Fever and a Lullaby

The weekly meetings held by the Physics Department were long and dull.

The students attending appeared to be listening attentively, but in reality were secretly slacking off on their phones and laptops.

Lin Xiuxiu, the vice-captain of the basketball team, dozed off for a while.

When he woke up and saw that the dean was still delivering a long-winded speech, he poked Jian Yixun in the arm and whispered,

“Hey, Jian Yixun, I heard you had breakfast with Xu Shuche today?”

Jian Yixun glanced at him.

“What?

What are you trying to ask?”

“I’m just curious,” Lin Xiu said.

“Before, there was a junior who walked the same path as Xu Shuche and wanted to be friends with you too.

Why did you drive him away back then?”

Jian Yixun raised an eyebrow.

“Making friends depends on whether you click.”

“So Xu Shuche clicks with you?”

Lin Xiu scratched his head.

“Didn’t you hate this type of guy the most?

You even posted publicly on your Moments before—”

Jian Yixun cut him off.

“I hate scheming gay men.”

Their voices were a little loud.

The dean on the podium shot them an annoyed glance.

Lin Xiu lowered his voice.

“But Xu Shuche seems to be gay too.”

“What evidence do you have?”

Jian Yixun’s tone turned cold.

“Don’t spread rumors.

Take responsibility for what you say.”

“I’m not making it up,” Lin Xiu frowned.

“One of my classmates went crazy after seeing Xu Shuche at the opening ceremony.

He talks about Xu Shuche every morning and night.

Last month, he confessed to him and got rejected.

Guess what Xu Shuche said when he rejected him?”

“What did he say?”

“He said, ‘You’re not my type, sorry.’”

Lin Xiu winked at him.

“What does that mean?

If he weren’t gay, wouldn’t he say he doesn’t like men?”

“…Nonsense logic.”

Jian Yixun sneered.

“Detective Lin, if you put even half this investigative spirit into writing papers, you’d have published long ago.”

“Why are you getting fierce with me over him?”

Lin Xiu looked hurt.

“Jian Yixun, don’t tell me Xu Shuche bent you?”

Jian Yixun sat up straight, reached under the table, and viciously twisted Lin Xiu’s thigh, nearly making him jump out of his seat in pain.

“Get lost.

Even if every man in the world bent, I’d be the least likely one.”

The dean finally wrapped up his summary and ended the meeting.

Jian Yixun closed the presentation, shut his laptop, slipped it into his bag, and pressed a hand on Lin Xiu’s shoulder.

“Have you eaten?”

Lin Xiu shook his head in confusion.

“No.

Why?”

“Perfect then.

I’ll call my senior out and we’ll eat together.”

Jian Yixun lowered his head to call Xu Shuche.

“Aren’t you curious?

You can see for yourself whether he’s gay.”

Sure.

Lin Xiu had long been curious about Xu Shuche thanks to his classmate’s constant rambling.

Now that he had a chance to see the real person, he had no objections at all.

He pulled out his phone to reply to a couple of messages.

When he looked up again, Jian Yixun’s expression had suddenly turned grave.

“What?

He has a fever?

How high?”

“You didn’t measure it?

Why didn’t you measure it?

I have a thermometer in my drawer.

Go get it and take your temperature.

I’ll be back right away.

Don’t climb onto the bed.

Be careful not to fall.”

After fussing like an overbearing mom, Jian Yixun hung up, stuffed his phone into his pocket, and said,

“No dinner.

My senior has a fever.

I’m going back to check on him.”

“Wait—”

Before Lin Xiu could finish speaking, Jian Yixun had already grabbed his laptop and sprinted toward the stairwell.

In just a few seconds, his figure disappeared.

“You ditched me for a man?”

Lin Xiu pulled out his phone and angrily typed out a complaint.

“You used to ditch others for your bros.

Now you’re ditching your bro for someone else?

Jian Yixun, are you okay?

Isn’t Xu Shuche an adult?

What’s the big deal if he has a fever?”

And you say you’re not bent.

Lin Xiu scoffed.

Something is very wrong with you.

Xu Shuche followed Jian Yixun’s instructions, found the thermometer, and took his temperature.

As expected, it read thirty-eight point five degrees.

He held the thermometer carefully, afraid that one careless movement might make it shatter and cause even more trouble.

The cut on his finger had stopped bleeding, but it still throbbed faintly.

They said the fingers were connected to the heart.

Even this small pain felt hard to bear.

The dorm door was suddenly pushed open.

Jian Yixun walked in carrying a chill with him.

“Senior, are you okay?”

Xu Shuche opened his eyes slightly and suddenly felt that the dorm, which had seemed so empty just moments ago, was instantly filled.

“I’m fine.

I just accidentally broke a glass,” he said softly.

“I’ll pay you back.”

Jian Yixun was both annoyed and amused.

“Who cares about a glass?

Who asked about the glass?”

Seeing Xu Shuche hide one hand behind his back, Jian Yixun swiftly grabbed his wrist and saw the brownish cut on his fingertip.

“You idiot.

How could you pick up glass shards with your hand?”

Jian Yixun said.

“Get dressed.

I’m taking you to the campus clinic.”

Xu Shuche drowsily put on a jacket and was led downstairs from the fourth floor to the clinic.

