CH 80

“What… What do you mean?” Huo Ran’s brain went blank for a moment, and the tightness in his scalp quickly spread through his whole body. It felt like everything was stiff, and he couldn’t even turn his head.

“You’ve been acting weird lately.” Xu Zhifan’s voice was very low, “I don’t know about Kou Chen, but you haven’t been yourself.” 

Huo Ran almost couldn’t breathe, and it felt like his heartbeat was vibrating his ears with it.

“I…” He furrowed his brows, “Don’t really know either… Just… Right now I can’t… I can’t explain it to anyone.”

“Can’t explain it to anyone right now.” Xu Zhifan said. “And later?”

“I don’t know.” Huo Ran breathed out. 

“Okay then.” Xu Zhifan said. “I’ll ask again in a of couple days.”

“Huh?” Huo Ran raised his voice again out of shock.

“Huh what?” Xu Zhifan let go of him. “I understand if you don’t want to tell anyone, but if you do want to say it, you don’t really have anyone else except for me, right?”

Huo Ran stared at him in silence, before jerking over to Xu Zhifan to whisper: “You better not ask Kou Chen this!”

“I’m not stupid.” Xu Zhifan tsked. “You think I’m Leilei?”

Huo Ran laughed.

“Hurry up!” Kou Chen yelled.

Hearing Kou Chen’s voice so suddenly, Huo Ran’s legs went soft and he almost fell to his knees in front of Xu Zhifan. 

Xu Zhifan nudged him: “Come on, let’s go. We’re gonna have fun today.”

The public bus was crowded. Kou Chen rarely went on them, and he raised his arms as soon as he got on, but he still couldn’t avoid making contact with everyone around them.

“What are you doing?” Huo Ran pulled his arms back down. 

“I don’t have anywhere to put my arms.” Kou Chen turned his head around with difficulty.

“Keep moving.” Huo Ran pushed him.

Kou Chen didn’t really want to: “There’s just as many people…”

“Keep moving!” The driver suddenly yelled, “Go towards the back! What are you all doing crowding the door?! Move!” 

“Ah, ah, ah,” Kou Chen quickly squeezed back, “Move, move…”

There were a lot of people at the back of the bus too, but after everyone squeezed in, there was space for a lot more people in the front.

When the bus finally set off, everyone was pressed against each other. 

Kou Chen had his front pressed to a lady’s big backpack, and each time the bus swayed, the bag moved and brought his shirt up with it. Before they even got to the first stop, he could feel the cold air on the bare skin of his stomach.

He turned around with difficulty. It was better to be stuck with the other guys rather than the woman’s backpack.

But when he turned, his shirt didn’t come with him.

He stood face to face with Huo Ran, and then he realized that his jacket’s zipper was still under his left arm, with the back of the collar at his chin. 

His clothes were half twisted around his body.

“Fuck.” He whispered, trying to tug everything back in place, but to no avail. He even ripped the pocket off a little, “Fuck…”

Watching the whole thing unfold, Huo Ran dipped his head and started to laugh.

“Fuck are you laughing at?” Kou Chen growled. 

The others started laughing at that too.

“What kind of friends are you guys?” Kou Chen frowned.

“Help him out, Huo Ran.” Jiang Lei laughed.

“How am I supposed to…” Huo Ran’s hands were trembling with how hard he was laughing, and he couldn’t muster up any strength to pull on Kou Chen’s jacket. 

“Are you a girl?” Kou Chen complained, “Pull harder…”

Huo Ran sighed, stopped laughing, grit his teeth, and pulled Kou Chen’s jacket towards himself.

Rrrrrip!

They all went quiet. 

And then they burst out into laughing again.

Nobody was trying to hold it in now, everyone was in hysterics.

Even the passengers beside them looked away and laughed.

Huo Ran stared at the piece of fabric in his hands, hesitated, and then put it in his pocket. 

“Ah—” Kou Chen gave up struggling and leaned onto him, putting his chin on his shoulder. He sighed, “Whatever, I’ll wait until people get off.”

Huo Ran didn’t say anything.

A moment later, he finally hummed in agreement.

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He didn’t do anything really, right? 

How about he chat with the others?

Join the conversation about what they should do at the amusement park later?

What should he do so Xu Zhifan wouldn’t think he was acting ‘strangely’?

Two stops later, there weren’t as many people in the bus, so Kou Chen’s jacket was freed and he was able to turn around.

But he was still hanging off of him, scrolling through his phone.

Forget it.

Huo Ran gave up. 

Xu Zhifan was smart, if it was just a feeling, he wouldn’t be asking in the first place.

He didn’t need to actively try and hide anything, and maybe Xu Zhifan understood it better than him.

Huo Ran sighed.

That’s right, he couldn’t answer Xu Zhifan’s question, and it wasn’t entirely because he didn’t want to. 

He didn’t even know what was going on with him.

And what he should do about it.

He couldn’t say anything at all.

Near the amusement park, there were still just as many people on the bus. They were all headed to the same place.

They rode past eighteen stops all crowded together like this.

