The Clingy Coquette and His Straight Roommate - Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Angry

Some people who knew Bo Jingshi, like Ming Qiunian, quickly realized that he likely hadn’t intended to join the group at all and had simply been pulled in without explanation.

The group chat fell into a dead silence, the last message remaining that striking “I’m allergic to alcohol, I’ll die if I drink it.” No matter how many times they read it, they were just as shocked as the first time they saw it.

They had long heard that Bo Jingshi was “strange.” He was indeed a genius, but a “freak” followed that genius label; in this social world, he always walked alone, difficult to approach. Logically, such a person should be the most disliked, but he possessed a god-given handsome face and an exceptionally outstanding talent. His strange personality actually added a layer of unique charm to him. His indifference became “personality,” his lack of human touch became “uniqueness,” and even his caustic nature was transformed into a sense of pheromonal aura.

The internal members of the Mixology Club looked at each other in dismay, then awkwardly glanced at Li Jia Nan.

Li Jia Nan’s face was flushed red. His sense of shame made it impossible for him to speak. Freshmen always carry a specific kind of naive psychology; he hadn’t expected Bo Jingshi to be so ruthless, nor had he expected Bo Jingshi to stay in the group to expose his vanity instead of just leaving as others had predicted. The once-admiring gazes now carried more or less contempt and blame. His friends, who used to call him “Nannan” affectionately, now had sharp, mocking glints in their eyes.

“Didn’t you say you two had a good relationship? Didn’t you say you were almost together? What is this? He doesn’t even know your name.”

Li Jia Nan couldn’t speak, his face burning hot. Someone tutted: “Over-flexing and getting slapped in the face, how embarrassing. Why bother…”

“Pretending to be close, so annoying… I really thought they knew each other.”

“Acting so intimate and saying the chat was pleasant. If you didn’t know better, you’d think they were together, but it turns out he secretly took the phone to add himself. How does he have the nerve… so delusional.”

“Does anyone else have the Senior’s contact info? Ask him in private if he’s still coming to our party.”

After all, Bo Jingshi hadn’t left the group, and they really wanted him to come.

Silence again. No one had it.

Someone else complained in a low voice: “Li Jia Nan, why did you pull people in randomly… now it’s making us all look awkward. If you aren’t close, don’t pull people in. If I were him, I’d be annoyed too.”

Li Jia Nan was crimson-faced, biting his lip in silence. His hands under the table were clenched tight, trembling slightly from shame and anger. He had never been this humiliated. These people used to praise and flatter him, and now they treated him like this. His self-esteem was being scorched by fire, and the hidden, blaming gazes were like knives flaying him.

Yet he couldn’t help but think: how many favors had these people taken from him normally? What right did they have to criticize him? Weren’t they sucking up to him when they received gifts? How did they change their faces in the blink of an eye?

Ultimately, it was Ming Qiunian who comforted Li Jia Nan, patting his shoulder: “Bo Jingshi is just like that—bad temper, hard to get along with. It’s his problem that you remember him and he doesn’t remember you. Don’t be sad over this. It’s almost your birthday, cheer up.”

Li Jia Nan gave a forced smile.

Ming Qiunian asked Hua Die what was going on. Hua Die sent a voice message to the group: “Don’t worry, everyone! Bo Jingshi is coming. He was just joking with everyone just now, don’t take it seriously. Right, Bo Jingshi? Big brother, say something!”

A few seconds later, a perfunctory “Mhm” appeared at the end of the voice bar.

The single word was magnetic, full of pheromonal aura—cold and mysterious. They immediately dismissed their dissatisfaction and felt a bit smug. There weren’t many parties that could successfully invite Bo Jingshi.

“But he can’t drink since he has to drive. Why don’t you guys start a poll? Maybe others don’t drink either and want something else… what was that again?” Someone spoke coldly on the other end of the line, and Hua Die’s voice suddenly became quieter as if he had moved away from the phone. Then the volume returned: “Oh, oh, oh! The Mango Pomelo Sago from the newly opened AD in XX mall. I quite like it, can I order that?”

After a while, a new announcement was posted in the group.

