Chapter 6

Her originally unfocused gaze finally hazily focused on the notebook spread open on her desk.
The densely written notes brought her back to her senses.
Had she just fallen asleep?
Then Luo Zhuowei felt something slide from her shoulder to her seat because of her straightening movement.
She turned her head and picked up that thing, bringing it to her eyes: It was Chen Hang's jacket.
"…………"
Realizing something was wrong, she raised her eyes to look at the seat in front of her.
Sure enough, her gaze met Chen Hang's face. He was sitting backwards in his chair as usual when talking to her, his arms lazily propped on the backrest, smiling at her: "Awake?"
The classroom was empty except for her and Chen Hang.
The other classmates seemed to have disappeared.
Luo Zhuowei, who had indeed realized something was wrong, gently averted her gaze from Chen Hang's, somewhat nervously staring at the handwriting in her notebook, her hands on her thighs unconsciously twisting Chen Hang's jacket.
Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Chen Hang sit in the seat next to her.
Then her face, as she had expected, was cupped by a pair of hands.
A kiss.
But not a light, fleeting kiss.
Luo Zhuowei somewhat restlessly closed her eyes, forced to open her mouth to accept the boy's unexpectedly passionate, almost excessive kiss. Chen Hang's wet tongue stirring in her mouth was completely different from his usual gentle, considerate demeanor. The more gentle and cautious he usually was, the more forceful and determined this kiss was.
But his small actions were still very considerate. Luo Zhuowei felt her head was cushioned by Chen Hang's right hand supporting her, preventing her from hitting the wall when she flinched. His left hand changed from cupping to lifting, the fingers pressing against her chin with restrained force, with a bit of unyielding restraint.
Luo Zhuowei felt physiological tears seeping from the corners of her eyes.
Sure enough, it was just a dream.
Late autumn.
The weather was turning cold, and Nan High's uniforms were being changed from summer to autumn-winter uniforms. Although Nan High was a public school, due to its academic atmosphere and teaching building characteristics, the custom uniforms were Western-style.
Although the full Western-style uniform looked good, for male high school students of this age, ties, belts, and easily wrinkled shirts were completely restrictive during sports. So for PE class, you either had to bring an extra set of clothes or wear a t-shirt under the shirt.
The boring Chinese class finally came to an end. I stretched, moved my somewhat sore arms, and glanced out the window: Dark clouds covered the sky, the weather was gloomy, and it would probably turn from cloudy to rainy soon.
The next period's PE class was probably going to be canceled.
I was naturally a bit frustrated since I had thought I could go play basketball. I pulled loose the tie at my collar that I had tied hastily and messily because I woke up late, absentmindedly retying it: And I even specifically wore a t-shirt under my shirt...
"Luo Zhuowei, please take these to the grade office in Duxue Building."
The homeroom teacher's voice came from behind. Then came Luo Zhuowei's usual gentle agreement, and I saw Luo Zhuowei struggling to carry a large stack of books past my seat.
That stack of books looked heavy and was astonishingly numerous, piled up like a large Jenga tower. The top book was almost blocking Luo Zhuowei's view.
I tightened my tie, stood up, and reached out to take most of the books from Luo Zhuowei's arms, then followed behind her through the narrow aisle between seats: "Going to Duxue Building? That's quite far."
"Chen Hang?" Luo Zhuowei seemed somewhat surprised, slowly turning to look at me. Those beautiful eyes first showed a trace of surprise, then, along with her blooming smile, turned into a shape that made one's heart itch. "Thank you."
"It's nothing." Should I say the highland flower was indeed the highland flower? Luo Zhuowei's smile made me inexplicably embarrassed. I freed a hand to scratch my nose, then stepped ahead of her to push open the classroom door, holding it with my elbow to signal her to go out first. "The homeroom teacher too, how could he let a girl carry such heavy books alone to such a far place?"
Luo Zhuowei didn't respond this time. She just slightly lifted her lips again, turned slightly, and went out of the classroom ahead of me.
Her high ponytail swung gently behind her head. In that moment as she passed by, I felt I seemed to smell again that sweet, uniquely feminine scent I had noticed on Luo Zhuowei at the basketball court that day.
At the same time, I also saw the expressions of the boys in the classroom, all clearly saying "How dare that dog Chen Hang try to get ahead."
"..." I somewhat awkwardly closed the door. It was clearly just a small favor helping a classmate, but because of Luo Zhuowei's outstanding appearance, from a male perspective, my behavior seemed like I had ulterior motives and was trying to curry favor.
I caught up to Luo Zhuowei, who was waiting for me a bit further away, shook my head to discard unnecessary thoughts, and casually chatted with her, listening to her light and restrained laughter when she was amused by our conversation.
#10
Heavy rain.
Coastal cities in the south always welcome intermittent rain in autumn. The air becomes especially humid, and the wind that flows carries cool moisture.
Accompanying the pattering rain was sensory cells with functions amplified several times by the rain. The smell of the air contained not only humid moisture but also faint plant scents—a smell that had both growth and decay.
And.
I stared at the fine rain curtain outside the shelter, my peripheral vision unconsciously drifting to my side, landing on Luo Zhuowei's fair profile.
She was also staring at the pouring rain like me. Her long, thick eyelashes cast a small shadow under her eyelids, occasionally trembling slightly like raindrops falling to the ground as she lowered her eyes.
...And, I could sense a certain "scent" that blended into the atmosphere, indescribable in words but very obvious in sensory perception.
It was precisely because I had sensitively detected this subtle atmosphere that I reflexively pursed my lips, which had been about to say something. For some reason, I felt that if I spoke now, something would loosen and spiral out of control.
But the consequence of mutual silence was that a baseless feeling was quietly growing. Though its nature was as cool and damp as this rain, it was openly occupying my nerve endings.
In this moisture-saturated environment, I actually felt somewhat indescribably awkward.
The panic in my heart, as if I had hit a deer, made me subconsciously turn my face away. I decided to talk to Luo Zhuowei to break this somewhat inexplicable atmosphere.
But I unexpectedly met her gaze.
Luo Zhuowei had probably been splashed by rain carried by the wind. A few strands of black hair were wetly stuck to her forehead and the sides of her face, but this didn't detract from her beauty. Instead, it added an indescribable fragility.
Especially her eyes that met mine. Her clear gaze looked unexpectedly hazy in this environment, and this altered haziness made her eyes so vivid it was almost as if water were flowing in them.
That indulged feeling shook me in this less-than-three-second gaze. I belatedly realized what its true nature was.
It was ambiguity.