501. Xiong Da’s Spring
==============================
On Monday, thanks to yesterday’s epic nap, Lin Nan strolled into the classroom at a glorious eight-thirty.
“Lin Nan.”
“Here! Right here!”
As soon as she entered the classroom, her name was called by the teacher. Lin Nan waved her hand in a panic and hurriedly followed Chen Yao to the spot claimed by Tu Junhui, plopping down with urgency.
If she was even half a minute late, she’d be counted tardy for the day.
Breathless, she settled next to Chen Yao, taking advantage of the space between him and Tu Junhui, and peeked up at the teacher on stage.
Hmm, this teacher looks familiar.
Isn’t that the one from last semester who questioned her gender, thinking she was just marking attendance for “Lin Nan”?
That time, her roommate and friends had jumped in to back her up, insisting Lin Nan was definitely a girl, which convinced the teacher.
This semester, she hadn’t taught Lin Nan’s class, yet here she magically appeared again.
Feeling the teacher’s gaze on her, Lin Nan sheepishly lowered her head. The teacher looked momentarily confused, glancing between the attendance sheet and Lin Nan’s stylish girly outfit, raising an eyebrow and blinking in bewilderment.
“Our teacher is on a business trip with students for a competition, and she’s here to substitute,” Tu Junhui casually explained while fiddling with his phone.
Tu Junhui obviously recalled last semester’s incident and couldn’t suppress a laugh, teasing Lin Nan, “Do you think she’s going to be completely bewildered seeing you in girl clothes now?”
“She’s already bewildered,” Lin Nan thought, feeling the teacher occasionally sneaking glances her way.
Last semester, she had strongly affirmed she was a boy, and now her name was mixed in with those of the girls, her appearance fully feminine, sporting a cute outfit and even showing off a half-transparent strap on her shoulder.
Honestly, it would confuse anyone.
Chen Yao, however, wasn’t bothered at all and reassured her, “It’s just one class anyway.”
Lin Nan nodded; after all, she wasn’t going to have any interactions with that teacher.
After roll call, Chen Yao resumed paying full attention to the lesson. Lin Nan had nothing to do, so she laid her head on the desk, flipped through her textbook, confirming she had already mastered it, and decided on a little nap.
But barely had she closed her eyes when Chen Yao elbowed her.
She looked up, a bit annoyed. “What now?”
“Look at the back.”
“???”
Turning around to peek into the corridor, Lin Nan was stunned to see the three otherworldly tourists she had encountered yesterday happily seated in the last row, flanked by Lilith and Li Na.
What are they doing here?
She lowered her head and quickly messaged Li Na: “What’s going on?”
Li Na replied almost instantly, “We brought the tourists to experience earthling college life. Is there a problem?”
“And I have no classes this morning, so I came to crash your class.”
What a solid reasoning!
Lin Nan shot a glare back at Li Na.
The school didn’t mind at all; as long as students from other classes didn’t disrupt things, they were usually allowed to sit in, unless they started pestering the classmates.
Like that blue-haired dude who was desperately trying to chat up the girls in the front row.
“Forget them, a bunch of lunatics,” Lin Nan grumbled, grabbing Chen Yao’s arm, resting her head on it, muttering, “Anyway, it’s not our issue.”
Chen Yao stared at his arm, which had suddenly become a pillow for Lin Nan, glanced at the teacher, then curiously turned to Tu Junhui, “Did you go to that gym this weekend? How was it?”
“Not bad,” Tu Junhui rubbed his nose with a man-understanding grin. “The older ladies were way too enthusiastic. After two visits, they kept trying to teach me how to work out.”
“Oh?” Chen Yao leaned closer, intrigued.
“And then I told them to scram,” Tu Junhui snorted, “Those chicks had zero training signs—they looked skinnier than Lin Nan! How dare they play coach and try to sell me classes? Even if I had money, I’m not wasting it like that.”
“I’ve at least been in a gym club; I’m not that easily fooled! Looks don’t mean squat.”
Chen Yao was taken aback, “Why are you grinning like that? I thought the gym had other activities.”
“What other activities?”
He felt a sudden pinch on his arm and looked down to see Lin Nan’s gentle smile as she squeezed the soft flesh of his forearm.
She couldn’t quite get a grip, so she scratched with her nails, making Chen Yao wince in pain.
A wave of panic surged through him, and he hurriedly explained, “It’s nothing, just joking around with Junhui.”
“Ugh, men.”
“Like you weren’t one before,” Tu Junhui scoffed, “That metaphor backfired and hit you too.”
“That’s why I know just how twisted you all are!” Lin Nan shot him a look, then suddenly asked with curiosity, “What about Xiong Da? Did he stay up all night gaming again?”
Mentioning Xiong Da brought Tu Junhui’s face down, and he gloomily asked, “How’s Xiong Da looking in your eyes?”
Lin Nan blinked, confused. “He’s alright, I guess.”
“Not as handsome as me, right?”
Lin Nan wanted to shake her head but, considering Xiong Da wasn’t around, nodded without hesitation. Chen Yao shot her a look of disdain at her dippy nodding.
“Then why is Xiong Da suddenly in a relationship?” Tu Junhui complained, “Last time was bad enough with that internet romance; I mean, he almost got scammed into a pyramid scheme! And just the other day, he went downstairs to buy a bottle of cola and ended up flirting with a freshman girl. Last night, he chatted with her all night long!”
I guess wearing a hat does make him look dashing.
And he’s loaded.
Except for that severe hair loss issue, who knows how he’s better off than you!
Still, Lin Nan and Chen Yao were both surprised by this news, even Chen Yao couldn’t help but ask, “Isn’t he a total otaku?”
“He got asked for his WeChat, ya know,” Tu Junhui moped as he flopped over his desk, his chubby face squished into a pancake, “I’m now the only one left in this dorm still single.”
No wonder he was so excited about that new gym opening; sounds like he took a hit hard!
“You guys have betrayed the dorm! You two are fine, but…”
Mainly you and Xiong Da can’t really rekindle things unless a trip to Thailand’s involved.
Just the thought of those two together made Lin Nan snicker; even the mental image needed a pixelation filter, it was too much to bear.
“I heard they’re going to go on a date at noon,” Tu Junhui suddenly straightened up and asked the two, “What do you think? Wanna go check it out?”
“You know where?” Chen Yao asked curiously.
“I do! I eavesdropped on their call. It’s at the steakhouse on the second floor of the cafeteria.”
Lin Nan instantly pictured the decor of that place. It was the same one she had visited with Chen Yao when she first met Lilith last year.
I wonder if that counts as her first date with Chen Yao?
——————
One update today! Wrote a lot but deleted it—not in the best state!