“To accommodate those who don’t drink, we’ve added a few more beverages. Everyone can choose as they see fit, but you can only choose one! Our mixer is still primarily for drinking. 1. Mango Pomelo Sago (AD Private Bakery, XX Mall); 2. Milk; 3…”

The “Angry Cat” avatar that had been silent finally appeared. Almost the second the announcement was posted, he emerged in the group.

Little Bear: 1, ovo!

The timing was too perfect. Li Jia Nan was seething with rage. Was Yu Lan watching him make a fool of himself the whole time? Had Yu Lan seen everything just now? He stayed silent just to mock him behind his back. Green tea b*tch! Vixen!

As his anger reached a boiling point, someone else joined the chain in the group.

Don’t Bother: 1. 0.0?

In the distant studio, a man with a rakish face held his forehead and turned around helplessly: “Big brother, if you really don’t want to go, you don’t have to. Is there a need to be this snide?”

Little Bear: 1, ovo!

Don’t Bother: 1. 0.0?

Yu Lan didn’t feel it himself, but in everyone else’s message boxes, their messages were perfectly symmetrical. Niu Tiantian was dying of laughter looking at the chat logs.

Ke Yisen left immediately after eating because the Student Union called him for something. Neither Niu Tiantian nor Yu Lan stopped him. Once he was gone, Niu Tiantian gave Yu Lan a look: “You need to seriously reconsider his pursuit. I don’t think he’s the one.”

They were best friends, and Niu Tiantian couldn’t stand Yu Lan being targeted by snide remarks. Ke Yisen claimed to like Yu Lan, but where was that affection? How could anyone stand by while the person they liked was being bullied?

Speaking of Ke Yisen, Yu Lan’s small face began to look worried again: “I’ve rejected him many times, and I don’t like boys…”

“What? I thought you guys were in an ambiguous phase!”

Yu Lan had rejected Ke Yisen countless times. Although rejected, Ke Yisen remained gentlemanly, saying it was fine to take a step back and just be friends first. He used the friend status to occupy territory, and his occasional intimate actions led others to misunderstand. When people teased, “You two are such a sweet couple,” he would just smile and say nothing—neither denying nor admitting. Yu Lan, however, would say, “We aren’t together.”

Then the other person would give an awkward laugh, and Ke Yisen wouldn’t mind, simply adding with a warm smile: “Still pursuing.”

The person would immediately understand, their eyes darting between the two, convinced that it was only a matter of time and the “pursuit” was just part of the flirting process. Many people thought Ke Yisen and Yu Lan had a history, or at least were in a “thing.” Even his best friend Niu Tiantian thought so.

Ke Yisen was like gentle water, silently encroaching on Yu Lan’s life and social circle. By the time Yu Lan noticed, it was too late. The water had reached his chest, and seaweed was tangled around his feet; the more he struggled, the tighter it gripped. As the pressure increased, he felt more and more suffocated. Sometimes, a clear rejection seemed useless. He had used every method, reason, and excuse he could think of, but Ke Yisen would always gently say it was fine and he could wait.

There were no classes in the afternoon, so Yu Lan and Niu Tiantian were working on their assignments in the campus cafe. Yu Lan’s software skills were relatively weak, so he preferred hand-drawing; Niu Tiantian was the exact opposite.

Halfway through, Niu Tiantian went to the bathroom. Yu Lan was resting his chin on his hand while coloring with a marker. While he was focused, someone passed by and cursed under their breath: “Little vixen!”

The humiliation from noon had made Li Jia Nan exceptionally irritable. Now seeing his imaginary enemy Yu Lan, he had to get a dig in. He thought he was being quiet, but Yu Lan, who had been engrossed in his drawing, quickly put down the marker and looked up to retort: “I am not a vixen!”

His eyes were wide, the sapphire-blue depths holding a hint of moisture. His palm-sized face had a healthy pale-pink glow, but his lips were very red and vivid. Even Li Jia Nan, who hated Yu Lan, had to admit that Yu Lan was born to attract people. He grit his teeth and said maliciously: “Looking this good with such tender skin that people like you on sight—if you aren’t a vixen, who is?”

