I Heard You Only See Me as a Friend - Chapter 13

By the time Feng Jin withdrew, Kong Liyan was already knocking on the door from outside.

“What are you two doing?” Kong Liyan asked in confusion. “Why lock the washroom door? It’s not like it’s a toilet stall.”

Kong Liyan paused, then asked: “…Wan, did you just let out a cry? Are you okay?”

And it sounded… quite nice, enough to make one’s imagination run wild.

Ji Wan’s entire body stiffened, his mind momentarily tying itself into knots.

“It’s nothing,” Feng Jin said, squeezing the back of Ji Wan’s neck reassuringly. He helped straighten Ji Wan’s collar to cover the tooth marks. “I’ll go talk to him. You take a moment to recover.”

By the time Ji Wan showered and stepped out, the scent of Feng Jin’s pheromones on his body had completely dissipated. After Feng Jin’s cover-up, Kong Liyan appeared to have noticed nothing, simply assuming that soap suds from washing his face had gotten into Ji Wan’s eyes, causing him to act strangely.

However, when it came time to sleep that night, Kong Liyan who usually slept head-to-head with Ji Wan and often sprawled out in all directions was uncharacteristically bashful, lying down in a perfectly disciplined manner.

After the holiday ended and they returned to the classroom, the homeroom teacher announced two pieces of news. One was a post-holiday exam to help everyone review their knowledge. The other was the upcoming Sports Meet.

“Woo-hoo!” The students below immediately broke into a commotion, the gloom caused by the news of another exam instantly swept away.

The teacher said with a beaming smile: “Don’t get happy too early. Observe closely during the Sports Meet. After it’s over, you’ll need to submit an 800-word essay titled The Most Memorable Incident at the Sports Meet!”

Everyone: “…”

Old Class, you have such a cruel heart.

One exam after another began and ended. The teachers started grading the papers at top speed, and the results were released quickly.

Ji Wan and Feng Jin had different strengths; their scores in every subject were close, with each taking the lead in different areas. But when the total score came out, Feng Jin was one point higher than Ji Wan this time. The two of them ranked first and second in the grade, respectively, creating a massive gap between them and everyone else.

“Let’s congratulate Feng Jin on reclaiming first place,” the teacher announced the total rankings and led the applause. “I hope you keep up the good work, and I also hope Ji Wan takes first place back next time.”

Someone clapped twice but stopped upon sensing the atmosphere wasn’t right.

With the two “Big Shots” clashing, why were they joining the fray? What if Ji Wan thought they weren’t welcoming him or had a problem with him, and then he ended up hating them?

Boo-hoo, please no.

Kong Liyan, sitting closest to Ji Wan and Feng Jin, immediately shrunk into himself, hiding behind his books to avoid becoming an eyesore and being caught in the crossfire.

Ji Wan leaned on his desk, his forehead resting on the back of his hand. He swallowed uncomfortably.

Regarding the grades, he didn’t feel much of anything. His and Feng Jin’s levels were similar, and their total scores fluctuated within a few points it was entirely normal for either of them to be first or second.

However, he had caught a bit of a cold these past few days. He could feel a slight pain in his throat, making him disinclined to speak.

Ji Wan listened intently through two classes. He focused during the lessons and leaned down to rest during the breaks. After a math class, Ji Wan’s chair was suddenly kicked lightly from behind.

…The only person who could kick his chair from directly behind him was Feng Jin.

Ji Wan turned his head and saw that Feng Jin, who had taken first place this time, didn’t have a shred of joy or pride on his face. Instead, he was frowning slightly, looking quite unhappy.

Ji Wan expressed his inquiry with a look, causing Feng Jin’s frown to deepen. Feng Jin took a hand out of his pocket and tapped a problem in his workbook: “Asking you about a question.”

It was a math problem. After Ji Wan looked at it, a giant question mark appeared over his head.

The math problem Feng Jin was asking about wasn’t exactly “simple,” but at Feng Jin’s level, solving it was definitely not an issue.

“This… you know how to do it. Stop messing around.” Ji Wan was helpless, not knowing why Feng Jin was suddenly making conversation out of nothing. He shook his head, turned back around, and leaned on his desk, pulling his clothes tighter around him.

He would go to the school clinic after school to buy some medicine; he couldn’t let the cold get worse.

Ji Wan didn’t look back, so he didn’t know that Feng Jin stayed behind him with a furrowed brow, watching him for a long time.

“Brother Feng, what are you doing? Ji Wan must be in a bad mood right now; don’t go provoking him,” Kong Liyan whispered. “He definitely finds you annoying right now.”

“Finds me… annoying?” Feng Jin’s face went dark.

“It’s normal, right? Weren’t you annoyed when you got second place last time?” Kong Liyan said.

Feng Jin went silent. Kong Liyan watched from the side, a certain sentence left unsaid.

Since Ji Wan is unhappy, go coax him and make him happy. As his rival, Feng Jin’s coaxing would probably be most effective.

But… the moment he imagined the scene of Feng Jin trying to cheer someone up, Kong Liyan immediately shivered.

