WHI – Chapter 34

Chapter 34

Perhaps it was because they had agreed to attend university together, but Lin Ting felt that Wen Lan had been asking questions with increasing frequency lately.

When Wen Lan messaged him for the third time at past 1 AM about a chemistry problem, Lin Ting couldn’t take it anymore and called him.

“Is my boyfriend missing me this late at night?” Wen Lan’s mischievous tone came through the speaker.

“First, no early dating. Use that title after the college entrance exams. Second,” Lin Ting took a deep breath, “I value sleeping and waking early. If you insist on disrupting it, you might lose me before the exams and be alone and miserable for life. It’s up to you.”

“I’m just anxious! Look how high the Aeronautical University’s cutoff score is. I’m still a long way off. What if the duck I’ve caught flies away?”

“Wen Lan, I’m telling you one last time, I won’t stop watching the stars with you just because you don’t get into Aeronautical University,” Lin Ting sighed. “Don’t worry, go to sleep.”

“I still think we should go to the same university… Fine, I’ll ask you again tomorrow. You sleep first, I’ll memorize some more words. Goodnight, boyfriend.”

“I already said…”

“Alright, alright, goodnight, future boyfriend, okay?” Wen Lan hung up quickly after speaking. Lin Ting heard the dial tone, propped his forehead with his hand, and sighed again.

Honestly, he regretted everything that happened that day, regretting letting his emotions get the better of him and doing something irreversible.

But if he had to do it again, he would probably make the same choice. However—he would never do something as stupid as using an erasable pen to write secret messages again.

This is why early dating isn’t good; it damages your intelligence.

Lin Ting got out of bed, took a bottle of mineral water from the refrigerator, unscrewed it, and drank half of it. The cold liquid slid down his throat, and his feverish mind, heated by the central air conditioning, gradually cleared and calmed.

What’s done is done. The only thing he could do now was to minimize the harm Wen Lan would suffer in the future.

When Wen Lan no longer needed him, Lin Ting would cleanly withdraw, and everything would be as if it had never happened, with no third person knowing.

Since a slow and steady friendship was no longer possible, at least after it ended, Wen Lan wouldn’t see him as a lingering, unavoidable stain.

He was tired of being seen as a disgrace in someone’s life. At least in Wen Lan’s heart, he didn’t want to become that.

So, after New Year’s Eve, when Wen Lan was eager to announce the “good news” in the group chat, Lin Ting quickly stopped him.

‘We’ll talk about it after you get into Aeronautical University.’ That’s what Lin Ting had said at the time.

This was probably why Wen Lan was studying day and night to get into Aeronautical University.

Lin Ting lay back down on the bed and sighed for the third time that night.

Oh well, studying is a good thing.

.

It had to be said that Wen Lan’s comprehension was quite high. In two consecutive mock exams, his scores rapidly climbed to 21st in the school, then to 13th. Lin Ting himself was propelled to second in the school by this inexplicable atmosphere of studying, and even Wen Lan’s group of followers looked at them with a sense of bewilderment.

On the day the second mock exam results came out, Wen Lan slumped in his chair, staring blankly for a long time.

“What? Still not satisfied?” Lin Ting bought two bottles of milk from the vending machine in the hallway and handed one to him. “You’ve made incredible progress. Drink some milk to nourish your brain.”

Wen Lan reached out and took it, placing it on the table. “Still a bit short, and the further I go, the more I feel like I don’t know where to put my effort…”

Lin Ting understood him well. Studying was like that; putting in 30% effort yields 30% results, but putting in 90% might only yield 60%.

“Are we going to your place this week or mine?” Lin Ting asked.

Previously, their weekend tutoring sessions were always held at Wen Lan’s house, as his study was large and had complete computer resources. But recently, Uncle Wen often came home and sometimes stayed in the study all day. Therefore, their tutoring room was moved to a room in the club.

“Forget it, let’s go to your place. He’s been in a bad mood lately, and you never know when he might suddenly come back…” Wen Lan said.

Lin Ting didn’t ask further, nodded, and agreed.

There was nothing else to it, as Wen Lan had given him this room.

It was just that every time two grown men entered the elevator together, pressed the button for the accommodation floors, and then entered the same room in front of other couples who were arm in arm, Lin Ting felt an urge to punch someone.

“Can I beat up those two?” The burning gazes of the young couple behind him felt like they were about to scorch Lin Ting’s back. He pursed his lips, took a deep breath, and asked Wen Lan beside him in a low voice.

“No, they’re guests,” Wen Lan replied curtly.

Before New Year’s Eve, Lin Ting wouldn’t have minded, as he had nothing to hide in his heart. But ever since their relationship became ambiguous, he felt inexplicably impatient when he was stared at like that.

“Then can I beat you up?” Lin Ting asked.

Wen Lan raised his hand and used his fingerprint to enter the room at the end of the corridor, which was different from the other guest rooms.

“You probably can’t beat me up, because I’ll fight back. But you can choose another method,” Wen Lan said, closing the door behind him.

Lin Ting put the study materials on the table, then pushed Wen Lan against the door and bit his neck.

“Then fight back,” Lin Ting’s teeth gently gnawed at the flesh at the junction of Wen Lan’s neck and collarbone, gradually moving upwards, and finally lightly nipping his earlobe.

Wen Lan was so aroused that his body went numb. He tilted his head and kissed him. Their coordination in this aspect had been practiced almost daily during this period, improving faster than their academic scores.

Lin Ting’s lips were tightly sealed, leaving no gap. Wen Lan’s tongue licked the seam of his lips for a long time without being able to pry them open. Annoyed, he pinched Lin Ting’s waist: “What are you doing?”

