My Upperclassman Wants me to confess my feelings - Chapter 26

Chapter 26: Coincidence

In the classroom, Ding Ming and Yang Xing also received a share of the blueberry chestnut cake.

However, Yang Xing was green with envy over the hand warmer and hot milk tea in Xia Xiaohan’s hands. He bit his plastic fork, watching longingly as Xiaohan took a bite of cake followed by a sip of milk tea.

Zhou Rui took off his scarf and wrapped it around Xia Xiaohan’s neck.

Setting down her fork, Xiaohan grabbed Zhou Rui’s hand and said, “Look! I’m not—”

Cold…

Mid-sentence, feeling the temperature difference between their hands, Xiaohan didn’t have the heart to finish the sentence. Compared to hers, Zhou Rui’s hand was significantly warmer.

As Zhou Rui tied a knot in the scarf, Xiaohan tugged at it and said grumpily, “Brother, why are you copying my mom and tying it so tight?”

“It’s because you never wear a scarf, claiming it tickles your chin and interferes with your homework!” Zhou Rui said helplessly.

Adjusting the scarf, Xiaohan felt a bit aggrieved. “I only didn’t bring it because I thought there would be air conditioning.”

Following her gaze, Zhou Rui saw the broken AC unit. He stood up and walked over. “Let me take a look.”

While he was tinkering with the cabinet AC, Yang Xing leaned in and whispered to Xiaohan, “Your brother is amazing! He even knows how to fix air conditioners. I wish my mom had given me a brother like that.”

Xiaohan couldn’t help but laugh. “If she had another one, you would be the big brother.”

Since Zhou Rui had introduced himself when he arrived, Yang Xing was curious. “Your brother’s surname is Zhou. Does he take after your father?”

Xiaohan had been smiling during the first half of the sentence, but her expression shifted at the second half. She clenched her palms and turned her head away. “My brother is the child of Auntie Chen Lan from across the hall.”

Yang Xing, being simple-minded, failed to notice the change in her expression and let out a cheeky “Oh,” adding, “So you’re childhood sweethearts!”

He was about to ask more when Ding Ming stepped hard on his foot. The pain was so sharp that Yang Xing’s eyes nearly popped out; he had to cover his mouth to keep from screaming.

Yang Xing slowly turned his head, glaring at Ding Ming. “Kid, what are you doing?”

Withdrawing his foot as if nothing happened, Ding Ming apologized calmly, “Sorry, I accidentally stepped on you.”

Yang Xing nearly spat blood in anger, pointing at Ding Ming while questioning him word by word: “You’re sitting perfectly still; how do you ‘accidentally’ step on me? And step that hard?”

With a ding, the air conditioner restarted. The three of them looked up simultaneously.

Zhou Rui stood before the AC, tested the warm air with his hand, and smiled at them. “Fixed!”

Xiaohan immediately ran over, looking up to feel the warm breeze. She asked in surprise, “How do you know how to fix ACs now?”

“This unit was just jammed; it wasn’t hard. It didn’t even need tools.”

But Xiaohan was still puzzled. “But Brother, you didn’t know how to do this before?”

Zhou Rui patted her head. “Studying abroad isn’t easy. When things break at home, hiring a repairman is very expensive. For common, simple problems, I can usually figure out how to fix them myself.”

“Is studying abroad that hard? You should come back to work later then,” Xiaohan said, her heart aching for him.

The phone in his pocket vibrated. Zhou Rui took it out, and his eyes instantly lit up. He quickly put the phone away and said to Xiaohan, “Sister contacted me. I’m going to go see her. If she’s free, let’s all have dinner tonight. I’ll introduce you to her.”

“Mm, go on then, hurry!” Xiaohan pushed Zhou Rui toward the door.

…

As the door opened and closed, a gust of cold air rushed in, making Yang Xing shiver.

While Xiaohan had been talking to Zhou Rui, Ding Ming had quietly told Yang Xing that Xiaohan came from a single-parent family. The usually thoughtless Yang Xing immediately felt he had been offensive. He vowed to remember Ding Ming’s words and never bring it up again.

Instead, Yang Xing asked about Zhou Rui. “Since you and your brother get along so well, why isn’t he staying for lunch?”

Xiaohan looked very happy. “My brother is pursuing a Senior at our school. She probably just contacted him. Lunch isn’t urgent; having dinner together tonight is just as good.”

“Is that so?” Yang Xing watched Xiaohan; seeing she was genuinely happy, he tucked his worries away. But he was still curious. “Who does your brother like? Maybe we know her?”

Picking up her pen again, Xiaohan shook her head. “I don’t know. I think my brother is afraid I’ll bother her, so he hasn’t told me who she is.”

“Your brother is really considerate of that Senior,” Ding Ming remarked, his impression of Zhou Rui improving.

