My Demon Friends

Brother Nan was startled awake.

In her memory, she was reading. Even though she was the Successor of Destiny, she still experienced the hardships of the common people. She was supposed to be sleeping on her bunk bed, which had only become somewhat soft and comfortable after adding a layer of cotton padding and two layers of tatami. How did she end up on a double bed?

And it was absurdly soft...

How did I wake up, though?

Perhaps she had gradually sensed this difference without fully processing it, then startled awake.

Her mouth was a bit bitter, dry and parched. She wanted water.

Her mind wasn't very clear either. She had slept heavily from drinking too much and didn't wake up feeling fully revitalized.

Brother Nan wrapped herself tightly in the blanket, only her head showing. She blinked, pondering last night's events. She had been insisting on playing games with Huai Xu all night, and Zhou Li kept trying to persuade her to go to sleep. That person is so annoying, always coming up with strange arguments. Anyway, she must have been coaxed into bed before one o'clock, but she couldn't quite remember what happened before that.

She turned over and glanced at the curtains.

Brother Nan almost thought it was still the middle of the night until she looked carefully and saw the bright light seeping through the gaps in the curtains.

Brother Nan muttered softly, "The blackout effect is so good..."

She fumbled around the pillow to see if she could find her cellphone.

The temperature beneath the pillow was cooler than inside the blanket. Comfortable.

She only found a wristwatch. Thankfully, there weren't any other strange items.

She groped along the wall, found a switch, and with a soft CLICK, the bedside lamp turned on. Brother Nan saw several brand-new books and a bottle of green tea on the nightstand. The green tea was also new; she guessed it was prepared for her.

She picked it up, tilted her head back, and GLUG GLUG GLUG... Drained it in one go. So satisfying.

She then held the watch up to the light and examined it closely, whispering, "It's already past nine o'clock..."

She found her shoes, threw back the covers, got up, and walked to the other side of the bed to draw the curtains. The morning was a world of fog, but a momentary burst of light still made her squint. It took a while for her eyes to adjust.

It was very quiet outside.

Brother Nan didn't rush out. Instead, she turned to look around Zhou Li's room, her eyes wide.

Zhou Li's room was different from what she had imagined.

First of all, it was big. Secondly, it was very tidy because there wasn't much stuff.

Apart from a few decorative items, the walls were clean. Boys' rooms on TV always have superhero posters.

There was also a balcony.

On the balcony was a small tea table and a recliner. A few clothes were drying above it. On the table was a fruit plate filled with assorted packaged snacks and some dried fruits. There was also a book.

Brother Nan then turned back, her eyes rolling as she pressed down on Zhou Li's bed. It was absurdly soft, probably not cheap. She murmured, "He really knows how to enjoy life..."

She also discovered a thin golden bracelet on the nightstand. Its design was simple, causing her to click her tongue in surprise. I wouldn't have guessed that Zhou Li, who always dresses so neatly, would have such little jewelry hidden away.

"Huh~~" she murmured.

It took her quite some time to tidy up the bed and walk out.

Zhou Li was wearing loose shorts and sitting cross-legged on the sofa. An old pair of flip-flops lay on the floor. He was holding what seemed to be an ancient book, reading intently.

Tuanzi was curled up at his feet but had turned its head to stare out at the fog-shrouded world, its eyes seemingly filled with stars.

Brother Nan quietly stood at the doorway, watching.

Suddenly, Tuanzi withdrew its gaze, tilted its head up to look at Zhou Li, and asked in a soft, delicate voice, "Zhou Li, is it winter now?"

Zhou Li lifted his eyes from the book and turned to Tuanzi, stretching out a hand to gently stroke its back.

"Of course, it's the end of December."

"Then why isn't it cold?"

"This place just rarely gets cold."

"Oh~"

Tuanzi continued to watch the outside world.

Only then did Zhou Li notice Brother Nan. He asked, puzzled, "You're up? What are you peeking at, standing there without making a sound?"

"...Mind your own business."

"What do you want for breakfast? There's instant noodles, dumplings, Yibin burning noodles, and scallion pancakes. Did you drink the water I left by your bed?" Zhou Li simply closed the book and tossed it aside.

"I did."

"What will you eat?"

What will I eat… Brother Nan looked at Zhou Li, unconsciously repeating his words, and then rubbed her head. "Do I have class this morning?"

"A class at 10:20."

10:20…

"What's wrong? Still hungover?" Zhou Li looked at Brother Nan's current state, thinking she seemed a bit slow-witted.

"No, no…"

Brother Nan waved her hands dismissively, glancing at Zhou Li again.

