By the time Song Yunshen and Xia Yunuo arrived at the cafeteria, a massive, snake-like line had already formed in front of the food counter.
As far as Song Yunshen could recall, he hadn’t really waited in line at the cafeteria at all this semester. Today was his first time experiencing such a long queue. Usually, he and Xu Zhuoyue would enter a two-player speedrunning mode—a quick sprint before their meal to burn fat and build an appetite. Not only did it save time, but it also allowed them to eat more without gaining weight. Plus, they could even squeeze in some basketball before the lunch break ended. It killed multiple birds with one stone. An absolute win.
But those who waited in line had their own little tricks to pass the time. Xia Yunuo, for instance, pulled a small notebook from her pocket the moment they joined the queue and began memorizing vocabulary words and poetry.
Song Yunshen leaned over curiously to take a peek. The dense English words made his head spin. "You’re such a try-hard."
Xia Yunuo felt Song Yunshen’s warm breath brush against her ear and instinctively shuddered. Taking a half-step back to put a little distance between them, she murmured, "There’s nothing else to do while waiting in line."
"We could chat."
Xia Yunuo shook her head and went back to memorizing her vocabulary.
"This is so embarrassing. He was so close just now; I could feel his warm breath on my ear," Xia Yunuo thought. "Chat? What is there to chat about? I’m better off memorizing a few more words."
Listening to the girl’s inner voice, Song Yunshen sighed helplessly. He decided to just strike up a conversation with the boy standing behind them in line. It wasn’t long before the two boys were chatting passionately, laughing and joking around.
Song Yunshen only turned back around when they were nearing the front of the queue.
Xia Yunuo looked at him, unable to hold back her curiosity. "Do you two know each other?"
"Nope," Song Yunshen replied, looking as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "But we do now."
Xia Yunuo was speechless. How on earth did this guy manage to act like best friends with literally everyone he met? For some reason, a faint trace of envy stirred in Xia Yunuo’s heart.
"Oh man, does she think I’m giving her the cold shoulder?" Song Yunshen thought. "But she was the one who wanted to memorize vocabulary! My only option was to find someone else to talk to. Damn, a woman’s heart really is a needle at the bottom of the ocean. So hard to read."
Hearing Song Yunshen’s thoughts, Xia Yunuo’s expression instantly darkened. "Who thinks they’re being given the cold shoulder?!" she mentally retorted. "How baffling."
"It’s our turn," Song Yunshen said, pointing ahead to remind her. "Order whatever you want. It’s on me."
"Oh, right..." Xia Yunuo snapped out of her daze and quickly turned toward the food counter.
The cafeteria lady was already prepared. She scooped a portion of rice onto a tray and looked at Xia Yunuo expectantly.
"One steamed egg with meatloaf and one serving of bok choy," Xia Yunuo said, quickly rattling off the items she had decided on earlier. However, a rich, savory aroma wafted over from the braised lion’s head meatballs closest to the window, tempting her gaze. She couldn’t help but stare.
"Those braised meatballs smell amazing. Should I get a portion?" she pondered inwardly. "No, no. Even if someone else is paying, I can’t order too much. Just having the steamed egg with meatloaf today is good enough. I’ll pass on the meatballs. Hold back. Restrain yourself."
"Ma’am, add a portion of braised meatballs for her, too," Song Yunshen said to the cafeteria lady. Standing beside her, he had watched Xia Yunuo practically drooling over the meatballs and tried his best to hold back a smile.
"Huh? No, it’s fine. Two dishes are enough for me." Despite the flutter of joy in her heart, Xia Yunuo hurriedly declined.
"Her eyeballs are about to drop into the meatball tray, yet she says it’s fine," Song Yunshen mused inwardly. "Why be so polite? If you want to eat it, just eat it. Staring at it so longingly while refusing it at the same time. Kind of cute, honestly. What a greedy little cat."
"The lady has already plated it for you. Just take it. If you can’t finish it, I’ll eat the rest." Song Yunshen reached out, took the tray, and handed it directly to Xia Yunuo before swiping his meal card.
