Addicted to You - Chapter 12

During the three-day Mid-Autumn Festival holiday, Luo Jie wasn’t home a single day. Xu Yu and Song Yuan had agreed to go out for dinner together on the night of the festival itself.

After leaving the restaurant, the two decided to go for a stroll.

The holiday evening was bustling, and they occasionally ran into a few fellow students from their school.

“Song Yuan?” someone called out.

Both turned toward the voice. Xu Yu didn’t recognize the face, but she could sense an unusual reaction from the person beside her.

“Lin Qi,” Song Yuan addressed the boy.

“What are you doing here?”

Song Yuan explained she was out having dinner with a friend.

Lin Qi gave a faint “Oh” and glanced at the other person. “No wonder Ah Heng likes her.”

Xu Yu met the boy’s eyes, not understanding what he meant.

“It’s my birthday today. Want to come in and join us?”

Xu Yu looked at Song Yuan’s reaction; she seemed like she wanted to agree but was hesitating for some reason.

Song Yuan smiled and declined. “No, we need to head back.”

“You’re not scared to come in and just making excuses, are you?”

Song Yuan couldn’t stand being provoked. She looked at Xu Yu, her eyes silently asking for permission.

Xu Yu didn’t really have anything else to do, and going back meant being alone anyway. So she nodded in agreement.

Song Yuan shot back at the boy, “Come on then, who’s scared of who?”

Hearing her familiar bravado, Lin Qi’s lips twitched into a half-smile. He had been heading out to buy something but turned back with them instead.

The corridor of the KTV shimmered with multicolored lights. The people coming and going seemed like denizens of the night. Xu Yu kept her head down as they passed.

Following Lin Qi, they pushed open the door to a private room. Inside, it was a scene of raucous noise, a stark contrast to the relative quiet of the hallway.

Someone with sharp eyes spotted the figures behind Lin Qi immediately.
“Hey, isn’t that Song Yuan? You two…?” The speaker’s gaze flickered suggestively between Lin Qi and Song Yuan.

Lin Qi kicked the guy lightly and told the girls to make themselves comfortable.

It was Xu Yu’s first time in such a place, but she didn’t feel as repelled as she expected. Maybe, as Song Yuan had said, some things just needed to be tried.

She scanned the room. The private suite was as big as their classroom, divided into three areas: a karaoke section, a pool table section, and a board game section.

Under the indigo-blue glow, someone was singing the latest pop hit. The laughter and chatter of the teenagers blended into a noisy hum.

They sat there, feeling distinctly out of place.

A girl called out to Song Yuan. “You came! I really thought you’d choose Arts back then, and with Lin Qi…” The girl seemed to catch herself, cutting off the unspoken implication. “Come play with us!”

Song Yuan waved her off. “You guys play. I’m with my friend.”

Xu Yu, afraid Song Yuan might miss out on fun because of her, spoke up. “Go play with your friends.”

Song Yuan still seemed reluctant to leave her alone. “But…”

“It’s fine. I’ll just sit here for a bit. I’m a little tired from walking earlier.”

After some persuasion, Song Yuan finally left. Xu Yu resumed her radar-like scan of the suite.

…

…

Board Game Area

Zhou Yiheng already had a sizable pile of winnings in front of him. The other three players at the table looked glum.

“Ah Heng, did you get blessed today or what?” one asked.

The winner smirked, looking pleased with himself. “My luck’s always been good.”

The other three sighed collectively.

Lin Qi walked over and slung an arm over his shoulder. “Guess who I brought?”

“Your girlfriend?” Zhou Yiheng asked, still shuffling the cards.

Lin Qi shot back, “Your girlfriend.”

Zhou Yiheng wasn’t fazed; everyone knew he was currently single.

Wait. Currently single didn’t mean forever.

He looked up. An unspoken communication seemed to pass between the two friends.

Zhou Yiheng tossed the deck of cards he was shuffling onto the table, stood up, and walked away.

The three players, still hoping to win back their stakes, yelled after him for being unsporting. Lin Qi had already slid into his vacated seat.

Zhou Yiheng walked past the board game area, past the pool tables, his gaze fixed on a slender figure sitting alone on a leather sofa in the distance.

She looked like an innocent child, wide-eyed at her surroundings, then lowering her head to gently pound her thighs with her fists.

His luck tonight really was blessed.

Zhou Yiheng strode towards her, the distance between them closing step by step.

The floor was littered, but something felt pure between them.

The girl was still focused on her legs, unaware of his approach.

