Chapter 8

Chapter 8

All day Jiang Chen was restless. He even got hit by the ball several times while playing. Finally, not wanting to delay them, he simply stopped practicing.

Hua Shao walked over with the ball, seeing him looking at his phone again, and couldn’t help but ask, “What are you looking at? You’ve checked it eight hundred times in the last hour.”

Jiang Chen absentmindedly put his phone back in his bag, “Really?”

“Yes, very much.” Hua Shao sat down beside him, “I could have even won against you today. You’re way too abnormal.”

Jiang Chen glanced at him, “Haven’t you always wanted to beat me?”

Hua Shao played with the ball, winking at the girls around the court watching the game, “Yeah, you’re really giving me face today. Did you know my goddess was coming to watch me play?”

“Your goddess is here?”

Hua Shao suddenly sat up straight, his gaze fixed in that direction, his voice becoming tense, “Damn, not only is she here, but she’s walking towards us with water. Is she mesmerized by my heroic figure just now? If I get out of being single today, I’ll treat you to breakfast for a month.”

Jiang Chen found his expectant look a little amusing. Following his gaze, he saw a girl in a blue dress walking towards them with a bottle of water, her eyes also filled with fervent admiration.

Will Xu Peiya look at Ling Sheng with this kind of gaze today?

How will Ling Sheng respond?

It’s almost five o’clock now, she should be almost done with the procedures. Will she be able to confess right after work?

And after the confession? Will they go to dinner together?

Jiang Chen’s thoughts unconsciously drifted away, but the image made him uncomfortable no matter what. He frowned, wanting to shake his head to stop himself from thinking about it, when a bottle of water was handed to him.

He looked up and saw the girl’s flushed face, her eyes full of excitement and anticipation, “Senior Jiang, have some water.”

Jiang Chen was stunned for a moment, realizing what was happening. He turned to look at Hua Shao, whose expectation hadn’t faded but had turned into astonishment. Jiang Chen didn’t take the water, politely smiling, “Thank you, but I brought my own water. Why don’t you give it to Hua Shao, he’s thirsty.”

The girl was inevitably disappointed, her hand holding the bottle tightening, “You guys are sweating so much playing ball, you can hold it and drink it later.”

Jiang Chen still didn’t take it. He’d encountered this kind of thing many times before. If he couldn’t take responsibility, he didn’t want to interfere with other people’s feelings, “No need, I’m about to leave anyway. It’s so hot, you can keep it and drink it yourself later, thank you.”

The girl disappointedly withdrew her hand, while Hua Shao had already walked away with his things. Jiang Chen quickly grabbed his bag and chased after him.

“Hua Shao.” Jiang Chen put his hand on Hua Shao’s shoulder, pulling his hurrying figure back a little, “What’s wrong?”

Hua Shao said unhappily, “What’s wrong? Can’t our H University’s campus heartthrob even see that?”

Jiang Chen found it amusing, “If you like her, go after her. You know I can’t accept her water.”

Hua Shao angrily pushed him, “Get lost, you made my goddess so sad, I’m still angry.”

Jiang Chen looked at him in surprise, “You wanted me to take her water?”

September in Jiang City is still very hot. They practiced in the indoor stadium this afternoon, and the inter-university basketball game will also be held in this stadium.

“If you really like her, what’s wrong with taking her water?” Hua Shao put his things on the bench, “I’m telling you, are you asexual? In four years of university, you haven’t even had a crush, let alone a relationship. I suspect there’s an eighty-year-old soul living in your twenty-year-old body, with none of the passion that a college student should have.”

Jiang Chen casually changed his clothes. Thinking about tonight, his heart was also in a turmoil. He casually said, “Who said I don’t have someone I like.”

Hua Shao had just taken off his clothes. As soon as he heard this, he didn’t even bother to change, directly hooking his neck and excitedly shouting, “Holy crap, Jiang, who is it? Tell me, who?”

The boys had just finished exercising. When their hot bodies hooked together, their undried sweat stuck together. Hua Shao was also someone who exercised regularly. At 1.8 meters tall, his body was full of beautifully toned muscles. When Jiang Chen was hugged like this, sticking together, he didn’t have any other thoughts.

“It’s hot, let go.” Jiang Chen pried open his arms.

Hua Shao wouldn’t let go. He and Jiang Chen were in the same department and had been classmates and friends for four years. He had never heard him mention the word love. He was as excited as a paparazzi who had found a big scoop, “Which department? Judging by your standards, it must be a department beauty at least, right? No, which department beauty in the school isn’t interested in you? You moved out to live off-campus in the first half of the year, could it be someone from off-campus? Who who who? Tell me.”

Jiang Chen thought about the unrequited love he might have to end tonight, and really wanted to find someone to confide in his depression. But he couldn’t really reveal everything, so he could only vaguely say, “Off-campus, you guys don’t know her.”

“Holy crap, really off-campus? Something that happened in the first half of the year?” Hua Shao saw Jiang Chen’s depressed look, completely unwilling to mention his sweetheart’s happiness, and his mind went through a turn, “Holy crap, what’s with that expression? Could it be that the other person doesn’t like you? I want to know even more now, who would reject you?”

Reject?

He didn’t even have a chance to be rejected.

Jiang Chen sighed, “Want to go for a drink?”

The two found a barbecue restaurant. Jiang Chen, who usually didn’t drink much, took the initiative to order alcohol, and the two started drinking. Hua Shao was too curious and kept asking. Jiang Chen didn’t dare to say much, only revealing some vague information, which made people even more eager to know.

