Even if I racked my brains, there was no way I could persuade him. Chen Qiao Luo was just that kind of person—no matter how much you reasoned with him for his own good, if he didn’t want to change, there was nothing you could do.
When I got home, Dad hadn’t returned from work yet. I gave him a call to let him know I’d be eating out, then went to the bathroom to freshen up. By the time I came out, the neon lights outside had already begun to glow faintly. I checked the time, grabbed my bag and keys, and headed out.
By the time I arrived, Chen Qiao Luo was already waiting for me. It was close to 8 p.m., and the entire street was filled with the tantalizing aroma of food. We found a spot in one of the restaurants, though the place was already packed.
This street, near our school, was A City’s famous night market street, and the restaurant was so crowded it felt like there wasn’t an inch of space left.
As he was ordering, Chen Qiao Luo grumbled, “Good thing I know the owner of this place and had him save us a table. Otherwise, we’d have been waiting all night.”
“Chen Qiao Luo, you’re amazing,” I said with a laugh.
Hearing that, he looked at me as if I’d just said something unbelievable. After a moment, he awkwardly replied, “Zhu Yun Hao, don’t say that—I don’t deserve it.”
“Hmph.” I rolled my eyes at him and called out, “I want grilled eggplant, and twenty lamb skewers!”
“Zhu Yun Hao, were you a starving ghost in a past life? How can you eat so much?” he shouted.
“Shut up! Haven’t you ever seen a girl who can eat?” I shot him a disdainful glance and added, “Also, five potato skewers and an order of spicy rice cakes. Hurry up!”
Chen Qiao Luo was speechless for a while before finally saying, “Zhu Yun Hao, I surrender.”
There’s nothing better in the summer than eating skewers and drinking beer. But perhaps my drunken antics last time had traumatized him—this time, he firmly refused to let me drink, ordering me a bottle of coconut water instead.
I mocked his unfair treatment but still ate to my heart’s content.
I hadn’t expected to run into Gu Yu there. He seemed to have just finished evening self-study and was out buying food with his classmates. Considering the awkwardness between us after my confession had been rejected, my first instinct was to flee, afraid he’d notice me.
But the restaurant was small, and just a casual glance was enough to spot everyone inside.
At that moment, Chen Qiao Luo noticed Gu Yu too. He froze, then, like me, quickly ducked his head.
We both sat there like people hiding from debt collectors, only relaxing after Gu Yu finally left.
“Thank goodness he didn’t see us,” I exhaled in relief and took another bite of my skewer.
Unusually, Chen Qiao Luo didn’t chime in. I turned to look at him, puzzled, and saw that he seemed lost in thought.
“Hey, Chen Qiao Luo!” I called out.
“Huh?” He jolted as if startled and looked at me in confusion. “What’s up?”
“Nothing much, but you seem a bit off,” I said, frowning in suspicion.
“It’s nothing,” he muttered, poking at his bowl with his chopsticks. Then he said, “Zhu Yun Hao, I have something to take care of, so I’ll leave first. Be careful on your way home later.”
“Huh?”
Before I could react, Chen Qiao Luo had already stood up and headed out, his name drowned in the noise of the crowd as I tried to call after him.
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