Yu Lan was stunned. He didn’t know if this was an insult or what. Unable to find the words to argue back, his brow knit, and his head drooped dejectedly, looking completely wronged.

Li Jia Nan was furious. This person… how could he be like this? He had insulted him so much, and Yu Lan wouldn’t even talk back once? Just letting him curse? And making such a pitiful expression, with a voice so soft and weak—it sounded way too good.

Acting spoiled? He wasn’t one of those horny men; this trick wouldn’t work on him.

Just as Li Jia Nan was about to continue his verbal attack, a low-pressure aura approached from the side. He instinctively turned to look. Under the cafe’s melodious music, a man’s pace was unhurried. Deep-set eyes were lit by the lamps, making him look even more profound and indifferent, forcefully carving out a cold zone in the elegant and romantic environment.

A dark, sharp gaze swept over, landing flatly on Li Jia Nan. He naturally wouldn’t mistake who this was; his shoulders shook as he hurriedly left the cafe.

Bo Jingshi had originally intended to just grab an Americano on his way back to the dorm, but he hadn’t expected to witness his new roommate being bullied. He didn’t know what that person had said, but the boy’s small face was so wronged, head hanging low, unable to even speak. Letting others bully him without a word—was he a fool?

But on second thought, it made sense. This new roommate of Bo Jingshi’s was soft in personality, soft in voice—soft everywhere. When bullied, he didn’t know how to lose his temper; he only knew how to make a wronged face. He could be targeted by snide remarks just for wanting to drink a Mango Pomelo Sago, and he remained silent after being insulted. So stupid. A soft persimmon—if people didn’t squeeze him, who would they squeeze?

Two paper bags were placed on the table. Yu Lan was attracted by a sweet cream fragrance. He looked down at the familiar logo and instinctively licked his lips. His lips became moist and incredibly red; when he looked up, a tiny gap appeared between them.

Niu Tiantian returned from the bathroom. She looked cold on the outside but was actually warm and cheerful. Although Bo Jingshi was cold toward her, she didn’t feel awkward.

“Senior, did you buy this for Lanlan?”

Yu Lan looked at the bag hesitantly: “Is it really for me?”

“Mhm,” Bo Jingshi added, “Your roommate asked me to help give it to you.”

It took Yu Lan three seconds to process “your roommate.” It must have been Liao You who asked Bo Jingshi to bring it. But they were in the same dorm, everyone was a roommate, yet Bo Jingshi referred to Liao You as “your roommate”—it was quite strange.

“How is there a Pistachio Raspberry Tart? When did Liao You become so nice?” Niu Tiantian gasped. “This is a new item, it’s very hard to get. You have to pre-order it.”

Bo Jingshi’s knuckles twitched slightly. Originally, he only wanted to buy the cheese croissant Yu Lan mentioned. But once in the dessert shop, looking at the dazzling array of sweets, he felt every one was exquisite and every one suited Yu Lan. By the time he realized something was wrong, he had ordered one of everything. Finally, the owner gave him the Pistachio Raspberry Tart, saying it was a daily limited edition and the original customer couldn’t pick it up, so they gave it to him.

Bo Jingshi wasn’t one to take advantage of small gains; on the contrary, he was very resistant to it. But as he was about to refuse, he hesitated upon seeing the pink Pistachio Raspberry Tart. Instinct told him Yu Lan would like it.

AD was a very famous private bakery. The moment the desserts were taken out of the bag, a light cream scent mixed with fruity notes lingered. The glossy surface of the dessert was a dreamlike pink; the wave-patterned tart crust was topped with cream roses and sprinkled with crushed pistachio and raspberry. It looked, smelled, and tasted excellent, making one’s mouth water.

Yu Lan loved desserts and especially loved AD’s, but AD didn’t do delivery. Aside from some cakes, they basically only took pre-orders every day. The mall was too far, otherwise he would definitely run there every day to buy some. The bright, fresh colors projected a romantic atmosphere, making Yu Lan’s focused, serious face look even sweeter. Because he was happy, his mouth unconsciously curled up, and his eyes blinked as he stared—he was clearly overjoyed.

