SC - 46

The small park was bustling with elderly men and women chatting loudly, their voices mingling with the laughter of children. The surrounding noise was so overwhelming that if you didn’t speak loudly, it was nearly impossible to hear each other clearly.

Le Ya could feel Chen Yang’s breath brushing against her face as he spoke. In the cold winter air, it formed a warm cloud that made her entire body start to heat up slightly.

Even though they had been in close proximity multiple times before, she still couldn’t quite get used to it.

The night lights illuminated her from all sides, casting her in a soft glow. Chen Yang could see the fine down on her flushed cheeks.

Instinctively, Le Ya took a small step back, her voice dropping to a whisper. “If that’s the case, then I won’t let you eat it.”

With those words, she quickly retracted the cotton candy.

Chen Yang: “...”

She moved fast.

Just then, two children ran past, playfully shoving each other. Someone darted between them, cheering and whooping before rushing off into the distance.

Chen Yang straightened up, calmly watching her.

After a brief moment of hesitation, Le Ya suddenly remembered something.

Chen Yang, who always bought her things to eat, must be poor.

Since her father, Luo Yijian, had chosen him, his family background likely wasn’t affluent. She had also seen him injured before, and he always wore his school uniform—unlike some of the other unruly students who flaunted branded clothes.

Despite this, he consistently bought her things to eat. The cake from last time had cost over a hundred yuan, and although tonight’s purchase was cheaper, it was still money.

Chen Yang was genuinely poor, not pretending to be.

A sudden wave of guilt washed over Le Ya.

Here she was, coming from a wealthy family, yet every time they went out, Chen Yang was the one buying her food. Instead of treating him, she should have been the one paying—it was only right.

Not long ago, she had been the one buying him things, but now the roles had completely reversed.

Le Ya felt deeply ashamed.

With this realization, she relaxed and pushed the cotton candy back toward him, softly saying, “Go ahead and eat it. It’s for you.”

Chen Yang looked a bit confused.

He didn’t understand why Le Ya suddenly seemed so determined, her expression carrying a strange glint…

It almost resembled the look teachers sometimes gave him when they saw his test papers—a mix of relief and encouragement.

Chen Yang rubbed his forehead, wondering if he was imagining things.

Le Ya’s demeanor remained natural, giving nothing away. She extended her arm, waiting for him to take it.

Chen Yang sighed, glanced at the cotton candy, and bent down again. His nose was just a finger’s width away from the fluffy treat as he said in a low, steady voice, “Don’t move.”

Le Ya wanted to tell him to take it, but he had already acted.

He reached out, gently placing his fingers on her wrist, and lightly bit into the cotton candy where her hand held it. The sweetness melted in his mouth, soft and indulgent.

All of Le Ya’s senses focused on her hand.

His touch was light, and because it was winter, a faint coolness traveled from his fingertips to her hand, raising goosebumps on her skin.

Chen Yang paused momentarily.

Within seconds, he straightened up again, half of his profile obscured by the cotton candy. Only his dark eyes were visible, quietly captivating.

Le Ya’s breath hitched briefly before she pulled her hand back. “There, done.”

She twirled the stick, noticing a small bite taken out of the puff. For some reason, it reminded her of the Apple logo, except that was an apple.

Chen Yang raised an eyebrow. “Just one bite?”

Le Ya murmured an “Oh” and extended it back to him. “You hold it—I’m tired of holding it.”

Chen Yang was genuinely amused by her.

This was probably the first time Le Ya had seen him laugh without any underlying emotions. Compared to his occasional smiles in the hallway, this one felt purer.

Unable to resist, Le Ya said, “You should smile like this more often.”

Chen Yang asked, “Like what?”

Le Ya reached out and touched his face, her fingertip lightly pressing against the corner of his lips, where there was a subtle curve.

Her rounded nails grazed his skin before her fingers did, creating a strangely wonderful sensation.

Chen Yang froze momentarily, but the girl in front of him remained oblivious, even going so far as to tap the other side of his lips after finishing with the first.

“Just like this,” Le Ya said, pulling her hand back.

Chen Yang sighed again.

He felt like tonight might be the evening he sighed the most in his life.

Le Ya reminded him, “Don’t sigh.”

Chen Yang lifted his gaze. “Why not?”

