Sean Parker's task today was to drag Bro Henry out of bed.

He happened to have the key to Henry Howard's dorm, which he had begged for half a day on the first day of school. He had it all planned out—whenever he wanted to skip class, he could hide out in the dorm, feeling quite pleased with himself.

As Sean Parker opened the door, he said, "Let me break the seal for you, Bro Henry! The bed may confine your body, but it can't restrain your soul. Get up and come with me—"

Sean Parker stopped abruptly mid-sentence.

Wanda, standing behind him, urged, "Still sleeping? Just shake him awake."

When Wanda stepped forward and glanced into the dorm, he too was left speechless.

""

"Hit me."

"You too, hit me."

The dorm beds were singles, and it was a tight squeeze for two people.

The air conditioner was set low, and as the door opened, a rush of cool air spilled out.

Ethan Young's head was resting on Henry Howard's arm, his back to the door. From Sean Parker's angle, it looked just like he was snuggled in Henry Howard's arms.

A corner of the blanket was draped over Henry Howard's waist, but most of the thin air-conditioning quilt was covering Ethan Young.

Ethan Young's hair covered half his face, only his nose and chin faintly visible. He must have sensed some movement, found it noisy, and frowned in his sleep, unconsciously trying to burrow deeper into the covers.

That movement disturbed Henry Howard.

Sean Parker watched as Henry Howard naturally lifted the arm Ethan Young was resting on, turned his wrist, and gently cupped the back of Ethan Young's head, his five fingers threading lightly into his hair, murmuring, "Stop fussing."

Wanda calmed down, unsure what to say, and finally just uttered, "Wow."

"Maybe things aren't what we think," Sean Parker finally closed the door, and the two of them sat on the stairs in deep thought, the soy milk casually set on the ground. "It must be that our thinking is too old-fashioned."

Wanda asked, "Does Bro Henry usually let you lie on his bed?"

Without thinking, Sean Parker replied, "No way. If I lay down, he'd definitely kick me off."

""

The conversation fell apart again.

Wanda patted Sean Parker's shoulder. "It's a long road ahead, brother. I'll go on ahead. Class is about to start."

Ethan Young's biological clock was always punctual, and he was a light sleeper. When Sean Parker came to open the door just now, half his sleepiness had already faded.

He lay in bed, consciously waited a few minutes, and when he opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was Henry Howard's Adam's apple.

Sean Parker was still sitting on the stairs, deep in thought.

Suddenly, he heard a dull thud behind him, followed by his Bro Henry's cursing: "Shit."

The morning was Thomas Thompson's Chinese reading class, and Henry Howard was still more than ten minutes late.

"Can you walk any faster?" Ethan Young supported him, already a bit impatient by the time they reached the bottom of the teaching building.

Holding his soy milk, Henry Howard retorted, "And whose fault do you think that is?"

He'd been kicked out of bed by Ethan Young early in the morning, his right ankle hitting the chair.

As they went upstairs, they saw Thomas Thompson waiting at the classroom door from a distance, holding something and pacing the corridor.

Henry Howard had almost finished his soy milk. He flicked his wrist and tossed it into the trash can, making a perfect arc.

"Smack."

Right on target.

"Here to call us to account," Henry Howard laughed. "Sorry, I might get you punished with me."

For some reason, the more time he spent with Henry Howard, the more it seemed that his smile was just a habitual mask. Like now, he didn't really seem that happy.

Henry Howard thought Thomas Thompson was here to scold him, but instead, Mr. Thompson checked his stopwatch, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Thirteen minutes and twenty-six seconds, Henry Howard. Compared to yesterday, you've made great progress today."

Henry Howard: "Huh?"

Mr. Thompson put away the stopwatch and asked, "What happened to your foot? Hurry, go to the infirmary and get it checked."

Before Henry Howard could react, Thomas Thompson was already squatting down to check his ankle, looking worried. "Go to class first, Ethan Young. I'll take him to the infirmary."

Ethan Young's impression of Mr. Thompson improved a lot, and he was about to say "okay," but Henry Howard said, "He has to take full responsibility for me today."

