It Seems Like My Senior Seems to Like Me - Chapter 89

Holding the fifteen-dollar ice cream cone like a sacred offering, Ye Wanjia carefully stretched out her tongue and gave the castle-shaped tip a lick.

Cold. But right after came threads of sweetness that spread out, not too light, not too strong, not bland, not cloying—just right.

“Delicious!”

Her grape-like eyes lit up, rolling bright and lively as she pushed the ice cream toward Pei Suye’s lips. “Here, try it.”

Pei Suye had never been particularly fond of sweets. The only reason she’d eaten more of them these past few years was because of Ye Wanjia—falling over and over again into her honey trap of “just taste it.”

So, she leaned forward, folded up the brim of her wide sun hat, and bit into the little rooftop of the castle-shaped cone.

“Mhm, very sweet.”

She wasn’t a dessert connoisseur, but she could tell good from bad. This was definitely a whole different league from the supermarket bargain-brand scoops.

She was about to ask what flavor that star-shaped sprinkle on Ye Wanjia’s bite had been when suddenly, soft lips pressed against hers.

Chu!

Her vision swayed, her lips tingled, and by the time she came back to herself, the thief holding the ice cream already wore a triumphant grin.

“Not as sweet as you.”

Ye Wanjia said this, then strode off toward Fisherman’s Wharf, hair fluttering like willow leaves in the breeze.

Pei Suye froze for a moment, then broke into a smile, shaking her head as she chased after her. Little Leaf is getting naughtier, she thought.

But that was all she thought—because deep down, from inside out, she was enjoying every bit of that naughtiness.

Further in at Fisherman’s Wharf was a sea lion hangout.

Dozens of plump sea lions sprawled lazily across the rocks, sunbathing in total comfort.

“Wow! So cute!” Ye Wanjia ran over, quickly claiming a spot at the empty railing. She turned, smiling brightly. “Quick! Take a picture for me.”

Pei Suye chuckled and pulled out her phone. The blonde photographer following behind them also rushed up, adjusting angles to fit both of them into the frame.

It was supposed to be the most ordinary tourist shot. Pei Suye focused the lens, thinking nothing unusual, simply placing Ye Wanjia on the right side and the sea lions on the left. To make it better, she even counted down for her:

“Okay, look at the camera. Three, two, one—”

The moment she pressed the shutter, a sea lion behind them suddenly roared with fury.

“Arrrooooo—!”

The sound was thunderous, shaking the pier like an atomic blast of sound waves.

Ye Wanjia, back to the sea lions, jumped in fright, nearly dropping her ice cream.

Click!

The shutter went off at that exact moment.

Checking the album, the picture showed Ye Wanjia blurred from the scare—eyes squeezed shut, neck shrunk in, back hunched, and worst of all, her lips twisted by nerves into the shape of a chimpanzee’s pout.

“Delete it! Delete it!”

Ye Wanjia lunged for the phone, but Pei Suye held it high out of reach.

The two were normally the same height, but today Ye Wanjia wore flat white sneakers, while Pei Suye had paired her sundress with four-inch heels. After some tugging, Ye Wanjia couldn’t reach, no matter how she jumped.

“Pei Suye! Give it back!”

She stamped her foot in frustration. Worse, Pei Suye wasn’t just refusing—she jumped up too every time Ye Wanjia jumped, ensuring she could never catch the phone.

“You’re impossible! Ugh, give it!”

After several desperate leaps, she managed to brush it once, but still couldn’t snatch it away.

Teasing her like this, Pei Suye’s eyes drifted down to the ice cream melting in her hand, and she gently reminded:

“One more jump and your ice cream’s going to fall.”

“Ah!”

Ye Wanjia snapped back to her senses, looking down at her cone. Sure enough, the pink castle she’d gnawed into had already collapsed, leaning fifteen degrees to the side.

She quickly bent her head, gobbling down the melting part, muttering through mouthfuls of ice cream:

“This is all your fault! I almost wasted a hundred-yuan ice cream!”

Sulking while frantically saving her dessert, her flustered effort looked so cute that Pei Suye burst out laughing.

She rarely laughed like that. Even when truly happy with Ye Wanjia, at most she’d smile wide, showing teeth and letting out a low chuckle. Almost never did she laugh like this—mouth wide open, head tilted back, a clear, ringing laugh.

