Chen Chao knew that Miao Jiayan usually encountered some upsetting things, but his impression was still stuck on those foul-mouthed students at school. Chen Chao had never encountered, nor had he ever imagined, anything beyond that.

Seeing that man smoking by the roadside today, Chen Chao had appeared very calm at the time, as if it was nothing at all.

But in truth, Chen Chao's heart had also leaped in fright; he had indeed been a little scared.

It was too dark, and the motorcycle blocked most of the view, so Chen Chao hadn't actually seen him clearly. However, the glimpses he did get made his heart pound. That man was clearly not a student, nor was his build. The way he squatted there smoking, he looked like a grown man, and the clothes he wore seemed like the undershirts that people here often wore for farm work.

This made Chen Chao feel uneasy and unsettled.

What made him uneasy and afraid wasn't the man himself, but why someone like that would target Miao Jiayan.

"Was it him?" Chen Chao had led Miao Jiayan straight back, not letting him return to the Miao Family home. After they went upstairs, Chen Chao put down his schoolbag and turned to ask.

Miao Jiayan's face was still an unnatural, cold white. He looked at Chen Chao, unable to speak for a long while.

"How did you provoke him?" Chen Chao asked again.

Miao Jiayan shook his head, his voice still trembling slightly. "I've never provoked him."

"Then why is he cornering you?" Chen Chao really couldn't figure it out. The only thing he could think of was, "Did he mistake you for a girl?"

Miao Jiayan lowered his head, not looking at him.

"Didn't you tell him you weren't a girl?" Chen Chao took his schoolbag, tossed it onto a chair, and asked.

"I did..." Miao Jiayan said, leaning against the wall like a primary school student being punished.

"So what on earth is going on?"

The rims of Miao Jiayan's eyes slowly turned red. He opened and closed his mouth, unable to speak.

Chen Chao looked at him and, for some reason, felt he couldn't bear to ask anymore. He frowned, let out a frustrated breath, and asked, "Are you still going back to sleep tonight?"

Miao Jiayan shook his head.

"Then go take a shower." After saying this, Chen Chao paid him no more mind, went to the closet, and took out a quilt and pillow, tossing them onto the floor.

This wasn't the first time Miao Jiayan had stayed at Chen Chao's place. Sometimes, when there was a mosquito in Chen Chao's room at night and they couldn't find it right away, Miao Jiayan would just stay over, and they'd get up to catch the mosquito whenever it reappeared. Miao Jiayan quite liked making a bed on the floor at Chen Chao's; they could still chat after turning off the lights at night.

When he came out of the shower, Chen Chao had already found him a set of summer pajamas. Jiang Li had bought them, and Chen Chao had never worn them since getting them; he only slept in his boxers during the summer.

Jiang Li even said that after two years here, he was becoming more and more barbaric.

Miao Jiayan had his hair tied up, but a stray lock had fallen by his neck. It had gotten wet just now and was currently dripping with water.

Chen Chao said, "Go change into the pajamas. Leave your clothes here; you can wear mine to school tomorrow."

Miao Jiayan first nodded, then said, "I can just go back and change tomorrow morning."

"Whatever," Chen Chao went to take a shower. "Do your homework. Lie down when you're done."

Bothered by this incident, Chen Chao wasn't in the mood to study either. He had already finished his homework during the evening self-study session. When he came out of the shower, Miao Jiayan was already lying down. The mattress was spread out next to his bed, and Miao Jiayan was lying there obediently, his hair neatly arranged to one side.

"You want to sleep on the bed?" Chen Chao asked.

"No need," Miao Jiayan said. "I'm fine on the floor. You don't sleep well on the floor."

So Chen Chao turned off the light and lay down as well.

Neither of them fell asleep. Miao Jiayan's breathing was soft, as if he were afraid of disturbing Chen Chao, not making a single sound.

Chen Chao had something on his mind. He couldn't figure out how Miao Jiayan could have provoked an adult, or rather, a middle-aged man. He was a kid who never caused trouble and never provoked anyone, so why would someone corner him? Besides, judging from Miao Jiayan's level of anxiety at the time, he was terrified.

"Miao'er." Chen Chao finally spoke.

Miao Jiayan's nerves tensed up. He glanced in Chen Chao's direction. "Hm?"

"How many times has he cornered you?" Chen Chao asked.

"Twice." Miao Jiayan was lying on his side, half his face buried in the pillow. Half his voice was also absorbed by the pillow, making him sound very quiet. "I've seen him before, but he... he's only spoken to me twice."

"What did he say?" Chen Chao pressed.

Summer wasn't completely over yet, and the room was still a bit warm at night, but there was no need to turn on the fan. The window was open, and a faint, cool breeze would drift in from time to time, feeling very comfortable on the skin. Outside, katydids chirped endlessly at the base of the wall, but it didn't sound noisy; they were long used to it.

On a night like this, with Miao Jiayan sleeping over at Chen Chao's place again, he should have been happy.

But now, Miao Jiayan hid one eye in his pillow, his breathing gradually growing heavier. He called out, "Brother Chao."

"Yeah," Chen Chao answered.

Miao Jiayan spoke with great difficulty. Growing up in a small, insular town, some things were not so easy to talk about. This difficulty wasn't entirely due to the typical teenage avoidance of certain topics, but also because they even felt such things were shameful.

"He touched..." Miao Jiayan's voice broke off, then continued, "...touched me."

In the darkness, Chen Chao abruptly rolled over, peering out to look at Miao Jiayan. He asked him, "Touched you where?!"

