Brotherly Love?

On the third floor of the library, the study area was so quiet you could hear the rustling of pages.

Lin Zhixia lay sprawled on the desk, staring at the "C Language Programming" in front of him, his brows furrowed into a knot. Pointers, arrays, function calls—he understood each term individually, but together they looked like alien script. He picked up his pen and drew flowchart after flowchart on the scratch paper, only to end up dizzying himself.

"This is too hard," he muttered, tossing the pen aside.

"What don't you understand?"

A familiar voice came from above, making Lin Zhixia startle and nearly jump out of his chair. He looked up to find Gu Yanzhou standing beside him, holding two books, his eyes fixed on the open textbook.

"Wh-what are you doing here?" Lin Zhixia instinctively closed his textbook.

"Studying." Gu Yanzhou placed his books on the table and naturally sat down in the empty seat next to Lin Zhixia.

Only then did Lin Zhixia notice that someone had saved his seat with a backpack, but now the backpack had been moved to the opposite side, and Gu Yanzhou had smoothly taken the seat.

"This seat..." Lin Zhixia hesitated.

"I saved it for you," Gu Yanzhou said, opening his own book. "Otherwise, it'll be crowded later."

"But I didn't say I was coming to the library."

"I guessed you would," Gu Yanzhou said.

Another guess.

Lin Zhixia had lost count of how many times Gu Yanzhou had "guessed" things about him. From sweet soy milk to dried mango, from library seats to his class schedule, this guy seemed to have X-ray eyes that saw right through him.

"Why do you always guess my stuff?" Lin Zhixia couldn't help asking.

Gu Yanzhou turned his head, his dark eyes fixed on him. "Because I want to know everything about you."

Lin Zhixia's ears started to burn again. He lowered his head, pretending to study the example in the book, but his heart was in chaos.

"Which problem is giving you trouble?" Gu Yanzhou asked.

"This one about pointers." Lin Zhixia pointed to an example in the book.

Gu Yanzhou leaned in, carrying a faint scent of mint. His long fingers pointed at the page. "Here, you need to understand memory addresses first."

His voice was low, as if afraid of disturbing others around them. Lin Zhixia stared at his profile and suddenly noticed that Gu Yanzhou had long eyelashes, casting a small shadow under his eyelids.

"Got it?" Gu Yanzhou asked.

"Huh?" Lin Zhixia snapped back. "Y-yeah, got it."

"Really?" Gu Yanzhou raised an eyebrow.

"Really." Lin Zhixia looked down guiltily.

Gu Yanzhou didn't push further. Instead, he took a bottle of water from his bag, unscrewed the cap, and placed it by Lin Zhixia's hand. "Drink some water. Don't get thirsty."

"Thanks." Lin Zhixia picked up the bottle and took a sip, realizing it was his favorite brand.

"How did you know I like this?"

Gu Yanzhou turned a page without looking up. "I guessed."

Lin Zhixia: "..."

He decided to stop asking. If he asked any more, he might start suspecting that Gu Yanzhou had installed a surveillance camera in his brain.

At 5 PM, Lin Zhixia finally finished one chapter. He stretched, and his spine cracked.

"Going back?" Gu Yanzhou asked.

"Yeah, the water dispenser in the dorm needs a new bottle. If I don't change it now, there'll be no water tonight." Lin Zhixia packed his bag.

"Let's go together." Gu Yanzhou stood up.

"You need to buy water too?"

"Yeah," Gu Yanzhou said.

Lin Zhixia didn't think much of it. They went downstairs together. At the library entrance, a three-wheeled cart selling roasted sweet potatoes wafted a fragrant smell. Lin Zhixia sniffed and slowed down.

"Want some?" Gu Yanzhou asked.

"A bit," Lin Zhixia said with an embarrassed smile. "But I still need to buy water for the dorm. Maybe next time."

Gu Yanzhou glanced at him, walked to the cart, and bought two roasted sweet potatoes. He handed one to Lin Zhixia.

"Here," he said.

"Why did you buy again?" Lin Zhixia took the sweet potato, passing it between his hands because it was too hot.

"It's on the way," Gu Yanzhou said.

Lin Zhixia took a bite. The sweet and sticky flavor melted on his tongue. He squinted in satisfaction. "Delicious."

Gu Yanzhou watched him, his gaze soft. "Glad you like it."

