How I Accidentally Bent My Best Friend - Chapter 3

Before she could figure it out, Chen Yushu had already finished ordering. “One bowl of beef noodles, no scallions or cilantro.”

Lu Wei quickly added, “Same for me.”

“Got it,” the server noted before leaving. “Please wait a moment.”

Lu Wei glanced at Chen Yushu across the table, studying her expression like a guilty puppy. “Ahem, why so quiet?”

“It’s hot. I don’t feel like talking.” Chen Yushu pulled out a napkin and meticulously wiped down her eating area.

“Huh?” Lu Wei raised an eyebrow in confusion. “But earlier when I fanned you, you ”

Just then, the beef noodles arrived.

Chen Yushu had just finished wiping her spoon when she looked down to see her bowl of noodles completely blanketed in a thick layer of cilantro and scallions bright green and pungent enough to sting her nose. Her brows instantly furrowed.

The noodle shop was packed, customers streaming in nonstop, the four servers rushing around in a frenzy. The noise was overwhelming. She opened her mouth to call over a passing server, only to watch them breeze by like a gust of wind.

Deflated, she slumped back.

“Excuse me, miss, we ordered our beef noodles without cilantro or scallions,” Lu Wei called out, raising her hand. Her voice cut through the din, successfully summoning a server.

“Apologies, we’ll replace it right away.”

As the offending bowl was taken away, Chen Yushu’s cheeks warmed, and she shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

Lu Wei stirred her own noodles. “What would you do without me?”

Chen Yushu snorted under her breath. “As if you could stick around forever.”

“Hmm? What was that?”

Pursing her lips, Chen Yushu muttered a quick “Nothing” and stared down at her bowl, a sudden pang of bitterness tightening her chest.

Wishful thinking. How could that ever happen?

After the meal, the two walked side by side back to campus. Lu Wei hooked a finger around Chen Yushu’s, swaying into her like she’d had one too many.

“Little Yushu, why the sudden grumpiness?”

Chen Yushu’s emotions were still tangled, but she couldn’t bring herself to push Lu Wei away with any real force.

Just then, a girl in overalls and a bob haircut jogged backward toward them. After a moment of recognition, her face lit up, and she threw herself at Lu Wei, wrapping her in a tight hug. “Lu Wei! It really is you!”

Chen Yushu’s chest tightened at the sight. The next second, the finger that had been linked with hers was now entwined with someone else’s.

“Wen Yan? What are you doing here?” Lu Wei was equally surprised and delighted.

“I go to the university next door. Heard today was Yun U’s freshman orientation, so I came to soak up some elite school vibes. Never thought I’d run into you! But why are you here? Didn’t you want to go to”

Wen Yan’s words tumbled out rapid-fire until she suddenly paused, her eyes widening. She reached out to playfully tug at Lu Wei’s hair. “You actually dyed it? Told you this color would look amazing on you!”

Lu Wei shoved her away. “Pfft, is there any color that wouldn’t look good on this face?”

Wen Yan slung an arm around Lu Wei’s shoulders, nodding eagerly. “True, true. Our gorgeous Lu Wei could outshine a whole crowd even in rags.”

Chen Yushu stood silently to the side, her gaze drifting to Lu Wei’s blue-gray hair. Slowly, she felt the oxygen being squeezed from her lungs. Despite the blazing sun overhead, a cold numbness seeped through her body.

Lu Wei was beautiful and had a great personality, getting along with almost everyone. She had countless friends, and through her, Chen Yushu also met many people. But for some reason, she inexplicably disliked Wen Yan.

Wen Yan was someone Lu Wei met during a training camp in their second year of high school. At the time, Chen Yushu was still sitting in the classroom, buried in her studies. But during their occasional video calls at night, she would always hear Wen Yan’s sickly sweet, suggestive words all directed at Lu Wei, of course.

Every time the call ended, it left Chen Yushu lying awake late into the night.

