After the car accident, my boyfriend got straight

When Jiang Shiyu woke up, he stared blankly at the ceiling for a while before slowly regaining clarity. He picked up his phone by the pillow and saw a message from Li Muzi.

In the picture, Shen Li had his thick eyebrows furrowed, looking very displeased.

He recalled the scenes and conversations they had before he fell asleep; everything was fine with no issues.

He opened Shen Li’s WeChat, their chat still paused at their argument. He thought they were like elementary school kids, ignoring each other when they fought, all sulky and awkward.

“Peeking cat.jpg”

The reply came quickly: “Awake? They’re singing karaoke. Wanna join?”

“No, feeling a bit dizzy.”

The next second, his phone rang. Startled, he answered and put it to his ear.

“Hello.” Just woken up, his voice was thick with sleep, heavily nasal.

“Besides dizziness, do you feel uncomfortable anywhere else?”

There was a lot of background noise on the other end, including the most vibrant ethnic music. He hummed responses to Shen Li, and soon, the background noise faded, turning quiet.

“I asked if you felt uncomfortable anywhere else besides dizziness.”

Jiang Shiyu lay there feeling his body. Besides dizziness, his mouth seemed to hurt a bit. Shen Li was silent for a moment after hearing this.

“How about your chest? Any discomfort?”

He had a lot of minor ailments, but the most important was his heart, which couldn’t afford any issues. As far as Shen Li knew, he had long met the criteria for heart surgery but had been delaying it for some unknown reason. A recent car accident had reset his evaluation, and he still needed recovery time.

Every time Shen Li thought about this, he grew furious with his former self. Despite knowing Jiang Shiyu’s condition, he let the surgery be delayed. Was he truly in love with him?

Since the car accident, Jiang Shiyu’s heart had been more painful upon waking, but it was tolerable. Several check-ups only resulted in doctors advising more observation and regular check-ups, so he hadn’t taken it too seriously.

After waking today, the chest discomfort lasted longer than usual. It was not just tightness but also some pain. Jiang Shiyu thought it might be because he got too emotional during the morning’s competition. He had felt his heartbeat quicken and found it hard to breathe at the venue.

“No other discomfort. I’ll rest a bit more, and the dizziness will pass.” He lied to ease Shen Li’s mind, letting him enjoy karaoke. He then asked, “Li Muzi said you looked unhappy. Did something happen?”

Shen Li was silent for a while on the other end before saying no.

Jiang Shiyu also fell silent.

Previously, Shen Li had heavy thoughts that Jiang Shiyu couldn’t guess. But he used to explain whenever Jiang Shiyu asked, so he never needed to guess.

Now, with his memory lost, he wouldn’t explain patiently when asked. Jiang Shiyu still couldn’t guess what he was thinking.

There was a brief silence, an awkward pause where neither knew what to say.

Someone called Shen Li on the other end. Jiang Shiyu quickly said, “Go have fun. I’ll get up now,” and hung up in a hurry.

He tossed his phone aside, not getting up but lying in bed, staring blankly, his expression bitter and a bit frustrated.

Frustrated with his inexplicable emotions, knowing Shen Li didn’t mean to keep things from him. He had lost his memory and couldn’t respond like before. Now, he was actively undergoing treatment to regain his memory, and their relationship was greatly improving. Everything was moving in a positive direction, yet he couldn’t control his sulky feelings towards the current, unfamiliar Shen Li.

He buried his head under the covers, like a snail retreating into its shell, avoiding the dark space.

He often hated his sensitive and volatile self, but only the former Shen Li would tolerate him infinitely. However, that Shen Li had forgotten him.

As he thought about it, he grew very sad. The good mood before sleeping turned into dejection just because Shen Li didn’t tell him the reason.

He twisted and turned under the covers like a maggot, missing the moment the dormitory door opened. When he turned again, someone yanked the covers off him, the sudden brightness uncomfortable, like a mouse pulled into the daylight.

He screamed, kicking and grabbing for his covers.

Shen Li stood by the bed, holding the covers, his expression stern. “How many times have I told you not to cover your head with the blanket? Don’t you remember when you did that and fell ill?”

After hanging up, he couldn’t stay calm. After a while at the karaoke, he left, checked out at the front desk, and returned to the dormitory. Seeing Jiang Shiyu burrowed under the covers, moving constantly, he was worried.

Knowing his poor health, Jiang Shiyu guiltily kept his head down, not speaking. His hair was a mess from the covers, sticking up everywhere, his whole demeanor pitiful.

