Only two or three people were queuing behind them, all looking down at their phones.

Lin Zhexia’s ears instantly turned red.

“You…”

She stammered for a long time.

Finally, she decided to just close her eyes, steel herself, and go get it.

Chi Yao reached out and grabbed her wrist: “I’m just teasing you. How could I possibly let you buy something like that?”

Mentioning this, Lin Zhexia realized she had been overlooking a detail: “You actually prepared in advance.”

Chi Yao was unperturbed.

Lin Zhexia: “You’re shameless, ill-intentioned, scheming, up to no good.”

Chi Yao scanned the code to pay, pulled her out through the exit, and expressed some appreciation for her word choice: “Not bad with those idioms.”

—

Lin Zhexia stayed at Chi Yao’s place for about half a month.

Traces of the two were everywhere in the house, from the bedroom to the sofa, to the bathroom, and even… that floor-to-ceiling window Lin Zhexia had liked when viewing the apartment hadn’t been spared. Although the curtains were tightly closed at night, she still had a feeling of being “peeped at,” afraid that Chi Yao might deliberately pull open the curtains to tease her.

In the end, because she couldn’t stand steadily, she was entirely lifted by him, her whole body trembling.

She heard him whisper in her ear: “…So timid.”

“The curtains are closed, no one will see.”

“What… what if…”

“What if what?”

Lin Zhexia shivered: “We might accidentally bump into it.”

“Then let’s change location,” Chi Yao deliberately paused, “where do you want to go?”

…

She didn’t want to go anywhere.

She wanted to return to school.

Lin Zhexia was practically counting the days. After staying at Chi Yao’s place for about half a month, she finally reached the day to return to school.

During this half month, she and Chi Yao had worked out a clear division of household chores.

Today, she was cooking breakfast, frying bread slices, when Chi Yao somehow walked into the kitchen and embraced her from behind: “Returning to school today?”

Lin Zhexia, who hadn’t slept well last night, said drowsily: “Mm.”

Chi Yao called her: “Lin Zhexia.”

Lin Zhexia was brief: “Speak.”

Chi Yao: “Apply for off-campus housing.”

“…”

Lin Zhexia said wearily, “Skip your breakfast, go starve.”

During the meal, Chi Yao still tried to persuade her to apply for off-campus housing, reminding her: “Dorms have lights-out time.”

Lin Zhexia: “Not a problem, it will encourage me to go to bed at ten every night. Early to bed, early to rise—I love lights-out.”

“Room inspections are also annoying.”

“I believe,” Lin Zhexia said, biting her toast, “…that students should respect school rules and experience college life.”

“…”

At this moment, Lan Xiao Xue happened to call her: “Xia Xia, when are you getting to school? I forgot my key and I’m locked outside the dorm. The dorm manager is so fierce, I don’t dare go down to borrow a key.”

Lin Zhexia glanced at Chi Yao and quickly said, “I’ll be there soon, wait for me.”

After hanging up, Lin Zhexia waved her phone at Chi Yao: “I need to go back after eating, my roommate misses me.”

Chi Yao said coolly, “Then what about when I miss you?”

Lin Zhexia thought for a moment: “Then I… reluctantly allow you to think of me.”

—

After being apart for a holiday, the dormmates were especially enthusiastic when they met.

“Have you gained weight?” Qin Lei asked Lan Xiao Xue.

Lan Xiao Xue looked in the mirror: “Ate too much during New Year, gained four jin. Is it that obvious?”

“Four jin is still okay, but you’re not very tall…”

“Who are you calling short? Let me say it again, I’m one meter sixty.”

The two argued for a round.

Lan Xiao Xue turned and asked Lin Zhexia: “Did you just arrive? You should have said earlier, we might have been able to share a taxi from the station.”

Lin Zhexia responded vaguely, not mentioning she had come from Chi Yao’s place: “I guess I just arrived.”

Soon, the topic shifted from eating too much during the New Year to something else.

In a couple of days, clubs will be recruiting new members. Should we all join the same club together?”

