That Girl Who Skipped Class — You're In Big Trouble! - Chapter 13

Chapter 13

“Xuán Xuán, I’m handing her over to you. Yíng Yíng and I have some very, very, very important things to discuss.” Zhāng Xiǎoxiǎo reached out her long arm and closed the door, leaving Xiāo Xuán and An Qianyáng alone. The atmosphere in the corridor immediately became cold and quiet.

An Qianyáng ignored Xiāo Xuán and walked towards the exit on her own. Before she had taken a few steps, Xiāo Xuán grabbed her. She tried hard to control her facial expression, looking at Xiāo Xuán as if nothing was wrong.

Xiāo Xuán glanced at her phone: “It’s very late now. It’s not safe for you to go back. Sleep at my place.” A commanding tone.

Command? This hateful woman had just crushed her sensitive, burning heart underfoot, and now, acting like nothing happened, she dared to order her with such confidence! Did she think An Qianyáng was a monkey to be played with? An Qianyáng was angry and anxious, and tears started welling up in her eyes again: “Let go of me, it’s none of your business.” She tried to break free from the hand Xiāo Xuán was gripping, but not only did she fail to break free, the hand held tighter.

“I’m your teacher. What if something happens to you tonight?” Xiāo Xuán used her other hand to pull An Qianyáng’s arm, dragging her backward. The two were locked in a stalemate.

“Professor Xiāo, if something happens to me, it has absolutely nothing to do with you.” An Qianyáng replied while pulling Xiāo Xuán toward her with all her might. Xiāo Xuán was equally strong. The two were deadlocked at the corridor corner. Xiāo Xuán freed a hand and took out her phone, panting: “Fine, I’ll call your class monitor and have her get two guys to come and take you back.”

An Qianyáng immediately felt guilty and panicked. Calling the monitor would be disastrous; the whole department would know she was alone with Xiāo Xuán late at night in a hotel: “You’re not allowed to call!”

“Then come with me quietly.”

In the hotel room, An Qianyáng awkwardly curled up on the large bed, facing a round faux sandalwood door. Beyond the door was an outer parlor, and through the white gauze curtain, she could see the faint silhouette of the moon. The sound of a hairdryer came from the bathroom, followed shortly by the sound of hands patting a face. She felt utterly confused inside. The bathroom door opened with a snap. An Qianyáng quickly picked up her phone next to the pillow and pretended to look at it. Soon, she felt a warm body leaning against her from behind, and the bed dipped slightly. Seeing no movement from the person behind her for a long time, she slowly turned her head and saw a sharp chin. Xiāo Xuán’s clear voice, accompanied by her fragrance, drifted over: “Did you draw this?” An Qianyáng turned to look and realized she had subconsciously opened her phone’s photo album. It showed the sketch from their Wūzhèn trip today, still unfinished.

“It’s quite beautiful, very simple yet full of life. I think I can see the very ordinary state of mind of the person casting the net from the boat,” Xiāo Xuán said, lying on her side, propping up her chin with one hand, her eyes slightly narrowed, her gaze deep and elegant. “Ān Ān, you have great insight and talent, you’re just not serious.”

Hearing her work criticized by a layman, An Qianyáng finally retorted after nearly half an hour of awkward cold shoulder: “How am I not serious? You teach computer science, how would you know anything about this?”

“I may not understand art, but the fundamental principles of all industries are the same,” Xiāo Xuán pointed to the upper part of the drawing. “These patches of mist are too heavy, and these trees are too loose. Because you are too careless and your drawing is too rough, the whole picture looks muddy upon close inspection. It won’t stand up to repeated viewing, and that’s because the foundation is weak. A painting that stands the test of time is like a good mobile application; its code must be concise and rigorous.”

Xiāo Xuán’s words secretly startled An Qianyáng, and she felt a trace of admiration for her unconsciously. Her previous resentment and grievance were temporarily set aside, but she still retorted stubbornly: “Yes, yes, yes, the professor’s words are always right.”

Seeing no response from Xiāo Xuán, An Qianyáng’s bravado slowly faded. She murmured, “I want to take back what I said about you tonight. Zhāng Xiǎoxiǎo is a very nice person.”

“Mhm, it’s alright,” Xiāo Xuán smiled. A faint warmth radiated from the corners of her eyes and brows, usually so cold. “Can I look at some of your other drawings?”

An Qianyáng nodded and flipped to a drawing from her childhood. The drawing was set inside a car, where a middle-aged driver was talking with his mouth open to a middle-aged woman with short, ear-length hair in the front seat. The atmosphere was cheerful: “This is my dad, and this is Ā Mù. My dad was very handsome when he was young. Ā Mù is our nanny. They are the dearest people to me.”

The next picture was a man sitting and smoking in a dark red room: “This is Chéng Fēi, my dad’s subordinate. I drew this when I was in Sydney, I think it was a high school assignment.”

An Qianyáng heard Xiāo Xuán’s tired and faint reply next to her ear: “You drew him quite ugly.”

“Huh? Is it that ugly? He just looks like that…” An Qianyáng said, and for a long time, she heard no reply. She turned her head to look and saw that the person next to her had fallen asleep. Xiāo Xuán’s hand was lightly resting on her waist, her dark hair covered a small part of her face, and her slender neck and delicate collarbone were exposed beneath the silk black slip dress. Her cold and gorgeous aura was completely gone, replaced by a lovable vulnerability.

The summer night breeze blew in, and the room became a bit cool. An Qianyáng gently got out of bed and closed the window. Turning around, she saw a large pile of teaching materials on the bedside table by the window, with a fountain pen resting on a notebook filled with dense handwriting.

Perhaps Xiāo Xuán was right. She really knew nothing about her. Was her affection for her also terrifyingly shallow? An Qianyáng looked back at the person sleeping next to her with a frown, pulled the blanket up over her, and gently held her.