I Can Still Salvage It

Shen Mian reluctantly released his hand that was holding Pei Zhiyi’s hand.

After giving him a kiss, he hugged Pei Zhiyi for a while.

He sighed and said, “I still have to go buy drinks for those brats. If we wait any longer, they’ll all come over.”

While speaking, he turned around with Pei Zhiyi. He remembered that there was a fruit tea shop next to the square. He had noticed earlier that the shop was still open.

However, as soon as he turned around, he noticed a few of his remaining friends sitting in a row on the bench behind him. Each of them held a cup of fruit tea and looked at him with puzzled expressions.

There were also two cups of packaged drinks placed beside them, probably meant for him and Pei Zhiyi.

Shen Mian almost couldn’t hold back his surprise and exclaimed, “What the hell!”

He didn’t know when they had arrived, but judging by their postures, holding cups of fruit tea, they had probably been watching for a while.

Trembling, he asked, “Did all of you… see it?”

All of them nodded together.

Xu Jing took a sip of his fruit tea and calmly explained, “We found out that Brother Pei paid for the hot pot and left, so we came out to look for you directly. Later, when we saw the two of you on the square and realized you hadn’t bought drinks yet, we went to buy them first.”

He didn’t say anything more, as if it was difficult to speak about it.

Han Chao took over the conversation from the side and said, “When we came back after buying the drinks, you and Brother Pei were already kissing.”

Shen Mian: “…………….”

What the hell is going on here!

He was a bit unsteady in the cold wind. Coming out of the closet was never on his agenda, and it was quite overwhelming.

But before he could actually stage a live crash, Mu Lingling handed him the drink and said, “Want some? It’s a bit cold now.”

Shen Mian took it silently and pulled Pei Zhiyi to sit down on the chair, drinking fruit tea together.

Silence filled the air, it was New Year’s Eve.

In fact, Mu Lingling and the others were also a bit conflicted. They even discussed whether to pretend that nothing happened and act as if they hadn’t seen anything.

But after a while, they noticed that Pei Zhiyi had already spotted them. His gaze went beyond Shen Mian’s head and glanced directly at them.

But Brother Pei was indeed Brother Pei. Being among the top three students in their grade had its advantages. Even in the face of an earthquake, he remained calm and just gave them a casual glance before lowering his head to look at Shen Mian.

They looked at each other for a few moments, and one by one, they came from behind the wall, squeezing onto the bench one after another, waiting for that affectionate couple to finish their heartfelt conversation.

At that moment, Shen Mian still didn’t know anything. His pale face looked dejected, as if he had been deeply affected.

Not to mention that Mu Lingling and Xu Qian had their motherly filters on, even Xu Jing and Han Chao couldn’t help but feel compassion.

Xu Jing slapped Shen Mian’s back, nearly causing him to spit out the fruit tea.

“So, bro, You’re quite capable, making a move and snatching the school’s heartthrob,” Xu Jing spoke incoherently. Seeing Shen Mian’s dumbfounded gaze and Pei Zhiyi’s strange expression, he realized what he had said and coughed, quickly regaining his composure. “No, I mean, congratulations! I wish you both a lifetime of happiness.”

Shen Mian was speechless, but Xu Jing’s nonsensical words made him laugh.

The others also relaxed.

Han Chao rubbed his head and sincerely said, “Honestly, I was really scared just now, but then I thought, it’s you and Pei Zhiyi, and it doesn’t seem like a big deal anymore.”

He had been like a worried father about to marry off his daughter, concerned that Shen Mian, being naive, might suffer in his first love.

But then he thought about how Pei Zhiyi doted on Shen Mian on a regular basis, and it seemed like it would be Pei Zhiyi who would be at a disadvantage.

Mu Lingling and Xu Qian raised their fruit tea cups to Shen Mian and said, “Congratulations.”

In fact, they had a lot to say.

Unlike the two clueless fools next to them, they had thought about many things just now. But when they looked at Shen Mian’s quickly brightening face and the way he unconsciously leaned against Pei Zhiyi, they didn’t say anything.

Shen Mian was deeply moved. He knew that his choice of friends was as reliable as his choice of a boyfriend.

He turned his head and smiled at Pei Zhiyi, who smiled back gently.

Feeling a bit shy, he said to the others, “Thank you.”

As midnight approached, they didn’t move to the center of the square for celebration but sat on the edge of a bench, counting down along with the people around them.

Han Chao had just bought several handheld sparklers from a vendor at the square. When lit, they unfolded into petal-shaped paper pieces once they fell to the ground.

He distributed them to everyone and said, “Since fireworks are not allowed in the city center, let’s use these as a substitute.”

When the moment struck midnight, they all lit their sparklers together. Pale pink and light blue petals rained down from the sky, creating a magnificent flower shower.

“Happy New Year!” Xu Jing shouted enthusiastically. “I wish to attend the same school as Mu Lingling next year!”

After realizing the impracticality of his dream, he quickly corrected himself, “Or at least in the same city.”

Mu Lingling laughed and playfully punched him.

Han Chao, being a bit more practical, joined in, ” Any university ranked above second-tier will do for me!”

Shen Mian couldn’t stop laughing.

He looked at the crowd in the square and the beautiful paper petals scattered on the ground, feeling that it was truly a delightful New Year. He held the hand of his favorite person with his right hand, while sitting beside a group of sincere and genuine friends on his left.

