Chapter 28: The Third Choice

After the group of people had gone far enough away, You Chong and Lin Hexi finally stood up and left the bushes. On their way back to the campsite, they walked separately. Throughout the entire time, no one realized that You Chong and Lin Hexi had gone out together.

The camping trip ended the next morning. After the teacher took attendance, everyone packed up their belongings and left. Lin Hexi hadn’t slept well the previous night, so after returning the tent to the outdoor equipment store, he went straight back to his rented apartment off-campus to catch up on sleep.

He slept through the entire Sunday. On Monday afternoon, during a major course lecture, Lin Hexi saw Ning Nan in the classroom.

Ever since that day when some students from the Institute of Technology came looking for trouble but ended up causing a bit of a farce, Lin Hexi hadn’t seen Ning Nan around campus. Now, seeing him attend class with a relaxed demeanor, it was likely that the issue had been completely resolved.

Perhaps Ning Nan also felt it had been a while since they last met, so he called out to Lin Hexi, inviting him to sit beside him. Lin Hexi hesitated slightly before finally walking over to join him.

He sat down in the empty seat next to Ning Nan, just in time to hear him discussing plans for the National Day holiday with a few others. Seemingly in a good mood, Ning Nan, noticing him sitting down, casually draped an arm over Lin Hexi’s shoulder. “Got any plans for the National Day holiday next week?”

Lin Hexi replied with a nonchalant, “Probably just staying home and playing games.”

Immediately losing interest, Ning Nan withdrew his hand from Lin Hexi’s shoulder and turned back to continue his conversation with the others.

They were deeply engrossed in their discussion, and although Lin Hexi didn’t participate at all, he could pick up bits and pieces of their conversation that suggested Ning Nan had recently started dating someone new. It seemed they were planning to spend the holiday at the beach together.

With little interest, Lin Hexi propped his head up with his hand and lazily gazed at the professional course lecturer, who was speaking with great enthusiasm on the podium.

Lin Hexi hadn’t chosen his university major; it had been assigned directly by the college. He didn’t like his major, but Lin Yuanwei, who had prior knowledge of his academic performance, clearly believed that it wouldn’t make much difference which major he was in, as long as he could earn his diploma.

Lin Hexi didn’t offer any rebuttal to this; after all, the International College didn’t have the major he truly wanted to study.

He slightly lowered his head, his gaze sweeping over the doodles left by the students in the front row on their textbooks. His fingertips moved lightly, and he couldn’t help but recall the familiar yet distant feeling he had when holding a paintbrush by the lakeside in the arboretum a few days ago.

After nearly three years of not touching a paintbrush, the only sensation that filled his heart when he picked it up again was a deep sense of unfamiliarity.

Retracting his gaze from the front row, Lin Hexi lowered his eyes, staring blankly at the surface of the desk.

When the class bell rang, Ning Nan was the first to stand up from his seat.

Clearly in a good mood, likely from the praise he had received, he slightly raised his chin, and a trace of pride flickering in his eyes. “If I have time in the next few days, my girlfriend and I will treat you all to a meal.”

The others naturally nodded in agreement, pleased with the offer.

As if still unsatisfied, Ning Nan turned his face toward Lin Hexi, giving him a haughty glance. “You should come too.”

Lin Hexi, hearing this, casually curled his lips and replied, “I won’t go. I’m a bit busy these days.”

Noticing Lin Hexi’s dismissive attitude, Ning Nan immediately felt a surge of irritation, his tone thick with sarcasm. “What could you possibly be busy with? It’s either gaming or going to bars.”

Lin Hexi smiled faintly and didn’t respond further.

Ning Nan’s remark served as a reminder, and Lin Hexi vaguely recalled that it had been quite a few days since he last went to feed the stray cat.

In the evening, Lin Hexi went to the alley near the bar, where he unexpectedly ran into Fang Qingning, who was also there to feed the cat.

Fang Qingning seemed surprised to see him. “I thought you wouldn’t be coming here for a while.”

Lin Hexi casually leaned against the wall, watching the orange cat trot over and rub against his pant leg. “This alley isn’t very safe. It’s better if you don’t come here alone.”

Fang Qingning nodded seriously, then seemed to remember something and proactively reported to him, “After that day, I haven’t gone back to the bar.”

Lin Hexi hadn’t expected her to be so obedient, and his expression showed a hint of surprise as he smiled.

After feeding the orange cat, the two of them walked back to the school together.

The bar street was gradually coming to life. The “Closed” sign had been removed from the glass doors, food stalls across the street were starting to set up, and suddenly, a group of heavy motorcyclists roared out from around the corner. Lin Hexi reached out and pulled Fang Qingning to the side.

