“Then why don’t you call me senior and let me hear it?”
Zhou Anran’s breath was filled with his scent. As her eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness, the young man’s chiseled face became a bit clearer in her vision. Unable to tell if she was being bewitched, she unconsciously followed his words and asked, “What bad things?”
Chen Luobai continued to lower his head, stopping just short of kissing her, his finger hooking onto the zipper of her jacket. “First, explain why you didn’t send me any messages all night, then I’ll consider the specifics.”
Zhou Anran: “…?”
What did he mean by ‘he’ll consider’?
She said softly, “Well, you didn’t send me any messages at first either.”
Chen Luobai pulled her zipper down, his lips still almost touching hers, yet maintaining a slight distance. “Who was it that refused to return to the apartment tonight?”
Zhou Anran didn’t know what he was planning to do. The room was quiet, and even the slightest sound was clear, making her heart tremble. She explained in a soft voice, “I haven’t seen them for a long time.”
In the darkness, Chen Luobai seemed to nod slightly. His finger hooked her zipper back up, his tone not entirely pleased: “So you just tossed your boyfriend aside, is that it?”
Zhou Anran felt a bit guilty again.
Unable to distinguish whether it was his almost-but-not-quite kissing that was particularly tantalizing, or if she simply wanted to appease him, she raised her head slightly.
The last bit of distance between their lips finally disappeared.
Chen Luobai’s zipper-pulling motion paused.
This was the first time Zhou Anran had initiated a kiss with him.
As her lips touched him, she didn’t know what to do next. Her heart was beating so fast it felt like it might explode.
Her gaze met his in the darkness, and she could vaguely see that his eyes seemed to have darkened even more than before.
Zhou Anran suddenly blushed and pulled back.
The next second, her nape was suddenly held by a large hand with a familiar strength.
“Zhou Anran,” Chen Luobai called her name.
“Is this how casually you kiss me?”
Zhou Anran: “Not at all.”
Chen Luobai leaned in again, his hot breath on her lips: “How do I usually kiss you?”
How does he usually kiss her?
It seems he first captures her lips and kisses her for a while, then his tongue…
Zhou Anran’s face suddenly felt like it was about to explode from blushing.
Chen Luobai suddenly chuckled, his nose touching hers.
“Never mind, this is already a huge improvement. I’ll take care of the rest myself.”
Take care of it himself?
Zhou Anran hadn’t quite processed what he meant when the young man, who had been maintaining that almost-kissing state, finally lowered his head and kissed her.
His room seemed to be a suite.
Zhou Anran hadn’t paid attention to the details because when he turned on the lights, he was already holding the back of her neck, kissing her while fumbling to insert the key card into the slot.
She realized it might be a suit because he led her to sit on the sofa.
To be precise, he sat on the sofa, and she sat on his lap, still held by the nape as he continued to kiss her.
Her room with Yan Xingqian and the others didn’t have a sofa.
The indoor winter in the north was much more bearable than in the south. In Nancheng, winters indoors were often damp and cold, relying on thick home cotton clothes and huddling by the fire to get through.
But the heating in this room was more than adequate. They had both taken off their coats and put them aside. Zhou Anran, who had always been sensitive to cold, still felt hot.
Time seemed to have lost its flow, or rather, she couldn’t perceive time, only everything about him.
His kisses, his breath, his face buried in her shoulder, his breathing unsteady, as if trying to suppress something, but ultimately failing to do so.
Zhou Anran’s wrist was grasped.
Chen Luobai whispered very close to her ear, his breath scorching: “Baby, can you help me out?”
Zhou Anran had never been able to refuse him.
Nor did she want to refuse him.
The back of her hand was pressed against his burning palm, while her palm was even hotter. This time, it was Zhou Anran who buried her head in his shoulder.
Her perception of time seemed to return.
Every minute and second became exceptionally clear and tantalizing.
Zhou Anran heard his breathing become rapid again as time passed. There was a fine sheen of sweat on his neck, somewhat reminiscent of how he looked after playing basketball that day.
But it was also very different from that day. That day, he had played the entire game without resting, pushing himself until the very last second. After the game ended, even his voice was low when he spoke to her, as if he was exhausted.
He barely said a word on the way back to the apartment.
But now, this person still had the energy to constantly say outrageous things to her.
