Lunchtime buzzed with activity across the campus cafeteria. Trays clattered. Students chatted. Somewhere in the middle of it all sat Xiao Lie, quietly eating a simple meal.
His seat was by the window—chosen not for the view, but for the quiet.
"Hey, mind if I join?"
Yao Yixuan didn't wait for an answer. She slid onto the bench across from him, placing her strawberry smoothie on the table with a cheerful thud.
Xiao Lie looked up briefly.
"Sure."
He didn't smile. He didn't frown either. Just… neutral.
Yixuan stirred her smoothie with the straw, stealing glances at him between every sip.
"You're really different these days, you know? It's like you leveled up or something."
"Maybe I just stopped pretending."
He said it casually, eyes on his food. But the words hit a beat too deep.Yixuan blinked.
"Oh?" She tilted her head, flirtatious. "Does that mean you're still the same guy who used to blush every time I said hi?"
Xiao Lie finally looked up, meeting her eyes. No embarrassment. Just honesty.
"I used to chase illusions. Now I chase results."
The line wasn't meant to impress her—but it did something worse.
It unsettled her.
Later That Day – Library Hall
The student council had put up collaboration sign-ups for the university's annual fest.Xiao Lie was reviewing debate scripts when Yixuan suddenly showed up again, practically bouncing on her feet.
"Hey, so… I was thinking.""There's a duet reading segment this year. Drama + debate. Sounds fun, right?""I signed up. And… I thought you and I could do it together."
She handed him the form, smiling wide.
For a moment, Xiao Lie didn't respond. His eyes scanned the page. Then he calmly handed it back.
"Thanks, but I already have something planned with the club."
The smile froze.
"Oh," she said, just barely hiding the sting. "Well, we could do something after the event? Just us."
"Yixuan," he said softly, but firmly, "you're a nice person. But don't confuse kindness with interest."
There it was.
Not cruel. Not sharp. Just clear.
Yixuan stood still, smoothie untouched in her hand.
For a moment, she felt like the world had flipped.
This was the same boy who once waited for hours just to walk her home.The same one who used to write poetry he never dared to give her.
And now—
He was walking away.
No explanation. No second glance.
Across the Library
Lin Shuyun, sitting by the balcony rail, saw everything.
She wasn't spying. Not intentionally. But she'd seen Yixuan's approach, the tension, the rejection, the aftermath.
She watched Xiao Lie walk off with the same composed stride as always. And she looked at Yixuan—
Standing there, clutching the unsigned form.Staring into nothing.
Interesting, Shuyun thought.
Something was changing on campus.
And somehow, it all started with him.