When they arrived, they found all the IV seats were already full.

Jian Yixun cursed under his breath and reached out to touch Xu Shuche’s forehead.

So hot.

Xu Shuche’s mind was burning blank.

He clutched Jian Yixun’s shirt and leaned against him, the heat making Jian Yixun increasingly anxious.

“Senior, don’t sleep.

Talk to me,” Jian Yixun patted his face.

“I’ll take you outside to get an IV.”

As he spoke, he crouched down in front of Xu Shuche.

Xu Shuche, still muddle-headed, froze when he saw this, standing there in confusion.

“Get on.”

Jian Yixun patted his back.

“I’ll carry you out of campus.

You can’t walk on your own.”

Xu Shuche staggered and nearly fell onto Jian Yixun’s back.

Jian Yixun lifted his legs and hurried out of campus with him.

Xu Shuche lay against Jian Yixun’s back, slowly shifting his chin onto his shoulder and rubbing his cheek against his.

So soft.

How could a guy be this light and this soft.

Jian Yixun felt a numbing wave of heat surge from where Xu Shuche touched him, instantly flushing his face red, as if he had caught a fever too.

He stammered,

“Senior, what are you doing?”

“Hm?”

Xu Shuche was sick.

His usually cool voice had turned soft and mushy.

“So hot.

So uncomfortable.

This place is cool.

I like it.”

So it was because his face was cooler, and Xu Shuche was using it to cool down.

Jian Yixun couldn’t help laughing.

He let Xu Shuche rub against his cheek like a cat and quickened his pace toward the campus gate.

B University wasn’t in a remote area.

Jian Yixun hailed a taxi, and they soon arrived at the hospital.

Carried on his back, Xu Shuche was surrounded by the scent of Jian Yixun’s clothes, like summer sea-salt soda.

“Please register him,” Jian Yixun rushed to the emergency desk.

“He has a high fever.

I’m afraid it’ll damage his brain.”

The nurse, seeing how urgent he was, thought he had brought in a child.

But when she looked behind him, she saw a delicate-looking young man instead.

“Don’t worry.

He’s an adult.

A fever won’t ruin him.”

She reassured him while registering.

“Go on.

Be careful not to fall.”

Once Xu Shuche was hooked up to an IV, Jian Yixun finally let out a long sigh of relief.

He collapsed onto a chair, about to rest, when he remembered the doctor’s advice about hydration and electrolytes.

Struggling to his feet, he went to the vending machine at the hospital entrance to buy milk and electrolyte drinks.

But just as he stood up, someone tugged at his sleeve.

Xu Shuche’s beautiful phoenix eyes narrowed slightly.

His face was flushed, his nose tinged pink from the fever, a mist of moisture filling his eyes as he looked at Jian Yixun.

“Where are you going?”

He was completely fever-dazed now.

His voice was soft, unconsciously acting spoiled toward Jian Yixun.

Jian Yixun adjusted his collar.

“I’m going to buy you some milk.

I’ll be right back.”

Xu Shuche let out a small “oh.”

The corners of his mouth drooped with faint disappointment.

“Okay.

Go then.”

“Be good, senior.”

Jian Yixun felt like he was coaxing a child.

He couldn’t help pinching Xu Shuche’s wrist.

When he came back with milk and electrolyte water, he saw Xu Shuche curled up on the chair, his head leaning uncomfortably against the backrest, breathing a little fast.

Xu Shuche’s hand was very pale.

When tense, the bluish veins were clearly visible.

Even the IV needle looked too big for such a hand.

Jian Yixun walked over.

“Senior, want some milk?”

Xu Shuche let out a soft hum and shook his head.

Jian Yixun set the milk aside.

“You’ll be uncomfortable sleeping like this.

Lie on my lap.”

Xu Shuche shook his head again.

Jian Yixun leaned closer to hear what he was mumbling and caught him whispering,

“Too hard.

Uncomfortable.”

“It’s not hard,” Jian Yixun laughed helplessly.

“It’s soft.

Try lying down.”

Xu Shuche looked at him for a while, as if judging whether he was telling the truth.

After a long moment, he cautiously lay down on Jian Yixun’s legs.

Jian Yixun supported the arm with the IV and brushed his bangs aside.

“Sleep, senior.

When you wake up, the fever will be gone.”

Xu Shuche rubbed his nose against his leg and caught his fingers.

“I can’t sleep.

I feel awful.”

Jian Yixun squeezed his fingers.

“Then I’ll sing you a song?

Back home, we always sing this to lull kids to sleep.”

Xu Shuche gave a soft “mm.”

“The moon is bright, the breeze is light, leaves shade the window frame.”

Jian Yixun hummed slowly.

“The crickets sing sharp and clear, like the sound of strings.

The melody is gentle, the tune is sweet.

The cradle sways softly.

Baby, close your eyes…”

Xu Shuche hadn’t expected someone as rough and straightforward as Jian Yixun to sing anything pleasant.

He hadn’t had high hopes.

But the moment Jian Yixun sang the first line, it felt like something soft had been pressed deep into his heart.

His nose grew sore, his eyes stung, and he almost wanted to cry.

“It sounds really nice,” he whispered.

“No one has ever sung me to sleep before.

Thank you.”