HomeFalling In LoveZhui Luo - Chapter 3

Zhui Luo – Chapter 3

When Zhou Wan returned home, grandmother was already asleep.

Back in her room, her notebook lay open on the desk, showing the names she had written yesterday: “Guo Xiangling” and “Lu Xixiao.”

She sat at her desk, eyes lowered, staring at these two names.

A line connected them.

What if—

What if she and Lu Xixiao got together?

Then Lu’s father would probably be furious and wouldn’t be able to be with Guo Xiangling anymore.

This thought suddenly popped into Zhou Wan’s mind.

She was self-aware enough to know that Lu Xixiao had never taken any of his girlfriends seriously, and even if she managed to be with him, she wouldn’t be the exception.

But perhaps that was better.

Just being together would be enough.

Just being together, letting Lu’s father know, would be enough.

Just briefly taking advantage of Lu Xixiao’s carefree nature.

It wouldn’t hurt anyone.

Zhou Wan never imagined she would have such dark thoughts one day, but at this moment, she couldn’t control these ideas.

Like a venomous snake flicking its tongue, they spread through her heart.

She looked up at herself in the mirror.

The room was dark, with the desk lamp casting a fuzzy circle of light around her. Her soft black hair fell across her chest, and her skin was fair and delicate, with a small face, petite lips and nose, and clear, round doe eyes like black grapes.

Zhou Wan had been beautiful since childhood, always receiving compliments from those around her.

But her beauty was more pure and clean, different from the girls around Lu Xixiao, who were mostly bright and bold.

Zhou Wan wasn’t sure if she could do it.

But at least—

Now Lu Xixiao knew her name.

*

September brought the fragrance of osmanthus flowers, enveloping the entire school in their sweet scent.

Gu Meng picked many osmanthus flowers, put them in a bag, and made a sachet for Zhou Wan.

By the time the small flowers in the sachet had all withered, the school’s sports meet arrived.

The opening ceremony included each class carrying placards in a parade, and Zhou Wan was chosen to be her class’s placard bearer.

All the female placard bearers had to wear uniform clothing, replacing the loose, thick school uniforms with white fitted t-shirts and pleated skirts, exuding youthful charm.

When Gu Meng saw her emerge in the new outfit, she exclaimed, “Wan-wan! Whoever designed our school uniforms should be struck by lightning! You look amazing in this short skirt!”

Though there were safety shorts underneath, the pleated skirt only reached just above mid-thigh.

Zhou Wan felt uncomfortable with the length, tugging at the hem, trying to pull it lower.

Gu Meng grabbed her hand: “Stop pulling, it’s supposed to be like that.”

“I’m worried it might show too much when I walk and the skirt moves.”

Gu Meng laughed, “It won’t! First off, you’re wearing safety shorts so nothing can show, and besides, the school wouldn’t give you super short skirts—this is just a normal short skirt, it won’t reveal anything.”

The sports meet had lifted many students’ spirits.

The field was bustling with noise early in the morning.

After the principal’s speech ended, each class formed their squares for the entrance ceremony.

Zhou Wan was in Class 1, holding the “Class 2-1” placard at the front, with Class 7 beside them.

Lu Xixiao was in Class 7.

Among the twenty-second-year classes, Class 7 had the worst grades and was the most chaotic. Their formation was messy, and their placard bearer hadn’t arrived yet.

Zhou Wan glanced back.

Lu Xixiao stood at the back with his friends, not wearing the school uniform, a cigarette between his fingers, smiling casually.

The sunlight fell on him, making his skin appear even whiter. He seemed to have just had a haircut, with his sideburns trimmed short, revealing his clean profile completely, casting sharp shadows that emphasized his cold demeanor and casual attitude.

At that moment, there was a girl beside him, sitting on the flower bed, looking up and actively trying to talk to him.

Zhou Wan recognized this girl somewhat—she was the arts and cultural committee member from the liberal arts class, not from Class 7.

The surroundings were chaotic, with summer sunlight breaking through the dense leaves, casting scattered spots of light on them, gleaming with a faint golden glow. The girl smiled brilliantly, reaching out her hand to say something to Lu Xixiao, probably asking for help getting up.

Lu Xixiao kept his head still, only lowering his gaze to look down at her, pulling his lips into a slight smile: “Can’t get up by yourself?”

“My leg fell asleep,” the girl said with a laugh.

Lu Xixiao flicked his cigarette ash, still not moving.

The girl didn’t seem embarrassed, raising an eyebrow: “So heartless?”

He remained unmoved, smiling: “Yep.”

The girl clicked her tongue, standing up smoothly and patting off her pants.

At the same time, Xu Yizuan rushed across the field—she was Class 7’s placard bearer, wearing the fitted t-shirt and short skirt that perfectly outlined her figure.

She ran to Lu Xixiao, her eyes red, voice thick with tears: “Lu Xixiao, who is she?”

Before Lu Xixiao could answer, her forced righteousness crumbled. Xu Yizuan grabbed his shirt hem, her eyelashes trembling constantly as she lowered her stance: “Xiao, I was wrong. I won’t cling to you so much anymore. Can we make up?”

Such a beautiful girl, yet in front of Lu Xixiao, she somehow became humble and pitiful.

Everyone around was watching.

“Xiao, I—”

“Xu Yizuan,” Lu Xixiao cut her off, “we’re already broken up.”

His usual smiling voice and tone were gone, replaced by a cold, hard voice, utterly heartless.

