Chapter 309: Mischief
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A lecture dragged on for two whole hours.
Lin Nan wore a face of despair. In the massive classroom, the entire department’s students looked as if they were mourning.
They could have spent this time catching up on sleep instead.
“Wake up!”
Feeling someone nudging her, Lin Nan groggily came to life. She glanced up and saw that only a few straggling students remained in the classroom.
She turned to Chen Yao beside her, “What’s up? Is class over?”
“Yep, we can head out,” Chen Yao replied, tucking his now-dead phone into his pocket, a smile dancing in his eyes. “What are we having for lunch?”
“Fried noodles, maybe?” Lin Nan stretched, yawning multiple times as she fought off her drowsiness.
As she stood up, a hint of worry creased her brow. “It’s tough finding part-time work these days. I called the supermarket where I used to hand out flyers, and they said they’re not hiring right now.”
“What’s so great about part-time jobs?”
Chen Yao followed Lin Nan, juggling their textbooks and file folders. “Don’t you have enough money? Isn’t it like two thousand a month now?”
“That’s not enough! I need to save more. I’m thinking about buying a house and a car,” Lin Nan furrowed her brow. “Plus, my parents don’t have social security. If they can’t work in the future, I have to send them a couple thousand every month!”
“Still worried about your dad?” Chen Yao grumbled as they left the classroom. “What’s so great about him?”
Lin Nan paused, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear with a sigh. “Well, he did raise me until adulthood, I guess. After that, I can just not see him anymore.”
Chen Yao kept his thoughts to himself, even if he found it a bit annoying.
Noon had arrived, and Lin Nan had woken up late, skipping breakfast, so her stomach was growling like a lion.
The duo hurried to the street behind the school, finding a snack stall to grab two bowls of fried noodles to take back to their rental apartment for lunch.
Afternoon gym class awaited them, and rumor had it there would be another fitness test, which made Lin Nan a bit anxious.
The last fitness test had been manageable—back then, she was a big guy. Although her physique wasn’t stellar, she was average among students.
But now, even among girls, her fitness was probably below par.
She seriously considered some sort of magic to boost her physical condition…
Once, when she tried delivering takeout, Lin Nan had thought about such a magic. But then she realized that delivering food was exhausting and paid less than flyer distribution, so she dropped the idea.
Plus, back then, using any magic made her body feel more feminine, and now unlocking magic would probably just make her prettier.
Arriving at their rental apartment, Chen Yao pulled out his keys to unlock the door but suddenly found that they wouldn’t fit in the lock.
He looked at Lin Nan in confusion, and they exchanged bewildered glances.
“Is your key bent or something?” Lin Nan pulled out her own keyring and muttered, “These keys really don’t hold up! Must’ve been scammed.”
Chen Yao tried again, frowning as he bent down to examine the lock. Finally, he sighed deeply and scratched his head. “Did I annoy someone recently?”
“Wait, what?”
“The lock’s jammed with gum, hardened up. I doubt it can be pried out,” Chen Yao racked his brain. It was barely the start of the semester; how could he have ticked someone off?
He was always on good terms with everyone.
But Lin Nan’s face immediately darkened upon hearing his words.
Noticing her expression, Chen Yao asked, “It can’t be that you upset someone, can it?”
“That flat-chested girl I ran into after last night’s movie… We don’t get along,” Lin Nan frowned. “We’ve had issues in the past.”
“She must be your relative, right?” Chen Yao consoled. “No worries, there are numbers on the wall for locksmiths. I’ll just call a few and see if they can swap the lock cylinder.”
“How much will that cost?”
“Probably over a hundred.”
Hearing that, Lin Nan nearly exploded, her chest heaving with anger, and her face turned beet red.
Throwing that money away felt like tossing it into the void!
Lin Nan had been skeptical that Lilith would resort to such petty tricks, but now she was seething, kicking the wall in frustration. She angrily set down her takeout fried noodles and began pacing with her arms crossed.
I must retaliate! I must get back at her!
Chen Yao couldn’t help but chuckle at her expressions. While he made the call to the locksmith, he assured her, “Don’t worry, it’s just a hundred bucks. I’ll skip a few meals and save up. Perfect way to lose some weight.”
“Just eat your fried noodles to fill up! I’ll handle this.”
“Fine.” Despite her still burning anger, Lin Nan plopped down on the stairs, furrowing her brow and silently cursing Lilith.
That girl was bound to face Lilith’s wrath one day!
She picked up her fried noodles, gloomily took a bite, and suddenly her appetite distracted her from her irritation, easing her furrowed brow.
“I suddenly want dumplings for dinner,” she turned to Chen Yao.
Just in time, Chen Yao finished his call. Upon hearing Lin Nan, he nodded eagerly, “Are we ordering out or making them ourselves?”
“Making them ourselves is way better.”
“Then I’ll go grab the electric cooker and pot from the dorm.” Chen Yao cheerfully settled next to Lin Nan, seeing her anger dissipate. He playfully reached to pat her head.
But Lin Nan swiftly swatted his hand away and shot him a glare.
Lin Nan’s feisty demeanor was quite tempting.
Chen Yao felt a rush of mischief and slyly wrapped his arm around her waist.
“Eating here!” Lin Nan snapped, annoyed. “Keep your hands to yourself!”
“Just eat your noodles; don’t mind me,” Chen Yao grinned as he slyly held onto her waist, shameless as ever.
After all, women’s words always meant the opposite!
As that thought settled in his mind, he felt reassured. While observing Lin Nan’s blend of embarrassment and irritation, his other hand quietly crept up to her thigh.
The moment his palm brushed against her leg, he sensed her body lightly tremble.
It was his first time touching Lin Nan’s leg! As a leg fan, he was thrilled, but alas, she wore denim instead of stockings.
With no protests from Lin Nan, who simply leaned on him to continue munching on noodles, Chen Yao’s face flushed a bit.
Lin Nan, feeling a rush of nervous energy, trembled slightly. This was a public space! And for some reason, her thigh felt exceptionally sensitive.
Her face was burning, and her grip on the chopsticks became unsteady, waves of shame crashing over her thoughts.
Suddenly, the unmistakable sound of a door opening rang out behind them.
Startled, Lin Nan jolted, instinctively standing straight while Chen Yao blinked in confusion at the spilled noodles landing on his lap.
Their neighbor walking out looked equally puzzled, glancing towards the stairwell. There stood the cute neighbor girl, casually leaning against the wall, engrossed in her phone, while a guy beside her was cleaning noodles off his legs.
Something felt… off?
