Chapter 62
This winter break was only a little over twenty days long.
Lin Li was originally eager to spend time with Tong Yao, planning countless wonderful moments together, from "chance encounters" at Tong Yao's house to walks in the park, and even prepared seven or eight excuses.
But to his utter surprise, when Tong Yao said she wanted to study, she truly studied wholeheartedly.
His determination was so unwavering that even the trump card of "Lin Lili" was ineffective. He repeatedly messaged Tong Yao under the guise of "Lin Lili," hoping to offer support and encouragement as a "best friend," but his messages went unanswered, and the occasional replies were brief and to the point:
"I'm doing practice problems, please don't disturb me."
"I am currently in seclusion. We will discuss this further upon my return."
The holiday is almost halfway over, and Lin Li hasn't been able to step into Tong Yao's house even once; all she can do is bombard her with messages on WeChat.
Spicy, spicy, spicy: School's about to start! [Looking pitiful.jpg]
Spicy Spicy Spicy: I just came to bring you some fruit, I'll leave right away! I really won't disturb your studies! [Swearing.jpg]
Pretentious: Disbelief.
Spicy Spicy Spicy: If I disturb your studies, then I'm a dog! [Woof! .jpg]
Pretending to be serious: You always are. [Indifferent face]
Spicy, spicy, spicy: You! ...[Angry as a pufferfish.jpg]
Pretending to be serious: Okay, no more messages to bother me, or I'll block you. [Final Warning]
Finally, after Lin Li's relentless and varied pleading, and his vows that he would remain as quiet as an invisible person, Tong Yao reluctantly relented and agreed to allow him to visit as a "study partner" after the Lunar New Year, on the condition that it be absolutely quiet and that they study separately.
-
These past two days.
Lin's mother and father both rushed back from out of town.
The Lin family had a lively and warm New Year. Lin's mother brought back a large amount of yak jerky, butter tea, and all kinds of Tibetan ornaments, decorating the house with a unique exotic flair. The dining table was also filled with the specialties she brought back from Tibet. The family sat together, listening to Lin's mother tell stories of her business experiences in Tibet, with many interesting anecdotes and laughter filling the room.
However, during any lull in the festivities, Lin Li couldn't help but glance at her phone, wondering if Tong Yao was still struggling with her homework and whether she was enjoying her New Year's Eve dinner.
Even when he was grabbing red envelopes in the family WeChat group, he subconsciously wanted to send the biggest one to Tong Yao alone, but he held back in the end—afraid of disturbing the "academic genius's" quiet study.
_
After the New Year.
In Tong Yao's room, all that could be heard was the soft scratching of a pen on paper and the faint echoes of firecrackers coming from afar outside the window.
"Keep quiet and don't disturb me." Tong Yao, holding her pen, gave the final instruction to Lin Li, who had just sat down at her desk, without even looking up.
Lin Li immediately sat up straight, made an exaggerated zipping motion towards her mouth, and then nodded heavily to indicate that she understood and would absolutely obey.
He neatly unfolded the exercise book he had brought, picked up his pen, and looked ready to get down to business. However, perhaps it was the familiar, comforting, faint fragrance from Tong Yao's room that made him feel at ease.
Perhaps it was the lazy atmosphere unique to a holiday morning, or perhaps he hadn't slept well in the past few days because he was looking forward to seeing her... After reading for less than ten minutes, the densely packed words began to dance before his eyes.
At first, he tried his best to stay focused, nodding his head little by little like a chick pecking at rice. He tried hard to concentrate on the questions, but his eyelids grew heavier and heavier.
The pen slipped from his loosening fingers, rolled half a circle on the workbook, and came to a quiet stop.
He tried to stay awake, but his consciousness sank uncontrollably into the warm darkness.
Finally, he simply gave up struggling, crossed his arms and rested them on the open exercise book, tilted his head to the side and rested his arms on his head, his breathing became even and long, and he fell asleep completely.
