Monday morning.
Lin Feng's eyes fluttered open.
He climbed out of bed and walked over to the window, pulling the curtains aside. Sunlight streamed into the room as he pushed the window open, letting in a breath of fresh air.
"Wake up," he called out, turning back toward the room. "Chen Ming, Zhang Wei - first day of classes."
Groans answered him from the bunks as his roommates slowly stirred.
Lin Feng was about to head to the bathroom when he noticed something.
The bed above his own was empty.
He's still not back yet?
Lin Feng frowned.
Li Jun had left yesterday morning, saying he needed to look for a good supplier. Although Lin Feng appreciated the dedication, missing the first day of classes because of this was a little...
He took out his phone and sent a text.
Where are you? Classes start today.
The message showed as delivered, but Li Jun didn't reply right away.
Lin Feng put his phone down and headed to the shower.
When he returned a few minutes later, hair still damp and towel around his neck, he immediately checked his phone.
Still no reply.
He was beginning to get worried now.
He turned to the others, who were also preparing for classes.
"Have either of you heard anything from Li Jun?"
Zhang Wei shook his head.
"He sent me the 'marketing' money yesterday before I went to sleep," Chen Ming said, pulling on his shirt. "But nothing after that."
Lin Feng frowned and dialed Li Jun's number.
The phone began to ring.
Hmm, it's ringing, but why does it sound so close...
At that moment, the door swung open.
Li Jun stood in the doorway, looking slightly disheveled but otherwise fine.
"I'm back," he said casually.
Lin Feng hung up.
"Why didn't you respond to my texts?" he asked, his voice a mix of relief and annoyance. "I was really worried about you."
Li Jun just smiled. He walked over and draped an arm around Lin Feng's shoulder.
"Hehehe, I wanted it to be a surprise." He grinned. "Did you really think I'd miss my first day of classes?"
He pulled back slightly, looking at Lin Feng with mock hurt in his eyes.
"You don't think I'm that kind of person, right?"
"Honestly... yeah," Lin Feng said flatly.
"What?" Li Jun's jaw dropped.
He spun around to face the others.
"You guys don't think like him, right? You guys believe in me, right?"
Zhang Wei scratched his head awkwardly. "Ummm..."
"Are you for real?" Li Jun turned to Chen Ming - his last hope.
Chen Ming straightened up and placed a hand over his heart.
"I believe in you, Brother Li," he said solemnly.
But his tone was not convincing in the slightest.
Li Jun could only sigh in defeat.
Lin Feng smiled. He knew that although Li Jun appeared lazy - always playing games, never seeming to take anything seriously - he was actually quite hardworking. His grades were always high despite his laid-back attitude.
But Lin Feng decided to tease him a bit anyway.
"Anyway," he said, steering the conversation back on track, "how did it go?"
"Oh right, about that," Li Jun began.
Everyone turned to look at him, expressions tense.
"It..." Li Jun paused, letting out a long sigh.
The others' faces fell.
"...went great," he finished.
Silence.
They all stared at him blankly.
Chen Ming clutched his chest and let out an exaggerated breath of relief. "Why do you have to play with my heart like that, man?"
Lin Feng blinked.
He really succeeded?
He wondered what kind of deal Li Jun had managed to secure.
"What are the details?" he asked.
Li Jun was already moving toward his wardrobe, pulling out fresh clothes.
"We'll talk about it after classes," he said, glancing back with a small smile. "I need to get ready first."
…
7 AM. First day of official classes.
Lin Feng walked into the classroom.
The place looked almost filled to the brim, but this was mostly because people were crowding around in groups. They were also quite loud, dozens of conversations overlapping, laughter bouncing off the walls, students chatting excitedly with one another.
It seemed the isolation after military training had made everyone more eager to finally mingle properly. Looking around, friend groups were already forming. People clustered together in small circles, exchanging phone numbers, joking around, making plans.
Lin Feng smiled.
Being young really is…
He paused.
Then sighed.
He slowly made his way to an open spot at the back row and sat down.
Looking around, it seemed everyone had already found their own cliques. He wondered if he had picked the wrong position. Sitting here in the back made him look like a loner. It could cause people to avoid approaching him entirely.
At that moment, a voice broke through his thoughts.
"What a coincidence! We meet again."
A sweet female voice.
Lin Feng turned around.
It was…
"Su Yue?" he called out.
She stood beside him, a small smile on her face.
"Though I suppose it's not really a coincidence," she said, "since you mentioned we were in the same class."
She gestured to the empty seat beside him.
"Is this seat taken?"
"Ah, no - help yourself," he said.
"Great."
She pulled out a small cloth from her bag, wiped down the chair, then sat down next to him.
Lin Feng watched her settle in.
"I'm surprised you recognized me," he said.
"Do you still remember my name, or should I introduce myself again?"
"Of course I do." She tilted her head. "It's Lin Feng, right?"
He gave her a disapproving look.
Her expression faltered. "What? It's not?"
He maintained his stare.
"No way - you're messing with me," she said, narrowing her eyes.
He smiled.
She let out a breath. "I knew it. I just turned twenty - how could my memory be that bad already?"
"Classmate Su just turned twenty?" Lin Feng asked, genuine surprise in his voice.
She looked at him. "Yeah. Is that surprising?"
"Ah, not at all." He waved his hands quickly.
Then he paused, looking at her more carefully.
"It's just... Classmate Su has this mature feel around her."
"Mature?" She blinked.
"I suppose," she said slowly, seeming to consider the observation. "My parents were always busy when I was growing up, so I had to take care of my younger siblings. Maybe I picked it up from that."
Lin Feng nodded. That made sense.
"How many siblings?" he asked.
"Two. A younger brother and a younger sister." She smiled faintly. "They're both in middle school now. Still a handful."
"Sounds exhausting."
"You get used to it." She shrugged. "What about you? Any siblings?"
"Only child," Lin Feng said.
"Lucky," she said with a small laugh. "Sometimes I wonder what that's like."
"You don't like having siblings?," he asked.
"Of course not," she said quickly. "I mean, I love them. But the chaos is exhausting, you know…"
Their conversation continued to flow naturally - talk of hometowns, high school experiences, expectations for university life.
Lin Feng felt bad for his past self that never took the time to talk to her. Su Yue was easy to talk to. She had a calm, grounded presence that made the interaction feel effortless.
Lin Feng found himself relaxing.
Maybe sitting at the back wasn't so bad after all.