Time Has Grown Dim, And Evening Has Already Fallen - Chapter 15

Chapter 15

“No, I have to go to the police station to testify for Lu Xingchu. He acted in self-defense, and he’s injured too.” Cheng Xun’s face was pale, but his expression was resolute. “He’s been stuck there all night.”

“I’ve already told the police everything, and my dad just called to say Lu Xingchu is fine. Based on the time, my dad should be picking him up right about now.” Xie Qiubai pushed Cheng Xun back down without room for argument, his face full of genuine anxiety. “Anyway, you need to rest right now. Stop tossing yourself around.”

Xie Qiubai’s phone vibrated twice. He quickly pulled it out to check. It was indeed a message from his father. He tapped it open and finally broke into a relieved smile.

“It’s okay now, it’s fine. My dad said he’s already picked him up. Now lie back down.” Having said that, he held the phone up to Cheng Xun’s face so he could see the message clearly.

Seeing was believing. Cheng Xun finally felt a bit of peace. He sighed and slowly settled back into the hospital bed. “He was hurt pretty badly. He should at least come to the hospital for a check-up… those scumbags specifically targeted spots that aren’t easily seen.”

“Big brother, your head literally got cracked open, okay? And you’re worried about someone else?” Xie Qiubai was utterly speechless.

Cheng Xun glanced at him. He wanted to tell Xie Qiubai that if the person lying here with a split-open head were Lu Xingchu, Grandma would be even more heartbroken, and he didn’t want to see that happen.

But right now, Cheng Xun was exhausted and in pain. In the end, he said nothing.

As for Lu Xingchu, after he left the police station that day, Xie Qiubai’s father insisted on driving him to the hospital first, even though Lu didn’t think his injuries were that severe.

By the time Cheng Xun saw Lu Xingchu again, the wounds on the guy’s face had already been treated.

Surprisingly, there was a certain “beauty” to the injuries—handsome people really do have an unfair advantage. However, his clothes looked like a disaster; there were even two footprints on his white T-shirt…

“Are you okay?” “Are you alright?”

They both spoke at the same time, then fell silent simultaneously.

Cheng Xun couldn’t help but turn his face away and smile, stretching lazily. Actually, he felt like his injury was mostly healed and he could leave, but he ended up being forced to stay in the hospital for the entire weekend.

Grandma had called the school and requested three days of leave for both of them.

Xie Qiubai didn’t get that kind of treatment. He had wanted to fake an illness to skip school for two days, but his father had literally dragged him by the ear and kicked him back to class.

On the day of discharge, Grandma and Lu Xingchu came together to pick Cheng Xun up. It was late Sunday evening, and the hospital was particularly crowded.

“You didn’t really have to come get me,” Cheng Xun said lazily, rubbing his wrist. “I could have just gone home by myself.”

He still had gauze taped to his forehead, looking quite pitiful, yet he still insisted on acting tough.

Once home, Grandma decided not to open the shop today, choosing instead to focus entirely on taking care of the two boys.

Unexpectedly, while they were resting, the police came by to collect evidence. From the way they talked, it seemed the leader of the gang wouldn’t escape punishment. Since he was an adult, he wouldn’t just be sent to juvenile detention like last time.

As for Wang Ke and the others, it would mostly depend on how the school decided to handle them.

Knowing that the matter was settled, the heavy stone in Cheng Xun’s heart finally dropped, and even the dull ache in his forehead seemed to subside.

Inside the bedroom, Lu Xingchu had taken off his shirt, seemingly preparing for a shower. Cheng Xun finally saw the extent of his injuries. Because they had been treated with medicine, the bruises had turned a deep purplish-blue; they still looked quite severe.

Cheng Xun’s gaze couldn’t help but linger on a scar on Lu Xingchu’s lower back. Finally, unable to suppress his curiosity, he asked directly.

“Is that a knife wound?”

His finger pointed toward Lu Xingchu’s lower back. The latter lowered his eyes slightly, looking at his own scar. Lu Xingchu was silent for a moment before nodding in admission.

“From a fight?” Cheng Xun asked again.

Lu Xingchu hesitated for a second, then looked into Cheng Xun’s eyes and gave a soft “Mm.”

Seeing that he didn’t intend to explain further, Cheng Xun felt it would be rude to keep prying, so he stopped while he was ahead.

“I didn’t expect you to be so… surprising,” Cheng Xun finally remarked.

“?” Lu Xingchu looked at him with confusion, turning his head as he leaned closer to the bed. “What do you mean?”

Cheng Xun was currently sitting on the bottom bunk—Lu Xingchu’s bed. The guy seemed completely unaware that he was shirtless; leaning in like that created an incredibly stifling sense of pressure.

Cheng Xun instinctively tilted his head back, trying to distance himself from the view of the chest, abs, and mermaid lines that would make anyone green with envy…

“I used to think you were the type of student who was indifferent to the world, with a brain only for studying and getting into Tsinghua.”

Lu Xingchu froze for a moment upon hearing this. After a while, he replied dryly, “Tsinghua isn’t my goal.”

Cheng Xun: “…” “Oh.” The indifference of a failing student being accidentally flexed on.

Lu Xingchu glanced at him and suddenly said, “Go shower first.”

