Someone else bought it.”

Tan Rui perked up. “Who? Guy or girl? Is there any for me?”

Jiang Mingbo rolled his eyes. “None for you. Someone asked me for a favor.”

Fei Wenxu was wearing headphones, staring at his computer as if he hadn’t heard a word.

Jiang Mingbo took the small pink bag and walked right up to him. “Here. A girl asked me to give this to you.”

Fei Wenxu frowned. He took off his headphones and turned. “What?”

“A girl named Chen Xian asked me to pass this to you,” Jiang Mingbo explained.

Tan Rui started hooting from the side, and even Yu Xuan looked up from his screen.

Fei Wenxu glanced at the bag and flashed his signature bright smile. “You guys eat it. I don’t like sweets.”

Jiang Mingbo really wanted to roll his eyes. He forced a smile. “She said I had to hand it to you personally. My job is done.”

Fei Wenxu carelessly took the box. “Tan Rui, come down and eat. I don’t like sweets.”

Jiang Mingbo looked at the beautifully packaged box on the table. “She made those by hand specifically for you. Just giving them away like that… isn’t that a bit much?”

Fei Wenxu remained indifferent, his brow slightly furrowed. “But I don’t eat this stuff. What should I do, just throw them away?”

Jiang Mingbo was speechless. He knew he had no right to criticize Fei, but the thought of a gift prepared so carefully by the person he liked being treated this way made his silent anger flare.

Noticing the silence, Fei Wenxu tilted his head as if trying to remember. “Besides, I don’t think I even know who that is.”

Tan Rui, hearing there was food, had already scrambled down from his bunk and started opening the box. “Whoa, she made these herself? So talented… incredible…”

Jiang Mingbo wished he could record those words and play them back for Chen Xian. What kind of trash are you even falling for!

He suppressed his rage and moved to sit back at his desk. Fei Wenxu noticed the change in his mood and curled his lip into a smile. “Thanks for acting as a messenger again. I can’t let you keep working for free. I’ll buy you a milk tea next time.”

Jiang Mingbo kept his patience. “No need. You just treated me to dinner yesterday.”

Fei Wenxu continued to smile, his tone friendly but his expression carrying a hint of mockery that only the two of them could perceive. “One thing doesn’t replace the other. This isn’t the first time you’ve passed things to me. Even if I don’t know the person, I still troubled you, didn’t I? I can’t have you being my ‘free mailman’ every time, can I?”

It sounded like a perfectly normal joke between friends. The other two roommates didn’t notice anything amiss. Fei Wenxu was leaning into a bit of malice; he knew Jiang Mingbo couldn’t stand him, and he enjoyed the feeling. Countless people hated him but couldn’t do a thing about it. To anyone else, the conversation was harmless, but the smoke of a silent war was beginning to rise.