Little Meteor Chapter 26
byChapter 26 “I don’t want to talk, please.”
Jiang Chengxuan rarely got sick, but this illness lasted a full week. The low-grade fever kept coming back, and he never fully recovered, so the Director gave him a day off out of humanitarian concern.
The timing of the break was perfect. Shen Mu’s flight was today, and Jiang Chengxuan could go pick him up. Although he had asked Shen Mu for the flight number last night, Shen Mu had sent it reluctantly, adding, “Mind your own business, you don’t need to worry about me.”
The flight was on time. Jiang Chengxuan didn’t wait long before Shen Mu walked out. He looked a little listless, his hair drooping softly over his forehead. He was looking down at his phone screen, scrolling, likely checking transportation options back to the city.
Jiang Chengxuan didn’t call out to him. Only when Shen Mu was close did he reach out and lightly tug his backpack. Shen Mu jumped in surprise. Jiang Chengxuan was wearing a mask today, so Shen Mu didn’t recognize him immediately. Jiang Chengxuan took the backpack and slung it over his own shoulder: “Let’s go.”
His voice was still heavily congested, clearly indicating his cold wasn’t fully gone. Shen Mu frowned and said, “You’re sick and you’re running around catching a chill? It’s not like I couldn’t get back by myself.”
Jiang Chengxuan put an arm around Shen Mu and guided him out, preventing him from being bumped by the crowd: “It’s fine, I’m almost better.”
Jiang Chengxuan opened the passenger door and motioned for him to get in. Shen Mu didn’t move. He held out his hand and said, “Give me the keys, I’ll drive. How can you drive in this state?”
Jiang Chengxuan glanced at him, didn’t argue, and pulled the car keys from his pocket, handing them over. He then walked around to the passenger side and got in.
Shen Mu fastened his seatbelt, adjusted the seat and the rearview mirror, and noticed the person beside him had already closed his eyes.
Shen Mu drove steadily. Jiang Chengxuan was genuinely asleep, his head slightly tilted toward the window. He slept soundly the entire way, not waking up even when Shen Mu parked the car in the community’s underground garage and turned off the engine.
Shen Mu didn’t wake him immediately.
He unbuckled his own seatbelt and turned to look at the sleeping man beside him. His breathing was heavy, sounding congested and uncomfortable. The mask covered most of his face, leaving only his closed eyes and forehead visible.
The car was quiet. As Shen Mu watched him, the complicated emotions in his heart began to surface again. He had deliberately avoided Jiang Chengxuan these past few days and hadn’t said many kind words on the phone, yet this man, running a fever, still came to pick him up without asking a single question about anything else.
“Shen Mu?”
A low, hoarse voice suddenly broke the silence in the car, startling Shen Mu.
Jiang Chengxuan had opened his eyes at some point. Just waking up, his gaze was unfocused when he looked over.
Shen Mu cleared his throat awkwardly: “We’re here.”
Jiang Chengxuan slowly sat up a little, his movements sluggish. He raised a hand to rub his temples: “Why didn’t you wake me when we arrived?”
“You were sleeping soundly.” Shen Mu averted his gaze. “Are you feeling any better?”
Jiang Chengxuan stared at him for a few seconds: “You’ve been avoiding me for days. Don’t you have anything you want to say to me? Shen Mu, you can push me away, but the problem won’t disappear. How long do you plan to shoulder this alone? Let me help you, or at least, let me know what you’re thinking.”
Shen Mu pursed his lips, remaining silent. Jiang Chengxuan sighed and unbuckled his seatbelt: “Forget it, let’s go up first.”
“How is Uncle? Is he okay now?”
“He’s fine,” Shen Mu reached out and pressed the elevator button for their floor. “A false alarm. He stayed in the hospital for a few days, which we can treat as a full check-up.”
The two entered the apartment. After changing shoes, Shen Mu went to put away his backpack. Jiang Chengxuan was slumped on the sofa. He had taken off his mask, and his complexion looked genuinely poor.
Shen Mu walked over and felt his forehead. It was still a bit hot: “Did you take medicine?”
“I did,” Jiang Chengxuan smiled. “Why so worried? I’m really fine.”
Shen Mu asked him, “Did you eat anything?”
Jiang Chengxuan shook his head: “My throat hurts, I can’t eat.”
Shen Mu couldn’t help but raise his voice slightly: “How can you not eat? Your stomach won’t handle it, and the medicine is hard on your stomach too. You’re a doctor, do I need to remind you of this?”
