ARBRMW : Chapter 36

The subtle, almost tangible tension caused Chen Xu to forget to discuss the wedding with Si Ye, who ended up taking a few of his paintings, including the one where Si Ye was draped in a bath towel.

Before leaving, Si Ye mentioned he would have the painting framed. Chen Xu blushed, urging him not to, fearing the loss of face if someone saw it. Later, when Chen Xu saw the framed painting in Si Ye’s room, he blushed again, realizing Si Ye had never intended to heed his request.

But that’s a story for another time. At present, Chen Xu’s face was already burning. After Si Ye left, he lay on his bed, covering his flushed face with his arm, his mind uncontrollably replaying the fantasies he had just imagined.

“I’m losing it…” Chen Xu muttered, turning over and wrapping the blanket around himself, burying his face in it. He must be out of his mind to have such fantasies.

That night, Chen Xu couldn’t sleep well. His dreams were bizarre, and upon waking, he couldn’t recall the specifics but couldn’t escape the pervasive heat and the sticky sweat on his neck.

He sat up in a daze, glancing at the slightly raised blanket. Chen Xu cursed softly. His phone lay on the bedside table. Turning to check the time, he saw it was just six o’clock.

The faint morning light filtered through the slightly open curtains. Chen Xu realized he had forgotten to close the window or turn on the air conditioning the night before, which explained the sweat covering his body.

After sitting in bed for an unknown amount of time, he finally threw off the blanket and headed to the bathroom for a shower.

What he was experiencing was normal for a young man. Although Chen Xu had lived to be twenty-two in his previous life, he wasn’t embarrassed by this; he was just incredulous that, despite the whole night passing, his brain hadn’t deleted the strange fantasy from the previous day. Instead, it seemed to have clung to it, seeking release from the morning heat.

After showering, Chen Xu changed into workout clothes and went downstairs to run. He ran silently, and no one dared to disturb him.

After an hour of running, drenched in sweat, he finally felt at ease and headed back. It was just past seven, and no one else was up yet. The house was quiet, with servants silently going about their tasks. Chen Xu returned to his room and took another shower. When he came out, his phone was lit up with a message from Lu Hai, asking if he was free that evening for a performance at a bar.

Chen Xu: Sure.

Lu Hai: Whoa, Xu, you’re up early.

Chen Xu: Are you just waking up or haven’t slept?

Lu Hai: Just about to sleep. By the way, the girls in our class are all talking about hooking up with you, freshman year.

Chen Xu: …

Lu Hai: Hahaha!

Chen Xu was aware of his fame at A University. Thanks to his gossipy roommates Tang Zhen and Zhu Yaoyuan, he couldn’t ignore the messages from senior and junior students confessing their admiration on the wall of confessions. It made Chen Xu’s scalp tingle.

Knowing he had a performance that evening, Chen Xu told his roommates he would return the next morning. Tang Zhen replied with a mischievous emoji, Zhu Yaoyuan acknowledged, and Wu Bin didn’t respond.

In the afternoon, Ke Xinghao invited Chen Xu out, mentioning that they hadn’t practiced the piano in a while and were feeling rusty. They agreed to meet at the bar.

“Young Master Xu, are you going out?” Uncle Zhong approached as Chen Xu was heading out.

“Yeah.” Chen Xu squatted down at the door to change his shoes.

Uncle Zhong asked if he needed a car arranged. Chen Xu, unsure of when he would be back, declined, not wanting to trouble the family driver.

“Take care, Young Master Xu,” Uncle Zhong said respectfully, seeing Chen Xu out.

Tong Jiaxi, coming downstairs and heading to the kitchen, paused and asked Uncle Zhong, “Was that Chen Xu who just left?”

“Yes.”

Confirming this, Tong Jiaxi’s eyes flickered, and he hurriedly went upstairs to get his phone before also heading out.

Despite it being September, the weather showed no signs of cooling. Chen Xu waited by the roadside for a taxi, soon sweating. Fortunately, a car arrived quickly. As he got in, the cool air from the air conditioning eased the heat.

Ke Xinghao was unusually punctual today. When Chen Xu arrived at the bar, he was already there, playing with a dog next door. Chen Xu walked up and kicked him playfully, causing Ke Xinghao to stumble and fall.

“Damn, Shen, what’s your problem?” Ke Xinghao dusted himself off, muttering about already paying his respects to the dog before the New Year.

Ignoring him, Chen Xu approached the dog and petted its head. The dog leaned into his hand, clearly familiar with Chen Xu.

“Unbelievable! I gave it several sausages, and it still isn’t this friendly,” Ke Xinghao grumbled, turning green with envy.

“Handsome only hangs with handsome,” Chen Xu said, giving the dog one last pat.

“Hey, that’s a low blow,” Ke Xinghao retorted, stuffing the last sausage into his mouth and deliberately chomping loudly, acting childishly.

Chen Xu waved goodbye to the dog, washed his hands in the bar’s restroom, and then joined Ke Xinghao in the basement for practice.

