The Surprise

On the 31st, Xu Shuche still almost backed out at the last moment.

He behaved unusually, confirming the details of his paper with his advisor again and again.

Finally the advisor asked him in confusion.

“Didn’t you say you had an event today?”

“Why aren’t you leaving yet?”

Xu Shuche glanced at the time displayed at the bottom of his computer screen.

“…No rush.”

“Don’t say there’s no rush.”

Although the advisor was already in his fifties, his mindset was still quite youthful.

He knew the students had some kind of “New Year’s” group gathering.

“Your classmates from the research group already spoke to me.”

“Hurry up and go.”

“It’s only two o’clock.”

Xu Shuche said softly.

“I’ll… wait another hour.”

Seeing that persuasion didn’t work, the advisor simply reminded him not to be late before returning to his office.

Xu Shuche raised his eyes and looked at the snow falling outside the window again.

He breathed warm air into his hands.

He wasn’t usually someone who liked to be late.

But he didn’t want to arrive early either.

Because if he arrived too early, it would seem like he had been looking forward to it.

Was he looking forward to it?

Actually… yes.

Strictly speaking, this was the first time since high school that he had voluntarily participated in a normal social gathering.

During his undergraduate years, he had focused entirely on securing a graduate recommendation and staying in this northern city he loved.

He had completely given up on building relationships with classmates.

He delayed another half hour before finally unlocking his phone after a message notification popped up.

【Jian】: Where are you?

【Jian】: Have you left yet?

【Jian】: The ground is slippery outside. Be careful. Wear more clothes. Bring everything you’ll need tonight.

【Jian】: [Samoyed wagging tail.gif]

The dog in the sticker was a fluffy Samoyed.

Xu Shuche suddenly remembered the night he had crouched in that dark alley.

The elderly woman who gave him milk candy to comfort him had been holding a dog just like that.

The dog on the screen looked fluffy and slightly silly.

It seemed eager to please.

For some reason, it reminded him of Jian Yixun’s face.

Xu Shuche didn’t even notice that the corners of his lips had lifted slightly.

His fingers tapped the keyboard for a while before he simply replied with one word.

“Okay.”

He shut down the computer, picked up his coat by the door, and left the school.

The snow outside really was heavy.

It covered the ground like a thick layer of powdered sugar.

After struggling for a while, Xu Shuche finally managed to call a taxi.

The moment he got in, the driver started complaining.

“Traffic again.”

“Always traffic.”

“Who knows why it’s so congested all the time.”

Xu Shuche sat quietly in the back seat without speaking.

He opened his phone and checked the navigation app.

The three routes ahead were all marked deep purple.

It really was congested.

“At the end of the year the streets are always full of people.”

The driver complained again.

“So annoying.”

Inside the car, a somewhat cheesy pop song from short videos was playing.

Outside, crowds and traffic flowed endlessly.

It was around five in the afternoon.

Elementary school students had just been dismissed.

They ran around wildly in their small territory while holding their parents’ hands.

Xu Shuche suddenly realized that it had been a long time since he had seen such a lively street.

In the past he focused only on studying.

He believed studying would definitely change his fate.

Everything else felt unimportant.

So he had never stopped to watch a snow-covered street like this.

But now, stuck in traffic, he could clearly see every person and every car.

They all felt vivid and alive as they entered his sight.

After about ten minutes, the road ahead finally cleared.

The driver stepped on the accelerator.

The taxi shot forward instantly.

The party house chosen by the group was a bit far from the city center.

It promoted itself as being “close to nature.”

The driver followed the navigation and even made a few wrong turns before finally dropping him off near the gathering location.

“I can’t drive any further in.”

“You’ll have to follow the navigation yourself.”

“You can find the place, right?”

Xu Shuche answered softly and got out of the car.

But facing a large area filled with houses, he suddenly felt lost.

Where was this place?

Who was he?

Where should he go?

He opened the navigation again to locate the exact address.

But the entire residential area belonged to the same company.

The app couldn’t pinpoint a specific villa.

He stood in the cold wind, turning around several times.

Finally he sighed and somewhat awkwardly opened Jian Yixun’s chat window.

“Are you busy?”

“If you’re not busy… could you come pick me up?”

“I can’t find the way.”

He originally thought Jian Yixun would take at least ten minutes to reply.

But a message came almost immediately.

【Jian】: Of course I’m free. Extremely free.

【Jian】: Share your location with me. I’ll come find you.

When Jian Yixun received the message, he was helping in the kitchen.

Feng Zhou was the main cook and had brought a friend along.

The friend was apparently a graduate student from a neighboring 985 university.

The two of them were preparing ingredients for hotpot.

Sui Xiang and the others were washing dishes and helping.

Young Master Jian didn’t look like someone who could cook at all.

So he had been kicked out of the kitchen and was sitting on the sofa in the living room.

He was bored and had just started a game when Xu Shuche’s message arrived.

Without caring that he would lose ranking points, he jumped up and quickly put on his coat.

“Senior has arrived. I’m going to pick him up.”

“Go, go.”

Sui Xiang carried a plate of beef out of the kitchen.

