Chapter 14: Blocked

Lin Hexi eventually borrowed a pair of casual shorts from Yang Juan. Fortunately, their waist sizes were about the same, and there was no need to consider height differences for shorts.

The intercity highway leading to the city from the suburbs was closer to the Lin family home. You Chong first drove Lin Tong back home. After arriving at the Lin family home, Lin Hexi did not get out of the car but directly took You Chong’s car back to school.

He got out of the car outside the south gate of the school, and returned to the rented house off-campus. He changed out of his clothes, threw them into the washing machine to wash, and then hung them on the balcony, planning to return them next week during elective classes.

There were no classes on Monday morning, so Lin Hexi ordered takeout, closed the doors and windows, and lay on the sofa in the living room enjoying the air conditioner. Even though there was a regular dormitory check by the counselor on Sunday nights, he still did not plan to go back to school.

After finishing his meal and waking up from a nap, he received a call from Ning Nan.

A few days ago, the two had an unpleasant falling-out at a tea restaurant, but now the other party’s tone on the phone was as usual: “Did you return to school today?”

It didn’t sound like Ning Nan was still angry and calling to give him trouble. Most likely, Ning Nan needed something from him. Lin Hexi understood this clearly, but he remained calm on the surface, “If you have something to say, just say it.”

Ning Nan’s breathing slightly paused, obviously annoyed by Lin Hexi’s tone, but he still restrained his temper and said, “I have an elective class at seven tonight. I can’t make it. Can you cover for me?”

Lin Hexi asked indifferently, “What do you have to do tonight?”

Ning Nan was already becoming impatient, “I told you I have something to do. Why do you care so much?”

Not wanting to fall out with the other party, Lin Hexi lightly scoffed inwardly but responded calmly, “Text me the building and classroom number.”

Only then did Ning Nan’s expression slightly ease, and he hung up the phone and sent over the building and classroom numbers.

Someone beside Ning Nan asked, “Are you still going to tonight’s birthday party?”

“Yes, of course,” Ning Nan replied with a pleased smile. “I found someone to cover my class.”

At exactly seven in the evening, Lin Hexi entered the classroom just in time. He wanted to find an empty seat in the back, but someone stood up from the middle of the classroom and called his name, “I have a seat here.”

He looked in the direction of the voice and saw Fang Qingning, whom he had met at the bar last time. He walked towards the seat next to Fang Qingning.

As he sat down in the empty seat beside her, Fang Qingning looked slightly puzzled, “Did you enter the wrong classroom? I don’t think your name was called in the last roll call.”

Lin Hexi replied, “I’m here to cover for someone.”

Fang Qingning was still wearing the same fresh and light makeup she had the last time they met at school. She took out her phone from the desk and showed him a photo of an orange cat from her album. “I went to feed the cat two more times. It seems to be recognizing me now. Why haven’t I seen you there lately?”

“I only go occasionally,” Lin Hexi answered succinctly.

His gaze fell on the hand in the photo where Fang Qingning was petting the cat. Her fingertips were adorned with Pepsi blue nail polish, making her hand appear even fairer. However, her arm was covered with intricate tattoos, suggesting she might have gone to the bar before feeding the cat in the alley.

Noticing his gaze lingering too long, Fang Qingning belatedly put down her phone and placed both hands on the desk for him to see. The blue nail polish was still there, but her arms were clean, without any tattoos.

She awkwardly and hurriedly explained, “Those are just temporary tattoos.”

Lin Hexi nodded and didn’t ask further.

However, Fang Qingning suddenly felt a strong urge to confide. With a nervous expression, she asked, “Do you think I have two faces?”

Lin Hexi was taken aback, his gaze slowly turning towards her, “Everyone has two faces.” It sounded like a joke, yet also like a truth. He nonchalantly smiled, “I do too.”

“But you’re the first one to notice that I have two faces,” Fang Qingning murmured. “I actually skip classes to put on heavy makeup and go drinking at bars. I even kiss strangers in bars and hang out with people who don’t seem very respectable. But my roommates never know. They always think I’m a well-behaved girl who doesn’t even attend college social events.”

