Little Fish and Mint - Chapter 9

Xu Yitong’s back pressed against the door, a small gasp escaping her lips. Her mind went blank.

If he hadn’t been standing right there, she would have thought she’d imagined it.

The hallway buzzed with activity as the winning team exited the arena, their laughter and chatter echoing around her.

The bright overhead lights shone on Yu Ge, silencing the surrounding noise.

Xu Yitong swallowed, feeling lightheaded.

Under Yu Ge’s steady gaze, time seemed to stop. It took a moment for her to react.

“Were you… calling me?” she asked, her voice faint and hesitant.

A few staff members passed by, glancing curiously at Yu Ge and the woman standing outside the TG room.

“Your umbrella,” he said, his voice as direct and emotionless as ever, cutting straight to the point.

“My umbrella…” she repeated slowly, then her voice suddenly rose. “Oh! Right! My umbrella!” She stared at him, amazed that he remembered.

Xu Yitong felt a surge of joy, a touch of smugness.

He remembered her name and her umbrella.

Tilting her head, she gave a sly, victorious smile. “I almost forgot about it.”

Yu Ge frowned slightly. “How much?”

“How much what?” she asked, confused.

…

Inside the OG room:

“Dude, you really need to lose weight,” Awen circled Little C, shaking his head. “Your butt is huge.”

“Is it?” Little C looked down at himself, surprised. “I think it’s fine.”

“Then how did you manage to crush all of Fish’s cookies with your butt?”

“And his ugly umbrella,” Will added helpfully.

Awen chuckled. “Did you see Fish’s face? He kept checking that broken umbrella.”

“I didn’t see his bag! I didn’t sit on it on purpose!” Little C protested. “Besides, it’s just an ugly umbrella. Fish won’t be mad. You underestimate our bot lane bond!”

Will’s lips twitched. “If Fish checked a broken umbrella, he must have cared. If you died in front of him, he wouldn’t even blink.”

…

Xu Yitong waited for Yu Ge to continue.

He was usually so decisive.

But now, she saw a flicker of… hesitation?

She looked at him curiously.

After a moment of silence, he said simply, “Your umbrella is broken.”

“Oh…”

So that’s it, she thought, deflated. I was so happy for nothing.

“I… I liked that umbrella,” she said sadly.

“Sorry,” Yu Ge unlocked his phone. “How much? I’ll pay you.”

“No, no, it’s fine,” she stopped him. “And you don’t have to apologize. You didn’t even want it. I forced it on you because I didn’t want you to get rained on and catch a cold. It’s not your fault it’s broken.”

Her response was both magnanimous and subtly conveyed her sense of being wronged, a perfectly balanced performance.

Xu Yitong was pleased with herself.

So smooth, Xu Yitong! she thought. Would Yu Ge, guilt-ridden, agree to a date?

She snuck a glance at him.

Yu Ge paused, wondering why she’d given such a long answer to a simple question.

He also wondered why he was bothering to discuss a broken umbrella with her.

He looked away. “I’ll be going then.”

“Wait!” She panicked. “I’m not finished!”

He stopped, turning slightly. “What?”

Xu Yitong’s face flushed, then paled. She was so frustrated she wanted to scream.

He must have been a cod in the Antarctic in his past life! she thought. There’s no one colder than him!

He waited patiently. “What is it?” he asked again.

“I…”

How could she express her desire to spend more time with him, to hint at a date?

Her mind raced. “I… I want to see how badly the umbrella is broken. Maybe it can be fixed. It was a gift from my mom…” She lied, looking away. “It… it means a lot to me.”

He remained silent.

She gauged his reaction. “Could you… show it to me?”

Silence.

She lowered her hand, stepping aside dejectedly. “It’s okay, if it’s too much trouble…”

“The room.”

“Huh?”

Seeing her confusion, he said, his tone still flat, “Are you coming or not?”

？

！！！

Xu Yitong stared at him, then quickly caught up. “Yes! Of course!”

She giggled.

He glanced at her.

Xu Yitong, forgetting all about the “important” umbrella, and even his glance, was lost in her own happy world, practically skipping down the hallway.

As for her unfortunate cousin, she’d completely forgotten about him.

It was Chen Yuzheng’s fault for losing, not Yu Ge’s, and certainly not hers.

Given a choice between her cousin and Yu Ge, she’d choose Little Fish any day.

A smile spread across her face.

✧✧✧

Awen, scrolling through Tieba, didn’t look up when Yu Ge entered the OG room.

The manager paced, talking on the phone. Little C and Will munched on chips, discussing the match.

A moment later, Xu Yitong leaned against the doorframe, peeking in with a cheerful smile. “Hi! Can I come in?”

Everyone stopped what they were doing and stared.

Little C’s jaw dropped.

What’s going on? they all wondered. Fish brought a girl back… No one dared to ask.