Le Ya said earnestly, “Haven’t you heard? Sighing too much makes people age faster. You’re only in your teens—do you really want to grow old already?”

She had once heard this from Luo Yijian. Besides, sighing too often gave off a very gloomy vibe.

Growing old wasn’t the issue.

Chen Yang simply didn’t want to discuss aging with her right now.

In a park like this, surrounded by couples being affectionate with each other, discussing growing old with a young girl felt like a bizarre and somewhat terrifying scenario.

The two of them sat on a bench as Le Ya slowly ate the cotton candy. She left half of it untouched, and in the end, Chen Yang tossed the remainder into the trash can.

Her phone buzzed just then.

She opened the message to find it was from Xie Qingyu: “Where did you go? Our class party is almost over, and we’re about to start cleaning up. I just came back from Class Seventeen, and you weren’t there!”

Le Ya replied, “I left school...”

Xie Qingyu: “!!!”

Le Ya added, “I’ll be back in a little while.”

Xie Qingyu: “No way! You two have fun. It’s a party night anyway, and later we’ll still need to clean up—there’s no evening study session today.”

Xie Qingyu: “You didn’t even take me along! Did you leave with Chen Yang? When will you guys be back? Don’t worry if the homeroom teacher takes attendance—I’ve already thought of an excuse for you. Just say you went to the bathroom... for twenty or thirty minutes, hahahaha.”

She sent a long string of voice messages.

When Le Ya played them back, her ears heated up out of fear that Chen Yang might overhear something. She deliberately turned the volume down and listened by her ear.

Once the messages ended, she typed out a reply.

Chen Yang sat nearby, watching the balloon-popping stall ahead. One by one, the balloons were being punctured, inevitably leading to failure.

Le Ya asked, “The party’s over. Should we head back?”

Chen Yang pulled out another lollipop from his pocket and said, “Let’s wait a bit longer. We haven’t finished browsing yet. You… “

Afraid he’d ask more questions, she quickly pointed ahead. “There are still a few stalls left. Shall we keep going?”

Chen Yang gave her a meaningful look before nodding.

There were only four or five stalls left, and business wasn’t as good as the earlier ones. They sold trinkets that girls liked.

At the second-to-last stall, there were hairbands and hair clips.

Le Ya immediately noticed the two pig ears the vendor was wearing on his head. She blinked, barely suppressing a laugh.

Seeing customers approach, the vendor wiggled his ears. “Want a couple’s set?”

Chen Yang, who had been about to walk past, stopped abruptly.

His movement was obvious. Le Ya assumed he wanted to buy something, but remembering how poor he was, she panicked.

These hair accessories probably cost at least ten yuan—enough for a meal. If Chen Yang went hungry because of this purchase, she’d feel guilty for days.

Before Chen Yang could step forward, a nearby girl rushed over. “I’ll buy! I’ll buy!”

???

The stall owner was delighted and began enthusiastically promoting his products. “This and this are my bestsellers. Couples love these.”

Le Ya waved her hands. “We’re not a couple.”

The stall owner refused to believe his eyes.

He had worked in this park for years, seeing at least ten to twenty couples pass by every night. The relationship between these two was crystal clear.

Unless they hadn’t admitted it yet.

With this realization, he gestured to the boy. “This one is the most popular among girls here. Would you like to buy one for…”

“I’ll buy!” Le Ya interrupted him.

She couldn’t believe the vendor bypassed her and directly recommended items to Chen Yang. A sense of crisis overwhelmed her.

Without carefully looking, Le Ya hastily picked out a pair of rabbit ears and wolf ears and paid right away.

The vendor didn’t bother further promotion, simply packing her purchases.

Le Ya took the bag, turned around, and tugged Chen Yang’s sleeve. “I’m done shopping. Let’s go.”

Chen Yang found her hurried demeanor amusing. “No rush. Why are you in such a hurry?”

Le Ya thought inwardly, How can I not be in a hurry?

Every extra second spent at this stall risked buying something—and every few seconds meant potentially skipping several meals.

She couldn’t let that risk exist.

Le Ya walked ahead first, then turned back to urge him. “Hurry up! If we don’t leave now, we won’t make it back to school.”

Chen Yang kept his hands in his pockets, following behind her.

And so, he watched her shop nonstop.

