Yu Qianran wasn’t in the mood. “You guys play.”
“Why?” Chen Xiaonan asked, scratching the back of his head in confusion, pressing for an answer.
Yu Qianran didn’t want others to know he was different, nor did he want to see strange looks or expressions on their faces.
“I don’t like it,” he said, glancing at Lu Zhishen, wondering in his heart if Shenshen preferred playing with Chen Xiaonan instead.
Lu Zhishen was completely unaware of Yu Qianran’s little thoughts and was still enthusiastically inviting him. “Ranran, you can watch us play.”
Yu Qianran felt a bit angry and stared at Lu Zhishen without saying a word.
“What’s wrong? Don’t you like playing outside?” Lu Zhishen’s eyes filled with concern. “We can play indoors. Ranran, you haven’t even seen me play basketball yet.”
When it came to this, Lu Zhishen couldn’t help but want to elaborate on how he had beaten all the other kids, just to show Ranran that he was the best.
“No, go play by yourself,” Yu Qianran said angrily, turning away without looking back.
Bad Shenshen, making Ranran watch him play with other kids.
How mean!
Lu Zhishen let out a surprised “Huh?” and quickly chased after him, grabbing Yu Qianran’s arm and calling out cautiously, “Ranran?”
“I’m going back to class. Why are you following me?” Yu Qianran coldly brushed off Lu Zhishen’s hand and walked away, sulking quietly.
Lu Zhishen: !
He felt that Ranran had started getting upset ever since Chen Xiaonan mentioned how much he liked playing basketball.
Lu Zhishen returned to his seat dejectedly. Chen Xiaonan patted his shoulder hard. “Did I say something wrong? Your Ranran seems really angry.”
“I don’t know,” Lu Zhishen shook his head, then ignored Chen Xiaonan and began trying to figure out the reason.
The consequence of Yu Qianran’s little outburst was that every time Lu Zhishen ran over during break, he couldn’t find him. When he asked the other kids, they would sometimes say he was in the bathroom or outside playing.
Until the school bell rang, Lu Zhishen hadn’t seen Yu Qianran at all.
An alarm went off in his heart, he realized Ranran was still angry.
Just as he wanted to walk home with Ranran, he caught sight of Yu Qianran’s back as he got into a car,
Lu Zhishen was about to call out to him when he got a mouthful of exhaust fumes.
Lu Zhishen watched the car drive away.
Lu Zhishen puffed up angrily.
Lu Zhishen decided he wouldn’t talk to Yu Qianran unless Yu Qianran came to him first.
…
Gu Kexin noticed her child was missing his usual little shadow and understood the two kids were having another tiff.
She picked up Yu Qianran and asked as she walked, “Ranran, did you and Shenshen have a fight?”
Yu Qianran’s childish voice was tinged with gloom. “No.”
Gu Kexin patiently guided him. “Then what happened?”
Yu Qianran pursed his lips, finding it a bit hard to say.
Shenshen hadn’t done anything wrong, but he was still unhappy and didn’t want to talk to Shenshen.
Yu Qianran looked up, his hands tightly clutching Gu Kexin’s collar, and asked anxiously, “Mom, if I make a mistake, will you hate me?”
“Of course not,” Gu Kexin placed Yu Qianran on the sofa and lovingly stroked his head. “Ranran, you have to believe that no matter what happens, Mom will always be on your side.”
“Then I’ll tell you,” Yu Qianran blinked, looking completely trusting.
He recounted everything from why he got angry that day to what he had done, explaining it all in detail.
Gu Kexin was taken aback for a moment after listening, then met his gaze with gentle eyes. “Ranran, are you upset because Shenshen has other, more important friends?”
Yu Qianran nodded. “Mm.”
“Afraid Shenshen won’t play with you anymore?”
“Mm.”
“Has Ranran asked Shenshen about it?”
Yu Qianran shook his head.
“Should Mommy take Ranran to ask Shenshen?”
“No.” Yu Qianran’s face stiffened, his eyes revealing a hint of stubbornness. “What if Shenshen says other kids are more important?”