Sunlight streamed through the window, illuminating his short, bushy hair and casting a soft halo around it. He slept peacefully, his usual liveliness and cunning gone, his eyes relaxed, even carrying a touch of unguarded childishness, like a large dog that had found a safe haven.
After some time, Tong Yao finished a set of test papers and habitually wanted to stretch her neck. When she turned her head, she saw Lin Li sleeping soundly next to her.
She paused for a moment, looking at his motionless back and the almost untouched exercise book, and subconsciously wanted to reach out and poke him awake.
But the fingertip hovered in mid-air, then stopped.
He looked so innocent while he was sleeping; his shoulders and body even rose and fell slightly with his breathing, making him look... kind of docile.
Tong Yao pursed her lips and finally withdrew her hand. She stood up gently, trying not to make a sound, walked to the bedside, picked up the thin blanket she usually used, and carefully draped it over Lin Li's shoulders.
After finishing all this, she sat back down at her desk, picked up another test paper, and her pen fell to the ground once more.
The room remained quiet, but this time, in addition to the sound of writing, there was also the soft breathing of another person.
_
That evening, Tong Yao put down her pen, looking at the still-warm blanket. Lin Li went home after waking up.
She skillfully opened the drawer and replaced the pen refill.
Tong Yao was confident that she could surpass her before the class division!
_
Time flies. Throughout the second semester of her first year of high school, Tong Yao focused single-mindedly on achieving her goal of becoming Zhou Mingfang. Apart from necessary student council work handovers, she and Lin Li had almost no contact outside of class, devoting all their energy to their studies.
Lin Li initially struggled to adapt and tried various ways to "bother" Tong Yao, but he gradually accepted the reality. In order to achieve his goal of being in the same advanced science class as Tong Yao in the second year of high school, he put away his playful nature and began to study hard.
However, one thing kept bothering him—he kept losing things.
At first, it was just some small items, a pen, a notebook, which he didn't pay much attention to. But later, things started to get strange. He began to lose his underwear, first his basketball jersey, then his school uniform jacket.
Lin Li thought he was being very careful and no longer being forgetful, but it was as if he was cursed; every now and then, some personal item would disappear. Because of this, he had to buy three extra sets of school uniforms and two basketball jerseys. This "extra expense" puzzled him, and he had a vague feeling that something was wrong.
Until he entered his second year of high school, through a desperate effort in his last semester, he barely squeezed into the science elite class with "bottom-of-the-class" grades, finally reuniting with Tong Yao in the same class. Luo Yan, on the other hand, chose humanities and was in a class upstairs.
That day, Lin Li and Tong Yao's class happened to be in the same period as Luo Yan's humanities class during PE class. After free time, Lin Li was covered in sweat.
"Tong Yao, wait for me, I'm going to change my clothes." He called out to Tong Yao, who was still studying with a book in her hands outside the gymnasium.
"Mmm," Tong Yao replied without looking up.
Lin Li quickly slipped into the restroom next to the gymnasium and changed out of his sweat-soaked basketball jersey. After coming out, he casually draped the jersey over the equipment rack at the gymnasium entrance, thinking he'd first go to the nearby sports office to get some water from a paper cup.
He jogged into the office, filled a glass of water and gulped it down. Worried that Tong Yao might not be able to wait any longer, he grabbed the paper cup and rushed out.
The moment he stepped out of the gymnasium, his gaze inadvertently swept over the rack where he had just put the vests—it was empty!
His heart skipped a beat, and an inexplicable intuition made him immediately look around. Not far away, he saw a familiar figure with his back to him, hurriedly stuffing a familiar black basketball jersey into his sports backpack.
That figure was none other than Luo Yan, who should have been in the next room!
"Luo Yan!" Lin Li exclaimed in surprise and anger, her voice rising involuntarily.
Luo Yan's body stiffened abruptly, her action of stuffing the food stopped, but she did not turn around immediately.
Tong Yao, who was reading a book not far away, was also startled by the shout. She looked up and happened to see this strange scene:
Lin Li stared at Luo Yan with shock and anger, while Luo Yan's back appeared unusually stiff. Her hand was still inside the half-stuffed backpack, and the exposed corner of fabric was clearly the basketball jersey that Lin Li had just been wearing.
