CH 68

Even though the weather was getting warmer, it was still cold at night. Huo Ran and Kou Chen only managed to sustained themselves on a small pack of beef jerky and two pieces of chocolate until midnight, because the chocolate was gone in five minutes, and they ate the beef jerky in tiny strips.

Everyone else wandering the hallways were gone by midnight, and they also went back to their rooms after eating the last bit of beef jerky. 

It was actually a great cure for insomnia.

Huo Ran fell asleep not long after getting back into bed and slept until the sun rose. He didn’t even dream.

To be specific, the sun hadn’t completely risen. It was still a while before their usual wakeup time.

He was woken up by his phone vibrating. 

Huo Ran picked up his phone and saw that Kou Chen was calling him.

He was still really tired when he picked up the phone, he didn’t even have the strength to be mad. He could only mutter: “If you don’t have anything fucking important to say, you’re dead.”

“Wanna go practice?” Kou Chen was wide awake, and it was obvious that he had already washed up and gotten dressed.

“…Fuck off.” Huo Ran said.

“Then I’ll be off.” Kou Chen said. “If it’s still early when you get up, come find me at the gym.”

“…Hurry up and fuck off.” Huo Ran said.

“Alrightly.” Kou Chen hung up.

“Fucking hell…” Huo Ran shoved his phone back under his pillow, turned around, and pulled the blankets over his head. 

As Kou Chen was about to head out, Xu Chuan poked his head out of bed: “Fuck, Kou Chen?”

“Did I wake you?” Kou Chen asked.

“Is it really you? Is someone hogging the bathroom?” Xu Chuan asked.

“Nope,” Kou Chen said. 

“Then where are you going?” Xu Chuan looked at him.

“To exercise.” Kou Chen said.

Xu Chuan opened his mouth, and a moment later he stuck his hand out of the blankets and gave him a thumbs up: “Awesome, off you go then. For the Motherland.”

“For the Motherland.” Kou Chen nodded. 

It wasn’t actually that early, most of the third years were already up. You could say it was an effect of being in a top school. There were people jogging outside, people reading, and people studying English with their headphones on.

Kou Chen knew that there were people awake at this hour. The third years passed by their floor when they left so he could hear their footsteps in the morning. He used to think that they were all crazy, was there a point in putting in so much effort…?

He never would’ve thought that today he would join them. 

Although he didn’t wake up this early to study.

It was only to make Humanities 1 look good in next week’s basketball tournament.

No, it was to make Huo Ran look good. Although he was on pretty good terms with the team members, there were bound to be some people upset with how he joined the team in the first place. And then there were the people who thought Huo Ran pulled some strings to get his friend on the team.

He had to perform well in the tournament to prove that Huo Ran had a good eye for talent. 

A handsome one at that.

Kou Chen smiled in the mirror by the door of the gym.

As he was warming up, he got his phone out. He was very proud of himself for getting up this early not just to go pee, so he had to let the family know.

His mom and dad would kill him if he called right now, and calling Kou Xiao would be an even worse idea. He scrolled through his contacts and saw Old Yang. 

He realized that Old Yang sent him a text he never saw.

-Are you coming over this weekend to pick out the leather? I’ll make some time for you if you are

He called Old Yang.

It rang a bunch of times before Old Yang finally picked up: “My god, what time is it?” 

“I’ve already run five kilometres!” Kou Chen said.

“Did you drink last night?” Old Yang asked.

“How could I?” Kou Chen said. “We’re having a basketball tournament, I got up to practice?”

“…You’re playing?” Old Yang sounded surprised. 

“Qtja?” Bbe Jtfc arxfv, “Obbxlcu vbkc bc wf? P’w cba yjv ja yjrxfayjii.”

“Cgf sbe…” Yiv Tjcu ibkfgfv tlr nblmf, “Gjalcu rbwfbcf?”

“Let?” Bbe Jtfc qjerfv, “Qtja vb sbe wfjc? Qtb kbeiv P yf vjalcu?”

“Ktfc ktja jgf sbe qgjmalmlcu obg? Tbe qijslcu yjrxfayjii lrc’a kflgv, ktja’r kflgv lr atja sbe’gf eq ja atlr tbeg ab qgjmalmf. Tbe mjc afii Xf,” Yiv Tjcu rjlv. “Qtb jgf sbe rtbklcu boo bg qijslcu obg?” 

“Oh, so you’re Ge now, are you? Not brother-in-law anymore?” Kou Chen laughed.

“Ge makes it sound like we’re closer.” Old Yang said.

“I’m really not, I wouldn’t keep that a secret from you.” Kou Chen wasn’t just saying that to be nice. They’ve fought together for quite a long time when Old Yang was courting Kou Xiao, so they’ve bonded over that.

“The anklet you wanted to make,” Old Yang asked, “Who’s that for?” 

“For Huo Ran! It’s almost his birthday, didn’t I tell you?” Kou Chen said.

“What about the little snake you had me make?” Old Yang continued asking.

