My Boyfriend is the Heartthrob, and I'm Just a Passerby. - Chapter 18

“The modeling competition project.”

“Mm.”

“The results were taken by Chen Wanhui.”

Chen Wanhui was the professor. Yan Mei directly mentioned the name without any of the restraint expected of a student.

“…Mm.”

Hearing this, the person standing in front of him didn’t say anything. Instead, Yan Mei tilted his head slightly to one side, his dark pupils shifting in the same direction. He stared into some empty space, as if contemplating what he’d just heard.

[What should I do?]

A few minutes ago, Ye Jishu had asked himself that question.

But that was merely a stray thought that crossed his mind when he had no immediate solution.

However—

At this moment.

“What should be done,” Yan Mei said expressionlessly.

Ye Jishu froze.

Even though Yan Mei said the exact same words he had thought earlier, the feeling it gave was completely different.

It was as though…

There were countless ways to solve the problem, but due to some constraint—some effort to avoid [something undesirable]—a decision was momentarily hard to make.

“…”

[Why am I having such absurd thoughts?]

[We’re both students. Feeling powerless in the face of a professor is the normal reaction, isn’t it?]

Ye Jishu’s arms hung loosely at his sides, his shoulders feeling heavier. He had never expected Yan Mei to actually offer him any help. He had simply answered truthfully because Yan Mei had asked. Nothing more.

[It’s just simple curiosity.]

Thinking that should have put him at ease, yet the tension in his shoulder blades persisted, pulling at his nerves. He stared intently at the person in front of him, unable to look away.

Condensation trickled down the drink in his hand. The sticky, clammy sensation in his palm made his stomach feel heavy.

Suddenly, Yan Mei, still holding his gaze, smiled faintly and said, “I see.”

Ye Jishu blinked in surprise.
He opened his mouth, about to ask what Yan Mei meant—

“Buzz buzz buzz.”

Something in his hand vibrates suddenly, cutting him off.

[What is it?]

Ye Jishu shifted his gaze instinctively toward the source of the sound.

It was his phone, locked but not yet put back in his pocket.  Perhaps because he had used it recently, and coupled with the device’s age, it was now alarmingly hot in his hand.

The intense heat had reddened his palm completely, leaving the skin swollen. Ordinarily, anyone would have felt unbearable itching or pain by now, but he hadn’t noticed at all… Was it because Yan Mei’s actions had completely absorbed his attention?

Ye Jishu snapped out of it with some effort and raised his hand to glance at the screen.

Though the phone was locked, the notification on the screen displayed a portion of the message.

It was a push notification from the game he had played last night.

Ye Jishu quickly skimmed it.

The message congratulated him for becoming the 23rd player worldwide to clear the game, granting him a special reward that he needed to log in to claim.

For games he had already completed, Ye Jishu typically didn’t replay them, finding it dull once he was familiar with the content. So, even after seeing the notification, he simply swiped it away with his thumb and deleted the message.

When he looked up again, sure enough, his eyes met Yan Mei’s steady gaze.
The other had clearly noticed his earlier action.

After their gazes locked, Yan Mei smiled faintly, though the smile didn’t reach his eyes.

“You’ve been following the release updates, so you must really like that game, right? But once you’re tired of it, you just toss it aside so easily.”

Ye Jishu: “…”

Is he angry?

It seems like he’s angry again. Why? Because I like playing games?

Even though confusion bubbled within him and he felt he should figure out a way to smooth things over, Ye Jishu’s first reaction was an involuntary sigh of relief.

Because—

This version of Yan Mei felt familiar.

The expressionless façade from earlier…

It was as if some kind of mask had slipped off, exposing raw and unsettlingly vulnerable emotions beneath, making Ye Jishu’s skin crawl.

Was it his own imagination, or the aftereffects of the game?

But thinking back now, Yan Mei’s deep black eyes had remained unchanged from beginning to end.

[The other seemed to be speaking, but for some reason, the words didn’t register.]

Ye Jishu watched Yan Mei’s thin lips move.

Some people, even when they’re angry, have a way of dispelling others’ anger just by showing their face. All negative emotions vanish at the sight.

If he’s upset, holding hands should fix it.

According to their earlier agreement, as long as Ye Jishu extended his hand, Yan Mei would immediately return to his usual self.

But at this moment, Ye Jishu suddenly didn’t feel like doing it.

“…Jishu?”

It seemed Yan Mei noticed his distraction.

The latter abruptly stopped speaking. “Why aren’t you saying anything? Are you still worried about that? I’ll handle it.”

Then, Yan Mei raised his hand, probably intending to take the initiative and hold his hand as usual.

But instinctively, in a chaotic state of mind, Ye Jishu unconsciously took a step back, avoiding the hand reaching for him.

“…”

The outstretched hand froze in mid-air.

Ye Jishu realized what he had done.

He stopped abruptly, not moving further away.

They remained half a meter apart.

Driven by a sudden intuition, Ye Jishu forced himself to maintain his usual impassive expression. Switching the drink to his other hand, he pressed the cold surface of the cup against the palm burned by the phone’s heat. The contrasting temperatures caused a numbing sensation, making him almost forget his hand’s existence.

No words were spoken.

The air was filled with an oppressive silence.

“…Why did you avoid me?”

“My hand… it hurts.”

For some reason, Ye Jishu lied.

His heart was pounding.

Then he raised his hand and offered it to the person who seemed frozen in place.

“It got burned,” he explained. “I needed to hold the drink, so…”

The latter part of his explanation trailed off.

Yan Mei stared at him, expressionless, his face seemingly shadowed by an inhuman darkness.

[One second, two seconds…]

Ye Jishu’s heartbeat quickened.