When they got off, Kou Chen felt his legs were even straighter. 

“I’ll go buy tickets.” He moved his legs, staring at the ticket office.

This place was a lot better than the park. There was a whole row of windows, and they were even able to scan a QR code to pay without waiting in line.

Xu Chaun got out his phone, “I’ll send you the money, they don’t have citizen tickets, everything’s the same price.”

“Sure.” Kou Chen didn’t mind, “General admission for all the rides. We can eat here too.” 

“Okay.” Everyone nodded.

They made their way into the amusement park excitedly after buying tickets. Although there were no lines at the ticket office, it was a different story once they got in. There were lines everywhere, but at least they weren’t very long.

As they were discussing where to go, Kou Chen was already following the signs on the map. 

“Where are you going?” Wei Chaoren called.

“Roller coaster!” Kou Chen waved them over, “Let’s go on the roller coaster first! I wanna go on it!”

Neither of them had any plans, so they all followed him to the roller coaster.

There were already dozens of people in line, and they could hear the screams in the air. 

Huo Ran took a glance at it. It was a pretty standard roller coaster with loops and dives, nothing too extreme.

But Kou Chen looked a little nervous as he was looking up at it.

“Apart from water and twisties,” Huo Ran asked, “What else are you afraid of?”

“Nothing.” Kou Chen glanced at him. “I’m not scared of heights, don’t worry.” 

“This one’s alright, it’s not scary.” Huo Ran said.

“Why are they all yelling so loudly?” Kou Chen said.

“I yell too,” Huo Ran said. “It’s exciting.”

Kou Chen nodded, “What should I yell out…” 

“You’re overthinking it.” Huo Ran said. “It’s good enough if you can make noise at all.”

The roller coaster sat two people in each row, and they just happened to be at the very front. Kou Chen ran over to the very front excitedly: “I’ll sit here! Huo Ran!”

Huo Ran wanted to refuse. The very front row was a bit too scary, and he didn’t really want to go through it. 

But Kou Chen had already sat down, so he could only follow him.

Behind them was Xu Zhifan and Xu Chuan, those two were a bit braver, and even though they didn’t want to sit at the front, they still grit their teeth and did it. Wei Chaoren didn’t want to come up, so he sat alone in the fourth row trying to look for one further back.

But when a girl who came by herself sat down beside him, he gave up on that idea.

“It’s okay,” Wei Chaoren said to the girl, “Don’t be scared.” 

After the worker checked all of their seatbelts, the ride started moving forwards slowly.

Huo Ran gripped onto the bar in front of him.

“If you’re scared you can hold on to me.” Kou Chen looked completely relaxed as he gave him his hand. 

“Fuck off.” Huo Ran replied simply.

“I think these things…” Kou Chen cut himself off when the cart reached its peak. The track practically curved down at a 90 degree angle, disappearing in front of them. He paused, “Fuck, it’s so high up? It didn’t look this high from down…”

Before he could finish, the cart suddenly sped forwards, and Kou Chen’s last word dissolved into thin air and turned into a scream.

“There—AH—!” 

Under his lead, everyone else began to scream.

“AHHH—AHH—”

Some were out of fear, and some were out of excitement. Huo Ran was completely prepared for it, and he yelled like everyone else: “WOOOO—”

When the kart reached the bottom and began to climb up again, Kou Chen finally cursed out: “Fuck!”

“How about it?!” Huo Ran asked.

“Great!” Kou Chen yelled.

The two of them turned to look back… well, down to be specific. The people behind them looked a little dazed. Wei Chaoren’s eyes hadn’t completely focused yet, and the girl next to him was grinning happily. 

“Chaoren’s embarrassed himself now.” Kou Chen whispered.

“We’re almost at the top.” Huo Ran reminded him.

Kou Chen immediately sat back in his seat and reached out to grab his wrist, pulling it away from the safety bar to squeeze in his own hand.

“Fuck, it hurts!” Huo Ran frowned. 

Kou Chen ignored them. At the top, before the cart dropped, he was already screaming: AHH—!”

“AHHH—!” Everyone yelled together.

As rushed down, Kou Chen yelled again: “Ranran—!”

“AHH—! Chenchen—!” Huo Ran replied. 

The ride didn’t last long, but their throats were all sore from yelling when they got off. A lot of people were even stumbling as they walked.

Hu Yi collapsed on the grass as soon as they got off, closing his eyes.

“Carrot?” Jiang Lei kicked him. 

“I’m dizzy…” Hu Yi complained.

They all laughed and sat down on the grass as well.

Kou Chen coughed: “Let’s go again, I didn’t experience it properly.”

“You can go by yourself later, we’ll wait for you.” Huo Ran said. 

“You’re not coming with me?” Kou Chen asked.

“I…” At that, Huo Ran suddenly panicked, glancing at Xu Zhifan subconsciously.

Xu Zhifan didn’t have a particular expression, he only smiled at him like usual when he felt his gaze.

