Embedded Files
Psst! We're moving!
As school dismissal time passed and evening approached, the sun slowly began to set.
Next to the basketball court was a green hill built by the school. The section of the court on the second level, tucked further inside, had tree shadows perfectly cast near the basketball hoops due to the setting sun.
Chi Zhiyu sat under one of those shaded areas with Xie Ye’s clothes, casually draping the garment over herself to block the sun’s UV rays.
Wu Xuan, seeing her fully covered up like this, couldn’t help but laugh, “Aren’t you hot?”
“Not at all,” Chi Zhiyu said truthfully, “There’s no sun here.”
“No sun, yet you’re still wrapped up.”
“Just in case.”
“True, it’s a good thing I applied sunscreen.”
“......”
So why are you still nagging me?
Perhaps guessing her unspoken thoughts, Wu Xuan laughed, “Don’t curse me in your heart, I know.”
Chi Zhiyu raised an eyebrow, “Oh, so you’re omniscient now?”
Wu Xuan: “Of course.”
After joking around, Chi Zhiyu glanced at her position. There were still some rays of sunlight filtering through the leaves, and she frowned slightly, “Why don’t you move closer?”
“There was Xie Ye’s jacket here before,” Wu Xuan shook her head, “I didn’t dare to sit on it randomly.”
Chi Zhiyu recalled Xie Ye’s quirks and understood.
Xie Ye had many quirks.
First of all, he always liked to find shaded spots on the basketball court.
Before playing, he would often take off his school uniform jacket.
Most boys would just take it off and toss it carelessly onto their seats, eventually piling up into a small mountain.
But Xie Ye was an exception. He didn’t like others touching or moving his things. After taking off his clothes, he always placed them separately, not allowing anyone to sit near or touch them unless he gave permission.
Moreover, the spot he chose was always the coolest, with the largest shaded area.
When asked for the reason, he gave one word—
Sun.
From then on, everyone thought he had obsessive-compulsive tendencies and was quite particular.
Chi Zhiyu scooted over to make space for Wu Xuan to sit closer.
Wu Xuan moved her position and glanced at the time, asking, “Didn’t you have cleaning duty? How did you finish so quickly?”
“I didn’t expect it either,” Chi Zhiyu adjusted her sleeves, “I thought I could drag it out a bit.”
The group originally planned to leave together after school, but her cleaning duty disrupted the plan.
Su Le ended up dragging Xie Ye to play basketball, and Wu Xuan tagged along. Since they were waiting anyway, they might as well watch the game.
So, Chi Zhiyu wasn’t in a rush while sweeping, thinking these guys would take a while to finish playing. She didn’t expect to complete the task so quickly.
Hearing this, Wu Xuan lifted her chin, “They should be finishing soon, let’s watch together.”
“Alright,” Chi Zhiyu had no choice, disinterestedly scanning the basketball court in front of her. She noticed a group of young girls standing in the corner, watching the game, nudging each other shyly. Chi Zhiyu raised her eyebrows, “Are those new first-years?”
Unfamiliar faces, brand new uniforms, easily recognizable at a glance.
Wu Xuan followed her gaze and raised an eyebrow, “Probably, they’ve been standing there for a while, very excited.”
“Of course they’re excited,” Chi Zhiyu implied, “This is a great place to scout for boyfriends.”
“......”
“Who are they scouting?” Wu Xuan looked at her and asked, “Your Big Brother Ye?”
“Big Brother Ye doesn’t need any guessing,” Chi Zhiyu’s eyes flickered, “These little juniors’ gazes are practically homing beacons for him, isn’t it obvious?”
Wu Xuan burst out laughing, “Can you stop misunderstanding people? These juniors might just be watching the game.”
Chi Zhiyu also laughed, “Oh, alright, my mistake for being rash.”
“......”
Wu Xuan found it amusing, “You seem so calm, aren’t you afraid someone will snatch your Big Brother Ye?”
“Snatch?” Chi Zhiyu’s tone rose slightly, lazily asking, “Do they even have a chance?”
“......”
Impressive.
Their conversation ended.
Just then, the whistle blew on the court, signaling halftime.
“Hmm, who’s this?”
Su Le, who had just finished playing nearby, came over to rest. Seeing someone sitting in Xie Ye’s exclusive spot, he was momentarily taken aback, wondering who was so bold.
When he got closer and saw the fully-covered person revealing only a pair of eyes, he unsurprisingly made that comment.
Chi Zhiyu blinked, “I’m just a passerby here.”
“Don’t you have cleaning duty today?” Su Le went to grab a bottle of water to drink.
“I’m done sweeping, Lin Jie, your desk mate, was in my group,” Chi Zhiyu explained, worried he didn’t know who it was, “He was fast, so I couldn’t hold him back.”
Hearing this, Su Le wasn’t particularly interested, looking at her outfit, “Xie Ye’s spot really suits you, no sun can reach you.”
He knew that dancers needed to maintain their appearance and couldn’t get tanned.
“You can sit here too,” Chi Zhiyu patted the remaining empty spot.
“No,” Su Le waved his hand, “Anyone who sits here gets kicked out immediately. Only you can sit here.”
Chi Zhiyu paused upon hearing this, raising an eyebrow.
She had always thought this wasn’t a big deal. She had been using Xie Ye’s things since childhood, it was a habit.
After saying this, Su Le realized his words might have sounded a bit different and quickly added, “And I’m not as particular as him, I’m not afraid of getting sunburned.”
Chi Zhiyu wanted to respond, but Wu Xuan noticed someone coming from behind, “Here they come.”
Hearing this, the few of them slightly turned their heads.