He didn’t want Shenshen to have other friends, the time Shenshen spent with him would be divided.
Gu Kexin asked, “What does Ranran want to do?”
“Mommy, go check for me.” Yu Qianran suddenly tightened his grip on the hem of his shirt. “Don’t tell him it was Ranran who wanted to know, okay?”
Gu Kexin’s expression was a mix of tenderness and helplessness as she agreed with a soft “Okay.”
Yu Qianran had never seen his mother act so quickly, she changed her shoes and rushed out in a whirlwind. He stood eagerly by the door, watching and hoping with every passing second to catch sight of his mother and Lu Zhishen.
The evening breeze carried a slight chill, washing the sky with a brilliant sunset glow. The small shadow by the door stretched forward under the indoor light.
Yu Qianran rubbed his little hands together anxiously, and just before the last glimmer of light faded, he finally saw his mother’s figure. He hurried forward eagerly, his eyes sparkling as he looked up.
“Mommy, Shenshen, he…”
Gu Kexin quickly answered before he could finish. “Shenshen was a little upset, but he said Ranran is his best friend.”
Yu Qianran froze, letting out a soft “Huh?” It dawned on him belatedly what his mother had done. “But… but…”
He thought and thought, unsure of what to say.
“Is Ranran not happy?” Gu Kexin half-squatted down, her breathing slightly hurried.
“No, I’m happy.” Yu Qianran shook his head and took hold of Gu Kexin’s warm hand. “Mommy, take me to the mall. I want to buy Shenshen a gift.”
His amber eyes sparkled, making it impossible to refuse.
Gu Kexin nodded gently.
…
Inside the brightly lit mall, the adorable Yu Qianran held tightly to Gu Kexin’s hand, his head turning left and right as he tried to spot a suitable gift from the storefront displays.
“Want to go in and take a look?” Seeing that they had walked halfway through the floor without entering a single store, Gu Kexin stopped and spoke up.
Yu Qianran obediently nodded. “Okay!”
The nearest store was a plush toy shop, visible from outside with all kinds of stuffed animals displayed on shelves, foxes, puppies, kittens, bears, and more, everything imaginable.
“Mommy, let’s try another store.” Yu Qianran glanced for no more than three seconds before abruptly stopping and looking up. “Shenshen likes toy cars, and basketball too.”
At least that’s what he was talking about with that other friend today. Yu Qianran pursed his lips, thinking to himself.
Just as Yu Qianran turned around, a surprised and delighted voice came from behind him. “Ranran? What are you doing here?”
He turned his upper body. “I want to buy something.”
“Let’s go together! I’m buying toys too.” Yuyu enthusiastically caught up. “Whatever you like, I can buy it for you.”
Yu Qianran blinked. “Thank you, Yuyu, but that’s okay. I want to buy something for Shenshen.”
Hearing this, Yuyu lowered his head and sighed dramatically.
“What about that annoying guy?”
Yu Qianran tilted his head. “You mean Shenshen? He didn’t come.”
Yuyu’s eyes instantly lit up. He grabbed Yu Qianran’s hand, unable to hide the excitement in his voice. “That’s great! Come on, come on, I’ll take you to play.”
But Yu Qianran hadn’t forgotten why he came to the mall. He firmly refused, “No, I have to go with Mom to buy Shenshen a gift.”
Yuyu: “…”
What’s so great about Lu Zhishen? He hits hard and has a terrible temper.
Just as he was about to tell Yu Qianran some of the bad things Lu Zhishen had done, his peripheral vision caught sight of a figure he despised staring intently at him.
Yuyu jumped up like a startled bird, shouting loudly, “Lu Zhishen, why are you here too!?”
Yu Qianran turned to look and, sure enough, it was Shenshen.
He let go of Gu Kexin’s hand and instinctively walked toward Lu Zhishen, his lips parting slightly. “Shen… uh…”
But Lu Zhishen turned and ran away.
Yu Qianran stood frozen in place, the joy on his face not yet faded, staring blankly as Lu Zhishen disappeared around the corner.
