I Fell In Love With My Rival (GL) - Chapter 11
“You didn’t bring an umbrella either?”
Su Chunyin paused mid-motion as she was drying her hair and sent a message:
[Did you get soaked?]
Expecting to get a reply sometime the next day, she was surprised when the response came much faster than the day before:
[I’m okay. Took a shower.]
Su Chunyin perked up:
[Why the quick reply today? You’re off work?]
Qiu Ye:
[Yeah, finals are coming up. Yesterday was the last day.]
“Oh, right…” Su Chunyin murmured. Finals were less than two weeks away. Her calendar was flipped to June 29—just three days left until Lu Fang returned to school.
Thinking about how the recent chaos was finally winding down, she breathed a sigh of relief and typed:
[So what about the photo you mentioned before? When are you going to send it to me~]
There was no reply for a moment. Then suddenly, she received over a dozen photos in a row. She opened them to find a stunning collection of various meteorites, each with its own unique appearance.
Her eyes widened in amazement:
[Wow! So many meteorites! They’re gorgeous!]
Each piece Qiu Ye sent came with detailed descriptions. Su Chunyin took her time admiring the pictures, then asked curiously:
[But none of these seem as rare as the one you have. If you need money, why not sell it?]
Qiu Ye didn’t elaborate much:
[It was the first one I found. I’m keeping it as a memento.]
Su Chunyin used to feel a bit frustrated about Qiu Ye always being evasive when it came to personal matters. But now, after seeing all those beautiful meteorites, she didn’t mind as much. After all, Qiu Ye had been a meteorite hunter—being a little mysterious just came with the territory.
People who truly understand meteorites are rare, and even fewer are involved in collecting or trading them. Su Chunyin was thrilled. Taking advantage of Qiu Ye’s break from work, she chatted with her for a long time.
When it came to meteorites, Qiu Ye was still cool and reserved, but clearly more talkative than before—it was her area of expertise, after all.
Su Chunyin clung to her, asking about each meteorite’s traits and differences, and about the strange and exciting experiences on the hunt for them. By the end of the night, Su Chunyin had unilaterally decided that their relationship had progressed from “chat companions” to “friends with shared interests.”
The next morning, she sent this realization to Qiu Ye, who replied nonchalantly:
[If you want to see it that way, sure. But I don’t deal in meteorites anymore.]
Su Chunyin stared at her phone for a while, then came to a conclusion: Qiu Ye didn’t deny they were friends.
The calendar on her desk flipped to a new day—just two more days until Lu Fang returned.
Ever since discovering their mutual interest in meteorites, Su Chunyin’s communication with Qiu Ye had skyrocketed. When she woke up, she’d message her while admiring meteorite pictures. If she came across news about meteorites at lunch, she’d message again. Even if she dreamed about hunting for meteorites in Lop Nur, she’d message Qiu Ye as soon as she woke up.
Bit by bit, the topic drifted beyond just meteorites.
One day, she sent Qiu Ye a photo of her half-eaten lunch tray and grumbled:
[Does the new cafeteria chef have a grudge against cilantro? It’s in the soup, the stir-fry, even the cold salad!]
Qiu Ye:
[You don’t like cilantro?]
Su Chunyin:
[Not exactly. I don’t hate it, but the smell really bothers me. If I ever become the richest person in the world, the first thing I’ll do is wipe cilantro off the face of the Earth.]
Qiu Ye:
[Eat a bit more anyway. You’ll get hungry in the afternoon.]
Su Chunyin was only half full, but the overpowering taste of cilantro was unbearable. She replied casually:
[I’d rather go to the snack shop after class than suffer through this stuff.]
Since she insisted, Qiu Ye didn’t push her further. Su Chunyin put her phone away and waited for the others to finish eating.
Xu Chang and Yang Yuxia were focused on their meals. Song Rao, who finished early, looked at her and asked, “Who are you chatting with so much? You’ve been glued to your phone these past few days.”
Bringing up her chat partner would mean explaining everything about Lu Fang, which Su Chunyin didn’t want to get into. So, she just said vaguely, “A friend.”
But Song Rao wasn’t letting it go. “Which friend?” They’d grown up together—she knew even the dogs Su Chunyin used to greet on her way home.
Unable to dodge the question, Su Chunyin pretended to be annoyed. “You don’t know them. Why do you care so much?”
Just as Song Rao was about to press further, Yang Yuxia suddenly looked up from her bowl and exclaimed, “Ah! I get it! Chunyin’s in an online romance, like Little Freckles!”
The unexpected outburst stunned everyone. A beat later, Su Chunyin smacked her on the head. “Eat your food!”
Turns out Qiu Ye had predicted correctly—by the second class period, Su Chunyin was already starving, lying on her desk with her stomach growling. She sent a message to Qiu Ye while silently counting down to the break. As soon as the bell rang, she rushed straight to the snack shop.
She arrived early, before the crowd. Grabbing a bag of pineapple bread and some candy, she eagerly tore into the bread the moment she stepped outside.
With the bread in her mouth, she ripped open the candy bag and began stuffing them into her pockets. Distracted, she accidentally wandered off into the small path beside the snack shop that often led people astray—and ended up in the small grove.
Just as she realized she’d taken the wrong path and was about to turn back, a familiar voice reached her ears. She froze and quickly ducked behind a leafy tree.
That voice—was Fu Erqiu.
“You don’t need to apologize to me. What matters most is whether you’ve made up your mind about coming forward.”
Who’s she talking to? Come forward about what?
Su Chunyin slowly peeked out, trying to get a better look.
A simple dress, a soft voice. Though she couldn’t see her face clearly, the figure still felt familiar.
“Erqiu, give me a little more time. I just can’t get past this mental hurdle… He’s so outstanding, and I’m just so plain. I don’t even have the courage to admit it openly. I know it’s wrong, but…”
What’s wrong? What can’t she admit? Who is this?
Su Chunyin craned her neck and took a quiet step forward, then another.
But as soon as she felt something odd beneath her foot, it was too late.
Crack.
A dry twig snapped underfoot—loud and sharp in the stillness of the grove.
Fu Erqiu and Lin Zhizhi both turned toward the sound. “Who’s there?”
The grove was silent, no reply came.
Lin Zhizhi seemed a bit anxious and walked toward the path entrance. Just a few steps in, a fat black cat suddenly darted out from the bushes and bolted away.
She sighed in relief. “Oh, it was just a cat.”
The two chatted for a few more minutes, revisiting old, unresolved topics. No progress was made.
The bell for the next class was about to ring. As they walked back the way they came, Fu Erqiu glanced casually around near the path—and suddenly froze.
She bent down and picked something up from the ground.
Lin Zhizhi asked, puzzled, “Erqiu, what is it?”
Fu Erqiu slowly straightened, glanced at her, and said:
“Someone was here just now.”
She opened her palm to reveal a cheap, orange, fruit-flavored candy. Under the sunlight, the rainbow-colored wrapper shimmered.