Chapter 62: A Christmas Eve Confession

Of course, such flowing, shoulder-length hair came with its own set of troubles; it required constant care. Yet, Lin Duo never found it bothersome. Instead, she considered styling her beautiful hair a truly blissful experience.

Watching Lin Duo meticulously arrange her hairstyle for what felt like an eternity, Shen Jing’an finally grew impatient. “Hey, hey! We’re going to eat, not to flirt with boys! Can you hurry it up already?”

“What’s the rush?” Lin Duo retorted, rolling her eyes. “You’re hardly acting like a lady yourself!”

Only then did she slowly gather her belongings and head out.

As it was lunchtime, students streamed in and out of the school gates in an endless procession. Many male students couldn’t help but steal extra glances at Lin Duo.

She, however, had long grown accustomed to such admiring gazes, remaining calm and continuing to chat and laugh with her roommate.

Just a few steps beyond the campus gates, Shen Jing’an abruptly halted. She pointed across the street at a beauty salon.

“I heard they do nails here,” she said. “Should we give it a try?”

“But aren’t the school rules clear about prohibiting jewelry and nail polish…?” Lin Duo reminded her, her voice faint.

“Hmph, the school rules also forbid dyeing hair, yet plenty of girls do it, don’t they?” Shen Jing’an scoffed. “As long as it’s not too obvious, it’s fine!”

Shen Jing’an, clearly set on her decision, practically dragged Lin Duo inside. Of course, neither dared to choose overly conspicuous designs.

Ultimately, they settled for a sheer red polish, which remained subtle unless examined closely.

Throughout their meal, Lin Duo couldn’t help but repeatedly check her nails. It was her first time trying polish, and the novelty still felt utterly captivating.

Shen Jing’an, by contrast, was far more composed. She took a sip of her drink and declared, “We’ll be sixteen soon, practically adults. There are so many grown-up things we can start experimenting with now.”

“After all, a girl’s youth only lasts a few years,” she added. “How can we do ourselves justice if we don’t doll ourselves up a bit?”

“Yes… only a few years…”

Shen Jing’an’s words stirred a deep melancholy within Lin Duo. She was acutely aware of the extensive damage years of continuous medication had inflicted upon her body.

Given her unique circumstances, she had never dared to undergo a thorough physical examination at a hospital, leaving her uncertain of how much longer she had to live.

Yet, Lin Duo had never once regretted her decision to run away from home that day. She had long since resolved that even if death claimed her, she would die as a girl.

Shen Jing’an, of course, couldn’t comprehend Lin Duo’s sudden shift in mood. “You’re really strange, you know,” she remarked. “You often look utterly world-weary for no reason. I have no idea what terrible things you could have possibly endured at such a young age.”

“But seriously,” she continued, “yesterday while showering, I overheard the girls next door talking about you. They said Cai Jingyao is about to ‘conquer’ you!”

“Pah, don’t talk nonsense!” Lin Duo retorted, feigning toughness. However, the blush creeping onto her cheeks betrayed her true feelings.

“Ahem, but seriously, Cai Jingyao is a really great guy,” Shen Jing’an pressed on. “He’s handsome, gets good grades, he’s a star player on the basketball team, and he’s funny.”

“Several girls have a crush on him, you know. If you don’t act fast, someone else might snatch him up!”

“Stop it, already!” Lin Duo’s small face had turned the color of a ripe, luscious red apple.

After math class the next day, Lin Duo once again sought out Cai Jingyao to discuss a problem. To her surprise, he possessed remarkably sharp eyesight.

He gazed at her nails. “You’re wearing nail polish, aren’t you?”

Lin Duo initially intended to deny it, but then she reconsidered. He wasn’t exactly a stranger, after all.

She nodded gently.

“It suits you really well!” Cai Jingyao’s smile was exceptionally bright and warm.

Lin Duo’s heart began to beat an unruly, accelerated rhythm. Feeling a little flustered, she averted her gaze.

