Chapter 17
"He Xi, here!"
He Xi had just found Bai Shu among a group of students eating with her tray in hand when Wei Mo, who was standing next to him, turned around and waved at her with a smile, as if he had eyes on the back of his head.
Bai Shu's ears twitched and he looked over.
He Xi felt a little embarrassed. He touched his nose and sat silently opposite Bai Shu.
Next to him is Wei Mo.
Wei Mo's eyes moved between the two of them, with a teasing smile on his face, and he secretly bumped Bai Shu's elbow.
With his mouth wide open, he moved his face closer to Bai Shu, his smile looking as if he deserved a beating.
Bai Shu lowered his eyes, the small mole in his eye crease faintly visible, and he stepped on Wei Mo with an expressionless face.
The latter put down his chopsticks, hugged his legs and almost cried.
Wei Mo: “…” You are so cruel!
Bai Shudan glanced at it, and the meaning was self-evident. Behave yourself!
He Xi, who was eating with his head down, inadvertently looked up and laughed.
Wei Mo also smiled and looked down at the food on He Xi's plate. He had already eaten a lot more than what he had seen in his previous casual glance, although the overall amount was still a bit small.
He knew that Bai Shu had put a lot of effort into it.
Basically since the beginning of this semester, Bai Shu always stayed with He Xi during meal times and breaks.
At first he thought the two were in love, but according to his and other teammates' observations, their relationship was very pure.
Bai Shu would care about He Xi's diet every day, whether he ate too much or too little, whether his nutrition was unbalanced, and whether he needed snacks... Sometimes he would even prepare snacks for He Xi himself.
Obviously, he has good intentions, but he pretends to be nonchalant and condescending, giving alms without hesitation.
"My mom bought too many rose grapes. You can clean up if you can't finish them." He just left.
"My dad bought a box of yogurt once. No one at home liked it, so he gave it to you." He put it down without saying a word.
"Little Sugar insisted on eating nuts..." He pretended to be sad to show his thoughtfulness.
Hey——Little White Sugar is clamoring to eat nuts, ugh——
Really.
Wei Mo felt that if he stayed any longer, he would get goosebumps all over his body, and Bai Shu would not be able to help but beat him again.
He was very smart and quickly finished the rice on the plate, wiped his mouth, picked up the plate and stood up.
Seeing that He Xi was still concentrating on eating, he had already walked two miles, then turned back halfway and gave He Xi a bright smile.
"Come on!" was accompanied by a fist-clenching gesture of cheering.
He Xi still had food in his mouth. He raised his feet and smiled at him when he heard that.
For a moment I didn't know what to say.
-
At 6:30 in the morning, just after dawn, the playground of Anshan High School was already crowded with a group of passionate young people.
The large playground on the left is where students go for morning jogs and exercises.
On the right are the members of the school basketball team doing morning training.
"Ten-minute warm-up activation is over!"
The tall, muscular, square-faced coach, dressed in a black sports suit and with fluffy short hair, lifted the whistle around his neck and shouted, "Next 30 minutes of variable-speed running, start! Listen to my whistle!"
The shrill whistle sounded throughout the playground, and a group of young people who were ready to go rushed out of the starting line like arrows from a bow, running on the track in an orderly manner.
The muscles in the upper arms bulge and the muscles in the calves grow stronger, like a group of passionate and unrestrained horses, with an indomitable momentum.
"Everyone keep your distance and listen to my commands!"
The coach kept a close eye on the team and blew the whistle, "Sprint!"
"Jogging adjustment!"
The hair was blown by the wind, and the faces of the young people on the track turned red. Their physical strength was stretched to the limit, but they dared not relax mentally.
Before they could adjust, the coach checked the stopwatch on his wrist and urged them to move on to the next step. "Get the ball, hurry up! Today's defense practice!"
"Your steps must be quick and steady, and your attention must be focused!"
"Beep—walk slowly in a circle, then stretch in place!"
When his gaze lingered on his wrist, he blew the whistle again and clapped his hands to assemble the players. "That's all for today's morning training. Everyone's doing... okay. At least you didn't slack off this morning! Keep it up this afternoon, and don't let the praise get to you! Okay, everyone, disperse."
"Woo--" With a cheer, the team members who were as quiet as chickens immediately started talking at once, "It's finally over", "I'm so tired", "I can't take it anymore, it's too hot"...
Bai Shu and Wei Mo picked up the training bags, which contained training items, spare clothes and toiletries, and walked to the school bathhouse together.