Xu Yitong, unfazed by the attention, wondered why they were so surprised. They’d met before.

Yu Ge paused, glancing around, his brow furrowed. “What are you looking at?”

Little C stammered, pointing at Xu Yitong. “This… this… her?”

…

Little C, watching Xu Yitong examine the umbrella, said guiltily, “So this, um…”

He corrected himself. “This… lovely umbrella is yours.”

“You sat on it?” She looked at the broken ribs.

“Yeah…” he said nervously. “Where did you buy it? I’ll get you a new one.”

“It’s okay,” she said softly.

“How much was it? I’ll pay.”

“It wasn’t expensive,” she’d lied earlier, so she continued the charade. “It was a gift, so I just wanted to see if it could be fixed.”

Worried she sounded too serious, she added, “Really, it’s fine. If you feel bad, just buy me a milk tea.”

“Oh…”

Little C, inexperienced with women, blurted out, “How about dinner?”

“…” Xu Yitong looked awkward.

Awen coughed loudly.

Will smacked Little C’s head. “What are you doing?”

Realizing his mistake, Little C quickly clarified, “I meant… with everyone…”

“Sure!” Xu Yitong beamed. “Let me know when you’re free.”

“We’re free today,” Little C said without thinking.

Everyone fell silent.

Xu Yitong glanced at Yu Ge, then said hesitantly, “Okay…?”

✧✧✧

Xu Yitong had never imagined that after all her efforts—the handmade gift, the roses from the Gobi, Moli’s scheming—it would be a broken umbrella and a couple of white lies that finally got her into the OG inner circle.

The fortune teller had been right. Fate was on her side.

She followed them out of the stadium through a back exit.

A crowd of fans waited outside.

Keeping her distance, she lagged behind.

Roy slowed down. “I messaged Yiyi. She’ll be joining us.”

“Oh?”

He lowered his voice. “So you won’t be the only girl having dinner with a bunch of guys.”

Touched, Xu Yitong’s eyes sparkled. “You’re so thoughtful! Not only are you a great player, but you’re also so nice! No wonder Yiyi is your girlfriend.”

She was always generous with her praise. “People with girlfriends are so good at taking care of girls!”

Roy, embarrassed, scratched his head. “Well, Fish has a sister, and Yu Nuo’s often with us. He tells us to be considerate. It’s a habit now.”

“I see.”

I wish I had a brother like that, she thought wistfully.

As they exited, the fans swarmed them.

Security struggled to maintain order. “Be careful! Don’t push!”

Fans held up their phones, recording. Xu Yitong slipped away and boarded the team bus with a staff member.

She looked back.

Yu Ge was signing autographs.

Most OG fans were young girls, similar to the fan groups she’d seen online.

She wondered if these fans knew how kind and decent their idols were off-stage. They should feel lucky.

✧✧✧

The bus was quiet.

Exhausted from the match, most of the team was asleep.

Xu Yitong sat in the second-to-last row.

Yu Ge was diagonally ahead, across the aisle.

It was dark now. The city lights flickered outside.

He leaned against the window, asleep, his red and white jersey slightly rumpled, his hair falling across his forehead, softening his usually sharp features. He looked peaceful, gentle.

Xu Yitong felt a warmth in her chest.

She opened her bag.

An art student, she always carried a sketchbook and pencils. She found a blank page.

Resting the sketchbook on her lap, she carefully observed Yu Ge, then began to draw.

…

Her phone vibrated. A WeChat message. She paused, checking her phone.

Conquer: [Where are you?]

She put down her pencil and quickly replied: [Left.]

Conquer: [?]

Conquer: [Aren’t we having dinner?]

She thought for a moment, then typed:

Happy Zhenzhen: [Going to Second Uncle’s for dinner. Just remembered.]

She put her phone away, ignoring him.

She held up her drawing, admiring it with a satisfied nod.

…

As the bus entered the city, traffic slowed. A sudden brake jolted everyone awake.

“What happened?” Hui-ge asked.

“Nothing. A dog ran across the road,” the driver replied.

Seeing Yu Ge awake, Xu Yitong glanced around, then quietly stood up.

He looked at her sleepily, seemingly still half-asleep.

She hesitated, then crouched in the aisle, leaning towards him. “Here,” she whispered, offering him the drawing.

In her nervousness, she also handed him her pencil.

He sat up properly and took them.

He looked down at the drawing.

A rainy beach. SpongeBob, with large eyes and long eyelashes, crouched on the sand, holding a wilting lotus leaf umbrella over a beached Little Fish.

She watched him, then at the drawing.

“Want an autograph?” he asked.

Her heart pounding, she missed what he said, replying nonsensically, “Little Fish is sleeping on the beach.”

He still seemed confused, still half-asleep. He looked at the pencil she’d given him, then signed his name beneath the beached fish.

—Fish.