My Upperclassman Wants me to confess my feelings - Chapter 24

Chapter 24: Matters of the Heart

“Sen Senior, I…” Xia Xiaohan clenched her palms tight. Staring at the person mere inches away, she opened her mouth for a long time before several stumbling words managed to pop out.

The dark rosemary scent on Cheng Wu was like an all-pervading dense net, wrapping her tight, contracting and binding, pressing down until she couldn’t breathe.

Heat surged through her body, her hair stood on end, and she felt as if she were immersed in rising steam. Xia Xiaohan bit her lower lip hard, involuntarily standing on her tiptoes, desperately trying to shrink backward.

An unfamiliar joy swept over her like a tsunami, drowning her instantly.

The surroundings suddenly fell into silence. Xia Xiaohan felt like a whale sinking to the bottom of the sea, deeply addicted to the depths.

The Senior before her grew further and further away, until everything before her eyes turned pitch black…

“Xiaohan!” Cheng Wu lowered her hand to support the back of Xiaohan’s neck, staring blankly at the person whose face was as red as blood.

Xiaohan’s expression relaxed in an instant, her breathing gradually stabilized, and her eyelids slowly closed.

She had actually fainted.

Cheng Wu couldn’t help but chuckle. She pulled the girl into her arms, resting her chin on Xiaohan’s shoulder, greedily sniffing the scent of her beloved.

After a while, Cheng Wu heard footsteps approaching. She turned her head and saw Ding Ming.

Ding Ming, having just walked up, looked at the two embracing under the tree and blinked. What is the situation here?

“Come over and help. Xiaohan fainted.” Cheng Wu let go, supporting Xiaohan as she slowly sat her down.

The flush on Xiaohan’s face had faded quite a bit, but it was still strikingly red.

Ding Ming hurried over. For the first time, he felt a spark of curiosity toward something other than studying, but with Cheng Wu there, he could only suppress it.

…

Back at the dormitory entrance, boys were normally not allowed in. Cheng Wu spoke to the student on duty at the front desk, and then let Ding Ming carry Xiaohan in on his back.

Once inside the dorm, Xiaohan was actually already awake, but she didn’t dare open her eyes, so she could only continue to “be fainted.”

Ding Ming actually knew Xiaohan was awake, but he thought Cheng Wu didn’t know. He was very concerned about the scene he had witnessed in the birch forest. Therefore, he didn’t speak, pretending he didn’t know she was awake.

Cheng Wu helped Xiaohan sit down, letting her lean over the desk as if sleeping.

She knew Xiaohan was awake, and she also knew that Ding Ming thought she didn’t know.

At the door, Ningning appeared holding snacks. Just as she was about to enter, her hand holding the potato chips stopped, and her eyes widened as she stared at Ding Ming. “How did you get in here?”

Ding Ming glanced at Xiaohan, said goodbye to Cheng Wu, gave a brief explanation to Ningning, and hurried away.

“Sister Wu! What’s going on?” The soul of gossip burned fiercely in Ningning’s heart. She ran up behind Xiaohan, her gaze shifting back and forth between the two.

Cheng Wu looked down at Xiaohan. The slight trembling of the girl’s eyelashes was far too obvious, and the smile at the corners of Cheng Wu’s lips deepened.

Glancing back and seeing Ningning about to burst with questions, Cheng Wu stepped out first, saying, “Take care of Xiaohan. I’m going to the bathroom.”

Watching Cheng Wu departing back, Ningning was filled with regret. She turned around only to find Xiaohan with her eyes open, staring at her motionlessly, which gave her a fright.

Just as Ningning was about to speak, Xiaohan suddenly stood up and covered her mouth, saying in an excited yet cautious whisper: “I’m fine. If a Senior comes out, tell her I went to the department building for self-study.”

The sound of the bathroom door handle came from inside. Xiaohan’s spine stiffened in shock; she hurriedly let go and ran out of the dorm as if fleeing for her life.

Ningning was about to chase after her, but was called back by Cheng Wu behind her: “Don’t go looking for her yet. Let her have some space to calm down.”

“Sister Wu?” Ningning turned around and found Cheng Wu standing in front of the full-length mirror. Looking at herself in the mirror and touching the corner of her lips, Cheng Wu was actually smiling to herself.

What is happening? What happened between Sister Wu and Xiaohan?

Connecting this to the words just now, Ningning felt that her long-standing suspicions might actually be true!

…

On a bench by the lake, Xiaohan held her face in her hands, staring blankly at the water. Her Senior’s words kept echoing in her mind.

“I like you. Do you like me?”

That unfamiliar joy surged in her heart again. Xiaohan’s face instantly turned red with shyness. She covered her eyes, pretending that passersby couldn’t see her.

Her Senior’s image kept surfacing in her mind; she remembered every single word her Senior had ever said. Her memory was excellent, and she remembered everything related to her Senior clearly.

Recalling every interaction, Xiaohan became more and more certain that she liked her Senior too.

“Junior Xiaohan?”

Li Ya’s voice suddenly came from behind. Xiaohan stood up abruptly and turned around. Just as she was about to speak, she quickly touched her face—the temperature was normal, so she was relieved.

Xiaohan composed her emotions, returning to her usual self. “Senior Li Ya, is something the matter?”

Seeing the change in her expression but nothing unusual, Li Ya smiled. “It’s nothing. I saw you alone by the lake looking like you had something on your mind, so I came over to ask.”

“I don’t have anything on my mind! Nothing at all!”

As soon as she said it, Xiaohan regretted it. Such a hasty denial was far too deliberate.

