Try Saying You Don't Like It - Chapter 58

Chapter 58

He Xinglan suddenly became motivated.

She paid close attention in class. Even if she didn’t fully understand, she kept her spirits up, struggling to stay focused, and even specially bought Americano black coffee. She would take a sip when she felt drowsy, the bitterness contorting her face.

During breaks, she would seize the proximity advantage and ask Yin Qiuman about the things she didn’t understand.

Yin Qiuman didn’t mind the trouble and patiently explained things to He Xinglan. Consequently, Xiao Hua, who used to snag a little of Yin Qiuman’s break time, now found it hard to even get near her.

Because even after school, He Xinglan followed Yin Qiuman around like clockwork, sticking so closely that one might mistake He Xinglan and Yin Qiuman for best friends who had been close for years.

Finally, Xiao Hua managed to catch Yin Qiuman alone and immediately approached her.

“Manman, I feel like I haven’t seen you in ages,” Xiao Hua lamented with a hint of grievance.

She was supposed to be Yin Qiuman’s good friend.

But now… everyone knew that if you saw He Xinglan, the person next to her was sure to be Yin Qiuman.

Their relationship was so close…

“Manman, aren’t you being a little too good to He Xinglan?” Xiao Hua pouted, relaying what she had heard to Yin Qiuman: “Everyone is saying that your relationship with He Xinglan is so close, it’s like you’re one person. They’re even guessing if you two are dating…”

Of course, this rumor was somewhat alarming, so it was only circulating in a small circle, and Xiao Hua had only overheard it unintentionally.

“Dating?” Yin Qiuman, who had been walking without stopping, finally paused when she heard this word. She frowned tightly and looked at Xiao Hua beside her.

“He Xinglan and I… look like we’re dating?”

Yin Qiuman didn’t immediately ask where this absurd rumor came from. Instead, she was concerned about something else?

Xiao Hua was stunned for a moment. She had already prepared to explain where she had heard such talk, and to offer her own suggestion that Yin Qiuman should keep some distance from He Xinglan.

After all, He Xinglan was a low achiever.

But she hadn’t expected Yin Qiuman to ask that.

Snapping back to reality, Xiao Hua shook her head.

“Dating is between a boy and a girl. Girls and girls are clearly just good friends, best friends. They’re just talking nonsense about dating.”

But He Xinglan didn’t say that. Listening to Xiao Hua, Yin Qiuman recalled He Xinglan saying that love could exist between girls.

She had even said she read it in a book…

Thinking of this, Yin Qiuman looked at Xiao Hua and asked: “Do you know where there are…”

Yin Qiuman’s voice trailed off mid-sentence.

“Hmm? What?” Xiao Hua looked at Yin Qiuman in confusion.

“Nothing.”

Back home, Yin Qiuman opened the family computer.

Yin Huaishan and Leng Ci had long bought a computer for Yin Qiuman because she did a lot of practice problems, and online resources were more abundant, which helped Yin Qiuman a lot. Moreover, in her parents’ eyes, Yin Qiuman was never the type to lose her ambition to play.

But this time, Yin Qiuman’s use of the computer had nothing to do with studying.

She opened the search engine page, then typed the line “Can girls like girls” on the keyboard and pressed the space bar.

A few seconds later, the search results appeared on the computer screen.

‘Can girls like girls? Of course, they can. Girls are great, so sweet and soft, unlike those smelly men.’

‘The love between girls is beautiful. It’s not bound by worldly views. Everything follows the heart. It feels so free, following the heart’s direction.’

‘If girls fall in love with girls, it must be hard to have a result, right? After all, the world is mostly boys and girls. Girls and girls? Will their families agree? They’ll probably face glares from others outside…’

‘Girls liking girls? Putting everything else aside for a moment, it’s truly brave. I admire them.’

Yin Qiuman read through each comment very seriously, as if tackling an advanced math problem. So, when Yin Huaishan and Leng Ci returned and saw their daughter sitting in front of the computer, they didn’t say a word, didn’t even make a sound, and quietly closed the bedroom door for their daughter.

The next day, Yin Qiuman zoned out during class for the first time.

Yin Qiuman had read many comments last night about “Can girls like girls.”

Netizens held various opinions, all sounding quite reasonable.

But this wasn’t the reason why Yin Qiuman was distracted in class today.

The reason she was distracted was that after reading those comments, Yin Qiuman coincidentally found the novel that He Xinglan mentioned, which described two girls falling in love.

Yin Qiuman had read many novels, both domestic and foreign, including those about love, but she had never thought she would stay up all night reading a romance novel—oh no, it should be a yuri (GL) novel.

Reading line by line, she finally understood those things that happened between girls and girls.

Just as He Xinglan had described.

“Ding-a-ling…” The dismissal bell rang. As soon as the teacher left the classroom, He Xinglan quickly poked Yin Qiuman’s arm.

“Hey, Master Top Student, did you not sleep well last night?” He Xinglan asked with concern, but she was only serious for a second before starting to tease.

“Didn’t sleep well… was it because you missed me? After all, I didn’t go home with you after school yesterday.”

Since they became deskmates, they had walked home together every day. He Xinglan would walk Yin Qiuman home first, and Yin Qiuman would lecture her on the way. After dropping Yin Qiuman off, He Xinglan would review what Yin Qiuman had taught her on her way back home.

After two reviews, He Xinglan could mostly grasp the knowledge she had learned.

But yesterday, He Xinglan didn’t go home with Yin Qiuman.

Her mother had come home yesterday.

She lived with her grandparents, and her parents were busy with work and rarely came back. So, she rushed home right after school and… didn’t walk Yin Qiuman home.

He Xinglan hadn’t expected that Yin Qiuman would miss her so much just because she missed walking her home once.

Her heart beat a little fast at that moment, and the happiness on her face was uncontrollable.

Seeing that Yin Qiuman didn’t answer, He Xinglan couldn’t help but press: “Tell me, did you miss me?”

Miss her?

Staring at He Xinglan’s eagerly expectant eyes, Yin Qiuman answered in her heart: Actually, no.

But He Xinglan seemed very keen to hear her say ‘yes’. Yin Qiuman curved her lips and gave her the answer she wanted.

“Mhm, I did.”

“Really?” He Xinglan’s eyes brightened even more.

For some reason, seeing He Xinglan happy sent ripples through the calm lake in her own heart.

Yin Qiuman nodded slightly: “Mhm.”

He Xinglan chuckled twice, suddenly finding Yin Qiuman incredibly beautiful at that moment.

“Hey, He Xinglan, why are you staring at Manman like that?” Rarely, He Xinglan wasn’t bothering Yin Qiuman during this break. Xiao Hua had come to find Yin Qiuman with a test paper and saw He Xinglan intently staring at Yin Qiuman. That look, how to describe it—infatuated, it felt so strange.