You Are Mine
Carrying big and small bags, the two headed toward the cafeteria. On the way, they bumped into Qiu Ruifeng and Ji Angran, who were also heading there to eat.
Having not seen them for two days, Qiu Ruifeng bounded up like an oversized dog and threw an arm around Lu Xingjia’s shoulder. “Yo, Jia Jia, you guys going to eat too?”
He was tall and sturdy, and the force nearly sent Lu Xingjia toppling to the ground. He staggered a few steps before managing to steady himself.
“Don’t move around like that.” Lu Xingjia glared at Qiu Ruifeng and smacked his paw away.
“Tch, why are you being so coy?” Qiu Ruifeng wasn’t offended. He raised an eyebrow and kept walking beside him. “So, how’s it going? Getting to hang out with the top student must feel pretty great, huh?”
As he spoke, he looked over at Qin Mudong—only to meet a pair of eyes cold and devoid of any warmth.
Qiu Ruifeng: “…?”
Crap. Why did it feel like Qin Mudong was always angry at him?
But he hadn’t done anything!
Qiu Ruifeng shivered instinctively and muttered to himself, “Why does it suddenly feel so cold…”
He quietly removed his arm from Lu Xingjia’s shoulder.
“You probably did something shady and feel guilty,” Lu Xingjia grumbled, rubbing his shoulder and quickly putting some distance between them.
Qiu Ruifeng clicked his tongue and didn’t argue back.
Ji Angran walked around and came up to Lu Xingjia, asking with concern, “Are things going smoothly? Do you need any help?”
At least Ji Angran was reliable.
Lu Xingjia smiled gratefully. “We’re doing okay. No major problems.”
Qiu Ruifeng quickly switched back to a serious tone. “Oh, right—what about that Miao Qian? She didn’t give you guys any trouble, did she?”
“No,” Lu Xingjia shook his head. “She’s actually pretty nice, just a bit shy.”
The group chatted as they walked toward the cafeteria. After getting their food and sitting down, Qiu Ruifeng suddenly noticed all the stuff Lu Xingjia was carrying. His eyes lit up. “Where’d you get so much fruit? Let’s share the fortune!”
Lu Xingjia quickly tied the bag shut, but Qiu Ruifeng still managed to grab two mandarins from it.
“Wait!” Lu Xingjia said hurriedly. “These aren’t mine, they’re Qin Mudong’s.”
“Oh…?” Qiu Ruifeng froze, then smiled awkwardly. “Sorry about that, top student…”
As he spoke, he moved to put the mandarins back.
To be honest, the four of them weren’t that close. Though they hung out often, Qin Mudong only really got along with Lu Xingjia.
Qiu Ruifeng was close with Lu Xingjia, so he could grab his stuff. But taking Qin Mudong’s? That was awkward.
The sudden shift in tone made things a little uncomfortable. Qin Mudong lowered his gaze and said softly, “It’s fine.”
“Come on, don’t be so formal,” Lu Xingjia smoothed things over. “He’s not that petty. Just keep them.”
“Mm.” Qin Mudong nodded slightly in agreement.
Qiu Ruifeng also sensed the awkwardness and quickly jumped in to lighten the mood. “Tsk, so now you and the top student are sharing everything? What’s his is yours?”
Lu Xingjia glanced at him, then bickered with him for a bit, and the originally awkward atmosphere finally eased up.
“Enough talking, let’s eat!” Lu Xingjia finally said.
The food was steaming hot and filled the air with a rich aroma. Qin Mudong sat across from them, eyes deep and silent.
Ji Angran, watching them laugh and chat so happily, had a flash of disappointment pass through his eyes.
…..
The brief and pleasant lunch break passed. Lu Xingjia and Qin Mudong distributed the fruit to the others, then returned to the lab to begin another round of practice.
Time passed from dawn to dusk, clouds drifted by — in the blink of an eye, a week had gone by, and the day of the experimental exam arrived.
During that week, the two of them had practiced almost every day until the school gates were about to be locked at night. By then, even the security guards recognized them and would occasionally chat with them.
That morning, everyone boarded a vehicle together to head to the competition site for the semifinals. When they passed the school gate, a guard even smiled and said through the window, “Good luck on your exam.”
The minibus slowly drove away from the school gate, heading toward its destination.
Shi Hongzhe and Qu Xinjue had their heads close together, reviewing experiment procedures on an MP4 player, while the other five chatted to relieve stress.
After spending a week together, Miao Qian wasn’t as quiet and withdrawn anymore. Sometimes she would even join in with a few words to lighten the mood. Only Qin Mudong still remained cool and silent, his expression calm and indifferent.
Amidst the cheerful chatter, the exam venue quickly came into view. After the staff checked their admission tickets, they were led inside.
Due to limited space, the experimental exam was conducted in two groups. All students were randomly divided into Groups A and B. Group A would go in first to draw lots and complete the experiment. Afterward, they’d wait in a nearby lounge until Group B finished, and then they could all leave together.
Lu Xingjia was assigned to Group A, and Qin Mudong to Group B.
Soon it was time for the exam. A staff member called the Group A students to gather. Lu Xingjia took a deep breath and waved goodbye to Qin Mudong.
“Good luck.” In the shadow where their figures overlapped, Qin Mudong took the initiative to hold his hand.
The warmth from his palm passed clearly through their skin. Lu Xingjia nodded and said, “Okay.”
“Group A, hurry up! Time to enter the exam room!”
The staff called out again and led the group forward.
“Let’s both do our best.” Lu Xingjia let go of Qin Mudong’s hand and jogged to catch up. Qin Mudong silently watched him until he disappeared into the lab building.
