Sunlight slipped through the hospital curtains in thin gold lines.
Xu Jin woke slowly.
Not dramatically this time.
Not delirious.
Not thinking angels had descended from heaven.
Just… a heavy, stiff body, dry mouth, and the faint smell of disinfectant.
He blinked.
White ceiling.
Beeping monitor.
Soft blanket.
A cat's warm weight pressed against his ribs.
Xu Jin's brain took three full seconds to load.
"…Hospital?" he croaked.
Yunhu lifted his fluffy head and meowed directly into his face.
Xu Jin flinched.
"…Demon?" he whispered.Yunhu flicked his tail proudly.Memories crashed in.
The door.Falling.
A tall silhouette.Strong arms.
Grandma's voice.
Taxi lights.
Xu Jin stared at the ceiling.
"…I lived."He turned his head.
Grandma Liang sat on the other bed, already awake, hair neatly tied, reading glasses on, peeling an apple with calm elegance as if this was her daily morning routine.
When she noticed his eyes open, she smiled.
"Oh. You're awake, young man."
Xu Jin blinked.
His voice came out soft and unsure.
"…Grandma?"
Grandma Liang chuckled.
"You can call me Grandma Liang. You almost scared us to death last night."
Xu Jin's face slowly turned red.
"…Us?"
Before Grandma Liang could answer, the door opened quietly.
Liang Chen stepped in.
He was carrying a paper bag. Another small carrier box. And two cups of warm soy milk.
His expression was the same as always — calm, neat, unreadable.
Except now Xu Jin noticed the faint dark circles under his eyes.
Liang Chen placed everything on the small hospital table.
"Breakfast," he said. "And medicine."
Xu Jin stared.
Suddenly — everything clicked.
Not an angel.
Not hallucination.
Not a fever dream.
The person who pulled him from the floor.
The one who stayed beside his bed.
The one who called the taxi.
Was—
"The professor?!" Xu Jin burst out.
Liang Chen paused mid-pour of soy milk.
Grandma Liang covered her mouth to hide a laugh.
Xu Jin shot upright, IV line tugging slightly. Yunhu slid down his chest like a fluffy waterfall.
Xu Jin pointed dramatically.
"You're my neighbor! The cat thief! The stalker accuser! The wall-shoving villain!"
Liang Chen calmly adjusted his glasses.
"You were the one who called me a stalker. And threatened to put me in jail."
Xu Jin's brain replayed last night's feverish mutterings.
He remembered saying:
"…Professor Angel… unfairly handsome…"
He wanted to evaporate.
Grandma Liang laughed openly now.
Liang Chen placed a tray in front of Xu Jin.
"Eat. Then take your medicine."
Xu Jin stared at the breakfast.
Congee. Steamed bun. Pickled vegetables. A small bowl of cat food beside it.
He looked up slowly.
"…You bought breakfast for my demon too?"
Liang Chen nodded once.
"Cats need breakfast."
Xu Jin turned to Yunhu.
Yunhu was already devouring the food like a small white vacuum cleaner.
Xu Jin clasped his hands dramatically.
"Oh mighty Yunhu. Forgive my disrespect. I called you a traitor demon. I doubted your loyalty. Yet you stayed beside me in my darkest hour."
Yunhu lifted his head with a food-covered chin.
Grandma Liang wheezed laughing.
"Young man, you're very entertaining."
Xu Jin bowed weakly from the bed.
"Grandma, I am Xu Jin. Professional disaster. Temporary patient. Permanent headache."
Liang Chen rubbed his temple once.
"I can see that."
Breakfast passed in strange domestic peace.
Grandma Liang chatted easily with Xu Jin as if they'd known each other for years.
"So, Xiao Jin, where is your family?"
Xu Jin spooned congee into his mouth, casual.
"Oh, they're busy. I'm independent."
Grandma Liang raised an eyebrow.
"Independent? Last night you couldn't even walk to the door."
Xu Jin choked on his congee.
Liang Chen handed him water without comment.
Grandma Liang patted his arm.
"Don't lie to grandma. You ran away, didn't you?"
Xu Jin froze.
Then grinned sheepishly.
"…Maybe a little."
Grandma Liang laughed.
"Good. At your age, stubbornness is natural. But don't kill yourself over it."
Xu Jin nodded seriously.
"I'll try not to die again."
Liang Chen said flatly, "Please don't. It's inconvenient."
Xu Jin looked at him.
"…You're cold."
"…I'm practical."
"…I like you."
Liang Chen paused.
Grandma Liang burst into laughter again.
After breakfast, Liang Chen opened the medicine bag.
"This one after eating. This one at noon. This one at night."
Xu Jin stared at the pills like they were alien eggs.
"…You're good at this."
Liang Chen sealed the bag.
"I live with a grandma."
Grandma Liang smirked.
"And he used to get sick often as a child."
Liang Chen quietly changed the subject.
"I have university lectures this morning. I'll go after you're discharged. The nurse said you can leave in an hour."
Xu Jin suddenly felt oddly… disappointed.
"Oh."He covered it quickly with bravado.
"Don't worry, professor. I'll survive. I have Yunhu now."Yunhu meowed in agreement.
Liang Chen glanced at the cat.Then at Xu Jin.
"…I'll walk you home later."Xu Jin grinned.
"Escort service included. Five stars."
Liang Chen left without responding.
But his ears were slightly pink.
After Liang Chen left for the doctor's office to finalize discharge, Xu Jin leaned back on the pillow.
Grandma Liang peeled another apple and handed him slices.
"So," she said. "You like my grandson?"
Xu Jin choked again."Grandma!!"She laughed.
"I'm old, not blind. You're very expressive."
Xu Jin fanned himself dramatically.
"…He saved me. That's heroic. It's natural to admire heroes."
Grandma Liang nodded thoughtfully.
"Then be good. Don't cause trouble."
Xu Jin saluted."Yes, Grandma!"
By late morning, Xu Jin was discharged.
He walked out of the hospital wearing borrowed slippers Grandma Liang insisted he use "until your legs stop being noodles."
Yunhu rode in Xu Jin's arms like a spoiled prince.
Outside, Liang Chen waited under a tree, quiet and composed.
Xu Jin walked up to him.Awkwardness hovered.Then Xu Jin bowed deeply.
"Professor Liang Chen. Thank you for saving my life. I said many rude things before. I am very sorry."
Liang Chen looked at him for a long moment.
Then nodded once."Apology accepted."
Xu Jin beamed."We're friends now."
Liang Chen didn't answer.But he didn't deny it either.On the way home, Xu Jin whispered to Yunhu."My loyal demon saved me. From now on, I will worship you."
Yunhu flicked his tail proudly