Xie Shu spent most of the class helping some of his classmates with their questions.
He walked from one end of the classroom to the other.
Su Qianyi usually had good grades and was serious about her studies, so she didn't really have any issues she couldn't handle.
She was almost in sync with Xie Shu when it came to 3D rendering. She thought she could use the rendering wait time to have a good chat with him and clarify everything that had happened over the past few days, but now…
Her gaze still followed Xie Shu as he moved.
She watched him solve someone's 3D rendering issue, and then no one called his name anymore.
Just when she thought Xie Shu would return to his seat, the next second she saw him sitting in an empty spot on the other side of the classroom, pulling out his phone and typing away, occasionally laughing.
Without him returning to his original seat, Su Qianyi couldn't find the opportunity to speak with him.
And so it continued until the lunch break.
After the teacher left the classroom, some students also packed up and left.
Those who remained were all waiting for their 3D renderings to finish, not daring to unplug their computers.
Xie Shu was among them.
After class, he returned to his seat to check on his rendering progress, which was not even halfway done, indicating he wouldn't be leaving anytime soon.
His three roommates, after setting up their computers, gathered around to check his progress.
Zhao Lin gave Xie Shu a punch with a grin: "How come you're so fast, kid? Did you work us over while we were sleeping?"
He was referring to the progress of their assignments.
They had rushed their work all afternoon in the dormitory yesterday and continued this morning, thinking they could catch up in the classroom and start rendering during the last class, only to find they were still behind after two more classes!
Xie Shu, on the other hand, had caught up with all the work in just one class, even though they were previously on par!
It was truly frustrating to compare oneself to others!
They had been worried about him running out of time, only to find their concern was for naught!
A waste of their emotions!
"I didn't have time to work you guys over, I've been too busy myself," Xie Shu said, slapping away Zhao Lin's hand as he attempted another "attack," and continued, "You guys better head back, every second wasted is a second lost."
Those leaving the classroom now were the ones who hadn't started rendering due to being slightly behind. Everyone was eager to return to their dorms to make adjustments and start rendering, as no one wanted to sit in the classroom forever.
Xie Shu urged them to leave, then took a photo of his computer with his phone and sent it to Ruan Nianxi, explaining that he couldn't return for lunch just yet.
He really had no choice; although his laptop had battery power without being plugged in, it would slow down significantly, and he feared that carrying it back to the dorm might cause the 3D rendering to crash, wasting all the progress made. Even when plugged in, rendering could sometimes freeze, so it was better to stay and deal with any issues immediately.
Those who stayed in the classroom, including Su Qianyi, were in the same situation.
While messaging Ruan Nianxi, Xie Shu moved to another empty seat, deliberately avoiding sitting at his computer spot.
Upon receiving Xie Shu's message, Ruan Nianxi felt an even stronger sense of loss and suggested coming to the classroom to find him, but Xie Shu declined.
It was a hot noon, and the academic and residential areas were quite far apart. He didn't want her to be out in the sun and suggested she head back to the dorm to enjoy the air conditioning after eating, without worrying about him.
To make sure she really wouldn't wander off, Xie Shu asked her to send a photo to show she had gone to the cafeteria as told.
The photo came, and she was indeed in the cafeteria.
Then Xie Shu ordered takeout for himself through a delivery app and sent a screenshot to Ruan Nianxi.
The two of them communicated through their screens.
"Su Qianyi, do you want to order takeout together? I'll pick it up later," a male classmate who also hadn't left suddenly asked her.
Su Qianyi glanced at Xie Shu, who was sitting diagonally in front of her, but he didn't react.
Pursing her red lips, she then turned to the male classmate and deliberately raised her voice a little, "Let me see."
Seeing that she didn't refuse this time, the boy immediately handed her his phone to make her selection.
She took it and continued to watch Xie Shu from the corner of her eye while browsing the phone.
In the past, when they had many classes, they often stayed over lunch, and it was always Xie Shu who would ask her to order takeout together.
Pretending to sift through the options, the male student also eagerly chatted with her, and she responded to each remark.
She usually would have outright rejected other men's advances, but today… she knew it might be useless, but she couldn't help wanting to try.
Xie Shu… after all these years, choosing the same school and major, how could he let go so easily!
She didn't believe it!
"Xie Shu, what do you want to eat? We're ordering and we'll treat you," the students who had received Xie Shu's help were also ordering takeout and wanted to thank him by inviting him.
Xie Shu looked at them and smiled, "Thanks, but I've already ordered. You guys just order for yourselves."
"Ah, is that so? Well, we'll get you a tea with milk then, that's settled."
They didn't wait for Xie Shu's refusal and placed the order.
Xie Shu could only express his gratitude again and then lowered his head to continue messaging Ruan Nianxi.
After staring at the male student's phone for another ten seconds, Su Qianyi handed it back, "I don't really feel like eating anything, you go ahead and order."
The male student was taken aback, wanting to say something, but Su Qianyi had already taken out her own phone and started chatting with An Tian, who had returned to the dormitory earlier.
The boy had no choice but to leave without accomplishing anything.
Xie Shu's chat with Ruan Nianxi was brief before he received a call from the delivery guy.
Before going downstairs, he checked his computer again to make sure it wasn't frozen, then left through the back door without saying anything extra, not even glancing in Su Qianyi's direction.
After picking up his takeout, he didn't return to his classroom but sat in an empty one next door, opening a video call with Ruan Nianxi for a while.
After finishing lunch, he prepared to draw while waiting for the rendering and closed the video call, then headed back to the classroom.
Upon returning, he checked his computer again; the rendering was still going without issues. And there was a tea with milk next to it.
He took out the drawing he had been working on and the pen from his bag, along with the tea with milk bought by his classmates, ready to find an empty spot to sit and draw.
"Xie Shu!"
Seeing Xie Shu about to leave again without a moment's pause, Su Qianyi called out to him this time.
Her voice wasn't loud, but Xie Shu was close enough to hear.
Xie Shu paused his departure and looked at her, signaling her to speak if she had something to say.
"Can we have a proper talk?"
He didn't answer, but still looked at her, waiting for her to continue.
Su Qianyi hesitated, unsure of where to start: "I… you, can we go back to how things were…"
"Su Qianyi, I don't have time for idle chatter, I'm very busy."
Xie Shu cut her off before she could finish, his form of address making the distance between them clear.
He shifted his gaze away, ready to leave again.
Su Qianyi's heart raced with urgency, calling his name again, noticing his expression turning impatient, she became even more anxious.
In her desperation, she changed the subject, pointing to her computer screen, "Do you think it would be better to add a partition here?"
Her computer was rendering an image, and although it wasn't complete, the layout and arrangement were somewhat visible after such a long time.
Xie Shu didn't bother to look closely at her question and simply said, "I don't know."
Su Qianyi stiffened; he was always patient with others… but clearly had a different attitude towards her.
Was he deliberately acting this way because he didn't want to talk to her?
Biting her red lip, she couldn't help but continue to speak:"Can't you be a little more confident?"
"I don't know."
Proofreader & Editor:Peter Pan