Chapter 4 (1/2)

Chapter 4

By the time school was over, the snow had piled up. Zhang Ganggang was so excited that he ran screaming into the school yard, while Xie Meng pulled his overcoat on and wrapped a scarf around most of his face before he slowly walked into the snow.

For a southern city like Suzhou, it was very rare to have such heavy snow. The students’ excitement was no less than how they felt about the Lunar New Year.

“Let’s play for while before we leave.” Zhang Ganggang looked at Xie Meng expectantly. “Did you apply for leave with the martial arts center today?”

Xie Meng tugged his scarf down, and his breath came out in a mist of white. Looking around, he agreed, “Alright.”

Zhang Ganggang pumped his fists up in the air, “Yeah!”

In the distance, Qi Fei shouted from the edge of the field. “Hey! Zhang Ganggang! Come over quickly! We’re having a snowball fight with Class Five!”

Xie Meng looked in the direction of the voice, and immediately noticed Ji Qinyang’s conspicuous light hair in a glance. Despite it being winter, the boys were all dressed in very few layers, and leaving their jackets unzipped, they were all prepping snowballs.

“We only have 20 boys in our class, it’s a big disadvantage.” Qi Fei was a very competitive person, and his eyes were almost burning with a desire to win. “Line up in formation, we cannot lose.”

Ji Qinyang laughed. “We’ll just screw with them when we see them, why do we need a formation?”

Zhang Ganggang was not concerned with winning this battle. He was holding his phone up and taking selfies, insisting on dragging Xie Meng into the photos with him.

“Don’t raise your phone up so high.” Xie Meng motioned him to put it closer to them.

Zhang Ganggang was a little worried, “If it’s too close, will it make my face look fat…”

Xie Meng, “…”

Qi Fei pinched Zhang Ganggang’s cheek. “Look at your baby fat! Stop taking photos, come and make some snowballs.”

A group of them crouched down and started piling up snowballs. Xie Meng was the only one not wearing gloves, and after making just one snowball, his fingers were red with cold. Ji Qinyang saw him, then removed one of his gloves and passed it to him.

Xie Meng did not reject it, and gave a fleeting smile. He said politely, “Thank you.”

Ji Qinyang did not speak. He watched as Xie Meng tugged on his scarf, pulling it over the tip of his nose, and revealing only a pair of black eyes, looking just like a boy who had yet to grow up.

“What are the two of you still doing?” Qi Fei swung his arms, starting his warm-up. The people from Class Five had already stood up, “Ready… Zhang Ganggang! Don’t run around!”

Zhang Ganggang ran away from the flying snowballs, yelling all the way. Qi Fei swore, and yanked him behind himself, picking up a huge snowball and tossing it over. Ji Qinyang pulled Xie Meng up, and a snowball shot between them. Ji Qinyang returned the attack, and hit the head of the person closest to them.

Zhang Ganggang had his phone raised up again, “Let’s take photos!”

Shoving his head, Xie Meng dodged a snowball. After hearing a shutter sound, on the screen was a hideous baby face with distorted facial features.

Zhang Ganggang, “……”

“……” Xie Meng scratched his nose. “Just take another one.”

Another snowball was aimed at them. Xie Meng leaned backwards, and heard a loud “Fuck!” behind him. The class monitor of Class Five shouted gloomily, “Aim properly! Can’t you see that it’s our own people here?”

Zhang Ganggang laughed until he convulsed. He no longer took photos, and switched to taking videos instead.

Both of Qi Fei’s hands were full of snow, just as though he was fighting them in close combat. Ji Qinyang had been besieged by a few people, and his coat and hair were in a mess. Xie Meng unwound his scarf, shook it hard, and wrapped Ji Qinyang in it face to face. With a turn of his leg, he kicked a snowball that was flying towards them, but unexpectedly, the snowball was packed too loosely, and it disintegrated, spraying snow into his face.

“Hahahahahahaha!” Zhang Ganggang laughed heartlessly, only to have a handful of snow suddenly shoved into his mouth.

Zhang Ganggang, “…”

Qi Fei, “Hahahahahahaha!!!”

Xie Meng brushed off the snow on his face, and looked back to see Ji Qinyang patting his coat. The boy’s shaggy hair was covered with ice, and half of Xie Meng’s scarf was hanging off his head, and the other half around his neck.

Zhang Ganggang came running over, shivering with cold. He did not forget about taking photos, wanting one with Xie Meng. Qi Fei also took his phone out, capturing the miserable figures of Class Five. Out of habit, he asked Ji Qinyang, “Do you want to take a shot too?”

Ji Qinyang did not disagree, wrapping the scarf around him, he took a photo with Qi Fei.

“You’re too good looking.” Qi Fei grumbled. “I shouldn’t have taken a photo with you.”

Hearing that, Zhang Ganggang leaned over and said energetically, “Let’s take a photo together!”

He dragged both Ji Qinyang and Xie Meng in front of the lens, while he could only half-crouch right at the front, making his baby face look larger.

“Let’s use my phone.” Ji Qinyang suddenly said. “Your phone is running low on battery.”

Only then did Zhang Ganggang noticed the low battery sign at the upper right corner of his phone.

Ji Qinyang fiddled with the camera on his phone. He looked at Xie Meng and smiled lazily, “Let’s take a photo together?”

Xie Meng felt that he had taken a lifetime’s worth of selfies that day. Zhang Ganggang even had a portable battery charger with him. Ji Qinyang only took one shot with Xie Meng, after that, his phone was taken away by Qi Fei to shoot all sorts of rubbish.

Xie Meng returned his one glove to him.

“Thank you.” Xie Meng said with a smile.

Ji Qinyang looked at the other person’s smile. He was still wrapped in Xie Meng’s scarf, and had no intentions of removing it. “I’ll wash it and return it to you?”

“Sure.” Xie Meng nodded, then he added. “No hurry.”

When Sun Tian came looking for Ji Qinyang, the snowball fight was already over. Ji Qinyang was sorting out the photos in his phone with his head lowered, and Xie Meng’s scarf was wound a few times round his neck and covered half his face.

Actually, in terms of appearance, Ji Qinyang’s eyes were too exquisite. Before he grew into his current height, he could be described as androgynous looking.

Sun Tian pouted and whined at her boyfriend, “I want to take photos too.”

Ji Qinyang raised his brow. His mouth was blocked by the scarf, and so his voice was muffled. “There’s no battery left, we’ll do it next time.”

Sun Tian complained, “It might not snow the next time.”

Ji Qinyang, “Isn’t it the same if you use your phone?”

Sun Tian was not very happy. “Take a photo with your phone then you can use it as a background image. Don’t couples always use each other’s photos like this? How else to prove that we’re a couple.”

Ji Qinyang was noncommittal. He did not say anything, leaving Sun Tian to babble on but did not give her any response.

“Are you even listening to me?” Sun Tian was a little angry. “I’m talking to you.”

Ji Qinyang removed his arm from the girl’s shoulders. He stood in place, turned his head and looked at Sun Tian dispassionately.

The latter stopped talking, and her face looked a little panicked and scared. She opened her mouth, as if to give in.

“You should head back first.” Ji Qinyang spoke, his voice flat and without any intonation. “I still have something on, I won’t accompany you.”