The next morning, everyone agreed to meet at Murong Huan's house.
Song Yi and Hang Feng were heading in the same direction, so they arranged to meet at a spot and go together.
At the intersection, Song Yi saw Hang Feng and waved to him from afar.
When she got closer, Hang Feng handed her breakfast, saying, "Let's go."
Looking at the steaming soy milk and pancake roll in her hands, Song Yi asked in surprise, "How did you know I hadn't eaten breakfast?"
Hang Feng replied, "Even if you had, you could eat a second serving."
Song Yi: "..."
She took back her hard-earned feeling of being touched.
The two walked side by side to the bus stop. Song Yi sipped her soy milk and ate her pancake roll while studying Hang Feng.
Meanwhile, Hang Feng was looking into the distance, watching for the bus's arrival.
Song Yi took a bite of her pancake roll and nudged Hang Feng with her elbow. "Hey."
Hang Feng turned to look at her. "What?"
Song Yi asked in a low voice, "You're being so nice to me today. Is it because you're my guardian angel?"
"Mm-hmm." Hang Feng nodded perfunctorily. "I am."
Song Yi: "..."
She had genuinely suspected it, but Hang Feng's attitude immediately ruled it out.
Who would admit to something so straightforwardly? The quicker the admission, the more fake it seemed.
So Song Yi ignored Hang Feng and went back to eating her breakfast, while Hang Feng didn't say anything more.
The bus arrived shortly, and they boarded one after another.
Perhaps because most schools were on break, the bus wasn't very crowded today, so they sat in the double seats nearest to the back door.
Having lost sleep last night over the guardian angel matter, Song Yi was feeling drowsy.
Sitting in the window seat, she rested her head lightly against the window and closed her eyes.
For some reason, scenes from many idol dramas she had watched floated through Song Yi's mind.
When the female lead leans against the window, the wind should gently blow her bangs, the sunlight should tenderly shine on her face, everything should be aesthetic...
"Bang—"
A sharp turn shattered Song Yi's fantasy as her forehead hit the window, making her face contort in pain.
Hang Feng quickly turned to her and asked, "What happened?"
An elderly lady carrying groceries in the front row turned around to look at Song Yi.
Song Yi clutched her forehead, drawing in several sharp breaths before saying, "I... I hit the window."
Hang Feng's expression showed his exasperation, and Song Yi herself was equally frustrated about the situation.
As if it wasn't enough that she could twist her ankle while walking, now she could hit her head during a bus turn. As a female lead, she was really quite unlucky.
Hang Feng said, "Let me take a look."
"No." Song Yi covered her forehead and looked out the window. She really didn't want anyone to see her grimacing in pain—it was quite embarrassing after all.
After a moment of silence, Hang Feng asked again, "Is it okay?"
Song Yi tentatively removed her hand and gently touched her forehead. Though it still hurt, it was getting better.
So she answered, "It should be fine now."
Hang Feng's voice came coldly, "I meant is the window okay? That sound was quite loud."
Song Yi: "..."
Her fist clenched.
She looked at Hang Feng, her anger momentarily overshadowing the pain, and said through gritted teeth, "Hang Feng!"
But Hang Feng didn't speak. Instead, he reached out and placed his hand against Song Yi's right cheek to prevent her from turning away again.
His gaze fell on Song Yi's forehead, carefully examining where she had been hurt. Her fair skin had turned red—it looked like quite a hard bump.
He said, "So stupid."
Song Yi: "???"
Wait, what was he saying?
He actually insulted her? He dared to insult her!!!
Song Yi grew even angrier. Like a little lion showing its claws, she swatted away Hang Feng's hand. "You're the stupid one! You're the stupidest! What are you looking at? What's there to see?"
"Good thing I'm not your guardian angel, or you would have made me die of anger today!"
After saying this, Song Yi turned back to the window, leaving only the back of her head facing Hang Feng.
Meanwhile, Hang Feng's gaze lowered, and he unconsciously reached to touch the note in his pocket.
From what Song Yi just said, it didn't seem like she was lying—she really wasn't his guardian angel. His spark of hope was extinguished as quickly as it had been lit.
Well, how many coincidences could there be in this world anyway?
