13 – I’m straight, don’t even think about lusting after me
The next morning.
Ruan Tiantian was awakened by Xu Qi’s alarm clock from the next bed. It was the default ringtone of an iPhone, and every time she heard it, she felt as if her soul was jolted awake.
Upon hearing it, Fu Li frowned irritably and called out.
“Xu Qi, turn off your alarm!”
Xu Qi was still fast asleep, dead to the world, not even opening her eyes.
Ruan Tiantian crawled out from under her blanket, leaned over, reached onto Xu Qi’s bed, grabbed her phone, turned off the alarm directly, and set the phone to silent.
She lowered her gaze, looking at Xu Qi, who showed no sign of waking up, and shook her shoulder with her hand.
“Qiqi, get up. It’s the first day of class today; we absolutely cannot be late.”
She shook Xu Qi for a while before Xu Qi slowly opened her eyes.
Seeing that she was awake, Ruan Tiantian threw off her blanket, stepped onto the ladder, and slowly climbed down from the bed.
The beds in their dorm were all the standard loft-style design with desks underneath, and there was also a super large wardrobe next to each bed. Four people lived in one dorm room.
Ruan Tiantian slipped on her slippers, quickly went to wash up, changed her clothes, combed her hair, grabbed her bag, and headed to the classroom with the others.
What set her apart from them was that she was the only one without makeup, while Xu Qi, Ling Yushi, and Fu Li had all put on makeup.
Ling Yushi’s makeup was very meticulous. She woke up early every day, and even if she had slept very late the night before, she would still get up to apply a full, flawless face of makeup.
Ruan Tiantian had just woken up, her eyelids drooping. She had returned very late the night before and hadn’t gotten enough sleep.
Fu Li walked beside her, their arms linked. She glanced at Ruan Tiantian’s skin.
Even from such a close distance, without any makeup, there wasn’t a single flaw—smooth and delicate. Her bare face looked pure and adorable. It turned out that a truly beautiful girl didn’t need makeup or styling to create an aura of beauty.
Ruan Tiantian wasn’t in the best spirits, walking along with them like a zombie.
Soon, they arrived at the classroom, and the four girls took their seats.
She sat near the back door, took out her books and stationery, and arranged them neatly.
Propping her chin with both hands, her mind still wandering, her eyes unfocused as she stared straight ahead, she forced herself to perk up.
Just then, the voices of a few boys could be heard at the entrance.
Tan Song complained, “Yu-ge, it’s the first day of class today. You’ve gotta look out for me more with Old Zhao’s assignments from now on. He actually assigned an essay before school even started—totally shameless!!”
Shen Xiuyu, Tan Song, Lu Wenjie, and Du Xiaofeng chatted and laughed as they walked in, creating quite a lively atmosphere.
Shen Xiuyu walked in the middle, wearing a simple white trendy T-shirt and black pants. He carried a black single-strap backpack over his shoulder, a white headphone hung around his neck, and his bangs were down, giving him a very youthful vibe.
Compared to when he wore his hair slicked back, he looked a little less intimidating.
He said with a laugh, “Tan Song, can you step up your game when we play? All you do is hide in the bushes all day.”
Lu Wenjie couldn’t help but tease him too, “Exactly! We go in to take the hits, and all you do is loot!”
Du Xiaofeng added, “With skills like that, don’t even think about ‘borrowing’ our homework in the future!”
Chatting and laughing, they slowly made their way into the classroom.
As soon as Shen Xiuyu entered, he unconsciously became the focus of the entire class. His gaze lazily swept across the room.
He quickly spotted Ruan Tiantian sitting in the very last row, her small head propped up in her hands, eyelids drooping, looking like a drowsy little scatterbrain.
Shen Xiuyu withdrew his gaze and walked straight toward the last row.
As he approached, three girls fixed their eyes on him.
Under the watchful eyes of the three girls, he made his way to the seat next to Ruan Tiantian.
He tossed his single-strap backpack onto the desk and took his seat.
Lu Wenjie and the others quickly occupied the seats around Shen Xiuyu one by one.
The last row was now filled only with people from their two dormitories.
Ruan Tiantian had been feeling listless from the start. When Shen Xiuyu arrived, she first caught the scent of the boy’s shower gel.
Or perhaps it was the smell of shampoo—fresh and pleasant.
After Shen Xiuyu sat down, Ruan Tiantian remained in her original posture, only blinking her sore eyes.
Ling Yushi, who was sitting one seat away from Ruan Tiantian, craned her neck and leaned over to greet Shen Xiuyu.
Her face was adorned with exquisite makeup, and even the curve of her smile was perfectly calculated.
“Good morning, Shen Xiuyu.”
As soon as Shen Xiuyu sat down, he tilted his head to look at the girl who was shorter than him. Hearing someone greet him, he responded indifferently, “Morning.”
Ling Yushi wanted to continue talking to Shen Xiuyu, but before she could speak, she saw Shen Xiuyu lower his gaze, his teasing peach blossom eyes fixed on Ruan Tiantian’s fair neck as he leaned closer to her little by little.
Lowering his voice, he said to Ruan Tiantian, “Aren’t you going to greet me, Miss Ruan?”
Ruan Tiantian knew Shen Xiuyu was sitting next to her, but she was too sleepy to talk.
She lifted her eyelids, raised her gaze to look at the boy’s handsome face, and replied listlessly, “Good morning, Mr. Shen.”
The girl had just woken up and was still very drowsy. Her voice was weak and milky, and her reply to Shen Xiuyu was extremely perfunctory.
Shen Xiuyu was close enough to hear her voice and see her little expression, finding it utterly adorable.
Her voice was soft, sweet, and carried a hint of childishness, hitting all the right notes for him.
Lu Wenjie, Tan Song, and Du Xiaofeng craned their necks one after another, their eyes fixed on the two of them. Watching their interaction, they couldn’t help but curl their lips into faint smiles, their faces clearly showing they were enjoying the scene.
Shen Xiuyu withdrew his gaze and had just straightened up when, out of the corner of his eye, he inadvertently caught sight of three heads leaning over to watch the drama.
He glanced to the left, and the three boys’ eyes met Shen Xiuyu’s face, which could charm anyone regardless of gender.
He raised an eyebrow at them lightly, then reached out and pushed their heads back one by one.
Resting his elbow on the desk, he shifted his body slightly, completely blocking Ruan Tiantian from view.
Then he glared threateningly at the boys and warned them, “If you keep staring, I’ll gouge your eyes out.”
Lu Wenjie couldn’t help but grumble inwardly.
This possessiveness is way too intense. They were just enjoying the show—they had no intentions toward Ruan Tiantian.
Tan Song defended himself, “Brother Yu, I really wasn’t looking at the beauty. I was just admiring your face—it’s so handsome I couldn’t look away.”
Du Xiaofeng couldn’t help but laugh upon hearing Tan Song’s words.
Shen Xiuyu sneered, “I’m straight, don’t even think about coveting me.”
After saying this, he even glanced toward Ruan Tiantian.