Li Taoran, who arrived first, clearly seemed tired, walking slowly, with Xie Ye following behind him.
The young man’s figure was lean, his pure white school uniform slightly dirty from the basketball, his hair damp from the recent exercise, his expression calm, showing no emotion.
Su Le glanced and asked, “Why are only you two here, what about Yang Fan Yi?”
He was referring to the person who had just been talking to Xie Ye.
Li Taoran, still catching his breath while walking, waved his hand tiredly, “He went to the next court.”
Su Le: “What happened?”
Hearing this, Li Taoran glanced at Xie Ye and cleared his throat, “Nothing much, probably tired.”
Li Taoran had initially lagged behind Xie Ye, but when he caught up, he overheard Yang Fan Yi’s unfortunate words to Xie Ye.
What nonsense?
Saying Chi Zhiyu should be his girlfriend? What kind of dream was he having?
Though Li Taoran also thought Yang Fan Yi was delusional.
But Xie Ye’s reaction just now... seemed to take it seriously?
And Yang Fan Yi, seeing Xie Ye’s expression, realized something was off. Of course, he didn’t dare to cause trouble and quickly claimed it was just a joke before leaving.
At that moment, Li Taoran just thought Xie Ye was quite chivalrous, knowing how to drive away unwelcome admirers for Chi Zhiyu.
But then he thought more deeply and suddenly had a moment of clarity.
Xie Ye’s behavior...
Thinking this, Li Taoran’s gaze unconsciously shifted to Chi Zhiyu, to the jacket draped over her and the spot she was sitting on.
Suddenly.
He understood.
— Brother’s love.
In an instant.
Li Taoran wore an expression as if he had discovered some profound life philosophy. He turned to Xie Ye, patted his shoulder, and said meaningfully, “Xie Ye, you’re pretty good.”
Xie Ye: “......”
Xie Ye: ?
Li Taoran patted his shoulder again, whispering in admiration, “Never thought you’d be so hypocritical.”
“......” Xie Ye glanced at him, “Are you sick?”
Li Taoran ignored his words, shaking his head and continuing, “Really, I think you’re quite commendable.”
Xie Ye: “Go away.”
Li Taoran stopped talking but kept gazing at him with approval.
Not waiting for a few seconds, Xie Ye coldly clicked his tongue, somewhat annoyed, “If you’re sick, go to the hospital, understand?”
“What are you two doing?” Wu Xuan watched the two approach and whispered, curious.
“Ah?” Li Taoran blinked and shook his head, “Nothing.”
Wu Xuan suspiciously looked at him; this person didn’t look like nothing was wrong. Xie Ye walked to Chi Zhiyu’s side, standing under the same tree shade. Seeing him come, Chi Zhiyu casually handed him a damp towel, looking up curiously at Li Taoran, “What’s Little Brother Li hiding?”
“Nothing, nothing, really nothing,” Li Taoran waved and shook his head.
“It’s not like you’re secretly badmouthing me, right?” Chi Zhiyu guessed.
“How could that be!” Li Taoran said, “Where would the bad words come from? I praised you as a celestial being.”
“Really?” Chi Zhiyu handed the water in her hand to Xie Ye, looking up to confirm.
Xie Ye took it, snorted, “Do you believe him?”
“What nonsense, don’t slander me,” Li Taoran turned to Su Le for help, “Tell me, haven’t I praised Sister Chi?”
Xie Ye ignored them, unscrewed the cap and started drinking water, tilting his head back, elongating his neck, his Adam’s apple bobbing.
On both sides, Li Taoran and Su Le kept chatting.
And Li Taoran, upon turning his head, noticed the water bottle in Xie Ye’s hand, clicking his tongue, “Where did you get that water?”
He glanced around, “Why don’t I have one?”
Xie Ye lazily asked, “Who are you?”
“? “
Li Taoran: “What’s wrong with me? Can’t I have one?”
“Oh.” Xie Ye looked composed, his attitude condescending, “No.”
Li Taoran: “......”
Su Le thought Li Taoran was an idiot and smartly turned to ask Chi Zhiyu, “Sister Chi, when can you bring us a bottle of water too?”
Chi Zhiyu, unexpectedly mentioned, was momentarily stunned and hadn’t opened her mouth to speak yet.
“Damn.”
Upon hearing Su Le’s words, Li Taoran immediately felt wronged, “Sister Chi, you’re treating us differently! Why didn’t you buy water for me and Su Le?”
“Ah...” Chi Zhiyu blinked, telling the truth, “I forgot.”
“......”
“Alright, I get it,” Li Taoran started complaining, “Big Brother Ye is more important than us, right?”
Xie Ye completely ignored him, lowered his eyes, tightened the water bottle cap, then extended his hand. Chi Zhiyu, listening to Li Taoran’s words, turned her head and handed him his backpack.
The group watched this scene, their voices pausing momentarily.
Xie Ye calmly took his backpack, slung it over one shoulder, raised his eyes indifferently, and said, “Let’s go.”
Chi Zhiyu blinked, “Going home?”
Xie Ye: “Mhm.”
Wu Xuan, seeing their naturally understanding actions, raised an eyebrow and asked, “Are you leaving already?”
“Hmm? Is there anything else?” Chi Zhiyu hesitated slightly.
“Of course there is,” Su Le glanced at Xie Ye, “The basketball game isn’t over yet.”
Leaving now would be such a disappointment.
“Oh, right.”
Reminded by him, Chi Zhiyu remembered this point, turned her head and instructed Xie Ye succinctly, “Then you keep playing, Wu Xuan and I will go home together.”
Xie Ye, who had already put on his backpack: “......”
Google Sites
Report abuse