Try Again chapter 5

I Want to Take a Shower

Gazing at this slender figure, a painfully similar memory quietly surfaced in Ji Minglun’s mind.

When they had just moved into this home, there was a time when the fingerprint lock ran out of battery, and Jiang Lin couldn’t get in. He called Ji Minglun right after class. At that time, Ji Minglun said he would be right back, and Jiang Lin waited at the door. Later, because he hadn’t slept well the night before, Jiang Lin fell asleep leaning against the wall.

It was still winter then, and half of Jiang Lin’s face was bundled in a thick puffy coat, with a fluffy circle of rabbit fur around the hat, making his face look smaller than usual. His long eyelashes curled naturally, and the tip of his nose was red, making Ji Minglun unable to look away. He took several sneak shots with his phone, sitting beside him until Jiang Lin woke up on his own.

They had known each other for nearly eighteen years, a span that, when placed in one person’s life, represented the time from birth to adulthood. Therefore, the events that occurred between them and the memories related to each other were countless, and it was nearly impossible to completely detach Jiang Lin’s influence from him.

After a moment of hesitation, Ji Minglun walked over, squatted down, and gently pushed Jiang Lin’s shoulder.

Jiang Lin was sleeping soundly. After being pushed, he fell to the inclined side, and Ji Minglun quickly supported him. At this point, his eyelashes finally showed some reaction, but before he opened his eyes, Ji Minglun had already pushed him against the wall and stood up.

When Jiang Lin first woke up, he was still a bit dazed. Upon seeing the person in front of him wanting to stand up, he pressed his hands to the ground but then retracted them, lowering his head and holding his stomach.

Ji Minglun noticed his actions and recalled that he had gone to the emergency room during the day due to pain. He squatted down and asked, “Did you take your medicine?”

Jiang Lin shook his head. The stomach pain wasn’t as severe as it had been earlier; that last episode was likely due to not having eaten anything, causing some mild cramping.

“I haven’t eaten yet. The medicine needs to be taken after meals.”

“Then why are you sitting here instead of going back to eat?”

Detecting a hint of impatience in Ji Minglun’s tone, Jiang Lin’s voice became even softer: “There’s only instant noodles at home. The doctor told me to eat some light millet porridge.”

Before going abroad, Jiang Lin had never cooked. Usually, he either asked the maid to cook for him, ordered takeout, or let Ji Minglun prepare meals. Whenever he fell ill, Ji Minglun would always stay in the kitchen to make various types of nourishing porridge for him.

Seeing the hesitant expression on Jiang Lin’s face, Ji Minglun understood his intention for coming over, but still said, “You can order takeout. There are porridge places everywhere; just find one, and it can be delivered in half an hour.”

As he stepped around Jiang Lin, Ji Minglun reached for the fingerprint lock. Just as his fingertip touched it, he felt a tug on his pant leg. Jiang Lin looked up at him, his clear face still pale, although the skin around his eyes had reddened slightly.

“Minglun,” as he spoke, Jiang Lin’s Adam’s apple moved against his fair neck, and his voice came out a bit hoarse, “What do I have to do for you to forgive me?”

Their gazes brushed against each other in the air. This time, Ji Minglun didn’t avert his eyes. However, after just two or three seconds, his phone in his pocket rang.

It was Deng Yi, who said she accidentally left her data cable in Ji Minglun’s car and asked him to take it to the library for her in the morning.

Ji Minglun said he understood. As he hung up, he noticed Jiang Lin was holding his stomach with one hand again, his head drooping without movement.

The painful expressions Jiang Lin had during his past stomach issues flooded back to Ji Minglun’s mind. Even though he wanted to keep his distance from Jiang Lin, at that moment, he couldn’t bring himself to send him away.

Upon opening the front door, he said to him, “Come in.”

Entering the hallway behind Ji Minglun, Jiang Lin leaned against the wall, took off his sports shoes, and looked up to see Ji Minglun throwing a pair of slippers in front of him.

They weren’t the dog-themed slippers that used to belong to him but rather a plain pair of black slippers meant for guests.

Putting his feet into the slippers, Jiang Lin closed the door, watching Ji Minglun press a few buttons on the smart home screen on the wall before walking into the kitchen.

He looked around. The home had not changed significantly during his year away, except for a wave-themed art piece on the wall next to the sofa and a gray dreamcatcher on the master bedroom door frame; he couldn’t see any of the items he had purchased before.

As he reached the gray leather sofa, Jiang Lin remembered that his clothes had not only spent half a day in the emergency room but also a long time on the floor outside, so he sat down on the floor in front of the sofa, resting his face against the glass coffee table and gazing toward the kitchen.

Ji Minglun’s kitchen was designed with an open concept, with a rectangular island separating the kitchen from the living room, and the dining table was positioned against the wall on the right side. Jiang Lin’s gaze followed the figure behind the island; Ji Minglun, wearing a dark apron, was rinsing rice by the sink.

It was a scene he hadn’t seen in a long time, and in this moment, the tension he had felt since returning briefly eased. As he relaxed, his eyelids grew heavy, and when Ji Minglun turned around, he found Jiang Lin dozing off on the coffee table.

