When I Meet the Moon - Chapter 65

Chapter 65

Yun Li asked, "Don't you need to head back to class?"

"No." He pondered for a moment before adding, "Since Yun Ye's situation happened during class, I'll keep you company."

Yun Li found a seat and sat down. Seeing that Fu Shize was still standing, she paused for a moment and gently patted the seat beside her. "Do you want to sit here?"

Almost the instant Yun Li spoke, Fu Shize moved and sat right down beside her.

"..."

The two of them had nothing much to say. Yun Li leaned back against her chair in idle boredom, watching the people walking back and forth before her.

Right in front of them, a few nurses were wheeling a hospital bed past. The patient on it was clutching his abdomen in excruciating agony, groaning softly, veins bulging across his forehead as his hands gripped the bedsheets out of shape. Moments later, the patient let out a harrowing shriek of pain.

The sound terrified Yun Li.

Fu Shize placed his hand beside her right ear. Without actually touching her, he effectively blocked out and muffled the man's cries.

"Don't listen."

Yun Li instantly grew a bit tense; his hand was less than a centimeter away from her. She cast a stealthy glance at Fu Shize. He was looking straight ahead, maintaining a calm composure that provided a profound sense of reassurance.

The patient was quickly wheeled away into a distant ward, and Fu Shize withdrew his hand, allowing the quiet atmosphere to settle back between them.

"Um..." Remembering how he used to suffer from frequent stomachaches, Yun Li asked, "Is your stomach feeling a bit better now?"

"Mm."

"Did you take medicine?"

"I had surgery."

His tone was utterly flat and casual, as if he were talking about a routine procedure.

"What kind of surgery?"

"A perforated stomach."

"..."

Yun Li wasn't entirely clueless about perforated stomachs. Back when she learned Fu Shize had stomach issues, she had looked up various gastrointestinal illnesses online. A perforated ulcer was a rather severe complication—it struck very suddenly and caused agonizing pain.

She was silent for a moment before asking, "Did it hurt a lot?"

Fu Shize thought about it for a beat, then said nonchalantly, "It hurt a bit. I don't really remember."

Judging by his tone, it didn't sound all that serious, so Yun Li continued asking, "Did you stay in the hospital back then?"

"For about a month or so." Fu Shize glanced sideways at her. "I'm already healed."

This was his way of telling her not to worry needlessly.

A heavy feeling settled in Yun Li's chest. When Yun Ye had his surgery, just to be on the safe side, he had only spent less than ten days in the hospital.

The atmosphere turned somewhat heavy.

Yun Li asked with concern, "How is your recovery now? When did you have the surgery?"

"It's alright." Fu Shize only answered her first question.

Yun Li fell silent for a moment. Her heart felt strange, though she couldn't pinpoint the exact reason. Relying on her intuition, she asked again, "When did you have the surgery?"

"..."

"Last year. I don't remember the exact time."

In a flash of insight, Yun Li inexplicably recalled those two days when he had gone completely out of contact. Hesitating for a moment, she asked, "March?"

"No." Not wanting her to carry any psychological burden over it, Fu Shize calmly lied, "I had it done in the second half of the year."

Yun Li didn't doubt the truth of his words. After a long pause, she softly admonished, "Your digestive system isn't great, so you need to keep a regular diet. You shouldn't eat things that are too hot, nor things that are too cold."

"Mm."

"Stop drinking so much coffee."

"Mm."

"And stop smoking and drinking alcohol, too."

"I quit long ago."

"Also..." Yun Li wanted to say more, but meeting his gaze—which held a nameless, inexpressible meaning—she froze, realizing she was rambling too much, and snapped her mouth shut.

Yun Ye had finished receiving his medication. He had been standing behind the door listening to the two of them whispering outside, hesitating for a long time over whether or not he should go out right now.

If he went out, it would probably be a bit awkward.

If he didn't...

The nurse thought he was being a pampered baby for waiting for someone else to open the door, rolled her eyes, and yanked the door open for him.

The moment Yun Ye lowered his head, he saw Yun Li and Fu Shize sitting on the chairs. The two of them were talking with their heads tilted toward each other, unconsciously sitting very close.

