Chapter 32: A Fated Encounter and an Unexpected Collision

Bai YuYang certainly couldn’t recall the exact working hours at the moment. Fortunately, he remembered there was a work group chat for the restaurant on his phone.

After lingering in the classroom for a while longer, Bai YuYang finally shouldered his bag, emerging as the last one to leave.

Having securely locked the classroom door, he began scrolling through his phone, searching for the stored chat groups.

‘It was moments like these that truly brought home the reality of his reincarnation.’

Many of these groups had been abandoned after high school graduation, yet now they reappeared on his phone.

‘Oh, and this phone in his hand should have been long defunct anyway. So, no issues there.’

Thankfully, Bai YuYang hadn’t joined many groups, allowing him to quickly locate the “Spirit Star Restaurant Work Group” in his list.

While the restaurant’s name was a bit chuunibyou-ish, its standards were undeniably high.

It was a rather well-known establishment in the Eastern District, boasting a remarkably formal management system and an impeccable working environment.

However, these weren’t the reasons Bai YuYang chose to work there.

It was the high salary and the absolute lack of overtime!

‘Those were the crucial conditions, alright!’

Reflecting on his past self, Bai YuYang had gone through considerable effort to secure a part-time position at this upscale restaurant as a mere high school student. Fortunately, he had ultimately succeeded.

He felt immense gratitude for being reborn into a timeline where he had already secured this job, sparing him from another round of interviews. It was truly a stroke of luck.

Opening the work group, Bai YuYang found the employee environment surprisingly harmonious. While people occasionally chatted in the group, it wasn’t overly frequent.

Thus, after a brief scroll upwards, Bai YuYang located the shift schedule posted by the restaurant manager earlier that day.

‘Hmm… a six-thirty evening shift, two hours of part-time work.’

The current time was five-thirty, not long after school had ended. Heading over directly seemed a bit early.

The subway was convenient; it took less than half an hour to reach the Eastern District. Leaving now would only mean waiting around once he arrived.

By this time, Lin QingYu and Bai YuXi had already arrived home. Bai YuYang had just received a message from Bai YuXi.

[Brother, Lin QingYu-jie and I are already home, so please don’t worry. Also, be careful on your way to work, and come home early after your shift. Don’t wander around outside. I’ll prepare dinner in advance and wait for you to return.]

‘Mhm, mhm.’

Seeing these warm words from Bai YuXi, Bai YuYang’s mood significantly brightened. He casually replied with an “OK” emoji.

He wouldn’t wander around outside for Bai YuXi’s sake.

Bai YuYang knew his sister had a particular habit: if he needed to come home late, Bai YuXi would postpone her own dinner, even though she could simply eat with Lin QingYu. Yet, as long as Bai YuYang wasn’t back, Bai YuXi wouldn’t eat.

Therefore, Bai YuYang would return as early as possible, not delaying a single minute longer than necessary.

With his shift not yet started, Bai YuYang needed to wait a bit longer at school.

Of course, he could have taken the subway to the restaurant and waited there, but arriving early wasn’t the primary reason he remained at school.

Rather, he had one crucial task to complete today, right now, before he could comfortably head to work.

September 1st, the day high school’s second year began, held significant meaning for Bai YuYang.

While he might have forgotten many things, this particular day always left a profound impression whenever he recalled it.

In his previous life, on this very day after school, Bai YuYang had gone to the library to return books before heading to his part-time job. There, he had serendipitously encountered Mo Sishi, quietly reading alone.

Perhaps she had grown tired of reading, or perhaps, with school long over, she believed no one was around. So, she had removed her glasses to rest for a moment.

But as her glasses came off, her hidden, breathtaking beauty was coincidentally revealed, and Bai YuYang stumbled right into it.

Mo Sishi had been utterly flustered at the time, nearly knocking over a bookshelf. Bai YuYang still found the memory amusing.

From that day forward, their interaction slowly grew, sparked by this encounter. They experienced many things together, forging an unbreakable bond.

So, this time, would Bai YuYang still go to the library?

The answer was a resounding yes.

Why wouldn’t he? Having already chosen Mo Sishi, how could he possibly miss their fated meeting?

No matter how busy he was, a trip to the library today was non-negotiable.

‘To meet you, then start from scratch, to get to know each other, slowly understand one another, and finally, to become the “you and I” of our previous life once more.’

This was Bai YuYang’s current plan.

Without further ado, Bai YuYang couldn’t recall the exact time he had met Mo Sishi. However, it was better to be early than late. With hardly anyone left in the school, arriving early to stake out the place couldn’t be wrong.

With this thought, Bai YuYang started walking, replying to messages on his phone as he headed towards the school’s grand library.

He was currently responding to Luo Hao’s messages. That guy had been complaining ever since earlier, saying that without Bai YuYang on the court, his team was being utterly crushed by the opposing team!

‘Well, there was nothing he could do about it. Who told them they were just amateur players? Usually, Bai YuYang carried them, so it was only expected that Luo Hao and his teammates would be dominated now that he was gone.’

As he reached a corner, Bai YuYang was about to reply with a teasing remark when suddenly…

“Aiya!”

“Hm?!”

Before he could react, Bai YuYang was jolted by a considerable force, stumbling backward.

Fortunately, he was agile, and his height advantage meant he only took two steps back before regaining his balance.

The person who collided with him, however, was not so lucky.

Bai YuYang looked forward in surprise, seeing a girl about two meters away who had been knocked down.

She quickly sat up, supporting herself with one hand on the ground while clutching her lower back with the other, seemingly having taken a solid fall.

But the fall had been so sudden, and her sitting up equally abrupt, that her skirt hem had rolled up slightly. From Bai YuYang’s angle, he could vaguely discern some peculiar…

‘Hmm, little bears. How childish. Even my Bai YuXi doesn’t wear such an infantile style anymore.’

Out of gentlemanly courtesy, Bai YuYang averted his gaze, intending to help her up.

However, this girl, who had fallen and sat up quickly, stood up even faster!

“W-w-w-ouch, it hurts, so much… Ah, I’m sorry! I’m really, truly sorry! It’s all my fault! I shouldn’t have been running so fast in school!”

Before Bai YuYang could even move, she shot to her feet, frantically bowing and apologizing to him. Her tone was genuinely apologetic, yet also very urgent.

Just then, as she stood up, her skirt naturally fell back into place, as if nothing had happened.

It seemed she hadn’t even realized the situation from moments ago.

‘Thankfully, there was no one else nearby except Bai YuYang. This girl seemed even more clumsy than Lin QingYu.’

“……”

Bai YuYang finally took a moment to observe her. She was half a head taller than Lin QingYu, but half a head shorter than Bai YuXi, making her overall a ‘large’ loli.

Her features were delicate, with long brown hair tied into twin ponytails that hung on either side of her waist. Her reddish-brown eyes glistened with tears, whether from the pain of the fall or fear and worry from bumping into someone, he couldn’t tell.

She appeared overly slender, perhaps a picky eater like Bai YuXi. No wonder she had been knocked so far just now.

In his previous life, Bai YuYang hadn’t experienced this collision here, nor had he any idea who this girl, trembling like a little hamster, was.

But these details were irrelevant to Bai YuYang, who spoke indifferently.

“It’s fine. I was also at fault for looking down at my phone while walking. However, this is a blind corner, so try not to run when passing through here, alright?”

Bai YuYang felt his reasoning was sound, and his tone was amiable enough.

Yet, this girl… why did she seem even more frightened?