“There’s no law that says you need to show all your sides to others,” Lin Hexi said with a faint smile. “As long as you feel happy, that’s what matters.”

Fang Qingning furrowed her brows in distress. “But I’m not happy.” Her fingers on the desk instinctively curled up. “I feel very painful. I hide my other side just to avoid being ostracized by my roommates.”

Seeing that she was opening up more and more, almost pouring out her heart to him, Lin Hexi decided not to listen any further. Half-jokingly and half-reminding, he said, “Are you taking me as your confidant? If there are things you don’t want others to know, then be more cautious and don’t spill them so easily.”

Fang Qingning indeed closed her mouth, but not because she suddenly realized something from his reminder. It was clear she had something else to say.

She looked at him intensely.

Lin Hexi paused slightly, the first thought that came to his mind was the possibility that she might like him. If that were the case, he would reject her without hesitation. However, Fang Qingning didn’t seem like she was in love with him.

Only one possibility remained. Lin Hexi looked back at her without a change in expression.

Sure enough, Fang Qingning, with her fingers nervously tapping the desk, cautiously and hesitantly asked, “I heard you’re an illegitimate child?”

Lin Hexi’s eyebrows raised slightly. After a moment, he calmly replied, “I am.”

Fang Qingning exhaled lightly, a look of dejection gradually spreading across her face. “So am I,” she said, summoning the courage to look up, as if she were revealing a long-buried secret or shedding a long-held burden. “My mother is the other woman who intruded into someone else’s family.”

Lin Hexi’s expression momentarily froze, then he reached out to gently pat her head in a comforting gesture.

He had originally thought that the next time he would see You Chong and the others would be during their next outdoor survival elective class. However, before that class could take place, Zhou Xuan led a group to block him at the outdoor basketball court behind the dormitory building. After covering Ning Nan’s class last night, Lin Hexi found it too troublesome to return to his off-campus rental and instead spent the night in the school dormitory.

His relationship with the other three roommates was poor. They were already unhappy to see him return to sleep and became even more irritable when the campus internet was cut off at eleven o’clock sharp. So, after the counselor’s dormitory check, they all left to spend the night at an internet café.

With the three of them gone, Lin Hexi enjoyed the solitude of the dormitory. The next morning, he woke up, went downstairs to buy breakfast, and after eating, he took out a dust-covered basketball from under his desk, cleaned it, and brought it to the small basketball court behind the dormitory.

Finding it boring to play alone, he called the few who usually liked to follow Ning Nan around. They had all skipped class to catch up on sleep in the dorm, and Lin Hexi’s call woke them up, filling them with resentment they dared not express. They quickly freshened up and rushed to the basketball court behind the dormitory.

Lin Hexi sat under the hoop, dribbling the ball, waiting for them.

When those guys arrived, they all looked like they hadn’t slept well. Knowing that Ning Nan probably didn’t actually have something important to do last night and had likely just used it as an excuse to go out and have fun, Lin Hexi could also tell that these guys had probably stayed out late with Ning Nan. Without exposing Ning Nan’s lie, Lin Hexi casually asked, “Where’s Ning Nan? Why aren’t you guys with him today?”

The group looked at each other, unsure of how to respond. Finally, one of them stepped forward and vaguely explained, “He’s not in a good mood, so he didn’t come back to school.”

Lin Hexi knew right away that there was something fishy about the explanation but didn’t press further. He bent down, picked up the basketball at his feet, and tossed it into the guy’s arms. “Come on, let’s play a game,” he said, and stood up.

The guy who caught the ball didn’t respond, his gaze fixed straight past Lin Hexi’s shoulder with a subtle look of panic on his face.

Sensing something was off, Lin Hexi turned to look behind him. In the distance, he saw a group of male students from the Institute of Technology walking purposefully towards them, each exuding an air of aggression.

Lin Hexi lightly touched his chin with his fingertips, and stood still thoughtfully as he watched them approach.