“Why is your face so red again?”
“Aren’t I the one being taken advantage of here?”
“Not going to take a look?”
“…”
“…”
“Let’s talk for a bit.”
Zhou Anran wanted to get up to wash her hands, but he pulled her back into his embrace firmly. So she buried her head in the crook of his neck again.
“What should we talk about?”
Chen Luobai helped her massage her wrist: “What Yuan Song said this afternoon, don’t you want to ask me about it?”
Zhou Anran had originally intended to take the opportunity to ask him about it, but after his teasing, she had completely forgotten about it. Only when he reminded her did she remember again.
“I do. What was Yuan Song going to say this afternoon?”
Chen Luobai: “At the beginning of the semester, he secretly took a photo of you, which I exchanged for a pair of sneakers.”
Zhou Anran thought back: “Is it the pair he was wearing?”
Chen Luobai made an affirmative sound, continuing to massage her wrist. Towards the end just now, she had rarely acted coy with him, first blushing and asking softly if he was done yet. He laughed and asked her why she was in a hurry, and she buried her face in his shoulder, taking a long time before quietly saying her hand was a bit sore.
Because of him, Zhou Anran had some knowledge about sneakers: “Those shoes on his feet aren’t cheap, right? Isn’t it a loss to exchange them for just one photo of me?”
“How is it a loss?” Chen Luobai lowered his eyes slightly, his gaze falling on her delicate white hand. His Adam’s apple bobbed. “It was a great deal. I hadn’t seen you for a long time then, and my foot hadn’t fully healed.”
Yuan Song said it was at the beginning of the semester, and he also said his foot hadn’t fully healed. This timeline was already beyond what she had expected.
Zhou Anran was about to take the opportunity to ask him exactly when he started liking her when she felt his fingertips slide down and gently squeeze her palm.
Certain memories from earlier instantly flashed back in her mind.
Zhou Anran’s face heated up, and she struggled a bit in his arms: “I should go wash my hands first.”
“Wash what—” The young man paused. His ears were a bit red, showing a hint of youthful shyness, but the smile in his eyes was particularly mischievous. What he said was also outrageous, and he even used the hand that had just squeezed her palm to pinch her cheek, “Didn’t I already wipe them for you?”
Zhou Anran: “…”
It felt like some kind of indirect contact and then contact again. Her face suddenly felt as hot as if she had a fever.
The mischievous one laughed even more, becoming even more excessive as he used that hand to pinch her cheek again: “You didn’t even look earlier, and you’re already this shy. What are you going to do in the future?”
Zhou Anran: “??”
What future?
“I want to go downstairs to sleep now.”
“Alright.” Chen Luobai pulled her back into his arms, kissing her ear soothingly, “I won’t tease you anymore. I have something else to tell you.”
Zhou Anran leaned back into his embrace: “What is it?”
Chen Luobai was silent for a moment.
Just as Zhou Anran thought he was still teasing her, he finally spoke slowly: “Zong Kai said he wants to apologize to you in person.”
Zhou Anran was stunned for a moment when she first heard this name, and it took a few seconds before she raised her head to respond: “You’re still in contact with him?”
“No.” Chen Luobai started massaging her wrist again, “He saw the gathering photos that Tang Jianrui and the others posted today, and he came to find me specifically. Do you want to hear his apology?”
Zhou Anran thought for a moment.
She still shook her head at him.
“I don’t want to forgive him.”
Regardless of whether her parents’ decision to move had other influencing factors, the trigger was that “love letter.”
Because of that “love letter,” she was separated from her best friend, moved to a strange city, and transferred to an unfamiliar school.
If it weren’t for Cen Yu, she couldn’t imagine how difficult those initial days after transferring would have been.
If it weren’t for him standing up that day and admitting that he wrote the letter, pulling her out of the mire, she didn’t know how long it would have taken her to forget that situation of being suspected but unable to defend herself.
But after all, Zong Kai was his closest friend besides Zhu Ran back then.
Zhou Anran clutched his T-shirt fabric, feeling a bit insecure as she asked, “Do you think I’m being a bit petty?”
“Being petty is just right.”
Zhou Anran: “?”
Chen Luobai gently touched her cheek again: “It’s perfect because I’m quite petty too. I still haven’t forgiven him to this day.”