Ji Minglun glanced at the marble floor beneath him, poured the rinsed rice into the electric pressure cooker, then took a box of milk to heat in the microwave, and finally boiled two eggs in saltwater.

After finishing these tasks, he washed his hands, took off his apron, and walked over to Jiang Lin.

Jiang Lin’s eyes had already closed. Ji Minglun wanted to call him to sit on the sofa, but as soon as he touched his shoulder, he heard Jiang Lin say, “I’m covered in sweat and dust. Can I borrow your bathroom? I want to take a shower.”

Not hearing a response, Jiang Lin slowly opened his eyes. His elongated gaze met Ji Minglun’s, and his lips, dry from dehydration, moved slightly. Before he could say anything else, Ji Minglun straightened up and, with no expression, asked, “Do you have a fever?”

Jiang Lin shook his head.

Glancing toward the bathroom, Ji Minglun said, “Then wash quickly and don’t take a bath.”

Jiang Lin replied, “Okay.”

Ji Minglun didn’t linger and, after Jiang Lin entered the bathroom, walked into the master bedroom and opened the right-side wardrobe.

In the past, Jiang Lin often stayed over at his place and left behind many of his clothes, including several pairs of underwear. However, after that incident, Ji Minglun had packed Jiang Lin’s clothes into a suitcase stored in the storage room.

Not wanting Jiang Lin to know that he still kept those clothes, Ji Minglun picked out his own T-shirt and sweatpants and placed them on the shelf by the bathroom door, leaving behind the underwear.

The sound of water running in the bathroom filled the air, and the scent of sandalwood and cedar wafted through the door crack. This scene and fragrance were once incredibly familiar to him. If nothing had happened between him and Jiang Lin that night, they would still be as close as before.

Returning to the kitchen to check on the boiling eggs, Ji Minglun opened the lower refrigerator and took out a box of crystal shrimp dumplings, placing it in the steamer. He then put the heated milk and boiled eggs on the table.

The clock on the wall had reached eleven-thirty. He sent a WeChat message to Su Yan: 【Are you feeling better?】

Su Yan had poor immunity and was prone to fevers. Ji Minglun was helping to take care of him since his boyfriend, Ji Qian, was away on business.

A few minutes after sending the message, Su Yan called back.

“I’m better, but I’m so hungry. Are you home? Let’s go out for barbecue.”

Looking back at the direction of the bathroom, Ji Minglun said, “Not tonight. Don’t keep thinking about greasy food; make some dumplings or something to eat.”

“Ji Qian isn’t here. Why don’t you come over and help me cook?”

Su Yan was also someone who rarely did any cooking. If Jiang Lin hadn’t been there, Ji Minglun would have gone over to help him.

“It’s not convenient right now. I’ll cook some for you and bring it over.”

“Okay, then what filling will you make?” Su Yan counted on his fingers, “I don’t eat chives or cucumbers. Do you have any with only beef?”

Entering the kitchen, Ji Minglun took out a bag of kimchi pork dumplings from the bottom shelf of the fridge, wedged his phone between his ear and shoulder, and complained while unwrapping, “Do you really think I’m a takeout place? You can’t specify the filling. There’s only kimchi pork flavor. If you don’t like it, I won’t make it.”

Su Yan clicked his tongue, “Alright, just that will do.”

Ji Minglun told him to wait. When he turned back to grab something from the island counter, he caught a glimpse of Jiang Lin coming out of the bathroom, standing in the living room looking at him.

He said to the person on the phone, “I’ll hang up for now,” then put down his phone and continued busying himself without a care.

Jiang Lin’s gaze shifted from his back to the dining table on the right, looking at the eggs and milk, but his mind was occupied with the phone call just now.

The way Ji Minglun spoke to the other person resembled the way he used to bicker with him. Had Ji Minglun really fallen for someone else in the year he had been away?

After dumping the dumplings into the boiling pot, Ji Minglun turned around again and noticed Jiang Lin still standing there, so he reminded him, “Sit and eat first; the shrimp dumplings and porridge will take a bit longer.”

After adding three more scoops of water to the pot, Ji Minglun used a slotted spoon to lift the dumplings onto a plate, then opened the nearby steamer to take out the steamed crystal shrimp dumplings and placed them on the dining table.

Jiang Lin was already sitting at the table. He had drunk half a cup of milk and was peeling an egg. After placing the shrimp dumplings, Ji Minglun returned to the kitchen, picked up the steaming plate of dumplings, and walked over to the entrance to change his shoes.

Jiang Lin stood up, slightly anxious, and asked, “Where are you going?”

As if he hadn’t heard the harsh sound of the chair scraping against the floor, Ji Minglun casually replied, “I’m going to deliver food to the neighbor,” and opened the door to leave.

Author’s note:

Su Yan is the main character from the previous book “Summer Dream Returning Tides.” Ji Minglun was just Su Yan’s friend in that story, helping him pursue someone he liked. There is no ambiguity between them; so please don’t misinterpret their relationship. Friendship can also exist in BL stories【laugh-cry emoji】.

PS: This story is independent; not having read “Summer Dream” won’t affect your understanding. There won’t be much mention of Su Yan and the person he likes in this book. Just be patient and read a few more chapters, and you’ll understand that Ji Minglun’s heart only belongs to Jiang Lin.