Ken promptly replied, "I've arrived. I'm seated in the corner—easy to spot. I'm the one with the least hair."
The girl with twin tails glanced at her phone, then looked up and scanned the café. Her gaze quickly settled on Ken's bald head. So it really was her.
She waved cheerfully, her smile remarkably infectious; Ken found himself smiling back almost instinctively. She first went to the counter to order. She seemed quite amiable and looked remarkably young—less like a 26-year-old office lady with several years of work experience, and more like a freshman university student.
After ordering, she approached Ken's table. "Hello, you must be Bin's classmate? I'm Zhu Ke'er," she said, extending her hand.
Ken stood up with a smile. "Hello, I'm Ken." He gave her slender, delicate hand a gentle shake.
She took a seat opposite him. "I thought I was early, but you're even earlier! I just checked our messages; we did agree on 3 p.m., right? For a moment I thought I'd mistaken it for two o'clock!" she remarked, clearly surprised.
Ken chuckled. "I had nothing else to do, so I came ahead of time. It's quite pleasant here—air conditioning, Wi-Fi. Playing on my phone makes the time fly."
Directly referencing his earlier message, she laughed, "You really weren't kidding about that 'hairstyle' making you 'easy to find'."
"Does it glow? The brightest star in the night sky? The shiniest head in the corner?" Ken quipped self-deprecatingly. He had taken off his cap upon entering the café; since he held little hope for this meeting, he was indifferent to how others perceived his bald head.
"That's a rather lame joke," Zhu Ke'er replied, giggling. "So why the shaved head? Is it too much trouble to maintain, a preference for coolness as autumn arrives, or a new trend in the IT world?"
"Honestly, it wasn't really my choice. I just woke up one morning, and it was like this," Ken said.
Zhu Ke'er looked startled. "Really?"
"Just kidding," Ken said with a laugh. He took out his phone, found a group photo from a company team-building event a few years back, and showed it to her. "The main reason is my receding hairline was getting… overly enthusiastic. At the rate it was going, a 'Mediterranean' style was imminent. So I took preemptive action—saves me from constantly obsessing over hair growth products."
Zhu Ke'er took the phone, studying the photo and comparing it to Ken for a while before confirming it was indeed him. "This is you from before? You look like you've aged ten years… The difference is huge! It's not just the hair; your whole demeanor, your build… You look like you work out regularly."
"True. I used to pour all my time into work. After these past few years, I felt worn out. So after the company recently shut down, I've been spending most of my time at the gym, trying to get fit. With the hair gone and not much to look at otherwise, I figured I'd better rely on my physique. Oh, by the way, did Zhao Lei mention? I'm currently between jobs."
She handed back his phone, nodding understandingly. "Absolutely, health is the real wealth. If your body breaks down, no amount of money matters. So besides the gym, do you have any other favorite sports?"
Clearly, Zhu Ke'er wasn't particularly concerned about his employment status or how he lost his job.
Ken shook his head. "In high school and university, I'd occasionally go for slow jogs around the track. But after starting work, I rarely exercised."
"In that case, if you have time, you should try hiking! Getting back to nature is wonderful!" she suggested enthusiastically. An avid hiker herself, Zhu Ke'er took out her phone to show Ken photos from her various hiking and trekking trips.
She shared pictures and amusing anecdotes from her adventures, the mishaps of her companions, then seamlessly moved on to talk about her university major, her hobbies, and eventually ACG (Anime, Comics, Games). Just as she was discussing several recent anime she was following, she suddenly stopped, stared at Ken's bald head for a moment, and burst out laughing.
"Have you seen One-Punch Man? It just struck me—you kinda resemble Sensei Saitama! Take off your glasses, let me see?" she said.
Ken hadn't watched anime since starting work and was unfamiliar with One-Punch Man, but he humored her, removing his glasses. "Like him? Is this Saitama a good guy or a villain?"
"He's the main character!" she exclaimed, searching for an image of Saitama to show him. She gave a brief rundown of the plot and setting, laughing again as she explained. "Saitama says, 'I trained so hard I went bald, and I became strong.' And you just said that after shaving your head and hitting the gym, you feel stronger too?"
Ken made a playful fist. "Too bad I didn't get that 'one-punch invincibility' from the manga." However, her recommendation worked; he decided to check out the series later.
They talked from a little after two until nearly five-twenty. Ken then excused himself, citing an errand, and they parted ways. Neither mentioned meeting again.
Objectively speaking, this was probably Ken's most natural and pleasant first meeting among all his arranged dates. Yet, it was clear they inhabited different worlds, with little overlap in hobbies and interests.
Strangely, Ken found himself thoroughly engaged whether Zhu Ke'er was talking about hiking, ACG, games, manga, anime, interesting products, funny jokes, or daily observations—even topics like nail polish shades and lipstick colors. Similarly, when Ken shared amusing work stories, embarrassing student escapades with Zhao Lei, or interesting tales from his hometown, Zhu Ke'er listened with genuine interest, often laughing behind her hand.
The old Ken would undoubtedly have pursued someone like Zhu Ke'er—attractive and pleasant-natured were enough for his admittedly superficial criteria. But now, before understanding the changes in his own body, starting a relationship was impossible. How could he date when he couldn't share meals, drinks, or even predict his own sleep patterns?
Furthermore, Ken suspected that with her attributes, Zhu Ke'er likely had many suitors. She would probably prefer someone more handsome, closer to her age, and with shared interests.