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On Friday morning, Luo Yan was jolted awake by her biological clock. The autumn sun shone through the thin clouds outside the window, casting a warm glow on the wilted succulent on the windowsill. She touched her forehead; the fever had completely subsided, leaving only a slight, feather-like weakness. She called out to Ren Qin, who was bustling about in the kitchen, "Mom, I'm going back to school," and then slung her backpack over her shoulder and headed out the door.

As she approached the school gate, the electronic screen next to the flagpole displayed the "Autumn Sports Meet Program," its red background and yellow lettering standing out prominently in the sunlight. Luo Yan took a deep breath; the air was filled with the scents of green grass, the rubber track, and the faint fragrance of osmanthus blossoms. The vibrant atmosphere of the campus instantly filled her nostrils, invigorating her—today was the sports meet.

Upon entering the teaching building, the corridor was bustling with activity, like a boiling porridge: boys carrying props bumped around with colorful flags, girls tried on class uniforms and twirled around looking in the mirror, and someone was carrying a whole case of mineral water to the stands. The noise spread along the corridor tiles.

Luo Yan's class didn't assign her any projects, so she was happy to have some free time. She strolled to the classroom, stuffed her backpack into her desk drawer, pulled out a novel, and prepared to go back to the classroom to read quietly after the opening ceremony.

The opening ceremony of the sports meet began on time on the main playground. Each class's contingent entered in turn, the drum and bugle corps' cymbals booming loudly, and the flower bouquet team's skirts swirling like colorful clouds with each step. Luo Yan and Yu Qing squeezed into the stands; Yu Qing was from the publicity department and was responsible for assisting with event recording today.

“Oh, right,” Yu Qing said to Luo Yan, turning to her, “I went to Teacher Qi’s office this morning and put your things on his desk. He should have seen them.”

Luo Yan's fingertips twitched slightly. She didn't reply, but her eyes couldn't help glancing towards the sidelines—Qi Sheng, as an intern teaching assistant, was positioned near the referee's bench and was talking to Mr. Zhang from the physical education department. He was wearing a simple black T-shirt and white sweatpants. Sunlight fell on his shoulders and back, outlining his clean and sharp features, making him stand out in the noisy crowd.

“Look over there,” Yu Qing gestured, following her gaze, “a lot of girls are stealing glances at Teacher Qi.”

Luo Yan remained silent, only turning her gaze back to the formation, her fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes. She had actually noticed it too; Qi Sheng, standing there, always seemed to possess a calm aura that could "peel" him out from the noise.

The morning's competitions were as tightly packed as a wound-up toy. As soon as the starting gun fired in the 100-meter preliminary round, the athletes shot off like arrows, and the stands erupted in thunderous cheers; beside the high jump field, the bar was raised again and again, and the athletes ran, jumped, and cleared the bar with movements as graceful as birds in flight.

Luo Yan, clutching a bottle of chilled mineral water, leaned against the bleachers' railing, watching the athletes sprint down the track, their muscles bulging, and the high jumpers casting long shadows as they soared over the bar. The warm autumn sun shone on her, and the air was filled with the scent of sweat and grass. She felt a sense of relief, a stolen moment of peace, and barely even turned the pages of her novel.

Yu Qing was busy shuttling between various competition venues, occasionally running back to the stands to chat with Luo Yan for a few words.

“Look at that boy,” Yu Qing leaned closer, “He’s from Class 2, last year’s high jump champion, and I heard he’s aiming to break the school record this time.”

Luo Yan looked in the direction she pointed. The boy had just cleared the 1.8-meter bar and landed, eliciting cheers. She nodded and said, "Pretty impressive."

Yu Qing asked tentatively, "Would you like to take a photo with Teacher Qi?"

Luo Yan shook her head silently. She was a little socially awkward; just looking at her from afar was enough to make her heart race, let alone asking for a photo.

Yu Qing patted her on the shoulder and ran off to do her work again. Luo Yan watched the figure running on the field, but felt as if a small pebble had been thrown into her heart.

