As for academics, this was just a community college. Final exams generally consisted of handing in assignments to the professors. For example, for philosophy, you had to submit a PowerPoint presentation with more than 30 slides. For Photoshop class, a poster would suffice. The only subject that required a written exam was English.
Lin Jin had once studied English diligently. Though he had forgotten many of the words, he believed that a week of preparation would be more than enough. Rememorizing words he had learned before would be easier the second time around. The only hassle was that the English teacher had covered two new units recently, adding some thirty-odd words and phrases that Lin Jin needed to memorize.
In any case, Lin Jin felt that this week's task would be easy to complete.
It was his younger brother Lin Chen’s task that was more complicated.
He took a bite of his burger and glanced at Lin Chen, who was leisurely eating fries.
His little brother seemed to have become much more manly. Even though he had appeared just as simple and naive as before when they first met last night, the experiences today made Lin Jin feel that his brother was more of a man than he was at the moment.
So why on earth would the black cat choose him, a man, as a goddess? Even now, although Lin Chen still looked short and boyish, he was still a man! That had to be better than Lin Jin's current androgynous state, right?
The thought made Lin Jin's heart ache as if pricked by a needle.
"Brother, when do you plan to come over during the winter break?" Lin Chen suddenly looked up and asked Lin Jin.
Lin Jin thought for a moment, considering that if he were to foolishly rush over to Lin Chen and their mother like he did during his first year of high school, he might get a good talking-to from his dad again when he returned.
"After Chinese New Year? I'll tell dad that I'm going to work part-time and then go to your place for about a week before school starts again" Lin Jin detailed his plans for the winter break. "I'm a bit worried about leaving dad alone at home for too long, so I want to be home for Chinese New Year at least."
Fortunately, although his father had gambled away almost everything they had, he hadn't resorted to borrowing from loan sharks. If that had happened, Lin Jin probably wouldn't even be able to attend college. He'd have to start working right after high school to pay off the debts.
"Sure, I'll probably get a week off for Chinese New Year too. Not sure if you'll be able to make it in time" Lin Chen said, focusing on the fries that Lin Jin didn't like from the combo meal they had ordered.
The fries were actually quite tasty, but Lin Jin avoided them out of fear they'd cause pimples.
"I’m done eating, let's go." Having talked and eaten enough, Lin Jin promptly stood up, brushed off any crumbs from his clothes, and led Lin Chen towards the exit.
Lin Jin's mood wasn't the best. Although his current tasks didn't seem too complicated, the issue was that he would soon be going home.
He had to face his often intoxicated father, who had been opposed to Lin Jin cross-dressing since his kindergarten days. And now, Lin Jin didn't even need to cross-dress. Even in men's clothing with slightly longer hair, he often received disapproving glances from elderly people who would call him "young lady."
So, better shave his head before going home!
It was only when he returned to the dorm that Lin Jin remembered he had forgotten to bring Wen Xuan his late night snack.
"Where's my snack?" Wen Xuan, hearing the door open, turned to find Lin Jin's hands empty.
"I forgot" Lin Jin said, holding his head high.
Speaking of which, his memory seemed to be playing tricks on him lately. He was increasingly forgetful. Just the other day, he was holding his phone while searching for it all over the dorm. He even had Wu Min make a call to his phone to locate it. His roommates were equally clueless, ignoring the fact that the missing phone was actually in Lin Jin's hand the whole time. It took them half an hour to suddenly realize that the phone they had been looking for was right there in Lin Jin's grip all along.
It must be the black cat's fault.
In any case, whenever something negative happened, Lin Jin could conveniently blame it on the black cat.
"Little bro, wanna go for a run on the track or something?" Lin Jin suggested, not sure what got into him to suddenly think of jogging.
"Sure" Lin Chen replied, standing up from his seat before he could even get comfortable.
What was his brother up to now?
Lin Chen internally grumbled about Lin Jin but, glancing at the game he had just started on his computer, dutifully followed Lin Jin, who had already changed his shoes, out of the dorm.