She saw her cellphone on the coffee table, along with a messy drawing. She picked up the cellphone, hesitated, then quickly crumpled the drawing into a ball and threw it into the trash can.

Zhou Li asked, baffled, "Why did you throw that out? That was the tank you spent an hour meticulously designing! We agreed to send it anonymously to Northern Industry today to give back to the motherland!"

Brother Nan gave him a fierce glare.

The Zhou Li just now was finally the one I'm familiar with. That earlier image was too perfect; it was obviously fake.

Brother Nan rubbed her head again and said, "I'll just have some instant noodles. I can make them myself, just tell me where they are."

"I'll cook them for you."

Zhou Li put on his slippers and stood up to head to the kitchen.

The only type of instant noodles left was the super spicy fire chicken flavor. Zhou Li also boiled about a dozen handmade beef balls and then started frying some eggs. During this, Brother Nan peeked at him from the doorway.

It was ready by 9:30. After finishing the meal and washing the dishes, it was 9:50.

Zhou Li changed his clothes, grabbed his books, and headed out with Brother Nan.

He felt that Brother Nan was really not herself today, very sluggish. Normally, when she saw him pushing the bike, she would definitely snatch it away immediately and offer to give him a ride.

But not today.

Zhou Li said, "You sit in the back."

Brother Nan replied, "Oh, okay…"

See? So abnormal!

Thus, Zhou Li got on the bicycle. Once Brother Nan put her hands around his waist and said, "Ready," he pedaled off.

"What's the date today?" Brother Nan suddenly asked.

"The 23rd."

"So tomorrow is Christmas Eve, and the day after is Christmas, huh?" Brother Nan commented, then muttered, "No wonder. I saw a whole nest of Christmas trees outside that supermarket."

A whole nest of Christmas trees~~

"What's up?"

"PFFT!"

"Are you laughing?"

"No... PFFT! Sorry!"

"What's wrong with 'a whole nest'? Aren't you from Yi Province?" Brother Nan slapped the back of Zhou Li's head.

"Hey, hey! Sit tight and stop moving!"

The bicycle wobbled. Zhou Li quickly squeezed the brakes, causing Brother Nan's upper body to press against his back. And just like that, Brother Nan, who had only just returned to a sliver of normalcy, became dazed again.

「...」

"Which student wants to come up and solve this problem? This is your last chance to get some extra points for class participation," the teacher said. "Those of you who've had absences before should seize this opportunity."

"Me."

Baozi raised her hand.

All the classmates turned to look at her.

Even the teacher smiled and said, "You again, Wang Xiaoxiao. Alright, come on up."

Baozi silently stood up and walked to the blackboard.

SWISH SWISH SWISH...

She easily solved the problem.

The teacher glanced at the solution and the steps, nodded in satisfaction, then bent down to record another five points for Wang Xiaoxiao. Upon straightening up, the teacher nodded at Baozi repeatedly. "You've clearly been paying attention in class. How come I didn't notice you all semester?"

Baozi remained silent.

Many people in the classroom stared at her, but she was unfazed. She was just an emotionless substitute teaching machine. Merely earning some participation points for her employer on the side.

DING DING DING...

The bell for the end of class rang.

Baozi walked out of the classroom alone and checked the schedule. Her second class was just upstairs; this one was her own.

Just as she turned the corner, she ran into Zhou Li and Brother Nan.

"Good morning."

Baozi greeted them calmly and casually asked, "Did you have fun last night?"

"..." Zhou Li was embarrassed.

"Your question..." Brother Nan frowned.

"Sorry, I was just asking. If it's not convenient to answer, then forget it," Baozi said, bowing her head slightly in explanation. "I wasn't trying to pry into details."

"..."

"Are you itching for a beating?"

"...Sorry." Baozi conceded.

"How come you're coming from that way?" Zhou Li asked.

"Oh, I took a last-minute substitute teaching job last night for the Chemical Engineering faculty—also calculus," Baozi replied.

"Pretty easy, right?"

"It was alright, not too easy."

"How much per class?"

"Twenty."

"Market price."

Twenty yuan a gig was, of course, too trivial for Zhou Tuhao; he wasn't like Huai Xu, always pinching pennies. But for the average student, earning twenty yuan for sitting through a class was quite good. A meal at the commercial street only cost about ten-plus yuan per person.

Walking into the classroom, Mianmian and Qian Qian had craftily taken seats in the first row, very conspicuous.

As Brother Nan walked past them, they were like sunflowers, their gazes following her. Zhou Li, walking behind Brother Nan, also caught some of their attention and felt very embarrassed by their stares.