Actually, she had thought about it before. Every time she saw Qi Sheng standing by the court, next to the referee's table, or even just passing by him in the stadium, she would subconsciously think, "If only I could draw him," or, to be even more greedy, "If only I could take a picture with him." But when it came to actually taking that step, she felt like she was nailed to the spot, unable to move her feet.

In the afternoon, the sun grew stronger, and the noise from the stands reached its peak. Luo Yan, annoyed by the noise, said goodbye to Yu Qing and slipped back to the classroom. Only a few students remained, some napping at their desks, others working on practice problems. She found a seat by the window, opened her novel, and the pages turned gently in the cross breeze.

Just as they finished watching the beginning, the back door of the classroom was pushed open with a "bang," and Yu Qing strode in, waving at Luo Yan: "Luo Yan, hurry, hurry, hurry!"

Luo Yan closed the book and looked up in confusion: "What's wrong?"

"It's done!" Yu Qing walked up to her, her tone carrying a hint of lightness. "I went to the referee's table just now and saw that Teacher Qi wasn't busy, so I asked him, and he said it was okay."

Luo Yan's mind went blank for a moment, as if she had been hit by a swarm of bees, and she didn't react for a while: "What are you asking?"

"Ask if we can take a picture together," Yu Qing said succinctly. "Let's go find him now."

Luo Yan was still reeling from the shock, her fingers nervously twisting the hem of her clothes: "I didn't bring a camera, and I didn't bring my phone either..."

She was in a hurry to get back to school in the morning and didn't bring anything to take pictures.

Yu Qing immediately replied, "It's okay, I'll just borrow the teacher's phone."

Without a word, Yu Qing grabbed the still-dazed Luo Yan and ran to the vicinity of the referee's table. Qi Sheng had just finished talking to Teacher Zhang next to him, turned around and saw them, nodded slightly, and his gaze lingered on Luo Yan's face for half a second.

“Professor Qi,” Yu Qing spoke first, her tone natural, “my friend would like to take a picture with you, could I borrow your phone?”

Qi Sheng's gaze fell on Luo Yan's face again. She felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze, her eyes lowered, her long eyelashes trembling slightly like small fans, and her fingers tightened the hem of her clothes. He paused, took out his phone from his pocket, unlocked it, and handed it to Yu Qing, saying in a flat tone, "Okay."

Yu Qing quickly opened the camera, selected the front camera, and moved Luo Yan closer to Qi Sheng: "Stand closer."

Luo Yan seemed frozen in place, slowly moving to Qi Sheng's side. He was much taller than her, and carried a faint scent of sunshine mixed with laundry detergent, subtly overlapping with the aura she had captured on her drawings and in her memories. She was so nervous her palms were sweating, and even the smile on her lips seemed stiff.

With a "click," the photo was captured.

Yu Qing looked at the screen with satisfaction: "Great shot." She handed the phone back to him and added, "Teacher, could you leave your contact information so I can send the photos to my friends?"

Qi Sheng took the phone and recited a string of numbers. Luo Yan quickly pulled out a pen and a sticky note from her pocket and wrote down the number.

"Then we won't bother you any longer!" Yu Qing pulled Luo Yan, who was still not fully recovered, and walked back.

It wasn't until they were a bit further away from the referee's table that Luo Yan found her voice, grabbed Yu Qing's arm, and said in disbelief, "This is too sudden."

"Isn't this good?" Yu Qing glanced at her. "We have the photos and the number."

Luo Yan didn't speak, looking down at the sticky note with the number written on it in her hand, her heart still beating irregularly.

When Qi Sheng saw the unsigned envelope in his office that morning, he had a vague idea of ​​what was going on.

The drawing in the envelope had clean, crisp lines and incredibly precise details. He had seen Luo Yan draw before; in the first lesson, the child had been engrossed in making corrections in her notebook. Coupled with Yu Qing's earlier statement that her "friend wanted to take a photo together," the answer was almost obvious.

He looked at the photo he had just taken on his phone. The girl was standing next to him, her shoulders hunched with nervousness, like a startled yet curious fawn.