Zhou Yiheng reached her and looked down at her actions. Her pale hands were clenched into small fists, softly thudding against her jeans. Her strength would feel like hitting cotton against him. He chuckled lowly. “What are you doing there, classmate?”

Hearing his voice, Xu Yu stopped and looked up. The boy was watching her.

Their eyes met under the indigo-blue light. Ambiguous. Unspoken.

After three seconds, Xu Yu lowered her gaze, avoiding his eyes. She felt the sofa cushion dip beside her as he sat down, catching the dark fabric of his pants in her peripheral vision.

“Legs sore?” he asked.

She silently withdrew her hands from her lap. He asked again, “Out for Mid-Autumn?”

“Mm,” she murmured in agreement.

“Not spending it with family?”

Someone had finally asked the question. She slowly lowered her eyes, offering no answer. Because there was no one at home. Or rather, no home to speak of.

Zhou Yiheng sensed her silence and didn’t press further.

One of the guys he’d been playing cards with came over for drinks. Spotting the guy who’d just cleaned them out sitting next to a girl on the sofa, he exclaimed loudly, “Well, well! So this is why you ditched us, Ah Heng! Came to hang with a girl!”

His voice boomed, drawing attention from across the room. Everyone looked over, curious about his “new girlfriend.”

Under the collective scrutiny, Xu Yu felt her face flush with heat. She ducked her head, wishing she could sink into the sofa cushions.

Someone bolder called out directly, “Aren’t you going to introduce us to your new girlfriend, Ah Heng?”

He was used to his friends’ jokes and normally didn’t care, but he could feel the discomfort radiating from the girl beside him. He swore, a smile still playing on his lips, but his tone carried an edge. “Are you fucking kidding me? Got nothing better to do?”

The underlying irritation was clear. The crowd took the hint, and the teasing stopped as people returned to their own activities.

She remained frozen. Zhou Yiheng called her name softly.

Finally, she lifted her head. “Hmm?”

“They’ve stopped looking at us now.”
“Oh.”

Silence fell again.

The atmosphere around them was lively, but the two sitting silently on the sofa stood out. One slouched, playing on his phone; the other sat ramrod straight.

The awkwardness felt palpable. Xu Yu searched for something to say. “Why didn’t you explain earlier?” she asked.

Zhou Yiheng lifted his eyes from his phone. “Huh?”

“Explain that I’m not your girlfriend.”

The guy beside her seemed indifferent. “Would they believe me if I did?”

She wanted to say that not explaining meant they’d assume it was true, but she held her tongue.

Cutting the Cake

When it was time to cut the cake, the crowd surged forward. Xu Yu tried to move towards Song Yuan, but the press of bodies was too dense. She couldn’t get through and had to stay where she was.

The group was boisterous. Xu Yu got pushed to the outer edge. She didn’t know any of them, really. She decided to simply withdraw.

As she stepped back, she bumped into someone.

It wasn’t the first time she’d collided with him. His scent was too familiar.

She turned around. The boy looked down at her with his usual lazy demeanor.

She was puzzled. Why wasn’t he standing beside his good friend on his birthday? Thinking he wanted to move forward, Xu Yu sidestepped to make way for him. She’d only moved a step when she heard him say, “Where else are you planning to retreat to?”

Xu Yu froze, looking at him questioningly.

He seemed faintly exasperated. Zhou Yiheng reached out and grasped her wrist.

The contact startled her. He pulled her gently forward. Miraculously, a path seemed to open in the crowd. Suddenly, she was standing near the front, no longer blocked. The boy who had pulled her stood right behind her.

From the birthday wish to blowing out the candles, Xu Yu was tense. He was so close. She could feel the warmth of his breath on the top of her head.

As they prepared to cut the cake, someone suggested taking a photo of the birthday boy. Lin Qi reluctantly agreed.

The girls all pulled out their phones to snap pictures.

Xu Yu felt movement behind her. He seemed to be fumbling with something. She felt his arm lift and assumed he was also taking a picture, so she instinctively ducked her head lower.

“What are you ducking for? Even at your height, I can still see you just fine,” his voice came from behind, catching her action.

Feeling embarrassed by his remark, Xu Yu slowly raised her head.

Zhou Yiheng held his phone beside her face. He pressed the shutter button, and a satisfied smile touched his lips.

Amidst the deafening noise of the room, his soft chuckle seemed amplified to Xu Yu. A shiver ran down the back of her neck.

After the cake was cut, Song Yuan finally made her way through the crowd to find her. The person who had been behind Xu Yu had somehow already returned to the sofa.

