◎Orange Yellow, Tangerine Green◎
All along the way, Chun Zao couldn’t figure out what deep meaning Yuan Ye’s cryptic riddle held, or how the topic had jumped to his deskmate.
But fundamentally, today was her lucky day, being able to taste today’s limited special chocolate in excess that very morning.
Could there be a better opening than this?
When they neared the alley entrance, she needed to find Tong Yue, so she said goodbye to Yuan Ye early—this was their sisterly tradition; she couldn’t betray their agreement by being distracted by someone else.
Moreover, once on the main road, there would be fellow students everywhere. Walking with a “campus celebrity” like Yuan Ye might inevitably lead to gossip and speculation.
Watching the boy’s solitary departing figure, the smile Chun Zao had secretly harbored all along could finally bloom without restraint.
Tong Yue was startled by her grinning face so early in the morning: “What’s wrong with you? Why so happy?”
Only then did Chun Zao realize she hadn’t controlled herself, activating her passive lying skill: “I saw a little dog on the way, super cute.”
“Where?” Tong Yue looked over her shoulder into the distance: “I want to see too.”
Chun Zao said, “It left.”
Tong Yue sighed wistfully: “Ah, I want to raise a dog too, but my mom is allergic to fur.”
Chun Zao said, “When you graduate from college and live on your own, you can raise one.” Just like her sister, gaining true freedom from inside and out.
“College graduation…” Tong Yue wrinkled her face into that of a despairing old crone: “How much longer will that take?”
Suddenly, her eyes sparkled bright as she grabbed Chun Zao’s forearm: “How about I find a puppy-like boyfriend to date?”
Chun Zao was speechless for two seconds: “…You’re something.”
Tong Yue said: “What? Achieving dreams through alternative routes isn’t allowed?”
Chun Zao was impressed: “Of course it’s allowed. Don’t you know plenty of boys?” Not only plenty, but she also categorized them in her friends list. She could probably compile a stamp collection book or fill a shelter, and building a zoo would be a small matter.
Puppy-like boys…
Did Yuan Ye have that feeling?
During morning reading, when she got tired of memorizing, Chun Zao took time to ponder this. She couldn’t figure it out. If she had to pick a dog breed, the Yuan Ye in her mind seemed more suited to large dogs—warm and brilliant as a Golden Retriever when smiling, but in interactions, he wasn’t unconditionally friendly and kind either. If you called him a German Shepherd, he also lacked that wolf-like depth and aloofness. Of course, he had nothing in common with the three sled dog idiots.
—Finally concluding that Yuan Ye was a meteorite Border Collie, the kind worth over ten thousand, with clear pupil color, agile movement, and an explosively smart brain.
Having finished this classification, Chun Zao pulled in the corners of her mouth, knowing she’d been smiling “for no reason” too many times recently.
Like neurological dysfunction, it was somewhat terrifying.
—
With those sweet girlish feelings as seasoning, the unchanging school time no longer seemed as dull as before.
When the treetops outside turned orange yellow and tangerine green, students also changed into autumn uniforms, obediently sealing up limbs that had been liberated throughout the entire hot summer.
But no matter how much they sealed up, it couldn’t stop some girls’ pursuit of beauty, like Tong Yue, who had efficiently gotten to know a first-year underclassman.
Though called an underclassman, he was over 180cm tall, standing beside them like a towering peak rising from flat ground. His name was also pleasant—Lu Jingheng.
In Tong Yue’s words, he perfectly satisfied her desired puppy-like quality.
The process of getting acquainted was simple and brutal. The second after catching a glimpse of the school store, Tong Yue chased after him to intercept and ask for his contact information.
The underclassman’s classmates all started jeering, while the tall boy blushed in their midst.
At that time, Chun Zao stood to the side holding water, looking up at the sky and down at the ground, trying to transform herself into an unrelated bystander.
A week later, on Saturday night, Tong Yue notified Chun Zao on QQ: Lu Jingheng and I are dating.
Chun Zao was amazed by her rocket-speed progress bar. Aren’t you too fast?
Tong Yue: Opportunities only come to those with initiative.
Tong Yue: I just got back from a date. We held hands, ate, and watched a movie. Haven’t written a single word of homework. Is your mom home tomorrow?
Chun Zao: Not home. She’s going back early tomorrow morning to get clothes and bedding, said she won’t be back until evening, told me to eat at school by myself.
Tong Yue: Good, I’ll come find you tomorrow. You know what to prepare without me saying it, right?
Chun Zao smiled: I’ve already written it, don’t worry.
Dating…
Holding hands, eating, watching movies…
Chun Zao stared at Tong Yue’s chat records and couldn’t help letting her imagination run wild. The consequence was insomnia from prolonged mental excitement.
After tossing and turning many times, she forced herself to stop.
Facing the wall, she started counting sheep.
And on the other side of the wall was…
The wall seemed to cease existing, becoming a large sieve that left her sugar-water-like scalding and viscous emotions with nowhere to hide.
Chun Zao’s face turned red as a cooked egg, immediately turning around to only leave the back of her head facing it.
But seriously, had Yuan Ye ever dated? With such striking looks and no cold arrogance, there should be quite a few girls who liked him, right? Damn, in the past, he was just a “name” in her eyes. She was never curious about his past or cared about rumors about him. When occasionally hearing girls in class mention him during breaks, it all went in one ear and out the other with complete indifference. After all, at that time, her world was black and white with only studying. How could she have guessed that pink graffiti belonging to “Yuan Ye” would leave heavy strokes here?
Thinking of this, Chun Zao opened her phone again, planning to investigate Yuan Ye’s social media space.