“Hug me”
Even though she had just held his hand, and even though she had anticipated it, when Zhou An’ran heard him say those words clearly, her nose instantly stung with overwhelming emotion.
She blinked, and tears fell.
This was the third time Chen Luobai had seen her cry.
The first time, he knew nothing and thought she was just an ordinary classmate. He didn’t understand why the more he tried to comfort her that day, the harder she cried. He didn’t understand why she smiled at him so forcedly.
But from that day on, he started to notice her.
The second time, he was too oblivious to realize his feelings. When called to the office, he instinctively hesitated to tell her the truth about the love letter, unwilling to embarrass her again.
Because of this, he was a step too slow. He watched as she rushed to stand in front of him, slowly crouching down before him, saying with a choked voice, “How could he possibly like me?”
At that moment, he couldn’t describe what he felt, only knowing that he would probably never forget that scene for the rest of his life.
This was the third time.
She cried silently, yet still beautifully.
Chen Luobai’s heart suddenly clenched painfully. He raised his hand to wipe her tears but hesitated as his fingers neared her eyes.
The person who never showed nervousness even when woken up by the teacher to answer questions in class now spoke with an obvious hint of panic.
“Don’t cry. If you’re not ready, I can keep waiting for you.”
Zhou An’ran’s vision was blurry, and she shook her head instinctively.
From the day she transferred from No. 2 High School, she thought she and he would walk completely separate paths.
His brilliant life would constantly have new people joining, while she could only be a silent observer from the shadows forever.
But after all the twists and turns, he appeared on her path, waiting for her.
She still couldn’t believe it.
It still felt like a dream.
Zhou An’ran looked at his long, blurry hand before her, instinctively grasping it, as if trying to hold onto a bit of reality.
Chen Luobai lowered his gaze to look at the delicate white hand clutching his fingers. His heart, which had been suspended, finally slowly settled. His other empty hand finally dared to touch her eyes.
His voice carried a smile as if teasing her, but because it was so low, it sounded more like he was comforting her.
“Zhou An’ran, you haven’t agreed to be my girlfriend yet. Without a proper relationship, I shouldn’t let you hold my hand.”
Zhou An’ran shook her head again, somewhat amused by his teasing, but her nose was still filled with an unceasing sourness.
“I didn’t say I wouldn’t agree.”
How could she not agree?
She liked him so, so, so much.
Even if it was just a dream, she wanted it to last as long as possible.
*
After leaving the classroom, Zhou An’ran walked beside him, still feeling as if she was walking on clouds, light and airy, each step seemingly not touching the ground.
She couldn’t help but secretly turn her head to look at him.
The young man’s jawline was sharp and smooth, his nose bridge high and straight. Both his features and bone structure were exceptionally fine, his profile as beautiful as a painting.
This boy had once illuminated the youth of half the girls at No. 2 High School.
This boy she had once only dared to secretly glance at from within the crowd.
He had become her boyfriend.
It still felt so unreal.
Zhou An’ran was secretly looking at him, not noticing that she was getting closer and closer to him. The back of her hand, hanging at her side, unintentionally brushed against the back of his hand. The wind outside was cool, and she was prone to feeling cold, so her hand had already cooled down, but the back of his hand was still warm.
As if burned, Zhou An’ran instinctively wanted to pull her hand back, but in the next second, he suddenly grasped it.
Unlike earlier in the classroom when he had slowly, bit by bit, separated her fingers as if giving her time to react and refuse, this time the young man’s action was particularly forceful. Before she could react, she was once again interlocking fingers with him, her palm tightly pressed against his.
Chen Luobai turned his gaze toward her, his dark eyes filled with amusement: “How many times did you look at me along the way?”
Zhou An’ran: “…”
Perhaps it was the tightly clasped hands that gave her unprecedented confidence and courage. Zhou An’ran’s ear tips grew hot, but she rarely didn’t avoid his gaze, softly asking in return: “Am I not allowed to look?”
“Of course you are.” Chen Luobai smiled at her, his thumb gently caressing the back of her hand. “Do you want me to stop so you can look more carefully?”
It was unclear whether it was because of his teasing words or because of that small gesture more intimate than hand-holding, but Zhou An’ran’s face suddenly grew even hotter. She still couldn’t quite handle it and averted her gaze: “N-no need.”
Chen Luobai seemed to laugh very softly: “That’s fine too. We have plenty of time ahead, you can look slowly later.”
The late autumn evening breeze had already begun to carry an obvious chill, but Zhou An’ran only felt her heart was soaking in a scalding hot spring.
The corners of her mouth slowly curved upwards.
When they reached the dormitory building, the number of people coming and going increased, and the gazes falling on them also began to multiply.
This wasn’t the first time Zhou An’ran had been escorted back to the dormitory by him, but it was the first time he had held her hand while doing so. Her ears, which had just cooled down, began to burn again, but she didn’t actively let go of his hand, only saying very softly, “I’m here.”
Chen Luobai also very softly “Mm” in response.
Zhou An’ran was a bit reluctant to part from him, and also a bit afraid to part from him, but seeing the weariness between his brows, she was equally unwilling to let him stand with her in the cold wind, wasting time while fighting sleepiness.
