"I like you, very, very much!"
The deep voice brimmed with sincerity, especially those black eyes like a black hole, crazily tearing at the girl, causing her to momentarily lose herself.
After a brief daze, the girl quickly came back to her senses, her pretty face turning as red as the rising sun, the blush spreading like wildfire.
"Y-you stop it! You clearly said... not until we got to college..."
"Come with me to North Street this afternoon."
Ye Fan's thin lips pressed together slightly. The main reason he suddenly said this was to disrupt Ning Xi's thoughts; otherwise, this girl would definitely be stubborn as always.
As for whether Ning Xi would agree to him?
He didn't dare to hope for too much!
The timing wasn't right—
"...Okay."
Over ten seconds later, Ning Xi responded in a barely audible voice, her thoughts already far from her studies.
"Ding-ling—"
As the class bell rang, Yang Ting walked into the classroom empty-handed. Just like the day before the last major exam, she merely reminded the students to pay attention to certain matters for tomorrow's test and then let them have a self-study session.
The morning passed quickly, and when the dismissal bell rang, the students of Class 2 had mostly left, leaving only a few scattered figures in the classroom.
"Xiao Xi."
Su Ke and Luo Yumeng walked over with their backpacks.
Ning Xi acted as if she hadn't heard them, resting her delicate hand on her chin, her head tilted slightly, lost in thought.
Luo Yumeng waved her hand in front of Ning Xi's face and said, "Big Miss Ning, you haven't studied yourself silly, have you?"
"Huh?"
Only then did Ning Xi realize the presence of the two girls. She immediately felt a bit embarrassed. "I was just thinking about something. What's up?"
"Let's go shopping this afternoon instead of going to class, okay?"
Su Ke said with a cheerful smile, "Studying so hard isn't always a good thing. You need to relax when it's time to relax. Besides, we haven't gone shopping together for a long time. Since we have time this afternoon, let's go out and have some fun!"
"I..."
"You're too late."
Just as Ning Xi was about to speak, Ye Fan interrupted and replied first, "I've already asked Xiao Xi to go out with me this afternoon. You'll have to do it another day."
"..."
"..."
Su Ke and Luo Yumeng were rendered speechless. After spending so much time discussing where to go this afternoon, they didn't expect this to be the result.
Luo Yumeng glared at him indignantly. "Why? Xiao Xi isn't your personal possession. For all you know, she might want to go shopping with us instead."
"She doesn't."
Ye Fan shook his head indifferently.
"You..."
"Yumeng, you and Keke should go have fun this afternoon."
Ning Xi sneaked a glance at Ye Fan, biting her lip before softly apologizing to her friends, "I... I've already promised Ye Fan. I can't break my word. Next time, I'll definitely go shopping with you."
Not only was Luo Yumeng stunned, but even Su Ke looked visibly surprised.
Rejected!!!
"Ahem—"
Su Ke tentatively asked, "Xiao Xi, how about this—we all go together, the four of us?"
"Yes, yes!"
Luo Yumeng nodded repeatedly, looking pitifully at Ning Xi. "You wouldn't want to leave Keke and me behind, would you? Let's go together, okay? Ye Fan definitely won't mind!"
"I mind."
"..."
"..."
"..."
The three girls all turned their gaze to Ye Fan, none of them expecting him to say such a thing.
"What's there for a grown man like you to mind?"
Luo Yumeng was so angry she nearly ground her teeth, looking as if she wanted to eat Ye Fan alive.
Ye Fan calmly closed his book, picked up his bag, and started tidying up Ning Xi's study materials. As he packed up, he said, "It has nothing to do with gender. I just mind. You two can go wherever you want to play, but why interfere with Xiao Xi and me?"
"Stop talking nonsense!"
Ning Xi kicked Ye Fan lightly and gave an apologetic smile to the two girls. In a soft voice, she explained, "Don't listen to him. He doesn't call the shots. We're going to North Street this afternoon. Let's all go together, okay?"
"Okay!"
"Perfect! I'll go home and get ready now. Let's meet at the usual spot."
Luo Yumeng threw out these words, grabbed Su Ke, and left the classroom, leaving Ye Fan sitting there sulking.
What the—?!
How great would a sweet afternoon date for two have been? Now, out of nowhere, there were two extra third wheels.
He was utterly speechless...
Sensing Ye Fan's mood, Ning Xi tugged on his arm gently, her sweet, soft voice carrying a hint of coquettishness. "Come on, just let Keke and Yumeng come with us."
"Xiao Xi."
"Hmm?"
"If we ever end up together in the future, does that mean I won't have any say?"
"..."
Ning Xi was instantly petrified.
Together?
What was he talking about?!
She... she hadn't even thought about that yet!
How did it jump to this topic?
"Y-you stop joking around! Who said I'd end up with you?"
Ye Fan said nothing, only smiled and continued packing up. Because there were still some students cleaning the classroom, he simply followed behind Ning Xi when they left, refraining from holding her hand like he usually did.
It was close!
Once they got to college, they wouldn't need to worry about all these restrictions anymore.
...
A little after one in the afternoon, at the entrance of North Street, stood one man and three girls.
All four were wearing masks, but the youthful beauty of the three girls was undeniable. Especially Ning Xi, dressed in a tea-colored long dress. Its simple design didn't detract in the least from her clean and elegant temperament.
"Damn, this guy is a legend!"
"One guy with three girls shopping—why doesn't he just go to heaven?!"
"Look at the girl in the long dress. Tsk, tsk, she must be a stunner."
...
The four of them had just walked into North Street when they instantly attracted a lot of attention.
By reflex, Ning Xi moved a little closer to Ye Fan's side. She wasn't very comfortable with these scrutinizing gazes.
Su Ke and Luo Yumeng, on the other hand, were completely unaffected, brimming with excitement as they chattered about this and that.
"Give me your hand."
Seeing the girl stick close to him, a smile flickered in Ye Fan's eyes. Leaning in close to her ear, he spoke softly.
Ning Xi shook her head repeatedly, her earlobes turning red as she nervously glanced at the two girls in front of them and whispered, "Keke and Yumeng are still here; we can't do that..."
Holding hands with Ye Fan in front of her best friends?
She'd die!!!
But...
In this environment, she did kind of want him to hold her hand.
"What are you afraid of?"
Ye Fan paid no heed to Ning Xi's refusal. Taking her hand firmly, he reassured her in a low voice, "Xiao Xi, do you think those two are stupid? Do you really think that just because we don't hold hands, they can't tell what's going on between us?"
"What's going on between us?"
Ning Xi struggled briefly, her eyes filled with embarrassment, and muttered to herself, "We're just good friends, nothing... nothing else!"
"Nothing else?"
Ye Fan raised an eyebrow with a half-smile. "Are you sure there's nothing else?"
"N-no, there isn't!"
Ning Xi turned her head away, avoiding Ye Fan's gaze. However, her pale neck had already turned pink.
"Xiao Xi! Xiao Xi! Come look at this!"