Xia Yunuo stood numbly to the side. Hearing Song Yunshen’s inner voice, she felt a strong urge to crawl into a hole. Blushing faintly, she lowered her head and stared at her toes. She was not a greedy little cat! Wait, were her thoughts really that obvious just now? So embarrassing!
But...
Smelling the rich, meaty aroma drifting up from her tray, Xia Yunuo felt her stomach rumble like thunder—RUMBLE, RUMBLE. Right now, all she wanted was to quickly find a seat and dig in.
Fortunately, Song Yunshen didn’t keep her waiting long. He ordered a tray with two meat dishes and one vegetable dish, swiped his card, and led Xia Yunuo away from the line. They each grabbed a bowl of seaweed egg drop soup and found two empty seats.
However, the moment Song Yunshen sat down, he felt a death glare piercing him from the next table. Turning his head, he realized it was his good friend, Xu Zhuoyue.
A split second later, a malicious gust of wind struck, and Song Yunshen found himself locked in a chokehold.
"I was wondering what the hell happened! I sprinted all the way to the cafeteria only to realize I was by myself. You bastard!" Xu Zhuoyue choked the scumbag’s neck, absolutely furious. "I was actually worried you might have fallen down the stairs, and this is how you repay me?"
"Let go first," Song Yunshen said, peeling the guy’s death grip off with a speechless expression. "Calm down, will you? It’s just a meal."
"Heh, scumbag." Xu Zhuoyue shot a glance at Xia Yunuo sitting across the table, then scoffed coldly. "I’ll settle the score with you when we get back."
With that, he picked up his empty tray and strode away.
"Are you guys okay?" Xia Yunuo asked. "Did you get into a fight?"
"No." Song Yunshen shook his head. "When guys insult each other, it’s just a way of showing how close they are."
"Huh?" Xia Yunuo was a little stunned; it was her first time hearing such a theory.
"Anyway, let’s eat," Song Yunshen said with a smile. "I’m starving to death."
With that, Song Yunshen picked up his chopsticks and took the first bite. Seeing this, Xia Yunuo abandoned her polite restraint, lowered her head, and began to savor the delicious food.
In truth, the cafeteria food was just average. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t exactly gourmet either. Yet Xia Yunuo ate very carefully, taking her time to savor every bite, deeply afraid that if she ate too fast, it would be gone in a flash.
Halfway through the meal, Song Yunshen took a sip of his soup and casually probed, "Do you have any plans for the summer vacation? The school will probably host some cram school sessions or something."
"Yeah... I’ll probably sign up for the math and physics classes." Xia Yunuo nodded gently. Remembering that he had paid for her meal, she politely returned the question. "What about you?"
"I’m skipping the school’s classes," Song Yunshen shook his head. "My dad is planning to find me a one-on-one English tutor."
"A one-on-one tutor? That must cost a lot of money," Xia Yunuo thought. "My sister seems to be looking for exactly this kind of job. I wonder if I can find a similar gig."
"Mhm, I see..." Xia Yunuo nodded, pondering inwardly. Every single thought was clearly heard by Song Yunshen.
"If you ask me, I should just hire you to be my tutor," Song Yunshen probed, half-joking. "Your English is pretty good anyway."
"It’s a pity I’ve already set my sights on someone," he thought to himself. "Otherwise, I really could have hired her as my tutor."
For a fleeting moment, Xia Yunuo’s heart skipped a beat with interest. But upon hearing Song Yunshen’s inner monologue, it felt like a bucket of cold water had been dumped over her head.
She immediately shook her head. "We’re in the same grade. I’m completely unqualified to be your teacher. If I really wanted to be a tutor, I’d definitely go teach middle school or elementary school students."
"Are you actually planning on being a tutor?"
"Yeah... I guess it wouldn’t hurt," Xia Yunuo said hesitantly. "I can treat it as practical experience, and I’d get to earn some pocket money."
"I see..." Song Yunshen didn’t press the matter further. He simply stroked his chin, lost in thoughts of his own.