The air seemed to freeze at that moment.
Lin Li could hardly believe his eyes. The girl who had been his deskmate for a year, seemingly aloof and cold, was actually the "thief" who had been stealing his personal belongings!
"You..." Lin Li took a few steps forward, looking at Luo Yan's pale profile and her eyes that dared not meet his gaze. In an instant, all the confusion and frustration from the lost items surged up, turning into an incredulous question, "...Why? You took all my things?"
Lin Li's voice wasn't quiet; it was particularly clear at the empty entrance of the gymnasium, even attracting the attention of several students who were about to leave.
Luo Yan froze completely, her hand still tucking in her backpack. The exposed corner of her black vest was like a silent piece of evidence. She didn't turn around, but she could feel Lin Li's burning gaze and Tong Yao's astonished and scrutinizing look.
"Luo Yan!" Lin Li took another step forward, her voice filled with suppressed anger and utter confusion. "I'm asking you a question! My pen, my notebook, and my old school uniform and vest—did you take them all?!"
A murmur of whispers began to rise from the surrounding area, as quiet as gnats.
Luo Yan turned around abruptly, her face drained of color, her lips trembling slightly, and her usually cold and aloof eyes now filled with panic and embarrassment at being caught in public.
And a stubbornness that seemed to have given up entirely. She clutched the backpack containing the "stolen goods" tightly, her knuckles turning white from the force.
"I..." She opened her mouth, but couldn't utter a complete sound.
Tong Yao closed the book in her hand and walked over. She didn't look at Luo Yan, but instead looked at Lin Li first, signaling him with her eyes to calm down. Then, her gaze calmly fell on Luo Yan, without accusation, only inquiry.
This calm only made Luo Yan feel more lost. As if stung, she suddenly lowered her head, avoiding everyone's gaze.
"Why?" Lin Li looked at her like this, and his anger was gradually replaced by a sense of absurdity and a chill that was hard to explain.
He simply couldn't understand why his former deskmate, this academically excellent and seemingly detached girl, would do such a thing.
Luo Yan remained silent, only clutching the backpack in her arms even tighter, as if it were her last lifeline.
Tong Yao frowned slightly and spoke softly, but her words were directed at Lin Li: "Lin Li, go and get the clothes back first."
Lin Li took a deep breath, suppressing her irritation, and reached out to Luo Yan: "Give me back my vest."
Luo Yan trembled, as if extremely unwilling, but under Lin Li's persistent gaze and the increasing attention from those around her, she finally stiffly and slowly pulled the basketball vest, still warm and sweaty from Lin Li's body, out of her backpack and handed it back.
Lin Li grabbed it, feeling as if she had touched something unclean, and frowned.
"What about the others?" he pressed.
Luo Yan shook her head violently, her voice barely audible, choked with sobs: "...That's all, just...just this..."
This was clearly unbelievable. But seeing that she was about to cry, and with the growing crowd around her, Lin Li knew that this was not a place to stay any longer, nor was it a good place to investigate further.
He clutched his vest, feeling nauseous as if he'd swallowed a fly. He glanced at Tong Yao, who gently shook her head at him.
"Let's go," Tong Yao said softly.
Lin Li glared at Luo Yan, said nothing more, and turned to leave with Tong Yao. He could feel the gaze behind them, a mixture of shame, despair, and perhaps a hint of resentment, following them the whole time.
After walking quite a distance, until there was no one else around, Lin Li couldn't help but swear: "Damn! I really didn't expect it to be her! What's she after? Is she a pervert?!"
Tong Yao didn't speak. She recalled Luo Yan's overly focused gaze on Lin Li during her first year of high school, and her ever-present diary filled with writing and drawing... A vague, unsettling guess formed in her mind.
But she didn't say it aloud, only saying calmly, "Stay away from her in the future."
Lin Li gave a heavy "hmm," still feeling incredibly uncomfortable. He looked down at the vest he had found again, feeling utterly awful.
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