It’s About You (GL High H) - Chapter 18

Wanqi Lang panted as she gripped the handlebars, one foot planted on the ground, her little face pale as a sheet.

Xing Enxi just stood there at attention, watching her.

“What are you looking at?” Wanqi Lang snapped in angry embarrassment. “This junk bike… the design is flawed. It’s not easy to ride.”

Xing Enxi finally could not hold back and burst out laughing with a “pfft,” her shoulders shaking along with it.

“You think that’s funny?” Wanqi Lang jumped in frustration.

“Wanqi Lang,” Xing Enxi walked over and steadied the handlebars.

“You wouldn’t happen to not know how to ride a bicycle at all, would you?”

The air went quiet for a second.

Wanqi Lang’s face flushed red at once, and her eyes darted everywhere as her mouth stayed stubborn. “Who said that? I just… haven’t ridden in a long time. I’m rusty, that’s all.”

Xing Enxi nodded in understanding, but she could not suppress the smile tugging at her lips.

“Oh~ rusty, huh?” Her hand stayed on the handlebars without loosening, and she leaned her body forward a bit. “Want me to help you jog your memory?”

Wanqi Lang shoved her away in a fluster and hopped off the seat; when she landed, her butt still hurt a little.

She turned her head away and tugged at her clothes, her earlobes visibly red. “Not today… no mood today. We’ll talk about it another time.”

Xing Enxi watched her little gestures, her gaze playfully sweeping over the outline behind Wanqi Lang.

“Is your butt still hurting?”

“Xing Enxi! Shut up!” Wanqi Lang felt so embarrassed that she lifted her foot to kick her. “None of your business! Hurry up and get the bike inside!”

Xing Enxi dodged nimbly, her smile growing even wider on her face. She stopped teasing her then and pushed the brand-new silver-gray road bike back toward the bar.

The two returned to the brightly lit bar one after the other; Old Zhang wisely kept his head down and polished glasses furiously.

“Two Baileys, extra ice.” Wanqi Lang hopped onto a barstool and hollered at Old Zhang.

Xing Enxi sat down beside her, and soon two glasses of milky-scented liquor appeared in front of them.

Wanqi Lang grabbed her glass and chugged a big gulp; the cool, sweet smoothness finally soothed her jumbled mood.

Xing Enxi held her glass and sipped slowly, her gaze falling on the side of Wanqi Lang’s puffed-up face as she crunched the ice.

“Thanks for the bicycle.”

Xing Enxi spoke suddenly, her eyes fixed on the ice cubes swirling in her glass.

Wanqi Lang paused in her movements and huffed. “Don’t flatter yourself. It was just to replace your junk one.”

The air stayed quiet for a few seconds as gentle jazz music flowed.

Just when Xing Enxi thought the topic had ended, Wanqi Lang swirled her glass, her eyes fixed on the rows of bottles behind the bar, and suddenly asked, “Xing Enxi, do you ride motorcycles?”

Xing Enxi raised an eyebrow, a bit surprised. “Yeah. Learned a while back. Why?”

Wanqi Lang pursed her lips. “As expected, you types who look all cold and straight-laced actually like playing with something thrilling on the down low.”

She shot Xing Enxi a meaningful glance.

Xing Enxi got choked up by her twisted logic, but the corners of her mouth curved up again anyway. “Better than someone who can’t even keep a bicycle steady.”

“Who can’t keep it steady?” Wanqi Lang bristled. “It was the bike’s fault!”

“Alright, alright,” Xing Enxi did not bother arguing with her and followed up on her earlier words instead. “You asked about motorcycles because you want to learn?”

Wanqi Lang’s eyes lit up, but she played it casual with a wave of her hand. “Just asking out of curiosity. They’re so noisy to ride.”

She sounded disdainful, but her ears perked up.

Xing Enxi nodded in understanding and swirled her glass, saying leisurely, “It’s actually pretty simple. Want to give it a try sometime? You can ride on the back with me.”

Wanqi Lang’s heart stirred, but she kept her face composed. “In your dreams. What if we crash? Can you afford to compensate?”

