Keep My First Kiss Safe For Me - Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Fan Yue stuffed an entire mango pancake into her mouth. With her cheeks bulging, she asked Xie Yanyan, “Why were you at the small playground this morning?”

“Just passing by,” Xie Yanyan said flatly. In truth, she had habitually looked out the window during the break and saw Fan Yue being dragged out by Xiao Qian with a face full of reluctance. Worried, she had followed them.

Fan Yue gave a small “oh” and didn’t press further. Instead, she asked, “Did you already know he was that kind of person? Is that why you went to see him?”

Xie Yanyan put down her spoon of sago soup. Seeing that Fan Yue seemed normal, she said, “He tried to pursue me before, and now he’s pursuing you. I thought he was unreliable, so I went to warn him.”

“Tsk, tsk. Scumbag! Dog!” Xiao Qian treated the last pancake on her plate as if it were Yu Mingxuan, stabbing it ruthlessly with her small fork until the cream inside exploded.

Who needs men when you have best friends and sisters? This thought popped into Fan Yue’s head out of nowhere. She raised her juice glass toward the two people who had worried so much over her love life and said, “Sorry for worrying you guys. I’m really fine. From now on, I only have eyes for Brother Ning Yuan. I won’t even spare a glance for any other man!”

Xiao Qian raised her milk tea cup to join her. “Exactly! Brother Ning Yuan is enough!”

Xie Yanyan also picked up her water cup, her lips twitching into a speechless smirk. “Childish…”

…

The next day was Saturday. Fan Yue sat straight at her desk, staring at her new hairstyle in the mirror. Since she was a child, the shortest she had ever worn her hair was a bob with straight bangs. It was her first time cutting it this short, and she wasn’t quite used to the empty feeling at the nape of her neck.

When she got home yesterday evening, Fan Shicheng was stunned. Xie Rong nervously asked if something had upset her. Fan Yue repeated her declaration that she cut her hair to show her resolve to study hard, and only then did they half-believingly accept it.

Having stared at the mirror enough, Fan Yue moved her gaze back to the textbook on her desk. She had been sitting there stiffly for two hours, but she hadn’t turned many pages. She had, however, gone to the bathroom twice and drank water three times.

The weather was so nice today. The summer sun was warm but not harsh, and the breeze made the tree branches outside the window sway gently. It was the perfect weather for shopping, watching TV, or playing on her phone—basically, anything other than reading. It felt like a waste.

Determined to study hard, Fan Yue’s butt finally shifted. She sneaked open her bedroom door, but just as she stepped toward the sofa, she heard Xie Yanyan’s voice. “Bathroom again?”

Caught red-handed trying to watch TV, Fan Yue let out a guilty “mm.” Her foot, originally aimed at the sofa, made a sharp right-angle turn toward the bathroom. Fan Yue sat on the toilet—without even pulling down her pants—feeling utterly depressed. Studying has given me a frequent urge to urinate.

When she came out, she stopped by the kitchen to grab an apple. She gave it a quick rinse and took a huge bite, only to glance down incidentally.

“AAAAHHH!”

Fan Yue immediately spat out the apple, threw the rest of it away, and grabbed Xie Yanyan, hiding in her arms while stomping her feet in terror. “Mom! Mom!”

Xie Yanyan, pushed back a step by the impact, looked at the apple on the floor. She could faintly see a worm wiggling and “greeting” her.

“Don’t just go around calling people ‘Mom’,” Xie Yanyan said with a hint of a laugh, though her body was tense and straight.

Fan Yue didn’t dare lift her head, clinging to her tightly. “A worm! Was it a whole one or half? Did I bite it?!”

Xie Yanyan teased her on purpose. “Looks like only half is left.”

“Yue!” (Gagging sound)

Seeing that Fan Yue was actually about to throw up, Xie Yanyan patted her comfortingly. “You didn’t bite it. I’m lying.”

Fan Yue looked up to glare at her, then let go and scrambled behind the sofa at top speed, hugging a pillow. She pointed at the apple on the floor and shouted, “Go pick it up! Hurry!”

Xie Yanyan walked over slowly, picked it up, and even inspected it. Fan Yue’s skin crawled with goosebumps as she screamed, “Throw it away! Throw it away!” Once the apple was in the trash, Fan Yue nagged her to go downstairs immediately to take the garbage out.

Terrified by the worm, Fan Yue completely gave up on reading and grabbed her phone to report everything to Xiao Qian.

Little Moon: OMG! I just found a worm in my apple! Princess Qianqian: High protein! Little Moon: Disgusting [Vomit]. Luckily Xie Yanyan picked it up and tossed it. Princess Qianqian: Tsk, tsk. She’s got some serious “boyfriend energy” (boyfriend-style strength). So much security!

Fan Yue (Question mark): Boyfriend energy? Is that how you describe a girl?

Xiao Qian (Indifferent): Yeah! She’s tall, cool, has a strong aura, looks great, and has good grades. If Xie Yanyan were a guy, I’d definitely fall for her!

Xie Yanyan happened to open the door and come back from the trash run. Fan Yue looked back at her. At home, she dressed casually—her long wavy hair was down, her face was clean without makeup, and her loose T-shirt and home shorts couldn’t hide her good figure. Her exposed legs were long, thin, and straight…

Fan Yue stared at her, unable to look away. If Xie Yanyan were a boy, would I like her? She thought blankly, but found no answer.