Noticing the door open, Yun Li sprang to her feet like someone caught in a secret, her expression awkward.

Fu Shize slowly stood up and asked him, "Feeling better?"

"Yeah. I'm fine." At that moment, Yun Ye just wanted to escape from here as fast as possible. He turned to Yun Li and said, "I'm good now, I'm heading to the library. You guys chat."

"Don't even think about it. Mom and Dad are waiting at home, and Mom was worried sick." Seeing Yun Ye try to make a run for it, Yun Li grabbed him by his clothes and nagged, "Yun Ye, you're eighteen years old. Can't you dodge when you see a bug?"

"Damn it, I didn't even see what the bug looked like." Dragged back to the doorway, Yun Ye was about to blow his top, but catching Yun Li's reined-in smile, he snapped his mouth shut again.

Yun Ye's hand looked dreadful, and Yun Li was eager to get home. Having already stepped outside the campus hospital entrance, she turned back to give Fu Shize a word of thanks: "Sorry for the trouble today. I'll treat you to a meal another time."

Fu Shize gave a hum of acknowledgment. Just as Yun Li was about to say goodbye to him, he suddenly asked, "When is 'another time'?"

"..."

At that moment, Yun Li felt like she had run into a classmate she hadn't seen in years.

Everyone exchange polite, hollow pleasantries like "Let's get together sometime," only for one tactless person in the middle to suddenly ask, "When is 'sometime'?"

Caught completely off guard, Yun Li evasively replied, "I'll coordinate with you later?"

"Mm." Acting as though he hadn't noticed Yun Li's brush-off, he raised his gaze to tell Yun Ye, "Get some rest when you get back. If there's anything you don't understand in this week's class, reach out to me on WeChat."

Meeting his gaze, Yun Ye nodded.

Once they got into the car, Yun Ye squirmed around in his seat to find a comfortable posture to lean back against.

He recalled the conversation he had shared with Fu Shize on the way to the campus hospital earlier that day—

"Yun Ye?"

"Yeah?"

"How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine."

"Mm."

After a short while.

"Yun Ye?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think your sister and I still have a chance?"

"..."

Yun Ye had not dared to make a sound for a long time, terrified of offending either side.

In the past, whenever the three of them spent time together, he had often noticed Fu Shize stealing glances at Yun Li, the cold indifference between his brows melting away to leave behind only deep affection.

Although he himself was a massive third wheel, Yun Ye was genuinely glad to witness someone caring for Yun Li this much.

Yet the reason Yun Li gave for breaking up was that Fu Shize didn't care for her enough.

Back then, he had wanted to persuade Yun Li not to act on impulse, but that afternoon, Yun Li had sat on the edge of her bed, forcing herself to stay calm while continually wiping away rolling tears with the back of her hand.

Yun Ye had thought, then let them break up. If it meant Yun Li could be happier.

Clearly, she wasn't.

Over the past year or so, whenever they video-called, Yun Li would frequently zone out. Whenever he talked about things between himself and Yin Yunyi, she would also fall silent.

Earlier today when he stepped out, Yun Li and Fu Shize had been sitting on the bench, looking into each other's eyes, caught in that undeniable tension when he caught them off guard.

It was purer and more innocent than the dynamic between him and Yin Yunyi.

With a flurry of thoughts racing through his mind, Yun Ye looked toward Yun Li. "Sis, you need to thank that guy. If it weren't for him rushing your little brother to the hospital in time today, your little brother might have died of toxic shock right there in the classroom."

Speechless, Yun Li shot him a sideways glare. "Isn't he the teaching assistant?"

The implication was that a TA looking after a student who fell ill during class was the most normal thing in the world.

"A TA isn't obligated to drive me to the hospital, either." Yun Ye frowned in disagreement. "Anyway, go help me thank him properly. Didn't Mom and Dad teach us to be grateful since we were kids?"

Taking advantage of a gap while stopped at a red light, Yun Li pinched Yun Ye. "Why don't you go do it yourself? I only thanked him out of politeness, you go do it."

"Stop, stop, stop—" Failing his little scheme, Yun Ye didn't give up just yet. "People might say I'm intentionally cozying up to the teaching assistant to get extra grades."

