Chapter 91: Extra 4: Palpitations

September’s wind still carried the residual warmth of late summer, blowing the parasol leaves by the roadside until they gently swayed. Carrying his schoolbag on his back, Lu Zhiyan’s footsteps were as brisk as a jumping little bird, reaching out from time to time to pat Shen Yu’s arm beside him.

“A’Yu, what are you walking so slowly for, hurry up.”

Shen Yu tilted his head to look at him, the depths of his eyes holding a soft smile that others had never seen before, his voice very low:

“It’s still early today, no rush.”

Lu Zhiyan snorted, yet the corners of his mouth couldn’t resist rising along with it. The two joked and roughhoused all the way; their fingertips occasionally touching, they would both quickly move away as if scalded, and then pretend nothing had happened.

Upon arriving at the classroom, the door was still half-ajar. The inside was empty, with only the early morning sunlight diagonally draped over the desks. Lu Zhiyan had just tossed his schoolbag into his seat when he sharp-eyedly caught sight of a corner of a pink envelope exposed in Shen Yu’s desk cubby.

He immediately leaned over: “Hey, what is that of yours?”

Shen Yu flusteredly tried to hide it, but was pressed down by Lu Zhiyan in one grab.

“Received a confession letter again?”

Lu Zhiyan raised an eyebrow, his tone full of teasing, “Hand it over.”

Shen Yu’s ear tips flushed slightly red. He struggled twice, fundamentally unable to out-stubborn him. Lu Zhiyan simply tore it open directly, pinched the letter paper, leaned in between the two of them, and began reading in a low voice.

“Classmate Shen Yu: I don’t know how to open my mouth, so I can only write it down for you. Every time I see you in the corridor, on the playground, or at the classroom door, my heartbeat falls into a mess.

Your appearance sitting quietly in your seat, your good-looking profile when you lower your head to write in the school library, your pleasant voice when you speak on stage as an outstanding student representative, the corners of your eyes that gently curve up when you are occasionally teased into laughing; I have secretly looked at them so many times.

I don’t dare to speak to you, don’t dare to get close to you, and can only watch from afar. You are the person I have always quietly kept in my heart. The matter of liking you is the most carefully and also most earnestly hidden secret of mine. If this disturbs you, I’m sorry, but I truly like you very much.”

Lu Zhiyan read slower and slower. After finishing, he even gave a soft hiss, nodding sincerely:

“Written too sincerely, isn’t it… Literary talent flying high.”

Shen Yu was stiff at the side, the roots of his ears so red they were about to drip blood. He wanted to stop him, yet couldn’t bear to, and could only let him finish reading, his heartbeat so fast it was like it wanted to smash his chest to pieces.

Looking at his appearance of being shy to the point of being at a loss, Lu Zhiyan’s heart was soft to a complete mess, finding it fun and cute.

Classmates successively walked into the classroom. [Read on RanaTranslations🌸] Only then did Shen Yu hurriedly put away the letter, walk onto the podium, and pick up the morning reading textbook, trying hard to pretend to be calm and natural. But that smear of red that hadn’t faded was still glaringly hanging on his ear tips, fully taken in by Lu Zhiyan’s eyes.

Lu Zhiyan lay prone on the desk, lazily following the morning reading, yet his line of sight was glued to Shen Yu without letting go. He thought to himself that when he went to his house to do homework at night, he definitely had to tease him again.

This unhideable palpitation tossed and turned at the bottom of his heart, about to overflow.

During the rest time after the morning exercises ended, Lu Zhiyan pulled Shen Yu and slipped away to the commissary, buying two bottles of fruit-flavored soda. The two hid under the secluded tree shade by the edge of the playground, quietly drinking.

Lu Zhiyan suddenly leaned close, his nose tip almost touching Shen Yu’s cheek, his voice as light as a feather:

“Is the green apple flavor delicious?”

Shen Yu nodded. Just as he wanted to pull the straw out to let him swap on his own, Lu Zhiyan directly lowered his head and took a large gulp right from the straw in his mouth.

The distance was excessively close.

Shen Yu lowered his eyes, looking at the slightly sticking up top of his hair and his long eyelashes. His heartbeat violently skipped a beat; even his breathing fell into a mess.

Only when Lu Zhiyan had drunk enough did he raise his head, smiling until his brows and eyes curved, the corners of his eyes carrying a brisk arc. Reaching out, he gently touched his arm:

“Hurry up and drink, if you dawdle anymore, we’ll be late for class in a bit.”

Only then did Shen Yu slowly recover his senses. The fingers grasping the soda slightly tightened. Lowering his head, he drank in small mouthfuls, yet his ear tips were still quietly turning hot.

