Shen Xingruo paused briefly, then continued talking to He Siyue.
The meal ended around 9 p.m. The atmosphere was alright, but not particularly lively, considering some people didn’t know each other well and only sat together because of Shen Xingruo or Lu Xingyan.
People like Ruan Wen, who was usually timid, never dared to talk to Lu Xingyan or Li Chengyue from their class, let alone Xu Chengzhou’s group from Class Three.
After finishing, Shen Xingruo went to pay. She had already prepared to use her living expenses if necessary, but when she reported their table number, the waiter suddenly said, “Someone at your table has already paid.”
Shen Xingruo glanced back, slightly surprised.
The waiter continued, “It’s the one in the pink hoodie, quite handsome. Is he your boyfriend? Your clothes are the same color.”
Shen Xingruo: “…”
As if sensing something, Lu Xingyan glanced up towards the cashier, and their eyes met briefly in the air. Shen Xingruo turned back and asked the waiter, “When did he pay?”
From start to finish, Lu Xingyan never got up from his seat.
“It was when he just came in, he bought a prepaid card and said when your table finishes ordering, you could directly deduct the bill from his card. Is there a problem?” the waiter replied.
Shen Xingruo just said thank you and didn’t say anything further.
After the meal, Xu Chengzhou and the others suggested going to KTV, but Ruan Wen and her friends seemed uncomfortable. They hurriedly said they had curfew restrictions and needed to go home early.
Shen Xingruo also claimed to be tired and wanted to go home.
Li Ting wasn’t in a hurry, but since her three roommates were leaving, she didn’t have much reason to stay.
Although she usually hung out with Chen Zhu, it was always within a group of Class Three girls. Chen Zhu never paid her much attention individually, and they weren’t close.
With so many people leaving, it was clear this group wouldn’t stick together.
Dai Jiajing, Li Ting, and Ruan Wen were heading in the same direction, so they could take the same subway back.
He Siyue asked Shi Qin but found out it wasn’t on his way, then turned to Shen Xingruo. “Shen Xingruo, which direction is your home?”
“Falling Star Lake.”
Before He Siyue could say anything, Xu Chengzhou spoke up, “Mr. Lu and Mr. Lu Xingyan live close by, huh, you two are quite close.”
Li Chengyue added, “Then Yan Ge, you can conveniently drop Ruojie on your way since it’s so close.”
These two, who hadn’t said anything sensible all night, finally uttered something human.
Lu Xingyan glanced at them casually and nodded absentmindedly.
Sitting on the subway heading home, Ruan Wen breathed a sigh of relief.
Dai Jiajing sat beside her, handing her a bottle of water, and asked, “Ruan Wen, are you okay?”
Ruan Wen hurriedly waved her hand, feeling a bit awkward. “Thank you, I’m fine. It’s just that I felt nervous eating with them today.”
Li Ting glanced at her, then continued playing on her phone, apparently a little disdainful.
Dai Jiajing comforted her again, “I’m not familiar with them either. Eating together can be uncomfortable. At first, I thought Shen Xingruo mentioned eating only with a few classmates from our class.”
Ruan Wen explained, “I knew there were also people from Class Three. They’re actually all very nice. It’s just me being timid. I couldn’t even join the game at the table.”
Thinking of Shen Xingruo, Li Ting recalled Chen Zhu’s solicitous behavior at the table. Contrasting it with Chen Zhu’s usual indifference when she hung out with the Class Three girls, Li Ting felt annoyed. Plus, she had some feelings for Xu Chengzhou, but he hadn’t said a word to her today, making her even more uncomfortable.
At this moment, she put down her phone and responded to Dai Jiajing’s words with a complaint, “I mean, Shen Xingruo could have just invited us for a meal without making it a big group gathering. We’re not all that familiar with each other. It’s awkward.”
“Don’t say that. What does this have to do with Xingruo? If you felt awkward, you could have just declined from the start. Plus, the atmosphere was quite nice. Where’s the awkwardness?” Ruan Wen earnestly refuted.
Li Ting was momentarily speechless.
Dai Jiajing quickly tried to smooth things over.
On the other side, Lu Xingyan and Shen Xingruo were waiting for a taxi by the roadside. After waiting for a while without any luck, Lu Xingyan used a ride-hailing app to get in line.
As summer approached, the evening breeze wasn’t as chilly as before. Lu Xingyan didn’t put his coat back on, appearing unaffected by the slight warmth.
Perhaps out of boredom from standing around, Shen Xingruo suddenly asked, “Why didn’t you see Chen Zhu off just now?”
“Why should I? We’re not going the same way,” Lu Xingyan replied without hesitation.
“Do you like her?” Shen Xingruo asked, her tone neutral.
“…?”
“Who told you that? I don’t,” Lu Xingyan retorted, turning to glance at her, his expression unreadable.
Yet, Lu Xingyan’s mind started to wander, conjuring up various possibilities.
He knew gossip spread like wildfire among their group. While he used to pay little attention to it, he couldn’t help but be intrigued now.
After enduring the loud boasting and exaggerated tales from Xu Chengzhou and his crew, Lu Xingyan wondered what kind of reputation he had garnered outside.
Lost in his thoughts, he tried to patch things up. “Did someone tell you something? It’s all speculation. Chen Zhu and I were classmates since middle school, and we used to hang out together often. I used to think of her as… well, not exactly like that. I just thought she was a nice person. It’s not like I like her or anything, you know? It’s all because of Xu Chengzhou and the others, I…”
“…I was just asking casually, you don’t have to explain so much,” Shen Xingruo interrupted.
Lu Xingyan cleared his throat twice before seemingly asking offhand, “Don’t take offense, but do you like He Siyue? Every time I see you two, it seems like you have endless conversations. Why don’t you apply to sit next to him instead of me?”
“He Siyue?”
“He’s a pretty nice guy,” Lu Xingyan said with a pause.
“He’s very intelligent, considerate, responsible, and polite.”
Lu Xingyan remained silent.
“But he’s not as handsome as you.”
“I see. Later, transfer the money for this meal to my WeChat,” Lu Xingyan said abruptly.