They practiced until around six or seven when Ke Xinghao put down his guitar, suggesting they grab some food. Just then, a round of applause came from the doorway.

“Quite the improvement,” Xia Xiaoting said as he walked in, slightly drunk, his steps unsteady and reeking of alcohol.

Ke Xinghao remained silent, his expression wooden. Xiaoting staggered over, draping an arm around Ke Xinghao’s neck and fiddling with his guitar with the other.

“Don’t you recognize me? Why aren’t you speaking?”

The alcohol on Xiaoting’s breath hit Ke Xinghao’s face, making him wince. “Brother Ting… you’re drunk.”

“Ha… even drunk, your brother Ting never gets drunk,” Xiaoting said, patting Ke Xinghao’s face. Ke Xinghao kept still, lips tightly pressed.

“Brother Ting, you’ve had too much,” Chen Xu said, the light above highlighting his cold gaze.

Perhaps remembering Chen Xu’s previous lesson, Xiaoting hesitated before withdrawing his hand and staggering out.

“None of you like me… none of you…” he muttered, kicking the iron door violently, creating a deafening sound.

Ke Xinghao tensed up, his body rigid.

Fortunately, Xiaoting didn’t cause further trouble, leaving Ke Xinghao standing there, tense for a long time.

Chen Xu walked over and patted his shoulder. “You okay?”

Ke Xinghao shook his head stiffly. “How did Brother Ting end up like this?”

He remembered when Xiaoting was a helpful, warm-hearted older brother.

“Take a break. I’ll get us some food,” Chen Xu said, handing Ke Xinghao a bottle of water.

“Yeah, I’ll have pork stir-fry over rice,” Ke Xinghao said gloomily.

Hearing his request, Chen Xu felt relieved. “Got it.”

As he stepped out the back door, his phone lit up with a missed call from Lu Hai. Walking down the alley, Chen Xu dialed back.

Turning a corner, he heard a sharp cry.

“Brother Ting, you can’t do this to me! Didn’t you say you liked me?”

“Do you believe everything said in bed, idiot?” Xiaoting spat, completely disregarding the girl’s tear-streaked face.

“No, Brother Ting, you love me!” she pleaded, grabbing his arm, but he pushed her away roughly.

“Get lost! You’re annoying!”

The girl hit the wall, her face showing pain. “Ah!”

Ignoring her, Xiaoting disappeared around the corner.

Chen Xu approached the girl, helping her up. “Are you okay? Do you need a hospital?”

“No… I’m fine,” she stammered, waving him off.

Chen Xu handed her a tissue. “Thank you,” she said, hands shaking.

“Xu… Xu?” She recognized him, shocked.

In the band, Chen Xu was known as Xu, and fans called him that. The girl was evidently the pregnant fan they had met previously.

“Yes.” Chen Xu nodded slightly.

Seeing Chen Xu acknowledge his identity, the girl couldn’t hold back her tears.

“Is the baby Xiaoting’s?” Chen Xu asked, noticing she was about twenty, now in a dire situation with Xiaoting.

“Yes, I’m Brother Ting’s fan… We’ve been dating for six months. Two months ago, I found flirtatious messages with other girls on his phone. He said I was unreasonable and broke up with me. No matter how I pleaded, he wouldn’t take me back. Even after I told him I was pregnant, he didn’t care…” She sobbed, trembling. “He won’t even pay for an abortion…”

She looked frail, her belly about four months along. In the lingering heat, she wore a floral dress, the weight of her pregnancy seeming to crush her. All she could do was cry to Chen Xu.

“Have you told your parents?” Chen Xu asked gently.

Her face turned fearful. “No… they’d kill me.”

Chen Xu frowned, not understanding but recognizing family dynamics varied. He couldn’t judge without knowing more.

“Do you want to keep the baby?” Chen Xu’s question made her panic, shaking her head, then nodding, unsure.

“I… I want to raise it with Brother Ting, but… he doesn’t want me…” She choked on her sobs

“Xia Xiaoting is not someone worth trusting for life, you’d better abort the child.” Chen Xu took out all the money in his wallet and handed it to the girl, “You still have a long way to go, don’t waste your life for a scumbag.”

The girl looked at the boy in front of her in astonishment, who was younger than her. Tears hung on her eyelashes, trembling slightly before falling down, like those beautiful dreams she had once had, fleeting. .

She took the money from Chen Xu’s hand with trembling hands, “Thank you… thank you…”

She was really desperate. Too afraid to tell her parents about her pregnancy or return to the dormitory, she hid in Xia Xiaoting’s house every day. In the rental house, she prayed fervently that Xia Xiaoting would change her mind. However, Xia Xiaoting never came back. Instead, the landlord arrived, demanding the overdue rent. Penniless, she couldn’t even afford an abortion. Throughout this period, she squatted at Xia Xiaoting’s place daily, clinging to the hope that Xia Xiaoting would return to her. Unfortunately, Xia Xiaoting just wanted her to leave.

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