The small gathering in the dormitory, which began with the little cake and ended with it being finished, lasted until late at night. All the little cubs had full bellies before they went back to rest.
The next day, the little cubs' first day at primary school officially began.
Early in the morning, Luo Qi swore that it was still dark outside, definitely not yet six o'clock, when a piercing broadcast announced that all first-year freshmen were to go to the auditorium for the opening ceremony.
"Dear students, the best time of the year is in the morning, and a beautiful day begins with the morning. The school sincerely invites all students to attend the opening ceremony held in the auditorium today.
The ceremony will begin punctually in half an hour. This is also the first test for all students. The auditorium doors will close after this hour. Those who do not arrive will be considered to have withdrawn from this school's enrollment.
So, we wish all of you good luck."
Luo Qi, groggy, heard the broadcast and sat up in bed with a jolt.
What a joke! Did the broadcast mean that if he didn't get to the auditorium in half an hour, he wouldn't be able to attend this school anymore?
But he had just woken up!
If he also counted the time it took to walk from here…
Luo Qi pulled open the curtain by his bed.
He could already faintly hear the sound of footsteps in the corridor. Everyone was walking in a hurry, and it seemed quite a few people were startled by this sudden test.
Luo Qi rolled out of bed and looked at the other three beds. Strangely, there was no movement on any of them.
He thought He Ning and He Yuan hadn't heard the broadcast, so he shouted for them to get up while wearing his slippers and went to pull their curtains.
Ye Mu's bed was the closest. Luo Qi called out to him strangely, "Ye Mu, aren't you up yet? Hurry up, or we'll miss the ceremony."
The bed curtain was opened, and the bed was empty. The bedsheet was neat, and the quilt was folded neatly. Luo Qi touched the bed; Ye Mu must have left a long time ago.
Luo Qi muttered to himself, "Where did he go?"
He walked over to He Ning and He Yuan's beds and found, as with Ye Mu, that no one was in the beds.
Luo Qi sighed and could only go to the bathroom to wash up. Just as he put his toothbrush in his mouth, he heard the sound of the door opening outside.
Luo Qi poked his head out from the bathroom and saw Ye Mu, He Ning, and He Yuan pushing the door open.
The three of them were only wearing simple shorts and boots, with beads of sweat on their foreheads. They walked in, chatting and laughing, as if they had gone for a run early in the morning.
Luo Qi spat out the toothpaste foam from his mouth, pursed his lips, and asked, "What were you guys doing?"
Ye Mu placed the breakfast in his hand on the table and said with a smile, "We got up early to go for a run. He Ning and He Yuan also wanted to go, so we went together."
He Yuan took off his sweat-soaked t-shirt and shook his hair vigorously. "We heard the broadcast and were worried you hadn't woken up. We ran halfway and came back to call you, and we brought you breakfast."
He Ning nodded slightly, looking a bit vacant. "Buns and porridge, delicious."
Ye Mu was also taking off his clothes, throwing his dirty clothes into the dirty laundry basket he shared with Luo Qi, and said,
"We've all eaten. You wash up and then come over to eat, and then we'll head to the auditorium."
Luo Qi nodded and retracted his head. Looking at himself in the mirror, Luo Qi realized his expression seemed a little lost.
He Yuan said "we."
He was referring to himself and his brother, and Ye Mu, but in the past, Ye Mu's "we" only included him and Ye Mu.
Luo Qi felt a bit overly sentimental, but he couldn't help but feel a bit… wronged? Or a mix of other emotions.
He woke up early in the morning to find himself alone in the dormitory. The other three were doing something together, but no one had notified him.
He thought for a long time about what they had been doing, and they were all smiles when they returned, while he was the only one foolishly worried.
Moreover, although Ye Mu had brought him breakfast, Ye Mu himself had probably eaten breakfast with He Ning and the others. In the past, they always ate together.
Luo Qi sighed again, telling himself not to overthink things, and spat out the mouthwash.
But he was still a little unhappy. In the past, he and Ye Mu did everything together, so he subconsciously felt that no matter what they did, Ye Mu would bring him along.
But on the very first day of school, Ye Mu had gone out with his new friends. It wasn't that it was bad, but Luo Qi was a little unaccustomed to it.
Luo Qi turned on the faucet and splashed water on his face, a smile curving his lips.
He didn't know what he was thinking about, acting like a petty and insecure resentful woman.
After washing up as quickly as possible, Luo Qi walked out of the bathroom. Ye Mu had changed into his first-year uniform and, with his back to Luo Qi, was opening the packaging of the buns on the table, inserting chopsticks into the soy milk cup.
Even with his back to Luo Qi, Ye Mu seemed to be able to immediately sense Luo Qi's every movement in the same space. He turned his head and urged,
"Hurry up and eat, I'm starving."
Luo Qi asked curiously, "Didn't you eat with He Ning and them?"
He Yuan, sitting on the bed reading a book, heard this and smiled, shaking his head.
"I don't know what bad habit Ye Mu has. He didn't eat with us in the cafeteria and insisted on coming back to eat with you.
Tsk, does eating with you taste better?"
Ye Mu nodded affirmatively, "Yes, eating with Luo Luo tastes better."
Luo Qi's lips curved slightly, just a little, like finding an umbrella on a lonely road during a thunderstorm.
He opened the umbrella and saw it was decorated with several cute little yellow ducks.
Luo Qi changed into his uniform and sat down opposite Ye Mu. Ye Mu pushed a bun towards him, "Eat quickly, they're still warm."
Luo Qi nodded, picked up a bun, and put it in his mouth. It seemed to be filled with the meat of the flying beast that Luo Qi liked the most, making Luo Qi's appetite surge.
While eating, Ye Mu suddenly said, "Did you see the note and message I left for you?"
Luo Qi, with a bun in his mouth, stared blankly, "What note?"
Ye Mu said helplessly, "I knew you wouldn't see it. When we went for a run this morning, I went to call you and wanted to ask if you wanted to go too, but you refused to wake up, rolled over, and told me not to disturb you."
Luo Qi's face flushed. It sounded like something he would do.
Ye Mu continued, "But I thought you wouldn't want to go running with me even if you woke up, so I wrote you a note to tell you we were going for a run and not to worry if you woke up and couldn't find us.
Also, when we went to the cafeteria to buy breakfast, I sent you a message asking what you wanted to eat, but you didn't reply.
So I bought you buns, guessing you'd like this flavor."
Ye Mu stood up, walked to Luo Qi's bed, and found the note he had left in a corner under the bed, handing it to Luo Qi.
Luo Qi opened the message in his hand. He had set it to silent because he was going to sleep at night.
Luo Qi picked up another bun and put it in his mouth, but the smile on his lips grew even wider, impossible to hide.
Luo Qi coughed lightly and said, "I don't care where you go, why are you explaining so much?"
Ye Mu raised an eyebrow, "Then does Luo Luo mean you weren't unhappy in the bathroom just now?"
Luo Qi was taken aback, "How did you know…"
Ye Mu chuckled, "If you weren't unhappy, you would have eagerly looked at the breakfast as soon as you saw it, instead of quietly shrinking back."
Luo Qi pouted, about to say something else, when he heard Ye Mu say, "Luo Luo, you can tell me anything that makes you unhappy, but don't sulk by yourself.
Understand?"