IF-School Series (Bottom)

An Yi’s home was a two-story Western-style building, and the front yard was already covered in white snow.

Under the porch were a string of small footprints, extending all the way to the corner of the courtyard under the pomegranate tree. The branches swayed, and the accumulated snow on top fell down like puffs. Under the tree stood a little girl wearing a red Hanfu, shaking the thick trunk with her wrist, her laughter as melodious as silver bells.

She had two small buns on her head, each adorned with a tassel, her cheeks rosy and cute.

“Xiao Ya.” An Yi called out to her, opening his arms towards her.

The girl turned her head, saw An Yi, and exclaimed, “Ge ge!” Cheerfully, she ran towards An Yi.

An Yi crouched down, scooped her up with both hands, and spun her around in the snow. An Ya giggled happily, clinging to An Yi’s neck and leaning backward, laughing.

An Yi supported her back and pointed to Yan Chen beside him. “This is Yan Chen ge.”

“Hello, Yan Chen ge!” An Ya wasn’t shy at all. In the time it took An Yi to put down his school bag, she was already playing with Yan Chen in the yard.

Originally standing under the porch watching, they suddenly turned around, gathered snowballs, and threw them at him. An Yi, unprepared, ended up covered in snow. He ran into the yard and, after a few words, persuaded An Ya to team up with him against Yan Chen.

“Dinner is almost ready. Xiao Chen, come inside for dinner later,” An Yi’s mother, Qiu Rong, pushed open a window in the dining room, smiling gently at the three children playing in the yard. “Auntie stewed pork ribs today. Have a taste.”

“Take one bite, and you won’t forget it.” An Yi’s eyelashes were dusted with snow, and he smiled, clean and beautiful.

“My mom’s pork ribs are the best in the world,” An Ya held Yan Chen’s hand, bouncing around him, “Yan Chen ge, if you don’t eat, I’ll make you cry with jealousy!”

Yan Chen smiled and nodded slightly to Qiu Rong. “Thank you for your hospitality, Auntie.”

Qiu Rong smiled and said to An Yi, “Take your sister inside to wash up. You guys go upstairs and play for a while. I’ll call you when dinner’s ready.”

An Yi replied, “Okay,” and Yan Chen picked up An Ya, who was climbing up his leg, and went upstairs with An Yi. An Ya insisted on Yan Chen helping her wash her hands. An Yi wanted to tell her not to fuss, but Yan Chen had already taken her into the bathroom, bending over to roll up her sleeves and squeeze hand soap for her, looking very patient.

Suddenly, Yan Chen looked up from the mirror at the person standing at the door lost in thought. “What are you thinking?”

Caught peeking, An Yi half hid behind the door, murmuring softly, “Nothing.”

Yan Chen raised an eyebrow.

Feeling parched, An Yi turned to pour some water.

An Yi’s bedroom was carpeted, and An Ya brought all her favorite dolls, sitting cross-legged on the carpet with her two brothers, playing house together.

Their eyes met a few times, and each time they quickly looked away, but when they met again, the atmosphere inexplicably became tense.

“Um,” An Yi stammered, quickly grasping for a topic in his mind, “isn’t this kind of boring?”

Yan Chen was brushing the doll’s hair. After hearing this, he smirked, then pinched An Ya’s cheek. “Your brother thinks you’re boring.”

An Ya immediately glared at her brother.

“…Not boring,” An Yi quickly corrected himself, hearing Yan Chen chuckle softly. Unable to hold back, he asked the question that had been lingering in his mind, “You seem to laugh a lot, so why do you always have a cold face?”

Without lifting his head, Yan Chen said, “Because I haven’t met anyone worth laughing with.”

“Ah,” An Yi exclaimed, “so I’m funny?”

Yan Chen looked at him leisurely and said, “You are indeed amusing.”

“…” An Yi looked at him uncertainly, “Why do I feel like you’re being sarcastic?”

The smile on Yan Chen’s lips grew wider.

“Yan Chen ge,” An Ya suddenly propped up her hands in front of her, looking up at Yan Chen very seriously, “do you have a girlfriend?”

An Yi was taken aback.

Yan Chen glanced at An Yi first, then lowered his head to meet the little girl’s bright eyes. “No.”

“Then can I say I’m your girlfriend?” An Ya furrowed her brow and said, “Lu Linsen insisted on being my boyfriend, but I don’t like him. He’s so annoying, always calling me! Yan Chen ge, can you help me get rid of him?”

Yan Chen laughed, “How old are you? Do you even understand what boyfriend and girlfriend mean?”

An Ya handed him her phone watch, which showed that there were indeed missed calls. “He pesters me every day in kindergarten. If I don’t play with him, he cries. I don’t like boys who cry.”

The phone automatically disconnected, and Yan Chen smiled, asking, “So what kind of boys do you like?”

“Well,” An Ya suddenly hugged An Yi, who was leaning on the side, and laughed, “I like boys like my brother.”

An Yi sighed helplessly.