Seeing someone dazing off again, Xie Yanyan went into the kitchen and puttered around for a bit. She came out with a plate of sliced apple chunks and set it on the coffee table. Fan Yue had a Pavlovian response to the sight of apples and immediately curled up. Xie Yanyan picked up a piece with a fruit fork. Seeing the apple piece approaching, Fan Yue asked in a panic, “What are you doing?”

“Eating, obviously. Didn’t you want an apple?”

Fan Yue shook her head like a rattle. “I’m not eating it. I’m never eating an apple again in my life!”

The more she reacted this way, the more Xie Yanyan wanted to tease her. She pushed the apple piece right to her lips. Fan Yue instinctively backed away. The two of them chased and dodged until Fan Yue had nowhere left to retreat. She quickly pleaded, “I appreciate it! But I’m not eating it!”

“I worked hard to slice this for you. Don’t waste my kind intentions.”

“I…” Before Fan Yue could finish, Xie Yanyan pinched her chin, forcing her mouth open to stuff a piece of apple inside. Under the “try spitting it out if you dare” gaze of the other girl, Fan Yue chewed a few times and swallowed.

Is this the so-called “boyfriend energy”? Then I’d rather not have a boyfriend like this, Fan Yue thought.

By the afternoon, Fan Yue was still curled on the sofa playing on her phone. Fan Shicheng couldn’t take it anymore and asked loudly on purpose, “Who was it that said last night they were going to study with their whole heart and soul and improve by twenty ranks for the finals?”

Fan Xinghang played along with his dad. “My big brother said that.”

“Say that again if you have the guts!” Fan Yue jumped off the sofa and roared at the little boy. Ever since he saw her new haircut, he had started calling her “Big Brother.”

If the little brother doesn’t listen, you beat him until he does. Fan Yue chased Fan Xinghang around, and the little chubby boy shouted while running, “Spare me, Big Brother! Spare me!”

Fan Shicheng, overwhelmed by the noise, covered his ears and yelled, “Both of you, go study! Whoever makes the biggest progress on the finals gets a 1,000-yuan prize!”

Money talks. The bickering siblings both stopped instantly and retreated to their rooms in perfect synchronization.

Although they didn’t lack for food or clothes, the temptation of 1,000 yuan in cash was huge for high school and elementary students who only got a fixed allowance. Sitting back at her desk, Fan Yue felt as if her pen were guided by spirits. She could almost see Brother Ning Yuan’s photo book waving at her.

After sitting honestly for the entire afternoon, Fan Yue returned to her desk right after dinner. For the first time in her life, she experienced the state of “ignoring the world to focus on the classics.”

She flipped through the books, but when it came to the actual problems, she was still clueless. Fan Yue bit her pen and ruffled her short hair into a mess. Finally, she grabbed her exercise book and walked out.

Right next door was Xie Yanyan’s room. Fan Yue hesitated before knocking. A few seconds later, the door opened. Xie Yanyan looked at her. “What?”

“This,” Fan Yue held up the exercise book, looking quite embarrassed. “How do you do this?”

Xie Yanyan took the book, scanned it, stepped back into her room, and said, “Come in.”

Fan Yue gave an “oh” and followed. In the few steps to the desk, she quickly scanned the room. It was her first time inside since Xie Yanyan moved in. The layout was similar to her old room; even the messy crayon scribbles Fan Xinghang had made on the walls as a kid didn’t affect the room’s cleanliness.

Xie Yanyan spread the book on the desk, picked up a pen, and quickly wrote down two formulas. She looked up at Fan Yue. “Try it?”

Fan Yue focused and plugged the numbers into the formulas. A minute later, she raised her eyebrows. “I solved it!”

“Teachable.” Xie Yanyan asked, “What else don’t you understand?”

Fan Yue flipped to the next page.

“Circle everything you don’t know.” After saying that, Xie Yanyan walked out. Fan Yue didn’t know where she went, so she lowered her head and circled the problems. When the door opened again, Xie Yanyan was carrying a chair from the living room. She set it down and looked at the circled questions.

Fan Yue sat on the chair, but her eyes wouldn’t stay still. She couldn’t help but look for that mysterious box again, but after a scan, she saw no sign of it. She turned back to look at Xie Yanyan, who was focusing on the problems. Fan Yue hadn’t really noticed her studying before—she had a bit of an “intellectual beauty” vibe…

“Look here.” This time, Xie Yanyan didn’t give her the formulas directly. Instead, she opened the book to the corresponding knowledge points and let her read first. Fan Yue’s brain worked well enough for direct substitution, but if there was a slight twist, she was lost. She needed the step-by-step guidance.

Unknowingly, the TV sound in the living room stopped. The lights went out. The adults and the kid were all asleep. Fan Yue gained a lot from tonight’s session; she finally understood things she previously only half-knew. Suddenly, studying didn’t seem so painful.

Seeing how late it was, Fan Yue packed up her book and said a solemn “thank you” to Xie Yanyan. She secretly changed her mind: Brother Ning Yuan’s photo book could wait; a person must show gratitude.

“If I get that 1,000-yuan prize, I’ll give you half,” Fan Yue added.

Xie Yanyan gave a nonchalant smile. “No need. I’m not short on money.”

Right, she forgot she was a “rich little woman” who could earn her own money. Still, Fan Yue insisted, “Then I’ll use the prize money to buy you a gift.”

“Okay.” Xie Yanyan didn’t refuse again.

Fan Yue stood up to move the chair back, but Xie Yanyan pressed her down. “Leave it here. Come ask me whenever you have questions.”

“Mm.” Fan Yue nodded. “Get some sleep. Goodnight.”

Xie Yanyan gave a very light smile. “Goodnight.”