Chapter Eighteen: The Budding Emotions

  A scene of sitting on Zhang Jieyu's motorcycle back seat was infinitely exaggerated and spread among the students, inevitably continuing to bear the malicious gaze from all sides. On the one hand, she put on an attitude of not caring, thinking that as long as you don't provoke me, go ahead and look however you want. On the other hand, she deliberately thought about opposing those gazes, having already made up her mind to be a good girlfriend.

  After school in the afternoon, Ji Dong blocked my desk and quietly waited for the crowd to leave. It's hard to see him staying in the classroom until the last class, recently he seems to be skipping classes very frequently, and the teachers are also used to it and don't care about him.

  "Mei Mei, have you completely given in? Are you going to accept Yu Ge's arrangement?" Ji Dong leaned forward, his hands on my desk, his brow furrowed.

  "We're just taking what we need, that's the transaction between us." I said calmly, looking into his turbulent eyes.

  "So you don't actually like him, right?" There was a hint of expectation in his eyes. "Don't worry! I'll think of a way to save you."

  His eyes were clear and his tone was firm.

  I couldn't help but burst out laughing: "Winter melon, it's okay, this is also good. Anyway, I don't want to fall in love right now, having him as a nominal boyfriend gives me security. He agreed with me too, there's nothing to worry about!"

  "But... it's all my fault!" He lowered his eyelids, his large hand covering mine, gripping tightly, "I'm sorry."

  With a simple three-word farewell, he let me go and walked out dejectedly.

  Winter melon, you don't have to blame yourself. Zhang Ze Yu is your superior, and you can't go against him, I understand that. As for the great literature, this is my own choice, it has nothing to do with anyone else. Perhaps deep down inside me, I actually yearn for something like this. My intuition tells me that he's not as scary as I imagined, even though he always looks cold and icy, at least he hasn't really hurt me or the people around me. And I hope to see that gentle gaze of his again, touch that different side of him, want to know what kind of person he is inside.

  On Friday evening after self-study class was dismissed, I rushed back to my dormitory, stuffed all the things I bought with Zhang Shuyu into a big bag, and then calmly carried it home.

  "I'm back!" I casually shouted as I pushed open the door.

  The three of them were all snuggled up on the couch watching TV, a warm and cozy scene as always. When the door opened, their eyes turned to me and they burst out laughing.

  "Rice Rice, you're finally back! Why did your self-study go so late? Next semester don't board at school anymore, come back and we'll have more fun together!" Xiqi sat up straight and waved at me repeatedly.

  "Back to the dorm, got what I needed! I even ran back, still feeling slow!" I threw myself onto the sofa, took off my backpack, and gave them each a hug, "Dad, Mom! Did you guys miss me this week?"

  "There are still hot dumplings in the kitchen. If you're hungry, I'll go get some for you to eat." Mom got up and headed towards the kitchen.

  "You're going to exhaust yourself before the exam, you've lost weight in just one week?" Dad put his arm around my shoulder, gently shaking me and examining me closely.

  "Dad! Don't worry! I'll take good care of myself!" He was dizzy from being shaken.

  "If you don't eat, Creek, you'll be hungry all the time when you're growing up!" Mom smiled and brought over a big plate of dumplings, the light aroma of which tempted my taste buds.

  "Dry mother! Mimi and I are going to eat in the room, hehe!" Ruoxi hastily took the plate from her mother's hand, and with one hand pulling me, rushed into the house. The door closed with a "bang", leaving the two old people looking at each other in confusion behind us.

  "That night, where did you go with Zhang Jieyu? Honestly, as soon as he appears, it causes a huge stir! Don't think you can fool me~ Come on, come on!" She sat on the desk chair, with her legs crossed, looking like she was interrogating someone.

  "Tomorrow I'm going to his house to see his mom, so let's get ready." I dumped everything from the big bag onto the bed and fished out the brand new set of equipment I just bought, holding it up for her to see.

  Ruo Xi opened her eyes wide and walked closer, exaggeratedly sighing: "Wow! You guys went shopping together? Didn't you say you weren't interested in him? This flash date is...and meeting the parents too..."

