Oh no! I've only been a freshman and I've already been targeted by a mean upperclassman.

Li Chen woke up at 6:48.

The alarm was set for 6:50. It was two minutes early.

The first thing he did when he opened his eyes wasn't to turn off the alarm clock, but to reach for his phone.

The screen lit up.

[Yan Xi: 6:45. I'm up. (06:45)]

Three minutes earlier than him.

He sat up.

Wang Qiang across the street was still snoring.

Zhao Zixuan pulled the blanket over his head.

Chen Mo's bed was so clean it looked like no one had ever lived there.

Li Chen glanced at the closet as he got dressed. The second shelf from the left. The gloves were there.

She said he would forget.

He reached out and took it.

It was put back.

She said she would bring it.

He washed up and went out. He arrived at the playground two minutes to seven. The wind was blowing from the east, and it was about a degree colder than the night before. He stood at the entrance to the track, his breath drifting to the left.

It's exactly 7 o'clock.

Yan Xi walked over from the direction of the dormitory building. She wore a camel-colored coat, a black turtleneck, and a phoenix hairpin.

He was carrying a paper bag in his left hand. His right hand—

Holding a pair of gloves.

Dark gray. Matching the color scheme of his windbreaker.

She walked up to him. Without saying hello, she simply shoved the gloves into his hand.

"Put it on."

Li Chen took it. The inside of the glove was made of fleece and felt warm to the touch.

"Did you put it in your pocket and cover it up?"

"It takes three minutes to walk from the fourth floor to here. That's enough."

He put it on.

There was a suture on his left thumb that was different from the direction of his previous pair—it was half a centimeter to the outside.

It better matches the position of his thumb when he makes a fist.

"These aren't the pairs I have in my closet."

"Of course not. Those were bought for you by your mom in Beijing. They're winter styles, with diamond-patterned anti-slip texture on the palms, suitable for driving." Yan Xi lowered her head and zipped up her coat. "These are the ones I bought. They're for running. They don't have anti-slip texture on the palms, so they're more breathable."

He glanced down at his gloves.

When did you buy it?

"The day we came back from Beijing, at a service area, while you were asleep in the passenger seat, I went into the convenience store and bought this at the sports store next door."

While he was asleep.

She stopped at a service area while driving to buy him gloves.

"How were the sizes measured?"

Yan Xi glanced at him. That look meant, "You're insulting me."

"Your palm is 9.2 centimeters wide. The length of your fingers, from the tip of your middle finger to the base of your palm, is 19.5 centimeters. I measured it when I applied hand cream to your hand."

Li Chen adjusted the gaps between the fingers of his gloves. They fit perfectly.

"Let's run." Yan Xi had already started stretching her legs.

The two ran four laps around the track.

Yan Xi's pace was the same as before the winter break, consistently around two minutes and fifteen seconds per lap.

Li Chen ran half a step to her side, the wind passing by him.

On the third lap, Yan Xi turned her head and glanced at him.

"You're shielding me from the wind."

"no."

"You've been on my left since day one of running. The track is counter-clockwise, so the left side is the outer edge. The outer edge has a larger windward surface."

Li Chen didn't reply.

"You think I don't know?"

"If you already know, then don't say it. It makes me feel really embarrassed."

Yan Xi's lips twitched. He didn't laugh. But he saw it.

After finishing their run, the two stood by the track. Li Chen handed them a thermos.

"Sixty degrees."

Yan Xi took it and drank a sip.

Fifty-eight.

"The error is two degrees."

"The insulation layer of your thermos is worn out. I could feel it when I screwed the lid on for you last time. The vacuum seal between the inner liner and the outer shell has deteriorated."

Li Chen glanced at the thermos cup in his hand that had been with him for two years.

"Are you going to replace it with a new one?"

"I've already bought it. It's in the paper bag."

He looked down at the paper bag she had been carrying.

"...How many things did you bring for me today?"

"Gloves. A thermos. And osmanthus cake for Wang Qiang."

"The osmanthus cake is for Wang Qiang."

