The Premeditated Seductress Childhood Friend - Chapter 11

Chapter 11: Spoiled Rotten

Xu Qingyu spoke with utter seriousness, “At the very least, you should say thank you.”

Song Yixi was so exasperated she laughed.

“I’m supposed to say thank you to you?”

Those eighty photos had kept her from closing her eyes for days and nights. She had nearly stormed over to Xu Qingyu’s house to ask exactly what that birthday gift was supposed to mean.

But she couldn’t ask. She couldn’t let Xu Qingyu know she had reacted so strongly to those pictures.

They’re just artistic photos, she told herself. Don’t act like you’ve never seen the world.

Unwilling to continue the conversation, Song Yixi unbuckled her seatbelt. “Get out. I’ll drive.”

Xu Qingyu slowly reached for her own seatbelt buckle. “Have you touched a car since getting your license?”

“No.”

Song Yixi pushed her door open and stepped out. She walked around to the driver’s side, opening the door with a gentler motion than usual.

“Don’t worry. Anything even remotely related to sports or physical activity—I have a natural talent for it.”

Xu Qingyu looked up at her and smiled. “Is driving related to sports?”

Song Yixi rested one hand on the roof of the car.

“Stepping on the gas, hitting the brakes—it all uses your legs.”

“Fair enough.”

Xu Qingyu lowered her head and stepped out of the car. Song Yixi kept her hand raised, shielding Xu Qingyu’s head from the sun. Every step Xu Qingyu took, Song Yixi followed.

When they reached the passenger side, Xu Qingyu suddenly stopped and turned back to look at Song Yixi.

The afternoon sun fell across her, her eyes curving into crescents. Bathed in the light, she gave Song Yixi a rare, genuine smile.

“These next four years of university… it looks like I’ll have to trouble you again.”

Staring at those gentle features, Song Yixi momentarily lost herself.

Xu Qingyu tilted her head and arched an eyebrow. Snapping out of her daze, Song Yixi hurriedly opened the car door. “W-we aren’t even in the same department. Shenzhen University is huge; we’ll be lucky if we even run into each other.”

“Alright.”

Xu Qingyu got in.

Song Yixi closed the door. Through the window, she took two extra lingering looks at Xu Qingyu before walking away. She climbed into the driver’s seat and drove Xu Qingyu back to the apartment.

It was her first time officially on the road, but she drove steadily, ensuring Xu Qingyu wasn’t jostled.

When they reached the building, Xu Qingyu critiqued, “You really do have talent.”

Song Yixi triumphantly pulled out the key and handed it back. “I told you, you just didn’t believe me.”

“I believe you.”

Xu Qingyu accepted the keys slowly. “If you want to drive next time, just tell me.”

Song Yixi shook her head. “I won’t. Finding parking is too much trouble. I’m going to save up for a little electric scooter.”

She had it all planned out. By next semester, the seniors would be graduating; she’d hunt for a second-hand one. She could use it until her own graduation and then sell it—it would save a lot of money.

Xu Qingyu said, “That’s good. How much are you short? I’ll give it to you.”

“Who wants your money? A used one is only a few hundred bucks. It’s not like I can’t afford it.”

Song Yixi patted the new phone in her bag and got out. Xu Qingyu buying her such an expensive phone was already embarrassing enough. She really didn’t understand how, as a fellow student, Xu Qingyu was so much wealthier than her.

Xu Qingyu walked upstairs with her. “Don’t buy second-hand. I don’t like it.”

Song Yixi frowned. “I’m the one buying the bike, not you.”

Xu Qingyu acted a bit haughty. “I’m not riding on a second-hand seat.”

Song Yixi choked, momentarily unable to find a comeback. If she bought a bike, would she give Xu Qingyu a ride?

…She definitely would.

Giving up on the second-hand idea, Song Yixi checked the price of new scooters online. She’d have to save for at least three months.

…

Back home, Song Yixi lay on her bed, replaying everything that happened in the alley.

The more she thought, the more she pursed her lips, remembering the taste of kissing Xu Qingyu.

So soft. So sweet.

She covered her face and let out a little laugh.

But the laughter didn’t last long before she remembered Xu Qingyu mentioning a “next time.” She had forgotten to ask when the next time would be.

Song Yixi scrambled up, wanting to go ask Xu Qingyu for clarification, but she retreated the moment she reached her bedroom door.

“No… asking about that directly is too…”

Fidgeting restlessly, she paced around her room. She felt uneasy asking, and uneasy not asking. Finally, she leaned against the back of the door, her forehead resting against the cool wood chilled by the AC, which helped her clear her head.

Xu Qingyu’s lip was still bruised; she should at least wait for her to recover.

With a sigh, she opened the door, intending to call Yu Wei for dinner. Her phone rang suddenly. Turning back, she saw it was her mother and answered.

“Hello? What’s up?”

“I’m near your school. Come have dinner with me.”

Judging by the tone, her mother was harboring a lot of resentment.

Song Yixi guessed the reason in a second. “Did you fight with Dad again?”

She unboxed her new phone, backing up her data while talking. “I have self-study tonight. I have to head back right after eating.”

Her mother said, “Then call Qingyu and have her come with us.”

“No, she’s busy.”

The thought of Xu Qingyu made Song Yixi feel guilty. “It’s not good to let her in on your petty squabbles with Dad. I’ll take the night off to stay with you, okay?”

Her mother reluctantly agreed. “Fine, fine. I’ll send you the address.”

After hanging up, Song Yixi swapped her SIM card into the new phone. With a satisfying click, the phone folded to the size of her palm. She was delighted.

Carrying her new phone, she headed out happily.

Her mother had booked a small restaurant. By the time Song Yixi arrived, the table was already full of dishes. Song Yixi buried her head in her rice and started eating. Her mother sat there with a long face, recounting her father’s “crimes.”

“I asked him to go shopping with me, and what does he do? He’s only thinking about his project. A colleague calls, and he just leaves. He doesn’t have me in his heart at all. If he did, how could he not notice I changed my lipstick shade?”

Song Yixi glanced at her mom while secretly texting her dad under the table: Location Hurry up and buy some flowers to come apologize when you’re done, or you’re dead.

Her mother wiped away mock tears. “He wasn’t like this before.”

Song Yixi sighed silently. She had been hearing this since she was a child.

In her youth, her mother had been a basketball player—the star of the school team, tall and athletic. Her father was a classic “science and engineering” guy who studied IT. He was usually a bit of a dense blockhead, but he fell in love with her mother at first sight after watching a single game.

At first, her mother felt no spark, but her father was persistent. He chased her for two or three years. Even after getting her contact info, he didn’t talk much; he just provided whatever she needed. When she got injured playing ball, he took care of her day and night in the hospital.

Touched, her mother had dragged him straight to the registration office to get married.

After the wedding, her mother opened a beauty salon. Her father invested in it, and it grew quite large with many employees. Her mother had a relatively leisurely life, so whenever she was bored, she liked to find trouble for her father. Her father, not being a man of many words, would apologize every time to make her happy.

Song Yixi always felt that her mother’s spoiled nature was entirely her father’s doing.

Sometimes, she envied Xu Qingyu’s family. Both of her parents were reserved and never fought, so Xu Qingyu never had to mediate.

Once Song Yixi was full and her mother had finished her rant, the elder woman concluded: “In the future, whatever you do, don’t find someone like your father. Too boring.”

Song Yixi said helplessly, “I don’t like boring people anyway.”

Like Xu Qingyu, she thought.

The moment the name popped into her head, Song Yixi’s pupils shrank.

We’re talking about finding a partner… why the hell am I thinking about Xu Qingyu?