Pursuing Her Best Friend after Confession Failed-Chapter 98 - 85: Romantic Scenery in the Cinema (Please Subscribe)
When Xia Zhijin finished speaking, she raised her head. Her gaze was tinged with nervousness, and she looked like she wanted to say something but was too anxious to speak.
Li Yuan understood. It was her insecurity. He simply stretched out his arms and pulled her into his embrace.
"Zhijin, let’s bury all the misfortunes of the past deep in our hearts and not let them affect our lives now. We just need to look forward bravely. In the days to come, I’ll be by your side..."
Xia Zhijin buried her small head in the warmth of Li Yuan’s chest, her voice very low. "Thank you, Li Yuan."
Li Yuan gently stroked her head, inhaling the light scent of her hair as he spoke with deep affection, "Silly girl, meeting a treasure like you—so adorable, beautiful, and gentle—is a blessing of three lifetimes for me."
Xia Zhijin said nothing, simply nestling in Li Yuan’s arms and savoring the rare moment of peace. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚
At that moment, the heart Li Yuan had long since encased in concrete was beginning to thaw. As it turned out, it was not that he no longer believed in love; he simply had not met the right person yet.
Li Yuan suddenly asked out of curiosity, "Zhijin, do you have a younger brother?"
Xia Zhijin nodded, introducing him with a smile. "My brother’s name is Xia Zhiyan. He’s only nine this year. When our parents passed away, Zhiyan was just a year and a half old. He’s attending elementary school back in our hometown now.
"Zhiyan is a good student and very hardworking. He’s always been quiet and well-behaved, never crying or making a fuss. He’s timid, like me, and loves to read books by himself."
* * *
That afternoon, Li Yuan did nothing but cuddle with Xia Zhijin, sharing stories about their lives. Li Yuan could feel that by opening up to one another, they now shared their own "little secrets," and the budding feelings between them began to solidify.
"Zhijin, let’s go see a movie."
Xia Zhijin glanced at Li Yuan, asking with a hint of hesitation, "Won’t it be too late?"
Li Yuan checked the time and rubbed her head. "It’s only five in the afternoon. After we have dinner and watch the movie, it’ll be just after eight at the latest. That’s not very late."
"Then, you can’t... you can’t..." Xia Zhijin looked at Li Yuan, her face flushing red as she stammered, too embarrassed to finish.
Li Yuan hastily swore an oath. "Zhijin, I promise I won’t get handsy during the movie."
I won’t get handsy, but my mouth is another story.
Xia Zhijin, naturally unaware of Li Yuan’s thoughts, nodded shyly. "Well, we can’t be out too late. I want to get back to the dorm early."
"Don’t worry. I promise I’ll get you back on time."
Li Yuan was not disappointed. The playbook of a master scumbag was hardly applicable to a pure and simple girl like Xia Zhijin. He knew what she was worried about. For a treasured girl like her—cautious, insecure, yet strong—managing to kiss her once was already a huge step forward. Getting her to stay the night was completely out of the question for now. Besides, Li Yuan was not some lust-crazed beast, desperate to devour her tonight. That would be disrespectful not only to Xia Zhijin but also to their nascent relationship.
"Then let’s go. There’s a cinema in the Longyu Building. We can eat there and then head straight to the movie."
"Okay, I’ll follow your lead."
* * *
「Daxia University, Girls’ Dormitory A-1314」
Bai Weixi stared blankly at her phone. The QQ avatar that once lit up so frequently was now permanently gray. She could not even access his QQ Space anymore.
Suddenly, her QQ chat box began to flash incessantly.
"Bai, how have you been? Has that Li Scumbag come crawling back to apologize yet?"
Bai Weixi stared at the message from her best friend, Wang Yuchen, her eyes dim and lifeless. Ever since the incident in the class group chat the day before military training began, she and Li Yuan had lost all contact. She had not messaged him proactively as she used to, and he had not messaged her either. They were completely cut off from each other.
Bai Weixi realized this had been going on for a long time.
When did it start? It was probably after the college entrance exams, with that confession at Wanfo Pagoda Park. Ever since she rejected Li Yuan that day, she noticed his attitude toward her had changed drastically. He no longer checked in on her, no longer tried to chat, and never replied to her messages. It was the first time she had been in such a situation, and at the time, she did not understand. She thought he was just playing hard to get to capture her attention, believing that if she just softened her tone a little, he would come running back eagerly like he always used to. After all, he had even risked his college placement by applying to Daxia University, the same one she chose. When she learned he had been accepted, she was sure they would begin a sweet, romantic journey together in college because she had seen a future filled with hope.
Bai Weixi snapped out of her wandering thoughts. There was so much she wanted to say, but in the end, she simply replied, "I don’t want to talk about him anymore. How have you been, Yuchen?"
Wang Yuchen replied immediately.
"I had a fight with Xu Zhi. I told him not to contact Li Yuan, but he wouldn’t listen, so I chewed him out. And can you believe it? He called me unreasonable! Boo hoo... We’ve known each other for three years and been together for several months, and this is the first time he’s ever yelled at me or said I was being unreasonable. I’m so upset I want to break up with him...
"Bai, I don’t know how to handle this relationship. Whenever I bring up Li Yuan’s faults to Xu Zhi, he gets really impatient and says I’ve misunderstood Li Yuan..."