“Then I’ll go up, you should go back and rest early.”
The girl in front of him had her head slightly lowered, her fair ears somehow tinged with a thin layer of red again, her eyelashes lightly entangled, her pink soft lips slightly pursed.
Chen Luobai’s gaze fell on her lips for a second, then he let go of her hand: “Mm.”
Is that all he’s going to say, just an “Mm”?
Zhou An’ran felt a bit disappointed, but after realizing it, she felt she was being a bit greedy.
Being walked hand in hand to the dormitory building was something she had never dared to imagine before. She suppressed that strange disappointment: “Then I’m going in.”
Just as she turned around, she heard Chen Luobai call her name again.
“Zhou An’ran.”
Zhou An’ran turned her head.
In the night, the tall, handsome young man suddenly opened his arms towards her: “Aren’t you going to hug your boyfriend before going in?”
Zhou An’ran was a bit stunned.
But Chen Luobai didn’t wait for her to react. He reached out and grabbed her wrist, pulling her in.
Zhou An’ran suddenly crashed into his embrace, held by his hands around her waist, tightening bit by bit. Her face pressed against the young man’s hard chest, her nose filled with his familiar scent, her ears hearing his heartbeat as fast as her own.
Her heart slowly settled down again.
Chen Luobai quietly hugged her for a moment in front of the bustling dormitory building.
Just before letting go, Zhou An’ran felt him lower his head slightly, his breath hot against her ear, his voice very, very soft.
“Good night, girlfriend.”
*
As soon as Zhou An’ran entered the dormitory, Xie Jingyi and Bai Lingyun ran towards her, screaming “Ah ah ah!”
“An’ran, are you together with Chen Luobai?” Xie Jingyi asked excitedly.
Zhou An’ran was startled: “How do you know?”
Bai Lingyun: “You just hugged him downstairs for two or three minutes. We’re not blind. Everyone in our dormitory area saw it. It’s probably spread through this whole area by now, and might spread through the entire school by tomorrow.”
Zhou An’ran: “…”
She felt her face might be steaming.
“Well done, An’ran.” Xie Jingyi pinched her cheek. “You even managed to snag a god-tier guy like Chen Luobai. How did you do it?”
Zhou An’ran touched her ear: “I don’t know.”
Since their reunion, it seemed he had always been the more proactive one.
Yu Xinyue, for some reason, hadn’t gone to the library tonight as usual. At this moment, she also wasn’t joining these two in their frenzy. She went out to the balcony to get something, then came back in and looked at Zhou An’ran: “An’ran, I think Chen Luobai is still downstairs.”
Zhou An’ran was dumbfounded.
She carelessly tossed the book in her hand onto the desk, only taking her phone as she hurriedly ran to the balcony.
Xie Jingyi and Bai Lingyun also followed to watch the excitement.
Zhou An’ran leaned on the balcony and saw that the tall, slender young man was indeed still standing where he had hugged her earlier. As if by some telepathy, he suddenly looked up.
Their gazes met in midair, and Zhou An’ran’s heart skipped a beat again.
She lowered her head to send him a message: [Why haven’t you left yet?]
C: [Wanted to see you one more time]
Zhou An’ran’s fingertips paused, her heart beating so fast: [Well, you’ve seen me now]
C: [Mm]
C: [I’m leaving]
Zhou An’ran looked up from her phone again.
Below the balcony, the tall, thin young man put his phone back in his pocket. He raised his hand high, waving casually at her, then turned and walked into the night.
Only after his figure had completely disappeared did Zhou An’ran return to the dormitory.
Xie Jingyi followed behind her: “Wuwuwu, I want to be in love too.”
“Being in love is different for different people,” Bai Lingyun chimed in. “Anyway, the day Xie Zihan and I confirmed our relationship, he just quickly left after sending me to the dormitory building.”
“That’s true,” Xie Jingyi sighed. “Even if I find a boyfriend, he probably won’t say something like wanting to see me one more time.”
Zhou An’ran: “…?”
These two weren’t talking about wanting to be in love; they were teasing her again.
Zhou An’ran, red-faced, reached out to tickle her: “Jingyi, you peeked.”
Xie Jingyi laughed and dodged: “I just happened to see that one message, don’t be angry. Chen Luobai used to be the school’s handsome guy and male god that we could all freely admire. Now he’s all yours. It’s not too much for me to secretly peek at you two being lovey-dovey, right?”
Zhou An’ran was thin-skinned and really couldn’t handle their teasing, so she opted for the best escape: “I’m going to wash up.”
After washing up, Zhou An’ran took her phone and the two lemon soda candies he had given her tonight and climbed into bed early.
She lay flat, and opened the four-person small group chat with Yan Xingxi and the others, her fingertips hovering over the interface for a moment before she turned to lie on her stomach.
The two lemon soda candies were placed beside her pillow.
Zhou An’ran glanced at the two candies, then touched her ear, and lowered her head to type: [Um]
Zhou An’ran: [I have something to tell you guys]
She waited for a few seconds.
There was no response in the group chat.
