Ch3 - SICKNESS

Yu Rui’s eyes grew cold, but on his face remained his warm smile, “You know me?”

“Met a few times.”

“Sorry, I don’t seem to remember.”

Xie Li paused meaningfully, “It’s okay. I remember very clearly.”

According to logic, that should’ve been a compliment, but Yu Rui couldn’t hear anything worth getting happy over in his voice. He frowned inwardly and his smile cooled a little, “The activity is about to start, I’ll head back to hold it. You can roam around.”

“Are you the sports committee?”

“……” Yu Rui looked at him, “Class President. Professor Tian appointed me just now.”

Xie Li seemed to be excited from his gaze, flashing the smile that made a nameless fire rise again in Yu Rui, “Class President?”

“Yes, feel free to find me if you have any problems.” Yu Rui spoke perfunctorily, without waiting for Xie Li’s reply, turned and began walking away.

Yu Rui’s expression became cold the moment he turned his head.

He had heard of Xie Li’s name for a long time, the study god of D High School who could grasp first place of their grade simply by taking the exam, he was the only student Yu Rui had known since primary school who could push him to second place.

More importantly, for the whole First Year, as long as that person participated in the exam, Yu Rui could never make a comeback, ever.

One more paper every day starting from tonight. Yu Rui thought emotionlessly.

Xie Li hung behind Yu Rui, lazily following him.

The students who were discussing the activities saw Yu Rui and Xie Li walking together a few meters away, and the original lively atmosphere unknowingly cooled down. But there would always be students who couldn’t hold back their curiosity.

“Why is Xie Li here too, did Brother Yu call him to come?”

“No way, the Class President would be too brave if he did. Even the teachers have never cared much about Xie LI since the First-Year. Also, people originally from Class 10, say that Xie Li has never attended sports class for the whole year.”

“Being number one in the grade sure is impressive.”

“I’m afraid Xie Li’s family is even more impressive.”

“Huh? I heard that his family is very poor, and he goes to school and comes out of school alone. Last semester, someone went so far as to say that his family lived in a slum on the outskirts.”

“A slum? That’s bad though.”

“…”

Yu Rui was walking towards the front and stopped dead in his tracks when he heard this. He looked at Xie Li again, the man’s eyebrows were emotionally detached as if he couldn’t be interested in anything. He couldn’t tell if he had heard or not.

Yu Rui looked at the students and coughed slightly.

A few students who were discussing together were startled by the sound. They turned their heads towards the sound, only to find that Yu Rui was almost in front of them.

The Class President stopped and lowered his gaze, smiling blandly as he looked at them, “Are you ready with your group’s activity?”

“Ah, no, not yet.” Someone in the group stammered in response.

“There’s not much time left, try to hurry up.”

“Okay, okay.”

Snapping back to their refreshing smiles, they put their heads together guiltily to discuss the group activity.

Yu Rui paused for a couple of seconds and walked towards Xie Li, “I’ll regroup you if you want to participate.”

“Participate in what?”

“Sports activities.”

“Don’t want.”

…Then what did you come here for?

Yu Rui greatly regretted his moment of weakness after hearing those words. He turned his head to leave but was stopped by Xie Li’s words.

“Have you always been so fond of meddling?”

Yu Rui’s figure stopped abruptly. Two seconds later, he smiled and looked back at him, “What did you say? I didn’t hear you.”

Xie Li seemed to be amused by Yu Rui’s cold, clear eyes, “So you only meddle in my affairs?”

“I don’t understand what you’re saying.”

“Mhm. So you didn’t interrupt them because they said I lived in a slum, nor did you drag me to a group activity because you thought everyone was isolating me.”

“Do I look sympathetic to you?”

“No.”

Yu Rui nodded, “Exactly. The Xie Li in my memory also wasn’t talkative.”

Yu Rui finished and turned to leave. But before he could take a step, his wrist was squeezed first. The force was as heavy as an iron clamp.

Yu Rui endured the pain and frowned.

He stood sideways and tried to turn, but he felt the person behind him take a step forward, his unfamiliar breath took advantage of his height and pressed against the tip of his ear.

Then he heard a mischievous laugh, “Isn’t that bias, Class President?”

“Let me go.” Yu Rui’s voice was cold.

“It’s actually very easy to see through you, Class President.” Xie Li suppressed his laughter, his eyes flicking between the students in front of him, who had noticed the two of them not moving and cast curious glances at them.

His words were provocative, yet it sounded like he was sighing in satisfaction at having found something just for himself, “But why can’t they see through it?”

“You—”

Before he could continue, the man behind Yu Rui had already taken two steps back and turned to walk away.

When Yu Rui turned to look with a frown, he saw the man waving his hand lazily with his back to him.

“Class President, see you later.”

“….”

Yu Rui gritted his teeth.

Before today, he had only heard that the Xie Li who always defeated him was usually cold, lazy, reserved, and not interested in anything. Now he knew how wrong they were.

This man was sick, very sick.

Xie Li walked until he reached the shade of the trees by the basketball court. He leaned against the rough bark of the tree and bowed his head slightly as he hid behind the tree, out of sight of the students in Class 10.

The air was silent for a long moment before a hoarse, laughing sigh rang out, “Yu Rui.”

Each word was like an aftertaste, deep and unquenchable. And indeed, it was reminiscent.

Xie Li had first met Yu Rui outside, at an international exchange competition at the end of last semester. The clean-cut teenager in a white shirt shook hands with others a couple of times while maintaining a gentle smile.

Although his appearance was impressive to the point even people his age would notice, Xie Li only thought of him as a naive and innocent vase and didn’t spare him a second glance.

But he bumped into Yu Rui again in the bathroom. He was standing in front of the sink, the teenager’s eyes were red and expressionless as he washed his hands that had been touched several times.

Under the clear water, a slender, long, thin, white finger appeared.

Perhaps Xie Li stared for too long, attracting the attention of the teenager, who raised his dark eyes and looked coldly at him through the mirror, from the corners of his pale, reddened eyes.

That night Xie Li couldn’t sleep.

Until he passed out in the morning, he dreamed that a young man with red eyes was pinned by him in front of the mirror, doing what he wanted to do which was crazy enough but had not done during the day

From that day on, Xie Li was “sick”.

He deliberately avoided that teenager, because he was very clear about the seriousness of his ” sickness”— A certain cause that makes his sickness act up, if he stayed away and never saw him again he may be able to control it, but if he gets too close and smells his scent…

He laughed.

“Run, Yu Rui.”

Run while you still can.

Before I’m consumed by this “sickness.”