"How long are you going to stay?" Xu Lingwei asked.
They were the only ones left in the archery range. Hua Rong had asked the guard to let them stay, and since then, she had been practicing nonstop.
"Just two or three more times," she replied, drawing another arrow. Her shots still weren't perfect, but they were far better than before.
Xu Lingwei waited. He didn't know why, but he did. He still hadn't texted Yueming, his driver, to come pick him up.
Ten, or fifteen minutes passed. Finally, Hua Rong was done.
"Did you text?" she asked, packing her archery set.
"Wait," Xu Lingwei muttered as he finally pulled out his phone.
"How long will it take to get here?"
"Fifteen to twenty minutes," he answered.
"So, what do we do now?" she asked.
"What do you mean? I'll wait outside the institute," he said casually.
She frowned, looking slightly disappointed. Before he could react, she stepped forward and snatched his backpack from his hand.
"Why wait outside when we can wait inside?" she said with a smirk.
Xu Lingwei raised a brow. "Are you going to stay here with me till then?"
Hua Rong crossed her arms. "Why? Didn't you do the same for me?"
She was right. So, they waited.
Or at least, he waited. She was anything but still. Within five minutes, she was already restless, pacing back and forth like a caged animal. Then, suddenly, she stopped and turned to him with a mischievous grin
"Hey, let's dance!" Hua Rong suddenly said, eyes glinting with mischief.
Xu Lingwei blinked in surprise. "What?"
She extended her hand toward him, her expression daring.
"Do you want me to watch you dance?" he asked, still trying to understand where this was coming from.
"No, dummy! I mean together!" Hua Rong clarified.
His brows furrowed. "Together?"
"Yeah! You know, like when two people actually dance together," she said, stepping closer.
Xu Lingwei averted his gaze, reluctant. "I don't know how to dance like that."
Hua Rong huffed dramatically. "I know! I've seen it on TV! It's easy."
And before he could argue, she grabbed his hand and pulled him toward her. Their fingers interlocked for a moment, her touch warm and insistent.
At first, she took the lead—awkwardly, yet confidently—guiding him through a slow, playful rhythm. But her movements were slightly off, her steps uncertain, and after a few beats, Xu Lingwei couldn't take it anymore.
"You have no idea what you're doing, do you?" he murmured, his lips twitching with amusement.
Hua Rong scowled. "I do! I just—"
Before she could finish, he smoothly turned her around, shifting the momentum. His hand slid to her waist, firm yet gentle, and in an instant, he took control.
The hesitation in her steps disappeared. She let him lead.
Their movements became fluid, and natural. Xu Lingwei twirled her again, their bodies moving in sync. Hua Rong, who had started this whole thing on a whim, found herself caught up in the moment. The air between them grew lighter, the dance more effortless.
A small, breathless laugh escaped her lips.
"Not bad, Lingwei."
"Obviously." His smirk was teasing, but there was something softer in his eyes now.
Then, just as she thought she had a grip on things, he suddenly spun her one last time—this time pulling her in, his arm wrapping around her waist as he dipped her low.
Hua Rong gasped, her hands gripping onto his shoulders for balance. Their faces were inches apart, the faintest hint of his breath brushing against her cheek.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Neither of them moved.
And then—
Laughter.
Not just hers, but his too. The tension that had lingered between them dissolved into warm amusement, filling the empty archery range.
Just then, a voice interrupted them.
"Lingwei, the car is here. Let's go."
Xu Lingwei's head snapped up, and his expression shifted.
Standing a few feet away was Tang Moyu.
Her eyes, dark and unreadable, were locked onto them. Hua Rong quickly straightened, brushing her hair back, the warmth of the dance fading under Tang Moyu's gaze. The lightheartedness from seconds ago vanished.
Hua Rong forced a small smile. "See you tomorrow?" she asked, her voice quieter than before.
Xu Lingwei hesitated but nodded. "Yeah."
With that, she turned and walked away.
As he headed toward the car, Xu Lingwei glanced at Tang Moyu, sensing the tension radiating from her.
"Why are you here?" he asked.
Tang Moyu didn't look at him immediately. Instead, she exhaled, her tone unreadable. "I was waiting for you at your house, but you never came home. Then I heard Yueming was picking you up, so I tagged along."
