386. Humble【26/99】
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A bus pulled up at the roadside bus stop, and with the familiar arrival chime, a couple stepped off from the back door.
They glanced back nervously at the road they came from, exchanged a knowing look, and burst into laughter.
“Finally, Lilith is out of the picture,” Lin Nan sighed with relief, surprisingly feeling a bit guilty about it.
“What do you want to eat?”
Chen Yao stepped onto the sidewalk and scanned the surroundings.
“I guess I should just head to class first. There’s only half an hour left, and if I go eat now, I won’t have much time,” Lin Nan checked the time; it was one-thirty in the afternoon.
She had initially thought they would arrive around one o’clock but was stuck in traffic for an extra half hour.
Chen Yao nodded helplessly. “Alright, I’ll walk you to the entrance of your community. Call me when your class is almost over.”
“Sure,” Lin Nan said, instinctively grabbing his hand. After the long ordeal, she felt surprisingly light and cheerful, as if her steps were bouncier.
Back at home, Lilith had a habit of popping in to cause trouble, ruining their precious two-person world. Now that they’d finally rid themselves of her, it felt exhilarating.
But now they had to face that little troublemaker, the bratty kid.
“I wonder if Pan Maoxin is all healed up,” Lin Nan joked, relishing the thought.
Chen Yao, speaking from experience, had the most authority on this: “He should be alright in about a week or so, if he’s changing his bandages regularly.”
“If he tries anything funny with you, just give him a punch,” Chen Yao said, a bit worried about Lin Nan.
Lin Nan quickly understood what he meant, tilting her head back, her eyes sparkling with amusement. “Why do I sense a hint of jealousy in your words?”
“Of course! My girlfriend is going off to be alone with some other guy!”
“Excuse me? I’m a teacher, okay? And that guy is just a freshman,” Lin Nan shot him an eye roll. “He’s practically a rebellious kid already traumatized by me and Li Na. What’s there to worry about?”
Traumatizing a kid? Now that’s a thought.
Chen Yao pondered for a moment. If he had been struck by two women during his high school years, he’d probably jump at the sight of women now.
“Well, just be careful of his retaliatory strikes.”
“Relax! I’ll take on ten of him!”
As they chatted, within ten minutes, they arrived at the community entrance. Chen Yao reluctantly let go of Lin Nan’s hand and advised, “Hit him hard. I can still afford to pay for your therapy.”
“You didn’t say that before.” Lin Nan playfully swung her arms behind her back, took a couple of steps back, her skirt fluttering cutely, “I’ll go find a cafe, play a couple rounds of League of Legends, and see what tasty snacks are nearby.”
“I’ll come pick you up at four.”
She’d made this trip a couple of times, so Lin Nan was quite comfortable with it.
She took the elevator to Pan Maoxin’s door, rang the bell, and waited a moment, but nobody answered.
Could she have the wrong door?
Backpedaling, Lin Nan glanced at the door number to confirm it, but everything seemed fine.
This was strange.
Dialing Pan Maoxin’s number yielded no answer, so she had no choice but to call his father.
After a bit of back and forth, she found out this guy might be skipping class…
“I sat on a bus for two hours to get here! You’re skipping class?!”
Lin Nan scowled and mentally noted that down against Pan Maoxin. About to leave, she saw another elevator door open, and out rushed Pan Maoxin, shopping bag in hand, looking flustered.
As soon as he spotted Lin Nan’s furious face, he panicked and quickly explained, “I went downstairs to play basketball!”
“Open up!” Lin Nan crossed her arms, her face thunderous.
Seeing she was in a bad mood, Pan Maoxin cautiously flattered her, “Teacher, you look really beautiful today.”
“Hmm?” Lin Nan shot him a sideways glance.
Noticing a reaction, Pan Maoxin opened the door while continuing to butter her up, “With how beautiful you are, I bet there are a ton of handsome guys chasing after you! They could probably circle the whole island just for you.”
“You’re pretty, you’ve got a good personality, and you ace your studies…” he opened the door, stepped inside, and eagerly fetched a pair of slippers from the shoe cabinet, “Please, Teacher.”
Lin Nan walked in, expressionless, swapped her sandals for the slippers, and closed the door.
“I specially bought ice cream for you!” Pan Maoxin proudly revealed a three-flavor cup of ice cream.
He anxiously watched her reaction, then noticed her frown easing into a smile.
Phew, safe at last.
He helped peel back the wrapper on the ice cream, setting it on the nearby shoe cabinet, and pulled out a bottle of cola, a beaming smile plastered on his face.
Pan Maoxin couldn’t shake the feeling that he had invited not a tutor, but a dad.
Lin Nan eyed the ice cream and cola, pondering. “How did you know I liked this kind of ice cream? And the no-sugar cola?”
“Huh?” Pan Maoxin blinked up at her, caught off guard by her gentle smile, and suddenly felt a shiver down his spine.
Then he saw her little fist looming larger in his vision as she feigned a swing, causing him to backpedal a few steps, nearly collapsing.
“T-Teacher?”
“I’ll let you off this time,” Lin Nan huffed, waving her fist. “But if you make me wait again…”
“I won’t, I promise!” Pan Maoxin said, overly meek, beads of sweat forming on his forehead as he felt like he was dangling by a thread. Thankfully, his survival instinct was strong.
Lin Nan inspected his cheek; it seemed all the swelling had completely gone down, and you couldn’t even tell he once looked like a swollen pig’s head.
So he was back in fighting shape.
However, the side effects of this “magic” seemed to be kicking in, as Pan Maoxin suddenly started showering her with compliments, ice cream, and cola—way over the top.
Her scrutinizing gaze made him feel even chillier.
Steeling himself, he bravely suggested, “How about we start with a little quiz on the vocabulary we learned last time?”
“I review it every day, so I’m sure I’ll remember… Oh, by the way, if this month’s test score is fifty points higher than last month’s, I’ll make sure my dad pays you extra!”
Hearing that, a satisfied smile finally spread across Lin Nan’s face. “Only two lessons in, and you’re already up fifty points—not bad.”
Finally, she looked like an actual teacher.
Pan Maoxin sighed in relief. A teacher seeing improvement in their students should be the most gratifying thing, right?
“Make sure your dad gives me a little extra,” Lin Nan turned towards the bedroom, “Did you buy the little notebook for vocabulary I asked for?”
“What?”
“Didn’t buy it?” Lin Nan turned her head back, an amicable smile on her face.
Pan Maoxin hurriedly nodded. “I bought it, I bought it!”
He suddenly felt like he was walking on a tightrope.
“Alright, I’ll reward you with a bottle of cola.” Lin Nan tossed the unopened cola back to Pan Maoxin. She wouldn’t dare eat anything from outside.
What if Pan Maoxin, in his zeal for revenge, put something like a laxative in the cola? What then?
