113. Flirting
==============================
Lin Nan had never felt so powerless.
Once again, he was mistaken for a girl, and not just any girl—one who was growing her hair long.
But after getting a haircut, his hair did lay flatter than before; the tips used to stick up for no reason, and his bangs were always a bit in his eyes—or worse, irritating his vision. Now, it felt a tad more comfortable.
The thing is, while his hair was longer than typical for a male, it still looked like a guy’s hairstyle. But after Tony the Hair Stylist got his hands on it, now it looked like a girl’s short haircut.
At least Lin Nan thought this style was a vast improvement from the previous bird’s nest he had going on. He didn’t feel too bad about it; he just worried that strolling around campus would lead to someone spotting his male features and labeling him a genderbender or something.
Of course, quite a few classmates had already slapped that label on him…
He had intended to fully experience life as a guy before completely transforming into a girl, so why was he becoming more feminine?
Thursday’s classes were one shorter than usual, and by 10 AM, Lin Nan was already done. Feeling a bit moody after his haircut, he kept his head down, somewhat resistant to going out.
His classmates were okay; they all understood. What they say behind closed doors about him was usually done in the dorm, but once he stepped outside the classroom, he could always catch glimpses of other students pointing at him.
That match on Tuesday had made him quite the celebrity at school, and after a few days, he had the unsettling feeling that everyone knew who he was.
Chen Yao and the others had headed back ahead of him. Lin Nan didn’t want to wait around until noon to go to the cafeteria, so he decided to just grab food to go now, hoping to catch a bit of the freshmen military training along the way.
The moment he stepped into the cafeteria and stood at the window directing the Auntie serving food, a well-mannered student wearing glasses accidentally bumped into him.
“Sorry.” The student stepped back, glanced up for a moment, then paused, “You’re that… Nan Nan?”
Being called so intimately by a stranger sent chills down Lin Nan’s spine.
“Lin Nan.” He coolly corrected.
“Hello, Senior.”
“First year?” Lin Nan asked, intrigued as he waited for Auntie to pack his meal, “Aren’t you in military training?”
The student happened to be getting lunch to go as well and stood beside Lin Nan, explaining, “I was born with my heart on the right side, so military training isn’t really for me; I had to get a doctor’s note.”
“That’s pretty lucky.” Lin Nan envied him, remembering how tough military training had been for him. He had felt like he was on the edge of d*ath, with exhausting drills and intense physical training.
Back then, he could keep up with the others during physical training—running, push-ups, sit-ups—he was about average among the guys, and thanks to his lighter weight, he could even manage a pull-up. Now, he couldn’t even jump high enough to touch the bar.
His stamina had taken a hit, which made things quite troublesome. Sometimes, he’d return to the dorms after class, out of breath from going up the stairs, which ultimately led to him becoming more of a homebody.
“What’s lucky about that?” the student chimed in, pointing at a few dishes, “Auntie, let’s pack these.”
This junior looked quite bookish—polite and well-spoken, with black-frame glasses and a slightly dazed look that screamed nerd.
But he was more talkative than a typical nerd. After chatting a bit, he steered the conversation toward games: “I watched your match the other day. Your support was really impressive! I’m almost your fan now!”
“Really?” Lin Nan took the packed food from Auntie, thrilled by the flattery but modestly denied, “I wasn’t in great form that day.”
“It looked like you and the opposing bot lane were playing a completely different game.”
Seeing Lin Nan about to leave, the junior hurriedly asked, “I also play support; can you tell me how to be good like you?”
“I’ve got to head back.” Despite his happiness, Lin Nan still played it cool.
“Aren’t you in building A? Just tell me on the way.”
“Fine, I’ll wait for you for two minutes.”
This junior seemed like a straightforward, bookish type, and it felt nice to be praised so sincerely. Unlike Big Dog from the adjacent dorm, who also praised him but was just too over-the-top and obviously had ulterior motives, this guy was different.
“Man, I can barely climb to Platinum as support because the random ADs are all so clueless.”
Now that had struck a chord with Lin Nan as a support player, who vigorously nodded in agreement: “I babysat all of them, and it feels like they’re getting fatter! Then in team fights, the opposing top laner knocks them out with a 0-3 score, or they move like they’ve got a ten-second cooldown on their auto-attacks. It’s enough to make you pull your hair out!”
“So being able to climb to Diamond as support is basically godlike.”
Given Lin Nan’s image, or perhaps the fact that they were both just acquaintances, he felt the kid’s compliments were especially genuine.
“Hey, Senior, how about adding each other on QQ? I might have questions about support later.”
“Sure.”
Feeling elated, Lin Nan answered the junior’s questions about support all the way back to the second floor. When they got there, the junior thanked him and left, while Lin Nan happily headed back to his dorm with takeout in hand.
As soon as he entered the dorm, before he even set down the food, he excitedly told Chen Yao, “You won’t believe it! I just ran into my little fan while getting lunch!”
“Fan?”
Chen Yao looked confused, “What fan?”
“The one who watched the match! He’s also a support! He totally idolizes me!” Lin Nan said with his hands on his hips, puffing up with pride, “I mean, I’m at least the number one support in the school!”
“If that’s the case, you probably got hit in the head by a donkey.”
Lin Nan was not pleased. He put down his takeout and shot Chen Yao a glare, “Why are you dissing me?”
“Can’t you see the obvious?” Chen Yao sighed at Lin Nan’s thick-headedness, maybe because Lin Nan’s thoughts were still stuck in a male perspective, completely clueless about other things.
Tu Junhui came over, chuckling as he patted Lin Nan on the shoulder, “So, did he definitely ask for your WeChat?”
“I even gave him my number.” Lin Nan replied, bewildered, “He said he’d ask me if he had questions about gaming. What’s the issue?”
“Tsk tsk.” Tu Junhui teased, “With someone as clueless as you, I could seduce him twice.”
Without a second thought, Lin Nan kicked him: “Stupid j*rk! I could easily swindle all your money!”
But then it clicked for him—after kicking Tu Junhui away, he looked at Chen Yao with growing concern and hesitated, “Wait, are you saying he’s flirting with me?”
“Has to be, right?” Chen Yao rolled his eyes, “Just use your waterlogged brain for a second—if you came across a master or a king, would you rush to fawn over them?”
Lin Nan tilted his head slightly, furrowing his brow, “I’m shy, so I definitely wouldn’t, but Big Dog might.”
He was still utterly puzzled, “If it’s flirting, then he must know me, right? Doesn’t everyone know I’m a guy?”
“Some people just like pretty faces, regardless of gender.”
