Shen Zhifei remained silent, simply sitting upright in the corner of the sofa, staring intently at Song Lang's profile.
He silently warned himself: Stay away from him, even further away.
The Fifth Middle School started the semester a week early. After enrollment, students took a test, and the top 30 students were selected to form an experimental key class.
Shen Zhifei was admitted to the top class without any doubt, and lived in the same dormitory with three top students.
Shen Lingyu and Song Lang escorted the person to the dormitory. While his mother went to the corridor to answer a phone call, Song Lang immediately put on a fierce and menacing school bully face.
"Classmates, it is fate that we have met. I entrust my younger brother to your care from now on. If he does anything wrong, you can come to me at the No. 18 Middle School next door, and I will definitely teach him a lesson. Similarly, if I find out that anyone is bullying him, I will not show any mercy."
After showing off, he even cracked his knuckles a couple of times, the "crackling" sound startling the three top students who usually only knew how to bury themselves in their studies.
Shen Zhifei leaned against the wall outside the dormitory door, listened quietly to Song Lang's speech, and then carried his suitcase inside.
The seriousness on Song Lang's face vanished instantly, replaced by a bright smile as he helped Shen Zhifei pack her things.
The incident that day led to a long-standing secret rumor among the freshmen: Shen Zhifei, the top student in the terrifying experimental class, was a spoiled young master whose brother was a powerful figure in the underworld, someone not to be trifled with.
Many people would consciously give way or go around Shen Zhifei when they saw him; when classmates encountered problems they couldn't solve, they would rather huddle together and scratch their heads than dare to ask Shen Zhifei for the answer.
He's so aloof; he can freeze people in place with just one glance.
Shen Zhifei didn't care.
He guarded the secret in his heart and walked alone. On this path, he needed no friends.
During the first week apart, neither brother was able to adjust.
For the past seven years, they have been inseparable, with the longest time they have been apart being eight hours of sleep.
Suddenly having to wait a week to see each other, Song Lang, who is usually carefree, found himself having trouble sleeping.
Shen Zhifei didn't sleep well either. The bed in the dormitory was too hard, and her roommates stayed up late studying and snored too loudly.
He rested his head on his arm, stared blankly at the ceiling, and let his mind wander, not thinking about anything.
Finally, the holiday was over and Shen Lingyu prepared a table full of delicious food for Shen Zhifei to go home for. Song Lang even hid behind the door and pounced on Shen Zhifei from behind as soon as she entered, startling her.
Seeing that bright smile, Shen Zhifei couldn't help but pull the person into his arms and hug him tightly.
"…elder brother."
This long-unheard address contained too many complex emotions, but unfortunately Song Lang did not understand.
Song Lang hugged him back, his gaze passing over his shoulder and meeting his mother's. He pointed to Shen Zhifei's back and silently mouthed, "He misses me!"
His mother chuckled and replied with a lip-reading: "Show-off."
Later that evening, Mr. Song also returned home, and the family of four enjoyed a happy dinner together, as if nothing had changed.
Shen Zhifei cherished the time she spent at home on weekends, staying up late and getting up early just to spend more time with Song Lang.
He knew this attachment was wrong, but he had suppressed it for nearly two years, and he needed to relax occasionally after restraining himself for so long.
Otherwise, he would be overwhelmed by his own actions.
Fifth Middle School has a holiday every Friday afternoon, while the neighboring Eighteenth Middle School lets out a little earlier. Song Lang and Meng Fanxing would ride their bikes across two streets and wait for him at the entrance of Fifth Middle School.
Therefore, leaving school every Friday afternoon became Shen Zhifei's most anticipated event.
But this time, as he strode out of the campus, he didn't see the person he was looking forward to.
Only Meng Fanxing was there.
"Little Fei, those two girls behind you are peeking at you. They must have a crush on you." Meng Fanxing's gossipy heart still burned like a sacred flame, never extinguished.
Shen Zhifei pulled her scarf up to cover half of her face and asked, "Where's my brother?"
"Hehe, it's not snowing heavily today, but our class beauty fell and scraped her knee. It looks really painful, so Dalang took her home."
"oh."
Shen Zhifei turned to leave, but Meng Fanxing rode her bicycle up to him. "Get on my bike. You want to walk back by yourself?"
“Hmm,” Shen Zhifei looked down at her toes and said softly, “I’m going to the bookstore first, it’s not on my way.”
"That won't do, Dalang instructed me to make sure you..."
"I'm not a child, bye." Shen Zhifei buried his face even deeper, turned around, put his hands in his pockets, and walked in the opposite direction.
Meng Fanxing stared at his tall, lonely figure, scratching her head in bewilderment. Why was he suddenly angry?
Shen Zhifei stood alone under the streetlight at the entrance of the residential area, the light casting a long and thin shadow of him.
He stood in the cold wind for twenty minutes before limping into the residential area.
Song Lang, who had already gone home, came out to find him. As soon as he stepped out of the building, he saw Song Lang's unsteady steps and rushed over like a whirlwind.
"What's wrong with you? Did Xingzi make you fall off his bike?"
Song Lang looked down at his legs, and Shen Zhifei's fingers gently hooked a strand of hair at the back of his head before letting go.
"No, I fell by accident."
Shen Zhifei couldn't help but purse his lips as he recalled the scene of him deliberately falling down from the high steps.
As he rode home on Song Lang's back, he thought, "I must be crazy."