Forget it, forget it. That’s too terrifying. How could that happen? I’ll just wait until we get back to the dorm to cheer Ji Wan up.

Ji Wan was completely unaware of what was happening behind him. When the next class ended, he heard a clear thud as something was placed on his desk.

Ji Wan looked up and saw a bottle of a drink, still emitting cold mist, sitting on his desk. A hand rested on the bottle. Following the hand up, Ji Wan saw Feng Jin, who was frowning and pursing his lips.

Ji Wan: “?”

Feng Jin didn’t explain what he was doing. He left the drink on Ji Wan’s desk and walked back to his own seat.

Ji Wan: “For me?”

Feng Jin didn’t even lift his head from his book: “Who else?”

Ji Wan’s head was full of question marks. He thanked Feng Jin and placed the drink on a corner of his desk.

The drink was too cold; he couldn’t drink it now, lest it worsen his cold.

However, before Ji Wan could lean back down to rest, his chair was kicked again.

Ji Wan turned back helplessly, only to see that Feng Jin looked even more displeased. With a somber face, Feng Jin asked: “Are you angry with me?”

Ji Wan: “??”

What is Feng Jin talking about?

In a flash of insight, linking the drink to the exam scores, Ji Wan understood.

Feng Jin likely thought he was in a bad mood because he got second place, so he specifically bought him a drink.

Ji Wan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry: “No, what is there to be angry about? Winning and losing is common for a soldier. I have a bit of a cold and don’t want to drink anything icy.”

Feng Jin’s expression improved visibly. He let out a cold snort and mocked: “Your constitution is really weak.”

Ji Wan responded casually and turned back to seize the time to rest. Yet before he had been down for two minutes, there was another thud as something was tossed onto his desk.

Ji Wan looked up again and found two packets of “Xiao Chai Hu” granules (herbal medicine for colds).

Ji Wan: “?”

Ji Wan instinctively looked back at Feng Jin. Feng Jin was sitting in his seat with his arms crossed, while Kong Liyan, sitting next to him, looked utterly dumbfounded.

“What? I went to the homeroom teacher to get them for you. Do you expect me to brew them for you too?” Feng Jin said irritably. “Don’t even think about it. Impossible.”

“No, no, I didn’t think that.” Ji Wan controlled his expression, poured the granules into his cup, and stood up to get hot water.

Halfway through adding the water, Ji Wan couldn’t help but let the corners of his mouth curve upward.

The Sports Meet lasted two days, and everyone was expected to participate. Both Feng Jin and Kong Liyan were forced to sign up for several difficult events, while Ji Wan, shown “tender pity” by everyone, was only assigned the long jump.

Ji Wan had just finished signing the list when he was summoned to the office by the homeroom teacher.

“Ji Wan, according to our school’s tradition, every class must select one student to be a broadcaster and read manuscripts for a few hours. I think you’re very suitable. What do you think?”

Ji Wan didn’t have much of an objection. Rather than being forced to compete in multiple events, he preferred to spend a few hours reading.

The day of the Sports Meet soon arrived. As the leader, Feng Jin’s appearance during the class entry triggered enthusiastic cheering. Ji Wan saw many people pulling out their phones to take photos and videos of him.

These people would often shift their phone’s angle toward him while filming; Ji Wan acted as if he didn’t notice. Once the opening ceremony ended and the events began in an orderly fashion, Ji Wan headed to the broadcasting booth since his event wasn’t up yet.

Ji Wan’s assigned task was to read the “cheering notes” sent in by various classes while the students competed. A pile of notes, as numerous as snowflakes, sat on the desk. Ji Wan read through them one by one.

It had to be said that as a campus legend, the notes specifically written for Feng Jin were countless.

Ji Wan read the content of a note with a stoic face: “Classmate Feng Jin, your vigorous posture is like a soaring eagle. Keep it up, we will always support you!”

The broadcasting booth was at a high point, offering a panoramic view of everything below.

Ji Wan only had to look up and into the distance to see Feng Jin standing in the class assembly area.

Ji Wan determinedly did not look up. He continued with a stoic face, switching to another note: “Fly on, Classmate Feng Jin, I’ll be chasing hard behind you!”

Ji Wan: “…”

You really can’t be a ‘campus legend’ without thick skin. Someone thin-skinned would probably be so embarrassed by those words they’d shut down on the spot.

On the field, Feng Jin looked up toward the person who was broadcasting.

He had never liked these occasions, nor did he like hearing those confession-like words. In previous years, he would always wish for the broadcasting equipment to break.

However, since Ji Wan’s voice was good, when Ji Wan read them out, those words seemed to become a bit more pleasant to the ear. This year, it was fine if the equipment didn’t break.

Ji Wan switched to a new manuscript. This time, the subject of the cheering finally changed: “Keep going, Classmate Kong Liyan! Your vibrant smile is so confident. We look forward to you taking first place. Love you!”

Kong Liyan stood next to Feng Jin and listened, laughing: “Hahaha, did you hear that? Ji Wan said he loves me!”

Feng Jin: “…Tsk.”

Why hasn’t this damn broadcasting equipment broken yet?