At the cafeteria at noon, Lu Zhiyan took it as a matter of course to extend his chopsticks and pick away two pieces of meat from Shen Yu’s dining plate.

“You even have girls writing you love letters, and you still won’t allow me to eat two pieces of your meat?”

He deliberately put on a jealous appearance.

Shen Yu didn’t stop him, his fingertips slightly tightening, so nervous he didn’t dare to look at him. Lu Zhiyan just liked seeing him like this; panicking at the slightest tease, yet never truly pushing him away.

During the free activity of the afternoon physical education class, Lu Zhiyan ran and jumped on the badminton court, shedding sweat, while Shen Yu shot baskets on the basketball court. Right before class ended, Lu Zhiyan ran toward him facing the warm sun. Not far behind him followed several girls, among whom was even the acknowledged school beauty from the class next door.

Shen Yu had just stopped his movements. Raising his eyes, he crashed into Lu Zhiyan’s brilliant smile. In his mind, the image of the two sharing a bottle of fruit-flavored soda under the tree shade during the long recess in the morning flashed uncontrollably. His cheeks instantly turned hot, and he turned his eyes away in embarrassment.

Lu Zhiyan’s footsteps paused. [Read on RanaTranslations🌸] Looking at his suddenly reddened face, and then turning his head to glance at the several beautiful girls behind him, his heart suddenly sank a bit.

So it turned out… he was blushing because he saw good-looking and clean girls.

True too, boys of this age were originally supposed to be like this anyway.

Sour astringency silently spread up his heart, yet he quickly pulled out a natural smile. Walking over to joke like he usually did, he deliberately pressed down that bit of inexplicable sadness.

When school ended, Lu Zhiyan leaned under a tree, watching from afar as Shen Yu called that female classmate who wrote the love letter in the morning into a corner. Not long after, the female classmate ran away wiping her tears.

Shen Yu stood in place for a moment, without lingering much, and walked straight toward him.

“Why did you talk to the person until she cried?”

Lu Zhiyan knitted his brows, his tone carrying a bit of blame. Naturally, he raised his hand and rubbed the soft hair strands on the back of Shen Yu’s head, “Actually, puppy love is nothing much, I’ll help you cover for it with Uncle Shen and Auntie Liu, it will absolutely be fine. In the future, there’s no need to reject so ruthlessly every single time.”

He spoke saying one thing but meaning another, his line of sight gazing forward. He didn’t see the once again reddened ear roots and instantly softened gaze of Shen Yu when the back of his head was touched by him.

Passing by a beverage shop, Shen Yu asked softly: “Want to drink milk tea?”

Lu Zhiyan nodded. Shen Yu bought milk tea for him, yet only took a cup of lemonade for himself.

“Are you not drinking mocha?” Lu Zhiyan raised an eyebrow.

Shen Yu gently shook his head.

Walking all the way, the setting sun stretched the shadows of the two very long. Lu Zhiyan was absent-minded, still thinking about that scene in the afternoon when Shen Yu blushed upon seeing the school beauty. Not until crossing the road did he discover that the lemonade in Shen Yu’s hand hadn’t been touched for a single mouthful.

“Why aren’t you drinking?”

Shen Yu paused, his voice placed even lighter, carrying a trace of imperceptible shyness:

“Do you want to drink it?”

Lu Zhiyan’s heart violently trembled.

He suddenly reacted; Shen Yu had deliberately not ordered mocha, knowing he was afraid of bitterness, knowing he preferred sweet and sour flavors.

“I want to drink it.”

He leaned over almost immediately, taking a large gulp right from the straw in Shen Yu’s hand.

The lemonade was clear and cool. The taste that should have originally been sour was unbelievably sweet today, sweet all the way to the bottom of the heart.

He raised his head, crashing into Shen Yu’s gentle gaze. Under his intense gaze, that person slightly lowered his head and, right from the same straw, also gently took a sip.

“Is it delicious?” Lu Zhiyan’s voice turned hoarse.

Shen Yu looked at him and slowly nodded, the depths of his eyes showing unhideable softness.

The unhappiness, sour astringency, and unease that had arisen just now because of those girls all vanished like mist and smoke at this moment, stuffed fully to the brim with gentleness.

This year, they were fifteen years old.

They still didn’t understand what true love was, what a long-lasting future was.

Yet that palpitation that had been hidden at the bottom of the heart for a long time had already quietly taken root and sprouted in an unnoticed corner, waiting for a certain day to break out of the earth and crazily grow into love filling the sky.

The evening wind was gentle, the setting sun was just right, and the person beside him, was also just right.

The End.