Lin Qiaoqiao, why should I wipe my own sweat...?

Lin Shih-ren slept soundly that night. When he was woken up by the jarring alarm clock the next day, the bedroom was still dimly lit.

He pulled his phone out from under his pillow and had just turned on airplane mode when he received a WeChat message from Zhou Lin.

Good morning, Lin Qiaoqiao.

How did he find out her nickname? Probably that time she hid it in the closet. A smile involuntarily crept onto her lips, and she sent him a cute emoji.

She threw back the covers and got out of bed. She had only drawn the curtains halfway open when she felt the glare.

Everything outside was white, and the whole world felt soft.

I reached out and touched the glass; it was icy cold. When I removed my hand, a misty haze formed the shape of my palm.

Lin Shiren arrived at school fifteen minutes earlier than usual. He ran into Shao Xiaxuan, who was climbing the stairs in the corridor. Perhaps due to lack of exercise, she had to rest for two seconds after climbing ten steps. Upon seeing Lin Shiren, she greeted him listlessly, "Why are you here so early today?"

"I thought there would be traffic jams on a snowy day."

"We left home well before the morning rush hour."

They usually had a good relationship, so Lin Shiren felt embarrassed to leave first and slowed down to go upstairs with her: "It would be great if we could go out and play in the snow for our physical education class this afternoon."

Shao Xiaxuan perked up: "Sure, then our whole class will beg the PE teacher together."

The two chatted and laughed as they entered the classroom through the back door. As soon as they sat down, Lin Shih-jen was so shocked by the scene before him that he was speechless.

The table, less than a meter long, was neatly filled with lunch boxes: steamed buns, black rice porridge, egg tarts, fruit slices... The lids were all off, and the chopsticks were already unpacked, giving it the feel of a high-end breakfast shop.

Zhou Lin took her schoolbag, wiped the water droplets off it with a tissue, and then put the chopsticks in her hand. He didn't let her lift a finger the whole time, treating her like a queen.

"See if it suits your taste?"

Lin Shiren asked last night what it would be like to be his girlfriend. Zhou Lin thought about it all night.

He's never been in a relationship, never been someone's boyfriend, and love isn't a multiple-choice question with an A, B, C, or D answer, where there's always a right one. So, even a top student might not get a perfect score on this question, but he's willing to try everything.

Shao Xiaxuan was caught off guard and stunned. Although her grades weren't outstanding, she was definitely gossipy and immediately noticed the evidence of their secret affair.

Lin Shiren's voice was light and airy: "Too much, I can't finish it."

Overwhelmed by an unnecessary sense of speechlessness, she didn't dare to look him in the eye. As the noise in the corridor gradually subsided, she could hear her own heart pounding like a drum.

Does he want the whole world to know?

Lin Shiren felt her face burning, so she reached out to cool it down, but someone was faster than her. Zhou Lin tucked her stray hairs behind her ear and said, "It's okay, I'll eat the rest."

Shao Xiaxuan's eyes almost popped out. Was this her punishment for arriving early?

From that day on, Lin Shiren noticed that Zhou Lin had changed.

Although she didn't acknowledge him as her boyfriend, he shouldn't be denied any of the rights a boyfriend should have.

At four o'clock in the afternoon, the basketball court was brightly lit. Lin Shiren sat in the stands with Zhou Lin's school uniform draped over his lap, watching the boys sweat profusely as they circled a ball, the court filled with the hormones of competition.

She used to never watch boys play basketball, and now she was completely out of place.

Dong Rui sat next to her, crossed her legs, put her hand to her mouth and shouted "Go Zhou Lin!" a few times, then said excitedly, "Go Zhou Lin quickly!"

Lin Shiren coughed lightly and leaned back slightly: "Isn't that necessary?"

In the past, the stands were always occupied by Xu Yiqiao's group of people, but now it seems like the two of them have switched places, and it looks awkward no matter how you look at it.

Xu Yiqiao is different from before.

She tied her ponytail high again, neatly tucking away the stray hairs in front of her forehead. She remained a woman of few words, and when she looked at people with a cold gaze, she was still that proud and aloof queen.

Lin Shiren secretly observed that she no longer took a nap at noon, and her notebook was filled with equations.

She loves without hesitation and hates without severing ties. There is no entanglement or internal strife. She devotes all her energy to her studies, embodying the bold and decisive style of a strong female protagonist.

In a crowd, some people are responsible for being dazzling, while others are responsible for forming the crowd. She and Zhou Lin are the same kind of people.

In the one or two seconds of distraction, Zhou Lin scored another goal on the field. He looked over despite the noise and distance, tilted his forehead, and fixed his gaze on her in an instant.

It turns out that once a top student falls in love, they become no different from a chuunibyou (a person with delusions of grandeur).

Lin Shiren understood the meaning in his eyes, banished his random thoughts, and clapped enthusiastically.

A teammate whistled: "Lin-ge, we've got this today!"

Song Ci, who wasn't on his team, wiped his sweat and said sarcastically, "Someone's wife is watching from the audience, give him some face."

Yes, because of Zhou Lin's high profile, their rumored romance has become an open secret. Perhaps it's because of his overly frank attitude that fewer people gossip behind his back, and everyone openly teases him.

After the midterm exams, Chen Mo talked to her. He affirmed Zhou Lin's study methods and thought about letting other students who were weak in certain subjects try it as well. Lin Shiren remembers that he said several times, "It's not easy to find a tutor."

Let's leave this difficult question to Chen Mo; she didn't respond.

After discussing their studies, Chen Mo wanted to say something but hesitated, so she only reminded Shen Xuqing not to get distracted when he knocked on the door with his collected homework.

After leaving the office, Shen Xuqing followed. The two exchanged a few awkward words before entering the classroom.

