Leave early
Zhu Shiyi stuffed the bag into his coat and hid it, then covered himself with the coat and tiptoed around.
She muttered to herself, "Ugh—I need to go to the bathroom!"
No one in the office looked up.
No one cared what she was doing.
Zhu Shiyi quietly crept to the elevator, pressed the button, and looked around nervously, afraid that someone he knew might come.
It wasn't until she entered the elevator that she completely let her guard down, took out her bag, and carried it in her hand.
Having learned from his previous experience, Zhu Shiyi peeked out a few times and quickly located Pan Yue's car.
She knew the way well and got in the car herself.
“You’re here,” Pan Yue put down his phone and looked at her. “You’re off work so early.”
Zhu Shiyi saluted: "Reporting."
"The boss told me to skip work."
Pan Yue chuckled, shook his head, and tapped the car's screen: "Connect to your Bluetooth and play some music."
......
After finishing training as usual, Zhu Shiyi went to take a shower.
She then realized she hadn't brought her gym bag.
Zhu Shiyi had no choice but to give up on washing her hair and just casually washed it a few times with some unknown brand of shower gel from the gym.
After quickly taking a shower, Zhu Shiyi left the bathing area empty-handed, where Pan Yue was already waiting for her.
"So fast?" Pan Yue asked, slightly surprised.
His hair wasn't completely dry, but it was still stylish and didn't affect his looks at all. On the contrary, it looked relaxed and gave him a kind of casual, dapper vibe.
“I didn’t wash my hair today,” Zhu Shiyi explained. “I wanted to, but I forgot my gym bag.”
Pan Yue asked, "Did you put it in the car?"
“No, I left it at home,” Zhu Shiyi suddenly remembered that she hadn’t brought her handbag either. She grinned, “But I forgot it in your car.”
"Is there a towel in the bag?" Pan Yue stood up.
"No."
Pan Yue opened his mouth: "..."
"What's wrong?" Zhu Shiyi stared, scratching his face.
Pan Yue blinked twice, looked away, and pursed his lips: "Then... are you cold? Do you want to buy some clothes?"
Zhu Shiyi tilted her head, confused: "I'm not cold, what do you mean?"
She looked down at her clothes.
She was wearing a very thick coat today, and only a base layer underneath.
At this moment, she hadn't buttoned her coat, and the light-colored undershirt, damp with the water droplets remaining on her skin, made the area around her chest appear slightly darker.
However, it didn't leak much; it was more like sweating a little, and I wasn't cold at all.
Zhu Shiyi casually pulled her coat tighter around herself: "I'm fine."
“That’s fine then,” Pan Yue took out a pack of tissues from his bag, handed it to her casually, and then turned around, “Let’s go, have a meal together, and I’ll take you home.”
“Okay.” Zhu Shiyi took the tissue and followed.
As she walked, she patted the water off her clothes and wiped the water droplets from her neck.
Nobody has anything planned for tonight, so it's nice to have dinner together.
Exiting the gym.
Zhu Shiyi's phone lit up; Yu Fan was calling her.
Zhu Shiyi answered the call.
Yu Fan: "Calling! Calling! Xiao Shiyi."
"I'm here."
Yu Fan: "I saw a Thai food stall near your company. The food looks amazing and smells so good! I've already sent you the location!"
"I've seen it too!"
Zhu Shiyi scrolled through the chat history, clicked on the location, and saw that the restaurant was near the gym.
Yu Fan: "I'm off tonight. Are you working overtime? Are you free? I'm almost at the restaurant. Come on over. Even if you're working overtime, you still need to eat."
Zhu Shiyi was caught off guard: "Ah—"
Yu Fan pouted and said, "Can you bear to see me eat all by myself?"
Zhu Shiyi was slightly conflicted.
She did indeed want to have Thai food with Yu Fan.
But she had already made an appointment with Pan Yue.
Zhu Shiyi walked slowly, gradually increasing the distance between himself and Pan Yue ahead.
She glanced sideways, her eyes filled with sorrow.
The Thai restaurant is right across the street.
Hesitation! Melancholy!
“That shop looks good,” Pan Yue’s voice grew louder as he approached unnoticed. “Shall we eat there?”
Zhu Shiyi's lips twitched slightly.
She really wanted to eat at the restaurant across the street.
But that's possible, provided you stand him up.
How could I possibly say that?
Zhu Shiyi frowned and said, "It's not bad, haha... I do want to eat it."
"Let's go." Pan Yue strode towards the other side.
"Hey—" Zhu Shiyi strode forward, raising her voice, "But..."
"The right time?"
......
Not far away, Yu Fan held his phone to his ear, but his eyes were fixed on her.
Zhu Shiyi stood there, stunned.
She stiffly raised her hand: "...Hi!"
......
The three of them sat down together in the restaurant.