Lan Xiao Xue, who knew more about campus activities, said: “I know which club has more handsome guys. Let’s go together.”

Lin Zhexia wasn’t particularly interested in these things, but she preferred group activities and didn’t want to be left out, so she agreed.

Before bed that night, she reported to Chi Yao: I’m going to join a club-

Which club

Lin Zhexia deliberately replied: The one with lots of handsome guys

Chi Yao was probably busy. After a while, he sent back a question mark-?

But Lin Zhexia was already drowsy and didn’t continue chatting. Her hand relaxed, and her phone fell beside her pillow-

On the day of club recruitment, several simple canopies were set up on campus.

Even in the harsh winter, the sun was still glaring. These flat canopies looked like small tents from a distance, each with a long table and several chairs underneath. The tables displayed club introductions and various club names, a dazzling array.

Lan Xiao Xue led the way, taking them to the skateboard club.

Qin Lei was skeptical: “Are you sure the skateboard club has many handsome guys…?”

Lan Xiao Xue: “Absolutely, I guarantee it with my integrity.”

As soon as she finished speaking, she added, “But it’s probably impossible to find someone as handsome as a certain person’s brother, since someone of her brother’s caliber can’t be found anywhere else on campus—”

They chatted as they walked.

Actually, they rarely inquired about Lin Zhexia and Chi Yao’s relationship. They weren’t in high school anymore; college social interactions inevitably had more boundaries.

Qin Lei only now found an opportunity to ask her: “Growing up with Chi Yao, seeing that face since childhood, what does it feel like?”

Lin Zhexia thought this question sounded somewhat familiar.

It seemed Chen Lin had asked this question before.

“Honestly,” since Chi Yao wasn’t around, she deliberately said, “I’m a bit tired of looking at it.”

Lan Xiao Xue: “Then perfect, come check this out with us.”

Although she said this, she had no interest in looking at others and was purely going for fun.

She still had that gray scarf from Chi Yao’s place wrapped around her neck. During the half month she stayed at his place, this scarf had imperceptibly changed ownership. Being afraid of the cold, she obediently wrapped half her face, only exposing her eyes.

When the dormmates arrived at the skateboard club’s booth, they were a bit dumbfounded.

For no other reason than that the guys sitting in the skateboard club’s tent all had tan skin and appeared very muscular. Several robust young men sat there, making others too intimidated to approach.

Qin Lei was the first to stop: “…”

Lin Zhexia also halted her steps.

Only Lan Xiao Xue still eagerly walked forward.

Qin Lei pulled her back: “Wait, are you sure?”

Lan Xiao Xue: “Sure about what?”

Qin Lei: “Are you sure your friend said the club with lots of handsome guys is the skateboard club?”

Lan Xiao Xue: “Isn’t it written on the sign, Skateboard Club? Yes, of course.”

Finally, she blinked earnestly and looked at them, “Aren’t these guys handsome? I love muscular men with healthy skin tones.”

……

“It’s not that they’re not handsome,” Qin Lei said with difficulty, “…it’s just that their style of handsomeness might be different from what we expected. It’s our problem. Before leaving, we forgot to research your aesthetic preferences.”

A misunderstanding.

Lin Zhexia listened to their conversation, laughing uncontrollably.

She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket, so she lowered her head to take it out. It was a message from Chi Yao-

Where are you?

Lin Zhexia typed with one finger: Near the skateboard club, are you also coming to join clubs?

Chi Yao replied quickly.

Boyfriend: No

Boyfriend: Coming to catch my girlfriend

Because they had lingered around the skateboard club for a while, Qin Lei was grabbed by a club president who looked quite bulky. The president spoke in a very deep voice: “Junior sister, want to fill out a form?”

Qin Lei was too scared to say no and cast a pleading look at them.

The muscular club president caught them one by one: “Are you together? Fill out forms together.”

Each of them was assigned to someone. Lin Zhexia squeezed into the corner to fill out a form, with another tan-skinned young man responsible for introducing the club to her.

