My Boyfriend is the Heartthrob, and I'm Just a Passerby. - Chapter 3

The dormitory was on the third floor.

As Ye Jishu climbed the stairs, he glanced at the hallway.

There was an elevator.

But it was tightly closed.

The outer walls were somewhat weathered, with rusty and yellowing edges visible through the gaps in the iron doors.

The Mathematics Department dormitory was an old building.

Although it had an elevator, no one dared use it due to its age and the reported malfunctions.

It had even become a campus ghost story.

Years ago, during summer break, a student who stayed behind was tragically trapped in the aging elevator. The operator had left, and the phone signal was lost, leaving the student unable to contact anyone outside. They were forced to stay in a confined, dark space and eventually died of starvation.

When the elevator door was finally opened, the stench was overwhelming.

It was summer, so food left overnight would start to ferment, and the smell from the sealed elevator was immediately overpowering—corrupting, sticky, and foul. The floor was covered in a slippery, meat-colored liquid…

But that was just a rumor.

The university was top-tier and there would be patrolling staff during summer break. And if a student went missing, their family would be frantic. Even if they had to call the police, the authorities would contact the university immediately. Since the disappearance wasn’t in a remote area, reviewing the surveillance footage would easily locate the person.

Of course, Ye Jishu had heard a more detailed version.

The student had stayed behind after an exam, anxious about failing advanced algebra and mathematical analysis. They cried alone in the dorm, unaware that everyone else had left, leading to the unfortunate entrapment.

“…”

It was very understandable.

The Mathematics Department had a reputation for driving people mad.

Ye Jishu’s results for the Mathematical Modeling Competition will be announced in a week.

If he faced a similar “failure” scenario, he might also end up crying.

Thinking of this, he tightened his grip on his backpack.

Why did it feel like this novel was setting things up so realistically? He was just a passerby character. Was the Mathematics Department setting up this story as a joke? He’d rather study folklore like the protagonist shou…

Lost in thought, he climbed the stairs.

Soon, he reached his floor.

His dorm room was 311, located at the very end of the hall, so he had to walk through the corridor length to reach it.

Upon opening the door, the dorm room appeared unusually spacious.

Since there were few students in the Mathematics Department, despite the dorm being designed for four people, it usually housed only three.

Each student had their own cabinet.

The beds were lofted with desks below, so there was no worry about things getting mixed up.

As for the three roommates—

One was a local and didn’t stay often, so their bed was covered in dust.

The other—

Ye Jishu placed his backpack on his desk and glanced at the opposite side.

The bed curtain was tightly drawn.

Even though he heard the sound of the door opening, there was no movement from that bed.

Only when he turned his back and changed from his sportswear into a casual jacket did he hear a few faint “rustling” sounds behind him, followed by a focused gaze seemingly landing on his back, staying there without drawing attention.

Someone was watching him.

Ye Jishu finished changing, turned around, and, as expected, saw that the previously tightly shut bed curtain had been drawn slightly open. The fabric was bunched up at the edges, and a single eye peeked through the narrow gap.

That eye was quietly observing him.

Seeing him suddenly turn around, the roommate was visibly startled. He shrank back, causing the bed frame to creak unpleasantly.

“I—I was reading the Advanced Algebra book,” the roommate stammered.

In response, papers shuffled noisily from the darkness of the bed, the sound of frantic rustling evident.

Ye Jishu said nothing.

They stared at each other in silence for a few seconds.

Seeing that Ye Jishu wasn’t angry, the roommate seemed to gather some courage, looked at Ye Jishu, and tentatively, like a fly, asked, “I—I… You, you have his scent on you… Are—are you two going on a date?”

The ‘he’ in the question clearly refers to someone whose identity is obvious.

Ye Jishu’s expression remained impassive.

That’s right—another roommate is probably a socially anxious, delusional otaku.

Even though they’ve never met in person.

—Yet, this person referred to “his scent.”

Yan Mei doesn’t actually use perfume.

But every time they interact, Ye Jishu can smell a faint, indescribably pleasant scent from him.

It makes one want to get closer and hold on forever.

The roommate must have picked up on this scent somehow. Ye Jishu doesn’t want to know the details.

After all, this is just how the character is.

Even though the protagonist shou has never spoken to him, or even seen him, the roommate fell obsessively in love after seeing a photo on a campus forum and began obsessively following the protagonist shou’s every move.

Although they were once just indifferent roommates, once they learned that Ye Jishu became the protagonist shou’s boyfriend, they devoted an enormous amount of energy to keeping tabs on him.

Now, hearing about the date, the emotions in his eyes seemed to be a mix of an intense desire to prevent it and jealousy.

Thus, he murmured, “Could you not go…”

“No.”