“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were going to pick up your wife.”

“You look so excited.”

“Don’t talk nonsense.”

Jian Yixun laughed and cursed lightly.

But he didn’t argue as seriously as before.

“Just get everything ready.”

“When I’m about to come back, I’ll send you a message.”

Then he grabbed his phone and ran out.

Xu Shuche stepped carefully on the snow.

The snow crunched softly beneath his feet.

His heart felt strangely calm.

After waiting for a while, he suddenly heard someone calling him.

Half of the villas in this area were inhabited.

Lights shone brightly through the snow.

Jian Yixun’s voice cut through the snowy curtain clearly.

“Senior!”

Xu Shuche looked up.

Jian Yixun ran toward him, breathing heavily.

“Why did you run so fast?” Xu Shuche asked.

“So you wouldn’t have to wait long.”

Jian Yixun smiled even though he hadn’t caught his breath yet.

He reached out and brushed the snow from Xu Shuche’s hair.

“Look at you.”

“If you stay out here too long you’ll catch a cold again.”

“I’m not that fragile.”

Xu Shuche muttered quietly.

He suddenly realized their actions seemed a little too intimate.

His face warmed slightly.

“Which house is it exactly?”

“I couldn’t find it.”

“It’s fine.”

Jian Yixun casually wrapped an arm around his shoulder.

“Come on.”

“I’ll take you there.”

Xu Shuche stumbled slightly as Jian Yixun guided him through the villa area.

Halfway there, a thought suddenly crossed his mind.

He hadn’t even said he forgave Jian Yixun yet.

So why was Jian Yixun already so comfortable putting his arm around him?

Before he could harden his expression, Jian Yixun spoke beside him.

“Senior.”

“I’ve been reflecting for almost a month now.”

“Why haven’t you forgiven me yet?”

Jian Yixun tilted his head and looked at him.

His usually cold eyes were now filled with grievance and pleading.

“Senior, I really know I was wrong.”

“Please don’t ignore me.”

“…I’m not ignoring you.”

Xu Shuche said softly.

“Actually, I…”

“You are ignoring me.”

Jian Yixun suddenly sounded like a sulking child.

“Before, you used to fall asleep in voice chat with me.”

“Now we sleep separately.”

“And before we always ate meals together.”

“Now you eat with other people instead of me.”

At this point he lowered his head sadly.

It was almost as if the invisible tail behind him had drooped down.

“Senior.”

“I’m really sad.”

Xu Shuche felt his heart soften.

Seeing him like this made all the harsh words he had prepared disappear.

He simply lowered his head and continued walking in the snow.

“Senior, I was wrong.”

Jian Yixun tugged lightly at his sleeve.

“Let’s make up, okay?”

“Move back to the dorm.”

“We’ll talk about it later.”

Xu Shuche suddenly remembered the unsafe rented apartment.

For a moment he actually missed the school dormitory.

But he quickly stopped himself.

Jian Yixun was a bit naïve.

If he reconciled just to move back to the dorm…

Wouldn’t he be taking advantage of him?

Xu Shuche couldn’t bear to do that.

“So ‘later’ means there’s still a chance, right?”

Jian Yixun’s mood visibly brightened.

“Great.”

“I’m sure after these three days of vacation we’ll definitely reconcile.”

Xu Shuche smiled faintly at his excitement.

Just then Jian Yixun said.

“We’re here.”

In front of them stood a small villa.

But when Xu Shuche looked through the windows, the interior was completely dark.

Compared to the brightly lit houses nearby, it looked strange.

Xu Shuche turned to Jian Yixun.

“Is it really this one?”

“Of course it is.”

Jian Yixun stood behind him and spoke vaguely.

“I need to tie my shoelaces.”

“Senior, you open the door first.”

Xu Shuche hesitated before reaching out to push the door.

“Jian Yixun, I—”

Before he could finish speaking, someone pushed him from behind.

He stumbled forward into the villa.

The memories from high school surged back like a tidal wave in the darkness.

He felt like he was drowning.

Panic filled his chest as he fumbled behind him, trying to find the door he had just entered through.

At that moment, a small light suddenly appeared in the darkness ahead.

“Happy birthday to you.”

“Happy birthday to you.”

An uneven, deliberately silly birthday song echoed through the darkness.

The small light grew brighter and brighter.

Soon all the candles on a cake were lit.

“Senior!”

“Happy birthday!”

Everyone from the research group stood behind the table.

They clapped while singing the birthday song.

The villa’s lights suddenly turned on, sweeping away the eerie darkness from before.

Xu Shuche stood there blankly.

The heart that had nearly jumped out of his chest slowly settled back into place.

The dark alley that had haunted him for so long seemed to shatter.

Light broke through the painful memory.

The invisible chains that had bound his mind finally snapped.

His whole body felt light, as if he might float.

Suddenly a warm body leaned against his back.

Jian Yixun’s carefree voice sounded beside his ear, full of pride and laughter.

“Senior.”

“Surprise!”

“Didn’t expect that, did you?”

Jian Yixun winked at him.

“Happy birthday, senior.”