“Bro,” he leaned against Pei Zhiyi’s ear and spoke only for him to hear, “I will get into X University.”

After the New Year’s countdown ended, the crowd in the square gradually dispersed. The group didn’t hang around either and took two cars back to the school.

In the dormitory area, the girls went to the right, and the boys went to the left.

When they reached the entrance of their dormitory, Xu Jing and Han Chao looked at the interaction between Pei Zhiyi and Shen Mian and suddenly had an epiphany, thinking of something else.

Before, they had only thought of Pei Zhiyi and Shen Mian as close buddies who shared everything, so naturally, they would live together.

But now, they suddenly realized that that was clearly the love nest of two lovers!

In the quiet of the night, with the dormitory door closed, nobody knew what was happening in the special dorm room.

Xu Jing and Han Chao looked a bit conflicted. They glanced at Shen Mian’s fair and delicate face, which seemed especially young, and their hearts trembled for a moment.

Hesitantly, Xu Jing said, “Brother Pei, we leave Mian Mian in your hands from now on, but he’s a bit naive… Please don’t take advantage of him.”

Han Chao vigorously nodded.

Shen Mian looked at the two of them, wondering what went wrong with them.

Pei Zhiyi was also a bit puzzled.

But Han Chao and Xu Jing stopped at that point, not saying anything more. They quickly opened the door and hurried into the dormitory.

After half an hour, Shen Mian learned of their intentions.

It was because Xu Jing secretly sent him a bunch of gay adult content, in high definition no less, and earnestly taught him, “Mian, although it’s obvious you can’t beat Brother Pei physically, you can outsmart him with your knowledge.”

Han Chao joined in the fun and formed a secretive little group with the three of them.

He said, “My bro, while we understand the passion between lovers, think about the heartbroken look in teacher Ding’s eyes and the school rules and regulations. You can’t let Brother Pei have an easy victory!”

Shen Mian: “…………….”

High school boys’ thoughts are truly dirty!

Seeing the two of them going back and forth, he couldn’t take it anymore. “Pour out the trash in your heads. Do you think everyone is as perverted as you?”

He asked Xu Jing, “Where did you get all these resources? Be careful, or I’ll tell Mu Lingling!”

Xu Jing calmly said, “Where do you think I got my resources from? It’s all thanks to her forcefully giving them to me.”

Shen Mian: “…”  He had forgotten that Xu Jing’s girlfriend was also perverted.

Seeing that those two would continue babbling, Shen Mian coldly blocked them and turned a blind eye.

Shen Mian blocked those two idiots and his gaze fell on the pile of videos Xu Jing had sent him.

Shen Mian was a pure and innocent high school boy, he would definitely not be corrupted by those things.

He glanced at the bathroom, where Pei Zhiyi was taking a shower and wouldn’t come out for a while. Then, his finger resolutely clicked the play button.

Blushing, he thought, “I’ll just watch. I won’t do anything.”

…

After a while, Pei Zhiyi came out of the bathroom while Shen Mian was still curled up in bed, staring in shock at the door to a new world.

Damn, can this thing fit in there too!

He couldn’t help but gasp and touched his own butt, suspecting that if he made that same movement, he would definitely break a bone.

But before he could finish his thoughts, someone lifted the covers.

Pei Zhiyi stood by the bed, wearing a gray robe, his face cold and handsome, seemingly unaffected by worldly desires.

At a glance, he saw what was playing on Shen Mian’s phone.

He sat down and read aloud, word for word, “Campus Teacher-Student Series?”

Shen Mian hurriedly turned it off in a flustered manner and said, “No, bro, let me explain.”

But Pei Zhiyi didn’t want to listen at all. He looked at Shen Mian for a moment, reflected deeply on himself, and then reached over to unbutton Shen Mian’s sleepwear. He casually said, “Go ahead, I’m listening.”

“This was sent to me by that idiot Xu Jing,” Shen Mian tried to protect himself while explaining, struggling with his buttons, feeling completely helpless. “Bro, believe me. It’s not something I wanted to watch.”

Pei Zhiyi was very gentle. “Hmm, I believe you.”

And then he stripped Shen Mian completely.

Lowering his head, he bit down on Shen Mian’s smooth shoulder.

Shen Mian let out a whimper, knowing that he couldn’t escape this.

The room was dim, and the snow-capped mountains and cranes on the bed sheet moved up and down with their actions. Two hands emerged from the edge of the blanket, tightly clasped together, and Shen Mian’s rounded nails dug into Pei Zhiyi’s flesh. A couple of arousing moans escaped from beneath the covers.

After a while, a considerable amount of the bedding slid onto the floor. A pair of legs emerged from the edge, originally of a snow-white and delicate color, but now they were tightly arched, revealing a hint of pale pink.

…

Because they had been busy all day, Shen Mian was already very tired.

Pei Zhiyi restrained himself from going too far and didn’t take it to the end.

He kissed the corner of Shen Mian’s teary eyes.

Shen Mian’s mind was foggy, but he still reflexively called out to him, “Brother.”

He had always called Pei Zhiyi “brother,” even though they were only a few months apart and he refused to address him by his name directly. When he was young, it was because by calling him that, he could pretend that Pei Zhiyi was his real brother, an inseparable part of his family. But at that moment, that “brother” carried a different kind of emotional resonance.