Wang Shuo stood up and patted the dust off his trousers. “.Gu Yu was right after all.”
“Right about what?” Zhao Che knitted his brows, his expression far from friendly.
“I actually wanted to invite Gu Yu to join the track and field club we set up privately, but he refused,” Wang Shuo explained with a hint of regret, then added, “Oh, he also said you might be interested and told me to ask you.”
Zhao Che:
So Gu Yu hadn’t added the other person’s contact info at all; Zhao Che had not only misunderstood him just now, but had even pulled a face.
“So, do you want to join?” Wang Shuo extended a sincere invitation once more.
Zhao Che rejected him in a single word: “No.” With that, he headed off to find Gu Yu and the others.
“Holy shit! We came in third overall!” The moment Zhao Che walked over, he heard Li Changlin let out a sharp screech. “Sigh, Che-ge, I feel like I should step down as sports representative.”
Zhao Che scanned the crowd for that tall, slender figure and replied offhandedly, “Forget it, just stay in the role.”
“Old Chen’s definitely going to be thrilled when she finds out! Let’s go, let’s go back and tell her quick!” Zhou Wei wiped his glasses, put them back on, and said, “For this holiday’s math paper, I’m bound to make Old Chen cut one page off for me!”
After searching the area without seeing him, Zhao Che asked with some impatience, “Where’s Gu Yu?”
Zhou Wei thought for a moment. “I think I saw him walking off with Wang Anran just now?”
“Wang Anran?” Zhao Che was puzzled. “Which way did they go?”
“Looks like toward the restrooms near the gymnasium.” Zhou Wei pointed across the playground. “Did something…”
…happen?
Before he could finish his sentence, Zhao Che was already ten meters away, sprinting off. Zhou Wei shook his head and said to Li Changlin, “Let’s go, the two of us will head back first to share the good news.”
The restroom next to the gymnasium was quite old, built directly out of cement and bricks. Having endured years of wind and rain, the outer layer of wall plaster had long peeled off. Although the school had renovated it later on, it still couldn’t change its original condition and environment.
Most students generally wouldn’t come to this restroom unless they had an urgent need while jogging on the track. Because of this, it had turned into a gathering spot for the “troublemakers.” Most of them came here to smoke, so they were willing to tolerate the stench inside.
Even though the discipline teachers were inspecting less strictly today due to the sports meet, it didn’t mean everyone could completely let their guard down. As Zhao Che ran over, he saw a boy not wearing school uniform pants sitting at the entrance on lookout duty. The moment their eyes met, the boy immediately scrambled off the steps and ran into the restroom to report.
Before Zhao Che even stepped inside, he caught a whiff of the nauseating odor drifting out. Holding his breath, he was just about to go in and look for Gu Yu when he heard someone call his name.
“Zhao Che.”
Zhao Che immediately turned around. He saw Gu Yu, face dark, walking out from behind the restroom alongside Wang Anran. He stepped forward. “What are you guys doing here?”
Gu Yu lowered his eyelashes. A few poplar trees happened to be planted nearby, blocking out the glaring, scorching sun. Beneath the trees, shadows fell across his fair, flawless face…
Just as the $4 times 100text{m}$ relay ended, Gu Yu was about to assemble at the finish line when Wang Anran suddenly ran over, squirming awkwardly for a long moment: “Student Gu Yu, can you come somewhere with me? I have something to tell you.”
The refusal was on the tip of Gu Yu’s tongue when she added urgently and nervously, “I’m begging you, it’s really important, there are too many people here…”
After a brief stalemate, Gu Yu ultimately gave in under her expectant gaze. The two walked from the west end of the playground to the east end, finally stopping at the old restroom by the gymnasium. Outside stood a crowd of students dressed in flashy, gaudy clothes. Yet she didn’t stop until they reached a narrow one-meter gap behind the restroom.
Gu Yu stared at Wang Anran, waiting for her to speak this so-called “important matter.”
“Um… Gu Yu… actually…” Wang Anran’s face turned completely red. It took her forever to squeeze out, “I’ve liked you for a really long time.”
Hearing this, Gu Yu’s expression remained entirely flat. He turned around to leave, only for her to grab the corner of his shirt tightly. Forced to stop, he commanded in a cold, hard voice, “Let go.”
Not only did Wang Anran refrain from letting go, but she also took the opportunity to rest her hand against his shoulder. From behind, the posture looked intimate and ambiguous, sparking wild imagination.
Being touched like this made Gu Yu’s face darken even further, his tone laced with deep impatience: “Let go. Don’t make me say it a third time.”
Perhaps frightened by his intimidating eyes and tone, Wang Anran immediately released him as soon as the words left his mouth. After scrambling two steps backward in panic, she contradictorily stepped forward again. Forcing herself to look composed, she squeezed out an attempt at a sweet smile and stammered, “Student Gu Yu, today I was… too impulsive. I’m sorry. If… if you reject me, I will never, ever bother you again.”
Without a moment’s hesitation, Gu Yu dropped a cold “Not a chance.” Having finally broken free from that cramped space, he hadn’t expected to bump right into Zhao Che coming to find him.
“Why aren’t you saying anything?” Zhao Che gently took hold of his wrist, his eyes catching the red marks on his arm. “How did you get these?”
Gu Yu snapped back to reality upon feeling his touch. Leaving the two questions unanswered, he merely said, “It’s nothing. Let’s go.”
Zhao Che suddenly looked back, casting a glance at Wang Anran behind them. Her head was lowered as she bit down hard on her trembling lip, her ponytail slightly loose and draped over her shoulder—looking every bit the picture of a helpless, pitiable girl. Finally, his eyes lingered on her fingertips for a moment.