Ethan Young: "Why didn't I break your other leg while I was at it."

Luke Carter paused halfway through his poetry recitation, leaned over to Wanda and whispered, "That sprained ankle of Bro Henry's looks pretty real today."

Whenever Henry Howard skipped class or was late, he always put on quite a show.

They were still guessing in the Class 3 group chat what excuse Bro Henry would use for being late today.

[English Rep Quinn Shaw]: No one guessed it. Bro Henry's tricks are really colorful.

[Class Monitor Luke Carter]: Remember the first day of school when he gave Sean Parker some kind of stomach illness? Sean Parker still gets dragged to the infirmary by Bro Henry to get medicine.

[PE Rep Logan Wright]: Why?

[Class Monitor Luke Carter]: Bro Henry said, "Waste not, want not. You never know when it'll come in handy. If you're going to act, do it thoroughly."

[English Rep Quinn Shaw]:

After chatting, Luke Carter sneakily put his phone away, only to find that the usual king of gossip, Wanda, was still unmoved. "What's up with you today? Not happy?"

Wanda shook his head. "I was a bit shocked this morning."

Wanda's phone kept buzzing, but it wasn't messages from the class group. It was all sorts of girls, some he knew, some he didn't. After seventeen years of being single, he was suddenly surrounded by girls.

Hey, what's Henry Howard's number? Just give it to me, I promise I won't say it was you.

Dada, we've known each other for years, help me out? I wrote a love letter for Ethan Young, can you help me pass it on?

Why are you being so wishy-washy! Are we friends or not! It's so hard to get Henry Howard to come out, my whole life's happiness is in your hands.

Does Henry Howard have a girlfriend? What kind of girls does he like?

Wanda's head was about to explode.

Stop asking! Maybe the two of them don't even like girls!! Ah!!!

In the infirmary.

The school doctor was already very familiar with Henry Howard, even knew him by name. Wearing a white coat, he was writing at his desk. As soon as Henry Howard walked in, he said, "Yo, which act is it today?"

Half of Henry Howard's weight was leaning on Ethan Young, and he greeted the doctor, "Luke Bro, morning."

Ethan Young helped him sit on the hospital bed.

Thomas Thompson, on the other hand, looked quite nervous. "Dr. Luke, please take a look. The sprain seems pretty bad. Should we get some medicine or go to a big hospital for a checkup?"

Dr. Luke looked gentle and refined, but he wasn't someone to mess with. With so many students faking illness every day, if he were easy to fool, the school infirmary would have become a hideout for skipping class.

He finished writing a slip, tore it off, pressed it neatly to the side, then put down his pen and stood up. "Don't worry—these kids, especially this one, this Henry Howard, is a real drama—"

As Dr. Luke squatted down and touched Henry Howard's ankle, he swallowed the last word. "It's really sprained."

No bone injury. After a cold compress to reduce swelling, he sprayed some Yunnan Baiyao.

"Rest for a few days, no strenuous exercise," said Dr. Luke. "If you feel any discomfort, come back. Be careful, and don't go fighting again. If you do, you'll end up lame."

Henry Howard's ankle immediately became a spectacle when he returned to class.

Luke Carter lay on his desk, looking down, still marveling, "Looks just like the real thing."

The PE rep, Logan Wright, came over to join the fun. He was always active in sports and very familiar with common injuries. One look and he said, "This one's real, monitor. It's really sprained."

They'd been practicing basketball in PE lately, and Logan Wright wanted to form a basketball team—though there weren't any competitions, his love for sports was always raring to go.

The first person he wanted to recruit was Henry Howard.

Now it was a pity with his sprained ankle.

Luke Carter: "Ah, really? What happened?"

Quinn Shaw came over to collect yesterday's English homework. As Henry Howard flipped through his papers, he said, "You'd have to ask my deskmate about that."

Ethan Young said with a straight face, "I kicked him. Sorry."

Quinn Shaw was surprised to get the homework. "You actually turned in your homework today?"

"Of course, I did it seriously," Henry Howard said. "I was so serious, I scared myself. It's definitely top-notch."