“Alright, alright, quickly explain this formula!”

As the calendar pages turned, one by one, final exams loomed ever closer. Even Shen Jing’an had abandoned her computer, opting instead to burn the midnight oil.

The dormitory’s lights-out time grew progressively later. Regular meetings for the Literature and Arts Department were also suspended, as the second-year students had their proficiency exams to contend with.

However, one bespectacled senior still remembered the pretty junior. He personally handed his spare set of first-year review materials directly to Lin Duo.

In the blink of an eye, the leaves of the French plane trees outside the window had withered and fallen completely. Shen Jing’an, feeling a little despondent, leaned against the window, gazing out.

“Tomorrow’s Christmas Eve, yet I don’t even have a boyfriend to go on a date with,” she sighed.

“Isn’t that just fate’s way of making you focus on your revision?” Lin Duo mumbled, pen in mouth, her eyes fixed on her exercises without lifting her head.

Shen Jing’an turned around, stretching languidly out of boredom. “Ugh, these past few days have been so exhausting. It feels like there’s an endless stream of problems to solve. I really wish I had a chance to go out and relax.”

“By the way,” she added, “Cai Jingyao hasn’t asked you out?”

“He’s an honor student too,” Lin Duo replied. “He’s probably studying even more diligently than us right now.”

Though Lin Duo said this, a faint sense of disappointment flickered in her heart. Just then, her phone on the bedside table suddenly rang.

Shen Jing’an snatched it up first, her eyes sparkling. “Hehe, speak of the devil, and he shall appear! It’s Cai Jingyao calling!”

“Give it here!” Lin Duo demanded, unceremoniously snatching her phone back. After composing herself slightly, she pressed the answer button.

She spoke in the softest voice she could muster. “–Yes, Classmate Cai, is something the matter?–”

“–Um, tomorrow is Christmas Eve, and it’s Saturday,” Cai Jingyao’s voice came through, as gentle and magnetic as ever. “I was wondering if you’d like to go to Wanda Plaza to see a movie together tomorrow afternoon.–”

Lin Duo’s little heart began to pound ‘thump-thump-thump.’ She tried desperately to calm her emotions.

“–Um, why… why are you asking me out?–”

A brief silence hung on the other end of the line before Cai Jingyao’s voice returned. “–Because I like you!–”

His words were like a wave of warmth, instantly melting Lin Duo’s limbs. With a soft ‘thump,’ she sank onto her bed.

She felt as though her entire being was steeped in a jar of honey, an unprecedented sense of happiness thoroughly filling every corner of her body. Her mind went completely blank, and she couldn’t utter a word for a long time.

Cai Jingyao, receiving no reply from the other end, grew a little flustered and asked again. “–Do you… not have time tomorrow afternoon?–”

“–No… uh… I do! I do have time! I’m completely free tomorrow afternoon!–” Lin Duo quickly recovered, answering with a rush.

“–Then you set the specific time and place,” she added. “–Just text me the details!–”

After hanging up, Lin Duo hugged her fluffy teddy bear and began to roll around on the bed, enthusiastically messing up her neatly made sheets.

She then sat up, brimming with excitement. “Xiaojing, what do you think I should wear tomorrow?”

“Are you crazy?!” Shen Jing’an muttered, too lazy to bother with her, and buried her head back in her studies.

In truth, Lin Duo had received a confession from Cai Jingyao just two months prior, at a Western restaurant. At the time, however, she hadn’t harbored strong feelings for him, which explained why her emotions weren’t nearly as stirred then as they were today.

Ultimately, what mattered most was genuine affection. Even the most heartfelt confession from a boy one didn’t like couldn’t compare to a single, insignificant compliment from a boy one did.

Indeed, in the two months following the school sports meet, Lin Duo’s feelings for Cai Jingyao had undergone a significant, quiet transformation. This was precisely why she had reacted with such uncharacteristic excitement just now.