Orange Storm chapter 30
Falling ILL
Due to the morning rain, the plans for the evening outing with Xu Hang and others were canceled. Fang Xing stayed at home, ordered takeout, and spent the afternoon completing the assignments for the three-day holiday.
Even after dinner, Jiang Zhijin hadn’t returned. Fang Xing cleaned up, fed the cat, and, feeling idle, went back to his room to work on a set of physics problems.
This was probably what being a study enthusiast was all about, Fang Xing thought, mocking himself internally. While in the middle of writing, he heard the sound of the door opening in the living room.
He paused his actions, quietly listened for a moment, and eventually put down the pen, pushing the door open and walking out.
The living room was dim, and Fang Xing turned on the light. He then saw Jiang Zhijin lying on the sofa, covering his head with clothes, unsure if he was asleep. He walked in a bit and already smelled the scent of alcohol emanating from Jiang Zhijin.
Fang Xing furrowed his brow and asked, “Have you been drinking?”
Jiang Zhijin didn’t respond initially.
The coat partially muffled the sound, making his question less clear, and Jiang Zhijin’s thoughts were a bit muddled due to the alcohol, causing him to be less responsive to the nearby question, momentarily failing to answer.
After a while without hearing a response, Fang Xing bent down and got a little closer, calling out, “Jiang Zhijin.”
After a while, Jiang Zhijin’s voice finally came from beneath the clothes, sounding muffled.
“Who are you calling? Want a beating?”
Fang Xing smiled, but his tone remained unchanged.
“Have you been drinking?”
“Yeah.” Jiang Zhijin, thinking that his voice might not be clear, pulled the clothes covering his face slightly, revealing most of his face and a pair of eyes.
Due to the alcohol, his eyes were somewhat unnaturally flushed at the corners. His fair skin made this redness even more pronounced.
Jiang Zhijin squinted at Fang Xing, and his tone became somewhat impatient.
“What’s up?”
Fang Xing seriously suspected that Jiang Zhijin was already somewhat drunk. He extended his index finger, waved it in front of his eyes, and asked, “How many fingers am I holding up?”
Jiang Zhijin glanced at Fang Xing, couldn’t help but laugh, and said, “2.?”
Fang Xing didn’t say anything, nor did he retract his hand. Instead, he continued to wave it in front of Jiang Zhijin. Sighing, Jiang Zhijin raised his hand and grasped Fang Xing’s hand.
Perhaps due to the alcohol, his hand was a bit moist, already heated to the point where it felt hot. Fang Xing was momentarily stunned, but he reciprocated, gently pressing Jiang Zhijin’s hand and asked uncertainly, “Are you running a fever?”
“…No.” Jiang Zhijin, the first to let go of Fang Xing’s hand, replied lazily, his tone sluggish. “Just had a bit to drink. A nap will make me feel better.”
He rolled over and sat up on the sofa. The headache and dizziness became more pronounced, causing him to furrow his brow and close his eyes. Fang Xing promptly reached out to hold his shoulder.
“I’ll help you to bed,” Fang Xing said.
Without waiting for Jiang Zhijin to speak, Fang Xing directly looped Jiang Zhijin’s arm over his shoulder and helped him up.
Jiang Zhijin wasn’t particularly heavy; this was Fang Xing’s first realization.
Even with half of Jiang Zhijin’s weight pressing against him, he still didn’t feel very heavy. However, when Jiang Zhijin tilted his head, his breath fell precisely on his neck, making him slightly uncomfortable.
Jiang Zhijin’s breath was too hot, like a flame, falling on Fang Xing’s clavicle in bursts. Clearly very hot, yet it also carried a hint of dampness, making Fang Xing feel a bit itchy.
It was like encountering a sudden typhoon in the peak of summer, suppressing the wet and hot sensation within the storm.
Fang Xing glanced sideways, and the next second, he regretted it a bit.
This action brought the two people’s distance too close. Their breath almost splattered on each other’s faces, and when Fang Xing turned his head, his cheek even brushed against Jiang Zhijin’s nose.
Jiang Zhijin, who had kept his eyes closed, probably feeling truly uncomfortable, finally opened his eyes slightly and then tilted his head back a bit.
