Chapter 12: Slut
Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations
Editor: Karai
Zhou Kai pulled out his keys just as the door swung open from the inside. His dad had pushed the door with such force that Zhou Kai, quick on his feet, managed to step back just in time, avoiding a bruise on his face. His father, still in the process of changing shoes, seemed preoccupied and didn’t notice anyone standing at the door. Zhou Kai spoke up, asking, “Dad, are you going out?”
His father jumped in surprise, almost losing balance, but turned to glance at him before continuing to put on his shoes. His mom came out next, carrying a bag and another in her hand. Seeing her son, she quickly explained, “Xiao Kai, your grandfather suddenly felt unwell, so your dad and I are going to check on him. We’ve made dinner for you, it’s on the table, eat while it’s hot.”
Zhou Kai was a bit stunned. “Grandpa’s sick? Is it serious?”
“We don’t know yet, but according to Grandma, it doesn’t seem too bad. He just needs to see a doctor to be sure,” his mom replied, handing his dad the bag and pulling shoes from the cabinet.
Zhou Kai thought about his grandparents, whom he hadn’t seen in a while, and almost considered going along to visit them, but then his dad spoke. “Your mom and I will stay the night. We’ll be back tomorrow.” His dad looked at him seriously. “Don’t get too crazy here. Don’t forget about your studies.”
Zhou Kai, still processing the idea of being alone at home for the night, mumbled, “Okay.”
“Alright, alright. He knows,” his mom said with a smile, gently pushing him back inside. “We need to go, your grandma’s probably been waiting for too long.”
Zhou Kai’s dad grunted as he stepped outside, shutting the door with a firm push, muttering, “He knows, but he has to follow through…”
Once the door clicked shut and the sound of his dad’s grumbling faded, Zhou Kai snapped out of his daze. His eyes darted around, then he grinned mischievously, clapping his hands together. He quickly swapped out his shoes and dashed to his bedroom.
After tossing his schoolbag aside, Zhou Kai reached under his bed for a box. Inside, he pulled out a small black snake coiled into a neat little pile. The weather had gotten colder, and the snake didn’t seem very energetic, barely moving. Zhou Kai poked its head several times with his finger, and eventually, the little snake stretched its body, lifting its head to look at him.
“Hey, Hei Zi, just the two of us tonight. Are you happy?”
Zhou Kai asked the little black snake, grinning excitedly. The snake, not understanding, merely flicked its tongue and curled up to rest. Zhou Kai prodded it a couple of times, but seeing it disinterested, he returned it to its box.
When he looked up, he noticed his phone on the desk, its charging light blinking, signaling new messages. Zhou Kai walked over and unplugged the charger. He assumed it was just more useless chatter from the class group or his classmates. Unlocking the phone, he saw the red circle in his WeChat notifications showing 99 new messages. Sure enough, it was the class group chatting with a bunch of meme reactions—nothing important. Rolling his eyes, Zhou Kai selected an eye-roll emoji in reply and quickly turned off the notification alerts to avoid his phone vibrating incessantly.
After setting the phone down, Zhou Kai went to eat. His mom had prepared enough food for two, but it was so much that even he couldn’t finish it. He ate what he could, put the rest in the fridge, and threw out the leftovers that couldn’t be saved. Following his mom’s usual routine, he washed the dishes and tidied up the kitchen. Once done, he went to the balcony to collect the clothes, putting his parents’ in their room and taking his own to the bathroom for a shower. Afterward, Zhou Kai didn’t touch his phone, opting instead to sit at his desk and do homework.
As he absentmindedly spun his pen while thinking over the assignments, Zhou Kai chuckled softly. He remembered his dad’s words earlier, sighing. His dad was always worried he wasn’t studying hard enough, constantly hovering over him as if he needed supervision 24/7. In reality, Zhou Kai was keeping up with his studies—doing the required work, memorizing, and learning—but he didn’t push himself too hard. Otherwise, how would he explain his results? He wasn’t a genius who could coast through school without effort.
The phone rang, and Zhou Kai guessed it was his dad calling to check on him. He didn’t answer immediately but instead sat back down at his desk, picking up a page of his textbook and pressing the answer button.
“Dad, how’s Grandpa?” Zhou Kai asked.
His father, hearing the sound of pages turning, asked, “Are you studying or sneaking in those novels again?”
Zhou Kai sighed. Did his dad still think he was obsessed with those martial arts novels from middle school? Even if he was, nowadays, everything could be read on the phone—no need for physical books.
“No, I’m doing homework,” Zhou Kai replied, asking again, “How’s Grandpa?”
His dad finally answered, “It’s nothing serious. The doctor said he should stay in the hospital for two days for observation, but he’ll be fine and can leave once he’s better.”
“Okay,” Zhou Kai said.
