Unbridled - Chapter 37
When Lin Wuyu hopped off the station, the car he'd arranged was already there, ready to whisk him straight back to the rented house. Passing the subway entrance, he peeked out the window a few times. It looked pretty much the same, busy with folks he didn't know.
But he remembered the line of shops Ding Ji had pointed out, and now they seemed familiar. Especially that staircase where they used to guess the number of steps…
There was also that stretch of road before the stairs, where he became a fan of some stranger.
Lin Wuyu grinned.
The phone number Ding Ji gave that girl didn't lead to anything. Guess it wasn't a miracle meeting, just a blip.
That masked guy wasn't Lin Zhan, and that girl wasn't Ding Ji's type…
Lin Wuyu went into the house, stashed his stuff, and plonked the little bookshelf on the coffee table. Then he had second thoughts and moved it to the bedroom.
The bedroom lacked a desk, and the bedside table was tiny. Lin Wuyu wandered around and plunked the bookshelf on the top bunk. He even tossed "Charlotte's Web" on top to make it clear it was for books.
He still had loads of books at home. Just brought this one from the dorm. No space for more, so he'd slowly collect them when he had room.
He'd just finished packing when he glanced at his phone again. Shot Ding Ji a text right before getting off the train. Ding Ji replied with a snap of a fried pancake, saying Liu Jinpeng had bailed, and Grandma had made a bunch.
Now he was starving. That snap of the fried pancake made him want to munch his phone.
[Lin Wuyu] Gonna see if any places deliver fried pancakes.
[Ding Ji] Nah, who even delivers those? Best you'll get is a breakfast spot early morning.
[Lin Wuyu] Guess I'll hunt some down tomorrow morning.
[Ding Ji] None beat my grandma's, though.
[Lin Wuyu] ???
[Ding Ji] I'll eat 'em for you and give you the play-by-play.
[Lin Wuyu] Friendship terminated.
After dropping a laughing emoji, Ding Ji went radio silent, probably chowing down on those pancakes for him.
Lin Wuyu sighed and grabbed his clothes for a shower.
Mid-shower, his phone on the shelf rang. Not a text ding, but a call.
"Ah." Lin Wuyu dabbed his face with a towel and glanced at his phone. Ding Ji was video calling.
Paused for a sec, then declined the call. Just as he finished drying his hands and was about to text Ding Ji he was showering, Ding Ji called again.
"Ah!" Lin Wuyu hung up again and quickly typed "Shower."
Before he could hit send, Ding Ji called once more.
Lin Wuyu hardly ever video-called, and his phone didn't usually act up like this. Was the Wi-Fi here better?
Ding Ji was so desperate to chat; maybe it was urgent. Lin Wuyu checked his reflection; from this angle, Ding Ji would only see his face.
So, he tapped his phone and picked up.
Ding Ji popped up on screen, grinning, holding a fried pancake. "Come on, Wuyu bro, this one's for you…"
Before he could finish, his grin froze. He scanned around, eyes wide, and dropped his voice. "Darn it, you're showering?"
"Ah." Lin Wuyu nodded.
"You dare to video call like this?" Ding Ji hissed.
"What's wrong?" Lin Wuyu glanced at himself on screen, but didn't see anything odd.
"I called Grandma over!" Ding Ji's eyes bulged.
Even with just his head and shoulders visible, it was clear he was in the bathroom, likely sans clothes. Totally inappropriate.
"My bad?" Lin Wuyu flipped the camera away, "I hung up, but you kept calling. I thought…"
"Damn it!" Ding Ji's eyes nearly popped out. The camera shook as he bolted into the bedroom, "Flip it! Are you insane, Lin Wuyu? Grandma's on her way!"
"What's the big deal? You can't see anything." Lin Wuyu shrugged.
"There's a dang mirror facing you! Are you blind without glasses?" Ding Ji yelled.
Lin Wuyu glanced up and saw the mirror, revealing a scholar holding a phone. He'd ignored it before, thinking he couldn't be seen, so he hadn't bothered covering up.
"Oh my God." Shocked, he poked his phone frantically, finally ending the call amid Ding Ji's laughter.
He knew the mirror was there, always felt weird facing it during showers. Probably why he forgot about it.
"Ah…" Lin Wuyu tossed his phone back on the shelf and smacked his head against the wall twice.
After showering, he grabbed a lollipop from the table, left by Ding Ji, and checked his phone. A bunch of messages from Ding Ji flooded in.
All from Ding Ji, and he could guess the gist.
[Ding Ji] Hahahahahahahahahahaha
[Ding Ji] Lin Wuyu, you're killing me with laughter
[Ding Ji] Should've recorded it hahahahahahahaha, secret video of the scholar in the bath
[Ding Ji] Hahahahahahahahahahaha, Grandma asked why I hung up without seeing you
[Ding Ji] Good thing she didn't, or Grandpa would've flipped hahahahahahahaha
[Ding Ji] So hilarious, every 'ha' typed with love hahahahahahaha
Lin Wuyu chuckled at the messages, then replied with one.
