Zhao Qian was caught off guard hearing a male voice, and her first reaction was to pull the phone away to check if she had dialed the wrong number, but she had indeed called Ah Nan.

She put the phone back to her ear: “Um, hello, is this Xu Zhinan’s phone?”

“Yes.”

Zhao Qian: “…”

What’s wrong with this guy?

Is he a conversation killer??

“Is she next to you right now?” she asked again.

Beside her, Jiang Yue heard and looked over, mouthing: “What’s wrong?”

Lin Qingye had set up a small bar table in his bedroom. He sat on a high stool, looking at Xu Zhinan sleeping soundly on the bed, not intending to wake her up.

“She’s already asleep.”

Zhao Qian: “!!!”

She choked on her breath, nearly fainting on the spot.

Lin Qingye’s voice was faint, as if somewhat impatient: “Anything else?”

“May I ask who you are?” Zhao Qian asked.

In the bedroom, only a night light was on, the dim light cutting his chiseled face into unclear shadows. Lin Qingye tapped his fingers on the ashtray nearby and said lightly: “Her brother. Ah Nan won’t be returning to the dormitory tonight.”

He hung up.

Jiang Yue: “Everything okay?”

“It’s fine.”

Zhao Qian shook her head. Hearing the man on the phone call her “Ah Nan” finally put her mind at ease, although…

“Does Ah Nan have a brother?”

“I don’t know. I don’t think she’s ever mentioned one. What happened? Her brother answered the phone?”

“Yes, he said she won’t be coming back to the dorm tonight.”

There were no classes tomorrow, and Xu Zhinan’s home was in Yan City, so not returning to the dormitory was normal.

Jiang Yue frowned: “I hope nothing bad happened. Are you sure that was her brother?”

“Probably not. When I texted her earlier, she just said she had something to do. Her brother also knew her nickname was Ah Nan, and besides—” Zhao Qian paused, “his voice sounded familiar, like I might have met him before, but I just can’t remember where.”

Hearing this, Jiang Yue also relaxed: “Maybe we saw him when we were moving into the dorms at the beginning of freshman year? Ah Nan’s father passed away, right? You have such a good memory to remember a voice for so long.”

Zhao Qian stopped overthinking and smiled: “No way! Ah Nan’s brother has an incredibly attractive voice, it’s a treat for anyone who loves voices!”

She clicked her tongue twice: “It’s so unfair. Ah Nan’s mother is too blessed, having both a daughter and son who are so good-looking.”

Jiang Yue: “How do you know her brother is good-looking?”

Zhao Qian slapped the table: “He must be! That voice is a handsome guy’s voice!”

After hanging up, several unread messages on Xu Zhinan’s phone popped up, sent by Zhao Qian, asking when she would return to the dormitory.

Lin Qingye glanced at them, turned off the phone, placed it face down on the table, and got into bed.

That night, Xu Zhinan had a nightmare.

She dreamed of a fire scene filled with thick smoke, the flames illuminating her pupils, her ears filled with the crackling sound of burning wood breaking apart.

At the end of the flames was a tall figure, his voice raspy from the thick smoke, calling “Ah Nan.”

She suddenly woke up, kicking her leg, escaping from the dream.

Lin Qingye was awakened by her movement. His arm encircled her waist, and he asked drowsily: “Had a nightmare?”

Because of that nightmare, her chest heaved, her dark eyelashes trembling. After a moment, she answered: “Yes.”

“What did you dream about?”

“My father,” Xu Zhinan said softly.

Lin Qingye’s arm came around, encircling her chest, pressing against it, feeling her heartbeat: “It’s beating so fast.”

“…”

Xu Zhinan lowered her eyes to look at his hand, frozen.

He leaned against her back, chuckling lightly: “Why is it beating even faster now?”

“…”

Xu Zhinan was now fully awake. She quickly removed his hand and sat up, looking around the room, recognizing it as Lin Qingye’s bedroom.

Last night…

After showering, she had intended to rest for a while, but then apparently fell asleep.

Lin Qingye knew what she was thinking and raised his chin slightly: “Your phone is over there.”

She got out of bed to retrieve it, checking unread messages and calls.

Lin Qingye also got out of bed, casually grabbing a T-shirt and putting it on: “Your friend called you yesterday. I answered and told her you wouldn’t be returning to the dormitory.”

