I Don't Want To Be Hated By Everyone. - Chapter 13

Both of them?

Something flashed across his mind so rapidly that it was entirely impossible to grasp. Cheng Shuoning let out a light laugh, finding Han Tian genuinely contradictory.

“If you have something to handle, go do it quickly. Do not waste time here with me.”

He found it increasingly difficult to distinguish whether Han Tian had truly come out of concern or was merely putting on a show, which was precisely why his attitude fluctuated so rapidly.

Han Tian, who had been furious just moments ago, felt a prickle of unease upon hearing Cheng Shuoning’s words. After calming down, he asked bizarrely, “How do you know I have something to handle?”

He had only complained about it in his mind. Why did it feel like Cheng Shuoning could see right through his thoughts? Could it be that everything he intended to do was written plainly on his face?

Han Tian touched his own face. That sensation of having his inner thoughts scrutinized made him feel exceptionally uncomfortable.

He shoved the umbrella into Cheng Shuoning’s hands. Having learned his lesson this time, he chose to retreat in order to advance. “If you do not want to leave with me, then forget it. Take the umbrella and hold it properly so you do not get drenched. As for me, it does not matter if I walk back in the rain. Nobody cares about me anyway, so it makes no difference if I catch my death out there.”

If he had said something like this in the past, Cheng Shuoning would have already felt deeply protective and would never have let him walk back in the rain. This time, however, Cheng Shuoning merely returned the umbrella and jacket, his expression entirely aloof.

Did this mean he truly did not care anymore? Why?

Looking at Cheng Shuoning as he walked back to Xu Wangzhi’s side, Han Tian felt as though he were about to be consumed by rage.

Cheng Shuoning had constantly dropped hints before that he liked him, yet now he cast him aside to walk toward someone else.

Sure enough, it was just as Cheng Meng had said before: Cheng Shuoning had been completely spoiled rotten by them and no longer knew his place.

Look at him now, refusing to even give him a decent expression in front of so many people.

“Ningning,” Han Tian stepped forward, unable to endure it any longer. He looked at Cheng Shuoning with a gaze reserved for strangers, his tone growing aggressive. “How did you become like this? I can hardly recognize you anymore.”

The wind drove the rain against his body, quickly soaking most of his hair and leaving him looking rather disheveled.

The tone of disappointment and interrogation caused Cheng Shuoning to pause slightly. His hands tightened inside his sleeves, and he said coldly, “I have never changed. The one who changed is you.”

“Where did I change?” Han Tian demanded righteously. He frantically scanned every single expression on Cheng Shuoning’s face, desperate to decipher something from them.

Cheng Shuoning gave him no further opportunity. He reached out to take the umbrella from Xu Wangzhi’s hand. “Let us leave.”

“Mm,” Xu Wangzhi said, moving the umbrella away from Cheng Shuoning’s reach. “I will hold it.”

He was shorter than Xu Wangzhi, so it was indeed better for Xu Wangzhi to hold the umbrella. Realizing this, Cheng Shuoning said nothing more. He nodded and smiled. “Sorry to trouble you.”

The chill pressed in from all directions, leaving his body incredibly cold. Yet, the heart beating inside his chest grew burning hot because of the youth’s fleeting smile. Firmly gripping the umbrella handle, Xu Wangzhi withdrew his gaze, tilted the umbrella toward his companion, and stepped into the curtain of rain with Cheng Shuoning.

Watching the two figures recede, Han Tian violently slammed his umbrella onto the ground, stomped on it several times, and kicked it away.

“If I ever pay attention to you again, I am a total idiot,” he muttered. His eyes were bloodshot, and his mind could no longer distinguish between jealousy and fury. He squeezed the words through his teeth. “You would rather leave with a desk mate you barely know than walk with me. What, am I going to eat you alive?”

His deliberately muffled words were impossible to hear clearly, but his sudden action of kicking the umbrella startled many people nearby, causing them to move away from him.

Han Tian overheard someone remarking that Cheng Shuoning and Xu Wangzhi looked very compatible from behind. Incensed, he glared at the speaker with bloodshot eyes before running out of the school gates into the pouring rain. He climbed into his family car and barked out an address.

The driver was startled, assuming Han Tian would want to go home to dry off since he was entirely drenched. “Young Master, are you not going home?”

“No,” Han Tian said, narrowing his eyes as his temper flared further. “Do not ask useless questions. Just drive over there quickly.”

The driver dared not delay any longer. He offered a quick assent and drove away.