"The osmanthus cake is to make Wang Qiang owe me a favor. In essence, it's still for you."

Li Chen took the thermos and glanced at the new one.

Stainless steel with a brushed finish.

The capacity is 500 ml.

The diameter of the spout is the same as his original one.

"Why is the caliber the same as the old one?"

"When you drink water, the contact area between your lips and the water rim is about 3.5 centimeters. This is the most comfortable size for you to drink from. If it's too big, you'll spill; if it's too small, you won't enjoy it."

He put the new thermos into his bag. He didn't throw away the old one either; he clipped it to the side of the bag.

"Don't you want the old one anymore?"

"Keep it. It can be used as a measuring cup when making coffee."

Yan Xi looked at him for two seconds.

"You can't bear to throw it away."

"no."

"You spent two years developing that patina around the bottle neck, and you're feeling sorry for it."

Li Chen didn't refute her, because she was right.

My phone vibrated. It was from group 302.

[Wang Qiang: Brother Chen, when are you coming back? Is your wife really coming to check up? I got up at six to wipe the table!!]

[Chen Mo: Based on last night's conversation, Yan Xi's arrival time at 302 is estimated to be between 8 and 9 AM. Wang Qiang, you have at least forty minutes.]

[Wang Qiang: You make it sound so easy!! Your desk is an operating table year-round!! My desk is a battlefield!!]

[Zhao Zixuan: Did you throw away that instant noodle box under the bed?]

[Wang Qiang: I threw it away. I threw it away at 11 pm last night. Brother Chen watched me throw it away.]

Li Chen replied.

[Li Chen: She's with me on the playground right now. She has the osmanthus cake in her hand. I'll go over when it's almost ready.]

[Wang Qiang: Approximately how long?? Give me an exact number!!]

Yan Xi peeked at her phone screen from behind his shoulder.

Tell him it's 8:20.

Li Chen is typing.

[Li Chen: 8:20.]

[Wang Qiang: Received!! I have thirty-seven minutes left!!]

Yan Xi withdrew her gaze.

"Let's go. Let's have breakfast first."

The two walked towards the cafeteria. Li Chen walked on the outside. After Yan Xi took three steps, she reached out her hand.

They didn't hold hands.

I hooked my index finger around his little finger. Then I let go.

He glanced down at it.

She had already put her hands back in her pockets.

canteen.

Yan Xi sat down.

Li Chen went to get food.

Two bowls of porridge, a tea egg, and a serving of steamed dumplings.

I only took eight steamed dumplings.

"Are eight enough?" Yan Xi glanced at the plate.

"You eat five. I'll eat three. You only ate six wontons and a loaf of bread last night, so you're short at least 300 calories. Make up for it this morning."

Yan Xi didn't say anything. She picked up her chopsticks and took out a steamed dumpling.

"His skin has thickened."

"The cafeteria food. It'll have to do."

"You'll cover it next time."

"it is good."

Halfway through the meal, Yan Xi put down her chopsticks.

"Your neck is stiff."

"no."

"When you were picking up steamed dumplings, your shoulder lifted two millimeters. You compensate when your cervical spine is uncomfortable. Yesterday, you drove sideways for fifteen minutes in the car, which strained your left trapezius and sternocleidomastoid muscles."

Li Chen swallowed the last bite of the steamed dumpling.

"Did you apply a hot towel to your face when you got home yesterday?"

"Apply it."

"how long?"

"Twenty minutes."

"What temperature?"

"...About forty degrees?"

Yan Xi took her phone out of her pocket and opened the notes app. She scrolled through it for a couple of seconds, then turned the screen towards him.

He saw it.

A table lists all the times, causes, and recovery methods for his neck discomfort from last October to the present. The last column indicates "Recommended heat application temperature 42±1℃, duration 15-20 minutes".

When did you make this table?

"The day you first rubbed your neck in the library. October 17th."

He stared at the table. There were eleven rows of data. The latest row was from yesterday.

"I'll give you a massage tonight."