Yu Lan’s facial contours weren’t angular; his cheeks were full and rounded. When he smiled, his apple cheeks were obvious, like two cute glutinous rice balls. Niu Tiantian called his name, and he instinctively smiled wider, showing his little canine teeth and looking full of youthful energy.

“Lanlan is so pretty!”

Niu Tiantian tried to poke Yu Lan’s cheek, but he dodged, his small face stern with anger: “I am not pretty!”

Many straight men would think the soft flesh on Yu Lan’s face was baby fat, but it was actually collagen. Seeing him cover his face with a look of bashful annoyance, Niu Tiantian continued to tease: “How can you be so cute even when you’re angry, baby? To die for!”

Yu Lan tried his best to look mean: “I’m not cute either.” How could anyone call a boy pretty and cute? His skin was fair and thin, and any color showed easily; dots of light pink invaded his snowy skin like slowly blooming pink roses—the transition from pink to white was extremely alluring.

Niu Tiantian was still laughing, but Yu Lan was getting anxious. His brow furrowed, his face frantic, trying to look mean but having zero deterrent effect. In his desperation, Yu Lan turned and grabbed Bo Jingshi’s arm, trying to prove himself with a third person’s answer: “Senior, Senior, tell her! I’m not cute at all.”

The moment he grabbed the arm, Bo Jingshi happened to look down at him. That cold face he had been so afraid of crashed into his vision without any buffer; he was so scared he immediately retracted his hand, looking down and biting his lip in a cowardly, pitiful way. But he still hoped Bo Jingshi would take his side. He called out softly: “Senior…”

The ending of his words trailed off naturally, and his voice was thinner than a typical man’s but with the clarity of a youth. Without any effort to lower it, he sounded like he was acting spoiled even when speaking normally, let alone with such a stunningly pretty face.

Bo Jingshi looked at that pink-and-white face, his brow furrowing slightly. Acting spoiled again. When others bullied him, he made a pitiful, wronged face; when around him, he only knew how to act spoiled. This little scheme was so obvious Bo Jingshi couldn’t even be bothered to expose it.

Yu Lan was anxious when he didn’t get an answer. His elbow accidentally hit his phone; just as he went to catch it, Bo Jingshi was catching it too. A large hand propped up the back of his hand, catching the falling phone together with him. For a second, all sounds in the world seemed to vanish, leaving only the tactile experience of skin touching skin. The contact felt like it generated a hundred thousand volts of electricity, igniting a unique, tingling heat.

Yu Lan looked up blankly, his red lips parting slightly in confusion as he stared foolishly at that cold face. He heard Bo Jingshi say to Niu Tiantian: “Stop bullying him.”

Yu Lan looked at Bo Jingshi in disbelief. The brow was cold, but the palm was very hot. This gave him an illusion—an illusion that Bo Jingshi’s attitude wasn’t actually that mean.

Niu Tiantian’s expression shifted several times. Although she hadn’t interacted with Bo Jingshi, he was completely different from the rumors. Rumors said Bo Jingshi was heartless and caustic, someone who wouldn’t help others and certainly wouldn’t initiate physical contact. She stared at their still-touching hands: “Senior, don’t you think Lanlan is cute?”

Yu Lan’s hand was propped back onto the table. He looked at Bo Jingshi with pitiful, expectant eyes. Bo Jingshi was cold and indifferent, looking arrogant and difficult to get along with. He leaned slightly toward Yu Lan and gave the answer under Yu Lan’s bright gaze.

“Cute.”

The only hope was shattered. Yu Lan’s face looked like his world had ended, as if he were completely crushed by the scene. His wide eyes were moist; his face slumped and his mouth pursed as he felt wronged again.

They had dinner together afterward. After sending Niu Tiantian back to her dorm, they walked along the campus path. On the way back to the dorm, Yu Lan still had a cold face, sulking silently. The sunset made his features look magnificent; the line from his brow to his small nose was beautiful and lustrous. His lips were pursed in anger, and the occasional resentful glance made one really want to coax him.

“Angry?”