Inside, the lab’s cool air rushed to meet them.
The large group automatically quieted down and followed the guide teachers to different labs.
Lu Xingjia drew the oscilloscope experiment. As soon as he got the paper, he couldn’t help but smile.
This was the experiment he and Qin Mudong had practiced the most.
The exam began. Lu Xingjia skillfully connected the equipment.
Warming up, adjusting, reading values… every step was steady.
He was doing the experiment alone, but he could feel Qin Mudong beside him.
Every step, he felt his presence — even the warmth from Qin Mudong’s fingers still lingered in his own, as if he were still holding his hand to adjust the instrument’s settings.
This must be what it feels like to fight side by side, Lu Xingjia thought.
At this point, the result didn’t even matter anymore. This feeling of being completely focused and giving his all — he would never forget it.
Lu Xingjia was the first to finish the experiment.
After submitting his lab record and having his setup checked by the teacher, he strolled to the lounge to rest.
The others weren’t far behind, and soon the waiting area began to fill up.
Now that the experiment was done, everyone could finally relax. Some bobbed their heads while listening to MP3s and MP4s. Someone — no one knew from which school — had the foresight to bring a deck of cards, and a few students gathered around, playing noisily and having a great time.
Miao Qian was also in Group A and turned in her report just before time ran out. When she returned to the lounge, there weren’t many seats left. She hesitated, then walked over to Lu Xingjia and asked if she could sit next to him.
Lu Xingjia naturally agreed and moved over to make room for her.
Since there weren’t many familiar faces in the waiting area, the two started chatting.
Miao Qian folded her hands in her lap and asked first, “Jia Jia, how do you think you did?”
“Not bad,” Lu Xingjia replied casually. “What about you? Everything go smoothly?”
“Yeah,” Miao Qian bit her lip lightly, “but my written exam score wasn’t very high, so I probably won’t make the provincial team.”
With nothing much to do, they chatted casually. Miao Qian asked, “What major do you want to pursue in the future? Still something related to physics?”
Lu Xingjia paused, then chuckled softly, “Probably.”
If this were still his previous life, he wouldn’t have chosen anything remotely related to physics.
But having been reborn and studied for over a year, he had gradually come to appreciate the joy of physics — the feeling of using logic and reason to solve the unknown.
“That’s great,” Miao Qian smiled. “I also want to study a physics-related major. Do you know which university you want to attend?”
Lu Xingjia’s first thought was Che University — the one Qin Mudong had gotten into in his previous life. But he quickly realized that with his own grades, that was unlikely. So he changed his answer: “Haven’t decided yet.”
“What do you think of Min University?” Miao Qian asked him. “I’ve always wanted to go there. Although its physics program can’t compare to Che University, it’s still considered one of the top physics schools in the country. Besides fundamental physics, they also have emerging programs like applied physics. The future prospects seem really good.”
A blush crept up her cheeks. “And I heard the campus atmosphere is very open. You’re a really good person—I’m sure you’d be really popular there.”
Lu Xingjia wasn’t very good at talking to girls. In his previous life, he’d been introverted, only slowly gaining the courage to express himself after being reborn.
Hearing Miao Qian praise him now, he rubbed the tip of his nose in embarrassment. “Not really… I’m actually not very good at this stuff. Sometimes, I don’t know what to say…”
“But I think you’re great.”
Miao Qian blurted it out, then quickly realized she might have said too much. Her face reddened further as she looked down. “No, I meant…”
She couldn’t continue, and the atmosphere instantly became awkward.
This was one of the situations Lu Xingjia was worst at handling. They tried to force a bit of small talk, but the awkwardness lingered.
Lu Xingjia shifted his eyes around uncomfortably and suddenly noticed Qin Mudong standing not far away, rigid and unmoving.
The awkward conversation had him curling his toes against the floor in secondhand embarrassment, and he hadn’t even noticed when Qin Mudong had returned.
“Qin Mudong! Over here!” Lu Xingjia called out, waving at him.
Qin Mudong’s brows furrowed slightly but quickly relaxed. He walked over in large strides.
“When did you get back? I didn’t even see you,” Lu Xingjia asked.
Qin Mudong didn’t answer his question. In a neutral tone, he said, “Wanna go for a walk?”
Lu Xingjia didn’t feel like staying at the lounge anymore, so he happily agreed, completely unaware that Qin Mudong’s eyes were two shades darker than usual.
As the experimental exam neared its end, students in Group B began trickling out of the exam rooms.
Those who had finished were no longer confined to the lounge and were free to move about as long as they didn’t approach the exam area.
The school had a separate stairwell on this side of the building, usually empty. The two of them strolled over to the corner of the staircase. Lu Xingjia was still smiling as he asked, “Which experiment did you draw—mmph!”
Before he could finish, Qin Mudong grabbed his shoulders and pushed him into the dim stairwell.
Darkness suddenly engulfed him as Qin Mudong pinned him against the wall, sealing his lips with a flurry of intense kisses.
Unlike last time, which had been more exploratory and teasing, this felt like domination and conquest.
A heated tongue aggressively pried open Lu Xingjia’s lips and dove deep inside, lingering and licking his upper palate.
Lu Xingjia’s legs went a little weak. During a brief pause for breath, he pushed against Qin Mudong and mumbled, “W-what are you doing?”
But Qin Mudong responded with even more fervent kisses. He braced one leg between Lu Xingjia’s thighs, his husky voice melting into the heat of the moment.
“You’re mine.”
Author’s note:
He’s jealous now.