Zhou Anran felt slightly relieved and asked him another question: “Why did he think that putting that letter in my book would make Yin Yizhen give up on you? Was it just because you bought me a drink at the supermarket?”
This had been puzzling her until now.
Chen Luobai looked down at her steadily: “You still haven’t figured it out?”
Zhou Anran was a bit confused: “Figure out what?”
Chen Luobai hooked a strand of her hair that was hanging at her side with his free hand. His movement was a bit casual, but his tone was serious: “He saw you bringing me medicine that day, but he didn’t tell me at first. He guessed you might like me, so he slipped the letter into your English book, thinking that if no one else saw it, you might be prompted by this letter to do something more for me.”
Zhou Anran: “And if someone saw it?”
“If someone saw it, he knew I would protect you.” Chen Luobai paused, raising his hand to cup her cheek, “Because he realized before I did that I already had some feelings for you at that time.”
Zhou Anran had thought that he might have started liking her earlier than she had imagined, due to some trigger she hadn’t figured out yet.
But she never thought it would be this early.
Her mind went blank: “What did you say?”
“Why are you so surprised? Didn’t you always secretly pay attention to me in high school? Have you ever seen me tease other girls or actively offer to buy drinks for other girls?”
Chen Luobai saw her beautiful eyes widen in complete disbelief, and he couldn’t help but pinch her cheek again.
“Didn’t I tell you before? I’ve been thinking about you for a long time.”
*
Sheng Xiaowen was in the habit of getting up before six in the morning to practice her oral English. Her biological clock was more accurate than an alarm clock. Although they had chatted until almost one o’clock the night before, she still woke up just after five this morning.
Half asleep, Sheng Xiaowen remembered that they had come out for a gathering yesterday and weren’t at school today, so she drowsily closed her eyes again. However, in her blurry vision, she vaguely saw that the left side of the bed where Zhou Anran should have been sleeping was empty.
Still very sleepy, Sheng Xiaowen didn’t think much of it, assuming she had gotten up to use the bathroom. Her eyelids were heavy, and she closed them again.
When Sheng Xiaowen woke up again, it was almost nine in the morning.
Zhang Shuxian and Yan Xingqian were still sleeping soundly, but the space between Yan Xingqian and her, where Zhou Anran should have been sleeping, was still empty.
Sheng Xiaowen felt something was wrong.
She got up and went to the bathroom to call Zhou Anran seven or eight times, but no one answered.
Sheng Xiaowen began to worry inexplicably. She found Zhu Ran’s phone number, which she had added yesterday, in her contacts and dialed it.
The phone rang for nearly a minute before it was answered.
Sheng Xiaowen got Chen Luobai’s number from him.
When she dialed it, this time it only rang for a few seconds before there was a response on the other end—
He hung up on her directly.
Sheng Xiaowen called again.
He hung up again.
On the third try, he finally answered. His voice was very low, but she could still hear that the owner of the voice was a bit irritated.
After all, they had been in the same school for three years and had been classmates for a year. Sheng Xiaowen had some understanding of him. Although Chen Luobai kept his distance from girls, his behavior showed that he was well-mannered. She had never heard him speak in such an impatient tone before.
“If you have something to say, say it.”
Sheng Xiaowen vaguely remembered Zhou Anran mentioning that he had a bad temper when waking up, so she didn’t dare to waste words: “This is Sheng Xiaowen. Anran isn’t in our room, and I can’t reach her on the phone. Do you know where she is?”
The words “Anran” seemed to act as some kind of soothing agent.
When he spoke again, all the irritation from earlier had disappeared from Chen Luobai’s voice, returning to his usual casual tone: “She’s sleeping in my arms.”
Sheng Xiaowen: “?”
Sheng Xiaowen: “!”
“I’m sorry for disturbing you.”
*
Zhou Anran woke up close to eleven o’clock. In the middle, she vaguely felt that Chen Luobai seemed to have answered a phone call. She was too sleepy at the time to hear clearly, only feeling that after he hung up, he seemed to have kissed her very lightly again, coaxing her to continue sleeping.
All her toiletries were in the room downstairs, so she had to go down to freshen up.