Later, during summer vacation, she finally managed to convince her mother with an excuse and took a six-hour train ride to Rongning, arriving at midnight. Lu Wei came to pick her up but she wasn’t alone. Wen Yan was with her.

The joy she had carried with her vanished instantly. The three of them went to lunch together, with Lu Wei and Wen Yan sitting on one side, their gestures intimate and clingy, while Chen Yushu sat across from them, drinking an entire pot of water in silence.

By 2 p.m., she changed her ticket and took another six-hour train ride back to Nanming.

When she arrived in Nanming, it was raining. Holding the gift she had originally intended for Lu Wei, she got drenched in the rain, cried her heart out, and fell seriously ill afterward.

Back then, she still refused to believe that her feelings for Lu Wei were anything more than friendship.

Later, when Lu Wei returned from the training camp, Wen Yan gradually faded from their world, just like the memories of that night slowly forgotten.

But now, in just an instant, everything was pulled back to that moment.

Like an outsider, isolated in another world.

“Oh, by the way, we’re planning to go sing karaoke later. Wanna join?” As she spoke, Wen Yan waved in a certain direction probably at her friends.

Only then did Lu Wei turn to look at Chen Yushu. “This is Wen Yan. You’ve met her before. Want to come hang out with us?”

Wen Yan’s gaze followed Lu Wei’s, landing on Chen Yushu. The two locked eyes, and for a few seconds, the air grew heavy with unspoken tension.

At first, Chen Yushu hadn’t understood why she disliked Wen Yan. Now, she knew it was hostility.

The kind between rivals in love.

Chen Yushu looked at the two standing side by side, her throat tightening. “You guys go ahead. I’ll pass.”

Afraid of losing her composure, she turned and walked away quickly almost fleeing.

The scene ahead blurred as the crowd surged around her. She nearly bumped into people several times, muttering quick apologies before hurrying on. She blinked rapidly, but the heat and sting in her eyes wouldn’t fade. When she looked up, the sun glared painfully into her vision.

Suddenly, someone rushed past from behind, slamming into her shoulder. Chen Yushu stumbled uncontrollably to the side but just then, a hand firmly grasped her arm.

“Got no eyes? Can’t see there’s someone in front of you?”

The boy quickly turned around, bowing apologetically. “Sorry, classmate! My bad!”

Lu Wei turned to Chen Yushu. “You’re spacing out while walking? With your tiny frame, one hit and you’d fall apart.”

“How did you…?” Chen Yushu swallowed in surprise, then spoke with thinly veiled jealousy. “Didn’t you want to hang out? Why’d you come back? What a shame to miss it.”

“Haven’t you still got stuff to unpack?” Lu Wei, oblivious, pulled her to the less crowded side of the path and said earnestly, “Come on, I’ll help you.”

Chen Yushu secretly rolled her eyes and let out a quiet huff. Only then did she realize her limbs had warmed up, her body covered in a layer of sweat. She fanned herself with her hand.

Seeing this, Lu Wei stealthily turned on a small fan and, as if playing dumb, aimed it at the back of Chen Yushu’s head.

“You’re still here!” Chen Yushu frowned and immediately shot her a glare.

“Borrowing someone else’s hair dryer won’t kill you. Once I dig out the one you gave me, I’ll return it to them.”

Hearing this, Chen Yushu paused slightly. “You actually brought it with you?”

“Mhm.”

Chen Yushu let out an “oh,” the hostility around her dissipating as she couldn’t help but curl the corners of her lips.

“By the way, have all your dorm roommates arrived yet?” Lu Wei asked.

“I don’t know. No one was there when I arrived.”

Lu Wei couldn’t help but advise, “We’re in college now. Don’t just bury yourself in books. Take this chance to make some friends.”

Chen Yushu listened, then pursed her lips. “What? Am I in the way of you making friends?”

“When did I ever say that? You bookworm, just sticking to me, huh?”

As they talked, the two quickly arrived at the dorm building, climbing the stairs one floor after another.