[Lin Wuyu] Done showering.
Ding Ji hit Lin Wuyu with another video call request, and with a sigh, Lin Wuyu accepted.
"Fresh out of the shower, huh?" Ding Ji cracked up once more at the sight.
"Time to pay up," Lin Wuyu teased.
"Pay for what?" Ding Ji chuckled.
"For the impromptu show you're enjoying," Lin Wuyu smirked.
"What else am I supposed to do? Pass up a freebie?" Ding Ji shot back.
"You think drones are my only hustle?" Lin Wuyu raised an eyebrow.
Ding Ji blinked, momentarily taken aback. "Wait, are you saying a straight-laced guy like you does this stuff?"
Lin Wuyu grinned. "You kept calling just to let me watch you chow down on fried pancakes?"
"Yep." Ding Ji proudly displayed the pancake, dominating the screen. "Check it out, piping hot. You can almost hear it sizzle if you listen closely, swish swish, sizzle sizzle…"
"Please," Lin Wuyu interrupted, "I'm starving here."
"You've been off the train for a while now, haven't you?" Ding Ji paused, setting down the pancake. "Thought a big eater like you would've grabbed takeout on the way."
"Haven't made up my mind yet," Lin Wuyu admitted. "You wanna help me choose?"
"What're you thinking? There's a Shaxian joint across from your place. Just a stone's throw away. We can always get takeout later if we're still hungry," Ding Ji suggested.
"Sounds good," Lin Wuyu agreed.
In Ding Ji's video call, another figure joined him, swiftly appearing beside Ding Ji, revealing Liu Jinpeng munching on a pancake.
"Hey, Lin Wuyu, right?" Liu Jinpeng greeted between bites.
"Hey," Lin Wuyu replied.
"Hey," Liu Jinpeng waved the pancake before vanishing from view. His voice floated in from the side. "You guys chat… I thought you were on with your girlfriend…"
Ding Ji's grin faltered for a moment as he shot a glare off-screen. "Beat it."
"You go ahead and eat," Lin Wuyu urged. "Is grandma done cooking? I'll grab a bite at the Shaxian spot."
"Yep," Ding Ji confirmed. "Should I hang up?"
"Sure," Lin Wuyu agreed.
"Give me a buzz if anything crops up," Ding Ji said before tapping to end the call.
After a brief pause, Lin Wuyu remembered he wanted to hit up the Shaxian place for grub. As he rose to leave, something caught his eye—a white blob nestled in the corner of the couch.
The place had been cleaned top to bottom before he moved in, and he hadn't seen this lump before. How'd he miss it, especially after he and Ding Ji practically lived on this couch for days?
He reached over and picked it up, realizing it was a T-shirt.
…Ding Ji's T-shirt.
He remembered it well; Ding Ji wore it on their last stakeout. Pure white, with "handsome guy" printed on the back, complete with an upward arrow.
It seemed like Ding Ji hadn't packed his stuff properly. Lin Wuyu hesitated for a moment, then cautiously lifted the shirt to his nose and sniffed. There was no scent, but it was definitely wrinkled, indicating it had been worn.
Tsk.
He tossed it into the washing machine out on the balcony.
"Pengpeng!" Ding Ji called from outside the bathroom. "Pengpeng! Pengpeng!"
"What's up?" Liu Jinpeng poked his head out, annoyance evident. "I've answered you like eight times already. Are you deaf?"
"Did you take one of my shirts?" Ding Ji queried.
Liu Jinpeng didn't bother closing the door, instead, he turned and brandished a T-shirt. "This one! What's the issue? Can't I wear it? Who's the girl who gave it to you?"
"Okay, okay, calm down. I just couldn't find one of my own," Ding Ji waved dismissively. "Close the door, Grandma might see it when she comes over."
"I'll buy you a new one with my paycheck," Liu Jinpeng grumbled, shutting the door. "Bothering me over a T-shirt while I'm in the shower."
Ignoring Liu Jinpeng's gripes, Ding Ji returned to his room. He checked the balcony again, but the missing shirt wasn't in the laundry.
It was quite a mystery. Losing a piece of clothing that big was even more astonishing than misplacing underwear. But, whether it was there or not, he was still a dashing dude.
As he lounged on his bed, Liu Jinpeng sauntered in. "Sneaking a peek while I shower, huh?"
"Why would I need to peek?" Ding Ji scoffed. "Seen all there is to see of you, not much I haven't seen on this street, let alone from you."
"It's all your fault!" Liu Jinpeng jabbed a finger at him. "And you have the nerve to say that?"
Ding Ji chuckled.
After finishing the laundry, Liu Jinpeng sprawled on his bed, engrossed in his phone games. Ding Ji watched for a bit before growing bored and pulling out his own phone, scrolling through social media before calling it a night.