“If we crash,” Xing Enxi turned her face sideways and leaned in a bit closer, her voice dropping low and husky, “I’ll give you a massage.”

Wanqi Lang’s face heated up, and just as she opened her mouth to retort, a gentle female voice came from the bar’s entrance.

“Ah Lang?”

Both of them turned their heads at the same time.

Chen Zui stood in the doorway. Today she wore only a plain-colored dress, her long hair draped softly, her face made up lightly. Her eyes still held some complexity, but compared to her last hysterical outburst, she seemed like a completely different person.

She walked in, her steps a bit hesitant. Her gaze first went to Wanqi Lang, then quickly swept over Xing Enxi beside her whose shirt was a little wrinkled; her eyes dimmed a touch.

Chen Zui stopped a few steps from the bar, her voice clear and sincere. “Lang, I’m sorry. I came here today specifically to apologize to you in person.”

Wanqi Lang and Xing Enxi both froze and set down their glasses.

Chen Zui took a deep breath and looked into Wanqi Lang’s eyes. “Last time I drank too much and wasn’t thinking straight. I said a lot of things I shouldn’t have and did some really over-the-top stuff.”

She paused, her face showing embarrassment and regret.

“I caused trouble for you and Zhiwei. I’m truly very sorry. It won’t happen again. Can we still be friends?”

Wanqi Lang looked at this sober version of Chen Zui in front of her, and a pang of reluctance rose in her heart. She tugged at the corner of her mouth, picked up her glass for a sip, and her voice softened considerably. “It’s in the past. Just don’t get that drunk again.”

Chen Zui visibly relaxed with a sigh of relief, a smile of release spreading across her face. “Thank you, Lang.”

She turned to Xing Enxi and nodded politely. “Sorry for disturbing you too.”

Xing Enxi said nothing, just gave a faint nod.

“Then I’ll head out. You two take your time chatting.”

As Chen Zui turned to leave, Wanqi Lang’s mouth moved faster than her brain, and she called out habitually, “You’ve come all this way. Why not have a drink before you go?”

The words were out before she regretted them; she really wanted to slap herself.

To her surprise, Chen Zui’s eyes brightened, and she turned back happily. “Really? Sure!”

She hurried back and sat down.

Old Zhang swiftly slid over another Baileys.

The atmosphere turned a little delicate.

Chen Zui broke the silence first, smiling friendly at Xing Enxi. “Hi, nice to meet you. I’m Chen Zui.”

“Xing Enxi.” Xing Enxi nodded in response, her attitude calm and even.

Chen Zui took a sip of her drink and complimented her sincerely. “You’re really pretty.”

“Thanks. You too.” Xing Enxi returned the politeness and then, remembering something, asked casually, “You know Shen Zhiwei too?”

“Yeah,” Chen Zui smiled. “The three of us studied abroad together in the UK back then. Zhiwei was always so standoffish, keeping people at arm’s length, and Ah Lang spent every day scheming how to drag her out to bars. Too bad, she never succeeded once.”

Her tone was light, laced with nostalgia.

“Oh?” Xing Enxi perked up clearly. “She’s my boss.”

“Wow! Then you better watch out!” Chen Zui half-joked. “Zhiwei’s strict as a boss, right?”

“It’s okay. She’s very demanding professionally.” Xing Enxi smiled and relaxed.

Chen Zui opened up then. “Haha, back then…”

And just like that, the two women chatted about Shen Zhiwei across Wanqi Lang, growing more and more in sync, even laughing out loud now and then.

Wanqi Lang sat stuck in the middle, holding her glass and glancing left and right, completely unable to get a word in.

She wanted to say, “Don’t spill all those embarrassing old stories!” but she could not find an opening to butt in. She could only drink sullenly, feeling utterly frustrated inside, like she was the one who did not belong.

Wanqi Lang held that nearly empty glass of Baileys; the ice had almost all melted.

Her left ear caught, “Later Zhiwei got an A+ on her thesis…”

Her right ear heard, “After meetings at the company, she even straightens the angle of her coffee cup…”