Yang Xing nodded in agreement. “No kidding! If the girl I liked was at my sister’s school, I’d be holding my sister’s head down and making her help me chase my crush!”

As the words left his mouth, Yang Xing suddenly felt the atmosphere change. Looking left and right, he saw both Xiaohan and Ding Ming staring at him.

Xiaohan said seriously, “Matters of the heart can’t be forced!”

“True, true.” Yang Xing suddenly thought of Bei Wenxin and felt a wave of despondency.

Ding Ming patted his shoulder. “There are plenty more fish in the sea.”

Yang Xing felt a bit of comfort. He glanced at Xiaohan and, on a sudden impulse, blurted out, “Xiaohan, how about you be my girlfriend?”

With a pffft, Xiaohan sprayed a mouthful of milk tea out, saying huffily, “Yang Xing! Stop joking! I already have someone I like!”

“Do you have someone you like too?” Yang Xing was shocked and pressed further. “Who? Who is it? Who’s so bold to keep digging away at the girls from our Math department?”

Xiaohan didn’t want to say; she hadn’t officially confessed to her Senior yet.

While Yang Xing continued his noisy questioning, Ding Ming heard the sound of high heels outside. He suddenly spoke up, “Senior Cheng Wu is here!”

The two immediately fell silent, and Xiaohan stared directly at the door. Three seconds later, the door was pushed open, and Cheng Wu appeared.

She was wearing a thick down jacket, a scarf, and a hat, with snowflakes clinging to her head and clothes. She was carrying two paper bags.

Upon entering, Cheng Wu noticed identical paper bags on the desk and asked in confusion, “Did you go off-campus?”

Cheng Wu took out a small cake it was also a blueberry chestnut cake.

“I didn’t go. My brother came back and brought it for me,” Xiaohan explained, then looked at the cake Cheng Wu set down. “Don’t seniors avoid sweets?”

Cheng Wu explained, “A friend gave this to me. He just returned from abroad and bought me Lava Egg Custard too. I remembered you were still here studying, and since I don’t eat sweets, I brought them over.”

Xiaohan’s brother gave her a blueberry chestnut cake. Zhou Rui gave her a blueberry chestnut cake. Is this a coincidence?

Furthermore, Xiaohan’s brother is abroad, and Zhou Rui is abroad.

“By the way, what is your brother’s name…” Cheng Wu was about to ask when her phone rang. It was Luo Xu.

“Cheng Wu, the table is booked. Everyone is here except you.”

“Alright, I’m coming.” Cheng Wu hung up. Without time for details, she said goodbye to Xiaohan and the others and hurried away.

Watching her Senior’s departing back, Xiaohan felt a bit let down. Sitting down slowly, she stared at the milk tea and cake her Senior had brought, and a thought suddenly occurred to her.

The friend who sent this cake and milk tea… it couldn’t be the same person who sent the necklace, could it?

Xiaohan stood up abruptly. She had to go and see!

Beside her, Yang Xing’s hand jerked in surprise, leaving a long ink streak on his paper. “Xiaohan, why did you stand up so suddenly?”

Ding Ming was worried; as soon as Senior Cheng Wu left, Xiaohan’s mood had shifted. Xiaohan looked at him apologetically and sat back down, shaking her head. “It’s nothing.”

…

At the entrance of a Szechuan restaurant in Hanjie, Luo Xu looked at the two people walking over and winked at Zhou Rui. “Only Cheng Wu could get you to pick someone up personally.”

“Stop joking!” Zhou Rui said with a serious face.

Luo Xu shrugged and gave Cheng Wu a helpless smile. See? He still likes you.

Their booked table was by the window. Several people were already seated on both sides of the long table. Except for Zhou Rui, who had been abroad, everyone else was from the University City area. Cheng Wu was one of the most famous “campus beauties” of Jiang University; everyone there knew her, had interacted with her before, and were all friends.

This was a welcome-back banquet for Zhou Rui, so the conversation naturally revolved around his experiences abroad.

Halfway through the meal, Cheng Wu received a message from Xiaohan: Senior, have you eaten?

Sitting in the cafeteria, Xiaohan nervously looked at her phone. She soon received a reply: Eating now. How about you?

Xiaohan immediately smiled: I’m eating too.

After sending the message, she immediately wanted to ask who she was with. But after typing just the first word, Xiaohan’s hand stopped. Would asking so directly be inappropriate?

In the restaurant, Cheng Wu saw WeChat displaying “The other party is typing,” but no message arrived for a long time. Does Xiaohan have something she wants to say?

While she was thinking, Luo Xu suddenly asked, “Sister Cheng, do you have a boyfriend? Why are you staring at your phone during a reunion?”