Yu Fan and Zhu Shiyi sat on one side, while Pan Yue sat opposite them.
"You guys are working out together so soon! Why worry so much? Just go together, we can order a couple more dishes," Yu Fan waved his hand, "Scan the QR code and see what you'd like to eat?"
Yu Fan moved closer to Zhu Shiyi, holding up his phone to show her the menu: "Would you like some Tom Yum soup?"
Zhu Shiyi: "Drink."
Pan Yue: "Okay."
"I really want to eat curry chicken," Yu Fan clicked to place an order, "but never mind, we can't finish too much."
The food wasn't served quickly.
The waiter served drinks and shrimp chips first. Zhu Shiyi ordered a Tom Yum sparkling water, in which lemongrass, mint leaves and lemon juice floated in the brownish-red liquid.
Yu Fan ordered butterfly pea flower coconut water, which was light purple and very dreamy.
"This drink looks so good!" Yu Fan exclaimed excitedly.
"Yeah, yeah!" While having a nice meal with her girlfriends, Zhu Shiyi took out her phone and put the two drinks together: "Drink the phone first."
Zhu Shiyi then thought of Pan Yue's... beverage.
His eyes were immediately fixed on that glass of watermelon soda.
Pan Yue lowered his eyes, pursed his lips, and pushed his cup forward.
Zhu Shiyi bit her lip and smiled to herself, then took the cup, completely satisfied.
To get the drinks in position, Zhu Shiyi and Yu Fan swayed and staggered around, looking for the perfect angle to take photos.
Pan Yue snapped a photo, then looked down and tapped on his phone.
Pan Yue: [[Beverage Image]JPG.]
Lin Changren: [?]
【With your goddess?】
Pan Yue: [...]?
[Your goddess.]
Lin Chang-ren: [[Abstract question mark]JPG.]
Bro, hold them off for fifteen minutes.
......
Zhu Shiyi and Yu Fan both wanted to try each other's drinks.
Zhu Shiyi drank Yu Fan's coconut water and happily smiled.
Yu Fan took a sip of Zhu Shiyi's dark water, closed his eyes tightly, and stared blankly at Zhu Shiyi: "...My god, what kind of drink is this?"
Zhu Shiyi chuckled: "How about it?"
Yu Fan questioned the meaning of life and took another small bite.
"It's actually sweet and sour, and cool," Yu Fan pursed his lips to savor the taste, then tilted his head and changed the subject, "but it's really spicy after the kick."
“Actually, you can just say it,” Zhu Shiyi interjected, ““the wicked flavor of the bizarre.”
"You understand me." Yu Fan quickly took a sip of coconut water to calm his nerves.
Pan Yue: ...Evil?
Where did you learn these adjectives?
"Why would you order such a weird thing?" Yu Fan stared at the red chili pepper in Zhu Shiyi's glass, questioning his own existence.
Zhu Shiyi sipped her drink, the slight spiciness stimulating her tongue: "It's just that I discovered that trying a new flavor is quite wonderful."
“That’s true,” Yu Fan said.
Pan Yue remained silent.
He's not usually a talkative person, and with two girls at the table, Pan Yue couldn't get a word in edgewise, which must have been quite awkward.
Zhu Shiyi decided to find something to talk about: "Didn't we order any carbs? Pan Yue, do you want to order some staple food? When you work out, don't you have to eat according to... what ratio?"
“No need to order,” Pan Yue replied. “Watermelon and sugar are both fast carbohydrates, and this drink is perfect for replenishing muscle glycogen.”
It's impossible to guard against, and another lesson has been taught.
Zhu Shiyi gave a thumbs up and nodded in agreement: "Strict."
Pan Yue and the two girls probably couldn't connect.
Zhu Shiyi simply gave up on carrying water and started chatting aimlessly with Yu Fan.
"Armani's classic fall/winter red tube is so beautiful! I don't wear makeup to work every day, but just wearing this makes me look so healthy..." Zhu Shiyi exclaimed in surprise.
“Yes, yes, yes! But it sticks to the cup a little…” Yu Fan exclaimed.
"Oh, by the way, let me tell you about that recent gossip..."
Pan Yue, standing to the side: ......
Finally, a dish was served.
Pan Yue sat up slightly and raised his hand.
"Wait for me!" Zhu Shiyi quickly took out her phone. "Let me take a picture."
......
Pan Yue leaned back again and lowered his hand.
"Can we wait until all the dishes are served?" Yu Fan asked. "The presentation is so exquisite, I want to take pictures!"
"I'm fine with anything." Zhu Shiyi doesn't care about producing good photos, nor is she good at taking pictures, but she doesn't mind.
"Okay." Pan Yue had no objections.
His eyes kept drifting towards the window.
Two minutes later, by the window.
Pan Yue smiled faintly, almost imperceptibly.