Water dripped continuously from his hair, but Han Tian ignored it. He opened the group chat of four and began complaining endlessly.

Li Shengfei replied, “You are the idiot here. You must have done something to make him angry. Just because he has a good temper does not mean he never gets mad. I suggest you drop everything else, adopt a better attitude, and go coax him. He is very easy to please, is he not? Mocking_Expression.jpg”

Han Tian typed back, “I have lowered myself to the point of letting him step on my face to coax him. Is that still not enough? Speaking of which, what right does he have to make me expend so much time and effort? Look at how well I have treated him all these years, and look at his attitude toward me now.”

He wanted to complain further, but he suddenly discovered he had been muted. The person who muted him was none other than the administrator with the alphabet Z avatar.

Damn it.

The fury in Han Tian’s heart burned even hotter. He threw his phone aside, nearly fainting from sheer exasperation.

Cheng Meng was unexpectedly absent from the car.

Cheng Shuoning sat in the back seat and called out to Xu Wangzhi, who was about to leave. “I will have the driver take you home. You escorted me, after all.”

The youth paused in his tracks and turned his head to look over.

Through the misty drizzle, Cheng Shuoning felt that those usually emotionless eyes had softened considerably, which left him momentarily dazed.

“Thank you,” Xu Wangzhi said, closing his umbrella and sitting down beside him.

The car door shut, and the driver turned the vehicle around to depart.

Since the air conditioning was running, the chill on their bodies was quickly dispelled. Cheng Shuoning took off the jacket, folded it neatly, and placed it aside. “I will return it to you after I wash it at home.”

Xu Wangzhi replied, “Okay.”

The excessively quiet atmosphere made Cheng Shuoning steal a glance at Xu Wangzhi. His gaze suddenly landed on the sugar painting held in the other’s hand, and he spoke subconsciously, “The sugar painting is almost melting. Why don’t you throw it away? I will buy you a new one next time.”

“I am not throwing it away,” Xu Wangzhi said, looking at the rabbit on the bamboo stick. He turned the stick slowly, his gaze softening.

This was the first sugar painting Cheng Shuoning had ever given him. He wanted to preserve it properly and could not bring himself to throw it away.

Cheng Shuoning fell silent, quietly looking out the window as he pondered over what Han Tian had said earlier.

At that time, Han Tian’s inner thoughts revealed that he was waiting to see Cheng Meng, and that going late would cause him to be outdone by the other two. Those words sounded precisely as though he were pursuing Cheng Meng.

As the interior of the car fell still, only the chaotic pattering of the rain outside remained, making one feel somewhat restless.

Xu Wangzhi turned his head slightly to look at the person beside him.

The youth rested his cheek against his hand, staring out the window without a word. His long, curled eyelashes blinked up and down, and his expression appeared somewhat detached.

The streetlights from outside cast their glow into the car, blurring his features and creating a fierce urge to draw closer to get a better look.

Xu Wangzhi took the initiative to speak, his deep voice sounding like a casual inquiry, “Does your foot still hurt?”

“It does not hurt anymore,” Cheng Shuoning said, snapping out of his thoughts. He curved his eyes into a smile. “It is just still a bit swollen, so walking is somewhat uncomfortable. It should be fine in a few days.”

Xu Wangzhi offered a quiet reply and spoke no further, though his gaze never left Cheng Shuoning from beginning to end.

The car stopped at the entrance of the residential estate ten minutes later. Xu Wangzhi opened his umbrella and stepped out of the vehicle. As he went to close the door, he looked at the person inside and said, “Thank you.”

Cheng Shuoning waved his hand and smiled. “No need for thanks. See you tomorrow.”

Xu Wangzhi closed the car door and entered the residential area.

The car started up again. Cheng Shuoning withdrew his gaze and asked the driver, “Where is Cheng Meng?”

The driver replied, “I do not know. I did not see the young master today. He might have left with someone else.”

Cheng Meng was just like him, possessing very few friends, so it was highly unlikely for him to leave with anyone else.

Cheng Shuoning used his phone to send a message to Li Shengfei: “Where are you?”

Li Shengfei replied instantly, “I just got home. My phone died on the way, so I only just saw that you called me, Ningning. Is something the matter? Have you reached home yet?”

The message was followed by a mirror selfie.

Cheng Shuoning typed, “It is nothing, I am home. There is a problem I do not know how to solve. Can I video call you so you can explain it to me?”