  "Keep your voice down!" I quickly covered her mouth, in case Mom and Dad heard us, "It's not what you think, this is all for his mom. The mother and son rarely reunite, don't want to disappoint Yu."

  He recalled the warm gaze he had for that young mother and son, at that moment, his body emitted a charm more attractive than his handsome appearance, not the dark obsidian, but the pure and transparent crystal.

  "Oh? This guy's really affectionate, used to be so demonic before, looks like you've finally been tamed by him and are willingly good with him now!" Ruoxi lowered her voice, mischievously smiling as she poked my arm.

  "What's going on! This is a deal, do you understand? You've brought me huge trouble and now I have to clean up the mess. If you keep talking nonsense like this, I won't help you in the future, you can just fend for yourself!" I gathered my scattered thoughts and pretended to be angry, saying: "Besides, I was just sympathizing with him, he's just like Ji Dong, both of their dads are having affairs with younger women."

  "Alright, alright, I won't tease you anymore. He and his mom have a good relationship, I can understand that! So your task is still to pretend to be his girlfriend?" She stared at me with piercing eyes, starting to stuff dumplings into her mouth, looking at her with an attitude of desperately trying to get me and Yu together, it's really suspicious.

  "Yeah, what else can I do?" I rolled my eyes and lazily flipped over onto the bed. "It doesn't matter anyway, it's just that I have to wear something so formal, plus all these accessories, it's really awkward!"

  She was admiring those cumbersome clothes and ornaments one by one, her eyes sparkling with excitement, exclaiming over and over again.

  "Wow! These things cost a fortune! I'd have to work hard for a whole year, without eating or drinking, and save up every penny just to afford it!" Ruo Xi excitedly squeezed in beside me, nudging me to sit down. "Mimi, this demon of yours seems like a high-yield stock! You should really try to get on his good side, then you'll be set for life!"

  I lay still, not moving or speaking. If Creek said something, I would respond like a trained dog, but no matter how little courage I had, I still had some backbone. I was being coerced into this, and he should be disgusted with me, but for some reason, his warm and heartbreaking gaze kept replaying in my mind. But even if I did have other thoughts, he wouldn't care; after all, he only kept me by his side on a whim, and the fate of a plaything is to be discarded whenever he gets bored. If I were to truly fall for him, I would end up like Little Rong... No! I refused to become that way. Eventually, I would be kicked out by him anyway; the outcome was clear, and I definitely couldn't let myself develop feelings for him!

  "Leave the makeup and dressing to me, no problem! Tomorrow I'll definitely make his eyes light up!" Ruoxi's voice was full of excitement, as if she were the one going on a date.

  His family background is not simple, his mother is also a figure with head and face, usually busy with her own home can't take care of. Why did his mom rarely come back once, but also brought me back home together? They haven't seen each other for so long, shouldn't they be better off spending quality time alone?

  I remember Donggua said that he had dropped out of school for two years and is now 22 years old, which is the legal age for marriage. Is it possible that his mother wants him to get married after graduation, so she asked me to pretend to be his girlfriend to put her mind at ease? With his carefree attitude, if I didn't already know about his past, I wouldn't think he's a filial son at all.

  On Saturday morning, I was woken up by Rouxi, who was chirping like a sparrow, and she was still excitedly bustling about helping me with this and that.

  Zhang Jiu Yu told me to wait at the entrance of the community at 2 pm, and finally I'm going to his house to meet his elders... His mother must be a beauty, otherwise she wouldn't have given birth to him with such good looks. I wonder if she's nice to talk to? What should I do? The last time I went to Ji Dong's house was when we were still kids, and this time my identity is different too, I have to pretend to be his girlfriend, a role I've never played before! No need to bring anything, first time visiting... what if his mom doesn't like me... Hmm, it really feels like going to the in-laws' house, anyway it's all fake, if she doesn't like me I can just switch, no big deal, why am I so excited?!

  While Ruo Xi was fondling the white dress, happily daydreaming, I rushed to the washing room, scooped up handfuls of cold water and splashed it on my face, trying to keep a clear head.