In the afternoon, the school held a basketball game, with Class 1 and Class 2 facing off against Class 3 West Class.
Before the match even began, the basketball court was already surrounded so tightly that not a drop could get through. Layers upon layers of people packed the area, and almost all of them were girls.
Amid the chattering discussions, nine out of every ten sentences revolved around Lu Zhiye.
The fervent admiration of those openly in love and the shy affection of those secretly in love were all written plainly on the faces turned toward the center of the court, completely exposed.
Su Nuonuo stood at the very front of the crowd, holding two bottles of mineral water—one at room temperature, and the other specially chilled and then left out for a while so that it was slightly cool, just the right temperature.
She knew that after playing basketball, Lu Zhiye would feel extremely hot and preferred cold water to quench his thirst, but his stomach couldn’t tolerate water that was too cold.
So he could only drink water that had been chilled, but not too cold.
All of this had been quietly noted down in her previous life, when she hid behind the crowd and watched countless of his games.
It was just that back then, she had been too timid and never dared to give him even a single bottle.
She stared absentmindedly at the tall figure of the boy on the court when her arm was suddenly nudged. Su Xiaoyu squeezed over, raised her brows, and smiled. “Nuonuo, you came early just to grab the front row and even prepared water—this is specially for Lu Zhiye, right?”
Su Nuonuo lifted her eyes, her gaze passing through the noisy crowd and locking firmly onto Lu Zhiye. She responded almost instinctively, “Mm.”
Seeing her open and earnest expression, Su Xiaoyu smiled and patted her shoulder. “Nice, Nuonuo. You’ve finally stopped being the quiet good girl!”
In her previous life, Su Xiaoyu had long since seen through her feelings for Lu Zhiye. It was just that her family was strict, and her personality timid, so she could only bury that affection deep in her heart.
Later, after Lu Zhiye’s death, she fell into depression. Su Xiaoyu feared she wouldn’t be able to endure it and would follow him, so she stayed by her side almost every moment.
That was why, in this life, she did not hide it from Su Xiaoyu.
Su Nuonuo turned and smiled. “Mm, I’m seriously pursuing him.”
Her tone was decisive. Su Xiaoyu’s eyes lit up instantly. She clapped her shoulder and praised, “That’s what I like! Being open like this is so cool! Look at him—he’s not even focused on the game, his side glances are practically glued to you, constantly sneaking looks your way!”
As soon as she said this, Lu Zhiye on the court seemed to be stirred. He dribbled forward aggressively, his movements sharp and clean.
He swiftly evaded two defenders, lowered his body to break through, then leapt up for a layup. The basketball swished cleanly into the hoop.
The crisp sound instantly ignited the entire crowd into screams that shook the ears.
He landed steadily, casually wiped the sweat from his forehead, and his damp bangs clung to his brow, giving off a distinctly wild and unrestrained youthful energy.
Yet his peripheral vision accurately swept toward Su Nuonuo, unexpectedly meeting her smiling eyes.
At the moment their gazes met, Lu Zhiye’s ears turned red in an instant. He hurriedly looked away, pretending to focus on the game.
But his subsequent attacks became even more aggressive. Every move carried a determined edge, as if he just wanted to perform better in front of her—brighter, more dazzling.
When the halftime whistle blew and Lu Zhiye had just stopped, several bold girls rushed forward, offering water and tissues.
He didn’t even lift his eyelids, his brows slightly furrowed.
He raised his hand to push through the crowd and walked straight toward Su Nuonuo.
He carried an aura that kept others at a distance, yet beneath it hid a faint urgency and awkwardness that was hard to detect.
Sweat slid down his sharp jawline, dripping into the collar of his jersey and leaving a darkened patch… full of raw, untamed masculinity.
But when he reached Su Nuonuo, he subconsciously slowed his steps, lowered his gaze to look at her, his Adam’s apple rolling slightly. His lips moved, but in the end, he didn’t say a word.
The surrounding noise seemed to be muted, as all the girls’ gazes locked onto them at once…
Envy, jealousy, and shock intertwined.
Su Nuonuo lifted her eyes, her gaze filled with a gentle smile.
She unscrewed the slightly cool bottle of mineral water and handed it to him, then took out a clean tissue from her pocket. Standing on tiptoe, she raised her hand and gently wiped the sweat from his forehead and cheeks.
Her fingertips touched his warm, sweaty skin—hot and smooth. Her movements were gentle and natural, intimate as though she had done it countless times, without the slightest sense of unfamiliarity.
At that moment, the entire venue fell into complete silence. Everyone was stunned.
Who didn’t know that Lu Zhiye disliked girls getting close to him? Let alone touching his face—he had never even accepted water from anyone before!