Li Shengfei replied, “I have already entered the bathroom to take a shower. You can send a photo over instead, Ningning. If you do not mind, a video call is fine too. Blushing_Expression.jpg”

Cheng Shuoning stared down at the phone screen for a long while before typing again, “No need. Go ahead and take your shower. I suddenly figured it out just now.”

Li Shengfei sent a head-pat emoji.

Li Shengfei added, “Ningning is truly amazing.”

Cheng Shuoning pressed his lips together slightly and did not reply further.

” ”

From that day onward, Han Tian never approached Cheng Shuoning again, entering a state of complete cold war with him.

Even when they crossed paths on the road, he merely spared a glance, his face devoid of expression.

The two passed each other by, one entirely indifferent, the other harboring a faint irritation.

Han Tian had intended to use the silent treatment to let Cheng Shuoning experience what it was like to lose his devotion, expecting him to take the initiative to seek reconciliation. He had never anticipated that Cheng Shuoning would be so resolute in ignoring him.

He felt that Cheng Shuoning was thoroughly heartless and high-maintenance, spending several days trying to figure out exactly how he had displeased him.

Was it because their secret meeting with Cheng Meng at the cinema had been discovered? If it had truly been discovered, Cheng Shuoning would not be acting like this now.

Or had the ambiguous relationship between himself and Cheng Meng been exposed?

After turning it over in his mind without any conclusion, Han Tian scratched his hair in frustration when his eyes suddenly caught the date.

Tomorrow was Cheng Shuoning’s eighteenth birthday.

An idea struck him. He found Cheng Shuoning’s chat box and attempted to send a message. It went through, meaning he had not been blocked.

Cheng Shuoning’s personality was simply like that; even if he thoroughly disliked someone, he would never act with total absolute finality.

Believing he understood the other boy perfectly, Han Tian could not help but smile.

That was it. He still had a chance. Could he not simply use this birthday to coax Cheng Shuoning back into good graces? After all, he had no desire to sever ties with Cheng Shuoning completely just yet.

Furthermore, did Cheng Shuoning not enjoy his various subtle hints? He could reluctantly accept them for now.

Thinking of this, the smile on his face grew wider.

“Ningning, you celebrate your birthday, can I go attend it?”

“I know you dislike me, but I just want to go over to deliver a gift and see you.”

“I do not want to miss your eighteenth coming-of-age ceremony.”

“We agreed before that I would definitely be present for your birthday.”

“I prepared the gift a very long time ago.”

” ”

Having just finished his homework, Cheng Shuoning picked up his phone. Looking at those seemingly heartfelt messages, he replied expressionlessly with two words, “Up to you.”

Even if he refused, Han Tian would still show up.

Cheng Shuoning tapped into the class group chat to check the announcements. Upon returning to the main screen, his eyes landed on Xu Wangzhi’s avatar.

After a moment of hesitation, he sent a friend request. To his surprise, the other party accepted instantly.

Cheng Shuoning sent an animated sticker of a rabbit waving hello.

Xu Wangzhi replied, “.”

What did a period mean? Was it an automatic reply?

Cheng Shuoning tilted his head in thought, changing his approach to send an emoticon, “Good evening, Student Xu, qwq.”

The other side fell silent, leaving the message unanswered for a long time.

It was only when Cheng Shuoning felt drowsy and prepared to sleep that another message finally arrived.

Xu Wangzhi typed, “Good night.”

Cheng Shuoning woke up slightly. He narrowed his eyes to stare at the screen, and upon reading what Xu Wangzhi wrote, he replied with a smile, “Good night. Sweet_Dreams_Expression.jpg”

The other party’s avatar turned gray, signaling he had logged off.

Staring at the emoticon and stickers on the screen, the corners of Xu Wangzhi’s lips tilted upward, his dark eyes filled with a thoroughly gentle warmth.

Adorable.

So adorable that he wished he could go see him this very instant.

His fingers tapped on the settings menu. Without a shred of hesitation, he typed out the words “Little Rabbit” and confirmed the change.

His contact alias, which had initially been “Why is homework never-ending,” was now changed to “Little Rabbit.”

Xu Wangzhi’s gaze grew increasingly tender. He slowly lifted his eyes to look at the carefully protected sugar painting resting inside a bottle nearby, alongside the yogurt bottle and green umbrella kept safely in a box. His eyes darkened, and his prominent throat cleared.

He wondered when he would finally be able to draw closer to the little rabbit he loved so much.