His dad reminded him, “Don’t go out alone late at night.”
Zhou Kai scoffed. “I’m not going out.”
His dad, unsure whether to believe him, gave a few more instructions—like remembering to lock the door—and then hung up. Zhou Kai stared at the dark screen of his phone, feeling a bit frustrated.
They always said mothers nagged the most, and fathers were the best friends, comrades in the revolutionary front. But in his case, it was the opposite—his dad was the one who nagged, and his mom always had his back, letting him off easy.
“Ugh, so hard,” Zhou Kai muttered.
Zhou Kai tugged at his hair, letting out another sigh. He turned on his phone to check the time—it was almost 9:30. He flipped through his homework, most of it finished except for the vocabulary he hadn’t memorized yet. Deciding not to bother with it, he put his textbooks and assignments away, packed his bag for tomorrow, and climbed into bed with his phone.
Lying on his stomach, he stretched out lazily. He was a bit tired from staying up late the night before, but after a moment of quiet, he found himself glancing at the photo on his nightstand, which made him think back to that morning—thinking about He Ye and the trouble he had caused.
He had been late this morning, and He Ye had somehow managed to be caught late as well. He smirked, remembering He Ye’s bad temper. It was just a little game with a stone, so why was he so aggressive about it?
Zhou Kai grabbed his pillow and propped it under his chin, remembering the words he had said that morning. His face flushed with embarrassment. He hadn’t meant it, honestly. What was going through his mind at the time? He regretted not being braver, but in the moment, he had just frozen. Why had he sent the photo and video, but then gotten so shy in person?
He bit his lip, reaching for his phone, unable to resist looking at the video again. The video had been an accident—he had only wanted to take a picture of the little black snake and the tattoo, but… things had turned out differently.
Zhou Kai felt his face heat up just thinking about it. He swiped through the screen, but then his breath caught when he noticed a red circle on a file folder. Inside, the number 1 glowed. His heart raced in excitement, his hands shaking as he scrambled to sit up. He held the phone up to his face, making sure he wasn’t seeing things.
“…What?!”
Surprised and elated, Zhou Kai’s pulse quickened as he tried to calm himself. The notification didn’t necessarily mean it was from He Ye. It could be something from Tencent News. He took several deep breaths before his trembling hand finally clicked on the folder. He opened the WeChat app, and when the chat screen appeared with only one message in it, Zhou Kai’s heart skipped a beat.
“Shit… He Ye, you bastard…”
With a muffled laugh, Zhou Kai buried his face in the pillow, unable to suppress his emotions. His heart still raced, and a part of him even felt like crying. Eventually, he turned his head, pressing his face to the side of the pillow, still biting his lip as he tapped on the message.
It was a voice message. The timestamp was from 2 AM the night before.
Zhou Kai stared at the screen in disbelief, suddenly filled with regret. If he had known about this message earlier, he wouldn’t have bothered with dinner, taking a shower, or doing homework.
His mind raced with possibilities, but after a few moments, he hesitated and finally tapped the message to play.
The voice came through clearly: “Slut, consider this a warning. Don’t mess with me again.”
Zhou Kai froze after hearing the voice message, the low, slightly hoarse tone carrying a mocking chuckle that lingered in his ears. His face turned bright red, from his cheeks to his ears, neck, and chest. His eyes welled up as he clutched the blanket tightly between his legs, caught between embarrassment, irritation, and a strange excitement, his emotions bubbling up like soda—sweet, sour, and a little overwhelming.
He was furious at He Ye for calling him “a slut,” but a part of him also felt exhilarated. He couldn’t help but admit it to himself—yes, he was acting like a little bit of a tease, but it was only for He Ye, only for him.
Still, Zhou Kai was angry. He Ye had dared to warn him, to tell him not to mess with him, but at the same time, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of joy. He Ye clearly hadn’t done this with anyone else. He didn’t play these games with others.
He ran his tongue over the imprint his teeth had left on his lip, eyes narrowing mischievously. He tapped the screen to replay the voice message, listening to it again, then huffed in defiance, speaking into the phone in a soft tone, “Just because you say not to mess with you, doesn’t mean I won’t. Why don’t you just block me if you don’t want to see it? You’ve been watching for so long and still warn me—what’s the point?”
The more he thought about it, the more he got worked up. Throwing the phone aside, he jumped out of bed, grabbed his keys from the desk, and walked over to his wardrobe.
He Ye said not to mess with him? Well, Zhou Kai was going to do it anyway.
Pulling open the drawer, he took out what was inside. Just holding it made his face heat up, but he couldn’t help the thrill that ran through him. He wondered if that “bad snake” would see it and call him a slut again.
Let him call him that. So what? The “bad snake” didn’t even know who he was, and honestly, Zhou Kai didn’t care.