“Do you think I would?” Cheng Wu smiled and put away her phone. She picked up her chopsticks but felt something was off. Setting them down again, she excused herself and walked further away to make a call.

In the cafeteria, Xiaohan was still agonizing when she saw a call from her Senior. She was so startled she nearly knocked over her tray. Ding Ming caught it just in time and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, nothing. I’m going to take this call.” Xiaohan hurried away and answered.

Cheng Wu’s voice came through: “Xiaohan, is something the matter on your end?”

Xiaohan gripped the phone with both hands, stuttering for a long time without a complete sentence. Finally, Cheng Wu guessed her meaning and asked, “Did you want to ask who I’m eating with?”

“No, no!” Xiaohan denied it hastily. Remembering her brother was going to introduce her to “that sister” tonight, she said, “I wanted to ask if you could have dinner with me tonight, is that okay?”

Thinking she hadn’t cleared it with her brother yet, she didn’t mention him or the other girl. Cheng Wu, thinking Xiaohan was jealous, smiled and agreed.

After a few more words, Cheng Wu hung up and returned. Just as she sat down, Zhou Rui poured her a glass of red wine. “This is the Château Léoville-Las Cases you like. My aunt gave it to me.”

Thinking of Xiaohan, Cheng Wu smiled, took a sip, and said, “I used to like wine, but now I prefer milk tea.”

Compared to the long aftertaste of red wine, she seemed to prefer the “within-reach” sweetness of milk tea now. It was sweet, fragrant, and soft.

The group at the table saw the relaxation in Cheng Wu’s eyes—they had never seen her smile so genuinely from the heart. The others looked at Zhou Rui with pity; it seemed Cheng Wu already had someone she liked.

Zhou Rui tried his best to remain calm, but the disappointment in his eyes was impossible to hide. The group continued eating and drinking, and to accommodate Zhou Rui, everyone talked about their respective university lives.

Lunch didn’t finish until two in the afternoon. Cheng Wu had things to do in her department, so she said goodbye to Zhou Rui to leave. Zhou Rui remembered his promise to Xiaohan and chased after her. “Cheng Wu, wait.”

“Is there something else?” Cheng Wu turned back. Zhou Rui stood there for a long time without speaking.

Noticing the umbrella in his hand, Cheng Wu smiled to break the silence. “Are you worried I don’t have an umbrella? Don’t worry, I have one.” She pulled a black umbrella with white dots from her bag.

“No!” Zhou Rui gathered his courage. “I wanted to invite you to dinner alone tonight, and also let you—”

“No need, we already ate at noon,” Cheng Wu rejected him directly. “I already have plans tonight, with the person I like.”

“Okay.” The strength left Zhou Rui’s body instantly. He mentally finished his unspoken sentence: …and let you meet my sister. She’s very cute; you’d definitely like her.

Holding her umbrella, Cheng Wu left the restaurant and merged into the crowd. It was starting to snow again.

Zhou Rui looked at the main street; there were many people, and many couples. He gave a bitter laugh and turned to call Xiaohan. “Xiaohan, I’m sorry. That sister already has someone she likes. We probably can’t have dinner tonight.”

Hearing this, Xiaohan became anxious. “Then tell me who she is! I’ll help you! If you stayed in the country, you could definitely win her over!”

“I can’t, Xiaohan,” Zhou Rui shook his head. His friends came over to pat his shoulder and tell him to be strong. Luo Xu said a few words to Zhou Rui and went out to see some friends off.

In the classroom, Xiaohan was pacing in circles. “Why can’t you? Brother, tell me who she is. Let me help you, okay?” For the past ten years, if her brother hadn’t taken care of her, she might not have gone to school or had so many friends. Her brother finally liked someone; how could he give up so easily!

Zhou Rui’s voice was firm: “Xiaohan, live your own life. Don’t worry about my business.”

He had intended to explain that his choice to go abroad was because he had failed to pursue Cheng Wu, but on the other end, Xiaohan hastily said, “I’m coming to find you right now!” and hung up.

Xiaohan didn’t have time to pack. She told Ding Ming and ran out of the classroom. Hurrying downstairs, she stepped on the marble steps covered in a thin layer of snow and fell hard on her bottom. But she ignored the pain, scrambled up, and ran toward the school gates.

It took about twenty minutes for Xiaohan to reach the nearest gate. The snow was getting heavier, covering her. Standing by the road, she kept waving for a taxi, but there were no empty ones. She was frantic, so she started running toward Hanjie while looking for a cab.

Fortunately, a car stopped. Xiaohan scrambled to run back toward it, but her foot slipped, and she fell face-first onto the ground.

The car door opened and Cheng Wu stepped out. Hearing the noise, she looked up, rushed forward, and helped her up. “Xiaohan, what happened?”