Chapter 34

The last two classes in the afternoon.

Liu Hongli stood on the podium holding a small bee.

"Pack your schoolbag and go to the auditorium to watch the New Year's Eve gala."

Auditorium?

Lin Li paused for a moment before remembering where this place was.

It's in the building right next to the cafeteria.

The school usually doesn't use the auditorium for these kinds of activities in junior high because the LED screen needs frequent maintenance. I never expected that it would be used today.

Lin Li got up, intending to go find Tong Yao.

But she was nowhere to be found in the classroom.

Lin Li is not in a hurry; he will find her in the lecture hall later.

Lin Li bent down to take down the black bag hanging next to the table and walked towards Tang Yue.

Where is Li Jiahao?

Li Jiahao is usually near Tang Yue and the others, but I didn't see him today, so Lin Li asked him out of curiosity.

Tang Yue casually packed her schoolbag and said, "He took his phone and went to the bathroom to play games. Oh, and he said if Teacher Liu looks for him later, just tell him he's in the bathroom."

Which restroom is he in?

Lin Li was puzzled.

Tang Yue and Chen Yan both fell silent when asked.

"He didn't say anything? Teacher Liu wants me to go find him later, then he's doomed!" Lin Li wondered.

Tang Yue smiled and said, "Then we can only hope that he has good luck."

"By the way," Tang Yue asked curiously, "who was that girl who came to see you during break today?"

"You're not thinking of having your cake and eat it too, are you?"

Lin Li was stunned: "What the hell? I just asked her about Cheng Yu."

Speaking of this, Lin Li turned around and took the photo out of her schoolbag.

Pointing to the person secretly taking the photo in the lower left corner, he said, "Look, this is the person who took the photo. Judging from the angle of that photo at the time, it was definitely taken by this person."

"Only the forehead and the top of the head can be seen."

"I suspected that Cheng Yu had cut her hair short. Didn't she transfer to Class 2? So I went to check."

Lin Li excitedly slapped her thigh as she spoke.

"I didn't see Cheng Yu. That girl told me that Cheng Yu transferred schools last Friday, and that Cheng Yu had long hair before she left."

"So, have you found the person who took the photos?"

Tang Yue asked.

"No." Lin Li shook her head.

"Then why are you so excited?"

"Cheng Yu transferred schools! I'll never see her or run into her again, and she won't bother me anymore. Aren't you happy?"

Upon hearing this, Tang Yue nodded in sudden understanding.

Lin Li and Tang Yue walked to the vicinity of the cafeteria.

Tang Yue noticed the black bag Lin Li was carrying and asked in confusion:

"Why did you bring the flute? Are you going to perform?"

Lin Li shook her head. "Heavenly secrets cannot be revealed."

With that, he waved his hand and went inside.

Their auditorium was converted from a former swimming pool.

Besides the rows of seats in the middle, there are also some benches on both sides that used to be the audience seating area.

Lin Li's gaze swept around and spotted Tong Yao sitting on the benches in the audience area on both sides.

Lin Li walked over with a smile.

His expression froze the next second.

Xu Feng sat next to Tong Yao.

Tong Yao was sitting on the far end of the bench. If he sat down now, Xu Feng would be between them.

Lin Li frowned and stood in the space between the two.

He looked at Xu Feng and forced a friendly smile: "Excuse me, could you please move over a bit?"

Xu Feng glanced at him silently, and was just about to move aside when Tong Yao's clear, cold voice rang out:

"The seats are public; feel free to sit if you want. There are plenty of empty seats here."

Upon hearing this, Xu Feng remained seated.

Lin Li looked at Tong Yao in disbelief, but she turned her head away, leaving him with only a cold profile.

He had no choice but to sit down next to Xu Feng, fuming with frustration.

Ten minutes later, the LED screen in the auditorium lit up.

After the principal's opening remarks, the host began announcing the program.

The first performance was a "social dance" by Class 5 of Grade 7, whose dynamic rhythm instantly ignited the atmosphere.