He's been acting strangely lately, always looking at her with complicated expressions, and he even casually mentioned the time he took her home in the first year of high school. Lin Shiren felt that she understood Shen Xuqing less and less.

Zhou Lin told her that boys aren't so oblivious as to not notice girls' feelings; not responding means rejection.

In other words, Shen Xuqing noticed and ignored her feelings in the details she thought she had hidden well, but after she and Zhou Lin became friends, he inexplicably came up to her again.

Perhaps this is just the inherent weakness of males.

With a long whistle, the game ended. Song Ci showed off his ball-spinning skills to Zhou Lin, but Zhou Lin ignored him and instead strode towards the stands, where the people around him cheered wildly.

Dong Rui had been laughing along, but after three seconds she realized what was happening and ran away without looking back.

Zhou Lin took the mineral water from her hand, tilted his head back and drank it down. Water trickled down his slender neck, it was hard to tell if it was water or sweat.

He finished the water bottle, which made a squeaking sound as he drank it all. He then asked, "What do you want to eat tonight?"

Zhou Lin has recently developed a new hobby: feeding her.

Lin Shih-jen pinched his waist, which had thickened considerably, and said with a bitter face, "We don't exercise much in winter anyway, and if I keep eating like this, I'm going to get fat and die."

It's not Zhou Lin's fault. When you're tired and sleepy, only calorie bombs like milk tea and hamburgers can make you feel better.

He looked at her to confirm, "Have you gained weight?"

"right."

"Let me weigh it."

Zhou Lin grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his arms. If Lin Shiren hadn't struggled so hard, he would have turned into a human scale on the spot.

Seeing her ears turn red with embarrassment, he smiled gently, "I won't tease you anymore. Do you have any tissues?"

Lin Shiren took out a tissue from his pocket and handed it to him, but he didn't take it. Instead, he leaned down and brought his head closer, his words full of ulterior motives: "I'm already a very proactive boyfriend, why should I have to wipe my own sweat?"

"..."

The film company scheduled the video interview for 4:30 p.m. to accommodate Xu Yiqiao's schedule.

After short videos went viral online, many MCN agencies wanted to sign her, but her parents turned them all down.

But this time it's different.

She was contacted by a director's assistant, who said they were currently filming a movie with a female theme, and that her image was a good fit for the third female lead. The assistant asked if she would be willing to audition in Beijing.

She had heard of the director the assistant mentioned; he was a top-tier art-house film director in China, and a woman with a good reputation and character.

Xu Yiqiao discussed it with her parents and they agreed.

No one can predict the future. The college entrance examination is not the only path to success, but such opportunities are fleeting.

When she came out of the equipment room after her audition, she saw Lin Shiren wiping Zhou Lin's sweat.

Xu Yiqiao had known Zhou Lin for over two years, and this was the first time she had ever seen him with that kind of expression.

How should I put it?

He was a bit roguish, a bit bad, and in short, completely different from the cold and aloof person she remembered.

People came and went around her, and her eyes welled up with tears.

"Baby, how did the interview go?" Ruan Ya skipped over, her excitement barely contained.

Xu Yiqiao quickly concealed her deep disappointment and winked at her: "The director wants me to fly to Beijing on Sunday."

"Oh my god, my best friend is going to be a star."

"It's not even close to being done yet."

"I don't care, I want to be your assistant in the future, I don't want a salary, just introduce me to male celebrities."

...

On the other end, Lin Shiren finally couldn't take it anymore, shoved a tissue into Zhou Lin's hand, and jumped up from his chair in the stands: "Class is about to start, let's go back to the classroom."

"OK."

Zhou Lin played this game with great enjoyment. Not only did he win, but the little girl also wiped his sweat, and he followed behind her like a tyrant.

The gymnasium was almost empty, with only a few people still wearing their coats. Lin Shih-jen habitually checked his belongings, and to his surprise, he found a cell phone under the basketball hoop.

iPhone 13, pink phone case, must have been left behind by some girl.

She looked around but didn't see anyone rushing to look for something. Her brow furrowed slightly: "What should I do?"

Zhou Lin thought for two seconds and said, "Why don't we hand it over to the teacher?"

"no."

Lin Shiren immediately gripped the phone in his hand, his face full of disapproval: "She'll definitely get criticized by the teacher. What if her parents are called in? I heard that the homeroom teacher of Class 6 is particularly ruthless. She won't even give her a phone back if she confiscates it. You have to bring a letter of apology to her office during winter and summer vacations to exchange it."

"Then what do you suggest we do?" He had just finished playing ball, and his voice was tinged with laziness.

"Let's wait a little longer."

Seven or eight minutes passed, and with class about to start, Lin Shinian craned his neck to look for a while, his voice growing impatient: "What kind of person is this? Does he own a mine? He doesn't even know he lost his phone. Couldn't he have borrowed a classmate's phone to call?"

Zhou Lin put on his school uniform, stretched out his palm, and made a gesture towards her. Lin Shiren handed him her phone.

Yeah, he has so many bad ideas, surely he'll find a way, right?

Then I watched as he opened his phone camera, pointed the camera at the two of them, pressed the selfie recording button close to his face: "No matter who you are, hurry up and call your phone, Lin Shiren is getting anxious."

"..."

Now she not only has to find the owner, but also beg the owner to delete the video.

I want to die.

Just before school ended, a message popped up on his phone, and Lin Shiren secretly glanced at it.

Mom: "Do you think you're the only one suffering and exhausted? Dad and I work from dawn till dusk for whom? If you don't want to miss us anymore..."

The following content wasn't displayed on the screen, but following the context, it was clear it wasn't anything positive.

My heart skipped a beat.

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Author's note: Surprised? Unexpected?

There'll be another chapter tonight, if I'm still alive. [Heart emoji]