The door to Room 4008 was slightly ajar, with faint voices drifting out. Seeing this, Chen Yushu retreated a little behind Lu Wei.

“Is this the place?” Lu Wei asked, turning her head to see Chen Yushu pressing close to her. Her heart inexplicably softened, suddenly finding this side of Chen Yushu utterly adorable. She pulled her to her side. “Come on, they’re your roommates, not some monsters. What’s there to be afraid of?”

“Ugh, mind your own business.” Chen Yushu huffed, shaking off her hand and pushing Lu Wei in front of her.

“All bark and no bite,” Lu Wei chuckled helplessly. She walked to the door, knocked three times, and called out to the people inside, “Hello, can we come in?”

The two girls in the dorm immediately stopped what they were doing and turned to look at her, waving cheerfully. “Come in! Finally, everyone’s here.”

“Hi, new roommate?” A girl with curly lamb-like hair and a cartoon hair clip brightened at the sight of Lu Wei. “You’re so pretty! So gorgeous and cool!”

“Thanks, what an adorable sweetheart. But I’m not from Room 4008 she is.” Lu Wei stepped aside, introducing like an agent, “Chen Yushu. I’m her friend, here to help her settle in.”

Two pairs of eyes turned to Chen Yushu in unison. She clenched her hands nervously but managed a smile. “Hi.”

“Hello! I’m Jiang Yuran, from Jingchuan,” the curly-haired girl said.

“Hi, I’m Ye Chiwan. Just call me Dawan.” The girl who had been squatting stood up, revealing an astonishing height at least 5’9″ with bold eyebrows and eyes, exuding a free-spirited energy. “There’s one more person who went out shopping. Her name’s Xia Ke. Probably a fellow introvert like you.”

After introductions, everyone resumed unpacking.

The center of the dorm was cluttered with luggage, leaving only a small space to stand. Chen Yushu leaned against the ladder to the bunk bed while Lu Wei stood beside her, one arm reaching past her to brace against the ladder, as if trapping her in an embrace.

Lu Wei was slightly taller, and standing like this, the sense of pressure instantly washed over Chen Yushu. Out of the corner of her eye, she glanced at the person beside her, her heart suddenly racing erratically. She quickly lowered her head, staring at her toes.

“Are there gold coins on the floor? Staring so hard.” Lu Wei ruffled the back of her head, then picked up her suitcase, maneuvering around the packages on the floor.

Chen Yushu looked up and followed, her gaze landing on Lu Wei’s hands slender, elegant, with distinct knuckles. Now gripping something heavy, the veins stood out prominently, exuding both strength and something faintly sensual.

“What are you thinking about!”

Chen Yushu blushed, quickly averted her gaze, and shook her head.

After setting down the suitcase, Lu Wei wasted no time. She deftly climbed onto the top bunk, wiped it down twice with a towel, laid out the sheets and quilt cover, took two steps down the ladder, and jumped off the bed.

“I’m such a damn homemaker. Whoever marries me is seriously lucky,” Lu Wei said, hands on her hips, slightly out of breath.

Chen Yushu immediately rolled her eyes. “Shameless.”

“Ungrateful! Who am I even helping here?”

At that moment, Ye Chiwan suddenly asked, “By the way, I heard you two say you’re friends. Did you both get into this school together?”

Lu Wei slung an arm over Chen Yushu’s shoulder and replied, “Yep. We live across the hall from each other, grew up together, and ended up applying to the same university too.”

“Oh, that’s so enviable,” Jiang Yuran chimed in immediately, her tone thick with admiration. “I wish I had a childhood sweetheart like that.”

Lu Wei quickly followed up, “Well, I can lend you mine for a few days.”

The humorous banter had the two of them laughing heartily, and in no time, Lu Wei had blended right in with them.

Chen Yushu wiped down the desk, unable to resist curling her lip. Social butterfly!

Just as Lu Wei turned her head, she caught Chen Yushu rolling her eyes sky-high.

This girl what’s she mad about now?