Lin Li was somewhat surprised; he hadn't expected this dance to become popular so quickly. To be honest, this kind of performance was fine to watch on short videos on a mobile phone, but he always felt it was a bit embarrassing to perform on such a formal stage.

As he was thinking, he unconsciously glanced at Tong Yao, only to be surprised to find that she was actually holding a vocabulary book and intently memorizing English words.

The next performance was a K-pop dance by the second-year junior high students. The music was upbeat, and the audience cheered. Lin Li glanced at Tong Yao again and saw her occasionally look up at the stage before her gaze quickly returned to the vocabulary book on her lap.

His eyes lit up, and an idea popped into his head.

The hand that was neatly placed on the knee silently slipped behind Xu Feng and quickly poked Tong Yao's arm.

Tong Yao habitually turned her head, but Lin Li was already sitting upright, staring straight at the stage, as if nothing had happened.

As soon as she lowered her head again, that hand quietly reached out and gently poked her.

This time, Tong Yao stood up abruptly. She frowned and gave Lin Li a cold glance, then amidst the enthusiastic cheers of the audience, she put away her vocabulary book and left her seat without looking back.

Lin Li watched Tong Yao leave her seat and followed her without thinking, still clutching her flute in her hand.

He followed closely behind Tong Yao, like a little dog afraid of being abandoned by its owner.

"Tong Yao, where are you going?" he asked in a low voice.

Tong Yao walked ahead, quickening her pace and completely ignoring him.

He followed Tong Yao to the entrance of the women's restroom.

Lin Li stopped walking.

Oh, he was just going to the toilet...

The restrooms here have a unique design; the men's and women's restrooms are not next to each other. The men's restroom is at the other end of the corridor, right where they came out of the lecture hall.

Therefore, the girls coming and going to the toilet couldn't help but turn their heads and curiously look at the boy who was standing so brazenly at the entrance of the women's toilet.

Lin Li paid no attention to those stares. He leaned against the wall, his toes lightly touching the ground, and even hummed the tune of a song that had just been performed on stage.

As Tong Yao pushed open the door of the cubicle and walked to the sink, she heard the girls whispering.

Who is that boy waiting for at the door?

"Whose boyfriend is he? I really want to see what his girlfriend looks like?"

Tong Yao's heart skipped a beat, and an ominous premonition welled up inside her.

She walked stiffly to the mirror, pretending to wash her hands, but out of the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of that familiar yet flamboyant figure at the door.

Immediately, she was speechless.

She quickly lowered her head, trying to blend in with the other girls who were about to leave, pretending not to know him, and quietly slipped away.

But as soon as she stepped out of the restroom, her wrist was grabbed.

"Tong Yao!"

Lin Li's voice was clear and bright, carrying a hint of joy at finding her goal, and it sounded particularly clear in the relatively quiet corridor.

In an instant, all the curious eyes around turned to him.

"It's her?"

"sure."

...

The whispers clearly reached her ears, and Tong Yao's ears turned bright red. She was both ashamed and annoyed, glared at Lin Li, and tried hard to pull her hand back.

"Let go!" The voice was unusually cold.

Lin Li's shoulders twitched, and she subconsciously loosened her grip. Tong Yao immediately pulled her hand away, turned around, and started walking back towards the lecture hall, her steps as fast as if she were fleeing.

Lin Li looked down at the flute in his hand, which he had brought specially to perform for Tong Yao.

So Lin Li chased after him.

"Tong Yao, shall I play the flute for you? I promised you last time, I'll do it whenever I have the chance..."

"I won't listen!" Tong Yao refused him firmly, coldly and indifferently.

Lin Li didn't understand where she had gone wrong.

"Hey, don't go, let's talk..."

Tong Yao ignored him and continued walking forward on her own.

Seeing that Tong Yao was determined to return to the lecture hall, to the seat where Xu Feng was, Lin Li became anxious and couldn't care less about anything else.

