“…”
Just a short distance away, another student accidentally dropped their tray, making a loud clatter in the relatively quiet cafeteria.
Lin Xiche’s attention shifted toward that direction briefly, but she quickly returned to her senses. She suddenly noticed that Xu Fang was silently staring at her with calm and unwavering eyes.
The urge to threaten him vanished instantly, and her sense of guilt increased. She avoided his gaze without showing any reaction, lowered her head, and began to tidy up the packaging and plastic bags on the table.
Xu Fang remained expressionless as he pondered over the words she had just said. He couldn’t comprehend why she was already thinking about him breaking up with her on their first day together.
This curse she mentioned was vulgar and childish, full of flaws, and she even acted as if she wanted to make him fearful and anxious upon hearing it.
Why does she always act so foolishly?
Xu Fang didn’t get angry about this, but he also didn’t bother to respond to her comment. He gathered all the trash into the leather bag and then stood up to walk towards the garbage bin.
Lin Xiche quickly followed, holding a bottle of milk in her hand. She pondered whether she had gone too far with that curse. As she walked behind Xu Fang, she slowed down her pace and obediently followed him.
Silence prevailed.
Xu Fang walked ahead, and Lin Xiche followed behind.
She contemplated whether she should tell him that the curse she mentioned was false. However, she felt that he didn’t believe her in the first place, and she couldn’t understand why he was ignoring her now.
A few seconds later, Xu Fang suddenly stopped and turned to look at her.
Lin Xiche didn’t react in time and couldn’t stop her footsteps in time. Because she was looking down, her head bumped into his chest.
Her collision wasn’t light, and Xu Fang’s brows furrowed slightly. However, he didn’t push her away. Instead, he lowered his head to look at her. After a few seconds, he extended his hand to gently rub her head and reluctantly called out, “Lin Xiche.”
“Huh?”
“I’ve heard of that curse you mentioned.”
“…”
He suddenly said this.
Lin Xiche was surprised.
Was it real?
Seeing that her milk bottle was empty, Xu Fang smirked, looking somewhat absent-minded, and took it from her. He then imitated her and tore at the packaging.
“When the eldest son of the Xu family finds his first love, the curse begins to take effect. For the sake of fairness and maintaining the balance of the world, this curse will also affect the Xu family’s eldest son’s first love.”
Lin Xiche was bewildered by his words and asked hesitantly, “So, if I break up with you, will it affect me too?”
“No,” Xu Fang explained, tugging her wrist and continuing to walk forward. He casually tossed the trash into the nearby bin. “It’s that whenever you speak vulgarly, it’ll have that effect.”
Xu Fang felt that he needed to teach her a lesson.
About talking vulgarly, and about who taught her.
“Oh, that’s easy,” Lin Xiche breathed a sigh of relief but then looked troubled again. She began to scold him, “Then how should I address you in the future? Why did you choose a name like that?”
“…” Who chose it?
Xu Fang’s mouth twitched, and he decided not to get angry with her. He watched her tangled expressions all the way.
Until they reached the entrance of the teaching building. Finally, her brows relaxed, as if she had figured something out, and she finally spoke.
“Okay.” Lin Xiche patted his hand, smiling mischievously. “I’ll call you ‘Pipi’ from now on.”
“…”
The next few days, Xu Fang continued to be addressed as “Pipi” by her. At first, he tried to endure it, but after a while, he couldn’t bear it anymore. However, even when he got angry, she just paused for a moment and then added two more words to her address.
“Pipi Big Boss.”
Until the enthusiasm passed.
Fortunately, her silly and unserious appearance only appeared when the two of them were alone.
Although Xu Fang was frustrated by her antics for half of the day, he surprisingly looked forward to the next day every day.
Time flew by, and November arrived.
As in previous years, S University invited the neighboring Z University to hold a friendly basketball match. Last year, it was Z University’s basketball team that came to S University, and this year, it was reversed, with S University’s team going to the other side to participate in the competition.
The Sports Department helped coordinate with Z University and made preparations for transportation, among other things. Due to the large number of participants, the Sports Department didn’t need to send everyone. Through a lottery and voluntary basis, Yu Ze selected a few people.
Including second and third-year students, there were about fifty members in the school’s basketball team.
Newcomers in their first year were generally third-string players on the team. In official matches, the older players usually took the court, and the new players rarely had the opportunity to play.
However, this time it was a friendly match, and among those selected to go, half were freshmen.
Xu Fang was one of them.
On a mid-November weekend morning, a group of people gathered outside the campus early and boarded a large bus heading to Z University. The Sports Department had four representatives: Yu Ze, Lin Xiche, He Ruliang, and another female student.
They were the last four to board the bus.
The seating arrangement and personnel had been pre-arranged for the forty-eight passengers, filling all the seats.
Lin Xiche was the first to board the bus and walked down the aisle to find an available seat. She scanned the area with squinted eyes and noticed that there were two empty seats in the second-to-last row.
She was about to walk over there.
Suddenly, her wrist was grabbed from the side, and she couldn’t react in time. She plopped down onto the seat next to her. She stared in surprise at the person who had stopped her, and it was Xu Fang with a somewhat sleepy expression.
He let go of her wrist quickly, and Lin Xiche remained seated, her expression dazed. She then lifted her head to see Xu Fang looking a bit sleepy.
After a while, he leaned his head back and closed his eyes, continuing his nap.