Xu Zhinan also saw Zhao Qian in the call history and paused: “What else did you say?”

Lin Qingye deliberately teased her, his tone casual and quite improper: “I told her you were sleeping in my bed.”

Xu Zhinan knew he had no interest in saying such things to a stranger, but she still had a guilty conscience and was startled. After a moment, she pursed her lips: “You’re lying again.”

“Couldn’t let you call me ‘Qingye-ge’ for nothing. I told her I was your brother.” After enjoying her blushing face enough, Lin Qingye finally revealed the truth unhurriedly.

Today was Thursday. Originally, there was only one class, but the teacher had rescheduled due to personal matters, so there were no classes all day.

Xu Zhinan didn’t have a change of clothes; yesterday she had worn a short-sleeved top and a skirt.

Lin Qingye took a white T-shirt from his closet and tossed it to her. It was a basic style, unisex, with a small logo on the chest, just a bit too long.

“Wear mine,” he said.

She had sweated yesterday and indeed didn’t want to wear her old clothes. She took the shirt, but just as she was about to change, she noticed Lin Qingye standing nearby with no intention of leaving.

Xu Zhinan’s fingers tightened on the shirt: “Where should I change?”

Lin Qingye snorted with a hint of playfulness, then stepped out of the bedroom, closing the door behind her.

She quickly put on Lin Qingye’s shirt.

Tucking the hem into her skirt, it didn’t look too ill-fitting.

Coming out of the bedroom, she saw Lin Qingye had just finished a phone call. He held up his phone and said: “I passed the exam.”

“Modern History? The results are out so quickly?”

“They released my results first, otherwise I couldn’t graduate with the same batch.” He raised an eyebrow, then clicked his tongue. “The counselor called and asked me to prepare for a performance at the graduation ceremony.”

Xu Zhinan smiled: “Previously on the program schedule, your slot still said ‘to be determined.'”

“You knew?”

“I’m one of the hosts.”

Xu Zhinan felt a bit embarrassed saying this.

Perhaps because Lin Qingye was too dazzling, always standing on stage, showing off these things in front of him always felt like insignificant skills not worth mentioning.

“One of the hosts,” she added.

He hadn’t noticed her convoluted thoughts and reached out to ruffle her hair: “That’s impressive.”

“Are you going to rehearsal then?” she asked.

In a couple of days will be the official graduation ceremony and evening gala. As a host, Xu Zhinan also needed to go through the procedure. Lin Qingye’s performance had always been skipped during previous rehearsals.

“No need. The counselor asked me to record a performance video for him.” He frowned and commented, “What a hassle.”

Given Lin Qingye’s personality, the counselor was probably afraid he might cause trouble at the last minute.

“Where will you record it?” she asked.

“At the bar. Want to come along?” he asked. “It’s less crowded in the morning.”

Xu Zhinan wasn’t good at refusing him, so she nodded and replied, “Okay.”

“Ye” was a stylishly decorated bar. The ground floor had the bar counter, booth seating, and dance floor, while upstairs there were private rooms and a small viewing area.

The first floor was where casual customers and students gathered, while the second floor had a minimum consumption of three thousand yuan, mostly for business entertainment or pleasure-seekers.

Xu Zhinan followed Lin Qingye into the bar’s backstage area.

The bar owner, Ji Yan, and Shi Si were all there. The Acacia Band had disbanded, and the owner was paying them their final wages while trying to persuade them to stay.

The bar’s current success was entirely due to Lin Qingye’s Acacia Band, and the owner was reluctant to let them go.

Hearing movement at the door, all three turned their heads, greeted Lin Qingye, and then noticed Xu Zhinan behind him, momentarily stunned.

“Let me introduce you,” Lin Qingye said, putting his arm around her back and pushing her forward. “This is Xu Zhinan.”

The bar owner was the first to react, teasing: “Oh, your girlfriend? Such a handsome man and beautiful woman—you two are like scenery whenever you walk by.”

Lin Qingye smiled without saying much and introduced her: “This is the bar owner.”

Xu Zhinan was somewhat shy, smiled faintly, and nodded politely: “Hello, boss.”

Then she also greeted Ji Yan and Shi Si.

Xu Zhinan had seen his band members at the studio before, but there had been no formal introduction. This was the first time.