“Older than you, good-looking, we don’t know her, off-campus.” Hua Shao pondered for a long time, but couldn’t find anyone who fit the description, “Couldn’t it be someone from your modeling agency, a colleague? Another model? Then she must have a killer body.”

Body… a slender waist, long legs, and a thin layer of chest muscles faintly visible in the shirt dampened by alcohol.

Jiang Chen shook his head, thinking that he couldn’t continue chatting, what if he slipped up in front of Xu Peiya? At this moment, his phone rang, vibrating several times in a row. He took it out and saw that it was a message from Xu Peiya. She had sent four in a row, the latest one being:

Xu Peiya: [Come over.]

For the first time, Jiang Chen didn’t want to see her so much, so he didn’t open the phone, didn’t even look at it, and put it face down on the table.

The phone continued to vibrate, vibrating so much that Hua Shao couldn’t stand it, “Who is it, sending you messages all the time, take a look.”

Jiang Chen helplessly took out his phone, and there were already twenty new messages.

The latest one was still only two words: [Come over.]

Go over for what?

Jiang Chen didn’t want to see Xu Peiya and Ling Sheng appearing in front of him as a couple at all. Just thinking about that scene made him feel chest tightness, a headache, and a sore heart. How could he say words of blessing.

But if he didn’t reply, Xu Peiya seemed to be getting impatient and directly called him. When Hua Shao saw that it was Xu Peiya calling, he said while eating a grilled skewer, “Sister Xu, it’s okay, pick it up.”

He couldn’t avoid picking it up now.

Jiang Chen bit the bullet and answered the phone, but as soon as the call was connected, it was different from what he had expected. Xu Peiya was angry and upset, and even a little tearful, “Jiang Chen, why didn’t you reply to my message! Your sister is heartbroken, come and keep me company!”

Jiang Chen was stunned for a long time before finding his voice, “Heartbroken? Aren’t you going to confess?”

“Confession equals heartbreak, where are you? I want to drink, come and keep me company.”

Xu Peiya is a very smart person, and her family doesn’t have any patriarchal ideas. She grew up being pampered and knows what she wants. She has always been able to let go of feelings and rarely drowns her sorrows with alcohol. Jiang Chen has been there for the few times she has.

For no other reason than the two of them growing up together, understanding each other, and most importantly, it’s safe to have Jiang Chen around when she gets drunk outside.

Jiang Chen found Xu Peiya in a quiet bar. She had drunk a little, but wasn’t drunk, and had a look of depression on her face.

Seeing Jiang Chen, she took out her phone and ordered him a drink, then leaned back and stared at the singer in the middle who was holding a guitar and singing love songs.

“Ling Sheng rejected you?”

Jiang Chen took a sip of his wine. Although he felt bad for Xu Peiya, he couldn’t help but feel happy because of Ling Sheng’s rejection.

He shouldn’t have such feelings towards a heartbroken person, especially his best friend, but he couldn’t lie about the joy in his heart.

The song being sung on stage happened to be a sad love song, and Xu Peiya’s emotions were stirred up even more. Seeing that Jiang Chen had arrived, she didn’t hold back, took a big gulp, and said dejectedly, “What’s with you guys these days?”

Seeing her like that, Jiang Chen knew that she was just complaining, so he jokingly said, “You’re generalizing, what do you mean ‘you guys’?”

Xu Peiya glanced at him, sighed, and looked complicated. She picked up the wine in front of her and took another sip, “That’s right, you guys. Last year, I finally met someone I liked, but he turned out to be gay. This year, I met someone I liked, and he’s also gay. Is everyone in society the same now? Or is it just my constitution that attracts gays?”

Jiang Chen’s hand holding the wine froze. He felt like all the sounds around him were suddenly blocked by something, “What did you just say?”

Xu Peiya was immersed in her own emotions, and the lights were dim, so she didn’t notice Jiang Chen’s strangeness. She continued to complain, “Ling Sheng’s reason for rejecting me was actually that he likes guys. I even thought about how I would say if he rejected me. I could say let’s try it out, I could ask him if he felt something was wrong, but what can I say to this? I and him likes the same species, he and I has the same orientation, I don’t even know how to follow up.”

Jiang Chen couldn’t hear what Xu Peiya was still saying at all.

All that was left in his mind was one sentence: Ling Sheng likes men.

“I feel like you’re the only straight one left around me.” Xu Peiya reached out and pinched Jiang Chen’s face, “Good younger brother, what am I going to do?”

Xu Peiya’s emotions were running high, and she was drinking a little fast. She quickly got drunk. Jiang Chen called a designated driver and sent Xu Peiya home. Throughout the whole process, Xu Peiya occasionally blurted out a few drunken words, but he didn’t say a word.

There was a feeling of being extremely awake, but his whole brain was boiling.

He sent Xu Peiya home, and at this moment, the phone placed aside lit up, and a message popped up on the screen, it was from Tonio.

Tonio the little fairy: [Envy, you’re free, we still have to work overtime tonight, until at least eleven o’clock.]

It’s ten thirty now, and it only takes twenty minutes to get there by taxi.

Reason made a final struggle in his mind: Calm down, they’re working overtime, Ling Sheng might not be. And even if he’s gay, it doesn’t mean he likes you. Even if you like him, you need to think clearly before making a decision.

Then he saw himself take out his phone as if his soul had left his body, called a car, and set the location: [XX Building.]