The atmosphere grew awkward. Seeing Xiaohan’s stiff face, Li Ya said considerately, “It’s good that nothing’s wrong. I have things to do, so I’ll be going now.”

Xiaohan watched her leave with great haste. “Goodbye, Senior.”

…

After rounding a corner from that path, Li Ya saw Cheng Wu standing by the roadside, holding her phone in one hand, seemingly not noticing her.

Li Ya was about to say hello, but Cheng Wu casually put away her phone and looked over, saying seriously: “Li Ya, I hope you stay away from Xiaohan.”

“You really like Xia Xiaohan?” Li Ya was slightly shocked. As far as she knew, Cheng Wu was supposed to be unable to forget her ex-girlfriend. It was said that coming to Jiangcheng for university was partly for that reason.

Cheng Wu’s gaze swept over Li Ya’s eyes, seeing through her thoughts at a glance.

Taking a few steps forward, Cheng Wu threatened in a low voice: “My eldest uncle admires you, but if he knew you were using him to pry into my personal affairs, that exchange student spot at Imperial College might just fly away.”

“You’re being too serious. How could Vice-Chancellor Cheng make things difficult for a junior like me?” Li Ya smiled on the surface, but she was actually a bit worried.

Having discovered Cheng Wu’s secret from the forum earlier, Li Ya had been extremely surprised. After much thought, the only people who truly understood Cheng Wu’s past—other than Zhao Ru, who was her former classmate was Cheng Wu’s uncle, the Vice-Chancellor of Jiang University.

Originally, Cheng Wu was supposed to run for the school student union. But after discovering that Fan Jia had cheated on his behalf, Cheng Wu withdrew from the union without hesitation. Li Ya hadn’t intended to run at the time, but Vice-Chancellor Cheng favored her and recommended her. Since then, Li Ya had remained in contact with him.

Cheng Wu was beautiful, a top student, smart, and capable; Li Ya was the same. In the Finance Department, her grades had always been number one. She won awards every time she participated in a competition. Even without Vice-Chancellor Cheng’s favor, Li Ya could look down on most people.

But even so, Li Ya still felt a faint sense of resentment when facing Cheng Wu. She wondered countless times: If Cheng Wu were in the Finance Department, could I still remain number one?

The Cheng Wu before her was just so confident and powerful. Cheng Wu tilted her lips, her eyes revealing a faint indifference. “Li Ya, don’t forget, the reason Vice-Chancellor Cheng likes you is that you’re more perceptive than Fan Jia. He wouldn’t like it if you used your personal curiosity to dig for information about me.”

Despite being so bluntly exposed, and despite her myriad resentments, Li Ya admitted it frankly: “Yes. The reason I liked Fan Jia was that I felt I wasn’t inferior to you in any way, and that he should like me instead. Now it seems I have lost to you after all.”

Cheng Wu smiled. “Being able to admit it means you haven’t actually lost. As for Fan Jia… he’s not worth your affection.”

“I’ll think about it. Maybe I should put all my mind into my studies.” Li Ya was considering the issue seriously.

“Take your time. Xiaohan is mine. You and I are very alike, and I’m afraid Xiaohan might fall for someone else, so stay away from her.” The only person Cheng Wu ever cared about was Xia Xiaohan.

Li Ya chuckled but nodded. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

…

For the following period of time, Xia Xiaohan desperately avoided Cheng Wu. It wasn’t that she didn’t like her Senior, but rather because she didn’t know how to speak.

The dormitory was empty. Xia Xiaohan closed the door behind her, put down her textbook, and walked to her Senior’s full-length mirror.

Looking at herself in the mirror, Xiaohan was very distressed. “How should I respond to seniors?”

“Say ‘I like you too’?”

Xiaohan turned away. “No, no! Definitely not! That’s too casual!”

Turning back to the mirror, Xiaohan had a face like a bitter melon, filled with anxiety. “How am I supposed to say it?!”

After thinking blankly for a long time, she suddenly thought of her brother!

But just as she picked up her phone, Xiaohan stopped abruptly: Brother hasn’t been able to win over Sister even after chasing her for so long. He definitely won’t work!

After thinking seriously for a long time, a person suddenly appeared in her mind. She hurriedly made a call. Before the first ring ended, the person on the other end picked up. “Xiaohan? What’s wrong?”

Xiaohan was about to speak but stopped, asking cautiously: “Is anyone around you? I have something I want to consult you about.”

“Consult?” Sun Wenze immediately waved to the girl beside him, signaling her to leave.

The girl, hearing a female voice on the phone, gritted her teeth but had no choice but to get up and leave. However, she remembered Sun Wenze calling the girl on the phone “Xiaohan.” She was going to find out who was trying to seduce her boyfriend!

Sun Wenze didn’t notice his current girlfriend’s mood, focusing on Xiaohan’s stammering words. After about three minutes, he barely managed to understand her meaning.

“So, you have someone you like, and you know they like you too. You want to confess, but you can’t open your mouth when you see them?”

Xiaohan wanted to explain, but Sun Wenze was right, so she could only give a silent “mm.”

Upon receiving a positive answer, Sun Wenze stood up abruptly. “Do you really have someone you like? Which brat is it? No, no! Which handsome guy? Does Sister Cheng know?”

Xiaohan originally wanted to say it was her Senior, but thinking of how good the relationship between her Senior and Sun Wenze was, she changed her story: “It’s a boy from our department.”

“Ding Ming?” Sun Wenze asked in confusion.

Xiaohan quickly denied it. “It’s not him, it’s not him! Don’t guess wildly! Anyway, will you help me?”