He hadn't left?
"I have a place off-campus. You can stay there. The sheets are new."
Zeng Keqin turned. His face was serious, not at all flirtatious.
"No need. I'll book a hotel."
"Alright. I'll go with you. It's not safe for a girl this late."
She thought for a moment and didn't refuse.
They searched several hotels. All the decent ones near campus were full. Only small lodgings were left.
Finally, they found one with a vacancy.
"Three hundred eighty-eight a night. ID, please."
The front desk girl was yawning.
Zeng Keqin rummaged through her bag for her ID—nothing.
She suddenly remembered she had switched bags before going out and left her ID in the other bag's pocket.
"Sorry, miss. No ID means no check-in."
Zeng Keqin bit her lip.
Jiang Shiyu, standing by the door, noticed the issue and walked in. "What's wrong?"
Zeng Keqin said quietly, "I forgot my ID."
Jiang Shiyu reached into his pocket, pulled out his wallet, and slid his ID across the counter. "Use mine."
The front desk girl glanced between them. "If both of you are staying, we need both IDs."
Jiang Shiyu: "She's staying. I'm not. Just register her."
"Can't do that. We need the ID of the person staying. That's the rule."
She pushed the ID back.
Jiang Shiyu looked at the rejected ID, about to think of an alternative, when his sleeve was gently tugged.
He turned. Zeng Keqin pulled her hand back. "Never mind."
"You stay at my place. I'll stay at the hotel."
He put the ID back in his wallet with unusual seriousness.
Zeng Keqin was silent for a moment.
It was late, hard to find a hotel, and she was tired. She had to get up early tomorrow for work.
She nodded. "Okay."
Jiang Shiyu hailed a taxi.
The two sat in the back, each looking out their window. The driver glanced at the silent pair in the rearview mirror and discreetly turned down the radio.
In less than half an hour, the car stopped at the entrance of a high-end residential complex.
The elevator took them straight to the twenty-sixth floor—one apartment per floor.
Jiang Shiyu pressed his fingerprint on the lock, the door opened, and he stepped aside for Zeng Keqin to enter.
The apartment was larger than she had imagined. The decor was simple, in shades of gray, blue, and white. The living room had a leather sofa, a scented candle on the coffee table, a lingering faint fragrance, a spotless floor, and everything neatly arranged.
It was hard to believe this was a bachelor's home.
Jiang Shiyu bent down, took a pair of new cotton slippers from the shoe cabinet, and placed them by her feet.
"Never worn. Use them."
Zeng Keqin changed her shoes and took a couple of steps into the living room. Her eyes inadvertently swept over the balcony. On the drying rack hung two T-shirts, and at the very end, a pair of black men's boxer briefs...
Her gaze froze. She quickly looked away, her toes curling inside the slippers.
Jiang Shiyu shifted half a step to his right, his broad shoulders blocking the view of the balcony. His voice was steady. "The bedroom is this way."
Zeng Keqin followed him, her head down, afraid of seeing anything else awkward.
Jiang Shiyu seemed calm, but the tips of his ears were faintly red.
He pushed open the door of the bedroom at the end of the hallway, took out a neatly folded set of sheets and bedding from the wardrobe, shook them out, and made the bed.
His movements were clean and efficient. Within five minutes, the pillowcases, fitted sheet, and duvet cover were all in place.
Zeng Keqin watched in amazement from the side. He was faster than her. Who would have thought that someone who seemed so carefree could handle housework so well?
Indeed, you can't judge a book by its cover.
Jiang Shiyu straightened up. "The bathroom hot water takes about thirty seconds. Towels are in the basket under the sink. The blue one is new."
"The AC remote is on the nightstand. Water in the fridge, snacks on the kitchen shelf."
He finished explaining, walked out, and closed the door behind him.
Zeng Keqin let out a sigh of relief. Just then, her phone showed a low battery warning—20%.