Lu Zhiye stood stiffly, motionless, allowing her to wipe him.
His fingers at his side quietly curled inward. His heart felt both hot and flustered, filled with uncontrollable joy and excitement. Even the thought of pulling away didn’t cross his mind.
He took the bottle of water, tilted his head back, and drank more than half of it in one go. The cold water flowed down his throat, but it couldn’t suppress the rising heat in his chest. After a long moment, he finally muttered two words in a low voice: “Busybody.”
His tone was awkward and stiff, yet there was no reproach in it. Instead, it carried indulgence and care that he couldn’t hide—spoiled tenderness that was impossible to conceal.
In a corner of the spectator stands, Sun Qing watched this scene, her expression turning extremely dark. The bottle of mineral water in her hand was almost crushed out of shape.
The girl beside her quietly exclaimed in disbelief, “He actually accepted Su Nuonuo’s water and let her touch his face! Lu Zhiye has never paid attention to girls before—Su Nuonuo is really amazing!”
Sun Qing bit her lip, her eyes surging with intense unwillingness and anger, her heart aching with jealousy.
Su Xiaoyu squeezed back to Su Nuonuo’s side, smiling slyly as she leaned close to her ear and whispered, “See that? Total double standards from the school bully! He doesn’t even look at water from others, but he takes yours and even stands still while you wipe his sweat—this treatment is one of a kind! Your pursuit of him is already stable!”
Su Nuonuo pressed her lips together and smiled softly, her gaze returning to Lu Zhiye. In a gentle voice, she said, “I’m not in a hurry. Taking it slow is fine. As long as I can get a little closer to him step by step, that’s enough.”
The second half began quickly, and Lu Zhiye seemed to be infused with full energy—his condition was astonishingly good.
Steals, dribbling, layups, dunks—all executed in one fluid motion.
Several consecutive dazzling flying dunks each time triggered explosive cheers from the crowd, the roar deafening.
After every score, he would subconsciously turn his head to look in Su Nuonuo’s direction.
He hoped to meet her gaze, yet carried a hint of youthful shyness. Afraid that his eagerness would be too obvious, his eyes darted away yet lingered, filled with uncontrollable joy.
After one particularly beautiful flying dunk, the basketball slammed heavily into the hoop.
He landed steadily and, as he ran back to midcourt, finally gathered the courage to look back openly at Su Nuonuo.
Just in time, he met her smiling eyes—eyes filled with starlight, admiration, and gentleness, striking straight into his heart.
Lu Zhiye’s ears turned completely red in an instant, yet the corners of his lips couldn’t help but lift. With a slightly roguish yet pure expression, he raised an eyebrow at her, eyes brimming with excitement, as if asking for credit: Did I play well?
Su Nuonuo’s heart trembled slightly. A faint blush spread across her cheeks. She raised her hand and softly made a cheering gesture toward him, her brows and eyes curved in a gentle and radiant smile, sweet enough to dazzle.
Lu Zhiye’s heart instantly softened. The smile at the corner of his lips could no longer be hidden.
Even his movements while playing became subtly gentler. The wildness around him transformed into a quiet softness filled with warmth.
When the final whistle blew, Lu Zhiye led his team to victory. The entire arena erupted into thunderous cheers, his name being called one after another.
He casually draped his soaked jersey over his shoulder, revealing his smoothly defined back. Ignoring the water and tissues being handed to him from all sides, he walked straight through the noisy crowd toward Su Nuonuo, who was tidying up her things.
When he reached her, his fingers trembled slightly as he naturally took the opened bottle of cool mineral water from her hand.
Tilting his head back, he took a sip. The cold water flowed down his throat, easing all the heat and restlessness in his chest.
“Let’s go.”
He left behind those two words in a low, hoarse voice, carrying undeniable certainty.
After speaking, he shifted to the side and slightly raised his hand, signaling for her to follow.
There was a hint of nervousness in his eyes, as if afraid she might refuse, yet more than that, he wanted to protect her from the prying gazes behind them.
Su Nuonuo smiled and nodded, softly responding, “Okay.”
From behind, Su Xiaoyu saw this and gave her a big thumbs-up, shouting at the top of her lungs, “Nuonuo, go for it! Lu Zhiye will be yours sooner or later!”
The two of them turned and walked side by side out of the court. The envious, jealous, and astonished gazes of the girls behind them, along with the continuous murmurs of discussion, were all subconsciously ignored.
Lu Zhiye deliberately slowed his pace, walking just enough to stay shoulder to shoulder with her. His peripheral vision lingered quietly on her profile, unable to look away even for a moment.
All his usual hostility and sharpness had completely faded away, leaving only pure youthful joy and that hot, careful, and intense heartbeat unique to adolescence.