In the end, he didn’t push any further and obediently left with him.
The sports meet reached its final event: the announcement and commendation of overall points standings. The top spots were swept by classes with high numbers of athletic specialists, but Class 1, Grade 11 unexpectedly ranked fifth in the entire grade!
When Chen Shuang heard this unbelievable score, she was beyond thrilled. She not only praised the athletes lavishly, but also rewarded the class by deducting two extra exercise sheets from their holiday homework.
Wang Xue had already learned about Zhao Che and Gu Yu’s results through the parents’ group chat. Deciding to celebrate properly, she started preparing a grand dinner early. When the two returned home to a table full of lavish dishes, both ate quite a bit.
“I’m stuffed to death.” Zhao Che rubbed his stomach and let out a burp, then turned to the person sitting beside him. “Gu Yu, did you eat your fill?”
Gu Yu had just finished the last bite of rice in his bowl. Putting down his chopsticks, he let out a low “Mm.”
“Then let’s go out for a walk to digest.”
School had ended one period earlier than usual today, and dusk hadn’t fully fallen yet. Gu Yu wiped his mouth. “Sure.”
Coming out of the kitchen holding a bowl, Wang Xue saw the two changing shoes at the entryway and asked, “There’s mung bean soup left, aren’t you having any?”
“No thanks, Mom. Leave it in the fridge as a late-night snack later.” With that, Zhao Che pushed open the door and stepped out with Gu Yu.
The temperature had dropped significantly in the evening. Bursts of insect chirping drifted from the bushes or maple trees, and many elderly folk were already out walking with young children at this hour. The two walked side by side like this, Zhao Che occasionally whistling a relaxed tune—crisp and lazy.
“Gu Yu, this is actually the first time the two of us have gone out for a walk together,” Zhao Che remarked with satisfaction as he gazed at the golden sunset painted across the horizon.
“School ended early.” Gu Yu was rarely this free, looking up at the sky. “There will be plenty of chances in the future.”
An offhand comment from Gu Yu carried an entirely different weight in Zhao Che’s ears. It meant he held a place in Gu Yu’s plans for the future—that there was a “future.”
“Yeah, plenty of chances in the future,” Zhao Che repeated in a low voice, chuckles spilling out from his throat in soft bursts.
After a moment, Zhao Che brought up a topic: “We’ll be in Senior Year 3 soon, and there are academic competitions next year. What are your plans?”
Gu Yu: “We’ll see.”
In their past life, both Zhao Che and Gu Yu had taken the standard National College Entrance Examination (Gaokao). The reason behind it was complex; originally, both of them had secured advancing spots in the preliminary Physics Competition, but Gu Yu chose to forfeit right at that time.
The teachers were utterly baffled and tried hard to persuade him to think it through, but he seemed to have made up his mind long ago and refused to participate no matter what was said. And upon hearing Gu Yu’s decision, Zhao Che forfeited without another word either, infuriating the teachers to no end.
In the end, the Dean’s office called Wang Xue and Zhao Guowei. Learning about the matter, Wang Xue had taken the initiative to ask for their thoughts. Zhao Che had said with easy confidence at the time: “Aiya, Mom, your son can still get into a top university without participating in competitions, no need to worry.”
In contrast, Gu Yu’s response had been far more direct: “Nothing, I just don’t want to participate anymore.”
Wang Xue and Zhao Guowei had always respected their choices, so their response to the school was: They would not interfere with the kids’ decisions, offering them full understanding and support.
Zhao Che bringing up the competition now was merely an advance attempt to probe Gu Yu’s thoughts. His own reason for forfeiting had been simple, yet unspoken. He had always wanted to attend the same university as Gu Yu; if Gu Yu forfeited, there was no point in him continuing. In any case, taking the summer Gaokao together wouldn’t be much of a challenge for either of them.
However, nobody knew what Gu Yu was thinking. He gave everyone that same line about “not wanting to participate anymore,” to the point where Zhao Che never asked him about it again.
“Alright then, taking the summer Gaokao will be the same anyway,” Zhao Che said, pulling his thoughts back.
Bzzzz, bzzzz, bzzzz
A burst of phone vibration sounded. Gu Yu glanced casually at Zhao Che’s pocket. “Phone.”
Zhao Che pulled out his phone and saw a voice call from Zhou Wei. He pressed answer, and Zhou Wei’s frantic, noisy voice boomed out. The phone volume was loud enough for Gu Yu, standing close by, to hear clearly as well.
“Che-ge! Is Yu-ge there? Why isn’t he replying to my messages or answering his phone?”
Gu Yu explained calmly, “My phone was left upstairs charging.”
Zhao Che could tell from Zhou Wei’s tone that it was urgent, so he said directly, “He’s right next to me. Say whatever you need to say.”
“Look at the campus confession wall quick! It’s completely blowing up over there!” If it were a video call, one would be able to see Zhou Wei’s face flushed red with anxiety.
Hearing this, Zhao Che opened another app. Under the campus wall, every post was about Gu Yu. Unlike before, these posts weren’t confessions, but an entire page of accusations and abuse.
The post with the most likes and comments consisted of a few lines of text accompanied by two photos.
Anonymous Submission: Class 1 Grade 11’s Gu Yu acts all cold and abstinent on the surface, but in private, he’s secretly dating a girl! He was being ambiguous and acting overly intimate with her behind the restrooms—it’s downright scandalous!
The photos were somewhat blurry. The first picture captured the two pulling and tugging at each other, Gu Yu grabbed by the girl at close proximity. The second picture was shot from another angle: the girl was resting her hands on his shoulders, making it look as though they were kissing.
The comment section was buzzing with activity, mostly filled with people casting blame and eating popcorn.