"It wasn't because I was afraid of being looked down upon that I deleted you, but...because I was afraid of being rejected."
"And then! What happened next!" At the school gate, Lu TianBai clutched Lin ChuSui's sleeve, her eyes full of gossip: "What happened between you two next? Did you confess to each other?"
Lin ChuSui closed her eyes and shook her head painfully: "Then I kicked him."
Lu TianBai was stunned: "What did you just say you did?"
"I kicked him," Lin ChuSui added. "Then I grabbed his throat and forced him to forget the conversation just now. He agreed, so I let him go."
"..."
Lu TianBai's mouth twitched as she looked at Lin ChuSui in despair: "So you confessed to Xiao Yan, and just as he was about to respond, you...assaulted him violently?"
Lin ChuSui buried her head in her hands, completely devastated -
"Stop talking about it!"
Lu TianBai looked at her pitifully: "My bestie is going to die alone and pitiful."
Lin ChuSui stood up, regaining her spirit: "Nevermind, let's go eat some spicy hotpot noodles."
"Let's go, let's go."
Lin ChuSui and Lu TianBai went to the street of food stalls behind the school and sat down at their usual small stand, each ordering an extra-large bowl of hotpot noodles.
"Bestie, aren't you going to ask me why I like him?" Lin ChuSui was eager to pour her heart out and actively steered the topic.
But Lu TianBai was very uncooperative: "Is there a need to ask?"
Lin ChuSui emphasized: "Isn't there?!"
"He's Xiao Yan!" Lu TianBai held up her fingers for emphasis: "From Lu Chi's ex-girlfriend to Tang YanNi, and then to Qiao DanQi...these girls knew there were mountains of daggers and seas of flames ahead, yet they still embarked courageously. With Xiao Yan's charm, even my crush Xu JiaNing can't compare. How could you not fall for him after interacting with him every day and night?"
Lin ChuSui said gloomily: "That's the crux of the problem. He's so outstanding, so many people like him, and the girls who like him are equally outstanding. If we line up by results, I'd be at the very back."
That was why she kept avoiding it, not daring to face him.
Because she cared too much, she became insecure and cautious, afraid that one misstep would ruin even their current friendship.
"But you're great too," Lu TianBai patted her shoulder comfortingly. "Who said outstanding people can only be with other outstanding people?"
Lin ChuSui: "Because of natural selection and survival of the fittest, humans are like animals, always looking to mate with the highest quality genes. Those were my dad's exact words when he broke me and Qin Nai up..."
Lu TianBai: ...
Bringing up mating, your dad really goes all out.
The two girls chatted about their maidenly woes over steaming hot bowls of noodles. But unbeknownst to them, Qin Nai and his group of friends had also come to this shop, sitting at the next table over.
Qin Nai attended a vocational school not far from their high school, just two streets away. But Lin ChuSui hadn't seen him for nearly two years. These years of wild growth had made him even more bold and unruly.
Lin ChuSui signalled Lu TianBai with her eyes. Lu TianBai quickly finished her bowl, called the boss over to scan their payment code.
Seeing them about to leave, Qin Nai immediately came over and sat down opposite Lin ChuSui: "ChuSui, let's chat."
Lin ChuSui was still quite calm: "Chat about what?"
"I haven't been able to forget you these past two years."
"..."
She looked over at Qin Nai's table, where his previous girlfriend with the blunt bangs was also sitting, twisting her clothes in her hands, glaring at them resentfully.
Lin ChuSui had no doubt her heart was torn to shreds right now.
"Your girlfriend is right there. Isn't it too heartless to say this now?"
Qin Nai explained: "She's not really my girlfriend, she's the one chasing me around."
"But you acquiesced since you bring her everywhere with you, no?"
"ChuSui...are you jealous?"
"..."
I'll be damned if I'm jealous of you!
Seeing Lin ChuSui's fist tighten under her sleeve, Lu TianBai quickly pulled her up: "We've got a lot of homework tonight, let's get going."
Lin ChuSui suppressed her urge to beat him to a pulp, saying: "Since you have a girlfriend now, cherish her properly. Don't be a scumbag."
Qin Nai grabbed Lin ChuSui's sleeve: "Is it because of that guy from back then?"
"Let go."
"That day he stole my wallet and took a..." He hesitated. "And he even threw my wallet into the toilet!"
"Did you get your wallet back?"
"I got it back." Qin Nai swallowed his disgust and said, "It was covered in shit."
Lin ChuSui felt a bit like laughing. She shook off his hand: "Then there's nothing more to say."
...
At dusk after school ended, Xiao Yan parked his bike at the edge of the track field and called out to Lu Chi who was playing basketball: "Where's Lin ChuSui?"
Lu Chi stopped running, holding the ball: "Xiao Yan, why are you looking for ChuSui everyday?"
Xiao Yan was confused: "Am I?"
Lu Chi counted on his fingers: "Yesterday, today, day before, every time you pass by you ask."
"Maybe she's been a bit...strange lately."
"You two are both weirdos." Lu Chi threw the ball back to the other boys, put on a jacket and walked over: "My sister just texted me they were eating hotpot noodles at the food street. Let's go, together."
Xiao Yan didn't refuse and went with Lu Chi to the street of food stalls behind the school.
Walking through the smoky and lively stands, from a great distance, he immediately spotted Lin ChuSui talking with Qin Nai.