He stood up and walked toward the kitchen: “I’ll make you a bowl of noodles. I haven’t eaten either.”
Jiang Chengxuan followed him to the kitchen, leaning against the door frame for a while. He seemed genuinely exhausted and eventually went to the dining table and rested his head on his arms.
Shen Mu came out carrying two steaming bowls of vegetable and egg noodles. Jiang Chengxuan was on the phone: “Yes, you said the dizziness and vomiting have worsened? Since when? What about blurred vision? Are you experiencing double vision or visual field defects?”
Shen Mu placed the noodle bowls on the dining table and sat across from him, quietly waiting for him to finish the call.
“Try not to panic, but this situation needs attention. I suggest you come directly to the hospital emergency room first thing tomorrow morning for a head CT scan… Yes, to rule out the possibility of postoperative bleeding or increased swelling… Hmm, I’m not at the hospital right now, but I will brief the on-call doctor about your situation…”
He spoke for nearly five minutes before hanging up. Shen Mu pushed the bowl of noodles in front of him closer: “Hurry and eat, it will get mushy if you leave it.”
Jiang Chengxuan had little appetite, but he slowly finished the entire bowl of noodles, drinking a good amount of the broth. With the hot soup in his stomach, his face finally regained some color.
He had originally intended to have a serious talk with Shen Mu, but the moment he saw him, he felt exhausted and weak. Earlier, he could force himself to go to work, but now he felt like he didn’t want to move a single finger.
Seeing Jiang Chengxuan’s weary, struggling appearance, Shen Mu urged him, “Go sleep for a bit. I’ll wash the dishes.”
Jiang Chengxuan didn’t try to be tough. He nodded, stood up, and slowly walked toward the bedroom.
Shen Mu collected the dishes and went into the kitchen. He washed them quickly, still worried about whether Jiang Chengxuan’s fever had dropped. When he dried his hands and came out, the living room was empty. The door to the master bedroom was closed; he must have gone to sleep.
Shen Mu sighed in relief. He was also tired from a day of travel and planned to go to the second bedroom to unpack and lie down for a while.
When he pushed open the door to the second bedroom, he was momentarily confused. He confirmed he hadn’t entered the wrong room before walking in. Jiang Chengxuan was lying on his side, facing the door, already fast asleep. The quilt was pulled up to his chest, with one arm resting outside.
Shen Mu worried that the fever had made him confused, causing him to enter the wrong room. The temperature on his forehead was slightly lower than it had been in the living room, but still higher than normal, feeling slightly damp. He was starting to sweat, which made Shen Mu feel a little relieved.
On the bedside table were several blister packs of capsules, and a medical journal, with a pen tucked between the pages, clearly left there mid-read.
So Jiang Chengxuan hadn’t entered the wrong room. Had he been sleeping here these past few days?
Shen Mu tucked the exposed arm back under the blanket, carefully covering him up, ensuring his shoulders were completely covered.
Perhaps sleepiness was contagious. Shen Mu sat by the bed for a while. The exhaustion and anxiety from the past few days rushed over him like a delayed reaction, and his eyelids felt heavy. Seeing the person on the bed sleeping soundly, his breathing much steadier than before, Shen Mu quietly moved to the other side of the bed, lifted a corner of the quilt, and cautiously lay down.
The mattress dipped slightly. Jiang Chengxuan next to him turned over, and his arm draped across, resting perfectly on Shen Mu’s waist.
Shen Mu’s body stiffened. Jiang Chengxuan hadn’t woken up; he was just sleeping deeply, and the arm movement was unconscious.
He wanted to move the arm away, but Jiang Chengxuan tightened his grip, resting his forehead against Shen Mu’s shoulder blade. Warm breath brushed against his neck. Shen Mu felt a little ticklish, but he didn’t dare move. After lying rigidly for a while, listening to the steady breathing beside him, his eyelids grew heavier and heavier, and eventually, he drifted off to sleep.
He slept exceptionally deeply, without even dreaming. If his mother hadn’t called him, he probably would have slept until tomorrow morning.
Jiang Chengxuan was half-awake, frowning, and buried his face into Shen Mu’s neck. The phone continued to ring. Shen Mu lowered his voice and patted his arm: “Jiang Chengxuan, let go, I need to answer the phone.”
Hearing him speak, Jiang Chengxuan loosened his grip slightly. Shen Mu sat up and answered the call: “Hello, Mom.”
“Xiao Mu, why didn’t you send a message when you arrived? Did something happen on the way?”