"Just..." Miao Jiayan buried his face deeper into the pillow, his voice very low. "My leg..."

Chen Chao's mind nearly exploded.

He didn't know how to curse, but in those few seconds of stunned silence, all Chen Chao wanted to do was swear.

Miao Jiayan didn't dare lift his head or look at Chen Chao. After speaking, he just curled up where he was, not daring to move.

"Molesting you? Intentionally bullying a girl? He mistook you for a girl?" Chen Chao fired off three questions in a row.

Although Chen Chao was from the city, there were some things he'd never seen before coming here, things he wouldn't have encountered in primary school. So, with his limited understanding, these were the only things he could think of; he didn't know anything more.

But Miao Jiayan answered honestly, "No... He knows. He's... a... homosexual."

There was still so much Miao Jiayan hadn't said, things he just couldn't bring himself to utter. Even though the person listening was Chen Chao, Miao Jiayan still couldn't say them.

He couldn't say how that person had come over and sniffed him like an animal, spraying his coarse, foul breath all over him. Nor could he say how that person had been able to grab both of his hands with just one, how Miao Jiayan had struggled with all his might but couldn't break free. On that deserted road, that person's eyes were bloodshot as he said, "Don't hide. We're the same kind. We're both freaks."

For Miao Jiayan, it was nothing short of a nightmare.

The first time, the man had only walked toward Miao Jiayan. Miao Jiayan felt something was wrong and ran away immediately.

The second time, Miao Jiayan couldn't get away. The man held Miao Jiayan with one hand and unzipped his pants with the other, frantically moving his hand. It was over quickly, perhaps because he was too nervous or excited. Miao Jiayan had squeezed his eyes shut tightly, not daring to look down even once. He had struggled desperately, almost hopelessly, at that moment. That was the first time he had ever felt truly afraid.

The word "homosexual" pierced his ears. Chen Chao's breath hitched, and he abruptly sat up.

Before today, that word had just been a distant concept to Chen Chao, something that had never appeared in his world. For Miao Jiayan to say it had a huge impact on Chen Chao.

He looked down at Miao Jiayan, but Miao Jiayan had closed himself off, not daring to face him.

Chen Chao asked, "He's targeting you?"

Since he had already said so much, Miao Jiayan decided he might as well go all the way, saying in an almost self-deprecating tone, "He thinks I'm the same kind as him."

"Bullshit!" Chen Chao blurted out.

Chen Chao had never used such a crude word before, but now he felt it wasn't nearly enough to vent his anger.

From that day on, Chen Chao all but tied Miao Jiayan to his side. He even saved a spot in the last row of his classroom for Miao Jiayan to do his homework and wait for him every day. As a top student, Chen Chao had that much privilege.

Every day after school, Miao Jiayan would come straight over and sit quietly in a corner of the classroom to do his homework. Some classmates would occasionally glance back at him, but after a day or two, the novelty wore off, and no one looked anymore.

Ding Wentao asked Chen Chao, "What's going on?"

Chen Chao said, "It's nothing."

"Just say it if something's wrong." Ding Wentao glanced back at Miao Jiayan. "What did you two run into?"

"Ran into something disgusting." Chen Chao's expression had been grim for the past few days. The anger in his heart had nowhere to go, and it was stuck there, making him feel awful.

But that man hadn't appeared again in the past few days, so Chen Chao didn't know where to direct his temper.

Miao Jiayan felt that he was the cause of Chen Chao's unhappiness and felt a little guilty, but he didn't know what to do, so he was careful not to speak.

The classroom windows didn't have screens, so with them open during evening self-study every day, all sorts of bugs would fly into the room.

Chen Chao was sitting in the row in front of Miao Jiayan. He would occasionally swat with a test paper at the bugs flying around him, which were getting on his nerves.

Miao Jiayan had specially brought some mosquito repellent that morning. He now took it out of his schoolbag and quietly sprayed it on both of Chen Chao's arms.

In the quiet classroom, the small sounds of the spray nozzle being pressed twice were particularly noticeable.

Those sitting nearby all turned to look at him. Miao Jiayan lowered his head, a little embarrassed. Chen Chao glanced back and said, "Give it to me."

Miao Jiayan reached out and handed it over.

Chen Chao took it and sprayed it on his shorts-clad legs with a few "psst-psst" sounds. The student at the desk in front said, "Let me use some too."

This was how Chen Chao and Miao Jiayan usually interacted. They were already used to it and didn't think anything of it.

But once they were in a different environment, in a crowd, this rapport between them seemed exceptionally close.

Chen Chao didn't like being distracted when he was working on problems. When someone came by to hand out homework, Chen Chao, still clutching his pen, casually flicked his hand backward. The class representative didn't understand.

"You can give it to me," Miao Jiayan said quietly.

The class representative glanced at him and handed Chen Chao's homework to him. Miao Jiayan took it and put it in his own schoolbag.

Chen Chao finished his water and leaned back in his chair, extending a hand behind him.

Miao Jiayan put the newly handed-out homework into his hand.

Chen Chao didn't take it.

Miao Jiayan thought for a moment, then took out his own water bottle and placed it in his hand.

Chen Chao took it, unscrewed the cap, and drank half of it.

After he finished drinking, he passed the bottle back from the front. Miao Jiayan put it back in his schoolbag. As he was doing so, he felt a lollipop, tapped Chen Chao on the back, and passed it to him from the side. Chen Chao glanced down, took it, tore open the wrapper, and popped it into his mouth.