"Hey!"
Seeing them too, Lu Chi teased: "Are they trying to rekindle old flames?"
Xiao Yan looked away, saying: "Then I'll head back first."
"Weren't you looking for ChuSui about something?"
"It's nothing now."
After speaking, Xiao Yan turned his bike around to leave.
Lu Chi watched as he got about ten meters away, then halted in his tracks amidst the crowd.
After a few seconds of silence, Xiao Yan turned back around, threw his bike to Lu Chi and said with a tinge of youthful frustration: "Help me watch this."
Before Lu Chi could respond, he strode purposefully towards Lin ChuSui and Qin Nai.
"Holy shit!"
Lu Chi had never seen Xiao Yan so fired up before, every hair on his body seemingly standing on end and ready for battle.
He quickly pushed the bike and followed behind Xiao Yan.
Xiao Yan marched right up to Lin ChuSui's side and sat down.
Seeing Xiao Yan, Lin ChuSui was a little surprised.
Qin Nai was even more furious at the sight of him: "I'm talking to ChuSui, piss off."
"I'm her guardian." Xiao Yan shamelessly declared. "The one who should piss off is you."
"You, her dad? And guardian?" Qin Nai scoffed.
"What a coincidence, I am indeed."
"Shameless prick. Does the scar not hurt anymore now that the wound has healed?" Qin Nai slammed the table and stood up, grabbing Xiao Yan's collar. "Keep seeing you and I'll keep beating you up."
Recalling Xiao Yan's inexplicable beating last time, hot blood rushed to Lin ChuSui's head. She grabbed the iron stool beside her and slammed it down in front of Qin Nai, coldly shouting: "Try touching him again!"
Seeing the situation escalate, Lu Chi and a few boys from the sports team swarmed over, clamouring: "What's going on here?"
"You dare wreak havoc on our turf!"
Qin Nai's friends also came over, confrontationally yelling: "You looking for a fight?!"
"Our high school has an excellent ethos, we never fight." Lu Chi had already taken out his phone. "We'll just tell the teachers. Just you wait, Mr. Wang our PE teacher has a black belt in taekwondo. He'll take care of you."
"..."
Qin Nai didn't actually want to clash with Lin ChuSui either. His eyes bloodshot, he pointed at Xiao Yan and asked Lin ChuSui: "Who is he to you?"
Following Xiao Yan's earlier words, Lin ChuSui said: "Didn't you hear him? He's like my dad, my guardian. Satisfied?"
Qin Nai jabbed his finger at Xiao Yan, resentful and indignant: "He...he's no father to you! Have you lost your mind?!"
Xiao Yan calmly replied: "I'm the kind of dad she would...cry and call for."
Qin Nai: "..."
Lin ChuSui: "..."
Lu Chi whispered to Zhang ChengYu: "As expected of Xiao Yan, still making erotic jokes in front of a love rival."
Zhang ChengYu: "This is called defeating the enemy without fighting, killing their heart."
Before things could escalate further, the school security at the back door were alerted by the tense standoff and came over. Although unhappy about it, Qin Nai could only leave sullenly.
Just before leaving, he turned back to say to Lin ChuSui: "ChuSui, he's no good. One day, you'll see his true colors."
...
The small restaurant was filling up with more and more students. Lu Chi and Zhang Cheng Yu ordered a big bowl of hot pot noodles and sat on the side slurping them down.
Xiao Yan sat next to Lin ChuSui, patiently waiting for her to finish eating. "Finals are coming up soon. Let's go to the study room later and I'll go over the review materials with you."
"Oh," Lin ChuSui mumbled in response, "Whatever."
Xiao Yan looked at her. "Whatever - does that mean you want to study or not?"
"I won't make the top 100 in our grade," Lin ChuSui said dejectedly. "Even if we ranked by genes, I'd be at the bottom."
"Ranked by genes?"
Lu TianBai raised her hand and said, "What she means is that superior genes will naturally select even better genes to mate with. It's survival of the fittest."
Lin ChuSui: ...
She didn't have time to cover the naive girl's mouth.
Zhang Cheng Yu and Lu Chi simultaneously gave Lin ChuSui a thumbs up.
The other girls at school confessed to Xiao Yan through hints and metaphors, some even writing him little poems. But Lin ChuSui came right out with an evolutionary biology argument - survival of the fittest, I don't have mating rights.
That's our Lin ChuSui!
Xiao Yan was stunned for a few seconds. Under the meaningful gazes of Zhang Cheng Yu and Lu Chi, he stood up and said to Lin ChuSui, "Come over here, I want to talk to you privately."
Lin ChuSui was reluctant to put down her chopsticks, and even more afraid he would be as blunt with her as he was with the other girls who confessed to him...
Although she had a lot of courage, his rejection could still make her cry - how embarrassing!
"I don't... I don't want to go," Lin ChuSui acted as if her bottom was glued to the chair. "Let's just peacefully finish this last month as deskmates, then we can be bosom friends from afar."
"You just want us to be bosom friends from afar?"
The girl sighed and lowered her head. "That's all we can be."
Xiao Yan's slender, broad palm landed gently on her forehead. "Then I'll be direct."
Lin ChuSui looked at him in surprise.
"Although survival of the fittest makes sense, I've also developed feelings."
The boy casually tilted his head to the side, his handsome side profile nearing perfection -
"So that choice is in your hands."