Gu Meng stood behind Zhou Wan, leaning close to her ear to sigh: “Who would have thought even a beauty like Xu Yizuan couldn’t tame Lu Xixiao.”

Zhou Wan watched them, blinking slowly before looking away, asking softly: “Meng-meng, they all know what kind of person Lu Xixiao is, so why do they keep banging their heads against the wall?”

Did they believe they would be the destined one to make the playboy settle down?

Sacrificing dignity and pride for a relationship—Zhou Wan couldn’t understand it.

Zhou Wan thought if she were unfortunate enough to fall for such a person.

She wouldn’t tell him.

She wouldn’t let him trample her dignity; she would only guard this love as a secret known to no one.

Gu Meng exclaimed in surprise: “Wan-wan! You’re getting wise! I can’t believe I’m hearing such questions from you!”

Then, she shook her head, pretending to be profound: “It’s youth, you know? Everyone needs to meet a few jerks and get their heart broken a few times. Otherwise, looking back, it’s all just equations and vectors—how boring is that?”

The announcer’s voice boomed from the podium—

“Next up is our second-year cohort, led by Class 2-1 students…”

Zhou Wan collected her thoughts and lifted the placard, leading her class formation forward.

On the other side, Xu Yizuan was led away by her friends, tears still falling, while the other girl, having been rebuffed, also left.

Suddenly, a discussion broke out among the male students.

“Hey, who’s that placard bearer from Class 1? Haven’t seen her before?”

“That’s the top student, always second in the grade. I thought she looked super pure in the school uniform before, totally first-love material, didn’t expect her figure to be nice too. Those legs, tsk tsk.”

“Damn, I think I’m in love. She’s too sweet and cute!” Jiang Fan said loudly. “How come I’ve never seen her before?”

“Of course, you haven’t—you’re always skipping class.”

“Does she have a boyfriend? What’s her name?”

“She’s a top student, where would she get a boyfriend?” a companion answered. “I’ve seen her name on the rankings board many times, something with ‘Wan,’ but suddenly can’t remember her surname.”

“Hey, Xiao,” Jiang Fan nudged Lu Xixiao beside him, “know her?”

Lu Xixiao looked up from his phone, raising an eyebrow when he saw Zhou Wan.

“Isn’t she first-love material?” Jiang Fan said, “Now I understand what they mean by first-love face.”

Lu Xixiao didn’t speak.

Jiang Fan assumed he couldn’t possibly know this type of girl, clutching his chest: “I can’t look anymore, my heart’s turning to sugar.”

Lu Xixiao raised an eyebrow: “Sweet?”

He remembered that day at the arcade, the girl standing in the dim and noisy background, her features young and pure, her features clear, thick long eyelashes framing what was round doe eyes, yet showing stubbornness and pride from within. She might look sweet, but her personality was far from it.

Jiang Fan thought he couldn’t appreciate his new goddess: “Isn’t this sweet?”

Lu Xixiao let out a mocking laugh.

*

After the entrance ceremony, the field events began first.

Zhou Wan had signed up for javelin throwing.

It wasn’t because she was good at it, but because few girls were willing to sign up for such events, so just participating meant getting a place.

The sports representative had asked for help, so she signed up.

Javelin throwing started check-in very early. Zhou Wan didn’t have time to change clothes, so she tied her school uniform jacket around her waist and ran to check in, quickly being led to the competition area.

For safety reasons, there weren’t even practice opportunities for javelin normally, so this was Zhou Wan’s first time holding a javelin. It was heavier than she had imagined.

The result was predictable—they were lucky if the javelin was stuck in the ground at all.

Jiang Fan, who had signed up for the long jump, was competing right behind the javelin field. He laughed watching Zhou Wan throw.

“Isn’t this gap moe?” Jiang Fan couldn’t stop laughing. “Damn, this is too cute, I can’t handle it.”

Lu Xixiao turned his head: “Is that all you’ve got?”

“Hao just said this girl’s name has ‘Wan’ in it, heard she’s second in the grade. Xiao, haven’t you seen her name on the bulletin board? Ring any bells?”

Lu Xixiao: “Why would I look at that thing?”

“True,” Jiang Fan clicked his tongue. “I’ll ask her name after the competition.”

Lu Xixiao glanced at him, silently pulling up the corner of his mouth.

Zhou Wan finally managed to finish all five rounds of competition. None of the girls who signed up knew how to throw the javelin, and in the end, Zhou Wan somehow managed to get second-to-last place, fifth place.

Gu Meng also laughed beside her: “If I’d known, I would have signed up too.”

Zhou Wan removed the number tag’s safety pin and put it in her pocket.

Though the activity wasn’t intense, the javelin was heavy, and Zhou Wan had broken into a light sweat.

“Let’s go,” Zhou Wan said, “Meng-meng.”

“Can we go watch the high jump first?”

“Mm.”

At that moment, a voice suddenly came from behind—

“Zhou Wan.”

Magnetic, clear, carrying a light, casual smile.

Her footsteps paused, and she turned back.

Lu Xixiao wore a black t-shirt, the wind blowing past outlined his broad shoulders and narrow waist, his jawline smooth and distinct, neck long, Adam’s apple sharp, and hair slightly disheveled by the wind.

He looked straight at her.

This was the first time he had called her name.

Zhou Wan froze for a moment.

He lifted his chin, gesturing ahead: “Your school badge fell.”

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