My Boyfriend is the Heartthrob, and I'm Just a Passerby. - Chapter 1

“Did he even notice?”

“We’ve been targeting him for so long. There’s no way he hasn’t noticed, right?”

“Goddammit, I’ve said it before—we should’ve just beaten him up already. This is pissing me off.”

“All these harmless little tricks? We might as well do something big to teach him a real lesson!”

“…..”

Furious voices echoed nearby, completely unfiltered. The arrogance was palpable—they didn’t care whether the person they were talking about could hear them or not.

At the same time, sharp, needle-like stares focused on one spot.

Ye Jishu lay on the desk, glancing expressionlessly through the gap between his folded arms, as if he were sleeping, at the few people whispering nearby.

This was bullying.

But the target wasn’t just anyone—it was him.

As for the reason—

“I still don’t get what’s so special about this guy. He barely talks all day. Sure, his grades are better, but…” one person growled, voice low and face twisted with jealousy. “It’s just not fair that ‘he’ got a boyfriend…”

Jealousy, anger, and resentment.

These extreme emotions existed solely because ‘that person’ had become Ye Jishu’s boyfriend.

“If I’d known ‘he’ was into guys, I would’ve made a move ages ago. Who knows, maybe I could’ve—”

Jealousy shifted into deep, bone-cutting regret, the words dripping with bitterness. It was as if they were saying that if they could turn back time, they’d go to any lengths—even if it killed them—to grab the tiniest chance of being with that person.

But.

That was impossible.

Ye Jishu glanced at the one who was speaking.

Heh.

A nameless extra in the story, someone who would never have even the slightest connection to the heartthrob protagonist shou.

Because this was a novel.

…

Half a month ago.

Ye Jishu’s consciousness awakened, and he realized that he was just a character in a book.

But reality didn’t give him much time to process this. The plot crammed into his brain was so wild that it instantly grabbed his attention.

This was a brainless harem novel.

Anyone who interacted with the protagonist shou would quickly fall in love—unconditionally, with no choice in the matter. They’d even lose all sense of reason, abandoning their pride and dignity. A single word from the protagonist shou could make them sacrifice their life without hesitation.

Even if the protagonist shou had a boyfriend.

It didn’t matter, because “I’m in love with you, not him.”

For that love, they would resort to any means, using force or deceit, doing things that normal people couldn’t comprehend.

And to be honest—

Having a boyfriend… didn’t that just make things more exciting?

Stealing someone else’s lover and adding some messy drama? That’s exactly the kind of thing these readers loved.

However, Ye Jishu’s role in this story had nothing to do with the protagonist shou, nor even the side characters. He was slightly more important than a nameless extra, but only because—

He was the official boyfriend of the heartthrob protagonist shou.

The one whose boyfriend gets stolen.

The one drenched in melodramatic misery.

The one trampled on mercilessly.

And the tool whose mere presence added to the forbidden, taboo atmosphere.

In name, he was the protagonist shou’s boyfriend, but in reality, he was just there to spice up the emotional tension and add a different flavor to the drama.

“I bet he likes me too, he just never confessed…”

The person in front of him was still lost in his own world.

But when he raised his head, he met Ye Jishu’s cold, emotionless gaze. It was as if someone had dumped a bucket of cold water over him.

What kind of look was that…

Was that a pity? Like he didn’t stand a chance?

In an instant, his mind buzzed, and his rationality snapped. His face and ears flushed bright red with the sudden explosion of rage.

“What are you looking at?!”

Just because he was quick to claim the title of boyfriend didn’t mean he was anything special!

Furious, he stomped forward, reaching out to grab Ye Jishu by the collar, planning to pull him up forcefully.

Compared to his muscular, athlete-like build, Ye Jishu’s body was thin, his skin pale. He was clearly the type who lacked physical training. The outcome seemed obvious—two other boys behind him were already smirking in anticipation of the show.

However, the moment he reached out, Ye Jishu didn’t dodge. Instead, he calmly grabbed the other boy’s wrist. Without changing his expression, he gave it a light twist, and suddenly, a sharp pain shot through the boy’s arm—!

His teeth ground together with a squeal.

His muscles seized up, completely beyond his control.

No, no, no!