She didn’t know how to let her friends know about her relationship with Lin Qingye, because even though she had been maintaining this relationship with him for quite some time, she could still feel that the relationship was abnormal.

She had never dated before and didn’t know what ordinary couples were like.

But she was still certain they wouldn’t be like this.

They had never clarified their relationship; everything had been led by Lin Qingye, becoming what it was now.

But now Lin Qingye was introducing her to his friends.

Xu Zhinan felt happy.

Shi Si asked: “Captain, why did you come now?”

Lin Qingye told them about the rehearsal video required by the school, and the bar owner immediately agreed: “Sure, sure, just shoot it right on the stage.”

At this hour, the bar was playing light music with scattered customers.

The second floor wasn’t open during the day, and the viewing area directly faced the stage with an excellent view.

They all went up to the second floor via the side stairs. Lin Qingye gave her his phone to record the video.

Shi Si finally realized why Xu Zhinan’s shirt looked familiar. He nudged Lin Qingye with his elbow and said suggestively: “Hey, that’s your shirt, isn’t it?”

Following his words, Ji Yan also looked over.

Lin Qingye had his arm around her shoulders, which were thin and slender. Even through the clothes, he could feel her thin shoulder blades: “Yes, she didn’t bring any.”

Shi Si clicked his tongue: “Captain’s long nights are just different, can’t help but be envious.”

These people were used to talking this way and had no intention of embarrassing Xu Zhinan.

But she had always been too well-behaved. In high school, many boys liked her, but she didn’t dare to date early, focusing on her studies instead. It was only after meeting Lin Qingye that she broke many of her own rules.

Hearing Shi Si’s words, she lowered her head, unconsciously hunching her shoulders a bit.

Lin Qingye noticed and squeezed her shoulders to straighten them, lightly rebuking: “Watch what you say.”

Shi Si looked at Xu Zhinan again and smiled: “Hey, sorry, sorry, Sister-in-law, just pretend I didn’t say anything.”

Sister-in-law.

Xu Zhinan instinctively looked at Lin Qingye, but his expression remained unchanged.

“It’s okay,” she obediently replied.

At the viewing area, Lin Qingye took a guitar from the back and went downstairs again.

The stage was high, but with his long legs, he jumped right up.

The bar owner was very thoughtful. The background music had already stopped, and laser lights came down, projecting a circular bright spot on the stage. Lin Qingye walked into the light with his guitar on his back.

The scattered customers below looked towards the stage.

Those who knew this bar knew Lin Qingye’s name and also knew that he would no longer be performing after participating in some program.

Now, suddenly seeing him on stage again, they were surprised and immediately took out their phones to record.

Xu Zhinan stood on the second floor and also pressed the record button.

He sat on a high stool, one leg supporting the guitar, skillfully plucking the strings.

He wasn’t performing his original songs. The song he chose suited him well. His voice was low and husky, with a nasal quality, free and casual, steeped in male pheromones.

“Performing with the captain every time, I’ve forgotten when I last watched him sing,” Ji Yan said.

Shi Si leaned against the railing: “Heart-fluttering?”

“Get lost,” Ji Yan scolded with a laugh, raising her eyebrows to indicate the customers below. “I’ve built up immunity after all these years. Those down there are the ones having heart palpitations—it’s simply devastating.”

“Want to bet?” Shi Si put his arm around her shoulder.

Ji Yan: “On what?”

“Among these girls down there, who will be the first to approach our captain? This timing is precious—he won’t go backstage after singing, it’s the perfect opportunity to strike up a conversation.”

“How mean are you?” Ji Yan mocked him, then looked at the girls below.

After observing for a while, she pointed, her nails beautiful with glittering pieces, and said languidly: “The one at the bar.”

While others were recording, only that girl was listening quietly, her eyes never leaving Lin Qingye.

“That one?” Shi Si was quite surprised.

“Who do you bet on?”

Shi Si pointed to a girl closest to the stage.

Ji Yan scoffed: “You’re going to lose. Look, those recording with their cameras are the star-chasing type. The ones who truly like someone deeply often don’t act as frantically.”

The two were standing not far from Xu Zhinan, their voices reaching her ears.

She recorded with Lin Qingye’s phone, listening to them joke about which girl would approach him.

She was now wearing Lin Qingye’s clothes, which carried his unique, clean, and pleasant scent, almost permeating her.

Yet she still felt so far from Lin Qingye’s world.