Wei Mo: "How are you going to have breakfast later? Or with He Xi?"
Bai Shu: "Well, what's wrong."
Wei Mo patted Bai Shu's shoulder and said, "It's nothing special. I'm just asking casually." Then he put down his arm, laughed, and walked in front.
Bai Shu walked with his long legs behind Wei Mo, and the distance between them gradually shortened. Wei Mo was unaware of it, and was still laughing silently with his chest puffed out, neck tilted back, and head lowered, when he was kicked in the butt.
Wei Mo's lower body lost weight and his upper body swayed. The ostentatious smile on his face turned into panic, and then his pale face was stained with a thin layer of red anger.
"Bai Shu!" He turned around, but there was no sign of the other young man behind him.
When he turned around and looked up again, Bai Shu had already run a long way away. "Just wait for me!" The boy threw the training bag in his hand vigorously and chased after him in frustration, but he couldn't stop smiling.
The white trees in front were already smiling.
The two teenagers chased each other, and their hearty laughter startled the birds on the branches of the campus trees, causing them to fly away in fear.
After taking a shower and changing clothes, Bai Shu returned to the classroom. He Xi turned around from the window and looked at him. They were both stunned. The smile in the girl's eyes, like broken diamonds, was reflected in the boy's panicked eyes.
Before he could react, He Xi ran over with breakfast in her hand, "The weather is bad today, and the light in the classroom is a little dim. Let's go sit on the steps outside and eat."
As she spoke, she had already passed him and ran ahead.
"Oh, wait, I'll go get something from my seat." It was his breakfast.
He Xi sat on the steps and responded softly, "I'll wait for you here."
Bai Shu came out with her long legs. A piece of paper had been laid out on the steps next to He Xi, and the breakfast that she had just held in her hand was now lying on the steps beside her.
Bai Shu walked closer and stared at the distance between the paper and He Xi. He inexplicably felt that the paper was a bit annoying.
But he sat down anyway.
A cool breeze and drizzle passed in front of the classroom, where a group of students in school uniforms were sitting, standing or leaning.
Although they were eating breakfast, chatting and joking, Bai Shu and He Xi could feel the gazes coming from behind them from time to time.
Bai Shu took a bite of the corn in his mouth and looked up, "It's going to rain."
"Yeah." He Xi responded nonchalantly, frowned, and continued to struggle with the knot of plastic bag in his hand.
It's so hard to untie. I was in such a hurry to get out this morning that I didn't realize that a random knot I tied up had turned into an incredibly difficult knot.
She twisted her fingers around the bag's tie for one minute... two minutes... three minutes, but it was still a knot. She was about to give in.
Bai Shu raised his head and chewed the corn. He didn't hear any sound of He Xi eating, and the corn in his mouth suddenly lost its flavor.
A bad premonition welled up in his heart, and it became stronger and stronger. He didn't dare to look back, fearing that it was really what he thought.
He took a big bite of corn to deceive himself, deliberately made a delicious-sounding sound, and added two lines in a pretentious manner.
"Wow... Such plump corn kernels, so crispy and tender, so juicy, and the more you chew, the sweeter it becomes... Simply delicious!"
“It’s so delicious, so delicious.”
"He Xi, don't you think——"
The young man turned around nervously, but he breathed a sigh of relief.
He Xi's knuckles were twisting so hard that they could almost make a sweater. Beads of sweat appeared on her forehead, her brows were furrowed, and her expression was extremely focused and serious.
Oh my, you little bastard... I'm going to argue with you today.
Suddenly, he cried out, and the plastic bag containing the boiled eggs on his legs disappeared.
The young man was holding half a corn in his mouth, and he used his long fingers to twist the tie of the bag up and down twice, and the bag that was tightly tied just now was loosened.
"It's nothing."
The boy glanced at He Xi and handed the bag to her. "Sometimes, being too nervous can lead to not getting the results you want. In such cases, it would be better to have someone else come."
Bai Shu said to He Xi, "Next time you can come to me."
He Xi curled his lips, picked up the boiled egg from the bag, knocked it on the ground through the bag, and asked, "What if you're not here next time?"
Bai Shu: "Then divert your attention and try again later. Or just leave it alone... and wait for me."
He Xi fell silent, taking a small bite of his boiled egg. Bai Shu had already begun munching on his steamed bun. A faint tang of spiciness hung in the air; the buns were filled with spicy beef. Bai Shu devoured each one in two or three bites, devouring them like a whirlwind.