“Huh?” Cheng Xun was puzzled. “Aren’t you in a hurry?”

Lu Xingchu shook his head, indicating he didn’t mind.

“…You’ve already taken your clothes off, and you’re not in a hurry?”

Lu Xingchu: “…?” “Because it’s hot,” he explained, a rare occurrence, needing to clarify that he didn’t have a hobby of random public exposure.

Cheng Xun glanced toward the window and realized they had both forgotten to turn on the air conditioning. The bedroom felt like a small furnace. He reached for the remote on the nightstand, turned on the AC, and then glanced back at Lu Xingchu. “Then I’ll go first.”

“Mm,” Lu Xingchu replied softly, pulling out the swivel chair to sit down and casually browsing his phone.

Cheng Xun shot him a glare. How are his abs still so visible even when he’s sitting down? He couldn’t help but poke his own stomach. Well, at least they’re still alive.

While showering, Cheng Xun had to be careful with the wound on his head, and he didn’t dare take a cold shower. He adjusted the water to a comfortable temperature, letting it wash over his exhausted body. It felt warm and soothing.

The scent of lime filled the bathroom again. He’d smelled it for so long he was getting a bit tired of it; Cheng Xun made a mental note to pick a different scent of body wash the next time they restocked.

After washing his face, Cheng Xun looked in the mirror and realized he looked quite terrible. Between the blood loss and the poor rest, he looked completely drained. He really did need to sleep properly.

Back in the room, Cheng Xun instinctively started toward the steps to climb to his own bed, but Lu Xingchu called out to him.

“Sleep in my bed for now.”

Cheng Xun’s hand was already on the railing. He turned back, confused. “Why?”

“Don’t climb up and down when you’re injured.” Lu Xingchu walked toward him, his tone leaving no room for argument. “The bottom bunk is easier for resting.”

“It’s fine.” Cheng Xun rejected the offer without much thought. It was just a bunk bed ladder; it wasn’t a big deal. “It’s not like those vertical ladders in the school dorms. I think I can handle it.”

He stepped onto the first rung, ready to climb.

Lu Xingchu instinctively moved to stop him. He reached out and caught Cheng Xun’s waist, pulling him back.

The boy was very thin, and his waist was narrow. Through the thin white cotton T-shirt, Lu could even feel his body heat.

Cheng Xun was essentially “scooped” down by one hand.

He had only been one step up. One of his best-kept secrets was that he was extremely ticklish, especially around his waist. The moment Lu Xingchu’s warm hand touched his waist, he felt a jolt of tingling electricity. He couldn’t help but recoil a step backward.

The result was worse—he bumped directly into the warm chest of the boy behind him.

Crap— This guy wasn’t wearing a shirt.

As a straight guy, Cheng Xun found it extremely alarming to be skin-to-skin with another male for no reason. He swerved away, practically fleeing, one hand clutching the spot on his waist where he’d just been grabbed. His back felt hot and flushed; he felt a lingering sense of “goosebumps.”

“Holy crap, what are you grabbing my waist for?”

“Sorry.” Lu Xingchu was quick to apologize, but he remained firm in his stance. “I didn’t mean to.”

Cheng Xun couldn’t win the argument and was afraid the guy might pull another stunt like that. Finally, he just flopped onto Lu’s bed, sprawled out in an ungraceful “X” shape.

“Fine. Is this okay now?”

He had finally come to a conclusion: Lu Xingchu was both cold and stubborn—the kind of stubborn that eight oxen couldn’t pull back once he’d made up his mind.

Lu Xingchu looked down at him for a while, his lips twitching into a soft “Mm.”

From Cheng Xun’s angle, it seemed like he saw the guy smile, but because Lu was backlit, he couldn’t see clearly. It was probably just an illusion. How could Lu Xingchu possibly smile?

Cheng Xun hadn’t fully fallen asleep by the time Lu Xingchu returned from his shower. Although he was sleepy, he kept tossing and turning.

The overhead light was off. Lu Xingchu used his phone flashlight to guide his way up the steps to the top bunk.

Cheng Xun, in a half-dreaming state, stared at the slats of the top bunk and complained, “Lu Xingchu, I realized I can only sleep in my own bed.”

“You’re clearly exhausted,” Lu Xingchu’s voice drifted down, sounding a bit muffled.

“I can’t sleep.” When Lu didn’t reply, Cheng Xun repeated himself. “I really can’t sleep. This bed smells like you…”

Lu Xingchu: “…” Sometimes he really didn’t understand what went on in Cheng Xun’s head.

After a long pause, Lu Xingchu replied, “We use the same body wash.”

By then, Cheng Xun had already fallen asleep. His so-called “bed-sensitivity” was purely psychological.

His dreams were chaotic. Cheng Xun dreamed of many fragmented things—not just the fight with the thugs, but older, blurrier memories. He seemed to be dreaming of things from his childhood.

He dreamed he was crying and crying, and a beautiful woman with long curly hair was holding him, also crying.

But Cheng Xun couldn’t remember who she was.

The dream flickered, and suddenly the scene shifted to an old orphanage. The director, the teachers, and the other children were all faceless—the parts where their features should be were nothing but voids of darkness.