Bo Jingshi truly couldn’t understand why this would cause anger, but Yu Lan’s expression was definitely communicating that he was mad. If anyone else acted like this, Bo Jingshi would think they were troublesome, high-maintenance, and melodramatic. But with him, Bo Jingshi only felt that he was looking for another chance to act spoiled.

Yu Lan glared at Bo Jingshi for a long time, but Bo Jingshi didn’t speak. This made him a bit awkward, and he said quite irritably: “What were you saying in front of Tiantian!”

“That you’re cute.”

“…”

Yu Lan was going to die of anger. Why does Bo Jingshi talk so much? So annoying! Didn’t everyone say he was a man of few words? Didn’t everyone say he didn’t like communicating? He felt Bo Jingshi talked a lot and was especially mean. He even bullied him along with Tiantian.

Whenever he got emotional, it showed on his face. When his face turned red, he looked even more “pitiful and lovable.” Sitting there with tears in his eyes, it looked like he was about to cry.

Bo Jingshi thought for a moment, then moved to his seat and helped him open the paper bag containing the desserts. “Still not talking to me?”

Yu Lan still pursed his small mouth and tilted his head to glare at the man. He lifted his chin and pointed at the cheese croissant—the meaning was obvious: he wanted Bo Jingshi to take it out for him.

Bo Jingshi put on plastic gloves and took out the plastic box containing the cheese croissant. While he was doing so, someone opened the door. The newcomer stopped mid-sentence: “Yu Lan, you are so annoying. If you hadn’t insisted on eating this stuff, I would have definitely stayed at the net café all night, you…”

Three pairs of eyes met in the air. Liao You looked ahead in a daze. Bo Jingshi, famous for being cold, was holding a cheese croissant as if he were about to feed it to Yu Lan. And on Yu Lan’s desk was a packaging bag that happened to be exactly the same as the one in his hand. It took him a long time to digest this image.

“Senior, you also… bought this?”

Yu Lan lifted his head to look at Bo Jingshi, then at Liao You, looking back and forth many times. Bo Jingshi’s sharp face tightened instantly. Because his features were deep and aggressive, the coldness became even more apparent. Someone who didn’t know him would think he was about to lose his temper, but Yu Lan, seeing his somewhat stiff body, suspected he was nervous.

Liao You came to Yu Lan’s desk, utterly perplexed, but rubbed his nose: “…I don’t like sweets anyway. Just eat it as a late-night snack. I’m going back to the internet. Remember not to run around this weekend; your mom told me to take you to buy clothes.”

“I’m attending the Mixology Club activity this weekend.”

“What? Mixology Club?!” Liao You’s expression immediately became nervous, his face extremely complicated. After struggling for a while, he seemed to decide to go for it. “A little boy like you hanging out with that Mixology crowd? You, you really are… no, I have to go too.”

As Liao You asked someone how to join the party, Bo Jingshi’s original nervousness suddenly faded. The redness on his earlobes vanished, and his attitude became incredibly cold. He looked down at Yu Lan; Yu Lan was also looking up at him with a snowy white face.

To the sound of Liao You’s chattering on the phone, Yu Lan blinked and asked: “So you bought this for me, Senior?”

“…” Bo Jingshi said, “Mhm.”

“Why buy it for me?”

“You seemed scared by me. You’re happy when you eat sweets.”

The answer was a bit non-sequitur, making Yu Lan even more confused. He knit his brows in deep thought and let out a long “Oh.” Yu Lan couldn’t understand Bo Jingshi’s behavior. He originally wanted to ask, “How do you know I’m happy when I eat sweets?” but the words became: “Why do you want me to be happy?”

The lights weren’t on in the dorm; the room was lit entirely by the sunset outside. His eyes were dark blue and clear, his aura obedient and spirited. Because of his confusion, the corners of his eyes tilted up slightly, naturally carrying a hint of allure.

As they made eye contact, the lights were suddenly switched on. The cold overhead light slowly washed over Bo Jingshi’s sharp features. While making his face look more profound, it also made his pupils look even darker and very bright.

And the only light fell squarely on Yu Lan.

Bo Jingshi said: “Because I am coaxing you.”

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