“Fuck, that was also for Huo Ran!” Kou Chen was a little speechless. “I did tell you all that, right? Did you get amnesia? Didn’t Kou Xiao agree to not hit the head?”

“Does Huo Ran have dirt on you or something?” Old Yang didn’t give up. 

“Yang Ruidong!” Kou Chen said. “What’s all this about? What, I can’t have friends?”

“Still, I’ve never seen you so…” Old Yang cut himself off, “Nevermind, it doesn’t matter. Just tell me if you’re coming over this weekend.”

“Yeah,” Kou Chen said. “Come pick me up? I want to bring Shuaishuai, can’t do that on my bike.”

“Okay.” Old Yang agreed. 

After he hung up, Kou Chen stretched his arms, and happily bounced into the cold morning wind, running towards the track.

When Huo Ran arrived at the gym twenty minutes later, Kou Chen was already running around practicing his shots from different angles.

But he really was surprised that Huo Ran came. They had morning practices three times a week, but they were never this early. And as such a laid-back captain, Huo Ran was only at most ten minutes earlier than everyone else. 

From his tone through the phone, Kou Chen would’ve been glad to not be yelled at when they see each other in class. He never thought he would come, so he called out in surprise: “Good morning, Captain!”

“…Morning.” Huo Ran stood there groggily.

“Practice?” Kou Chen ran past him with the ball, into a beautiful layup.

“Fuck off.” Huo Ran squatted with his head down. 

Looks like he’s still in a bad mood from waking up.

Kou Chen remembered that Xu Zhifan and the others never liked to wake Huo Ran up.

“I’ll treat you to a fancy breakfast later!” Kou Chen walked to him. “Anything from the cafeteria, if they don’t have it, I’ll buy it from somewhere else.”

Huo Ran didn’t say anything. He only yawned so hard he teared up. 

Then he put his head between his heads and ruffled his hair.

“Huo Ran…” Kou Chen felt a bit bad, he really didn’t think about whether Huo Ran had enough sleep when he called him so early. “Sorry…”

But before he could finish, Huo Ran suddenly stood up, and stared at him with a messy head of hair. “You’re on offense, I’m on defense. If you don’t get at least five balls in out of ten, run ten kilometres.”

Kou Chen started, only coming back to his senses after Huo Ran threw his jacket onto a nearby chair. His excitement grew: “What if I do make it?” 

Huo Ran looked like he didn’t even think that was a possibility, only replying as he got into position: “I’ll run fifteen kilometres.”

“Fuck, you said it yourself.” Kou Chen pointed at him. “I won’t go easy on you.”

Huo Ran jumped in place a few times, stretching out his arms and legs. Then he turned and took a step to the side to bend his knees and face him. He beckoned him forward with a finger: “Bring it on.”

Kou Chen knew that Huo Ran was captain because of his skill. He also knew that he was genuinely skilled from all the times he practiced one on one with him. But even though he didn’t love basketball, he wasn’t bad at it. And now with a semester of practice under his belt, he was confident in his abilities. 

And he was too familiar with Huo Ran’s defensive tactics.

He ran towards the basket, easily dodging past Huo Ran to the left.

Just two steps later, the ball that was bouncing back to his hand suddenly changed directions, and flew out of bounds to the right.

“Fuck!” Kou Chen turned his head. 

Huo Ran took his hand back languidly, and stretched it above his head: “I can steal it like that ten times, wanna bet?”

“Again.” Kou Chen went to pick up the ball.

“Ten kilometres is waiting for you.” Huo Ran said.

“Provocation has a positive effect on me,” Kou Chen said. “Use with caution.” 

Huo Ran smirked, and beckoned it again: “Come on, rookie.”

“Fuck you!” Kou Chen cursed and rushed him again.

Huo Ran didn’t end up stealing the ball ten times, only twice. But Kou Chen’s shots were blocked four times in a row. 

He held the ball and looked at Huo Ran, panted slightly. He finally understood why Huo Ran had the confidence that their class would make the top three when they didn’t even have any substitute players.

“Ten kilometres.” Huo Ran had his hands on his knees.

“Right now?” Kou Chen tossed the ball back in the cage and looked at him.

“You can rest a bit if you’re tired.” Huo Ran said. 

Kou Chen didn’t say anything. He turned and ran out of the gymnasium towards the tracks.

Half a lap later, Huo Ran cut through the middle of the field to about twenty metres in front of him.

“I’ll lap you in thirty seconds!” Huo Ran yelled. 

“Yeah right!” Kou Chen cursed and ran faster, “I’d like to see you try!”

Huo Ran turned and ran forwards. A few seconds later, he suddenly turned and ran into the innermost lane, then he ran in a small circle to end up behind him.

Before he could react, Huo Ran had already ran past him. When brushed by, he held up three fingers: “Thirty seconds.”

“Fuck off!” Kou Chen yelled, “You fucking…” 

“Shame?” Huo Ran wiped his face and threw it behind him, “You can have it!”

Kou Chen choked: “Are you really that petty?”

“What do you mean?” Huo Ran slowed down.

