Xu Xing stood outside in the corridor, staring blankly at the juniors playing basketball on the playground, his gaze drifting with the basketball as it moved across the court.

He stood alone for quite a while before he heard a gentle voice beside him: “Class monitor~”

Turning his head, he saw Hou Ranmei holding a light grass-green cup with both hands. Her pale, slender fingers encircled the cup, and she couldn’t help but feel nervous, gripping it a little too tightly.

Hou Ranmei shyly walked up next to him, her gaze focused on the distance, not daring to look at Xu Xing.

Xu Xing smiled at her and greeted her casually, then turned his attention back to the basketball court.

The two stood quietly for a moment, and then the girl, with lightly pink-tinted lips, hesitated before finally finding her voice and softly asking, “Um…”

Xu Xing looked down at her and asked, “Hmm?”

The girl’s earlobes were flushed with embarrassment as she said, “Last week during PE, the candy you gave me… was really good. Where did you buy it? Can you get it at school?”

Her clear eyes shyly lifted to glance at Xu Xing, quickly dropping again, her lips always curved in a gentle smile.

Xu Xing replied, “The school doesn’t sell it anymore. They used to have it in the snack bar, but since last semester, I haven’t seen that kind of candy.”

After speaking, Xu Xing thoughtfully continued, “My deskmate bought a box online. If you like it, you can go ask him for some, or I can have him send you the website later.”

Hou Ranmei nodded gently.

At that moment, Xu Xing felt arms wrap around him from behind, and then he sensed a slight weight on his shoulder, followed by a low, hoarse voice saying, “What are you getting?”

Xu Xing had already smelled the faint scent of laundry detergent on Lu Che before he spoke—it smelled just like the sportswear Lu Che had washed for him.

“Alright.”

Lu Che didn’t press further. He hugged Xu Xing and leaned his face against Xu Xing’s shoulder.

His deep-set eyes were drowsy and devoid of warmth, quietly watching the girl. After yawning, a thin layer of mist covered his eyes, making them look like they had frosted over.

Hou Ranmei didn’t dare to meet Lu Che’s gaze. As soon as she saw him come out, her heart sank. She quietly told Xu Xing, “Class monitor, I’ll go in first.”

Xu Xing replied, “Okay.”

Once the girl left, Lu Che turned his head and nestled against Xu Xing’s shoulder, insisting, “Class monitor, don’t pay any attention to her anymore. Don’t talk to her, not even a glance. It’s obvious she wants to chase you.”

Xu Xing shrugged off his body, trying to shake off the sticky sensation, and replied irritably, “Get lost, stop being neurotic. Can’t you see I’m keeping my distance from her?”

Xu Xing mumbled to himself. Although he couldn’t break the connection with Hou Ranmei, he had promised Lu Che, so he would definitely keep his word.

Lu Che couldn’t help but smile at Xu Xing’s response. In fact, he had overheard the conversation between Xu Xing and that girl earlier—Xu Xing clearly had the box of candy, but he told the girl to ask Wang Zicong for it.

Holding Xu Xing tighter, Lu Che wasn’t ready to let go and purposely said, “Class monitor, I want chocolate candy too~”

Xu Xing retorted angrily, “Get lost! If you want it, just go get it yourself.”

Despite Xu Xing’s harsh tone, Lu Che just laughed.

At that moment, a voice came from behind:

“Lu Che…”

Xu Xing and Lu Che turned to see Yu Chanchun standing at the back door. She held a teacher’s notebook and chalk in her hands, apologizing as she called out to Lu Che, “I was wiping the blackboard and wanted to copy today’s question… I accidentally erased what you wrote.”

Lu Che asked absentmindedly, “What did I write?”

Yu Chanchun’s gaze landed on Lu Che’s arm around Xu Xing but quickly moved away. With a hint of apology, she said, “Um… the sentence ‘High school is full of love.’”

“……”

Yu Chanchun omitted the first half of the sentence, but Xu Xing quickly connected the dots—“As long as the class monitor is here, high school is full of love.”

Upon hearing this, Lu Che frowned. Before he could respond, Xu Xing jumped in, saying, “So what if you erased it? It’s not a big deal.”

Yu Chanchun frowned slightly at Xu Xing’s words.

Lu Che rested his chin on Xu Xing’s shoulder and said, “Yeah, it’s fine. I’ll just rewrite it later.”

Yu Chanchun nodded lightly, feeling awkward standing there, so she went inside.

Xu Xing then turned to glare at Lu Che, saying with a disapproving tone, “What’s wrong with you? Stop writing stuff!”

Lu Che playfully teased, “I’ll go write it—‘As long as the class monitor is here, Lu Che is full of love~’”

“……”

Xu Xing shrugged off Lu Che’s arms, annoyed. “Is your brain made of crap? No writing! Don’t say I didn’t warn you—you’ll definitely regret it later.”

What would Lu Che think when he looked back at all the silly things he did after the knot was untied? Would he be so ashamed that he would want to die to prove a point?

Regardless of whether or not he would make such a declaration, Xu Xing just hoped Lu Che wouldn’t come to blame him later.

Lu Che shamelessly said, “Hey, how can you say you’re crap? My brain is all about you~”

“……”

Xu Xing shot back, “Get lost!”