They reached the convenience store at the dorm building. Lin Zhixia asked for a bottle of purified water. The owner lifted the bottle from the shelf and set it on the floor. "Eighteen yuan."

Lin Zhixia bent down to pick it up, but Gu Yanzhou beat him to it, lifting the bottle with one hand.

"Let me," Gu Yanzhou said.

"No, no, I can do it myself," Lin Zhixia quickly said.

"You can't carry it," Gu Yanzhou said as he headed outside.

"How can you say I can't?" Lin Zhixia protested. "In high school, I once carried two bottles by myself."

"That was high school. Now you're my roommate." Gu Yanzhou glanced back at him.

Lin Zhixia paused. "What's being a roommate got to do with it?"

"Roommates take care of each other," Gu Yanzhou said.

Lin Zhixia followed behind, feeling a warmth in his heart. This guy might talk strangely sometimes, but he was really kind. He saved him a seat, helped him with homework, and carried the water for him.

I must be overthinking, Lin Zhixia told himself. Chen Dawei, that guy, has a mind full of dirty thoughts. He sees everything as a pursuit.

Back in the dorm, Chen Dawei was lying on his bed scrolling through his phone. When he saw Gu Yanzhou carrying the water bottle in with one hand, his eyes went wide.

"Whoa, Gu Yanzhou, are you our dorm's official water carrier now?" Chen Dawei sat up.

"Just convenient," Gu Yanzhou said, placing the bottle by the water dispenser and starting to change it.

"Convenient?" Chen Dawei looked at Lin Zhixia. "Zhixia, did you make him do it?"

"No," Lin Zhixia shook his head. "He insisted on carrying it."

"He insisted on carrying it..." Chen Dawei repeated, his tone suggestive. "Zhixia, do you know what they say about someone being overly nice?"

"What?" Lin Zhixia looked puzzled.

"Where there's smoke, there's fire, my friend." Chen Dawei lowered his voice. "He's being this nice to you for a reason."

"What reason?" Lin Zhixia asked.

"He's chasing you!" Chen Dawei said. "How many times do I have to say it? He's pursuing you!"

"Chasing me?" Lin Zhixia blinked. "Running after me?"

Chen Dawei nearly fell off the bed.

"Not running after you!" He adjusted his glasses. "Pursuing! You know, like wanting to date you!"

Lin Zhixia was stunned for a few seconds, then laughed. "Chen Dawei, have you been reading too many novels? We're both guys. What dating?"

"So what if you're both guys?" Chen Dawei said. "Don't forget, there's Rainbow Street near the south gate of our school, and plenty of..."

"Stop, stop," Lin Zhixia waved his hand. "You're getting more and more ridiculous. Gu Yanzhou is just a nice guy. He treats everyone like this."

"Treats everyone like this?" Chen Dawei sneered. "Have you seen him carry water for me? Have you seen him buy roasted sweet potatoes for me? Have you ever seen me drink water he handed me?"

Lin Zhixia glanced at Gu Yanzhou. Gu Yanzhou had just finished changing the water and stood up, dusting off his hands.

"No, he hasn't," Lin Zhixia admitted honestly.

"There you go!" Chen Dawei slapped his thigh.

"But..." Lin Zhixia tried to argue.

"No 'buts.'" Chen Dawei climbed down from the top bunk and leaned close to Lin Zhixia's ear. "Bro, trust me. If he's not into you, I'll drink that whole bottle of water."

Lin Zhixia looked at the newly changed purified water, imagining Chen Dawei hugging the bottle and drinking from it, and couldn't help laughing.

"What are you laughing at?" Chen Dawei glared at him.

"Nothing." Lin Zhixia stifled his smile. "I still think you're overthinking."

Gu Yanzhou walked over, holding two disposable cups. He handed one to Lin Zhixia. "Fresh water. Taste it to see if it's off."

"Thanks." Lin Zhixia took the cup and took a sip. "No off taste. It's fine."

Gu Yanzhou nodded, took a sip himself, then looked at Chen Dawei. "Want some?"

"Huh?" Chen Dawei was flattered. "For me?"

"Yeah," Gu Yanzhou said.

Chen Dawei took the cup and drank. His expression was complicated. The water tasted the same as always, but for some reason, he sensed a different flavor.

"How is it?" Gu Yanzhou asked.

"...Good," Chen Dawei said dryly.

Gu Yanzhou looked away and said to Lin Zhixia, "What do you want for dinner?"