“You’re seriously asking that?” Kou Chen said. 

“It’s not pettiness,” Huo Ran said. “I’m just in a bad mood when I wake up.”

“…What?” Kou Chen was shocked, “For real? It would be enough to go to the moon!”

“Ten kilometres.” Huo Ran held up ten fingers, “I’m keeping track.”

Huo Ran even ran around five kilometres with him, before finally going to take a seat in the bleachers. 

Counting the five kilometres Kou Chen ran earlier, he’d actually already ran enough, and he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t tired. But he didn’t want to say it out loud, that would make it look like he’s begging for mercy.

Another three laps later, Huo Ran jumped down the stands: “Okay, you can walk the next lap.”

“I haven’t run ten kilometres yet.” Kou Chen didn’t stop. 

“Don’t be stubborn.” Huo Ran said. “I’m hungry.”

“Okay then,” Kou Chen slowed down to a jog, “What do you wanna eat?”

“Xu Zhifan and the others went to the cafeteria.” Huo Ran jogged with him. “I told them to tell me later.”

“Is your bad mood gone now?” Kou Chen asked. 

“Mhm.” Huo Ran nodded.

“I really didn’t do it on purpose.” Kou Chen said. “I wasn’t thinking.”

“I’m not mad really, I’m just like this when I wake up.” Huo Ran said. “It doesn’t need a reason.”

Kou Chen glanced at him, and a moment later he said: “Without it, I never would’ve expected you to be hiding that from me.” 

“I wasn’t hiding it.” Huo Ran said.

“What do you mean?!” Kou Chen glared. “You’re never like that when we practice together.”

“Never needed to,” Huo Ran ran towards the cafeteria as he yelled, “Don’t need to try that hard against a rookie—!”

“You’re done for!” Kou Chen yelled and chased after him. 

When they ran into the cafeteria, Xu Zhifan was in the middle of sending photos of all the food options in the group chat. When he saw them, he threw his phone onto the table: “You’re playing with me?”

“Lemme see, lemme see,” Huo Ran tapped the notification and looked through the photos, “Hey, this one, this one…”

“Egg crepe?” Kou Chen leaned over, “I want it too.”

“Mhm.” Huo Ran nodded. He dug out Kou Chen’s school card and smacked it on the desk, “Also, layered pastry, millet porridge, and xiaolongbao.” 

“Okay.” Kou Chen looked at Xu Zhifan, “You?”

“Soy milk, and fried dough.” Xu Zhifan said.

“Just that?” Kou Chen said. “How… ascetic of you.”

“And three sandwiches,” Xu Zhifan said. “And fried chicken. How about that?” 

“Damn,” Kou Chen laughed. “Okay, I’ll get that, we’ll figure out the others when they come.”

When he was in line, Kou Chen’s phone dinged. He glanced at it and saw that it was from Old Yang. It was a couple photos of leather bracelets, leather anklets, leather chokers… leather collars.

-These are the simpler styles, take a look. Also measure Huo Ran’s ankle, if the clasp is too long it won’t look good 

-I don’t want a simple one, I want complicated, a cool one with studs and stuff

-They’re too hard for you

–I’ll do my best, besides, I have you

-Why don’t you just ask me to make it for you 

-no way, it won’t feel the same

-Okay, okay, okay, don’t forget the measurements

Kou Chen put his phone back in his pocket and turned to look at Huo Ran. He was chatting with Xu Zhifan back at the table, and his ankle just so happened to be showing.

Kou Chen tried to measure it with his eyes. 

Nope.

Huo Ran’s ankles were actually pretty nice. They weren’t fat, not skinny. The bone was prominent, and the lines reached up his leg faintly. It should look very cool with an anklet.

But like Old Yang said, the measurements have to be right. If it’s too thick then it’ll look weird.

He headed back to the table with two trays, staring at Huo Ran’s ankle the whole time.

Xu Zhifan took the plates from him, but he didn’t sit down immediately. He crouched down by Huo Ran’s leg, and grabbed his ankle.

“Have you measured your ankle before?” Kou Chen asked.

Huo Ran didn’t answer him. 

“Have you…” He looked up, and saw an indescribable expression on Huo Ran’s face. He paused, “What?”

“Do you have to do it here?” Huo Ran asked exasperatedly.

Kou Chen finally realized what he meant when he saw Xu Zhifan laughing uncontrollably. He could feel the gazes of the surrounding tables too.

“Fuck.” He let go of Huo Ran’s ankle and sat beside him. “Measure it later and let me know.” 

“What do you need that for?” Xu Zhifan asked.

“I’m making him a birthday present.” Kou Chen said. “Isn’t it soon?”

“Mine is also soon.” Xu Zhifan said. “The same month as Huo Ran.”

“I remember all of your birthdays.” Kou Chen said. “I won’t forget.” 

“Are you gonna handmake my gift too?” Xu Zhifan asked as he ate.

Kou Chen looked at Xu Zhifan: “Now this is a bit awkward, Zhifan-gege…”

Xu Zhifan burst out into laughter, and drank his soy milk.