When she entered the room, the three girls inside were all sitting at the head of the bed watching TV, each doing something different. Yan Xingqian was eating chips, Sheng Xiaowen was holding a phone, and Zhang Shuxian was applying a face mask.
As soon as Zhou Anran opened the door and entered, the three people inside seemed to have been hit by some pause button, all their movements stopping instantly.
The next second, as if the play button had been pressed, they resumed their actions, but very uniformly, all turned to look at her.
Zhou Anran’s face heated up under their gaze, and she pointed at the bathroom: “I’ll go freshen up first.”
No one spoke.
Zhou Anran quickly walked towards the back of the room.
Her bag was still on the desk inside.
As she passed by the bed, Sheng Xiaowen casually spoke up: “Ahem… so, did you use protection?”
Zhou Anran: “…?”
She realized what Sheng Xiaowen meant and shook her head vigorously, blushing.
Yan Xingqian almost dropped her chips, jumping off the bed without even putting on her slippers: “You didn’t use protection?”
She blurted out a curse: “Damn, I thought Chen Luobai was a good guy.”
Zhang Shuxian also removed her face mask and got off the bed, her tone nervous: “You didn’t… you know? How could you, as a biology student, not know there’s no such thing as a safe period?”
“Even if you didn’t do that, it’s still not safe,” Sheng Xiaowen frowned, “I’ll go buy you some emergency contraception first.”
Zhou Anran’s feelings were a bit complex at that moment – a little amused, but mostly deeply touched. She hurriedly shook her head: “No, I mean we didn’t do it.”
“Huh?” Sheng Xiaowen let out a huge sigh of relief, “If you didn’t do anything, why are you blushing so much? You scared me to death.”
Zhou Anran: “…”
She was too embarrassed to explain in detail: “We didn’t do nothing, but we were far from needing to use protection.”
The other two also sighed in relief.
Knowing she was shy, they didn’t ask more about such matters.
But before Zhou Anran came down, Chen Luobai had already told her that Sheng Xiaowen had called. She already felt a bit guilty and wanted to explain, but she was too embarrassed earlier when the three of them were staring at her.
“I didn’t come back to sleep, not because I deliberately didn’t tell you. I originally planned to come back last night, but—”
Zhang Shuxian, who was afraid of embarrassing her earlier, now saw her taking the initiative to speak and winked at her curiously: “But what?”
“But—” Zhou Anran paused, still feeling a bit unbelievable, “He told me last night that he started liking me a little in high school.”
“What???”
“He liked you since high school???”
Yan Xingqian’s chips really did fall this time.
*
Originally, everyone had planned to tour A University together in the morning and then have lunch together. In the end, only Dong Chen, who rushed over from school again, Tang Jianrui and Huang Shujie who got up early, and He Mingyu, who acted as their “tour guide,” went to tour A University.
By lunchtime, the group of old high school classmates finally gathered together again.
While waiting for the food, Tang Jianrui complained: “What’s wrong with you guys? Didn’t we agree to tour A University together today? In the end, it was just us few who went?”
Yan Xingqian and the others had actually woken up around nine.
They didn’t go tour A University because they knew Zhou Anran was shy. If only she and Chen Luobai didn’t go, the others would probably guess something. So they decided to stay behind to cover for her. Besides, Yan Xingqian and Sheng Xiaowen had already toured before, and Zhang Shuxian would definitely come again in the future.
At this moment, Sheng Xiaowen casually made up an excuse: “We chatted too late last night, so we couldn’t get up in time.”
Tang Jianrui then looked at Chen Luobai: “Luo-ge, why didn’t you come either? Didn’t you say yesterday you’d be our tour guide? You couldn’t get up either?”
Chen Luobai glanced at the girl next to him who was lowering her head and not looking at him. He poured a glass of warm water and pushed it in front of her: “Yeah, couldn’t get up.”
Zhu Ran had received Sheng Xiaowen’s call in the morning.
But for the sake of a certain someone’s cousin, he didn’t expose him.
Tang Jianrui, completely unaware, curiously asked again: “Didn’t you leave to go back to your own room before one o’clock last night when we were still playing games? How come you still couldn’t get up at nine something?”
Chen Luobai’s hand under the table held the hand of the girl next to him. His tone sounded lazy: “Well, you see, I went back and did some extra homework.”
Zhou Anran: “…”
What homework did he do!