His nose tingled, and something warm seemed to gather in his eyes. “Mom, does Shenshen hate Ranran now?” His voice was low and sad.
Seeing Yu Qianran about to cry, Yuyu sprang into action, not forgetting to yell back over his shoulder, “Ranran, I’ll go catch him for you!”
Yu Qianran looked up, meeting Gu Kexin’s gaze.
“…”
Yu Qianran’s sadness was momentarily disrupted by Yuyu’s antics. He said, “I want to go find Shenshen too.”
Gu Kexin nodded, then bent down and picked up Yu Qianran, striding toward the corner where the two children had vanished.
“Help! Help! Is no one going to do something about him, ”
Yu Qianran hadn’t expected Shenshen and Yuyu to get into a fight, or rather, for Shenshen to pin Yuyu to the ground.
“Shenshen, let go quickly.” Yu Qianran struggled out of Gu Kexin’s arms and ran up to Lu Zhishen, grabbing one of his arms with both hands.
“You’re protecting him?” Lu Zhishen was very unhappy.
Today, Ranran had been avoiding him, hadn’t waited for him after school, and when he tried to follow to see where Ranran was going, he found him playing with Yuyu! Without him! It was just too much!
It was all Yuyu’s fault, always trying to steal his Ranran.
He was clearly Ranran’s best friend.
Yu Qianran shook his head frantically. “No, fighting is bad. I don’t like it.”
Lu Zhishen let go, and Yuyu scrambled up from the ground like a gust of wind, hiding behind Yu Qianran.
“Shenshen, why did you run away when you saw me?” Yu Qianran asked, relieved by the situation, inquiring about Lu Zhishen’s earlier behavior.
Lu Zhishen put on a stern little face, each word dripping with resentment. “Didn’t you not want to see me?”
“No, that’s not true,” Yu Qianran denied.
Lu Zhishen puffed up angrily. “You avoided me after class.”
Yu Qianran: “Uh…”
That was true.
Lu Zhishen added, “You didn’t wait for me after school. You left me at kindergarten.”
That was also true.
Little Yu Qianran had no strength to argue.
He opened his mouth, his tone slightly aggrieved. “But Shenshen is good friends with someone else.”
Even with his simple mind, combined with Aunt Gu’s earlier questions, Lu Zhishen finally understood why Ranran had been ignoring him.
Ranran liked being friends with him so much that he was afraid if Lu Zhishen played with Chen Xiaonan, he wouldn’t play with him anymore. That’s why he was upset.
“Ranran, don’t worry. You are my very, very, very best friend,” Lu Zhishen patted his chest in assurance. “Chen Xiaonan will never surpass you.”
“Don’t ignore me anymore, okay? If you don’t like it, I won’t play with him.”
Yu Qianran’s cheeks flushed warm, and she slightly averted her eyes, her tone tinged with shyness: “It’s not that I don’t want you to play with him, it’s just that you’re already together in class. After class, you should play with Ranran.”
Lu Zhishen grinned foolishly: “Yeah, yeah, all my time belongs to Ranran.”
Yu Qianran felt her hand being tightly grasped but pretended as if nothing had happened.
Lu Zhishen’s dark eyes looked past Yu Qianran, locking onto Yuyu with a watchful gaze. “Ranran, what are you doing at the mall? Did you make plans to play with him?”
Yu Qianran suddenly remembered the main reason she was there, her face filled with guilt. “I came to buy you a gift. I didn’t mean to get angry at you earlier. I’m sorry.”
“I forgive you!” Lu Zhishen immediately straightened up upon learning she hadn’t made plans with Yuyu. “Let’s go pick out a gift now.”
Secretly, he wanted to shake off Yuyu, that little tagalong.
“Okay, okay!” Yu Qianran happily agreed. “Yuyu, you come too. Thank you for helping earlier, I’ll get you something as well.”
Yuyu jumped up with an excited “Yay!” “I get one too? Ranran, you’re the best!”
Children’s friendships are always simple and pure, they can get upset over small things, but they also make up easily after explanations, never holding grudges forever.