Shen Li didn’t know what to say to him. Even during their cold war, he would quietly get up at night to pull the covers off Jiang Shiyu’s nose and mouth or lift him from under the covers. This habit was terrible, and no matter what, it never changed. How did he sleep before? Did the “Shen Li” from before not care?

Hearing this would likely make Jiang Shiyu feel even more hurt. He used to sleep with him, never covering his nose and mouth or burrowing into the blankets because Shen Li would hold him, letting him sleep with his head on his arm and his chin on his neck.

Without lifting his head, Jiang Shiyu felt a sharp gaze from above. He swallowed and blinked, looking up at Shen Li.

Pretending to be delighted, he asked, “Why are you back? Finished singing?”

Shen Li took Jiang Shiyu’s jacket and pants from the chair, handing them over. It was autumn, and the weather was getting cooler. Catching a cold would mean getting sick again.

“They’re still singing. It was too noisy, so I came back early.”

Jiang Shiyu put on his clothes, nodding while murmuring. His bare feet dangled off the bed, occasionally swinging.

His skin was already pale, and his feet, never seeing the sun, had a sickly white. The joints and ankles were tinged with pink. Shen Li, having seen countless bare-chested guys in the locker room, thought none were like him.

Shen Li grabbed socks from the chair, squatting in front of him, placing those restless feet on his knee.

Jiang Shiyu, now in his jacket, looked down, watching Shen Li’s actions.

The white cotton socks slid from his toes, fitting snugly over the smooth arch of his foot, the ankle thin and delicate, covered by the long socks.

Before, Shen Li would dress him like this. He loved lazing in bed, humming endlessly. Shen Li would dress him head to toe before coaxing him out to wash up. His sharp features contrasted with Jiang Shiyu’s rounded face. His fierce aura kept others at bay.

This seemingly irritable, reckless boy now willingly squatted before another boy, dressing his feet.

Moments ago, sulking under the covers, Jiang Shiyu’s mood lifted slightly. Seeing Shen Li’s old, caring self again made him happy.

He hated himself for being so fickle, happy one moment and angry the next.

His toes unconsciously tapped Shen Li’s knee.

After getting dressed, Shen Li still followed him around, scolding in a slightly harsh tone, “Next time I see you cover your head like that, I won’t care anymore.”

Jiang Shiyu splashed water on his face, eyes closed, fumbling for a towel.

The next second, a towel was handed to him.

“Do you even care about your health? What if I hadn’t come back? How long would you stay under the covers? Alone in the dorm, what if you suffocated?”

Jiang Shiyu covered his face with the towel, a small square completely hiding his face.

The towel slowly slid off, revealing a smooth forehead, damp cat-like eyes, a delicate nose, and… prominently swollen, red lips.

Shen Li’s gaze fixed on his lips, his composure faltering, words stuck.

Jiang Shiyu looked in the mirror, then turned to Shen Li, “My lips seem more swollen and red than before I slept. They feel hot.”

Shen Li coughed, eyes wandering. “Lots of trees at school. Even in autumn, there are mosquitoes. Maybe a mosquito bit you. We’ll light some mosquito coils later.”

Jiang Shiyu didn’t doubt him, pouting at the mirror, his tongue peeking out, licking his swollen lips.

Hmm, maybe it was a mosquito. Usually, mosquito bites swell into large bumps on him. A bite on the lips would be worse.

“Damn mosquito. I’ll trap it with bug spray and torture it.”

Shen Li didn’t want to continue this topic. After tidying up, they didn’t go out, each working on their assignments in the dorm. His transfer application had been approved; next term, he would join the business management department. Falling behind in progress, he needed to catch up on his own, which wasn’t easy.

In the quiet afternoon, the dorm was filled only with the sounds of pages turning and keyboards clicking, peaceful and serene.

After finishing his last page, Jiang Shiyu looked up, finding it dark outside. Turning, he saw Shen Li asleep at his desk, an economics law book under his arm.

He tiptoed, careful not to make noise.

Shen Li slept deeply, breathing heavily. Recently, he had been exhausted, juggling sports department events and business courses.

Jiang Shiyu squatted before him, seeing the dark circles under his eyes, feeling a pang of sorrow. Everyone saw Shen Li as effortlessly talented, winning awards with ease, considering him a genius.

Few knew the hard work behind his success, the endless hours on the training field, the silent, lonely nights catching up on studies till dawn.

Awards and honors came from 1% talent and 99% effort, yet people only saw the 1%, ignoring the 99%.

Jiang Shiyu pulled a small blanket from his cupboard, draping it over him, then quietly left the dorm.