After that, he stormed back to the classroom.

As Xu Xing entered the classroom, he casually glanced at the back blackboard and pondered: Lu Che was the physics class representative, so why was Yu Chanchun, the biology class representative, copying the physics question of the day?

Xu Xing frowned. If this was something Lu Che suggested, didn’t it mean he was leaving hope for that girl?

Sitting at his desk, Xu Xing uneasily considered that when the time came to see the red thread again, he should quickly untie the one at Lu Che’s ankle. Yu Chanchun’s obsession with Lu Che would probably disappear, and she wouldn’t hold any hostility toward him anymore. This was the safest and most permanent solution.

But—

What if Yu Chanchun’s red thread was unbreakable, like Hou Ranmei’s?

Xu Xing supported his chin in thought, becoming increasingly irritated.

And to make matters worse, Lu Che kept murmuring in his ear, “Class monitor, I want candy~”

Xu Xing was exasperated and grabbed a large handful of candy, slamming it on the back desk without looking back.

Little did he know, this scene was spotted by Hou Ranmei, who had just walked to the back to throw away some trash. She froze for a moment and then heard Lu Che exclaim, “So much! Class monitor, did you save all your candy for me?”

Lu Che leaned against the wall, unwrapping a piece of candy and tossing it into his mouth while casually throwing the wrapper into the trash. He glanced at the girl with his cool eyes, swirling the candy with his tongue as the sweetness melted between his lips, and smiled slightly at her, extending a candy with his long fingers. “This is from the class monitor. Do you want it?”

Lu Che’s voice was soft, but Xu Xing, annoyed, had plugged his ears with his book and didn’t hear him.

“……”

Hou Ranmei shook her head, biting her lip as she turned to leave.

Lu Che didn’t mind. He stood up, holding the large handful of candy, and tossed it back into Xu Xing’s box. Xu Xing turned around impatiently to look at him, and Lu Che smiled brightly, saying, “I only need one. If you give me all your candy, I’ll have no excuse to flirt with you.”

Xu Xing replied irritably, “Get lost. Next time, I won’t give you even one.”

Lu Che chuckled, “Don’t! Besides, you don’t even like this candy.”

Xu Xing randomly grabbed a blank practice sheet from Lu Che’s desk and slapped it over his face, saying, “Shut up and do your homework!”

Lu Che laughed and didn’t argue with Xu Xing’s command. As he flipped through the test paper, he suddenly recalled something Cody said in Chinese class—

“This is truly a sweet trouble~”

Xu Xing turned around to read his book, not expecting Lu Che to be quiet. To his surprise, Lu Che behaved for two whole classes that afternoon without bothering him again.

Xu Xing then heard Fu Dai say, “It’s over, it’s over. Ah Che has also been possessed.”

Xu Xing’s curiosity was piqued by this remark, but he was too stubborn and had an inexplicable sense of pride that kept him from looking back—despite wanting to see what Lu Che was doing. He wrestled with himself, determined not to turn around, telling himself: What are you looking at? It’s none of your business what Lu Che does.

After fighting with himself, Xu Xing stood up after the second class and went to the bathroom with Wang Zicong. He left his seat without glancing around, and after finishing up, he walked in through the back door, facing Lu Che’s seat, and finally dared to glance at him—

He saw Lu Che sitting at his desk with Fu Dai and Ke Di, watching the basketball game of the second-year students outside the window.

The court had several students with basketball skills, making the game more exciting. Ke Di was responsible for introducing Lu Che and Fu Dai. “That short-haired guy plays very steadily; he’s someone I hang out with~”

Fu Dai snickered and mocked, “Is he hanging out with you, or are you hanging out with him?”

Ke Di laughed, “You’re joking. He hangs out with me. I hang out with Brother Che. Got it?”

He emphasized the hierarchy of their relationships with a rhythmic tone.

Fu Dai gestured, “OK OK, got it, got it.”

Xu Xing looked at Lu Che’s back, and suddenly felt a bit off. He returned to his seat and noticed a test paper laid flat on his desk.

Xu Xing leaned down to take a closer look. The paper was filled to the brim with answers, both the big and small questions solved in great detail and with a serious tone.

Xu Xing’s mood became somewhat complicated.

His hands were still damp from washing, so he pinched the corner of the paper and turned around to nudge Lu Che’s back with his elbow. He asked, expressionless, “Is this yours?”

Lu Che turned around, glanced at the paper, and smiled, “Class Monitor, can we just stick to math and physics next time? I finally finished writing this. Is there a reward?”

Xu Xing rolled his eyes at him and tossed the light paper into his arms.

Just then, the class bell rang, and everyone returned to their seats.

Lu Che casually folded the paper in half and moved it from the desk back to his chair.

The English class was a chatter, and Fu Dai and Ke Di fell asleep after half a period. Lu Che rested his cheek on his hand, absent-mindedly twirling a pen, when suddenly, he saw the person in front lean back, their straight back pressing against his desk.

Then—

A milk chocolate candy was placed on the corner of Lu Che’s desk.

---

Author’s Note:

1. Xu Xing will discover that the red string on his foot comes and goes quickly.
2. Lu Che has fully mastered his fighting skills, mainly because I’m worried he might get beaten up after school (like by Hou Ranmei’s brother or something).