Gu Mingji pushed his glasses up and asked, “Xiao Xi, is Lin Ran not coming today?”
Sheng Qingxi’s pen didn’t stop as she softly replied, “Mm, he probably won’t be coming for a while.”
Gu Mingji didn’t pry further, assuming Lin Ran was busy in the evenings. That made more sense; if Lin Ran showed up every night, it would seem unusual.
—
Thursday afternoon, the second mock exams concluded.
Song Shiman had been waiting at the back door of Class 6 since early morning, holding her exam papers. They were still in the middle of their last class, so she used the time to compare answers in the class group chat.
Song Shiman had a good feeling about this exam. Many of the question types were ones Sheng Qingxi had helped her review. She felt confident that this time she would do better than ever before, and her suspicions were confirmed after checking the answers.
She nearly screamed in excitement—her mock exam score might have reached the cut-off for undergraduate programs.
Covering her mouth to stifle her shouts, she waited.
As soon as the bell rang and the teacher stepped out the front door, Song Shiman rushed in from the back, not caring about her image at all. Her excited scream echoed through the entire Class 6 room.
“Ahhhh! Xiao Xi!!!”
The entire class turned to look at her.
Gu Mingji’s mouth twitched slightly, feeling that Song Shiman’s composed, “young lady” persona was crumbling more and more.
Chen Yi, in contrast, knowingly stood up and pushed in her chair, making room for Song Shiman to rush in. By now, everyone in Class 6 was aware that Sheng Qingxi and Song Shiman had become close friends.
They were still unsure whether the rumors about Sheng Qingxi liking Lin Ran were true or not.
Before Sheng Qingxi could even see Song Shiman’s face, she was enveloped in a tight hug. Song Shiman howled, “Xiao Xi! I did so well on this exam, woo woo woo! My parents are going to be so happy. I can finally buy a new bag!”
Sheng Qingxi patted her head in a soothing manner. “What reward do you want?”
At her words, Song Shiman loosened her grip slightly, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Sheng Qingxi. “A reward from you?”
Sheng Qingxi smiled softly. “Mm.”
Hearing that, Song Shiman perked up, knowing she had to think this over carefully. She blinked her eyes and asked, “Xiao Xi, can I take my time to think about it? I’ll tell you once I’ve decided.”
Sheng Qingxi nodded in agreement.
Once Sheng Qingxi finished wiping the blackboard, Song Shiman hooked her arm around her and they headed out of the school, ready to go home.
As they walked, Song Shiman had a vague feeling that something was missing today, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.
Song Shiman quickly brushed off that thought, too preoccupied with the exciting plans of shopping and eating hotpot with Sheng Qingxi.
—
Boxing Gym.
Lin Ran hadn’t been to the boxing gym in some time. This time, Xie Zhen and He Mo tagged along for the fun. The two of them sat by a small round table, legs crossed, snacking on sunflower seeds as they watched Lin Ran pound his opponents in the ring.
Lin Ran, drenched in sweat, had already gone through two opponents.
Xie Zhen glanced around, shaking his chubby head. He was relieved to confirm that the young lady who always came to pester Lin Ran at the gym wasn’t there this time. “Looks like we’ll have some peace today.”
He Mo couldn’t help but chime in sarcastically, “I think Tang Kexin is even more persistent than Song Shiman. Thank goodness Brother Ran doesn’t go to the same school as her.”
With that, they shifted topics.
Watching Lin Ran in the ring, Xie Zhen remarked, “Brother Ran seems to be in a bad mood today.”
He Mo casually tossed a handful of sunflower seed shells into a box and nodded knowingly, “He’s been like that since this morning.”
Xie Zhen stared at Lin Ran for a while, then mumbled, “Mozi, take a look at Brother Ran’s gloves. Have we seen those before?”
He Mo hadn’t paid much attention before, but after Xie Zhen pointed it out, he looked more carefully. Lin Ran’s boxing gloves were brand new, clearly a limited edition model, but they were nothing like the style Lin Ran would normally go for.
Up in the ring, Lin Ran felt like he was about to explode.
The entire day had passed without him seeing Sheng Qingxi, nor had he received any message from her. The only contact he’d had was a phone call from the driver in the morning, informing him that Sheng Qingxi had refused the ride.
She had calmly accepted his sudden distance, as if no matter what he did, she could take it in stride.
This was exactly what he had wanted, yet Lin Ran’s heart felt tormented, like an itch he couldn’t scratch. Even he couldn’t pinpoint the source of his frustration.
After all, he wasn’t even sure he’d make it through life.
Breathing heavily, his eyes darkened, and in a moment of distraction, his opponent seized an opening.
Opportunities to get the upper hand against Lin Ran were rare, so his opponent became even more energized.
After taking a few hits, Lin Ran closed his eyes briefly, suppressing the irritation boiling inside him. Then he focused all his attention on his opponent, and within a few more rounds, he ended the match.
With blood on the corner of his lips, Lin Ran casually wiped it away after removing his gloves, unconcerned about the injuries on his face.
He had no idea how frightening he looked with that gloomy expression. Xie Zhen and He Mo quietly stopped eating their sunflower seeds. But as soon as Lin Ran headed for the showers, they quickly resumed their snack.
He Mo clicked his tongue, “Ah Zhen, I think Brother Ran is caught up in some emotional trouble.”