For the first time, Chen Yang understood the internet memes describing what it felt like to follow someone while shopping.

Girls seemed to have a natural talent for this. Even browsing through small stalls in the park felt like raiding a mall. He was genuinely impressed.

After visiting the last stall, Le Ya finally let out a sigh of relief.

Her hands and pockets were stuffed with items—all purchased based on where Chen Yang had glanced earlier.

Le Ya sighed again, turning around. “We’re done. Let’s head back. I’m worried about roll call.”

Chen Yang pointed to the hair clips in her hand. “Aren’t you going to wear them?”

Le Ya looked down, picking out the wolf ears and putting them on herself. Satisfied, she opened her mouth and called out, “Awooo.”

She nudged Chen Yang. “Do I look fierce?”

A rabbit pretending to be a wolf.

Chen Yang’s lips curved slightly, though he didn’t expose her bluff. “Fierce. You’re the fiercest in the world.”

Le Ya then pulled out the rabbit ears, excitedly approaching him. “You wear these.”

Her eyes sparkled with anticipation.

Chen Yang took them, murmuring, “I don’t know how to put them on.”

Le Ya paused, realizing that these were hair clips meant for girls. It was normal for a guy not to know how.

She gestured. “Then lower your head. I’ll put them on for you.”

Chen Yang bent down obediently.

Like a docile dog, Le Ya clipped the hairband onto his head, her fingers brushing against his soft hair. Tempted, she secretly stroked it lightly before quickly withdrawing her hand, hoping he wouldn’t notice—but he felt it even more clearly.

Le Ya said, “There. Done.”

Chen Yang lifted his head, and the rabbit ears wobbled slightly. Paired with his delicate features, he looked like a character stepping out of a manga—adorable yet handsome.

Le Ya touched her own wolf ears and pouted.

Chen Yang watched her subtle movements without exposing her, and the two switched roles, drawing quite a few curious glances as they walked.

They exited from another direction and encountered a flower-selling child at the entrance. Clutching a bouquet, the child wandered around asking people if they wanted to buy flowers. His hands were red from the cold.

Le Ya observed for a moment and said, “Let’s buy some flowers.”

Following her gaze, Chen Yang nodded. “Mm.”

The flower-selling child was only a few years old. Seeing them approach, he assumed they were a couple and eagerly said, “Big brother, buy a flower for big sister?”

The flowers in his hands weren’t fancy—just ordinary ones.

Le Ya glanced at his frostbitten face and said, “Give me all of them.”

The child froze, turning to Chen Yang. “Doesn’t big brother want to buy any?”

Upon hearing this, Le Ya instinctively grabbed the flowers from the child’s hands. “He doesn’t want them. I’ll take them all.”

Chen Yang, who had just reached out, paused. “...Alright. What can I say?”

The flower-selling child didn’t care who bought them, simply showing his QR code. “That’ll be fifty yuan.”

Le Ya paid the fifty yuan.

The child happily left.

As they turned to leave, Le Ya tugged Chen Yang’s clothes and handed him the flowers. “Wait, this is for you.”

Chen Yang said, “...What am I supposed to do with these?”

Le Ya replied, “It’s a gift from me.”

Chen Yang asked, “Do you see any guys holding flowers around here?”

Le Ya scanned the area and realized there weren’t any. “But you can be the first. Do you really not want them?”

Looking into her eyes, Chen Yang sighed again and accepted the flowers.

“Consider it a thank-you for the cotton candy earlier,” Le Ya smiled, releasing her grip. “Let’s go.”

Chen Yang pursed his lips.

If he could wear rabbit ears, carrying a bouquet wasn’t much different.

As they crossed the intersection, a person walked past.

Le Ya thought the figure looked familiar—it might have been a former classmate—but she wasn’t sure, so she kept staring at their back.

Chen Yang was in the middle of unwrapping a lollipop when he noticed her distracted expression. Following her gaze, he narrowed his eyes.

He stopped unwrapping and tapped her forehead lightly with the lollipop.

Le Ya let out a soft “Ah” and covered her forehead.

She glared at Chen Yang, accusing, “Why did you hit me?”

Chen Yang continued unwrapping the lollipop and popped it into her mouth. “What were you looking at so intently? Did you even hear what I said? Was someone else prettier?”