He spotted an empty fire escape stairwell nearby, and with a slight pull, dragged Tong Yao inside.

With a "bang," the fire door to the stairwell slammed shut behind them, instantly cutting off the light from the outside corridor. All that remained was the dim light filtering in from the small window high up, and their somewhat hurried breathing.

The flute case fell to the ground.

Tong Yao was pinned between the cool wall and Lin Li's warm body, her heart pounding wildly.

"what you up to?"

"Let me go!" She raised her hand to block between the two, her cold voice tinged with panic.

"I won't let go!" Lin Li's voice was filled with defiance and a hint of grievance.

Why are you ignoring me?

Upon hearing this, Tong Yao's face immediately turned cold. The image of Zhou Yuan sitting on Lin Li's table reappeared in her mind. After hesitating for a moment, she asked the question she wanted to ask.

Who is that girl?

Lin Li was taken aback, then suddenly understood.

Are you jealous?

Tong Yao turned her head away: "No."

All of Lin Li's grievances vanished instantly, and he explained with a smile, "I asked her about Cheng Yu. Don't worry, I don't like her..."

Upon hearing the name Cheng Yu, Tong Yao turned around and interrupted him with a puzzled expression:

Why are you asking about Cheng Yu?

Lin Li dared not tell them that they had been secretly filmed.

She simply said, "She transferred schools..."

Cheng Yu transferred schools...

Thinking about it, Tong Yao lowered her eyes, her long eyelashes casting shadows on her face.

Lin Li then noticed their posture. To prevent Tong Yao from escaping, he placed his hand on Tong Yao's ear, trapping her between himself and the wall.

He glanced awkwardly at Tong Yao, just as Tong Yao looked up.

Their eyes met, and both of them were taken aback.

Lin Li could clearly feel the other person's warm breath gently brushing against her skin, intertwining with it, making it impossible to distinguish between them.

His gaze involuntarily drifted downwards, landing on her slightly parted lips, which were flushed with a natural, alluring rosy hue.

The surroundings were so quiet that I could hear my own strong, powerful heartbeat, and an unprecedented, intense impulse surged from the bottom of my heart.

His breath became involuntarily hot, each breath clearly hitting Tong Yao's face.

Tong Yao looked up, his hot breath brushing against her, bringing a slight shiver.

His silhouette was reflected in her clear pupils, and there was a hint of panic in her gaze, but more than that, there was a bewitching, dreamy look.

Her slightly parted lips trembled gently, as if offering a silent invitation. The hand pressed against his chest tightened unconsciously, her fingertips curling.

She didn't push him away.

Lin Li was secretly delighted.

Just a second before his lips were about to touch hers, a crisp sound of a door closing came from the men's restroom not far away—

"Bang"!

As if a bucket of cold water had been poured over their heads, the two of them were both jolted awake.

Tong Yao instantly snapped out of her daze, pushed Lin Li away as if she'd been electrocuted, and her cheeks flushed instantly.

Lin Li staggered backward, and before she could regain her footing, she heard Li Jiahao's panicked voice coming from outside the door.

"Oh my god, I almost messed up. I have to show up in front of the homeroom teacher and then sit in the toilet."

The lingering shame and embarrassment in Lin Li's heart were instantly dispelled by Li Jiahao, and a surge of anger welled up inside her.

That damn Li Jiahao!!!

Tong Yao shoved him away and opened the fire door to escape. Lin Li hurriedly picked up the flute and grabbed her hand: "You haven't heard me play the flute yet!"

At this moment, Tong Yao had completely shed her shyness, her expression returning to calm, and she said coldly, "I won't listen!"

"Let go!"

Lin Li had no choice but to let go of her hand with trepidation, watching helplessly as she disappeared from sight.

The fire door clicked shut, leaving him alone in the empty stairwell.

The ambiguous scene from just now kept replaying in his mind—her hazy eyes, her trembling lips, and her tacit consent without rejection…

Clearly, so close!