"Anything," Lin Zhixia said. "Maybe order takeout? I don't want to go downstairs."

"What takeout?"

"Spicy hot pot?" Lin Zhixia's eyes lit up. "I'm craving that."

"Medium spicy?" Gu Yanzhou asked.

"Yeah, medium spicy, with extra potatoes and wide noodles," Lin Zhixia counted on his fingers. "And lotus root, enoki mushrooms, beef balls..."

"Okay." Gu Yanzhou took out his phone. "I'll order."

"No, no, I'll order myself," Lin Zhixia quickly said.

"Just convenient," Gu Yanzhou said as he started scrolling through the delivery app.

Lin Zhixia leaned in to look. "How did you know I wanted medium spicy?"

"The spicy hot pot you had yesterday was medium spicy," Gu Yanzhou said.

"You even remember that?"

"I remember," Gu Yanzhou said.

Lin Zhixia's heart stirred. He himself had almost forgotten the spice level of the hot pot he had yesterday, but Gu Yanzhou remembered so clearly.

"Anything else to add?" Gu Yanzhou asked.

"Add one serving of rice," Lin Zhixia said.

"Two servings," Gu Yanzhou said.

"Aren't you going out tonight?" Chen Dawei interrupted. "Didn't you say you had to go to the department to handle some procedures?"

Gu Yanzhou's fingers paused. "I'll go another day."

"You'd skip the procedures to eat with Zhixia?" Chen Dawei said with a sarcastic tone.

"Yeah," Gu Yanzhou admitted openly.

Chen Dawei: "..."

Lin Zhixia: "..."

The dorm was silent for a few seconds.

"Um," Lin Zhixia broke the silence. "If you have something to do, go ahead. I can eat by myself."

"It's okay," Gu Yanzhou said. "Eating with you is more important."

Lin Zhixia's face turned bright red.

Chen Dawei silently turned around, pulled out a bag of chips from his drawer, and tore it open forcefully. "I can't take this anymore. You two..."

"What about us?" Lin Zhixia asked.

"Nothing." Chen Dawei crunched the chips through gritted teeth. "Carry on. I'll pretend I'm dead."

The delivery arrived quickly. Gu Yanzhou went downstairs to pick it up, while Lin Zhixia and Chen Dawei set up disposable containers in the dorm.

"Zhixia," Chen Dawei lowered his voice. "Have you ever thought, if a guy is this nice to you, what else could it be besides pursuing you?"

"Maybe he's just a genuinely nice person," Lin Zhixia said. "See, I'm nice to you too."

"You're nice to me?" Chen Dawei pointed at himself. "Have you ever bought me roasted sweet potatoes? Have you ever carried water for me? Have you ever ordered spicy hot pot for me?"

"I've brought you meals," Lin Zhixia protested.

"That's because I asked you to!" Chen Dawei rolled his eyes. "And you didn't even charge me."

"Isn't that the same?"

"Of course not!" Chen Dawei said. "The difference between initiative and passivity, you get it?"

Lin Zhixia nodded, half-understanding.

Gu Yanzhou pushed the door open, holding a delivery bag. He set the spicy hot pot on the table and opened the lid. The fragrance instantly filled the room.

"Eat up," he said.

Lin Zhixia picked up a strand of wide noodles, blowing on it because it was hot. "Delicious."

Gu Yanzhou sat next to him and pushed his own rice a little closer. "Slow down. No one's stealing it from you."

"You eat too," Lin Zhixia said.

"Okay." Gu Yanzhou picked up a slice of potato. "You like medium spicy?"

"Yeah, extra spicy is too hot, mild is bland, medium is just right," Lin Zhixia said.

"Got it," Gu Yanzhou said.

"Why remember that?" Lin Zhixia asked casually.

Gu Yanzhou looked at him, his eyes serious. "So I can order it for you next time."

Lin Zhixia's chopsticks froze mid-air, his cheeks feeling warm. He lowered his head, pretending to focus on the beef balls in his bowl.

Chen Dawei watched from the side, his chips no longer appetizing. He pulled out his phone and opened the dorm group chat—which only included him, Lin Zhixia, and Zhou Haoran; Gu Yanzhou hadn't joined yet—and sent a "can't stand this.jpg" meme.

Zhou Haoran replied with a "?".

Chen Dawei typed frantically: "Something's going down in our dorm."

Zhou Haoran: "What?"

