Chapter 21 - Alone
Chapter 21: Alone
After the national flag was raised on Monday, class was to resume as per usual.
Jiang Yang stood in his class line and looked up at the red flag fluttering in the wind. The class representative stood under the flag giving a loud and powerful speech that resonated throughout the whole sports field through the loudspeakers.
He suddenly recalled the punishment associated with the task of becoming Qin Xu’s desk partner. If he were to actually be forced to go up there and yell out that sentence, then it would definitely become a hot topic throughout the whole school. Does that unreliable system actually want them to become friends? Clearly, it’s trying increase the rift between them and make them lose face! If anyone were to run up there and shouted out something like that to him then he would definitely think that they are playing him and he would teach that person a lesson afterwards.
After class, the teacher placed their homework on the podium for the students to collect and left the classroom.
Jiang Yang went up to the podium to collect his own workbook and saw that the one under his was Qin Xu’s. He picked it up as well in passing and, after returning to his seat, threw it onto his desk.
Qin Xu who was eating his breakfast at his desk saw this and vaguely uttered his thanks.
Jiang Yang ignored this and began working on his homework. However, the glaring sunlight entering through the glass windows reflected from his desk and blinded his eyes. Squinting, he got up and pulled the curtain across to block the light and returned to continue working on his homework.
However, not long afterwards the classmate in front pulled the curtains over causing the sunlight to once again fall onto Jiang Yang’s desk. Jiang Yang frowned but could not be bothered to get up again to readjust the curtains. He changed directions and stood a book up next to him to block the sun.
The entire process was witnessed by Qin Xu who had his legs resting on the horizontal bar under the chair. He sucked hard through his straw and the milk inside was clearly reaching its end as it made a gurgling sound. He stood up and, reaching the back of the room, he threw the milk carton over to the other end of room accurately aiming for the bin.
Qin Xu whistled in satisfaction. He then moved to the window and pulled the curtain across. He didn’t walk off immediately and instead called out to the classmate in front who once again reached out to pull the curtain. Pointing with his finger he said: “Pull the curtain in the front. Can’t you see that the back isn’t covered?”
Only now did the classmate look ahead at the curtain in front and see that it was all folded together with plenty of stretch room. He scratched his head awkwardly and proceeded to reach out and pull the front curtain across.
Qin Xu returned to his seat and saw that Jiang Yang was still sitting in his slanted posture with a book standing up to block the sun. He had his chin resting in his hand while he concentrated on solving the problems and didn’t notice that he no longer needed to block the sun. Qin Xu reached out, moved the book aside and threw it on top of his pile of books. Jiang Yang still had no reaction and continued frowning while solving his problems.
Qin Xu pouted a little and sat back down in his chair.
When Jiang Yang finished solving the problem, he looked up while twirling around his pen and unexpectedly saw that Qin Xu was not in a good mood. He pondered over it for about a second before tossing it aside and proceeded to solve the next question.
The person whose tantrum was ignored: “……”
The class bell rang, and the physics teacher walked in. Jiang Yang couldn’t help but feel his eyebrows twitch. To be absolutely honest, he didn’t like physics. It was like it was designed to go against him and he couldn’t understand anything. Whenever he looked at his physics textbook he had the urge to cry.
Once, a classmate hid a comic book behind the textbook and was immediately discovered and confiscated by the teacher. His reason for how he noticed this was – Normally students would look at the textbook and want to cry but he was smiling instead!
Jiang Yang who heard this at that time nodded and felt deeply impressed.
When attending a class that you are not good at, it felt like hell. Every minute felt extremely long but the moment your eyes closed for a quick nap, time passed by very quickly and class ended in an instant.
When Huang Shao rushed over to him excitedly telling him to go with him to buy drinks from the school store, he was still dazed. Only after shaking his head did his mind clear up. He rubbed his eyes as clumsily he stood up and he lazily followed him out the door.
Qin Xu sat in his seat and watched on while supporting his chin. Finding it funny, he unconsciously hooked up the corners of his lips. After a while, he also supported himself with the table, stretched his long legs, and walked out the classroom.
At the school store downstairs, Jiang Yang and Huang Shao each held onto a can of cold coke and chatted while walking out. Around the corner of the school store, in an inconspicuous place that was easy to overlook, there was a small step. As Jiang Yang chatted with Huang Shao, he didn’t notice the step and instantly felt himself falling forward. He subconsciously reached out to grab something to support himself and instead found himself falling into an unexpected embrace. From above his head, he heard a low-pitched chuckle: “Did you do this on purpose after seeing that I am here?”
Jiang Yang looked up and, as expected, he saw Qin Xu’s face that was smiling as if he was asking for a beating. He rolled his eyes and, using his shoulder as a support, straightened himself back up again.
Qin Xu didn’t continue to tease him this time and turned to Huang Shao with a smile, “I have to speak to him about something. You can go back to class first.”
Huang Shao was a little confused. He scratched his head and wanted to ask something but under Qin Xu’s stern gaze, he could only turn and walk away.
Jiang Yang frowned, “What do you want?” He didn’t think that they would have anything to talk about alone.
Qin Xu hooked his arm around his shoulder and pushed him along. With his lips curling up into a smile he said: “Actually, I recently feel that we both get along quite well and would be good friends. What do you think?”
Jiang Yang found this action of his strange. The moment he mentioned becoming friends, he automatically thought of the system. Perhaps if he pretended to be friends with him, the system would disappear. Thinking this, he paused before slightly nodding his head.
“Do you really think so? Do you want to be my friend?” Qin Xu tilted his head slightly in his direction. With about a shoulder’s distance between them, they were standing very close to each other. If one were to lean down, they could easily kiss the corner of the other persons lips.
Jiang Yang felt somewhat uncomfortable with this close intimacy between them. He furrowed his eyebrows and looked at Qin Xu’s dark eyes. He couldn’t help but that something wasn’t right and that there was a hidden meaning in those words of his. What on earth did he mean?
Qin Xu continued to speak and only then did Jiang Yang notice that Qin Xu had brought him down a path that was not often used. In the quiet surroundings, only his voice rang out.
“There were somethings that you probably thought you were doing secretively but, in fact, I know about it.” Qin Xu watched him and said slowly.
Jiang Yan wrinkled his brows even further. He had a bad feeling, “What are you saying?”
“You cover me with a blanket at night, buy me breakfast and went out of your way to ask the teacher to seat us together….
As each word was uttered by Qin Xu, Jiang Yang’s expression changed a few times. On his strong and calm face, a moment of tension and panic flashed past. He moved his lips and wanted to explain.
Seeing his flustered state, Qin Xu felt even more certain. He smiled and asked: “Do you like me?”
That one phrase instantly dispelled all his prior nervousness and left him with confusion.
Jiang Yang: “….??!”
The author has something to say:
Jiang Yang with a questioning look: How the hell did you come to this conclusion?