“Punishment for being displeased earlier,” Lin Ting said with a smile. Seeing Wen Lan’s face darkening, he quickly leaned in, kissing from the corner of Wen Lan’s lips to his lip bead, then gently probing the seam of his lips.

Wen Lan initially wanted to “punish” Lin Ting for a while, but Lin Ting was too patient, constantly circling his slightly dry lips. When he saw that Wen Lan was about to give in, he gently pinched his chin and smoothly entered.

The kiss ended with Lin Ting admitting defeat, unable to breathe.

“He who flirts first is cheap; you have to practice if you’re bad,” Wen Lan said, leaning against the door, his voice unsteady.

Lin Ting sat in front of the table, chugged a small bottle of chilled soda, and ignored Wen Lan’s provocation, tapping the table: “Let’s get down to business.”

.

As the college entrance exams drew closer, fewer and fewer people remained in the class. Some were preparing to study abroad, while others pursued art and were now shuttling between school and art academies.

So, when the results of the third mock exam came out, Lin Ting seriously doubted the credibility of the list.

“Did the original first-place student go abroad?” Lin Ting looked at his name written clearly at the top, somewhat incredulously.

“Bro, don’t you remember people? Look at the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th place. Don’t they look familiar?” Wen Lan was much more optimistic. “It seems everyone else is the same. I got 6th this time, so I’ll definitely get 2nd in the college entrance exams.”

“Why don’t you aim for first place?” Lin Ting asked. “Have some ambition.”

“First place is for you, my bo-…”

Before he could finish, Lin Ting covered his mouth with his hand: “Don’t be flirty, we’re at school.”

Don’t know what’s gotten into this person. He used to look like he could beat up ten people, but lately, he’s been acting less and less like a boss. Although Lin Ting didn’t mind, his followers found it hard to accept.

For example, Yu Zhile, who was now sprinting towards them.

“Bosses!!!” Yu Zhile leaped forward, placing his arms around Wen Lan and Lin Ting’s shoulders respectively.

Lin Ting suppressed the urge to push this person away. Previously, Li Ziyao had the foresight to drag this nuisance away. But after Li Ziyao began preparing to study abroad in Australia, he had been staying home for months, studying English with foreign teachers, and rarely came to school.

“Holy crap, you two are amazing! Whose homework did you copy?” Yu Zhile looked from Wen Lan to Lin Ting, his eyes filled with the innocence of someone who hadn’t experienced the harsh realities of the world.

“Is there a possibility that we’ve turned over a new leaf and haven’t been bosses for months?” Wen Lan disdainfully removed Yu Zhile’s arms and then the hand on Lin Ting’s shoulder. “You should study too. There are only a few months left.”

Yu Zhile acted as if he hadn’t heard the latter half, his face filled with dread. “Really? You’re not bosses anymore? Then what about me? What will I do if that centipede comes looking for trouble again?”

“We’re about to graduate. Your Brother Wen is going to the Capital City with Brother Lin. Understand? You should study too. Your family arranged that… special talent program for you, right? You need to score at least a few hundred points, don’t you? If you don’t pass and get beaten by your parents, don’t come to the Capital City asking me for help.”

As soon as learning was mentioned, Yu Zhile acted like Sun Wukong hearing the Golden Fillet spell. He covered his head, grief-stricken. “Okay, okay, you all study hard and go to college, and leave me in the village to herd sheep, right?” He then ran off to the cafeteria to eat.

“Look at you, you dissolute fellow, you’ve attracted a bunch of people and now you can’t control them,” Lin Ting teased him intentionally. Not only those in the class and the school, but even those in the group chat complained daily. Wen Lan no longer went out to fight with them, nor did he go out to play. Even when they gave up calling Wen Lan and instead called Lin Ting to go out and have fun, Wen Lan had righteously refused: “He’s accompanying me.”

Lin Ting strongly suspected that if he hadn’t stopped him, Wen Lan would have clearly stated what “accompanying me” entailed in the group chat.

.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, the countdown board for the college entrance exams showed single digits.

During this period, Wen Lan’s father had been in a bad mood and spent more and more time at home. Sometimes, when Lin Ting went to Wen Lan’s house for tutoring, he could hear Wen’s father on the phone in his study as soon as he reached the downstairs. Although he couldn’t hear what was being said, he could discern the anxiety in his tone.

Wen Lan rushed out from the doorway, carrying a stack of documents, and dragged Lin Ting. “He’s suddenly come home, so we have to go to your place.”

They had intended to focus on studying and not dating at home with Auntie there, but after a few such trips back and forth, they stopped fussing and directly entered the same room with their books in hand, right in front of the hotel guests.

“If we were a man and a woman, do you think people would look at us normally?” Lin Ting closed the door heavily.

“If we were a man and a woman, we’d have our parents called, do you believe me?” Wen Lan sat at the end of the bed, supporting himself with his hands behind him.

“I think we need our parents called now too.”

Lin Ting leaned down and pecked Wen Lan on the lips before intending to leave, but Wen Lan seemed unsatisfied and grabbed Lin Ting’s wrist.

“Hurry up and study. How many days are left?” Lin Ting shook the wrist he was holding.

A deep, profound look, unseen for a long time, appeared in Wen Lan’s eyes. “If we were a man and a woman, who would be the man and who would be the woman?”

Lin Ting was stunned for a moment by the question, but his mind worked quickly. “Neither of us is a woman; we’re both men. What, are you missing women?”

After saying that, Lin Ting tried to pull his wrist free.

Wen Lan’s fingers, still gripping Lin Ting’s wrist, exerted force—

“I miss you.”