Forced to Love (GL) - Chapter 15

After the placement test, there was a week for rest and adjustment. In reality, it was just a time for students to mentally prepare for moving from sophomore to senior year and for summer remedial classes.

Lingxi spent the entire week in the bookstore, waiting at the door before it even opened in the morning.

If Shen Sui hadn’t left with her every night, it would almost seem like Lingxi never went home.

Whenever Shen Sui approached, she could always see Lingxi’s partial reflection on the bookstore’s small blackboard through the glass window under the sunlight.

Every day, Shen Sui would erase the previous day’s content from the blackboard and write down the new arrivals or any store promotions. Lingxi would quietly wait beside her until she finished writing, then carefully move the board outside.

For some reason, when Lingxi’s figure overlapped with her handwriting, Shen Sui felt a subtle emotion.

It was fleeting—appearing for a moment before vanishing, leaving Shen Sui unable to grasp even its tail end.

What was it?

Shen Sui couldn’t find the answer.

Knowing the question but not the answer, and having nowhere to find it, left Shen Sui feeling inexplicably frustrated.

“Do you want breakfast?”

The person in front of her broke the silence, speaking in a usual tone, with no extra emotions detectable.

Yet, the moment the voice reached her ears, her mood instantly calmed down.

Shen Sui was speechless.

Lingxi slightly adjusted her position to stand beside her. The shadow on the blackboard shifted and covered her head, pulling Shen Sui entirely into it.

Looking up slightly, Shen Sui could see the blazing sun behind Lingxi.

A gentle breeze passed by, carrying the faint scent of laundry detergent from Lingxi’s clothes.

She was blocking the sun for her.

Even though the temperature should have been dropping, Shen Sui’s throat went dry, and she couldn’t say anything.

…

“Let’s welcome our new classmate!”

The sound of applause abruptly pulled Shen Sui back to reality.

She looked up to see Lingxi standing on the podium, wearing the white and blue school uniform, looking fresh and energetic. When their eyes met, Lingxi’s lips curved slightly in a fleeting smile.

It was brief, like a shooting star streaking through the dark night.

The shadow, the handwriting, the faint scent, the blazing sun…

The memories came rushing back in an instant.

Shen Sui’s grip on her pen tightened.

“Hello, everyone. My name is Yao Jingzhu.”

“Yao, you all might find her familiar. She was the one who helped Shen Sui last semester in an act of bravery.”

Murmurs and exclamations spread through the class.

“…Let’s welcome Yao Jingzhu. Since you and Shen Sui are already acquainted, you can sit next to her.”

Lingxi got what she wanted—she became Shen Sui’s deskmate.

Finally, she had physically shortened the distance between herself and her “God.” This made Lingxi feel relieved, easing the turmoil in her heart from the past few days.

Her hand had healed a lot, the wound had scabbed over, and the bandages were removed. She no longer needed frequent medication, and it didn’t affect her daily activities.

However, there was still a scar on the back of her hand. The school nurse said it would take time to fade. To Lingxi, other than feeling a little guilty toward the original owner of this body, she didn’t mind it much.

But she knew Shen Sui might think differently, so she intentionally avoided showing it.

Lingxi sat to Shen Sui’s right, with her injured right hand in Shen Sui’s blind spot.

Sitting beside Shen Sui in class, Lingxi was more focused than ever, paying attention to every detail and trying her best to keep up.

After all, her “God” was excellent, and Lingxi couldn’t afford to lag behind.

During the lesson, one desk was occupied by someone meticulously taking notes, while the other was slightly distracted. Shen Sui’s pen kept moving, following the teacher’s enthusiastic explanations, but her mind wandered.

If Lingxi had the chance to check Shen Sui’s notebook, she would realize that Shen Sui never recorded these simple problems.

After class, curious classmates approached Lingxi, wanting to get to know her. After all, besides her act of bravery and the letter of gratitude from the top student, she had also achieved a significant improvement in her grades.

Lingxi greeted them briefly, while Shen Sui put down her pen and left the classroom.

Lingxi excused herself and followed her.

Shen Sui leaned against the corridor railing, staring into the distance, lost in thought. Lingxi slowly approached and called out softly.

“Shen Sui?”

“Hm?”

Shen Sui instinctively responded, only realizing afterward and refocusing her gaze.

“Are you going to the bookstore this weekend?”

“Why?” Shen Sui thought she had something planned.

“No reason, I just wanted to ask.”

“If nothing comes up, I’ll be there.”

“Okay.”

Lingxi nodded. The two stood side by side in silence, gazing into the distance.

From the fifth floor, the view was much wider than from the second floor where Lingxi used to be. Looking down, people seemed smaller. Looking up, the clouds felt closer, bringing her a strange sense of familiarity.

Before her “God” was injured, she often took Lingxi soaring through the clouds, brushing them aside when they obstructed the view.

Lingxi stared at the sky, lost in thought.

The feeling of looking down from above and looking up now should have been entirely different.

But since Shen Sui was beside her, it didn’t matter.

No matter where she was, as long as her “God” was there, nothing else was important.

In both this world and the previous one, people spoke of the meaning of “home.” Eventually, Lingxi understood—home was wherever her “God” was.

Her eyes gleamed with light, faintly flickering.

Suddenly, the school bell rang. When Lingxi turned back, she found Shen Sui looking at her.

Lingxi opened her mouth, wanting to ask what was wrong, but Shen Sui’s clear eyes flickered before she suddenly turned away.

“Let’s go back to class.”

Before her words had fully landed, she was already walking away.

“Okay.”

Lingxi responded softly and followed.

…

On weekends, the bookstore was at its busiest, especially once summer classes started.

To Shen Sui’s surprise, the person who usually arrived the earliest didn’t show up today.

After glancing at the door for the unknown time, Shen Sui rubbed her temples.

Focus on work, she thought.

She handled the cashier, helped customers find books, and was about to tidy up misplaced ones when the owner called her over.

“Yes? What’s up?”

The owner gestured for her to come. Shen Sui walked over.

“The store has been busy lately, so I hired a new employee. You know her, so you can help train her.”

The owner smiled and stepped aside, revealing the person behind him.

Wearing a white t-shirt under the same bookstore apron as Shen Sui, Lingxi appeared before her.

“A new employee?”

“Yes, she’s been helping you here for free anyway, so when she asked me a few days ago, I agreed.”

Lingxi looked at her with a gentle smile.

…

It made sense.

Shen Sui watched her, emotions stirring, but in the end, she accepted it without question.

Perhaps, there was no need to ask why.