Yan Chen’s gaze fell softly on his face, his smile deepening. “What a coincidence, I like him too.”

An Yi suddenly froze, Yan Chen’s eyes were like a vortex, he fell in unexpectedly, his heart racing, wanting to say something but too nervous to speak.

The fragrance of ribs filled the dining room.

Yan Chen sat next to An Yi, enjoying a warm and delicious dinner. After dinner, he expressed his gratitude to An Yi’s family and bid farewell to Qiu Rong.

“The snow outside is heavy and the roads are slippery. Be careful on your way home, and come over often in the future.” Qiu Rong smiled, patting An Yi’s shoulder. “Xiao Yi, see your classmate off.”

An Yi nodded and went to change his shoes.

Yan Chen hugged An Ya and took out a lollipop from his pocket, placing it in her hand before walking away.

An Yi kept an arm’s length from him as they walked side by side out of the community. The sky was completely dark, with only the street lamps in the community shining on them, casting their shadows long and close to each other.

Finally, the two shadows merged together. Yan Chen suddenly stopped in front of An Yi, who had been walking with his head down, and collided with Yan Chen’s chest unprepared.

An Yi was stunned for a moment, instinctively trying to step back, but Yan Chen suddenly reached out and pressed his shoulder.

An Yi’s heart raced again.

He lowered his head, burying his chin in the collar of his down jacket, and muttered, “I’ll just see you off here. I’m going home first. Let me know when you get home.”

Yan Chen held him in place.

An Yi hung his head, almost bumping his forehead against Yan Chen’s chin, looking at the clothes that were pressed close together.

After a while, Yan Chen’s voice came down from above with the falling snowflakes, “Did I scare you?”

An Yi remained silent, hands in his pockets.

Yan Chen’s hand moved to his face, slipping into his collar and pinching his chin. An Yi was forced to lift his head.

With his eyes downcast, Yan Chen looked at him motionlessly. “I thought you were too.”

“…W-what?” It must be because it’s so cold out, An Yi felt his tongue stiffening.

“What do you think?” Yan Chen took a small step forward, the intense and persistent warmth of youth shining in his dark eyes.

An Yi tried to avoid his gaze. “I don’t know. You… you should go home earlier.”

Yan Chen looked deeply into his eyes, gently tapping his chin with his fingertips a few times before finally withdrawing his hand. “I’m leaving.”

After New Year’s Day, Yan Chen never appeared again. In fact, the two of them even stopped chatting on WeChat after Yan Chen reported that he had arrived home safely that day.

An Yi’s mind was in turmoil, constantly analyzing what Yan Chen meant by that sentence he asked that day, “I thought you were too.”

Did he think he also liked him? Or did he think he also liked boys?

Was Yan Chen serious? When he said he liked him, did he mean the kind of liking for appreciation and making friends, or did he mean the kind of liking for romantic relationships?

An Yi really wanted to ask clearly, but at the time, he couldn’t bring himself to say it. Afterward, it became even harder to bring up this topic naturally, and the longer time passed, the harder it became. Eventually, it was shelved.

It wasn’t until the Chinese New Year holiday that he finally found a good opportunity. Summoning up his courage, he sent Yan Chen a “Happy New Year” message on New Year’s Eve.

The response came back faster than he had imagined, almost instantly, which was very unlike Yan Chen’s usual style.

Yan Chen’s reply was: Not happy.

An Yi sent a question mark over and asked: What’s wrong?

Yan Chen: Thinking.

Dating, but they ignore me.

An Yi: …

An Yi: Don’t date too early.

Yan Chen: Then when can I date?

After thinking for a moment, An Yi replied: After going to college.

Yan Chen: Oh.

After a while, An Yi asked again: Who are you dating?

This time, Yan Chen took a long time to reply: A dork.

………

The new semester began, and the third-year students started intensive review. An Yi, who was already admitted, had no academic pressure, so he took the initiative to take on tasks such as erasing the blackboard and changing the water buckets in the class. At the same time, he started tutoring the sophomores and freshmen, gradually handing over the responsibilities of the broadcasting station to others.

Yan Chen still came to the broadcasting station to find him, but this time, he brought textbooks and notebooks that he had never seen before.

An Yi teased him with a smile, “Got into trouble again? Do you need me to help you review?”

“Need tutoring from you,” Yan Chen said.

“Huh?” An Yi was genuinely surprised this time for a while, “Are you serious?”

Yan Chen opened his notebook and looked up at him, “I’ve never joked with you.”

An Yi was stunned for a moment, then sat down beside him and asked, “Why suddenly so serious, is it because… you’re pursuing someone?”

“Yeah,” Yan Chen said softly, “He’s already admitted, hard to pursue.”

An Yi choked.

Yan Chen rested his chin on his hand, looking at him, “Make good use of your time, Teacher An.”

An Yi dared not look at him anymore, his face still flushed with embarrassment. He opened his book, and unusually, he couldn’t even solve the simplest equation correctly.