"Could you scoot over a bit? I feel like I’m about to fall off the bed."
"I’m already as far as I can go; I’m right up against the wall. This bed is just too small," Lin Xi’s muffled voice sounded in the darkness.
"Let’s just make do."
Xue Yang couldn’t lie on his back, so he had to sleep on his side to save so space. It was still cramped, but it was much more comfortable than sleeping on the couch.
After a mont, her voice ca again. "Xue Yang, do you move around a lot in your sleep? You won’t crowd my side, will you?"
"No. I’m very still when I sleep. I can’t say the sa for soone else, though."
"That’s good. I’m a very still sleeper, too."
"..."
Another mont passed.
"Xue Yang, if you dare to make a wrong move, I won’t hesitate to kick you off the bed, pin you to the ground, and mop the floor with you."
"Hurry up and sleep. If you don’t, I can’t guarantee what I might do."
"..."
Lin Xi had thought that with Xue Yang lying beside her, she wouldn’t be able to fall asleep. As it turned out, she was wrong again. Not only did she fall asleep, but she slept very soundly. Hanging on Xue Yang like a koala bear, how could she possibly be uncomfortable?
Xue Yang’s hand rested naturally on her slender waist, his head just above hers. He too was fast asleep. It might also have been because they were exhausted from staying up so late the night before. Yes, that had to be it. They were simply exhausted.
***
「The next morning, at ten o’clock.」
In a daze, Xue Yang felt soone’s hands wandering over him.
"Xue Yang, this bed of yours is surprisingly comfortable."
He caught the restless hand. "Comfortable, is it?"
A magnetic, pleasant voice ca from above her. Lin Xi’s eyes snapped open, and only then did she realize she was lying right on top of Xue Yang. A human mattress—how could it not be comfortable?
"It must be because the bed is too cramped. Yes, that’s definitely it."
As if nothing had happened, Xue Yang got out of bed, washed up, and left the apartnt.
Lin Xi sat on the bed hugging the quilt, her mind still fuzzy.
At eleven o’clock, Xue Yang returned, pushing a not-so-new bicycle. He parked it in the living room, making the already tight living space even more cramped.
"Xue Yang, where did you get this bike?"
"I borrowed it from a classmate."
"Doesn’t he need it?"
"He has a part-ti job, so he won’t be using it."
In reality, Cui Hao was worried that Xue Yang still hadn’t gotten over the incident with Chen Ying. When he heard Xue Yang wanted to borrow a bike, he had lent it to him without a second thought.
A true brother.
"Oh."
Having just woken up, Lin Xi’s hair was a ss. Her T-shirt was hanging askew, revealing a fair, smooth shoulder. Below the hem of her shirt, her long, straight legs looked as if she wasn’t wearing any pants, making her seem even more like a lazy Xiao Naimao. She was completely unaware of how tempting she looked at that mont.
Xue Yang averted his gaze and pointed to the table. "There’s breakfast. Go wash up and then eat."
Lin Xi belatedly looked down and realized just how suggestive her appearance was. She scrambled into her room and shut the door firmly.
When she erged again, she had changed into a pair of casual long pants and a white T-shirt. She had tied her hair into a high ponytail, with a few playful tufts framing her face. The new look made her appear both cute and perky, but more than anything, she was sunny, beautiful, and brimming with youthful energy.
Xue Yang was staring, captivated, when his phone buzzed in his pocket. He took it out and saw a video call from "Mrs. Lin" on WeChat. He put a finger to his lips, signaling Lin Xi. "My mom. Don’t make a sound."
Lin Xi nodded and sat on the couch to eat her breakfast. It was a rich spread, with soy milk, fried dough sticks, eight-treasure porridge, stead buns, and other small dishes.
Xue Yang answered the call. "Mom, Happy Mid-Autumn Festival."
"Let see! Has my son gotten more handso?" a cheerful, middle-aged woman’s voice ca through the phone. A woman’s face appeared on the screen, a bit blurry, but her background was clearly a ho. On the sofa behind her sat another person holding a newspaper, who occasionally glanced toward the screen. It was Xue Yang’s father.
"My mother’s son, of course, only gets more handso."
"You’re a bit tanner, and you look more grown-up. My son has matured."
"Do you have enough money? I had your dad transfer you so living expenses."
"Mom, you just gave 5,000 at the start of the sester. That’s enough, you don’t need to send more. The family needs money too."
"Nonsense. We can’t compare to those wealthy families, but we can still provide for your basic needs. By the way, your dad wanted to tell you that now that you’re in university, if you et a nice girl, you should boldly pursue her. You’re in college now; your father and I both support you dating."
"You’re the one who wanted to say that, weren’t you?" Father Xue muttered from the sofa. He wanted to say more, but a sharp look from Mother Xue silenced him.
"Mom, isn’t it a little early to be talking about this?"
"Not at all, not at all! Oh, your aunt is here, I have to go. Son, Mom loves you."
"I love you too, Mom. Say hi to Auntie for ."
"I will, I will. Hanging up now."
After ending the call, Mother Xue suddenly froze. "Lao Xue, I think I saw a girl behind our son just now."
"You must be going crazy wanting a daughter-in-law. Call him back right now. I guarantee you’ll see nothing."
"No, I won’t. Our son has his own life. If he really has a girlfriend, he’ll tell us when the ti is right."
Mother Xue then turned to Xue Yang’s aunt and said, "Do you think I should learn how to swim first?"
"..."
***
"You and your mom have such a good relationship," Lin Xi said, propping her chin on her hands, her eyes filled with longing. Growing up, she could count the number of tis she’d seen her parents on one hand. Even when she deliberately got low scores on her exams, she couldn’t get them to pause their busy lives and spare her a second glance.
"Yeah."
Xue Yang didn’t deny it. Although his family wasn’t wealthy and his parents were ordinary wage earners, they had never truly neglected him. When his grades were poor, they didn’t scold him. When he was accepted into Yanbei University, they didn’t boast about it endlessly.
"That’s so nice," she murmured.
***
「In the afternoon.」
Xue Yang wheeled his bicycle outside, and Lin Xi bounced along behind him.
"I’ve never been on the back of a bike before! It must be so much fun."
"About that... this is a single-rider bike. You’ll have to sit on the crossbar in the front."
"Ah... this..."
Didn’t that an she would have to stay in Xue Yang’s arms for the entire trip?!
The ride to Phoenix Mountain would take at least two hours, and even longer if they hit traffic.
"If you’d rather walk, you can. It’s only a four or five-hour journey."
"I’ll sit."
***
On a sunny afternoon, a young man rode his bicycle through the streets of University Town, a pretty girl with a ponytail perched on the crossbar. The bicycle was an ordinary model, its wheels rolling gently over the sun-drenched road, leaving a trail of light tracks behind them.
This kind of scene wasn’t uncommon in University Town. Many college couples would zip around campus, carrying their loved ones. However, none were as delightful to watch as Xue Yang and Lin Xi. Just seeing them ride by, all eyes would involuntarily follow their journey.
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