“Next time you come, I’ll be your tour guide again,” Chen Luobai casually played with her fingertips, “This meal is still on me.”
After finishing the meal and chatting for a while longer, the group finally left the private room.
Dong Chen had left something in He Mingyu’s dormitory, so he went back to the school with him to retrieve it.
Zhou Anran and Chen Luobai saw the others off to take the subway.
At the entrance of the subway station, Zhou Anran stuffed the snacks she had bought before dinner into Zhang Shuxian’s hands and helped her straighten her coat collar that had been messed up by the wind.
Zhang Shuxian was a bit reluctant to leave and hugged her: “Anran, your family should move back earlier. It’s so hard to see you now.”
Zhou Anran made a soft “mm” sound and then said: “Our family might go back to Nancheng for the New Year this year. Even if we don’t go back for the New Year, I’ll still go stay at Qianqian’s place for a few days.”
“That’s good.” Zhang Shuxian hugged her for a few more seconds before letting go, “Then I’m off.”
Zhou Anran nodded: “Be careful on the way, and send me a message when you arrive.”
Tang Jianrui was standing nearby and smiled: “Sister-in-law, don’t worry. Old Huang and I will make sure to send her back to her school gate.”
Zhou Anran heard the term “sister-in-law” and still felt a bit unaccustomed. Her ears warmed slightly, and she smiled at Tang Jianrui and Huang Shujie.
“Thank you both, then.”
The boys’ goodbyes weren’t as sentimental.
Huang Shujie and Tang Jianrui just casually waved at Chen Luobai.
“Luo-ge, we’re off. See you during winter break.”
Chen Luobai had one hand in his pocket and the other arm around the girl next to him, pulling her back into his embrace: “See you during winter break.”
Zhou Anran said goodbye to Yan Xingqian and Sheng Xiaowen as well, then watched as the group turned and went down the stairs.
Their figures slowly disappeared from view.
Seeing that she wasn’t moving or speaking for a while, Chen Luobai wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her completely into his embrace. He looked down at her: “Missing them already?”
Zhou Anran nodded.
She wasn’t a person who particularly enjoyed lively atmospheres, but seeing off friends still made her feel sad and empty.
Zhou Anran hugged the young man’s lean waist in return: “Since elementary school, I’ve been going to school with Qianqian every day. Then in high school, we pretty much had lunch with Xiaowen, Shuxian, and the others every day.”
Back then, they always wished for high school to pass quickly, to grow up soon.
But now that they’ve really grown up, friends can no longer be by their side all the time.
Chen Luobai suddenly spoke: “Didn’t I tell you?”
Zhou Anran looked up: “What?”
Chen Luobai helped her tuck her wind-blown hair behind her ear, his voice low.
“I’ll always be with you.”
“And they will always be your best friends.”
*
New Year’s Day was just a few days away.
Yu Bingqin’s band had a performance at the New Year’s Eve party.
With final exams approaching, Zhou Anran and Chen Luobai had become busy again, but they still made time to come watch the party that evening. Zhou Anran even bought a bouquet of flowers and sent it backstage to Yu Bingqin before her performance.
When Yu Bingqin’s band took the stage to perform, the audience erupted in applause, the atmosphere electric.
Next to Zhou Anran, someone was feeling a surge of jealousy.
They didn’t stay too long. After watching Yu Bingqin’s band’s performance, they left early. Entering January, the northern city had become particularly cold.
As they exited the auditorium doors, Zhou Anran’s hand was pulled into the soft, warm pocket of his down jacket by a large hand.
She heard Chen Luobai speak coolly.
“I feel like you might like my sister more than me.”
Zhou Anran: “…?”
“Not at all.”
Chen Luobai played with her fingertips in his pocket: “When I had my finals before, I didn’t see you bring me flowers.”
Zhou Anran indeed hadn’t thought of bringing him flowers that day.
Firstly, he was a boy, and secondly, it seemed that most people brought water to basketball games.
But even if she had thought of it then, she might have been too embarrassed to give him flowers in front of so many people.
“Then should I give you some later?”
Chen Luobai’s footsteps paused briefly.
He really felt that no matter what he said, she seemed to agree.
“I’m just teasing you. How could I let you give me flowers? If anyone’s giving flowers, it should be me giving them to you.”
