Quinn Shaw: "Shameless."

Wanda: "So shameless."

Ethan Young: "Heh."

"Boss, it's your turn." Wanda winked at Ethan Young.

Ethan Young said, "I don't have anything to ask either."

Henry Howard: "No way, that's disrespectful."

Ethan Young: ""

When Ray Jones called Ethan Young, they hadn't even chatted for a couple of minutes before he could tell Boss Young was in a good mood: "What happened? Why are you so happy?"

Ethan Young didn't say much, just asked back, "What about you? You've been giggling ever since you called."

"Belle that brat called today!" Ray Jones said, "Don't worry, I scolded him for you too. That brat, really asking for it, just has to be scolded."

Belle's call was really unexpected, an overseas call, and no one even cared about the cost. Ray's Mom and Aunt May and the others lined up to chat with Belle, but Ray Jones hogged the phone and refused to let go. In the end, he had to stick his upper body out the window, butt sticking out, just to keep the wolf-like neighbors from snatching the phone away. He even got kicked twice by Ray's Mom on the butt, almost fell out from the fourth floor.

Ethan Young pictured the scene: "That's a real mom for you."

Big Ray said, "A real mom, what a sarcastic phrase."

"Belle said he's doing fine over there, told us not to worry. That guy even showed off, said his looks aren't that popular back home, but abroad everyone thinks he's a super handsome guy. And that stupid plant, that plant is really his favorite, he thinks about it all the time."

"I told him, that crappy basketball court we used to play on together got torn down—just a few rags strung up, even calling it a court was a stretch, but now there's a new activity center in the neighborhood, a new court! After all these years, finally a new court! That smell of rubber baking in the sun, just makes you feel great. When he comes back, we'll play together again."

Ray Jones rambled on for a while.

Ethan Young listened, chiming in now and then.

"Boss Young, are you going to sleep?"

"No, keep talking."

Ray Jones was standing on the balcony making the call. It was late at night, and he didn't want to wake his family. He held a cigarette between his fingers, the tip glowing in the dark. He flicked the ash and said, "What am I even saying, honestly, I feel pretty down."

Ethan Young didn't say anything.

"Don't listen to me sounding all happy," Ray Jones's voice dropped, maybe from the smoking or something else, the end of his words a little hoarse, "Forget it, never mind, what am I even saying."

Ray Jones looked down from the balcony, at the view he'd seen for over ten years: tangled wires, and someone's air conditioner blanket blown downstairs by the wind.

Looking further out, there was the old concrete basketball court surrounded by rags, now turned into a public restroom. Even the restroom looked better than their buildings, European style, with a few pointy little spires sticking up awkwardly.

He was about to hang up when he heard Ethan Young say, "I'm down too. Every day it's just a bunch of crap, damn Second Young Cooper, all that 'young master this, young master that', it's just brainless."

The melancholy in Ray Jones's heart was chased away by Ethan Young's cursing.

He stubbed out his cigarette, laughed, and joined in: "Damn it, I just like playing ball with my bros in the middle of those rags. Changing the court messes with my game, you know the world just lost an NBA star because of this. And that restroom, it's ugly as hell, one day I'm gonna blow it up."

Neither of them got all sentimental and said what was really on their minds, but they both felt a lot better.

"I got into a fight with an idiot today," Ethan Young said with a laugh, "My deskmate, you know him."

Ray Jones asked, "How would I know your deskmate? We're not even in the same city. Is he good-looking?"

Ethan Young said, "Super hot."

""

Ray Jones thought about it, there weren't many people he'd call Mr. Handsome, besides himself, only Ethan Young fit that title—completely forgetting that time at the police station during summer break, when he was squatting with his head in his hands, praising someone as Mr. Handsome.

"No way, you're messing with me."

They chatted for a while, then Ray Jones suddenly went quiet. He held his breath for a moment, then asked, "What's that sound?"

"Boss Young, what's that sound on your end? It's weird."

Ethan Young heard it too, another knocking sound from who knows where, this time really close to his dorm. He said casually, "Congratulations, that's our dorm's ghost story."

Ray Jones: "Your dorm is haunted???"

"Surprised?" Ethan Young said, "I'll tell you later, Mr. Handsome is probably shivering under the covers, I'm going to check it out."

------------

23. Chapter Twenty-Three

When evening self-study ended, Henry Howard stuck to Ethan Young on the way back to the dorm.

He even wanted to hook his left arm around Wanda, so that Ethan Young and Wanda would each stand on one side, but Wanda sensibly dodged away: "That's not, not, not a good idea, you two can just be lovey-dovey together."

Ethan Young was a bit annoyed: "Which eye of yours sees us being lovey-dovey?"

Wanda thought, both of them do.

He watched as Henry Howard practically leaned his whole body toward Ethan Young, but in the end, he didn't say anything.

"Wanna come to my room and play some single-player games?"

"No."

"There's a basketball game on tonight, interested?"

"Nope."

They were already at the dorm door. Ethan Young took out his key to open the door, but Henry Howard still wouldn't give up, going all in: "The monthly exam is coming up, maybe we could study together?"

Ethan Young didn't say a word, just closed the door.

""

After chatting with Ray Jones, Ethan Young checked the time: 1 a.m.

The knocking sounds usually happened between 12:30 and 1:00. The floor being knocked on changed every night, but it was always between the first and third floors. Maybe "it" didn't want the hassle of going higher, so the fourth floor and above were safe for now.

If it really was someone playing tricks, that person sure had stamina, staying up so late every night.

Ethan Young grabbed an English test paper and went out. The knocking had already stopped, and the hallway was empty.

The motion sensor light was unreliable, flickering on and off, and the light was dim.

When Ethan Young knocked on the door of the room across the hall, he felt something thrown from inside, hitting the door, then heard Henry Howard's voice, sounding on the verge of a breakdown: "Enough already, knock one more time and see what happens!"

""

Ethan Young knocked twice more.

After that, there was no more movement inside.

Henry Howard, wrapped in his blanket, holding his phone, was mentally screaming a thousand "damn it"s.

He'd just thrown out a threat, and this thing actually understood.

Even dared to provoke him.

Ethan Young waited a while, ruled out the possibility that this person was looking for a tool to bust out and fight, and compromised: "Open up, it's me, your grandpa."

Half a minute later, the door opened.

Henry Howard opened the door with a calm expression, acting cool: "What brings you here?"

Ethan Young suspected this guy had messed up his hair on purpose. Besides the hair, the loose, open collar was also suspicious, and his eyes looked like they'd been rubbed hard—he was clearly trying to look like he'd just been sleeping.

Henry Howard didn't disappoint. He leaned against the door, striking a pose, and ran his hand through his hair: "Ah, I was sleeping."

Ethan Young looked at him, feeling a headache coming on.

If someone like Henry Howard ever died, it would definitely be from being too dramatic.

After a moment, Ethan Young said, "Sorry to bother you."

""

Henry Howard dropped the act: "Huh?" Not playing by the rules?

Ethan Young thought he shouldn't have bothered, should've just let him be.

"You woke me up, so you have to take responsibility," Henry Howard grabbed him and wouldn't let go. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the English test paper in Ethan Young's hand and said, "English test? Want to do homework together? You're welcome, don't be shy. If you can't do a problem, I might not be able to either, I definitely won't laugh at you."

Henry Howard: "You can trust me when it comes to studying together."

Yeah, right.

Ethan Young thought it, but didn't say it out loud.

Henry Howard's dorm was actually pretty decent.

He'd just moved in this semester, didn't have much stuff, so it looked pretty empty. Ethan Young had thought he was the type to make a mess and never clean up, but seeing it now, he was surprised.