The boy's eyes were fixed straight ahead, his dark pupils like a shining stone in a shallow stream. He Xi did not confirm with Bai Shu whether he was joking.
Because she was sure that what he said was true.
The egg white in the mouth also seems to taste sweet when chewed.
-
"Do you know why I called you to the gym?" Bai Shu threw the ball in his hand to the ground and dribbled downwards.
He Xi shook her head honestly, she didn't know.
Bai Shu: "I'm not going for a walk today. I'm going to teach you how to shoot a basketball."
As he said that, he threw the ball to He Xi. He Xi took it and held it in her arms. She saw the boy raised his chin at her and said, "You try it first." He Xi looked at the ball in her hand, then looked at the confident and outspoken boy and nodded.
The basketball was not too heavy for He Xi. She imitated Bai Shu and threw the ball to the ground, then bent down to pick it up.
He took two steps back, putting a long distance between himself and the basket, raised the ball above his head, and threw it forward. His eyes followed the ball flying in the air, and anticipation welled up in him.
The ball drew a beautiful parabola in the air and fell down... He Xi raised his eyebrows high, followed the direction of the ball, and looked at the basketball net not far away.
The ball was about to fall, but it was still a long way from the net. He Xi began to feel uneasy. As expected, the ball made close contact with the ground and hit it hard twice. He Xi was in despair.
She could almost hear the sound of the basketball deflated with a puff.
Bai Shu couldn't help but chuckle, picked up the ball, ran in three steps, sprinted in two steps, jumped, and the ball landed steadily in the net.
Am I awesome? The boy turned around and looked at He Xi, holding the ball, secretly expecting the girl to blurt out praise.
He Xi: “…”
Looking at Bai Shu, he asked silently: Are you showing off to me?
Bai Shu couldn't see He Xi's silence and thought she was sad. He was also annoyed that he shouldn't have been so childish. He breathed a sigh of relief and said, "It's okay. You did a good job just now."
"If everyone could shoot from the start, what would the coaching role be?"
"If you had made the shot right at the start, I would have been useless and embarrassed."
No, he immediately retorted in his heart, I will praise you too.
He truly felt awkward and even more annoyed, so he quickly changed the subject. "Okay, I won't explain any more. Time is tight. Let me teach you how to shoot."
-
Today the seat next to the other person is empty again.
But the other party sat outside.
Wei Mo left the other empty seats unoccupied, walked through the layers of passengers, stood next to the other person's seat, and swayed with the moving car body while holding his wristband.
He deliberately avoided looking at the other person's nervous and blushing face. He pretended to sigh, moved his stiff legs, and tapped his numb feet.
The other party lowered his head low enough, but remained unmoved.
How tolerant... so cruel.
Wei Mo sighed again and twisted his neck, "I'm so tired. It would be great if I could get off the bus quickly, but there's still a long way to go." He glanced at the other person intentionally or unintentionally.
The other person moved his shoulders, and immediately stood up and moved his hips to sit inside.
Isn't that right? Wei Mo patted his knees symbolically and sat down contentedly.
The vehicle ran smoothly and passengers got on and off.
The sunlight from the car window shone on the two of them, and Wei Mo saw her close her fan-like long eyelashes.
He seemed to be about to fall asleep, his head resting on the inner window and then on the outer seat back.
The car braked, and she tilted her head. The earphones fell out of her ears and stuck to Wei Mo's protruding finger bones. He felt a current running from the back of his hand to his heart, itching and numb.
His eyes moved, and as if possessed, he held the earphone in his palm, tilted his head and put it into his ear.
The crackling sound of the sound suddenly became clear, and the fresh and gorgeous girl's voice pulled Wei Mo from the bus into another world.
It was as if someone was performing loudly on the stage playing the electric guitar, and he was sitting below, just a member of the audience.
The long headphone cord was stretched even longer by the distance between the two of them. Wei Mo lowered his eyes and listened to the music flowing in his ears, looking up from time to time.
Suddenly, the car braked suddenly, and she, who was fast asleep, almost hit her head on the edge of the chair back. He quickly reached out. Hiss~ It hurts, but... her face... is so slippery.
She opened her eyes with trembling eyelashes, and her dazed eyes gradually focused.
Staring at his face and the earphones in his ears, she pursed her lips, said nothing, and sat up with her shoulders moved.
"...This." Wei Mo smiled knowingly and took off the earphones from his ears, "I give it back to you." His fingers brushed across her face intentionally or unintentionally.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