“Didn’t you want to go on the drop machine too?” Huo Ran breathed a small sigh of relief, looking back at Kou Chen. “Go on everything else first.” 

“Okay.” Kou Chen snapped his fingers.

The drop machine was a lot quieter compared to the roller coaster. It was short, and the drop was so sudden, it was over before most people had the chance to scream.

They ran into the girl that sat beside Wei Chaoren earlier again. 

Wei Chaoren immediately dipped his head, pressing it into Xu Chuan’s back.

“What’s wrong?” Xu Chuan turned around, “Go say hello, it’s fate.”

“No thanks.” Wei Chaoren mumbled. “I screamed too loud earlier, and she was laughing the whole time, I’d rather this fate not go on.”

“Hi, what a coincidence!” Xu Chuan greeted the girl behind them. 

The girl smiled in surprise: “What a coincidence! Are you guys going on this too? Where’s the handsome one that sat next to me earlier?”

At the word ‘handsome’, Wei Chaoren quickly raised his head and turned to wave at the girl: “Hi!”

Seeing him, the girl burst out into laughter without a second of hesitation.

“Why don’t you come up?” Hu Yi pointed at Wei Chaoren’s spot. “You can sit with us.” 

“Okay, hahahahaha…” The girl walked over to Wei Chaoren as she laughed. Wiping away her tears, she said, “Are you gonna cry this time?”

“…Probably not.” Wei Chaoren said. “But I really might if you keep laughing.”

“I’m sorry,” The girl covered her mouth, “It’s just that you screamed so loudly your voice cracked, and I really couldn’t help it. I wanted to get your number afterwards, but I couldn’t find you.”

Although he was a little embarrassed after getting laughed at, he still got out his phone immediately. 

“What kind of luck is this?” Kou Chen hung off of Huo Ran, chin on his shoulder, “The girl’s pretty cute, but she likes someone like Chaoren?”

“Everyone has people who like them.” Huo Ran said. “You think everyone should like someone like you?”

“Yup.” Kou Chen wasn’t modest at all, “Do you like it? Someone like me?” 

Huo Ran didn’t say anything.

But Kou Chen didn’t seem to be waiting for an answer anyways, as he kept talking: “As for me, I prefer someone like you.”

Huo Ran felt his breathing stop.

His whole body turned into a heart, beating all throughout. 

He turned back to normal when Kou Chen nudged him forwards. He tried his best to reply normally: “If I were a girl…”

“Nah,” Kou Chen said. “It doesn’t matter that you’re a guy.”

Before Huo Ran could react, Kou Chen was already laughing in his ear.

Huo Ran felt like even if reacted it would’ve been fucking swept away by Kou Chen’s happy laughter. 

What’s wrong with him?

He’s crazy!

On the drop machine, Huo Ran glanced at Kou Chen. Go on, fucking laugh, you’re gonna piss your pants soon! 

Kou Chen was still looking around, examining the ride.

“I don’t think this is as bad as the roller coaster.” He said. “I looked at the info, it’s only fifty metres tall, that’s just…”

“Just fifteen, sixteen stories tall.” Huo Ran said.

“Fuck,” Kou Chen turned to him in shock. “I counted ten stories, and I was like that’s not too tall…” 

“A story is three metres on average.” Huo Ran said coolly. “You’re failing all your classes for a reason.”

“You fucking did that on purpose!” Kou Chen glared.

“Ah.” Huo Ran snorted.

“…Ranran.” Kou Chen grabbed his hand. 

“Fuck off.” Huo Ran pushed him away.

“Fuck, I’m actually scared!” Kou Chen whispered.

The drop machine started to rise up slowly, moving further and further away from the ground. Kou Chen kept his eyes on him, too scared to look down.

“And you say you’re not scared of heights?” Huo Ran’s heart suddenly went soft. 

“I’m really not!” Kou Chen said. “This thing’s not within that range, who wouldn’t be afraid?!”

“I’m not.” Huo Ran grabbed his hand and rubbed it.

“Don’t let go.” Kou Chen told him.

“Mhm.” Huo Ran nodded. 

Kou Chen’s hand was ice cold, and Huo Ran couldn’t warm it up after a few rubs.

But to be honest, Kou Chen’s hands were a little different than other people’s. They were slender, the joints weren’t too jutting, and they were strong but not exaggeratedly so.

And they were smooth too, he’d obviously taken…

The drop machine shook slightly, cutting off Huo Ran’s train of thought. 

With a jolt, he realized that they were at the top.

And not just at the top, it was already starting to drop.

The ring of people on the ride immediately starting yelling: “AHH—”

Because he wasn’t prepared, Huo Ran didn’t have time to make any noise before he was enveloped by the feeling of weightlessness. Everything in his body shifted, just floating there. 

His butt left the seat as well.

In his shock, the hand that was grabbing Kou Chen’s hand pressed down, trying to give himself a sense of reality.

It probably only lasted a second.

He got that sense of reality. 

The drop machine reached the bottom.

When Kou Chen pulled his hand back, he realized that he pressed it down onto a bit of an awkward spot.