What Does It Mean

Shen Nian had lost completely. He turned his head away, refusing to speak to Xia Yanchun.

He felt so awkward he could explode right there.

How was it that he got played by Xia Yanchun so often? It was too damn stifling.

"Hey." Xia Yanchun waited a moment. Seeing he wouldn't turn, she gently poked his neck with her finger.

"Don't touch me. I'm sleeping."

"Turn around."

"..."

Depressed, Shen Nian let out a heavy sigh and turned his head, revealing half his face to meet the girl's bright eyes.

Xia Yanchun's heart beat a little faster. Like him, she hid half her face, but with one eye, she could still see the reddish tint on Shen Nian's skin.

And here she thought Shen Nian was truly shameless!

Turns out he can blush too.

It was incredibly rare to see Shen Nian act shy. Even when they kissed, it usually took ages for him to start acting unnatural.

Being shy actually made him look kind of cute.

Knowing she wasn't the only one feeling shy put Xia Yanchun in an even better mood.

"Hehe, you're blushing."

"..." Shen Nian gave a dry, forced smile.

Don't you know why I'm blushing, sister? Who wouldn't blush in this situation? You'd have to be a god not to.

He felt he was handling it pretty well. Those guys who blush just saying two words to a girl would probably be avoiding stairs and elevators to jump out a window in this situation.

He, on the other hand, was just blushing and feeling a bit awkward.

"...Is it better now?" Xia Yanchun asked again.

"Can you not ask that..."

"Oh, oh."

"What are you 'oh-ing' about? What exactly did you understand, you..."

Xia Yanchun didn't speak, just gave Shen Nian a sly smile, the mirth unable to be hidden by her long lashes.

Even though the tips of her own ears were pink and hot, she still wanted to roast Shen Nian a bit. It would be a waste of their long-standing rivalry if she didn't.

That is just how arch-enemies are.

"Shen Nian, you made a fool of yourself. Aren't you ashamed?"

"It's fine. I've embarrassed myself worse before."

"...Hehe, true that." Xia Yanchun's shoes squeaked as she rubbed them against the crossbar of the desk.

Damn wicked woman, so happy to see someone else embarrassed. Just wait until I catch you doing something weird.

"Is it better now?" Xia Yanchun started up again. But Shen Nian just looked at her without speaking. Xia Yanchun burrowed her face deeper, blinking her apricot eyes slightly.

"Shen Nian... does it feel really uncomfortable like that?"

Shen Nian was stunned.

What did she mean?

W-h-a-t d-o-e-s s-h-e m-e-a-n?

How the hell was he supposed to answer that?

She really insisted on getting to the bottom of this, didn't she? She was really trying to make him blow up at her.

Xia Yanchun hummed softly, burying her face completely in her arms and resting against the fluffy jacket, whispering gently.

"If... if it's uncomfortable, you don't actually have to keep abstaining, you know. I think it's pretty normal, anyway..."

"Shen Nian..."

"Shen Nian?"

Xia Yanchun stole a peek. Great, Shen Nian had already closed his eyes and was breathing evenly.

Who falls asleep that fast... Although she knew Shen Nian was feigning sleep to avoid the topic, Xia Yanchun didn't want to say more. As long as Shen Nian heard her, that was enough.

She considered herself quite open-minded. She had taken sex education classes in middle school, plus with all the serious scientific information available now, she more or less knew about those things people found hard to discuss. Not to mention, she had seen things with her own eyes.

She completely understood that Shen Nian got like this occasionally. Even if Shen Nian hadn't been abstaining, she wouldn't have said anything—at most, she would just call him a pervert if it came up in conversation.

Looking at Shen Nian's face, Xia Yanchun deliberately poked him a few times with her finger. After satisfying her urge to touch him, she made a little whimpering sound and settled down to sleep.

She slept for a full hour and ten minutes before slowly waking up.

Shen Nian was no longer beside her. His chair was cold; she didn't know when he had gotten up.

Xia Yanchun yawned. Sometimes she really wanted to know how Shen Nian controlled his sleep schedule. Without an alarm, she usually slept until the bell rang, or she would probably sleep right through to the second period.

With that kind of self-discipline, no wonder Shen Nian could climb from the middle of the pack to second in the grade.

Actually, Shen Nian had always been excellent. Before high school, he was already a top student. Scoring around 640 or 650 was just a return to his peak form; scoring 700 was breaking his limits.

Wiping her face with a wet tissue, Xia Yanchun wanted to go to the restroom. As soon as she opened the door, she saw Shen Nian leaning against the corridor railing, letting the wind hit him.

Hearing the door open, Shen Nian knew it was Xia Yanchun and couldn't be bothered to respond.

"Hey." Xia Yanchun leaned next to him. "What are you doing?"

"Being molested by Miss Winter."

"You're such a pervert. Can't you be serious?"

"I'm getting some air. Why?"

"Aren't you afraid of catching a cold?"

Shen Nian glanced at her. "I thought you were coming out to hunt me down. Scared me so much I didn't dare speak."

Understanding that Shen Nian was insinuating what happened before their nap, Xia Yanchun smiled beamingly, clasping her hands behind her back and pacing beside him.

She could have pretended nothing happened, but Shen Nian just had to bring it up again.

"Was it that shameful?" She tilted her head.

"Don't you have a clue?" Shen Nian gestured accusingly. "Next time I peek down your collar, I'll tell you about it too. Let's see if you don't die of embarrassment then."

"!" Xia Yanchun immediately covered her collar, huffing in anger.

Shen Nian just exposed himself!

Although she was careful outside, she wasn't as vigilant at home. Often, her loungewear was loose and she couldn't be bothered to fix it.

When Shen Nian came over to play, who knows how many times he had looked!

"You actually said it out loud! You admit to peeking!" Xia Yanchun shuddered, moving away with a look of disgust. "You're kind of a creep, Shen Nian."

"You're not much better." Shen Nian grinned.

"Hmph."

Xia Yanchun didn't want to talk to him anymore and trotted off to the restroom with small steps.

When she came back, Shen Nian was no longer in the corridor.

While she was in the restroom, Shen Nian had stolen two of her wet wipes to wash his face. Now he was sitting dutifully in his seat, chin in hand, lost in thought.

A corner of the curtain was lifted. The sky was a bit grayish, but there weren't many clouds. It looked like it wanted to rain but wouldn't—the perfect weather for sleeping in.

The soft light fell on Shen Nian's face. Xia Yanchun's heart skipped a beat; for a fleeting moment, she thought the quiet Shen Nian looked incredibly, incredibly handsome.

He gave off the vibe of those cold, brooding school heartthrobs in romance novels.

But the moment she remembered he was the kind of guy who reacted like that just from having his leg touched, the image of the romance novel heartthrob shattered almost completely.

A brooding heartthrob had no sense of reality; he wasn't worth a single hair on Shen Nian's head.

Xia Yanchun stood beside him, graceful and upright, silent. Her deep brown pupils reflected Shen Nian's shadow.

A faint fragrance drifted into Shen Nian's nose. He clicked his tongue and looked at Xia Yanchun in confusion.

"What are you spacing out for?"

"Is there a possibility that I'm spacing out precisely because I have nothing to do and nothing to think about?"

Xia Yanchun twirled a lock of her hair, looking awkward. "I guess that makes sense."

"Come sit over here this afternoon." Shen Nian patted the chair next to him.

"No way. I borrowed a novel to read."

"That doesn't conflict."

"Still no."

She had already slept next to him at noon, and now he wanted to sit together all afternoon? Why was he so greedy?