Lin Chen was a top student. Although he liked to game, he mainly spent his time studying. He only managed a couple of games on weekends, the rest of his time was consumed by his high school's demanding workload and his fitness routine. So, the idea jogging didn't bother him.
Lin Jin, however, had reservations.
His jacket was a bit too thin for the weather. During the day, when the sun was still out, a light jacket was fine for Xiamen's winter. But now, approaching midnight, the outdoor temperature was far from warm. A chilly wind blew relentlessly into Lin Jin's clothing.
But Lin Jin wasn't actually planning to exercise. He just wanted to strengthen his bond with Lin Chen. That way, when he asked Lin Chen for a cheek kiss tomorrow, it wouldn't seem too abrupt.
But since when did brothers show their affection with a kiss on the cheek? It's not like they were in a foreign country where people greet friends with cheek-to-cheek kisses.
Upon arriving at the track, they found that the lights had been fixed, illuminating the field as if it were daytime. Despite it being past midnight, a couple of pairs of lovebirds could still be seen strolling around, and three or four people were jogging or working out.
Hmm... Lin Jin slowed down to walk beside Lin Chen, stealing a glance at him. Lin Chen seemed eager, already taking off his military coat.
"Let's, uh..."
"Then I'll go jogging first?" Lin Chen handed Lin Jin the coat, bounced in place a couple of times, and then headed toward the track.
Huh?
Wouldn't you at least let me finish what I was saying? This wasn’t the script, was it?
Aren't we supposed to have a chat first to strengthen our brotherly bond before going jogging together? Why'd you take off running on your own?
Lin Jin stood there, stupefied, holding Lin Chen's military coat. Watching his brother start running in just a short-sleeved shirt, he could only shake his head helplessly. He plopped down onto the grass, took out his phone, and began searching online for strategies to better connect with his brother.
After all, they could always strengthen their relationship once Lin Chen finished his run!
As for academics, this was just a community college. Final exams generally consisted of handing in assignments to the professors. For example, for philosophy, you had to submit a PowerPoint presentation with more than 30 slides. For Photoshop class, a poster would suffice. The only subject that required a written exam was English.
Lin Jin had once studied English diligently. Though he had forgotten many of the words, he believed that a week of preparation would be more than enough. Rememorizing words he had learned before would be easier the second time around. The only hassle was that the English teacher had covered two new units recently, adding some thirty-odd words and phrases that Lin Jin needed to memorize.
In any case, Lin Jin felt that this week's task would be easy to complete.
It was his younger brother Lin Chen’s task that was more complicated.
He took a bite of his burger and glanced at Lin Chen, who was leisurely eating fries.
His little brother seemed to have become much more manly. Even though he had appeared just as simple and naive as before when they first met last night, the experiences today made Lin Jin feel that his brother was more of a man than he was at the moment.
So why on earth would the black cat choose him, a man, as a goddess? Even now, although Lin Chen still looked short and boyish, he was still a man! That had to be better than Lin Jin's current androgynous state, right?
The thought made Lin Jin's heart ache as if pricked by a needle.
"Brother, when do you plan to come over during the winter break?" Lin Chen suddenly looked up and asked Lin Jin.
Lin Jin thought for a moment, considering that if he were to foolishly rush over to Lin Chen and their mother like he did during his first year of high school, he might get a good talking-to from his dad again when he returned.
"After Chinese New Year? I'll tell dad that I'm going to work part-time and then go to your place for about a week before school starts again" Lin Jin detailed his plans for the winter break. "I'm a bit worried about leaving dad alone at home for too long, so I want to be home for Chinese New Year at least."
Fortunately, although his father had gambled away almost everything they had, he hadn't resorted to borrowing from loan sharks. If that had happened, Lin Jin probably wouldn't even be able to attend college. He'd have to start working right after high school to pay off the debts.