The boys clearly wanted to keep partying, and several girls seemed reluctant to leave too. Xu Yu could tell Song Yuan wanted to stay. “I need to head back first,” Xu Yu offered.

Bus Route 106 at this stop was infrequent. She stood alone, waiting for nearly twenty minutes.

It had been warm when they left, but the night air had turned chilly. The wind cut through her, making her shiver involuntarily.

Another gust came. She braced herself, but unexpectedly, someone stepped into the wind, blocking it.

Xu Yu looked over.

The dim lighting in the KTV hadn’t revealed the colors clearly, but now she could see perfectly.

A dark green flight jacket, deep gray jeans, and another pair of trendy sneakers from the same brand, though a different style. The whole outfit screamed cool, edgy style.

“Why didn’t you wait until it was over to leave?” he asked.

The wind still blew, but she felt less cold.

“It’s getting late. I was nervous,” she admitted honestly. Then she asked, “Aren’t you staying until the end with them?”

“Nah.”

“…”

Exactly twenty minutes later, the Route 106 bus arrived. The boy beside her boarded first.

Xu Yu hesitated for a split second. Was he taking this bus back too? She followed closely behind him.

Once on the bus, the boy walked straight towards the back. The driver called out, “Hey kid, tap your card!”

Zhou Yiheng kept walking, only throwing back, “I’m with her. She’ll tap for me.”

Xu Yu was puzzled. When had she agreed to that? But she obediently tapped her card again after her own beep.

Just like last time, they sat on a two-seater at the back. This time, however, Xu Yu was on the aisle side.

As the bus pulled away from the stop, Xu Yu spoke up. “Want to switch seats?”

Zhou Yiheng looked at her, confused. “Why?”

She explained, “Because you get off before me. If we switch now, it’ll be easier for you when you get off.”

“Oh.”

Thinking he agreed, she started to stand up, but then heard him say, “No need.” She sat back down.

Xu Yu glanced at him subtly. Today, he seemed different from that other night. He sat up much straighter.

…

…

She kept expecting him to get off at his stop. But even as they approached her stop, he hadn’t moved. A wildly unrealistic thought began to form in her mind.

After over half an hour, the bus stopped at Langzhu Community bus station.

Xu Yu glanced at the boy beside her, mustered her courage, and said, “This is my stop. I’m getting off.” Her heart pounded even as she spoke.

He didn’t reply. She disembarked as quickly as possible.

Someone else got off behind her. She assumed it was another passenger.

She didn’t know why she always felt so nervous around him, but at least now he was surely still on the bus, moving away.

“Does just talking to me make you that nervous?”

The sudden voice from behind made her heart leap into her throat again. She knew her wild thought had been correct.

Moonlight bathed the ground, making the path visible even without streetlights.

This scene wasn’t entirely new. Their shadows fell within the same frame, alone together.

As they neared her building, the boy beside her suddenly stopped walking.

Xu Yu stopped too, looking at him.

He tilted his head back, looking up. She followed his gaze.

The night sky was crystal clear. Stars glittered overhead, a few twinkling rhythmically, mirroring the steady beat of her own heart. A full moon hung directly above them, a single bright star shining beside it. She rarely saw the phenomenon known as “Venus beside the Moon.” This was her first time seeing it in Beicheng.

While she was still absorbed in the celestial sight, the boy beside her lowered his gaze to look at her.

“Xu Yu,” Zhou Yiheng called her name.

“Hmm?” she responded.

A tension she’d never felt before. A confession she’d never anticipated.

“The moonlight is beautiful tonight.” (Tonight’s night scene is truly beautiful.)

He thought she might understand the implication.

The girl was still gazing at the “Venus beside the Moon.” Hearing his words, she took them as a simple observation about the scenery and replied softly, “It really is.”

Zhou Yiheng realized she hadn’t grasped the deeper meaning. A self-deprecating smile touched his lips. “Forget it.”

“Huh?” She lowered her gaze to meet his eyes.

“Nothing. Happy Mid-Autumn Festival,” he said, his smile returning.

The girl’s eyes curved into crescents. “Happy Mid-Autumn Festival.” Then she asked him, “Do you know about ‘Venus beside the Moon’?”

Zhou Yiheng shook his head.

Xu Yu looked back at the sky. “Venus beside the Moon is when Venus appears very close to the moon in the night sky. Look, even the moon has a star to accompany it.”

Watching the girl gazing upwards, he called her name again.

She turned her face back to him.

“If you’re willing… I’ll accompany you too.”