Orange Storm chapter 26
Little Brother
Although he said so, Fang Xing didn’t go to sleep immediately after returning to his room. His mind was in a mess, and he had no sleepiness at all, so he decided to solve some math problems for an hour.
The room was very quiet. He could vaguely hear Jiang Zhijin opening the door to the bathroom, coming out, closing the door, opening the bedroom door, and then closing it.
Fang Xing twirled the pen in his hand, packed everything, turned off the lights, and lay back on the bed.
It seemed like the incident had been gently brushed aside. The next day, he went to school as usual. Jiang Zhijin was still not up, so Fang Xing bought soy milk and deep-fried dough sticks at the school gate. By the time he finished eating, it was just in time to reach the classroom.
As soon as he entered the classroom, he received a gaze from Tan Zhuo.
Tan Zhuo sat at his desk, staring straight at Fang Xing, his eyes filled with fear, nervousness, and a hint of anger. When Fang Xing looked back at him, Tan Zhuo quickly lowered his head.
He was probably afraid that Fang Xing would talk about last night’s incident.
Dealing with this early in the morning made Fang Xing a bit annoyed, but he didn’t bother to argue with him. He walked directly to his seat and sat down. Jiang Xinxin, sitting in front, turned around to look at him.
“Morning.” Jiang Xinxin.
Unexpectedly, Fang Xing nodded and said, “…morning.”
“Did you solve the last physics problem from yesterday?” Jiang Xinxin asked with a hint of embarrassment, biting her lip. “I calculated it, felt something was off, and wanted to compare answers.”
“Sure.” Fang Xing took out the physics homework from last night and handed it to Jiang Xinxin. “The problem from last night was indeed a bit challenging.”
“Too challenging, I calculated it several times.” Jiang Xinxin took the exercise book and flipped to that problem. “Wow, our answers are the same. Looks like we got it right.”
“Not necessarily,” Fang Xing smiled. “I can’t guarantee it’s correct.”
“One more matching answer means one more assurance.” Jiang Xinxin handed the book back with a smile. “Thanks.”
Before Fang Xing could say anything, Xu Hang, sitting beside them, cleared his throat and said, “You’re welcome—”
Jiang Xinxin patted him on the shoulder while smiling, “Stop it, I’m not talking to you.”
“Of course, you’re not talking to me.” Xu Hang sighed, “Have you ever spoken to me so gently, Class President?”
“Cut it out.” Hearing Xu Hang joking, Jiang Xinxin generously laughed, “Did you finish your homework? I’ll collect it later.
Xu Hang, with a serious expression, said, “These things are not important—I have an important announcement.”
When both of them looked at him, Xu Hang cleared his throat twice, using a deliberately deep tone.
“On October 1st, which is this Sunday, yours truly will be turning eighteen, coincidentally on the same day as our motherland’s birthday. I cordially invite you two to celebrate the festival together and witness my coming-of-age ceremony.”
“…,” Before Fang Xing could evaluate how to respond to this, Jiang Xinxin exclaimed.
“Yeah, your birthday is on September 30, almost forgot.”
Xu Hang sighed, “It’s okay, I’ll remind you. Let’s go out together that day.”
“Sure.” Jiang Xinxin readily agreed. The two of them then turned to look at Fang Xing. Under their gaze, Fang Xing nodded.
“Okay.”
“Good brother.” Xu Hang patted Fang Xing on the shoulder. “I’ve planned it. Let’s meet on Sunday morning at nine, climb West Mountain in the morning, go to the amusement park in the afternoon, have hot pot in the city center for dinner, and then go to Wenhua Street after eating.”
Jiang Xinxin laughed, “A one-day tour of Shaojiang.”
“I don’t care.” Xu Hang spoke earnestly, “It’s my coming-of-age ceremony, so you’ll have to listen to me.”
After saying that, Xu Hang looked at Fang Xing, his expression solemn. “You must come, Desk mate, or our friendship will be over.”
“…Okay.” Fang Xing nodded.
Jiang Zhijin was awakened by the continuous scratching at the door. At first, he didn’t react until he lay still in bed with his eyes covered, and after a while, he heard a faint meow along with the scratching. It then occurred to him that Fang Xing had brought a cat home last night.
He sighed, got up, and opened the door. The cat at the door tilted its head and looked at him, continuously meowing, indicating that it was hungry.
Jiang Zhijin quickly washed up, changed his clothes, and picked up the cat before leaving the room. Not knowing where the nearest pet store was, he decided to take the cat to the pet shop on the bar street Fang Xing visited last night.
The veterinarian from last night was just about to get off work and looked somewhat surprised when she saw the cat in Jiang Zhijin’s hands.
“Isn’t this the cat the handsome young man picked up last night?”
Jiang Zhijin nodded nonchalantly. “Yes, I’m the friend of the handsome young man. Do you have cat food for sale?”
The beautiful veterinarian, who was already a bit tired, couldn’t help but laugh at his straightforwardness. “Yes, which one do you want?”
“You recommend it. Also, recommend the feeding equipment, cat litter, and cat bed needed for raising a cat.” Jiang Zhijin sighed, “It’s my first time raising a cat.”
“So straightforward. Aren’t you afraid I’ll rip you off?” The vet laughed.
“I’m ready to be ripped off. If it’s too much, I’ll just go to another store.” Jiang Zhijin replied.
The doctor was amused, and she generously provided a small bag of cat food to keep the cat calm. Then she guided Jiang Zhijin to pick out everything else he needed.
“Observe for two weeks first. If there’s no problem, bring it here for the feline triple vaccine. Stray cats can be troublesome. Here’s my WeChat. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me.”
Jiang Zhijin glanced at her, and the female doctor, hands in the pockets of her white coat, made a clicking sound with her tongue, “Tsk,” and said, “Rest assured, I have no ulterior motives towards you.”
“…I just wanted to say that you are quite responsible, but your words are hurting my self-esteem.” Jiang Zhijin followed her lead in jest.
She laughed and joked as she scanned the QR code on her phone. “Sorry, I like the type of cool guy from last night.”
“That’s not allowed.” Jiang Zhijin retrieved his phone and smiled slightly, speaking seriously, “Our little friend is still young.”
…..
Jiang Zhijin returned home with a pile of things and the cat, unpacking and arranging everything. By the time he finished placing everything, he was exhausted. When he turned around, he saw the little cat had peed on the floor.
“Hey.” Jiang Zhijin laughed out of frustration, holding the cat by the back of its neck and placing it in the cat litter box. The kitten probably knew it had caused trouble, lying motionless on the cat litter. Jiang Zhijin captured the evidence and sent it to Fang Xing.
“Remember to clean up after your little brother every day.”
After a while, probably during lunch break, Fang Xing’s reply came.
“…”
Jiang Zhijin replied, “Otherwise, just let it sleep on your bed.”
…How childish, Fang Xing sighed while resting his head on the desk and replied, “Got it.”