When the laughter finally subsided and Ye Wanjia’s cone was saved, Pei Suye pulled out a tissue, wiping a drip of ice cream off her blouse, and soothed:

“How could I ever delete such a cute picture?”

“Cute? Where?” Ye Wanjia’s curls bristled like a little lion’s mane. “My eyes, my mouth—totally like a chimpanzee!”

“And what’s wrong with chimps? Aren’t they cute?” Pei Suye countered, even pulling out professional authority. “Classmate Ye Wanjia, as a veterinary grad student, you really shouldn’t badmouth animals.”

“You—you—you—!” Ye Wanjia stomped again. Every day she wrote novels where the leads bickered with razor-sharp wit, yet in real life, she was always getting played by this wolf in sheep’s clothing!

“I’m not talking to you anymore!”

Too infuriating! Always with these flimsy-sounding but impossible-to-refute arguments!

And worst of all, that calm, steady look in her eyes—watching, smiling at her like that!

Not elegant at all. Not attractive at all.

…Okay, still attractive. Especially in that graceful dress, her aura was like an orchid blooming from a crack in stone—pure, noble, untouchable.

Wait, wasn’t she supposed to be cursing her? Why was she praising her again?

See? Even in her own head, she couldn’t win against her.

Infuriating. Absolutely infuriating!

Just then, a familiar voice came from behind:

“Excuse me?”

It was the blonde photographer who had been trailing them.

“I want to show you the pictures I just took.”

So Ye Wanjia, begrudgingly letting Pei Suye off the hook for now, turned to look at the camera screen.

The moment her eyes landed, all her stormy emotions stilled—like a reef after a typhoon, bathed in the gentle glow of dawn.

In the photo, Pei Suye held her phone high, while Ye Wanjia had an ice cream in one hand, the other hand reaching up, knees bent, about to leap. She was looking at the phone; Pei Suye was looking at her. Not quite meeting eyes, yet both their gazes curved with laughter.

Because of the playful struggle, Pei Suye’s skirt flared in ripples. The raised phone caught a glint of sunlight, as if she were holding a bright star. Amid the teasing, there was a touch of the divine.

“That’s so great!” the photographer exclaimed in awe, rubbing a finger over the captured light. “God did a favor!”

The joy of the moment was sealed inside the photo. Though still, one could almost hear their laughter echoing.

Ye Wanjia’s heart settled like an autumn feather, drifting down to rest on a mirror-like lake, spreading out ripples of warmth.

Her arched brows relaxed, and inside, she too rippled like that lake.

“Nice photo, thank you.”

In the end, they didn’t pay the photographer a “service fee,” only asked her to send them the pictures once developed.

“So nice.”

Ye Wanjia licked the sweetness left on her lips, the taste spreading all the way to her heart. “Hey, Suye, what if she’s one of those hidden masters? Wouldn’t we go viral?”

“Hidden master?” Pei Suye asked.

“Yeah, like someone who seems ordinary but is actually super powerful. If she’s some famous photographer, and our picture gets entered into a contest and wins—wouldn’t we become internet celebrities?”

Pei Suye thought for a moment, then, knowing her well, saw through the thought behind it:

“So then you could be a model, take jobs, and make money?”

“Exactly!”

Indeed, Ye Wanjia dreamed of fortune daily. At the mention of money, her eyes sparkled as she latched onto Pei Suye’s arm. “You really get me, hehe.”

“Of course. After all, we’ve known each other long enough.” Pei Suye opened her palm, threading her fingers with hers. “Then, can you guess what I’m thinking now?”

“Hmm…” Ye Wanjia pursed her lips, glanced up at the clouds, and grinned. “You’re thinking about how many bottles of chili sauce to buy in Chinatown later.”

“…Heh.”

Caught right on the mark, Pei Suye shook her head with fondness. “How did you know?”

“You mentioned it before we left,” Ye Wanjia said proudly, waggling her brows. “See? I remember everything you say.”

“Mhm. Then how many bottles do you think we should get?”

“Let’s just buy a whole jar.”

“Not worried we won’t finish it?”

“If not, we’ll throw a party.”

Chatting as they strolled, they followed the map toward Chinatown.

Just then, someone running fast brushed against Ye Wanjia, nearly knocking her down. Behind them came a thunderous shout:

“Police! Don’t move!”

And immediately after—

Bang!

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