552. Li Ya
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The girl in front of Lin Nan made her feel incredibly awkward.
She lowered her head, not daring to look at the other person, half of her body hiding behind Chen Yao, worried she might be discovered as Lin Nan.
But this girl was definitely a lot prettier compared to her high school days.
Back then, she probably weighed around 130 pounds, had a round face, couldn’t dress to save her life, and her skin was dotted with more pimples than a pizza had pepperonis. Plus, with her gloomy and introverted personality, “good-looking” was not a title she could claim.
However, seeing her again after two years of college, Lin Nan noticed that this girl not only slimmed down, but all those pesky pimples had vanished. Sure, there were still a few faint scars, but overall, she was now a solid 7 out of 10 in the looks department—definitely a hot upgrade!
What was her name again?
Lin Nan frowned.
Li Ya?
This girl had once pursued Lin Nan, but during those high school days, Lin Nan was the epitome of a clueless dude, and the girl’s appearance back then did her no favors—so Lin Nan had turned her down without a second thought.
After chasing him for a semester, Lin Nan had been like a fortress, refusing all her love letters delivered by Chen Yao and tossing any chocolates that mysteriously appeared in her drawer…
Eventually, they lost touch during high school, and certainly weren’t in contact during college either.
As for the messages Li Ya left for her on QQ, Lin Nan rarely checked her phone for games or novels, so by the time she noticed them, it was usually hours later—and she couldn’t be bothered to reply.
“Give me Lin Nan’s phone number,” Li Ya said, not really noticing the shy girl hiding behind Chen Yao, thinking it was just her timid nature.
“Phone number, huh…” Chen Yao hesitated, glancing back at Lin Nan, unsure whether to give it up. He ended up asking, “Why do you need his number? Going to hang out?”
Li Ya nodded decisively. “Yeah, what’s wrong with that? We haven’t seen each other in years. Let’s grab some food or something.”
Lin Nan hastily tugged on Chen Yao’s shirt from behind.
Just as Chen Yao was about to spill the beans, he confidently replied, “She didn’t come back for the Dragon Boat Festival.”
“Seriously? Aren’t you guys usually together? You came back, but he didn’t?” Li Ya frowned.
“We aren’t as close as we used to be,” Chen Yao fibbed quickly.
However, Li Ya noticed him sneaking glances at his girlfriend, which piqued her curiosity. She leaned over to peek behind Chen Yao.
“Why do you keep looking at your girlfriend?”
Lin Nan immediately ducked even deeper behind Chen Yao, completely hiding her face, not wanting Li Ya to catch any glimpses.
What if she recognized me? That would be so awkward!
“It’s nothing, she’s just a little shy,” Chen Yao said, fidgeting with Lin Nan’s hand.
Only two years had passed, but wasn’t Li Ya that shy girl anymore? Now, she seemed like the life of the party!
Li Ya wasn’t interested in Chen Yao’s girlfriend anymore. Pulling out her phone, she said assertively, “Just give me Lin Nan’s number. He changed his number, and now nobody from our class has it.”
Honestly, if you went to find that short chubby guy, you could still get the number.
Lin Nan sighed internally, then tugged at Chen Yao’s shirt again, stopping him from giving the number away.
Chen Yao decided then and there to make a break for it and turned to say, “I’ve got something urgent to do, can’t chat right now!”
“Why won’t you give me the number?” Li Ya grabbed his arm.
Lin Nan knew they had to cooperate with Chen Yao, and instinctively swatted Li Ya’s hand away, putting on her best innocent look to protect her boyfriend. “Hey, don’t be so grabby…”
“Exactly!”
Chen Yao held tightly onto Lin Nan’s hand and scurried off toward home.
After a few hundred meters, he looked back to see Li Ya hadn’t followed, and he finally sighed in relief, turning to Lin Nan and gloating, “How about that? Am I smart or what?”
“Not bad! Keep that IQ up!” Lin Nan said, patting his shoulder in approval. “Tonight, I’ll reward you with a hot dog!”
“Isn’t that ME rewarding YOU with a hot dog?”
Chen Yao’s cheeky comment caught Lin Nan off guard, leaving her wide-eyed for a moment, before she shot him a glare.
In her mind, she was basking in the glow of her own cleverness.
I’m seriously so clever!
Li Ya didn’t recognize me at all!
Even though she looked different from before, if someone looked closely, they could probably tell it was her. But thanks to her masterful dodging skills, Lin Nan had avoided showing her face entirely, so there were no doubts for Li Ya.
Absolutely perfect.
Thank goodness she had deactivated her old phone number back in her freshman year to get a dorm network phone card. Otherwise, if old friends called, it would be a disaster.
As she strolled behind Chen Yao, soaking up the serene night of their county, Lin Nan gradually perked up again.
“By the way, is that Monster Hunter game you’ve been playing any fun?” Her hands were clasped behind her back as she kicked some gravel and dried leaves underfoot, her mood buoyant. “If it’s fun, I should grab one during the summer sale. How much is it after the sale?”
“Over three hundred.”
Lin Nan’s expression froze. “Not playing anymore! You spent that much on a game and didn’t tell me!”
Chen Yao shrugged. “I only meant to buy it and try it out, but then I got addicted and missed the refund window.”
Just then, Lin Nan’s pocket buzzed.
She looked down, pulled out her phone, and saw an unknown number flashing.
An ominous feeling washed over her.
Clearing her throat, Lin Nan forced her voice low, trying to keep it neutral as she picked up the phone, “Hello? Who’s this?”
“It’s me, Li Ya.” Li Ya’s voice was soft and seemed a bit shy.
Since her voice had always been somewhat gender-neutral, the combination of lowered tone and phone distortion didn’t raise any suspicions from the other side.
But Lin Nan’s cold sweat was suddenly dripping down her back.
She glanced at Chen Yao, her eyes pleading for help.
Chen Yao shook his head, utterly clueless about what to do.
“Where did you get my number?” she demanded, wanting to confirm who the traitor was.
“Your deskmate, Zhu Yong Wen.”
Of course, that guy!
Lin Nan grit her teeth and asked again, “What do you want?”
“Are you in the county? Free to hang out tomorrow?”
She immediately denied it, “No, I’m not around.”
“Why are you avoiding me? If you’re not around, I’ll just come to your school tomorrow!”
Lin Nan scowled as she looked back at Chen Yao.
Since it was on speakerphone, Chen Yao could hear everything perfectly. After considering a bit, he leaned in and suggested, “How about we do the same thing we did when Zhu Yong Wen asked you last time?”
Meaning, cross-dressing as a boy? Wait, she could just transform into a boy now!
She paused for a moment. “Alright then, tomorrow at nine? I have a ticket for twelve, so I’ll have to leave by eleven.”
“Sounds good! Where do we meet?”
“People’s Square should be fine.” Lin Nan was quite curious about how she would look as a boy after using magic.
In the past, when she used magic to become a girl, her appearance was similar to how she looked now, but turning into a boy—would that be similar to how she looked back then?