However, this young man’s personality was opposite to his appearance. When handing her a pen, he smiled at her, saying very gently: “I’m sorry, did our club president scare you earlier?”

Lin Zhexia was looking down at the form, her eyelashes fluttering at his words.

She only then realized this young man was looking at her. Although he could only see half her face, the way the girl buried her chin in the scarf was very cute, giving a soft, fluffy feeling. The pair of eyes she revealed was clear and bright.

The young man looked at the registration form again, reading her name: “Lin… Lin Zhe…”

Just as he was halfway through writing “xia,” the pen in Lin Zhexia’s hand was suddenly snatched away.

Lin Zhexia was startled.

Before she could look up, she heard a familiar voice from above: “Excuse me, I need my girlfriend for something.”

Then, before she could react, she was already being led out of the recruitment queue by Chi Yao. After moving away from the crowd, she asked: “Why did you come?”

“To take you to eat.”

“But I haven’t…”

Chi Yao’s voice, for some reason, was a bit cold: “What’s more important, eating or filling out a form?”

Lin Zhexia kept looking back, concerned about her unfinished form: “But filling it out would be quick, and I promised to join together with them…”

At this point, she keenly detected that Chi Yao wasn’t in a good mood.

It was obvious when this person was in a bad mood; his brows and eyes would press slightly downward, and his speech would quicken.

Having known him for so many years, these subtle characteristics were too easy to recognize.

But she didn’t know why Chi Yao was angry.

The cafeteria wasn’t crowded at this time. Even as she sat across from Chi Yao, eating, she still couldn’t figure it out.

Lin Zhexia poked at the rice in her bowl, thinking, could it be the message she sent him last night?

About going to a club with many handsome guys.

But he should have seen just now… that club wasn’t like what she described.

After eliminating this only possible reason, Lin Zhexia was at a loss.

Finally, her thought process took a peculiar turn, making a large circle before approaching from a remarkably strange angle: “Are you worried that skateboarding is too dangerous?”

Chi Yao didn’t speak.

Lin Zhexia: “Actually, I think skateboarding is pretty good, it builds strength, and it’s cool, beneficial for my personal development.”

“Or maybe you want me to join the same club as you? But out of pride, you’re reluctant to ask me,” Lin Zhexia thought of another possibility, amazed at her ability to uncover details. “Which club do you want to join? Tell me, I’ll consider it.”

Chi Yao finally put down his chopsticks.

After putting them down, he switched the bowl of soup beside Lin Zhexia’s plate with his own.

After the switch, Lin Zhexia discovered that in the bowl she received, all the green onions had been meticulously picked out.

“What did you think of that guy just now?” Chi Yao suddenly asked.

Lin Zhexia had completely forgotten: “What guy?”

Chi Yao made a “tsk” sound, his finger tapping on the table: “The one who was helping you fill out the form.”

Lin Zhexia: “Oh, he seemed alright, I think he probably likes to work out, and surprisingly, he spoke very gently…”

At this point, Lin Zhexia realized that what Chi Yao was concerned about was the reason she had initially ruled out.

…

But surely not to this extent.

Was he jealous of this?

“Isn’t he,” Chi Yao brought up seemingly casually, “quite in line with your criteria for choosing a boyfriend?”

Lin Zhexia was even more confused: “When did I ever have criteria for choosing a boyfriend?”

Chi Yao appeared cold and awkward. He seemed very reluctant to mention it, but still turned his eyes away, mimicking her childhood tone, bringing up words buried in her memory: “If I were to find a boyfriend in the future, I’d find one with tan skin, muscles, and a gentle personality.”

“…”

There seemed to be such an incident.

Lin Zhexia remembered.

Back then, Shen Shanshan had asked if she knew what type of girl Chi Yao liked. Her first reaction was that she didn’t know what Chi Yao liked, but she had deliberately mentioned some strange criteria for choosing a partner in front of him.

But she hadn’t expected Chi Yao to remember so clearly.

Chi Yao repeated verbatim what she had said in anger during their argument: “Anyway, he should be better than you in every way.”

“…”