Amid his scream of agony, Ye Jishu slowly stood from his seat. He watched as the other boy’s face contorted in pain, his body crumbling inch by inch until he trembled and collapsed, sinking to his knees.

In a brief instant, their positions were reversed.

Ye Jishu slowly leaned down, his face close to the other’s, and under the widened pupils strained with pain, he said, “Like someone else—he’s my boyfriend.”

It was a warning.

A mere side character falling for a heartthrob never ends well.

“…”

But the guy, now under his cold gaze, was completely stunned, staring at Ye Jishu’s face just inches away.

This…

After watching him for days, he thought Ye Jishu was someone emotionally numb. His expressionless face looked as though the muscles in his face had lost their function. Yet even now, his face showed not the slightest change in emotion.

It was almost—

And at such a close distance, he could see Ye Jishu’s long eyelashes and pale, porcelain-like skin. His finely chiseled features, which had been ignored due to his blank expressions and the cold aura that kept people away, were now fully revealed.

There was a small mole on the bridge of his nose.

For some reason, seeing this, the boy’s body suddenly became hot.

Before his mind could settle down, the words slipped out of his mouth.

“Then, what if I liked you instead? Would that be okay?”

“…..”

“……”

His face twisted in shame and rage as soon as he realized what he had just said. He gritted his back teeth hard, “I-I didn’t mean that—I just—”

“Jishu.”

Suddenly, a voice interrupted the tense atmosphere, breaking it instantly.

Ye Jishu immediately turned his head towards the elective classroom door.

The person who spoke stood in the doorway.

Their presence was striking, colliding straight into the eyes of everyone present.

Black hair, slightly long, cascaded behind his neck. His eyes slanted slightly upward.

He seemed indifferent to everyone, yet his mere appearance sent a cold thrill through the air as if deliberately teasing.

In that brief moment, the classroom seemed to buzz with a restless energy.

His presence was simply too overwhelming to ignore.

It was as if reality had been shattered, and his mere appearance forced that awareness into everyone’s mind, making their bodies tremble, and their hearts itch with an indescribable sensation.

After all, this was someone who, upon being seen, would stop anyone’s breath—a face so striking it could shatter your reason with a single glance. The mere sweep of his gaze would make you lose control, just wishing for him to look at you a little longer.

“Is it him…?”

“I’ve never felt this way before—”

“If I ask him for his number right now, do you think he’d give it to me?”

“…..”

Yet despite the intense stares at him, the person in question acted as if he felt nothing, or perhaps he simply didn’t care.

Those pitch-black eyes, so dark they didn’t even reflect light, were focused solely on Ye Jishu.

…The weight of that gaze was palpable.

But then, his eyes shifted downward, resting on the point where Ye Jishu’s hand was still gripping the wrist of the boy from earlier.

“…!”

Ye Jishu felt a sudden, stomach-churning sense of dread, like he’d missed a step on a staircase. He quickly let go of the boy’s wrist, and the latter, caught off guard, slammed into the desk leg, letting out a series of painful groans.

Ah, sorry.

Ye Jishu mentally apologized without sincerity.

After all, the person who had just arrived was important.

This was the protagonist shou of the story.

—Yan Mei.

Even though there was a trace of annoyance in his eyes, his lips still held a slight curve, making it seem like he might say something. This was why most people, when faced with his overwhelming beauty, still dared to hope they had a chance with him.

Of course, it was also why those supporting characters kept throwing themselves at him.

Staring at Yan Mei for a few seconds, Ye Jishu suddenly snapped back to reality, realizing something.

Wait…?

Why was Yan Mei at his classroom door? Shouldn’t he be attending the film club activity right now?

Both of them were freshmen.

Unlike Ye Jishu, who was too lazy to join any clubs, Yan Mei joined the film club as soon as school started. Every Tuesday afternoon, the club hosted a group movie screening in the evening, so at this time, Yan Mei should’ve been helping set up the event with the other club members.

Blinking in confusion, Ye Jishu watched Yan Mei enter the classroom.

He stopped when he was close enough, then, in front of everyone, naturally brushed aside Ye Jishu’s long bangs, which he had been too lazy to trim. His actions were casual and without hesitation, making it clear to everyone in the room just how close they were.

“…,” Ye Jishu thought.

He’s so close.

Faced with this beautiful face… could anyone really say no if he asked for something?

Especially with this expression.

