He took Shi Li's phone and studied the pictures intently for a long time.
Shi Li didn't understand why he needed to look at some cat photos for so long.
However, she didn't want to snatch the phone back rudely, so Shi Li buried her head in her food. Just before Fu Huixing returned the phone, Shi Li had managed to stuff the last mouthful of noodles into her mouth.
She took back the phone, struggling to swallow the noodles before washing them down with a couple sips of orange juice.
"They've certainly changed a lot. They've gotten much fatter," she remarked.
Shi Li nodded, "The pet hospital you recommended seems pretty reliable. They often update me on the cats' recent condition and send me pictures of them daily. It's just a bit strange that they haven't sent me any pictures for three or four days now."
Fu Huixing's eyelashes flickered slightly, "Perhaps something came up in their personal lives."
But Shi Li's mind went in another direction, "What if something happened to the cats? Such young kittens can easily fall ill. I've read online that cats living together can easily catch feline distemper."
"If you're worried about the cats, I can accompany you to the pet hospital this afternoon to check on them."
Not wanting to trouble others with her own affairs, Shi Li declined, "No need for you to come along. I can manage on my own."
However, Fu Huixing's next words persuaded her, "If something has happened to the cats and you need to argue with them, they might be less responsive seeing that you're a young woman on your own."
Fu Huixing was tall and imposing – not someone people would want to mess with. Having him as backup would likely prevent a lot of potential disputes.
"Alright then, thank you for the trouble. Let me treat you to dinner afterwards as well."
After the meal, the group headed back to their rooms together, with Shi Li and Fu Huixing trailing behind. Shi Li was like a new mother, eager to show off her babies to everyone.
Even though the kittens were still being fostered elsewhere, it didn't diminish Shi Li's maternal pride one bit.
Shi Li maintained a pose of holding up her phone, showcasing her 'children' from every angle.
Finally, there were only five or six people left waiting for the elevator. One more trip would be enough to accommodate everyone.
Then, at the same spot, the same scene played out again.
As the elevator doors opened, there was a couple inside – a girl with her arm linked through a boy's.
Both the people inside and outside the elevator were slightly surprised as they recognized each other's faces.
This was because the man in the elevator was none other than Shi Li's "darling" Feng Yunhe.
Upon seeing Feng Yunhe, Shi Li's reflexes kicked in before her brain could process the situation. Her saccharine "Brother Yunhe~" had already left her lips.
The impact of her "Brother Yunhe" was devastating, exploding outward with her at the epicenter. Those closest to her suffered the most damage.
Several people's expressions contorted momentarily.
Feng Yunhe, long accustomed to Shi Li's "Brother Yunhe~" assault, accepted it calmly and even took the initiative to greet her, "You're here to play too?"
"Yeah, it's our class reunion."
Why did Shi Li have a sense of déjà vu? Not just the familiar scene of people waiting outside the elevator and the couple inside, but also how the girl inside had her arm linked with Feng Yunhe's, yet he seemed to resist and pull away slightly when the doors opened.
The girl, already irritated by Shi Li's "Brother Yunhe~", was determined not to show weakness in front of Feng Yunhe's admirer. She couldn't let her realize it was just one-sided affection.
So she put on the expression of a wife confronting a mistress – haughty yet somewhat smug.
"Sweetheart, you should find time to hang out with me and Yunhe along with your boyfriend. It'll be more fun with more people."
Shi Li's brain had already prepared a response. Putting on a regretful expression, she said, "I'd love to hang out with you guys, but our class has already set a departure time. I can't disrupt the class schedule, but we can definitely get together another time."
[Wait, what did she say? Me with who?]
[Boyfriend? Where did I get a boyfriend from?]
Shi Li looked around. Among the men in the elevator, there were only Feng Yunhe and Fu Huixing. So the boyfriend she referred to must be Fu Huixing?
While in the elevator, Shi Li's mind was occupied with one question: [Should I clarify that we're not a couple?]
[If I don't say anything, it could lead to misunderstandings]
[But if I do, it might seem too deliberate]
Hearing Shi Li's inner thoughts, her classmates secretly observed Fu Huixing's expression.
These thoughts about clarifying their relationship seemed quite hurtful.
Fu Huixing's eyelids lowered slightly, his gaze fixed on the floor diagonally in front of him, seeming no different from usual.
The others thought, since he and Shi Li were just friends, hearing her want to clarify their relationship shouldn't affect him much.
Coincidentally, everyone was staying on the same floor.
Feng Yunhe and his companion's room was closer to the elevator. Shi Li reluctantly said goodbye at their door before rejoining her four remaining classmates.
"You go back to your room and pack your luggage first."
Packing didn't take Shi Li long, as she hadn't been there for even a week and hadn't brought much with her.
With all her belongings packed into her bag and still two hours until the pre-arranged departure time set by the class monitor, Shi Li lay on the bed scrolling through her phone for a while. As the departure time approached, even though the class monitor hadn't yet called everyone to leave in the group chat, Shi Li, fearing being left behind during group activities, preferred to head out early and wait a bit longer in the lobby downstairs.
Shi Li opened the door to find Fu Huixing leaning against the wall, apparently waiting for her.
Despite the cold winter weather, he seemed impervious to the chill, dressed in form-fitting clothes that showed off his tall, slender physique without a hint of bulk.
"Oh my, you were waiting for me outside."
[How embarrassing]
"Why didn't you knock? It must be freezing out here."
[Only wearing two thin layers, how is he not cold?]
[Are all silly boys so warm-blooded?]
"It's fine, there's heating in the corridor. It's not cold," he replied. As a man, it wouldn't have been appropriate for him to enter a girl's room.
Shi Li's luggage was already minimal, but Fu Huixing's was even more spartan – just a backpack on his shoulders.
So he reached out to pull Shi Li's pastel pink suitcase. The pink color seemed to clash with Fu Huixing, like asking Tengger to cosplay as a magical girl.
Seeing Fu Huixing's expressionless face as he dragged the pink suitcase, Shi Li felt almost guilty.
"The suitcase isn't that heavy, let me take it," she said.
She attempted to wrest control of the suitcase from Fu Huixing's grasp.
"You just said it's not heavy," he countered.
The two playfully tugged at the suitcase as they made their way towards the elevator.
A door opened behind them, and Shi Li thought it might be one of her classmates having the same idea.
Looking back, she was surprised to see it was Feng Yunhe.
He wore a loosely tied bathrobe, revealing the outline of his well-built upper body.
Shi Li's first thought was: [Isn't he cold?]
Then she couldn't help but muse: [Indeed, abs and silence are a man's best cosmetic enhancements.]