Lin Changren, looking travel-worn, pushed open the door and entered.
His eyes pinpointed the exact spot: the table by the window, where a few people were sitting.
Pan Yue raised his eyebrows, crossed his arms, tilted his head, and looked like he was watching a good show.
Lin Changren took a deep breath and tidied the stray hairs on his forehead.
He raised his arm in a greeting gesture.
Not too high, not too low, a perfect 90 degrees, just right.
Lin Changren walked forward with his signature smile.
Hi!
"Hello, please serve the food!"
Two greetings rang out simultaneously, and Yu Fan and Zhu Shiyi both looked toward the table.
Zhu Shiyi only saw the waiter. She politely moved her plate to make room for him and said, "Thank you, please put it here."
"Changzi?" Yu Fan asked in surprise.
Zhu Shiyi then noticed Lin Changren: "Brother Chang?"
His smile...it's so strange, I can't quite put my finger on it.
"Hey," Lin Changren responded, adjusting his coat and greeting Pan Yue in a mock manner, "Old Pan is here too? What a coincidence, what are you doing here?"
"As you can see, let's eat." Pan Yue said, hiding his smile.
Yu Fan: "Why are you here?"
"Ah, this is..." Lin Changren paused, his eye twitching slightly, before making up a random excuse, "Come to eat, just happened to be nearby, so I randomly picked a place, hehehe..."
Lin Changren gave a dry laugh.
"Let's go together!" Yu Fan, with the enthusiasm of a northern girl, invited, "You've come at the right time, now we can order more curry chicken."
Lin Changren was secretly pleased that his scheme had succeeded.
He sat down next to Pan Yue.
Pan Yue played along, saying, "What would you like to drink?"
Lin Changren immediately took a liking to the strange dish: "Tom Yum sparkling water? What does this taste like? I have to try it."
"This is what I ordered!" Zhu Shiyi pointed at the cup, her eyes shining, as if she had found her people. "You have good taste."
“There’s also chili pepper,” Lin Changren glanced at the drink and grinned, “That’s it.”
All the dishes ordered earlier were served, except for the curry chicken that was added at the end.
Yu Fan took a selfie with his phone.
Zhu Shiyi would stand up for a while, and then lean to one side.
The two of them were still muttering to each other.
"It's still not quite there." Yu Fan frowned.
Zhu Shiyi leaned closer to look at Yu Fan's phone: "Where is it? It's really good!"
Unlike the taciturn Pan Yue, Lin Changren took the initiative to strike up a conversation, displaying a strong desire to perform: "Taking photos? I'm good at it!"
“Come on, come on,” he said, holding up his phone, “I’ll take a picture for you two.”
"Okay, okay." Yu Fan hugged Zhu Shiyi and leaned closer.
Zhu Shiyi sat up straight and smoothed his hair with both hands.
"One, two..." Lin Changren moved his phone away. "Wait a moment."
He fiddled with the plates for a few moments, then looked back at his phone screen, before waving his hand like a conductor: "You two move over here a bit, hey...yes, a little closer..."
Zhu Shiyi obediently did as instructed.
Chang is such a professional!
Yu Fan also made matching expressions.
“Smile—” Lin Changren instructed.
Zhu Shiyi's face stiffened. She always took photos of people and machines, and she could take photos of anything except people.
Zhu Shiyi didn't know what pose to make, so after hesitating for two seconds, he simply stretched out his left hand and made the same old "V" sign.
"Very good, very good," Lin Changren encouraged while taking pictures, then looked at the photos again, "Shiyi, you can be more natural, and try a different gesture, like making a heart shape or resting your face on your hand."
Zhu Shiyi was stunned.
What kind of middle-aged pose is making a heart shape with your hands?
“Making a heart shape is too corny,” Yu Fan raised his hand, “Let’s make a flower shape together, instead of just touching our faces.”
Thank you, Yu Fan, for the mouth replacement.
Zhu Shiyi covered her face and laughed, then followed the advice and awkwardly rested her face on her hands.
She wanted to take pictures, but didn't know how, and was too shy.
Yu Fan and Zhu Shiyi are very different; she can change eight different movements in three seconds.
Yu Fan picked up a spoon and directed Zhu Shiyi to pose for photos using props.
"Mmm, very good, very good, beautiful, wow, so beautiful, one more picture, yes..." Lin Changren kept praising her, his emotional appeal was off the charts.
Zhu Shiyi's smile gradually became genuine.
She thought the photos from today were absolutely gorgeous!
The three of them lived a vibrant and exciting life.
Pan Yue, standing to the side, is also an indispensable element of the world—
Air.
He silently cursed Lin Changren in his heart, glancing across at the person opposite him.
Zhu Shiyi laughed heartily.
He looked away.
Outside the window, in the corner of the wall.
The plum blossoms bloom quietly in early winter.
......
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