He stated with a straight face, "What if someone reports me? Then both the big brother and I will lose our degrees."

C

Was it really that serious?

Yun Li was stunned for a moment. Yun Ye shook his red, swollen hand right in front of her eyes, asking with an incredulous expression, "Are you really my sister?"

"..."

Yun Li had no choice but to say, "Fine, I get it."

When they got home, Yang Fang and Yun Yongchang were waiting anxiously on pins and needles. The moment she laid eyes on Yun Ye, Yang Fang pulled him into her arms and started sobbing softly.

Yun Li retreated to her room and rubbed her eyes.

She still had to thank Fu Shize on Yun Ye's behalf.

She searched online for small gifts, but felt that Fu Shize didn't really need those kinds of things. Getting up to grab a popsicle, she found Yun Ye already full of energy, watching an NBA game.

"Oh right, I managed to snag a ticket for you earlier," Yun Ye said, keeping his eyes glued to the TV as he fished a show ticket out from the side of his schoolbag and tossed it toward the sofa.

Yun Li picked up the ticket. The event was a month away, located at the Xifu Tech Gymnasium. She waved it around. "I only got one ticket. How am I supposed to go with Yin Yunyi?"

"I was just doing something nice for you." Lacking the embarrassment of being called out, Yun Ye smoothly smoothed it over with a calm demeanor.

Just as Yun Li reached her bedroom door, Yun Ye called out, "Get me a popsicle."

"..."

"I'm a patient."

"..."

After retrieving a popsicle for him from the fridge, Yun Li kept staring at the ticket. After pondering for a bit, she snapped a photo of it and sent it to Fu Shize.

He replied almost instantly.

F: [Want to go together?]

Yun Li explained: [No. Thanks for bringing Yun Ye to the campus hospital. Yun Ye managed to grab a ticket, do you want it?]

In short, Yun Ye had snagged it, and she had no intentions of asking him out on a date.

F: [I'm more pragmatic.]

F: [Let's go grab that meal instead.]

"..."

Looks like this ticket wasn't worth much.

Yun Li set the ticket aside. Dutifully browsing through various restaurant review sites, she noticed that slightly nicer spots all shared the same tag—

#Must-visit for couples

Whenever those four words appeared in the top reviews, Yun Li skipped past them instantly. She couldn't put her exact finger on why, but it felt as though choosing one of those places would mean she harbored ulterior motives.

After searching for a while without finding a suitable place, Yun Li tossed the problem right back to Fu Shize: [Alright. What do you want to eat?]

Fu Shize: [How about late-night snacks? There's a place by the edge of Xifu Tech.]

A few seconds later, Fu Shize sent another message: [I'm busier during the day.]

He had deliberately explained why he chose a late-night snack hour.

Yun Li felt no resistance to the idea; she happened to need to drop Yun Ye back at school anyway.

The two of them agreed to meet at ten o'clock on Sunday night for late-night snacks.

Spending the weekend at home writing copy, Yun Li found herself somewhat distracted the entire time. Her usual total focus felt as though it had been breached by something.

Every now and then, that image would pop up: his loose white shirt billowing slightly in the wind, flattening against his waist when the breeze died down as he dismounted from the scooter with cool confidence, taking off his helmet and raising his gaze to look at her.

Her train of thought for the copy would snap, much like a pen tip breaking mid-sentence with a sharp crack, unable to continue. Panicking, she would force herself right back into writing, trying to convince herself she had never thought of such a thing.

She refused to ponder why that image kept appearing.

Nor was she willing to admit it.

As departure time drew near, Yun Li hesitated by her desk for a moment before quietly moving over to her vanity table to carefully apply a layer of makeup.

She consciously chose a bracelet, earrings, and a necklace that weren't overly flashy. Styling her hair into a simple wave with a curling iron, she rummaged through her wardrobe for an outfit.

Yun Ye had been waiting in the living room for an hour, nagging Yun Li every ten minutes. Growing impatient, he stormed over and pounded on her door: "Yun Li, are you done yet?"

Yun Li abruptly yanked the door open and headed to the entryway to change her shoes.