Not wanting to say much, Ye Jishu pulled out the charger from his sports jacket, stuffed it into his new jacket’s pocket, and then left the dorm.

Despite his cold attitude, he could still feel his roommate’s gaze, like a tangible object, lingering on his back through the gap in the bed curtain.

…

Ye Jishu went downstairs.

From a distance, he saw Yan Mei still standing in the same spot he had left, head down, seemingly playing on his phone.

But he wasn’t alone.

In front of him, two people were blocking his path, apparently trying to talk to him.

From Ye Jishu’s angle, he could only see the faces of the strangers, not Yan Mei’s expression.

There was a man and a woman.

The woman was unfamiliar, but the man looked somewhat familiar.

Ye Jishu furrowed his brow slightly, zipped up his jacket, and quickened his pace toward the group.

As he got closer, he could already hear the vague noise coming from the group.

What’s going on?

Nearby, voices whispered, “Is that the person? From the Art Department?”

Art Department.

The keywords reached his ears.

Ye Jishu paused.

He remembered who the person was.

The notorious rich second-generation heir.

Famous not only for his family background but also for his chaotic personal relationships.

It was said that he was notorious for being predatory and manipulative, even pushing his ex-girlfriend to suicide, but it was covered up due to his powerful connections.

A week ago, in a public class, he loudly declared that he would “definitely win Yan Mei over.”

“No matter if he has a boyfriend,” he scoffed, saying to those around him, “It’s not about who’s in the way, anyone could be won over.”

Ye Jishu happened to be in that class.

He stopped playing his phone game.

He looked up and carefully examined the face of the person he had remembered.

At that moment, he recognized the face.

He originally wanted to approach directly, but remembering who it was, he slowed his pace.

Should he go over now?

This rich heir was probably one of the protagonist shou’s pursuers.

“…”

In the end, Ye Jishu stopped and observed the group from a distance.

The rich heir’s face, with its typical arrogant expression, seemed even more haughty up close. Even when he forced himself to lower his voice and speak gently, it still felt very out of place.

As for the other person, the woman was deeply bowing her head, her long hair falling over her face, hiding half of it.

Ye Jishu saw her biting her lip and clutching her clothes tightly.

She was said to be his current girlfriend.

How bizarre.

Bringing the current girlfriend along to pursue another person.

“Just a cheap accessory.”

Accessory?

Ye Jishu’s gaze shifted to Yan Mei.

He was the center of attention.

Even so, his side profile was startlingly indifferent. He was focused on his phone with a cold, expressionless demeanor that made him seem insignificant.

When he lifted his eyes at the noise, his cold gaze made others feel a chilling unease.

However, the person being looked at seemed oblivious, slightly blushing.

“Cheap?” Yan Mei said.

Ye Jishu looked at his phone.

The charm on the phone case was just a torn black zipper ring, with a small, cheap octopus missing.

…

Ah.

So that was it.

Ye Jishu blinked, finally understanding.

There should be a small, purple-red octopus on it.

It was a plastic toy, poorly made and cheap, probably costing less than ten dollars.

The rich heir was right—it was cheap.

It was a toy he won from a claw machine at an arcade.

It looked a bit ugly and cute.

He thought he would dislike it once he had it.

But Yan Mei had stared at the small octopus for a few seconds, put it in his pocket, and it ended up as a phone charm.

“I didn’t mean to tear it off.

Falling into the lake was entirely an accident…”

The rich heir continued talking to himself.

Meanwhile, his arrogance was blatant, and although he was apologizing, he clearly didn’t care much about the issue.

A lake?

Indeed, there was an artificial lake below their dormitory building.

Yan Mei was standing by the lake, which is why the toy likely fell into the water when it was torn off.

Ye Jishu watched, lost in thought.

Suddenly, Yan Mei turned his head and precisely looked toward his direction.

Caught observing, Ye Jishu: “…”

The eyes that had initially brightened upon noticing him suddenly darkened, like a stormy sky.

“…”

Yan Mei turned back without saying a word.

Then, he finally directed his attention back to the rich heir who was still trying to gain his attention.

“I understand now.”

It wasn’t a question.

Just a flat, unremarkable statement.

Yet, it finally elicited a response.

The rich heir, thrilled, looked eagerly at Yan Mei.

But upon meeting his gaze, his body involuntarily shivered.

His mind buzzed.

He stammered, “O-of course, it’s just a toy. I can give you whatever you want…”

This time, it seemed like the right answer.

The indifferent person in front of him finally showed a reaction, a faint smile appearing.

It was not an appropriate time for a smile.

The smile didn’t reach his eyes, which were filled with malicious intent.

He said softly, “Is that so? Then now, jump into the lake and get it for me.”