What's the Point of Living, when the best is Sleeping? [BL]

9

To Ye Ming, anyone capable of demanding or seeking attention was already 'shameless' in his eyes. After all, wasn't it enough that he showed his reluctance? But no, they would still insist on pulling his nonexistent attentiveness into their direction when they spoke, completely disregarding his clear disinterest.

"Just kill me already," Ye Ming muttered under his breath, his face twitching ever so slightly, though he kept his expression as neutral as possible.

He glanced at Uncle Mu, who was busily talking with that shameless person—Jing Jian, a new transfer student bold enough to immediately cozy up to them as if they'd been close friends for years.

The plan to "avoid all characters" from the book was turning out to be a horrendous idea. Ye Ming hadn't fully understood how someone acting differently from the way they were supposed to could cause such a massive ripple effect. It was no longer just a matter of speculation. The disruption was plain as day, and Ye Ming felt like he was being dragged into a whirlwind of chaos without any say.

The worst part was that Ye Ming couldn't even behave the way he thought he was supposed to. He and his family weren't prominent players in the story; they were more like background characters, mere elements of the scenery with no assigned roles or developed storylines. It felt as if they were there to serve as part of the environment, invisible to the actual plot, and yet here he was, forced to deal with the fallout. The pressure of trying to figure out how to act in this complicated and unfamiliar scenario was already becoming unbearable.

After all, this wasn't just the book anymore. The world around him had developed its own consciousness. To Ye Ming, the behavior of the male leads made him doubt whether they would act anything like their counterparts in the original story.

The cafeteria was a cacophony of noise. Freshmen, seniors, and juniors all mingled after the foundation day meeting, their voices blending into one loud hum as they anticipated the grandiose school celebration three days from now.

Li Wei and his usual gang of cronies weren't contributing to the noise today, but Bai Yuer and Mei Fang certainly were, their high-pitched, animated chatter dominating their corner of the cafeteria as they sat at their usual table.

With his head resting heavily on the table, Ye Ming half-listened to the conversation between Uncle Mu and Jing Jian while being spoon-fed. Oddly enough, he found himself somewhat grateful that Bai Yuer hadn't thrown any of her icy glares his way today, unlike yesterday when she practically bored holes into him with her eyes.

"Ah, Uncle Mu, why do you need to spoon-feed Xiao Ming?" Jing Jian asked, his voice dripping with fake curiosity as he mockingly added the diminutive "Xiao" to Ye Ming's name. It grated on Ye Ming's nerves. For the record, Ye Ming was only three months younger than Jing Jian, yet the guy seemed determined to treat him like a child.

"You see, this Third Young Master of mine is so lazy that even breathing seems to tire him out," Uncle Mu replied, pointing to the earphones jammed in Ye Ming's ears. "We're all used to him being like this by now."

Let's pretend I didn't hear that, Ye Ming thought. He could still make out their conversation despite the "Breath in, breath out" mantra playing softly in his earphones.

Slowly, Ye Ming closed his eyes again, the weight of exhaustion pressing down on him. Chewing felt like an effort. Eating? Completely overrated. Why bother when he could just imagine food in his dreams? Then again—no, even in his dreams, he was too tired to eat. It was a never-ending cycle of fatigue.

Jing Jian took a quick, casual glance at Ye Ming, now slouched over the table with his chin resting on the hard surface. To anyone passing by, Ye Ming's sleeping position must have looked unbearably uncomfortable. Who could sleep like that, especially in such a loud, chaotic environment?

Jing Jian never expected someone who did nothing but sleep to capture his interest. Forget the so-called "Newest Flower" of the school—Ye Ming was more like a spoiled, grumpy cat that glared at you with sleepy eyes, daring you to disturb him.

"Uncle Mu—" Jing Jian began.

Before he could launch into his 35th question, a young man with white hair and piercing green eyes slid into the seat beside the now-sleeping Ye Ming. Jing Jian's expression shifted dramatically, moving from innocence to surprise, then to a brief flicker of disgust, back to innocence, and finally to a look of happy curiosity. It was a whirlwind of facial gymnastics.

Uncle Mu, ever the courteous conversationalist, turned to the new arrival with a warm smile. He remembered Li Wei mentioning earlier that this person was also a "friend" of Ye Ming's, though Ye Ming had a different definition of the term.

"Xiao Li, have you eaten yet?" Uncle Mu asked the newcomer, who shook his head silently in response.

Ye Ming's head snapped up the moment he sensed another presence beside him. His eyes locked onto the white-haired youth, and without thinking, he blurted out, "Fuck!"

His mouth hung open, and his blue eyes went wide with shock, the last remnants of his laziness vanishing in an instant. His entire body felt jolted awake. His plan—ruined! Why were the two male leads closing in on him like this? What did they want? He wasn't the female lead!

Before he could attempt to fall back into his feigned slumber, another student slid into the seat opposite him, right next to Uncle Mu. Recognizing this newcomer, Ye Ming's shoulders slumped in defeat. He buried his face into his hands, using his palms as a makeshift pillow.

I just want to sleep... sleep... sleep...

"Guang Kai, you're here too?!" Uncle Mu exclaimed. "I'm so happy for the Third Young Master! He has three new friends!"

Fuck socializing, sleep instead,  Ye Ming thought, mentally coughing up blood at the absurdity of it all. He shuddered at the realization that Uncle Mu was unknowingly placing him in constant peril by encouraging these encounters. The man had no idea that meeting these three was basically a slow death sentence for Ye Ming.

Ye Ming could almost feel Uncle Mu's beaming smile, radiating with pride. Fuck socializing, sleep instead, he thought again, sinking deeper into his desire to escape this awkward situation through sleep.

As the trio of supposed "friends" laughed awkwardly, Ye Ming couldn't help but laugh bitterly on the inside, even as he felt like crying. What were these three planning? He barely knew Bai Yuer, and now he was being surrounded by all the leads from the story. What was happening?

Grateful for the earphones in his ears, Ye Ming let the calm, repetitive voice—"Breath in, breath out"—pull him away from his frustrations and back toward the peaceful bliss of sleep, where hopefully, none of this mess would follow him.