"Not afraid of being late again?"

"Just set an alarm. I don’t always sleep like a log. Yesterday was a fluke. A fluke of flukes."

"But you don’t even need to change uniforms today. Why run all the way back just to nap? Can’t you just rest your head on the shop counter?"

"It’s not about the nap! It’s about Mom seeing us together. She needs to think you convinced me to go to school. I don’t listen to her—I only listen to you."

Lin Shu hated to admit it, but Liang Caiyi’s plan was working. Aunt Liang trusted him way too easily. Where did that trust even come from? Had his dad bragged about him? Or had she been quietly observing him all this time? Or was it just because he attended Shi Yi Zhong High School?

Older folks really did believe anyone who got into Shi Yi Zhong must be a good kid. Sure, standards had slipped a bit these days—but the reputation still held some weight.

"My place is closer to your school than yours is," Lin Shu said.

"I told you, it’s not about sleeping!" Liang Caiyi’s eyes suddenly lit up. She grabbed his sleeve. "How close?"

"Close enough to hear the school bell."

"That’s super close! Let’s go, let’s go!" She shoved him toward the bar exit, then called over her shoulder, "Mom! I’m going to Lin Shu’s to study with him!"

"Stop calling him ‘Lin Shu’! He’s your *gege*."

"Oh." Liang Caiyi waved a hand, not really listening.

"Weren’t we just going to nap? Since when did it become studying?" Lin Shu muttered under his breath. *She doesn’t even blush when lying.*

"Xiao Shu," Aunt Liang called after them, "take care of my daughter. She’s actually acting like a student these past two days. If she keeps this up, I might even look younger!"

"My place is messy," Lin Shu warned. "Just two guys living there. Dirty floors, clutter everywhere. Not exactly cozy."

His building was short, poorly lit, and gloomy—nothing like Liang Caiyi’s sunny, tidy apartment.

"You’ve seen my home," Liang Caiyi declared, hands on hips. "Fair’s fair. I get to see yours."

Lin Shu’s place *was* closer to Experimental Middle School, while hers was nearer to Shi Yi Zhong. Maybe swapping nap spots made sense.

"No elevator," he added, "but it’s only the third floor."

The six-story building stood in shadow, blocked by new developments nearby. The whole Electric Power Residential Complex looked ripe for demolition. Cracked pavement, grimy walls, and rusty AC units screamed *old*.

"The hallway’s so dark. No lights?" Liang Caiyi whispered, clutching his shirt.

"Why waste electricity in broad daylight?"

"Stingy complex," she grumbled.

"Want water? I’ve got boiled water cooled down."

"I’m not thirsty, thanks." She scanned the mold-speckled walls. Lin Shu had lived here for years—rent stayed cheap, but it never felt like *home*.

"This is my room."

Chaos. Unmade bed. Crooked pillow. Phone charger tangled in sheets. Desk buried under junk. Closet spilling clothes. Yoga mat and dumbbells strewn across the floor.

"Bigger than I thought," Liang Caiyi spun in a circle, skirt fluttering. Black safety shorts flashed underneath. "Could fit two beds if we squeeze." She sighed sourly. "I don’t even have my own room."

She still shared a bed with Aunt Liang. No privacy. No space to breathe. Small frustrations piled up like that—until they exploded.

"We’ll have one soon," Lin Shu said. "After we move."

He straightened the quilt, stuffed chargers into a drawer. Liang Caiyi flopped onto the bed, staring at the ceiling.

"Liang Caiyi," he said sharply. "You told your mom I’d *teach* you, right?"

He rarely studied at home. His desk still held dusty middle school exam prep books. He pulled out a Third Mock Exam paper from No.5 High School—half the questions blank. Near graduation, you stopped grinding practice tests. You focused only on what you didn’t know.

"Huh? That was just to trick Mom!" She kicked off her shoes, tossed her hat aside, and stretched with a yawn. "Can’t exactly say I’m napping at your place. Now that I’m lying down… I’m sleepy."

"Wanna actually study? I’ve got textbooks. This year’s syllabus probably hasn’t changed much."

*She wouldn’t know a syllabus if it bit her.*

"Uh… you’re serious?"

"Dead serious. I promised Aunt Liang."

He wasn’t tired anyway. Oversleeping gave him headaches. Time to burst her little bubble. *You wanted ‘studying’? Let’s study.*

"Shouldn’t you nap instead? Don’t waste time on me."

"Ten minutes counts. Get up."

He yanked her arm, dragging her limp body off the bed.

"No! Let go!" She squirmed, kicking. "Stop it!"

*It’s just studying—why scream like I’m doing something weird?*

He pinned her wrists with one hand, trapped her kicking feet under his arm. She thrashed like a fish out of water, skirt sliding down, head thumping against the pillow. "Pervert! Creep! Let me go!"

He didn’t dare release her—not with her flailing like that. He slammed her hands back onto the mattress and tossed the exam paper at her chest. *Read it or don’t. Your choice.*

"Study in bed if you want. Flip through it. Might put you to sleep." He turned toward the door. "I’ll nap in my dad’s room."

"Wait!" Liang Caiyi sat up, face flushed. She hugged his pillow between her knees, pushing messy hair from her face. "School uniforms get wrinkled when you sleep in them… You got pajamas?"

"Don’t wear pajamas. How about a loose basketball jersey?"

"Fine. I’ll manage." She pouted.