Lin Xiche’s wrist had been caught off guard, and she sat there in a daze. She blinked and asked, “Are you very tired?”
He responded lazily, “Mm.”
Lin Xiche didn’t say anything, lowering her head to sort out the mess inside her backpack.
A few minutes later, feeling like she had nothing to do, Lin Xiche began to fidget. She first played with her phone but found nothing interesting. Then she turned her attention to Xu Fang.
“Don’t fall asleep,” Lin Xiche suddenly shook his arm vigorously. “Pipi, don’t fall asleep.”
“…”
“Let’s play a game.”
After saying that, Lin Xiche took out her phone from her pocket, but it was swiftly snatched away by Xu Fang, accompanied by his impatient words.
“Forget about playing games. You’ll make me sick if you puke all over me later.”
“…” She wasn’t very good at riding in vehicles, to be fair.
After snatching the phone, he continued to close his eyes and sleep. Lin Xiche had nothing to do, so she sat there, occasionally looking out the window at the passing scenery.
After a while, her gaze unconsciously shifted from the window to him.
It had been over two months since military training, and Xu Fang’s complexion had returned to its natural color. Unlike the sickly pallor before, he now looked healthy and vibrant. With his eyes closed, his long, thick eyelashes resembled tiny brushes.
Living a regular and healthy life, there were no visible dark circles under his eyes, and his skin tone was even.
Lin Xiche propped her cheek with her hand and stared at him.
Suddenly, she found something to pass the time.
She didn’t know how much time had passed.
Lin Xiche was completely absorbed in counting his eyelashes when, at around one hundred and twenty, they suddenly quivered, causing her to lose count.
In the next moment, his hand moved up, covering her eyes with his warm palm, and he gently pushed her head against the seatback.
She didn’t react in time, and her eyes blinked.
As if feeling itchy, Xu Fang quickly withdrew his hand.
Lin Xiche’s field of vision returned to brightness, and she saw Xu Fang with his eyes open. There was no trace of drowsiness in his eyes; he looked awake and alert, not like someone who had just woken up.
His voice had a hint of hoarseness and a lazy tone, “Don’t disturb me.”
Lin Xiche looked innocent, “I haven’t disturbed you at all. I haven’t said a word or touched you.”
Upon hearing this, Xu Fang paused and looked at her with sparkling eyes. He reached out and blocked her line of sight once more, repeating in a soft voice, “Don’t disturb me.”
Lin Xiche’s view was blocked by Xu Fang’s hand, and she couldn’t help but fall asleep. When she woke up again, the bus had already stopped at Z University, and the students on the bus were gradually getting off.
Xu Fang was still sitting next to her. Seeing that she had awakened, he stood up and helped her up.
Noticing that Lin Xiche still seemed a bit groggy, he silently picked up her backpack and held her wrist as they got off the bus.
The bus had stopped at the west gate of Z University.
Z University’s basketball team had sent several people to welcome them.
Lin Xiche had just woken up, and her mind was still a bit fuzzy. She saw Xu Fang holding her pink backpack, which clashed with his dark clothing, making him look out of place.
She tilted her head, about to take the bag.
Suddenly, there was a commotion from behind. It sounded familiar, but Lin Xiche couldn’t place it at first.
“Oh my God! Xu Fang, you’re here too! Ah, Miss, you’re here too?”
Lin Xiche turned to the source of the voice.
The young man in front of her was tall and sturdy, with a buzz cut hairstyle. He had thin double eyelids and eyes that narrowed into slits when he smiled. His teeth were so white against his tan skin that they gleamed.
Oh.
Seeing him, Lin Xiche remembered.
It was Jiang Zhengxu.
Upon seeing him, Xu Fang’s eyebrows lifted, and he smiled.
“I almost forgot you’re at this school.”
“Hehe, you really have a conscience,” Jiang Zhengxu replied nonchalantly. He came over and slung his arm around Xu Fang’s shoulder, grinning. “Let’s go, join the friendly match. I’ll take you to the gym.”
The others had already followed the few members of Z University’s sports department and were heading forward, leaving the three of them standing in place.
Lin Xiche nodded and took her pink backpack back from Xu Fang, carrying it on her back.
Jiang Zhengxu had originally been walking alongside them but noticed his shoelaces were undone. He squatted down to tie them, and when he looked up again, he suddenly noticed the actions of Lin Xiche and Xu Fang, who were about ten meters ahead of him.
Lin Xiche, feeling tired with her eyes still heavy, had her eyes half-closed. Her other hand subconsciously gripped Xu Fang’s wrist, making her look like a child.
Xu Fang’s movements paused for a moment, and then he lowered his eyelids, reaching up to unclasp her hand. Seeing Lin Xiche’s inexplicable expression, he lowered his eyelids, palm meeting hers.
“…”
Jiang Zhengxu suddenly stood up, taking three quick steps back to stand in front of them. He exclaimed, “I forgot you two are together.”
Xu Fang had made their relationship known to everyone on the day they got together.
His roommate, his high school friends, and even his parents.
Jiang Zhengxu was the first to find out.
Lin Xiche rubbed her eyes, her brain still a bit sluggish. Hearing this, she made a sound of agreement and muttered, “I chased him for a long time, it was hard work.”
“…” Xu Fang furrowed his brows, looking at her with confusion.
Author’s Note:
Xiche: A 5-liter bottle of water is quite heavy.
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