Xie Shu unlocked his phone to check the time but ended up seeing a message from Ruan Nianxi that she had sent over ten minutes ago.
He had his sound off earlier to avoid disturbances…
He quickly opened the chat and saw that she had messaged him about her class ending.
She only had two classes tonight. Judging by the time, she should be almost at the residential area by now, right?
Normally, he would rush out to meet her, but he was pressed for time…
He wanted to finish the pop-up book as soon as possible to confess his feelings.
Besides, fewer classes didn't mean no classes at all.
If he played around while working on the book and still had to attend classes, there really wasn't much time left for the book, especially if he aimed for quality. How long would that take?
If he remembered correctly, one of their courses was about to end, and the deadline for assignments was approaching. He needed to catch up on the final stages of his work, which also required time.
In short, he was running out of time.
After much contemplation, he decided to focus on the pop-up book for the next few days.
So, he messaged Ruan Nianxi, telling her he was busy tonight and suggested she head back to the dorm to rest early.
The second after he sent the message, the chat showed "typing…" but no message came through for a long time.
Xie Shu had no idea what Ruan Nianxi was thinking, but to reassure her, he took a photo to prove he was in the dorm and not somewhere else.
He didn't photograph his desk but instead took a picture of other parts of the dorm.
Coincidentally, Zhao Lin was in the frame, inexplicably working on CAD at that moment!
After sending the photo, Ruan Nianxi finally replied.
In the end, she listened to Xie Shu and returned to the dorm early.
She got back quite early; her roommates hadn't returned yet, probably still out with their boyfriends.
This was a common occurrence, but tonight, she found herself envying them.
Ruan Nianxi sat at her desk, resting her chin on her hands, staring blankly at the objects in front of her.
There was the ceramic doll they had colored together.
There was the gardenia he had bought for her on the pedestrian street. Despite her careful care, it had wilted a bit, losing its initial bloom, but she couldn't bear to throw it away.
And there was the pen he had used to help her with her hair that afternoon.
She stared for a long time, so long that she lost track of time.
It wasn't until her roommates came back that she snapped out of it, went to wash up, and then to bed.
She had no interest in her phone, her ears filled with her roommates' chatter. They seemed happy, sharing stories about their evenings with their boyfriends, what they did, and what gifts they received. Listening to them made her even more envious.
After a while, she glanced at the time.
It was past nine.
Xie Shu should be done by now, right?
But she hadn't received any message from him.
After struggling internally, she took the initiative to message him: [Are you playing games tonight?]
Xie Shu: [No, I'm really busy tonight, no time for games.]
Ruan Nianxi: [Oh, then you carry on.]
Their conversation ended in less than a minute.
Ruan Nianxi put down her phone, lay in bed, and couldn't help but let her imagination run wild.
What was going on with him tonight?
Why wasn't he keeping her company?
It wasn't like this the past few days. Did something happen when he left campus today?
Right, at noon he had suddenly asked if she was sick.
Why would he ask such a question out of the blue?
During the day, she hadn't thought much about it, but now, with Xie Shu's absence, she felt an unusual sense of loss and discomfort, which naturally led her to imagine the worst.
She initially wondered if she had done something wrong or not well enough to make Xie Shu lose interest, but now she couldn't help but suspect that he knew something and was deliberately distancing himself from her.
Just then, Xie Shu sent another message, essentially telling her he was indeed busy and not to overthink, and to rest early tonight.
His explanation, rather than clarifying things, only fueled Ruan Nianxi's imagination further.
Xie Shu's double rejection tonight, coupled with a somewhat deliberate explanation, made her overthink.
Suspicion and fantasy are typical symptoms for people like them.
Even though deep down she knew she shouldn't think this way about Xie Shu, she couldn't control her thoughts.
Could it be that he was tired of her after just a few days?
Could it be that he learned something and was starting to distance himself again…?
Various thoughts bubbled up in her mind, and without medication to ease them, she couldn't calm down at all.
The more she thought, the more convinced she became, and the more upset she felt, lying in bed struggling to breathe, tears welling up.
Trying not to make too much noise, she tried to open her mouth to breathe more easily.
While she was upset, her phone buzzed again.
She checked it and saw a message from Xie Shu: [Can you talk now?]
She was stunned by the message, and it took her a few seconds to respond: [Yes!]
The moment she sent the reply, Xie Shu's call request came through.
Overjoyed, Ruan Nianxi answered, calling out Xie Shu's name, but as soon as she spoke, she realized her voice was nasal and off, so she quickly swallowed the rest of her words.
But Xie Shu on the other end had already noticed: [What's wrong with your voice?]
Ruan Nianxi took a deep breath to steady her voice: [Nothing]
Her voice quickly returned to normal, so fast that Xie Shu wondered if he had misheard while multitasking.
He had planned to continue working on the pop-up book after replying to her message.
But for some reason, he kept thinking about his meeting with Aunt Jian at noon and her questions about Ruan Nianxi.
He didn't know why she asked those questions, but it left him feeling uneasy, prompting him to message Ruan Nianxi again.
He had wanted to video call Ruan Nianxi, but he was afraid she might see the items on his desk, so he opted for a voice call instead.
Fortunately, his timely message stopped Ruan Nianxi's unrealistic thoughts and instantly lifted her spirits…
Proofreader & Editor:Peter Pan