Xie Zhen immediately tossed aside his seeds, his face full of curiosity. “What do you mean? You think it’s over a girl?”
Though Lin Ran wasn’t around, He Mo instinctively lowered his voice. “Haven’t you noticed? Brother Ran hasn’t brought the helmet he got for the fairy these past few days, and he hasn’t been going to the study room either.”
Xie Zhen’s small eyes widened. “Damn, you’re right. Did they have a fight?”
He Mo shook his head mysteriously, “I don’t think so. It feels more like Brother Ran is sulking with someone.”
Who was Lin Ran sulking with?
Of course, he was at odds with himself.
—
Starlight Mall.
Song Shiman rested her chin in her hands, gazing at Sheng Qingxi with a worried expression. After they finished their meal, they came to the arcade, the same one they had visited last time, and Sheng Qingxi had immediately gone to play the claw machine.
She had been trying to grab that one little tiger plush for half an hour, and hadn’t attempted to catch any other toy.
Song Shiman sighed. How could Sheng Qingxi be so stubborn?
It was at this moment that Song Shiman realized what was wrong. Lin Ran hadn’t appeared around them at all, not during or after their meal, nor after school today.
He was supposed to pick Sheng Qingxi up and take her home.
Thinking about it, Song Shiman decided to message Lin Ran on WeChat to ask. After all, she had gone through quite the effort (and paid a hefty price) to get his WeChat contact.
Initially, Song Shiman had saved Lin Ran’s contact with a heart emoji next to his name. However, after spending the past month in close proximity to him, she had since changed the name to “Lin Dog.”
She found “Lin Dog” in her contact list and opened the chat window.
[Shiman is Always Unhappy: Lin Ran, I want to ask you something.]
Immediately, she received a system notification: “Firegun has enabled friend verification. You are not their friend yet. Please send a friend request. After the other party verifies, you can chat.”
Song Shiman was dumbfounded.
“…What?”
She was furious—this man truly was a dog! All men are dogs!
With a huff, she begrudgingly sent a friend request, furiously typing a message: “I need to ask you something, about Xiao Xi. Of course, if you don’t want to know, that’s fine too.”
Lin Ran had just finished his shower when he saw the friend request. He glanced at it and knew right away it was from Song Shiman.
He approved the request.
Seconds later, her messages came flooding in.
[Shiman is Always Unhappy: Image]
[Shiman is Always Unhappy: It’s been nearly half an hour. Xiao Xi has been trying to grab that one toy.]
[Shiman is Always Unhappy: What’s going on between you two?]
Lin Ran lowered his gaze and zoomed in on the picture Song Shiman had sent. It was the same plush tiger Sheng Qingxi had tried to grab last time at the cinema, its little face looking fierce and proud.
[Firegun: The same cinema as last time?]
[Shiman is Always Unhappy: Here’s the location.]
Lin Ran briefly glanced at the location and then tossed his phone aside. He grabbed a towel to dry his black hair. His long fingers hooked the black T-shirt nearby, and with a quick flick, the fabric was in his hand, covering his toned arms and chiseled abs.
Grabbing his car keys and phone, Lin Ran slung his bag over his shoulder and rushed out the door. As he passed by He Mo and Xie Zhen, he threw out a quick, “I’ve got something to take care of,” before hurriedly leaving, his steps quick and determined.
He Mo watched him go. “Hey, Ah Zhen, do you think Brother Ran has looked in the mirror? His face is covered in bruises.”
Xie Zhen waved it off. “Brother Ran doesn’t care about things like that.”
—
Ten minutes later.
The screech of tires echoed outside Starlight Mall. Lin Ran removed his helmet, parked his bike, and walked inside. He didn’t wait for the elevator, opting instead to take the escalator two steps at a time, heading straight for the upper floors.
By the time he arrived at the entrance of the cinema, Sheng Qingxi was still standing in front of the claw machine.
Lin Ran didn’t step inside. He simply stood at the entrance, watching her. She held onto the joystick, trying again and again to grab the plush toy. Even when she failed, she didn’t get frustrated—she just calmly started over.
Once, twice, three times… fifty-one times.
In the limited time that Lin Ran watched, she tried fifty-one times and finally caught the plush toy.
But her expression remained calm. She crouched down, picked up the small tiger, and there wasn’t the slightest hint of a smile at the corners of her lips. It seemed as though the outcome didn’t affect her, much like how she had accepted his distancing.
Song Shiman got up and walked over to Sheng Qingxi.
Lin Ran could no longer see her face.
They appeared to exchange a few words before Song Shiman took Sheng Qingxi’s hand, helping her stand, and they headed towards the exit. Lin Ran quickly stepped behind the ticket machine, silently clenching his fist, standing still as he watched her slowly walk away.
…
On Monday evening, as usual, Lin Ran slung his bag over his shoulder and headed downstairs to the bike shed to get his motorcycle.
The shed was dimly lit by only a few small lamps.
Before he even got close, Lin Ran stopped in his tracks, his gaze instantly darkening.
Sitting on the back seat of his fierce motorcycle was a soft, plush tiger. Its face wore the same fierce expression, eyes proud and defiant, with its tail curled slightly.
It was staring right at him.
They locked eyes in silent confrontation.