The speeding motorcycles whizzed past, just grazing Fang Qingning’s arm, the rush of wind lifting her beautiful curly hair. She staggered slightly, and her face turning a little pale.

The motorbike gang quickly disappeared down the narrow street, and Lin Hexi released her, bending down to pick up some papers that had fallen at their feet.

They were two tickets to a weekend art exhibition. The artist was a well-known female painter in China, someone Lin Hexi had known about since high school. After examining the tickets closely, he handed them back to Fang Qingning. “Are you going to the art exhibition?”

After calming down, Fang Qingning took the tickets and put them away, a bit embarrassed. “The person I like is a student in the fine arts department. I want to invite him to the exhibition this weekend.”

Lin Hexi nodded and, after thinking for a moment, asked, “Where did you buy the tickets?”

“Do you want to go too?” Fang Qingning asked, surprised and puzzled. “I bought them online. Since they limit the number of visitors each day, the tickets are already sold out in advance.” She paused, then added with a hint of regret, “This weekend is the last two days the exhibition will be open to the public.”

Lin Hexi didn’t seem too disappointed. “I just thought of going on a whim. It’s not something I have to do.”

Fang Qingning hesitated.

After a moment, as if she had finally made up her mind, she looked up at Lin Hexi. “If you want to go, I can give you the tickets.”

Lin Hexi looked back at her, somewhat surprised.

“It’s just a one-sided crush; he hasn’t said he likes me too,” Fang Qingning said with a lighthearted smile, showing no sign of disappointment. “Besides, there are plenty of art exhibitions. I can invite him to the next one.”

“You said it yourself, there are plenty of art exhibitions,” Lin Hexi replied, smiling as he politely declined her offer. “If you can go next time, then so can I.”

Fang Qingning let out a soft “ah” and, as expected, obediently changed the subject, no longer mentioning giving him the tickets.

However, on the day before the weekend, Fang Qingning unexpectedly contacted him again on WeChat, insisting on giving him the tickets.

Realizing that her plans must have changed, Lin Hexi didn’t refuse this time. They arranged to meet at the cafeteria for lunch, where Fang Qingning handed him the tickets.

Lin Hexi took the two tickets and pulled out his phone, saying, “Let me transfer you the money for the tickets.”

Fang Qingning quickly waved her hand, declining. “No need. Consider it a thank-you for helping me out last time.” She sighed heavily, forcing a smile as she added, “I asked him out on WeChat yesterday, but he turned me down.”

Lin Hexi didn’t offer any words of comfort. Instead, he half-jokingly, half-suggestively said, “Drowning your sorrows in alcohol might be a good option.”

It was unclear whether Fang Qingning took it as a joke or seriously considered it as advice, but she remained silent, focusing on stabbing her rice with her chopsticks.

After observing her expression for a moment, Lin Hexi couldn’t help but add, “If you do decide to drink, don’t go alone.”

Fang Qingning, looking thoroughly dejected, nodded in agreement.

After they parted ways at the cafeteria, Lin Hexi found himself a bit troubled by the two tickets in his hand. He had originally intended to buy just one ticket for himself, but now that he had an extra one, he wasn’t sure what to do with it.

Letting the ticket go to waste seemed like a shame, but he didn’t have any friends to give it to. Standing by the sculpture in the plaza in front of the cafeteria, Lin Hexi made a silent decision: if the first person he saw after circling the sculpture was a girl, he would give the extra ticket away. If it was a boy, he would let the ticket go unused.

Lin Hexi lowered his gaze and waited silently for three seconds before turning and slowly walking toward the back of the sculpture.

What came into view first was a pair of expensive brand-name sneakers. Lin Hexi briefly glanced at them and quickly recognized that they were a limited-edition pair, the kind that was both costly and hard to find.

He could already guess that the owner of the sneakers was a boy, but his eyes still followed the line of those long, straight legs, gradually moving upward as he lifted his gaze.

He saw the wide basketball shorts and jersey, then the muscular arms flexing as the person held a basketball. His gaze continued upward to a prominent Adam’s apple, a sharp jawline, lips pressed into a slightly cold straight line, and a tall, well-defined nose.

Finally, his eyes met with a familiar pair of deep, dark eyes, and Lin Hexi was momentarily stunned.

Perhaps there was a third option, Lin Hexi thought to himself. With that, he lifted his gaze with renewed interest, a bright and cheerful smile spreading across his face as he looked up at You Chong, who was standing right in front of him.