But just over twenty minutes ago, Yan Xingxi and Zhang Shuxian were still chatting in there.
Had they all gotten busy?
Zhou An’ran pursed her lips but still typed out that sentence: [Chen Luobai and I are together now]
As soon as this message was sent, several messages popped up in the group chat in succession.
Sheng Xiaowen: [Twenty minutes]
Zhang Shuxian: [Should we forgive her?]
Yan Xingxi: [Let’s give her a chance to explain]
Zhou An’ran: [?]
Zhou An’ran: [What are you talking about?]
The three of them seemed to ignore her and continued chatting among themselves.
Sheng Xiaowen: [But Zhu Ran knew twenty minutes before us]
Zhang Shuxian: [That indeed can’t be tolerated]
Yan Xingxi: [But it wasn’t her who told Zhu Ran after all]
Zhou An’ran: [What’s going on?]
Zhou An’ran: [Pitiful.jpg]
Yan Xingxi: [Go take a look at your Moments]
Zhou An’ran blinked.
She opened her Moments, refreshed, and quickly saw Zhu Ran’s latest post.
Zhu Ran: “Can the surname Chen be any more biased towards love over friendship?”
The accompanying image was a screenshot of a WeChat conversation.
Zhu Ran: [I’m coming to your school this weekend]
C: [Don’t come, I’m busy]
Zhu Ran: [Don’t you just have one ball game to play this weekend? How are you busy?]
Zhu Ran: [Do you have a lot of homework again this week?]
C: [Accompanying my girlfriend]
Zhu Ran: [???]
Zhu Ran: [!!!!!!!]
Zhu Ran: [You and Zhou An’ran are together?]
C: [Mm]
C: [So don’t come]
His telling Zhu Ran, his best friend, was completely within her expectations.
But Zhou An’ran, looking at that “accompanying my girlfriend,” still found the corners of her mouth slowly curling up.
After saving this screenshot, Zhou An’ran returned to the main interface and reopened the four-person small group chat. The string of previously incomprehensible messages now made perfect sense.
She felt a bit guilty.
Zhou An’ran: [I’ve seen it]
Sheng Xiaowen: [Then explain]
Zhang Shuxian: [How long have you been together?]
Yan Xingxi: [Even Zhu Ran knows! And we don’t!!]
Zhou An’ran: [Not long]
Zhou An’ran: [We just got together tonight]
Zhang Shuxian: [?? Tonight?]
Zhou An’ran: [He confessed to me after the second evening class]
Zhou An’ran: [I told you guys as soon as I finished washing up after coming back]
She just hadn’t expected that he would tell Zhu Ran even before she told them.
Sheng Xiaowen: [Your second evening class ends at 8:30 pm, right? It’s only been an hour until now?]
Zhou An’ran: [Yes]
Yan Xingxi: [Alright, we’ll forgive you then]
Zhang Shuxian: [Considering you were still quite timely]
Sheng Xiaowen: [What I mean is]
Sheng Xiaowen: [It’s only been just over an hour until now when Zhu Ran posted on Moments, they had only been together for about half an hour, right?]
Sheng Xiaowen: [Someone couldn’t wait to show off their love, huh?]
Yan Xingxi: [Oh, that’s right]
Zhang Shuxian: [!!]
Zhang Shuxian: [Blind man! You’ve discovered the key point!!]
Zhang Shuxian: [Medicine has misled me!!!]
Zhang Shuxian: [In the past, I definitely wouldn’t have missed this shipping point!]
Sheng Xiaowen: [An’ran, it seems Chen Luobai likes you even more than I imagined]
Zhou An’ran: “…?”
Is that so?
Zhang Shuxian: [But with Zhu Ran posting this, it’s like a semi-official announcement. Just wait, I bet quite a few people will be asking you about it in the next couple of days]
Just as this message popped up, Zhou An’ran’s phone buzzed.
She thought Zhang Shuxian’s prediction had come true so quickly, that someone was already coming to ask her about the situation. But when she returned to the main interface, she saw the message was from him.
C: [Just went to take a shower]
C: [Just saw Zhu Ran’s Moments post]
C: [Do you mind?]
Zhou An’ran didn’t quite understand: [Mind what?]
C: [Mind that our relationship is being made public so quickly?]
Zhou An’ran: “…”
He had just hugged her publicly downstairs, which wasn’t much different from making it public anyway.
Besides, how could she possibly mind? She was overjoyed that he was openly acknowledging their relationship.
Zhou An’ran: [I don’t mind]
C: [Then I’ll post something too]
Zhou An’ran: [Post what?]
Zhou An’ran: [On Moments?]
C: [Mm]
C: [After Zhu Ran’s post, a lot of people are asking. I’m too lazy to reply to each one]
That means…
Is he going to make it public himself?
Zhou An’ran was a bit curious about what content he would post.
She opened Moments and refreshed repeatedly, but no new content appeared. Her heartbeat gradually quickened again in anticipation.
A minute later, his avatar finally appeared—
C: “Stop asking. It’s Zhou An’ran from our first-year class. I actively pursued her. I’ve been thinking about her for a long time.”