He briefly considered messaging Lin Wuyu but figured he was probably asleep by now, having spent the day on the train. Setting his phone aside, he settled into his pillow.
As he closed his eyes, the image of Lin Wuyu, mirrored and unclad, flashed through his mind, prompting another laugh.
Liu Jinpeng glanced at him. "You gone crazy?"
Though Lin Wuyu typically slept shirtless in just shorts, and Ding Ji had seen it all, appreciating him fully was another story.
Lin Wuyu did indeed have a good physique—tall, lean, with no extra flab around the middle…
Ding Ji snapped his eyes open.
For some inexplicable reason, the thought of Lin Wuyu made him feel oddly awkward, as if he'd truly peeked at him in the shower.
"Switch off the light and get some shut-eye," he instructed Liu Jinpeng abruptly.
Liu Jinpeng grabbed a shirt from the bedside, tossing it at the light switch to plunge the room into darkness. Then he turned over, ready to chat. "Ding, about…"
"Yeah?" Ding Ji prompted.
"Do you think it'd be weird if I asked Chongchong to catch a movie?" Liu Jinpeng queried.
"Who's Chongchong?" Ding Ji turned to face him. "The cashier girl from your shop?"
"Yeah," Liu Jinpeng confirmed.
"It shouldn't be weird," Ding Ji pondered. "Basically, you're expressing interest. If she finds it strange, it means she's not into you, and then you should back off politely."
"Why am I discussing dating with someone who's never been interested in anyone?" Liu Jinpeng chuckled.
"Because I've got brains," Ding Ji retorted. "And I'm here to help."
Liu Jinpeng laughed. "True, wouldn't want to talk to anyone else about it."
"Why not start with bubble tea to break the ice?" Ding Ji suggested. "Jumping straight to movies might be too intense. Most girls, even if they like you, might find it a bit much, right?"
"Good point," Liu Jinpeng agreed.
Ding Ji closed his eyes, listening to Liu Jinpeng prattle on about Chongchong beside him. He didn't pay much attention, but he knew the girl was cute, and Liu Jinpeng was excited. During these talks, Liu Jinpeng didn't really need him to respond.
It was like being hypnotized; Ding Ji caught only bits and pieces before dozing off.
From the halfway mark of his initial dream, Lin Wuyu had remained in his dreams. Scenes from the video call kept replaying, featuring Lin Wuyu unclothed against various backdrops: the bathroom, Sanzhong's running track, the Sanzhong auditorium, the path from Grandma's house, the subway entrance they'd staked out for days, and just as the background was about to shift to raising the national flag, Ding Ji jolted awake, abruptly ending the surreal dream.
Upon waking, he lingered in bed for a while, feeling no embarrassment. In the dream, he hadn't even noticed if Lin Wuyu was dressed. Instead, he felt content, as if they were still sharing boredom but happiness, much like when they staked out at the subway entrance.
He almost wished he could return to sleep.
Before Lin Wuyu's arrival, his vacations had been endless but never this dull. Skipping class reunions, with Liu Jinpeng at work, and no one to chat with left him feeling empty.
Despite enjoying his time with his grandparents, he still felt the pangs of boredom.
Days passed with him sleeping until noon, strolling with Grandma, watching Grandpa's chess games, lounging at the square, playing basketball, listening to Da Dong's boasts, and occasionally strumming the guitar when Da Dong was absent.
Lin Wuyu appeared busy during this period, and occupied daily. Even when he camped out for three consecutive days to film, Ding Ji sensed his friend's boredom and refrained from bombarding him with messages. Lin Wuyu wasn't one to reply instantly; he often glanced at messages and responded later. Fearful of disrupting his work, Ding Ji hesitated to send too many messages, knowing Lin Wuyu's livelihood depended on it, especially with a looming debt of thirty thousand he couldn't repay.
A whistle from the basketball court snapped Ding Ji's attention. Several people beckoned him to join.
Stretching lazily, Ding Ji hopped off the steps, rode his bike to the nearby store, and yelled to the court, "I'll grab water first, who wants?"
"We all do!" came the chorus.
"Wait up!" Ding Ji called back.
As he reached the store's entrance, his phone buzzed in his pocket. Glancing at the screen, he saw an unfamiliar number. Without a second thought, he silenced it and returned it to his pocket.
Lately, scam calls flooded in—about loans, scholarships, studying abroad…
Inside the store, navigating the aisles, his phone rang again.
With an impatient sigh, he checked—same number.
Without pause, he rejected the call, not bothering to mute it.
Mid-stride, he halted, retrieved his phone, and scrutinized the missed call, fixating on the number.
Unlike the scam calls, this seemed ordinary, and the final digits were all 6s…
After a fleeting hesitation, he dialed back, anxiety prickling as he lifted the phone.
After a couple of rings, a voice answered, "Ding Ji?"
A young man spoke.
"Yes, who's this?" Ding Ji steadied his tone.
A brief pause on the other end. "Lin Zhan."