Shen Mu realized he had forgotten to message his mother to let her know he was safe: “No, no, Mom, I arrived a while ago. I was just a little tired and accidentally fell asleep. I forgot to tell you.”
“As long as you arrived, that’s good,” his mother sighed in relief, her tone softening. “Your dad was just worrying, asking why you hadn’t messaged. It’s fine, just sleep if you’re tired. We were just worried about you, calling makes us feel better.”
Shen Mu reassured his mother a few more times before hanging up. Jiang Chengxuan had been woken up, but the drowsiness hadn’t lifted. He didn’t want to move at all. Shen Mu felt his forehead: “You seem to have broken the fever.”
“Mm, I’m fine, don’t worry.” Jiang Chengxuan responded with his eyes closed. His voice was still hoarse, but better than before.
Shen Mu threw off the covers and got out of bed: “Are you hungry? You need to hydrate after a fever. I’ll go pour you some water.”
Jiang Chengxuan didn’t move. Shen Mu returned with a glass of warm water, seeing that he seemed to have fallen asleep again. Shen Mu gently touched Jiang Chengxuan’s shoulder: “Jiang Chengxuan, drink some water before you sleep again.”
Jiang Chengxuan slowly opened his eyes, propped himself up, and took the glass: “What time is it?”
“It’s past nine in the evening.” Shen Mu checked his phone. “You’ve slept for several hours.”
Jiang Chengxuan nodded. After drinking the water, he lay back down: “No wonder I’m so hungry.”
“You’re hungry?” Shen Mu stood up: “I’ll go cook some noodles.”
“I don’t want noodles,” Jiang Chengxuan pulled his pillow over and hugged it. “Do we have anything else?”
Shen Mu was silent for a moment before speaking: “I only know how to make noodles.”
Jiang Chengxuan sighed: “Then I’ll do it.”
Shen Mu pressed down on his shoulder: “The patient needs to lie down properly, don’t exert yourself.”
“I didn’t say I was going to cook,” Jiang Chengxuan smiled. “Let’s go out to eat.”
Shen Mu was stunned: “Go out to eat? You want to go out looking like this?”
“Yeah,” Jiang Chengxuan sat up, rubbing his still-throbbing temples. “I feel much better after sleeping, just starving. Want to go? I know a new barbecue place that’s busy right now.”
Shen Mu frowned: “You just broke a fever, and you want barbecue? Besides, you never eat late-night snacks, you say it’s unhealthy.”
“When I want to eat, I don’t worry about health,” Jiang Chengxuan was already heading toward the bathroom. “You should go wash up too.”
Shen Mu hadn’t expected him to be serious. As a doctor, Jiang Chengxuan always prioritized healthy eating, unless he was on night duty. He usually stopped eating after 8 PM, let alone heavy, oily, and salty barbecue.
The early autumn night was already chilly, but the barbecue restaurant was bustling with activity. Amidst the smoke and fire, meat skewers sizzled on the charcoal, and the aroma mixed with the smell of smoke wafted toward them. Jiang Chengxuan was clearly uncomfortable in this environment, coughing lightly twice as soon as they entered.
Shen Mu frowned: “Should we switch to another place?”
“It’s fine,” Jiang Chengxuan waved his hand and found a seat by the window. “You order. Anything is fine with me.”
Shen Mu ordered a few skewers, specifically asking the owner for less spice and oil. The atmosphere was silent while they waited for the food, broken only by the chatter from the next table and the crackling of the charcoal.
Shen Mu loved eating skewers, especially fried chicken cutlets and squid tentacles. He used to eat them whenever he was in a bad mood; for him, it was a way to relieve anxiety.
Shen Mu didn’t talk much, just ate with his head down. Jiang Chengxuan was still sick and ate very little. When Shen Mu finally stopped moving, he asked, “Done eating?”
Shen Mu wiped his mouth. His mood seemed slightly better than before: “Mm, I’m full.”
Jiang Chengxuan smiled and took a sip of water: “Alright, let’s go then.”
They walked side-by-side on the way back. The night was deep, and the streetlights stretched their shadows long. The late autumn breeze carried a chill. Jiang Chengxuan suddenly lightly touched the back of Shen Mu’s hand. Shen Mu instinctively flinched, but Jiang Chengxuan had already grasped his hand: “Shen Mu, can we talk?”
Shen Mu didn’t speak.
Jiang Chengxuan continued: “Can you talk to me about what you’re thinking?”
“I don’t want to talk,” Shen Mu lowered his head, staring at their shadows cast on the ground. “I don’t want to talk, please.”