"Sure, I'll probably get a week off for Chinese New Year too. Not sure if you'll be able to make it in time" Lin Chen said, focusing on the fries that Lin Jin didn't like from the combo meal they had ordered.
The fries were actually quite tasty, but Lin Jin avoided them out of fear they'd cause pimples.
"I’m done eating, let's go." Having talked and eaten enough, Lin Jin promptly stood up, brushed off any crumbs from his clothes, and led Lin Chen towards the exit.
Lin Jin's mood wasn't the best. Although his current tasks didn't seem too complicated, the issue was that he would soon be going home.
He had to face his often intoxicated father, who had been opposed to Lin Jin cross-dressing since his kindergarten days. And now, Lin Jin didn't even need to cross-dress. Even in men's clothing with slightly longer hair, he often received disapproving glances from elderly people who would call him "young lady."
So, better shave his head before going home!
It was only when he returned to the dorm that Lin Jin remembered he had forgotten to bring Wen Xuan his late night snack.
"Where's my snack?" Wen Xuan, hearing the door open, turned to find Lin Jin's hands empty.
"I forgot" Lin Jin said, holding his head high.
Speaking of which, his memory seemed to be playing tricks on him lately. He was increasingly forgetful. Just the other day, he was holding his phone while searching for it all over the dorm. He even had Wu Min make a call to his phone to locate it. His roommates were equally clueless, ignoring the fact that the missing phone was actually in Lin Jin's hand the whole time. It took them half an hour to suddenly realize that the phone they had been looking for was right there in Lin Jin's grip all along.
It must be the black cat's fault.
In any case, whenever something negative happened, Lin Jin could conveniently blame it on the black cat.
"Little bro, wanna go for a run on the track or something?" Lin Jin suggested, not sure what got into him to suddenly think of jogging.
"Sure" Lin Chen replied, standing up from his seat before he could even get comfortable.
What was his brother up to now?
Lin Chen internally grumbled about Lin Jin but, glancing at the game he had just started on his computer, dutifully followed Lin Jin, who had already changed his shoes, out of the dorm.
Lin Chen was a top student. Although he liked to game, he mainly spent his time studying. He only managed a couple of games on weekends, the rest of his time was consumed by his high school's demanding workload and his fitness routine. So, the idea jogging didn't bother him.
Lin Jin, however, had reservations.
His jacket was a bit too thin for the weather. During the day, when the sun was still out, a light jacket was fine for Xiamen's winter. But now, approaching midnight, the outdoor temperature was far from warm. A chilly wind blew relentlessly into Lin Jin's clothing.
But Lin Jin wasn't actually planning to exercise. He just wanted to strengthen his bond with Lin Chen. That way, when he asked Lin Chen for a cheek kiss tomorrow, it wouldn't seem too abrupt.
But since when did brothers show their affection with a kiss on the cheek? It's not like they were in a foreign country where people greet friends with cheek-to-cheek kisses.
Upon arriving at the track, they found that the lights had been fixed, illuminating the field as if it were daytime. Despite it being past midnight, a couple of pairs of lovebirds could still be seen strolling around, and three or four people were jogging or working out.
Hmm... Lin Jin slowed down to walk beside Lin Chen, stealing a glance at him. Lin Chen seemed eager, already taking off his military coat.
"Let's, uh..."
"Then I'll go jogging first?" Lin Chen handed Lin Jin the coat, bounced in place a couple of times, and then headed toward the track.
Huh?
Wouldn't you at least let me finish what I was saying? This wasn’t the script, was it?
Aren't we supposed to have a chat first to strengthen our brotherly bond before going jogging together? Why'd you take off running on your own?
Lin Jin stood there, stupefied, holding Lin Chen's military coat. Watching his brother start running in just a short-sleeved shirt, he could only shake his head helplessly. He plopped down onto the grass, took out his phone, and began searching online for strategies to better connect with his brother.
After all, they could always strengthen their relationship once Lin Chen finished his run!