It almost seemed as if he truly liked him.

“Want to grab dinner together?”

Even his voice was gentle.

As Ye Jishu stood there, momentarily stunned, Yan Mei impatiently glanced at the boy still on the floor. The boy’s face flushed, and for some reason, he seemed to struggle for breath. Instinctively, he scrambled backward on hands and knees, hurriedly retreating from their range.

Ye Jishu came back to his senses.

“Dinner?”

“The weather’s bad, looks like it’s going to rain,” Yan Mei smiled slightly. “The film club’s event tonight allows guests, so I thought we could watch it together. Before that, we could have dinner.”

“…Call me in the evening.”

Ye Jishu could feel the heated stares from the others growing stronger.

Although the two of them had been together for several months, every time they interacted like this, the people around them would stare, unable to look away, as if they still couldn’t accept it. Their envious and hateful glares felt like bugs crawling under his skin.

But Ye Jishu didn’t blame them.

Honestly, he still didn’t feel like he had a boyfriend.

Even though he held the official title, he preferred to avoid unnecessary conflict. Small provocations like today’s weren’t worth his attention. If it were one of the supporting characters, maybe he’d make an effort, but from anyone else, it just felt like a waste of time.

“….Don’t feel like watching the movie?” Yan Mei asked.

Ye Jishu explained, “I didn’t say that.”

“…Or is it that you don’t want to be seen with me?”

“That’s not what I meant.”

Yan Mei was silent for a few seconds: “…Alright, I understand. Let’s skip dinner, I’ll come by your dorm later?”

Dinner was fine, and he hadn’t refused. Why did he say it like that?

Something still felt off.

It was like his meaning hadn’t been understood at all.

Were those three questions meant to convey different things?

What did those few seconds of silence mean, and why did his smile waver, his voice lowering…?

Ye Jishu tried to make sense of the situation, but he still felt a little lost.

Was it because of that?

The whole “couples need to spend time together” thing.

Though the plot kept being interrupted by third-party interference, at least for now, their relationship was legitimate. And over the past few months, thanks to Yan Mei, they’d spent practically twenty out of every twenty-four hours together—was this what a relationship was supposed to be like? He’d wondered about it, but maybe that’s just what people in love do.

He didn’t want to be an irresponsible boyfriend.

Even if he wasn’t the one of the gongs, he couldn’t afford to fall short in front of everyone else.

Maybe it was a strange sense of competition.

With that thought, Ye Jishu suddenly made up his mind to put in all his effort to be thoughtful.

“Don’t come over.”

Their departments were far apart.

Their dorms were even farther, and walking all that way would be troublesome for him.

But—

“Don’t come…?”

The voice paused, “So, you don’t want to see me?”

“…”

It felt like his words were being twisted further away from their original meaning.

Help, help.

He had to clarify immediately.

“That’s not it,” Ye Jishu quickly said.

Hearing this, Yan Mei immediately stopped talking and stared straight at him.

“That’s not what I meant. I’ll go. We’ll eat and watch the movie.”

Upon hearing his answer, Yan Mei’s face finally broke into a smile.

“That’s good,” he said. “Having you there will make even a boring movie event interesting.”

As Yan Mei’s mood lightened, Ye Jishu’s tense body, which had stiffened against his will, finally began to relax.

It seemed like he had given the right answer.

But what was that strange, unnerving feeling from before…?

Glancing downward unconsciously, Ye Jishu caught sight of Yan Mei’s shadow on the ground. For a moment, it seemed to twitch, almost as if it had distorted.

Ye Jishu blinked in surprise.

But when he looked again, the shadow was perfectly normal, as if that brief moment had been nothing but a trick of the eye.

“…”

He blinked again.

It must have been the lighting. That’s what was affecting the shadows.

The weather has been strange in recent months.

It was always cloudy, the sky heavy with dark clouds that seemed ready to fall at any moment, leaving a stuffy, oppressive feeling in the air that made his skin crawl with an uneasy chill.

Thinking this, Ye Jishu looked at Yan Mei, who had returned to his relaxed, smiling self.

No wonder he was a heartthrob.

His mere presence seemed to have the power to drive away the gloom.

Seeing such a beautiful face made Ye Jishu feel like being a mere side character wasn’t so bad after all.

The only thing left to wonder was…

How long would this relationship last?