After evening self-study ended, Mu Yuwei stood up and tossed a folded note onto Bai Shinan’s desk before running out of the classroom, her face flushed.
[East-southeast corner of the sports field. I have something to tell you. Don’t be late.]
Bai Shinan glanced at the note, crumpled it into a ball, and tossed it into the trash. Who gave her the right to order him around like this? Did he ever agree to it?
He packed up his desk, and once most of the students had left, he walked over to Zhu Yuyou. She was still pretending to work on her test paper, but there was already a huge ink blot soaking into the page.
“Come with me. I’ve got something to say.” Bai Shinan’s words were blunt and direct.
He didn’t wait for Zhu Yuyou to agree before heading toward the door. She quickly followed without even having time to think.
They walked along the dim concrete path on campus. Zhu Yuyou stared nervously at Bai Shinan’s back. What exactly was he going to say to her? Could it be like those dramatic moments in TV shows?
Bai Shinan led her to the open space near the teaching building. It was completely deserted. If it had been anyone else standing here, Zhu Yuyou would’ve turned and run already.
She was still lost in thought when Bai Shinan suddenly turned around and stepped in close, slamming a hand beside her head and pinning her against the wall.
“Time’s short, so I’ll get straight to the point. Class rep, you’re a good person, but you’re not my type. I don’t plan on dating anyone before the college entrance exams. Got it?” Bai Shinan had lived two lives. How could he not see that Zhu Yuyou liked him?
Zhu Yuyou was still dazed from the wall slam, and the next second, she was hit with what was essentially a rejection card. Even someone as academically focused as her understood what a ‘good person card’ meant.
“I… I understand. I won’t bother you anymore, Classmate Bai.” Zhu Yuyou’s lips were pale from being bitten. Just a moment ago, she thought Bai Shinan might have feelings for her too. Why else would he take the trouble to explain things to her?
She didn’t even get a chance to enjoy that thought before reality splashed cold water all over her. An ugly duckling was still an ugly duckling—fairy tales never came true in real life.
“No, you don’t understand.” Bai Shinan gently wiped away the tear streaks on her face. His voice softened. “What I mean is, don’t confess to me now. Because if you do, you’ll definitely fail.”
Zhu Yuyou’s tears stopped instantly. As the top student in her grade, her reading comprehension was naturally perfect. She understood what that sentence really meant—confessing now would fail, but maybe… later, it might succeed. Get faster updates on g.com.
“Classmate Bai, are you saying…” Zhu Yuyou’s tone carried disbelief, and the seed she had buried deep inside her heart seemed to sprout.
“What I’m saying is, I’ll pretend I don’t know you like me, and we’ll keep being friends like usual. Anything else… wait until after the college entrance exam.” Bai Shinan quickly cut her off before she could finish.
“Oh.” Zhu Yuyou sounded a little disappointed, her small mouth pouting so much it could hold a bottle cap. She mumbled softly, “I never said I liked you… Classmate Bai, so full of himself.”
“What are you muttering about? Think I’m deaf? If someone doesn’t like me, then why do I smell such a strong whiff of jealousy?” Bai Shinan reached out and tugged at her soft cheeks.
“Didn’t you just say you were going to pretend not to know? Liar.” Zhu Yuyou rubbed her face and accused him.
“Forgot to mention—final explanation rights belong to me.” Bai Shinan rubbed his fingers. The feeling was nice. A bit more softness would’ve been perfect. “Come on. If we wait any longer, the dorms will be locked.”
After speaking, he walked ahead. Zhu Yuyou looked at his back, and all the complaints on her face vanished. Classmate Bai really was as gentle as ever.
This whole scene tonight was Bai Shinan’s way of doing what had to be done. Zhu Yuyou truly wasn’t his type. He didn’t want her to misunderstand and fall deeper, but he also didn’t want to mess with her mindset before exams.
After thinking it over, the only way was to make everything clear, lay it all out, and deal with any issues upfront—while also drawing a nice future picture to keep her heart steady.
“What are you standing around for?” Bai Shinan noticed Zhu Yuyou still standing there and called out to her again.
“Coming!” Zhu Yuyou wiped the smile from the corner of her mouth and quickly followed with light steps.
This was the second time Bai Shinan had walked Zhu Yuyou back to the girls’ dorm.
“This time it’s because it’s late. I’m not walking you back next time,” Bai Shinan said like a stingy miser, afraid she’d get used to it.
“I know, I know. You’re obviously not walking me back because you like me.” Zhu Yuyou replied with a playful tone, teasing him a little. Bai Shinan like this was even more fun.
Bai Shinan felt like something was off with that statement, but he couldn’t put his finger on it.
There were two ways to the dorm: one from the teaching building, heading down the stairs; the other from the sports field, heading up.
Bai Shinan and Zhu Yuyou took the stairs down from the teaching building. At the same time, Mu Yuwei came up from the sports field side. As fate would have it, they ran right into each other.
Mu Yuwei’s bangs were tousled by the wind, her lips pale, looking like a puppy abandoned by its owner—completely pitiful.
When Zhu Yuyou met Mu Yuwei’s gaze, she panicked a little, feeling like she’d been caught in an affair by the main girlfriend. But then she remembered—it was Mu Yuwei who had rejected Bai Shinan, and Bai Shinan had also rejected her. The two of them weren’t connected anymore. There was no reason for her to feel guilty.
Mu Yuwei’s first reaction on seeing Zhu Yuyou was anger, but she quickly calmed down. This had to be Bai Shinan’s response to what she’d done tonight.
Compared to her sitting publicly with a random boy, Bai Shinan walking a girl back to the dorm didn’t seem so outrageous.
If Bai Shinan had really ignored everything tonight, then she’d have reason to worry he no longer liked her.
But seeing this—him going out of his way to walk another girl back—was proof that he did care, and this was his way of answering her challenge.