Yun Ye sized her up. "Oh, going out to eat with the big brother, so you specifically dressed up?"

"As if." Yun Li glared at him, a bit defensive at having her thoughts pierced. "Stop talking nonsense."

"Looks nice, though." With his hands shoved in his pockets, Yun Ye headed downstairs first, leaving behind only those words.

Once in the car, Yun Li tried to cover up her tracks defensively: "Don't I usually go out looking like this anyway?"

"Oh."

Yun Li continued, "Besides, since we haven't seen each other in so long, I can't afford to lose face, right?"

"Oh."

"Anyway, I didn't dress up specifically for him, got it?"

"Oh."

Lazily playing along with her self-deception, Yun Ye finished up and, before stepping out, turned to look at her with a deadpan expression: "Yun Li, I totally believe you."

"..."

As they neared the campus, Yun Li suddenly realized that Yin Yunyi hadn't shown up the entire time Yun Ye was injured. "Did you guys have a fight? Why didn't Yin Yunyi come check on you when you got hurt?"

Yun Ye wore a look of utter disdain. "I just told her about it. We don't fight."

Yun Li fired back: "Don't you guys consult each other on everything?"

"One thing is one thing. There's no need to make her worry for no reason; it's not like it's a big deal." Yun Ye raised his arm, twisting it to an angle where he could inspect it—the swelling had already mostly subsided. "That way she won't feel too sad seeing it."

"..."

Dropping Yun Ye off downstairs at his dorm building, Yun Li could see Yin Yunyi standing not far from the entrance, her eyes visibly swollen from crying.

Seeing that she had been crying, Yun Ye danced around gesticulating wildly to show her that he was completely fine.

She watched from inside the car for a good long while before seeing Yin Yunyi chuckle under Yun Ye's antics.

...

Yun Li pulled a U-turn and drove toward the agreed-upon North Gate. Fu Shize had instructed her beforehand to park her car inside the campus, as the late-night snack spot was tucked away in a courtyard down a small alleyway where cars couldn't enter.

She parked the car. The North Gate was just a few dozen meters away, with a relentless stream of traffic flowing past two sets of security barriers amid a blaze of lights. Glancing off to the side, she spotted Fu Shize standing by the roadside, leaning against his moped with his head lowered as he looked at his phone.

Lingering in place for a second, as if sensing her presence, Fu Shize lifted his head and looked toward her.

Yun Li deftly averted his gaze and slowly walked up to him.

"Do you want to ride the scooter there?"

"Mm. It's just a few minutes away." Fu Shize lowered his gaze to look at her.

Having met up a few times now, Yun Li still couldn't maintain prolonged eye contact with him. She only stole occasional glances—the upward slant of her eyes was striking and captivating. She had tied her hair up, exposing a neck that was both fair and straight.

Those few fleeting glances left Fu Shize's mind somewhat unsettled. He unlocked the moped, and Yun Li instinctively climbed onto the back.

A refreshing, sweet fragrance drifted past on the breeze.

As they headed out the main gate, Fu Shize's attention drifted slightly, causing him to miss a speed bump on the ground. The scooter bounced, and Yun Li lost her balance, her soft hand pressing lightly against his waist to steady herself.

Yun Li instantly retracted her hand, mortified. "Sorry."

Fu Shize calmly said "It's nothing," but the spot where she had touched felt as though it had been set on fire, a wave of heat spreading from that single point across his entire body.

Upon arriving at the shop, he had Yun Li get off first, parking and locking the scooter at a snail's pace. He lingered in the darkness for a minute or two, waiting for his body temperature to normalize before walking over to join Yun Li.

The late-night snack spot was thick with the lively atmosphere of human habitation. Two simple blue tents had been set up in the courtyard, sheltering a few massive woks. Half of the seating was out in the open air and packed to capacity, mostly consisting of Xifu Tech students, injecting vibrant energy into the dim, shadowy alleyway.

Yun Li felt as though she had been transported back to her freshman and sophomore years. Back then, she would occasionally tag along with her roommates to the barbecue joints near the campus to order skewers and stir-fried rice noodles.

The two of them found an empty table and sat down.