Her voice was calm, but there was something off.
Something cold.
Xu Lingwei didn't respond. He could feel her gaze on him, expectant, as if she wanted him to explain.
He didn't.
Without another word, they got into the car, but the air between them was far from lighthearted. Tang Moyu remained quiet, looking out the window, but her fingers curled into a fist on her lap.
And Xu Lingwei?
For some reason, his thoughts lingered on the warmth of Hua Rong's hand in his.
.....
Hua Rong ran down the second-floor railing, spotting Xu Lingwei lounging on the elevated platform of the studio, casually sipping water.
He barely glanced at her before smirking. "You're late today."
She frowned, slowing her steps. "What do you mean?"
His smirk deepened. "I know you come here every day before heading to the dormitory—to watch me."
Hua Rong's face twitched. "It's not watching!" She crossed her arms. "I just… come to check if you're here or not!"
"And why do you need to check that?"
Her mouth opened, but no good excuse came to mind. "Because—I eat! And I have to close the door! If you don't leave early, then how will I—"
Oh god. That sounded so dumb.
Xu Lingwei chuckled. "Fine." Then, as if that embarrassment wasn't enough, he asked, "So, why were you late today?"
Hua Rong hesitated, then muttered, "I stopped by the art room."
Her own answer annoyed her. Why am I even explaining myself?!
She quickly scowled. "That has nothing to do with you!"
Xu Lingwei only laughed, but Hua Rong's eyes flicked downward—stopping at his watch.
Her brows furrowed. "Why do you always wear that?"
Xu Lingwei raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, during practice, we're allowed to take it off. Most people do."
He smirked. "But I don't need to."
Hua Rong crossed her arms. "And why is that?"
Xu Lingwei leaned forward slightly. "Don't tell me you don't know?"
She scowled. "Just say it already."
He chuckled before explaining. "The system uses the watches to monitor fights. It tracks heart rate, impact force, and movement patterns to determine who's attacking and who's getting hit."
Hua Rong narrowed her eyes. She already knew the watch calculated biometrics, but she had never understood how it could tell who was fighting whom.
Xu Lingwei continued. "During a match, both students' watches scan the surrounding area for active signals. The system links fighters together based on their proximity and movement patterns. Since it doesn't have eyes, it cross-references biometrics and spatial data to determine opponents."
That made sense—but then her mind flashed to an earlier incident.
Lin Zeyan and Bai Xinchen had fought last week.
There were no cameras in that gym. No direct witnesses expect her and Bai Xicnhen. But somehow, the system still managed to determine that Bai Xinchen had beaten Lin Zeyan and deducted Xinchen's points in seconds.
It wasn't magic. It was the watch.
"Wait." Hua Rong's brows furrowed. "So that means… even if there are no cameras, the watch can still track who's fighting?"
Xu Lingwei nodded. "Exactly. The watch compares everyone's vitals in the area and determines which two students are engaged. If 'someone' heart rate spiked while 'other' remained stable, the system assumed 'someone' was the one taking hits."
Hua Rong's mind raced. That was why Bai Xinchen lost so many points. His watch had registered him as the winner.
Xu Lingwei smirked. "The worse you get beaten, the fewer points you lose. The system assumes you were the victim. But if you're barely hurt, your points get deducted more—because it thinks you were the one initiating the fight."
Hua Rong's mind processed.
"It's the academy's rule." Xu Lingwei shrugged. "But that's why most people take their watches off when they practice. If they leave it on, even friendly spars could mess up their rankings."
"Then why don't you remove yours?"
His grin widened. "Because I always practice alone."
Realization struck her. If he was alone, his watch had no opponent to compare against. No opponent meant no deductions.
Hua Rong gaped at him. "You—you're cheating the system?!"
Xu Lingwei leaned back lazily. "No, I just love to mess with the system.'"
She smacked his arm. "You sneaky, arrogant—!"
Xu Lingwei just laughed. "What?"
"Nothing, just come back to the room early'' Hua Rong huffed.
Xu Lingwei smiled. "Yeah, i will."
And he watched her going back but in his mind, there was something else. he was thinking about why she was in the art room, he knew she was not into arts.