Once inside the master bedroom, Fang Xing helped Jiang Zhijin onto the bed. Jiang Zhijin lay down, covering his eyes with his arm, his brow furrowed, and he still hadn’t opened his eyes.
Fang Xing stood by the bed without rushing to leave. After a while, he reached out to touch Jiang Zhijin’s forehead.
It was a bit warm, but he wasn’t entirely sure if this temperature indicated a fever. He went to the living room and searched through the medicine cabinet, finally finding a thermometer.
A very ordinary mercury thermometer, he wiped it with alcohol before bringing it back to the room. Jiang Zhijin maintained his position without moving, as if he had fallen asleep. Fang Xing spoke gently, calling out, “Jiang Zhijin.”
“Jiang Zhijin, let’s take your temperature.”
Jiang Zhijin didn’t move, and after a long time, he mumbled a vague “Hmm.”
“Open your mouth,” Fang Xing said.
Jiang Zhijin reluctantly opened his eyes, his complexion not looking great. He squinted at Fang Xing and held eye contact. Fang Xing remained unfazed, took a glance at the thermometer, confirmed it was normal, and then placed it near Jiang Zhijin’s mouth.
“Hold it in, don’t move,” Fang Xing instructed.
After Jiang Zhijin listened, there was no movement. He stared at Fang Xing for almost a minute before suddenly bursting into laughter.
“Your words are really… if it were someone else, I’d have already slapped them,” he said.
Fang Xing was stunned for a moment, and suddenly realized the meaning behind Jiang Zhijin’s words.
Damn.
Although he had been drinking, it was the middle of the night, and there was no one else… but Jiang Zhijin unexpectedly threw out that line, catching Fang Xing off guard.
Okay, maybe there was something wrong with what he said—Fang Xing felt that his body temperature should be higher than Jiang Zhijin’s now. Although he still had no expression, he could feel the high temperature from his ears rising to his face.
Jiang Zhijin sighed with a smile, reached out to take the thermometer from Fang Xing, and put it in his mouth, closing his eyes again. When the time was up, he took it out and handed it back to Fang Xing.
Fang Xing glanced at it—39.1℃, indeed running a fever.
Compared to Fang Xing, Jiang Zhijin was quite composed. He looked at the temperature, cleared his throat, and said, “A slight fever, no need to go to the hospital. There are fever patches and fever-reducing medicine in the medicine box.”
Fang Xing found the fever patch and fever-reducing medicine, then went to boil some water.
There were two types of fever-reducing medicine, and Fang Xing followed the instructions, preparing the medicine and waiting for the water to cool before handing them to Jiang Zhijin.
After taking the medicine, Fang Xing tore open the fever patch and handed it to Jiang Zhijin. Jiang Zhijin took it, smiling, and commented, “Quite considerate.”
“Alright, I’ll put it on later. You go to sleep,” Jiang Zhijin said.
Fang Xing didn’t leave; he looked at Jiang Zhijin, who seemed a bit dazed. “Put it on now,” he insisted.
Jiang Zhijin sighed. “Kid, there are two types of fever patches in this world: ones for the forehead and ones for the abdomen. You’ve got the second type, meaning if I’m going to put it on, I’ll have to take off my shirt, and maybe even my pants. Understand?”
Fang Xing immediately understood. Jiang Zhijin laughed and said, “It’ll be fine, don’t worry.”
The numbing effect of the alcohol hadn’t worn off yet. Jiang Zhijin, looking at Fang Xing sitting on the bedside, suddenly asked, “Do you still remember that I am gay?”
Fang Xing hadn’t expected Jiang Zhijin to bring this up suddenly. Looking at Jiang Zhijin without saying anything, Jiang Zhijin smiled at him.
“I hope you don’t mind too much about this—I also hope you don’t completely disregard it. Do you understand what I mean?”
After a pause, he continued speaking.
“I also hope you don’t care too little about this matter, understand?”
Jiang Zhijin finished speaking and smiled. He raised his hand and lightly tapped Fang Xing’s forehead, then put his hand down and said, “Alright, go to sleep.”