Suddenly, that face returned to normal, showing a genuine, concerned expression.

“I see—how bad is it? Do you need to see a doctor?”

Ye Jishu replied, “No, it’s fine. Just icing it for a bit is enough.”

He switched the drink to his other hand, opened his palm, and showed it to Yan Mei seriously, hoping to alleviate the latter’s concern.

It was just a superficial burn.

After pressing the cold drink against it for a while, the redness had nearly subsided.

“See,” Ye Jishu said, “it’s fine now!”

Yan Mei lowered his gaze and raised his hand, his knuckles gently brushing over the lines on Ye Jishu’s palm.

He seemed to press harder than usual.

The areas he touched felt faintly itchy, and the burned spot felt raw and overly sensitive. The touch sent tingling pain coursing through him.

Three curves marked the palm.

The life line.

The career line.

The love line.

Yan Mei pressed each one deliberately.

If he applied any more pressure, the skin might bruise. But this amount—though not painful—left Ye Jishu’s legs taut and his body unable to ignore the sensation.

Ye Jishu resisted the urge to pull his hand away.

[This feels unbearable]

Only when Yan Mei withdrew his hand did Ye Jishu’s tense body finally relax. He realized he had been holding his breath the entire time.

“That’s good. I just heard the call for our number. It’s time to go in… If you feel any discomfort, be sure to tell me, okay?”

Ye Jishu nodded hurriedly.

He couldn’t deny that part of him just wanted to change the subject.

If the displayed number matched, all they needed was to present their tickets and verify their identities before entering.

Yan Mei handed their tickets to the attendant and waited for the line to move forward, leading them into the aquarium’s transparent glass entrance. Normally, during such dull moments, Ye Jishu would pull out his phone and play a game to kill time, but this time, he refrained.

What happened earlier had heightened his alertness.

Since he’d already decided to make this second date perfect, he wasn’t going to repeat his previous thoughtless actions.

The gazes around them thought themselves subtle, but they were like the shimmering water patterns projected on the ground by the aquarium’s lights—softly wavering, yet undeniably focused on Yan Mei.

If not for Ye Jishu’s presence, there was no doubt those staring tourists would have approached Yan Mei for conversation.

…At least, that much was the same as always.

As he was lost in thought, the person in front of him suddenly asked, “Who was the one messaging you earlier?”

“Wen Yuhe.”

“Mm.”

It seemed like a casual question.

But unbeknownst to Ye Jishu, a faint shadow of menace flickered across Yan Mei’s otherwise smiling face.

…

Lin Lin stood at the back of the line, taking a glance at the scene ahead as he absentmindedly bit into his bread without even looking at it.

The dry taste caught in his throat.

He nearly choked and quickly grabbed his drink to gulp it down.

“Cough, cough.”

[That was close—almost died just now.]

[But seriously, does the Bureau offer overtime pay for all-night shifts?]

Lin Lin was on duty.

After escorting two students linked to the [Source of Infection 3301] to the nearest containment center, he spent an hour filing a mission report with headquarters before rushing back to the university. He had parked outside Ye Jishu’s dormitory.

And now—

His eyes were fixed on a point not far away.

[Ye Jishu]

It was because of him that Lin Lin was here.

Lin Lin hadn’t gotten any sleep the previous night.

During his surveillance, he’d only managed to sneak off to a convenience store to grab a quick breakfast.

Ye Jishu was critical.

It was imperative to track his movements at all times.

Because the [Source of Infection 3301]’s first target would undoubtedly be Ye Jishu.

Lin Lin was certain of this because the [Source of Infection 3301] had only undergone its transformation less than twenty-four hours ago.

This was the [First Stage.]

Relatively simple and manageable.

Having just completed its transformation, the  [Source of Infection 3301] was still in a state of cerebral chaos, with its thought processes yet to recover to normal levels.

The fact that it had called out Ye Jishu’s name left no doubt: targeting him was now its sole priority.

But this crucial period only lasted three days.

In that time, one of two outcomes would occur:

• Either Ye Jishu would be killed,
• Or the [Source of Infection] would regain clarity, seize its chance, and escape.

“Neither outcome is acceptable…”

Lin Lin couldn’t help but glance at his phone again.

[Come in half an hour.]

The chatbox still displayed that single message.

But half an hour had long passed.

That damned guy with the sunglasses! How could he still not be at work? They were supposed to be on this assignment together, yet he was late again!

Frustrated, Lin Lin stuffed his phone back into his pocket.

[I’m filing a complaint to HQ about him this time!]

For now, though, he was stuck handling surveillance alone.

He could only hope he wouldn’t run into the Infection Source too soon…

After all, as a Level 2 Enforcer, he lacked the necessary clearance to deal with such an entity.

Ahead lay the [Freshwater Ecology Zone.]

As time passed, the aquarium grew more crowded. The air thickened, and the overlapping reflections on the glass walls compounded into a chaotic haze.

Lin Lin was jostled forward by the shifting crowd, interrupting his simmering frustration.

A glimmer of light caught his eye. Reflexively, he turned toward the source—
And froze as his gaze met his own reflection in the glass wall.

His pupils, faintly tinted brown in the warped glass, appeared oddly distorted by the shimmering water patterns.

Lin Lin stared at himself, momentarily dazed.

But then—
In the corner of his eye, he noticed a shadow among the crowd.

That was—

His heart clenched, and his breath caught.

At the same moment, as if to confirm his suspicions, the pen clipped inside his jacket began emitting a sharp “beep beep” sound.

The infection index was spiking.

This was—

The [Source of Infection 3301] 

In Lin Lin’s alarmed gaze, the creature swayed and stumbled, its uncoordinated movements pushing through the throng as it followed in the direction where Ye Jishu had disappeared.