But things were good as they were now.
*
Song Yi had thought she wouldn't speak another word to Hang Feng before reaching Murong Huan's house, but halfway through the bus ride, he pulled her off the bus.
Knowing Hang Feng wasn't the type to suddenly go crazy, she didn't resist and followed him to the entrance of a small shop.
Song Yi asked curiously, "What are we doing here?"
Hang Feng said, "Buying something."
Song Yi said, "Your words are as clear as mud."
Hang Feng didn't say anything more and just went inside.
Song Yi stood at the entrance and yawned, curious to see what Hang Feng was up to.
Soon, Hang Feng came out holding a frozen bottle of mineral water.
Song Yi asked puzzled, "You're drinking such cold water in the middle of winter?"
Hang Feng handed the mineral water to Song Yi. "Hold this, it's for icing the bump."
Although she understood Hang Feng's intention, Song Yi stepped back, her face full of rejection. "Cold! Cold! I don't want it!"
In this winter weather, the wind felt like slaps on her face, let alone icing it. It would be the death of her.
Song Yi wasn't afraid of much, but she was terrified of cold.
Getting out of her warm bed every morning already felt like losing half her life. In this temperature, holding a frozen water bottle would be like preparing for death.
Besides, the bump would go down in a couple of days anyway, no need for ice.
As she thought this, she lowered her head to tighten her scarf, afraid of even a slight cold breeze on her neck.
But in that moment when she lowered her head, she suddenly felt an icy sensation on her forehead that almost made her cry out.
Song Yi tried to escape, but Hang Feng's other hand quickly grabbed her arm. "Don't move," he said.
Song Yi looked up at him with wide eyes. "Hang Feng! Let me go! It's cold!"
Hang Feng didn't answer. His narrow eyes looked at her somewhat unyieldingly, his grip on her arm not loosening at all. He only said two words, "Bear it."
Song Yi: "..."
How infuriating.
But just as she was about to teach Hang Feng a lesson, she realized that the pain in her forehead had indeed eased considerably. The ice really was working.
Of course, it might also be because the sensation was so cold that it had simply numbed her.
They remained in this standoff for nearly five minutes.
Hang Feng said, "We should go, or we'll be late."
Song Yi smiled insincerely and said, "How can we go like this?"
Hang Feng said, "I'll give you two choices: either you hold it yourself, or I'll hold it for you."
Song Yi answered without hesitation, "I choose you holding it."
By now, her forehead was so numb from the cold that she couldn't feel pain or cold anymore, just shivers.
Song Yi absolutely refused to let her hands touch that water bottle again, absolutely not!
So they returned to the bus stop in this rather strange position.
Song Yi sat on the bus stop bench, and Hang Feng sat beside her, still holding the water bottle pressed against the swelling on her forehead, continuing even after they got back on the bus.
The young man's hand remained raised, holding the water bottle, with the bone-chilling cold transferring through his body temperature. His knuckles had turned white from the cold, and his entire hand felt stiff.
Song Yi also felt it wasn't right to let Hang Feng keep holding it like this, so she said, "That should be enough, right? I don't feel pain anymore."
But Hang Feng said, "It hasn't been twenty minutes yet."
Seeing that she couldn't persuade Hang Feng, Song Yi hesitated for a moment before reluctantly taking off one of her gloves and offering it to him, saying, "At least wear this while holding it."
After all, he was helping her, and it wouldn't be right if he got too cold.
But Hang Feng still refused, saying, "No need, keep it on yourself."
At that moment, the bus made another turn, passing by an upscale residential area.
At the crossroads, Xu Che, wearing a black coat, stood holding a dog leash with his little white dog.
He was waiting for the bus to pass before crossing, but when he casually glanced up, he couldn't hide his surprise at what he saw.
Through the back window of the bus, he witnessed a scene of such perfect harmony that it could only be described as beautiful.
A young girl sat by the window, showing her lovely profile, though her face was full of reluctance as someone had rather amusingly placed a bottle of mineral water on her forehead.
The young man sitting next to her, holding the water bottle with gentle eyes, was none other than his usually expressionless brother, Hang Feng.
They looked, undeniably, like a perfect match.