Chen Dawei: "Someone's about to be taken."

Zhou Haoran: "Who?"

Chen Dawei glanced at Lin Zhixia and continued typing: "The densest one."Zhou Haoran: "Oh."

Chen Dawei: "Just 'oh'?"

Zhou Haoran: "None of my business."

Chen Dawei put away his phone and sighed. Forget it, Zhou Haoran's personality was unreliable.

After dinner, Lin Zhixia took the initiative to clean up the takeout containers. Gu Yanzhou held his hand: "I'll do it."

"You already treated me to dinner today, how can I let you clean up?" Lin Zhixia said.

"Your hands are greasy," Gu Yanzhou said. "Go wash them."

"Then I'll wash my hands and we can clean up together."

"No need." Gu Yanzhou had already stacked the containers together.

Lin Zhixia stood there, watching Gu Yanzhou's busy back, feeling a strange sensation. This person was too kind to him, so kind that it made him a bit unsettled.

"Gu Yanzhou," he called out.

"Hm?" Gu Yanzhou turned around.

"Why are you so nice to me?" Lin Zhixia voiced his doubt.

Gu Yanzhou paused for a moment. He tied up the garbage bag, turned around, his gaze falling on Lin Zhixia's face.

"Because I want to be nice to you," he said.

"Why do you want to?" Lin Zhixia pressed.

Gu Yanzhou was silent for a few seconds, then said: "Because you are Lin Zhixia."

This answer seemed both an answer and not. Lin Zhixia scratched his head and decided not to pursue it further. If he kept asking, he feared he would get an answer that would unsettle him even more.

At ten in the evening, the dorm lights went out.

Lin Zhixia lay on his bed, the light from his phone screen illuminating his face. He was browsing the campus forum. On the front page was a post titled: "The new transfer student in the Architecture Department is so handsome, does anyone know his contact info?"

Attached was a photo of Gu Yanzhou's profile, probably taken secretly in the cafeteria.

Lin Zhixia stared at the photo for a few seconds, feeling a slight tightness in his chest. He scrolled past the post, then scrolled back, then scrolled away again.

"What are you looking at?" Chen Dawei's voice came from the opposite bed.

"Nothing," Lin Zhixia locked the screen. "Just browsing the forum."

"What's there to see on the forum?" Chen Dawei turned over. "By the way, tomorrow is Friday, no evening classes. How about we go out for skewers?"

"Sure," Lin Zhixia said.

"Call Gu Yanzhou," Chen Dawei said.

"Would he want to go?" Lin Zhixia asked instinctively.

"If you ask him, he'll definitely come," Chen Dawei chuckled.

"Why do I have to ask?"

"Because you're the special one," Chen Dawei said.

Lin Zhixia buried his face in the pillow: "Don't talk nonsense."

"What nonsense am I talking?" Chen Dawei pretended to be innocent. "I just think that you asking him works best."

Lin Zhixia didn't reply. In the darkness, he heard Gu Yanzhou turning over.

"Gu Yanzhou," he whispered.

"Hm?" Gu Yanzhou's voice sounded sleepy.

"Want to go out for skewers tomorrow evening?"

"Sure," Gu Yanzhou said.

"Chen Dawei is treating," Lin Zhixia added.

"Hey!" Chen Dawei protested. "When did I say I'd treat?"

"You just did," Lin Zhixia said.

"I said we'd go out for skewers, not that I'd treat!"

"It's practically the same," Lin Zhixia said.

Gu Yanzhou chuckled softly: "I'll treat."

"Really?" Chen Dawei immediately changed his tune. "Bro Gu, you're generous!"

Lin Zhixia also smiled: "Then it's settled, tomorrow evening."

"Yeah," Gu Yanzhou said. "Good night."

"Good night."

The dorm fell silent. Lin Zhixia stared at the ceiling, thinking about tomorrow night's skewers, about what Gu Yanzhou had said, about that sweet soy milk and that baked sweet potato.

He suddenly realized that, at some point, Gu Yanzhou had seeped into his life. Library, cafeteria, dorm, supermarket—no matter where he went, he seemed to run into this person.

Was this really a coincidence?

Lin Zhixia turned over, forcing himself not to overthink.

It must be because Gu Yanzhou has too much free time. Definitely.

But if it was really because he had too much free time, why did his gaze always fall only on him?

This question was like a feather, gently tickling Lin Zhixia's heart, keeping him awake for a long time.