Zhou Anran thought for a moment: “Then if I’m not giving you fresh flowers, how about I make one for you?”
“Make one?” Chen Luobai asked her, “How?”
Zhou Anran: “I’ll tell you when we get back.”
Chen Luobai raised an eyebrow slightly: “Our Anran has learned to keep secrets now.”
Zhou Anran had just finished listening to Yu Bingqin’s performance, and now hearing him mention “keeping secrets,” she suddenly remembered something: “When you played ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star’ for me before, didn’t you say you originally wanted to learn more than just that song? What other song was it? Can you tell me now?”
Chen Luobai continued walking forward, holding her hand: “I said I wanted to learn more than just that part.”
Zhou Anran had thought he had misspoken that day.
So it wasn’t a mistake?
“What do you mean by wanting to learn more than just that part?”
Chen Luobai: “I originally wanted to learn ‘Contentment.’ At the club gathering, the first time we met in university, you didn’t even look at me once, just earnestly listening to the song. You seemed to really like it. But I was too busy at that time, and then I felt the lyrics weren’t quite right. Coincidentally, the song’s interlude uses ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star,’ so I just learned that part from my sister.”
So he wanted to learn ‘Contentment’ to play for her?
Zhou Anran suddenly felt a mix of bittersweet emotions welling up inside her.
Back then, when she was listening to ‘Contentment’ in the classroom, secretly stealing glances at him, she never imagined that one day, he would want to learn this song to play for her.
Zhou Anran’s fingertips, held in his hand, curled slightly: “The lyrics are quite good, aren’t they?”
“It’s not that they’re not well-written, it’s that the meaning isn’t good,” Chen Luobai tightened his grip on her hand, not letting her fidget anymore, “How can you use a sad love song to pursue a girl? It’s so unlucky.”
Zhou Anran couldn’t help but smile.
After a pause, she couldn’t resist saying softly: “That day, it wasn’t that I didn’t want to look at you. I was just afraid you wouldn’t remember me, or if you did remember me, you would clearly keep your distance like you did with other girls who liked you before.”
Chen Luobai suddenly stopped again, staring at her for two seconds. His free hand raised up and pinched her face.
“Are you silly?”
“How could I bear to keep my distance from you?”
Zhou Anran squeezed his hand: “Anyway, it’s all in the past now.”
“Mm.” Chen Luobai withdrew his hand and continued walking forward, holding her hand, “Anyway, from now on, Chen Luobai is yours.”
Zhou Anran’s scarf half-covered her face, her mouth slowly curving into a smile underneath.
As they approached the school gate, a tall, thin boy wearing glasses walked towards them. Seeing them, he paused his steps.
“Junior Zhou.”
Zhou Anran glanced at him, having a vague impression. He should be one of Xie Zihan’s three roommates. She smiled and greeted him: “Senior.”
“Junior Zhou, are you going out to celebrate with your boyfriend?” The senior asked with a smile.
Zhou Anran nodded: “Yes, Happy New Year in advance, senior.”
“Happy New Year,” the senior replied.
The two were not at all familiar, so after this brief exchange, they said goodbye to each other.
Zhou Anran continued walking forward, led by Chen Luobai.
After a few steps, she heard the young man next to her speak in a slightly cool tone.
“Senior?”
Zhou Anran: “?”
“Calling him so intimately?”
Zhou Anran laughed: “How is that intimate?”
“Not even using his surname, isn’t that intimate?” Chen Luobai stopped again, his dark eyes gazing at her calmly.
Zhou Anran felt a bit embarrassed: “No, it’s just that I don’t remember his surname.”
Chen Luobai’s lips curled slightly, and he continued walking forward, holding her hand: “Alright, I’ll let you off this time.”
Zhou Anran’s lips also curved into a slight smile.
“But—” Chen Luobai suddenly stopped.
Zhou Anran stopped with him: “But what?”
“I don’t think I’ve heard you call me by any other term either,” Chen Luobai tilted his head to look at her, “Why don’t you call me ‘senior’ and let me hear it?”
Zhou Anran: “…?”
Author’s Note:
Chen Luobai, have some shame!!!!!!
And… do you feel a bit of the approaching end? (If it doesn’t end soon, I feel like you might get tired of reading, wuwuwu)